Hot dishes began arriving one after another. The maidservants carried trays and set each dish on the table.
The first dish was Good Fortune Comes—a whole roasted suckling pig, its skin glossy red and rich with oil, crisp on the outside;
Next came Abundance Year After Year—a whole Steamed Sea Bass, drizzled with glistening scallion oil;
The third dish was Gold and Jade Fill the Hall—sweet stir-fried pumpkin and corn kernels, golden, soft, and glutinous.
The fourth dish was Rise Step by Step—osmanthus rice cakes, cut into evenly sized slices and sprinkled with dried osmanthus flowers.
The fifth dish was Great Luck and Prosperity—poached chicken, with yellow skin and white meat, served with prepared ginger-scallion sauce.
The sixth dish was Fortune at Hand—braised pork trotters, stewed until soft enough to fall from the bone.
The seventh dish was Complete Reunion—Four Joy Meatballs, four large meatballs coated in a rich, dark sauce.
The eighth dish was Birds Return to the Nest—quail eggs, wood ear mushrooms, and stir-fried lily bulbs.
The ninth dish was Brilliant Future—assorted stir-fried shrimp.
The tenth dish was Bullish Spirit Soars—thinly sliced soy-braised beef.
The eleventh dish was Auspicious Snow Heralds a Bountiful Year—stir-fried lotus root slices.
The twelfth dish was Overflowing Joy—mutton stewed with radish.
The thirteenth dish was Ten Thousand Taels of Gold—fried spring rolls.
The fourteenth dish was Flowers Bloom for Wealth and Honor—silky scrambled eggs with shrimp.
The fifteenth dish was Five Blessings Arrive at the Gate—a platter of five kinds of braised delicacies.
The sixteenth dish was Auspicious and Fulfilling—chicken wings braised with shiitake mushrooms.
The seventeenth dish was Bamboo Announces Peace—stir-fried bamboo shoot slices.
The eighteenth dish was Fortune Star Shines Bright—tofu with crab roe.
The nineteenth dish was Wealth Flows In—dry-pot cauliflower.
The twentieth dish was Auspiciousness and Abundance—pan-fried yellow croaker.