Osmanthus-scented filling wrapped walnuts within; glutinous rice, like pearls, was washed in well water.
They said the Ma Family's rice-flour dumplings were fine, sold in the breeze as lanterns were tested for the festival.
For the Lantern Festival, every household hung lanterns and colorful decorations, and the streets rang with celebration.
The children all wore festive new clothes and compared the lanterns they carried, waiting only to light the candles inside that evening and see whose looked best...
Su Jingyan's ink shop, too, was hung with red lanterns and festive ribbons, brimming with joy.
Su Jingyan had no family or friends, and neither did Ning Baixue, so they agreed to invite just a few neighbors and keep the celebration simple.
Early that morning, the neighbors arrived at Su Jingyan's ink shop to help with the preparations.
As the morning sun climbed high, more neighbors began arriving, one after another.
"Jing Yan..." The fabric shop owner strode up to the ink shop, laughing, a boxed wedding gift in hand. As soon as he saw Su Jingyan dressed in red, he came forward and cupped his hands in congratulations.
"Congratulations, congratulations! Our little town's esteemed Provincial Graduate Su is finally getting married."
Su Jingyan immediately went to greet him, saying with a wry smile, "Shopkeeper Wang, please stop teasing me..."
"Haha, I'm not teasing you. I've long heard your bride is a peerless celestial beauty, but you've kept her hidden away all this time. After today, surely you'll let her out so we can all catch a glimpse of her lovely face?"
Shopkeeper Wang of the fabric shop spoke with a smile.
He had long heard that Su Jingyan's bride was a peerless fairy, but he had been busy at the fabric shop before the New Year and had never had the