Chapter 1: Ordinary People, Ordinary Things
"The Zhuang people's marriage, like other ethnic groups, is also in two forms: free love and parental arrangement. Moreover, the Zhuang people have always practiced monogamy, and our current marriage law also has this provision. This ancient marriage system is very beneficial for the continuation of the excellent tradition of monogamy among the Zhuang people, and the law has given strong guarantees, so this system will certainly continue. Of course, in the Zhuang society, women and men have always been the labor force of the family, and their status in the family is equal, but only men have inheritance rights..."
"Come on, tell me quickly, is there anything special about marriage? Any special national customs or taboos?"
"In the marriage system, the Zhuang people have a tradition of 'not falling husband's house' also called 'sitting at home'. This custom is still thriving today, although it has undergone some changes. To be specific, after young couples get married, the bride returns to her natal family to live, and only temporarily moves to her husband's house during major festivals and busy farming seasons, until she becomes pregnant and then lives with her husband's family permanently."
"No wonder I said the Zhuang ethnic group has so many festivals, it turns out they're all for newlyweds to sit at home. Brother, are you and your wife going to stay at home too? Luckily my wife is an orphan and a Han Chinese, otherwise she'd be staying at home every other day and what's the point of getting married?" Zhang Yu smiled as he looked at his brother, who was dressed in bright red, on this joyous day that had finally come after so many years.
"I don't know, anyway I definitely can't take this torture, but let's respect the bride's parents' opinion! If we have to sit, it will actually help the newlyweds maintain a proper pace, so they won't become an old couple in just two years and that thing becomes dull and tasteless, which would be a big trouble!"
Zhang Yusheng is also someone who can't spit out ivory from his mouth. Seeing that his brother's wife's belly is already quite big, while his own daughter is still hesitating to get married, if it weren't for a sincere persuasion and ardent pursuit, I'm afraid they would have had to wait even longer. However, there's no need to envy Zhang Yu this little brat anymore, as he's also getting married today.
"That's also true, but you're the number one person in our autonomous region. We'll take a car together to pick up the bride, then register at the civil affairs bureau, and after returning home, there will be another banquet. This is considered getting married. You won't really plan to make it so low-key, right? The bride's parents would agree to let their daughter marry in such a humble way? It's said that Chinese people like to make a big fuss when marrying off their daughters, wanting the whole world to know that they're giving away their daughter on this day with great fanfare."
"You don't know, my sister-in-law's family situation is a bit special. Do you know why she didn't agree to marry me at first? The biggest obstacle was her father, this guy had some education and his brain was too active, he insisted that his daughter wasn't lucky enough to marry me, I had to persuade him hard to get him to agree. By the way, do you think I'm handsome?"
"You're a 37-year-old old man, and you still say you're handsome! Zhang Yu smiled wryly and looked his brother up and down from head to toe, nodding his head and saying: "I didn't expect it, but in the blink of an eye, we've been brothers for thirteen years. We're almost middle-aged now, and wrinkles are like a defeat that can't be wiped away, they've unknowingly crawled onto our faces. There will probably be more in the future, but it's okay now, you're married, and my baby is about to be born, we'll soon no longer be outsiders in this world!"
A thin mist still shrouded the mountains and green fields, when the first bird of dawn had just chirped out of its nest, when there was a faint sound of roosters crowing in the wilderness. A fleet of all-black "Huawei" cars had already sped through the green hills and waters at high speed. After leaving Liuzhou on the Liuyang-Guilin Expressway, the cars maintained a steady speed of 80 kilometers per hour, with buses, trucks, extra-long trailers, and sedans racing in the same direction on the main road. Even in the early morning, the traffic on the expressway was still flowing steadily.
"Unbelievable, really unbelievable! When we were still indulging in the industrial civilization, there was still a quiet paradise on earth. In the midst of lush mountains and green waters, songs echoed loudly, and in the simple countryside, people lived contentedly. If you have the chance, be sure to visit these places thoroughly, bring your wife and children, and live freely in this world."
"Don't just sit there admiring the scenery on both sides, I'm so nervous right now. Don't know if it's that thing called pre-marital jitters or what?" Zhang Yu Sheng wasn't sitting in that elaborately decorated wedding car at this moment, but was instead sitting in another car that looked almost exactly the same. However, because of the special occasion, Zhang Yu Sheng insisted on sitting together with his younger brother. After getting married, without parents or friends around, Zhang Yu became his only spiritual support."
"Don't worry, I've got everything under control. Isn't that right, Yu Ran?" Zhang Yu chuckled and kicked the back of the chair in front of him. This clever Yu Ran knew when to pretend to be a fool, but sometimes he needed Zhang Yu's special reminder to know when to speak up.
"Yes, the commander has already had a thorough investigation done. He knows how many birds will fly over this country road off the highway, how many turns and bridges there are. Today, no one will disturb your big wedding." Yu Ran wore a black suit, all he lacked was a pair of sunglasses to show his special identity. Having followed Zhang Yu for many years, he had learned many things, including being smooth-tongued.
"Did you hear that? Just be at ease as your new husband, if you're nervous, take a look at the mountain over there, with light mist swirling around and fog rising to the sky, don't you think there are immortals inside? Hurry up and pay respects!"
"I see you're not serious at all, but today is a big day for me so don't mess around. Let me tell you, the Zhuang ethnic group has the same eating habits as us Han people, having three meals a day, but some areas have four meals, however, don't think that my sister's family eats four meals, it's not your turn, which means you'd better pay attention to your current status."
"No fun!" Zhang Yu muttered, patting the head of Yan Ran in the front seat. The latter immediately understood what he meant and quickly handed over his briefcase. Zhang Yu soon started working in the car, taking care of both public and private matters without delay. However, Zhang Yusheng on the side was furious.
However, the Zhuang people's breakfast and lunch are relatively simple, usually eating porridge, while dinner is a more sumptuous main meal, often eating dry rice, with richer dishes. Common vegetables include cabbage, melon sprouts, melon leaves, bok choy, small bok choy, rape, mustard greens, lettuce, celery, spinach, broccoli, watercress, radish, and bitter melon greens; even bean leaves, sweet potato leaves, pumpkin sprouts, pumpkin flowers, and pea shoots can be used as vegetables. Boiling in water is the most common method, but there's also a habit of pickling, making dishes like sour cabbage, sour bamboo shoots, salty radish, and head cabbage. When almost done cooking, add lard and salt - it's really natural and green, just to your taste!
"I was thinking of asking if there's any big meat dishes to eat, I've had too much green food. My wife is always thinking about eating vegetarian dishes, even when she's pregnant, and doesn't care about the child, if it wasn't for my authority, she'd still be thinking about radish and cabbage. Don't pretend to be crazy in front of me, just seeing green vegetables makes me angry, say, is there anything special? Zhang Yu isn't not helping his brother, but as soon as he brought up this topic, Zhang Yusheng immediately relaxed, which already shows that Zhang Yu's method was effective. He immediately handed the document bag back to Yu Ran."
"Oh, this one. The Zhuang people do not prohibit the eating of any poultry or livestock meat, such as pork, beef, mutton, chicken, duck, goose, etc. Some areas do not eat dog meat, while some areas love to eat dog meat. Pork is also boiled in large chunks and then cut into small pieces, stir-fried with seasonings. The Zhuang people are accustomed to cooking fresh chicken, duck, fish, and vegetables until they are 70-80% cooked, and the dishes are quickly stir-fried in a hot wok to preserve their freshness. They also enjoy hunting and cooking wild game and insects, and are skilled at roasting, frying, stewing, pickling, and braising. They like spicy and numbing flavors with a slightly sour taste, and enjoy crispy fried dishes. Their signature dishes include: Spicy Blood Clam, Fire Meat, Zhuang-style Roast Duck, Salt Wind Liver, Crispy Fried Bee Larvae, Five-spice Bean Insect, Deep-fried Sand Insect, Skin Liver Paté, Ginger Wild Rabbit Meat, Stir-fried Three Seven Flower Chicken, and more..."
"You said that Uncle Zhang's family is quite wealthy, right? Will all these specialty dishes be served today? It can't be that he's stingy about food just because his daughter is getting married! By the way, are there any wines or spirits made from grains? That would be great." Zhang Yu continued to chat with his older brother as time slowly passed by, and their car convoy naturally got closer to their destination, causing Zhang Yusen's tension to ease up.
"There are, but they're mostly rice wine, sweet potato wine and cassava wine, none of which have a very high alcohol content. Rice wine is the main drink for festivals and entertaining guests. Some people mix rice wine with chicken gallbladder to make "chicken gallbladder wine", or with chicken giblets to make "chicken giblet wine", or with pig liver to make "pig liver wine". When drinking chicken giblet wine or pig liver wine, you have to drink it all in one go, and then slowly chew the leftover chicken giblets or pig liver in your mouth. This can help sober you up, and also serves as a dish. The Zhuang people also have many famous dishes and snacks, such as horse hoof tendon, raw fish, roasted suckling pig, fragrant glutinous rice, Ningming Zhuang zongzi, champion's rice balls, white-cut dog meat, Zhuang-style crispy chicken, clear-stewed broken-face dog, Longpump three-layered pastry, etc."
"Brother, are these roasted suckling pigs just snacks? Is this a mistake? Something so super delicious is actually just a snack?"
"What's wrong, I'm talking about famous dishes and snacks, roasted suckling pig is a famous dish, where are the snacks, you silly!" It's said that when people get nervous, they feel time passing slowly, especially when they're bored. With something to talk about, the welcoming team arrived at their destination "very quickly", a small village of Zhuang ethnic minority in Liujiang County, Liuzhou City.
The Zhuang people's houses can be divided into different categories based on geographical location. Those living in the basin areas and near towns have houses that are mostly brick-wood structures, with white-washed exterior walls and decorative patterns painted on the eaves. In contrast, those living in remote mountainous areas, such as the villages of Guangxi's Longji, have houses that are mostly earth-wood structures, either tiled or thatched, with two main styles: semi-dry bar and fully-grounded.
The ganlan is also called the wooden building or the hanging foot building. The Zhuang, Dong, Yao, Miao and Han ethnic groups all have this type of building, mostly two-story. The upper floor is generally three or five rooms for living. The lower floor is the wooden pillar foot, often made of bamboo strips and wooden boards inlaid as walls, which can be used as a cattle shed or for storing farm tools, firewood and miscellaneous items. Some also have attics and annex buildings. Generally, ganlan are built on hillsides facing fields. A village is a group, both majestic and magnificent. In some villages, every household is connected to each other, forming a whole, just like one big family. The layout of the rooms has its own characteristics in different places.
Yang Zixuan's home was in a large mountain village, where the only vehicles that had been seen for a long time were engineering cars building roads and small vendors coming to buy goods during harvest season. It was rare to see such a large fleet of cars, all of which were luxury cars. This village had never welcomed a Rolls-Royce before, except for a few Volkswagen Beetles.
The news of the village's famous talented woman getting married had spread far and wide, and the entire mountain stronghold had been preparing for several days in advance. As soon as the wedding procession entered the stronghold with a long blast of car horns, everyone stopped what they were doing. The children who hadn't reached school age yet and some elderly people were the first to walk out of the stronghold to welcome them, followed by the villagers who were helping with the banquet preparations. Everyone lined up along the clean cement road leading into the stronghold, and after a series of ceremonial greetings from the village head, the procession entered the stronghold with a splash, its black cars glistening like mirrors reflecting the smiling faces of the crowd...
"Proceed with the first plan, immediately contact the squad that has arrived and confirm the current peripheral security situation." Zhang Yu was already doing his own thing before getting off the car. For big brother's wedding, these were also his things to do. After thinking for a moment, he continued, "Also, this village is backed by mountains and faces water, with dense forests and thick grass behind the mountain. Send more people in to search, and guard the necessary small paths. Today it's up to you, Yu Ran. And, groom officer, it's time for you to take action."
The Zhuang people's clothing is mainly blue, black and brown. Zhuang women have the habit of planting cotton and spinning yarn. Spinning, weaving and dyeing are a family handicraft industry. The cloth woven from self-cultivated and self-spun cotton yarn is called "home machine", which is thick, durable and wear-resistant, and then dyed blue, black or brown. A kind of herb called "dai qing" is used to dye the cloth blue or green, while a fish pond is used to dye the cloth black, and sweet potato stems can be used to dye the cloth brown. As soon as Zhang Yu got off the car, he found that everyone in the village was dressed up today. Zhang Yu has been mixed with Guangxi for so many days, although he hasn't studied food thoroughly, but clothes are still distinguishable.
The Zhuang women's clothing has two types of men's clothing, right collar and symmetrical collar. The right collar shirt is sleeveless and has no collar, with buttons from the right armpit to the waist and then turning to the middle, opening out three or four inches and stopping. The collar is embroidered with a wide colored fabric border, using copper buttons, and tied with a long waistband. The symmetrical collar opens at the chest, and is a tight-fitting shirt that reaches only to the navel, which is worn during labor. Women's clothing has no collar and right collar, but the sleeves are slightly larger than men's clothing, wide and nearly a foot long, reaching the knees, with embroidered edges and borders of varying widths, generally above two or three lines. The shoulder is lined with fabric on the inside, with three seams, called "sleeveless shirt". Men's and women's shirts have copper buttons or fabric buttons. Men's and women's pants are basically the same style, with cuffed hems, commonly known as "cow head pants". Married women have embroidered flower edges on their belly wraps, with a tassel-shaped tube hanging from the left side of the waistband, connected to the key, making a "sha la sheng" sound when walking. Men's formal wear is usually worn with a long gown, with a short jacket on top, commonly known as "long shirt with horse jacket", originally wearing a round hat on the head, later changed to wearing a bowler hat.
The Zhuang unmarried women like long hair, with bangs to distinguish between married and unmarried. They usually comb the left side of their hair to the right side about three to seven parts, using a hairpin or something similar to fix it, or braid a long braid, tie a colored ribbon at the end of the braid, and fix the braid on top of the head when working. Married women, on the other hand, comb their hair into a dragon-phoenix bun, gathering their hair from back to front into a chicken-like (phoenix) shape, and insert silver or bone horizontal pins.
Both men and women wear cloth shoes. Middle-aged women love to wear their own cat ear cloth shoes when going up the mountain to work, commonly known as "shoe cats", resembling straw sandals with ears and heels, tied together with a flat strap, adjustable for looseness. Zhang Yu couldn't help but glance around too many times, watching as the crowd noisily surrounded Zhang Yusheng entering his uncle's house, which was said to be quite wealthy. These people only had the privilege of staying outside the door, and should have stayed outside, sitting on the bench waiting for news.
"How's it going? Is everything arranged?" Zhang Yu didn't drag on the conversation with the village chief for too long, and soon the village chief was also excitedly busy with the new official. The remaining Zhang Yu sat alone there, waiting for good news from Zhang Yusheng. Seeing You Ran return after completing his task, Zhang Yu naturally asked him.
"It's all arranged, most of the villagers have gone to bother the village chief about this matter. This Yang family marrying off their daughter is currently the biggest thing in the village." Yu Ran looked around and said with a smile: "General Commander, from what I see, the village has already adjusted the relevant etiquette to a great extent, our welcoming ceremony can be considered very simple. However, the host family won't cut corners on the banquet, this is a taboo for the Zhuang people's family, so we can't get away with it for now, and we will definitely have to eat."
"What to say? Whether or not to eat rice is actually not a big deal... You also sit down! The Zhuang nationality is a hospitable nation, in the past when guests came to any Zhuang village, they were considered to be guests of the whole village. Often several families would take turns inviting them to dinner, sometimes eating at five or six different homes for one meal. Usually there was a custom of mutual visits between families, such as when one family slaughtered a pig, they would definitely invite every household in the village to send someone over and share a meal together. When treating guests, the dining table must be prepared with wine, which is a sign of respect. The custom of toasting is called 'drinking cross-cups', actually it's not cups that are used, but rather white ceramic spoons..."
Zhang Yu naturally understood the Zhuang people, who were the most populous ethnic group in Guangxi. He smiled and took over the conversation, saying: "That's right, when guests arrive at a Zhuang person's home, the host will provide them with the best food and accommodation possible. They are especially enthusiastic towards elderly guests and new visitors. Look, aren't those old men over there busy preparing delicious food?"
"Oh, right! Anyway, when we have dinner later, we must wait for the oldest elder to take their seat before we can start eating. The dishes that the elders haven't touched yet, the younger ones cannot eat first; When serving tea and rice to the elders and guests, you must use both hands to present it, and you cannot pass it from in front of the guest or behind the elder's back. Those who finish eating first must say 'slow down' to the elders and guests one by one before leaving their seats, and the younger ones cannot be the last to eat at the table. All the brothers who are not on duty are called to join in the fun, where can there be any danger here? The biggest danger is that if you don't open your stomach to eat, it will make the host unhappy, and if they don't marry their daughter to us, that would be a great sin!"
"Besides, it's been a while, let's talk about you or this team! You've been with me for over four years now. Xie Yi that kid did well in military school, and I think you should also go learn something. I was thinking, you're already 28 this year, being my lifelong bodyguard and assistant is not a bad thing, but I can see you have better prospects ahead of you. If you stay with me, the highest rank you'll get is probably just one star general..."
Zhang Yu's words have already made it very clear that Zhang Yusheng's assistants are generally replaced every two years. Assistants who have learned the skills will soon be dispatched to do things, and the most outstanding people have already reached the position of mayor, their talents have been given a larger platform to display, and what they have learned and thought has been directly demonstrated, while Zhang Yu's side...
"Commander, I understand what you're saying. I know you care about me, but I don't think that way. Honestly, I don't think that way." Yu Ran had of course thought about his own future. If he continued to stay by Zhang Wu's side, as the captain of the Imperial Guard, he would eventually be unable to handle this arduous task. Someone would be stronger and more capable of protecting the leader than him. If the army was a collective of hot-blooded men, then the Imperial Guard was a hall of elite warriors, but also their graveyard. A warrior's value lay on the battlefield; those who had not experienced blood and fire in the Imperial Guard could not understand where their value lay.
"How far a person can go depends on who they travel with; how excellent a person can be depends on who guides them; how successful a person can be depends on who accompanies them. I have always seen that you are passionate about the military and dedicated to serving, your heart is like many people in the Imperial Guard, yearning for the fiery barracks, sincere ambition, but the Imperial Guard, which is only as big as one battalion, is obviously too small and not suitable for you, nor is it suitable for some people inside. Xie Yi is my attempt to give you a better future, just like our upcoming military reform, to fulfill the dreams of more people and satisfy the wishes of more people."
"Actually, the team members are very proud to be selected for the inner guard, but over a long period of time we have been living in a state of tension with no actual combat, so there must be emotions. After all, soldiers have always been hot-blooded men, just like the warmongers you mention, but at the same time they are worried about real battles. In short, in these contradictory days we have already gone through several years, just like our people's military old policy, times are progressing, people's minds are changing, new military reforms will inevitably replace the old system..."
"Haha, it seems you've learned a lot. Zhang Yu stood up and patted Yan Ran's shoulder, saying: "It's not the real bad guys that are scary, but the fake good ones. I've always been a big bad guy, and I'm sure this military reform will separate many comrades who have been together for years. This great sinner is definitely going to be me, no matter what. The big bosses won't hide their words in their hearts, and men's brotherly friendship is a special feeling that can't be explained... We've carried guns together, squatted in trenches, fought battles... I'll thoroughly reform the army, not for you or me!"
"Commander, if it must be done, I believe every soldier will resolutely execute the order, including myself." Yu Ran stood up, gave Zhang Yu a salute, and followed him into the courtyard to prepare for the wedding banquet. This might also be the last time he and some of his Imperial Guard members would have dinner with Zhang Yu, as they would no longer be part of the Imperial Guard after the reform. They would be reassigned to field troops, military academies, and other places where their presence would be required due to the inevitable reforms.
The wedding ceremony was mostly centered around the groom, and even though the bride's side was more troublesome, there was an end to it. Everything went as Zhang Yu had expected. He really didn't eat much and the lively wedding banquet lasted until 2 pm before ending. On the way back, Zhang Yu Sheng no longer rode in the same car as Zhang Yu. With his new wife by his side, he happily sat in another car, while Zhang Yu was fortunate enough to ride with Zhang Yu Sheng's parents-in-law. The motorcade quickly left the mountain village amidst cheers and headed straight back to Liuzhou.
"Aunt, I heard you're a great singer. The Zhuang people are all good at singing and dancing, aren't they?" Zhang Yu sat in the front seat this time, and to avoid an overly cold atmosphere in the luxurious car carrying two "VIPs", he took the initiative to find a topic to discuss.
"Yes, the Zhuang people are good at singing and dancing. In the village, there is a regular mountain song festival called "Ge Yuan". The date of Ge Yuan varies from place to place. The most grand one is on the third day of the third month of the lunar calendar, with more than 10,000 people participating in the big mountain song festival. There are songs such as "Please Song", "Seeking Song", "Inspiring Song", "Duet Song", "Guest Song", "Push Song", "Turntable Song", "Shift Song", "Farewell Song", "Love Song" and "Send-off Song". I originally planned to let you spend a night here, the village will arrange for the best singer and dancer to host a lively dance party..."
"Yes, yes, yes, if there's a chance, I must make it lively..." Turning her head, she quickly changed the subject. "Elder sister Zi Xin is so talented, and it's definitely due to Uncle's careful guidance."
"There's nothing to teach or not teach, Director Zhang came to propose to our daughter, saying he's an ordinary person, and our daughter is also an ordinary person, with no difference in status, they can get married and live a good life."
"Right, right, we're all just ordinary people, very ordinary." Zhang Yule said with a smile.
