"Clang, clang, clang..."
Hu Qiang, Road Pavilion's head constable, excitedly beat a gong as he sprinted down the long street, striking it and shouting as he ran, "Second Master has been named Marquis of Road Pavilion! The whole county celebrates! Second Master has been named Marquis of Road Pavilion! The whole county celebrates..."
The people of Road Pavilion, immersed in the festive spirit of the New Year, poured onto the streets and talked in delighted little groups. "Second Master's been made a marquis? Really?"
"How could it be false? The imperial proclamation's already posted!"
"Wife, quick, bring out the firecrackers..."
Nobody asked which Second Master they meant.
Because Road Pavilion had only one Second Master!
More constables, red sashes tied around their waists, carried baskets of red-paper gift packets onto the streets and handed them out door to door. "Second Master's been made a marquis! Share in the good fortune!"
"Congratulations to Second Master! Our best wishes to Second Master!"
"Second Master's been made a marquis! Share in the good fortune..."
"Crack, crack, crack, crack..."
The jubilant crackle of firecrackers rang throughout Road Pavilion.
Countless townspeople took to the streets with gongs and drums, parading in celebratory groups. Shops that had closed for the New Year suddenly opened, their owners loudly hawking goods at prices that were half sale, half giveaway. The temple fair, which normally only began at night, sprang up that afternoon decked in red and bright colors. The opera troupe hired by the County Yamen began rehearsing "Yang Erlang Outsmarts the Three Great Grain Merchants" through the night...
That heartfelt joy, as though a happy occasion had come to their own families, left all the visitors who had come to offer Yang Ge New Year's greetings dumbfounded.
The people of Road Pavilion were unlike the people of