In the early morning, when the alley was still quiet, the vendors shouted, "Buy water to buy tofu marks?" I saw a vendor stumbling in the alley with two buckets coated with tung oil on his shoulders. Neighborhood holding a porcelain bowl around the bucket, vendors uncovered the white gauze covered on the bucket, and tofu stood out. Tender, white and yellowish, similar to the cakes (eggs) just steamed out of the pot at home, with fragrance. The name "water tofu" is well-deserved, vivid and similar in image. From old people to young people, they often buy a bowl, add oil, salt and spices, or take a spoonful of sugar, stir it a few times and drink it.
Several vendors left, and then came the master who smashed rice. The master who smashes rice is different: black face, black hand and even black clothes. Smoking in the hot sun all the year round and getting sunburned must be related to his occupation. When he got the business, he picked a corner of an alley and sat on a small bench. His right hand pulled the wooden bellows rhythmically, blowing the fire red, and his left hand kept turning the bulging rice explosion machine, looking at the pressure gauge at the handle of the rice explosion machine from time to time. The pressure is just right, ready to boil, and the master who smashed the rice told the onlookers to disperse and pay attention to safety. Then, the head of the rice exploder was covered with a self-made super-long sack, which exploded with a bang and the white smoke disappeared. A pot of delicious glistening rice exploded and won cheers. Mi Bao, the children living in the hutongs have a special liking for it. The processed rice used is late rice, followed by early rice. In those days, when many people smashed rice, they deliberately mixed a proper amount of rice flour and dried alkaline water tablets, and the taste was obviously better.
Summer is very hot, the scorching sun is like fire, and the earth is like a steamer, which makes people breathless. At this moment, vendors selling bean jelly will definitely carry the bean jelly burden to the alley, which is an excellent business opportunity. Bean jelly is the favorite cold drink of Guzhen people. Made of plant bean jelly, it has the characteristics of tender, smooth, crystal clear, refreshing and delicious, and is a good summer product. No business is dishonest, although the words are mean, they are by no means groundless. Interestingly, vendors selling bean jelly and porcelain bowls serving bean jelly to customers are also carefully selected by vendors. The bottom of the bowl is high, the inside is shallow, and the appearance feels quite big. Actually, there are not many bean jelly. Even a three-year-old can eat three bowls at a time. Small traders do small business, support their families, put themselves in their own shoes, don't haggle over every ounce, and understand for a long time.
In the hot summer, Mao Zhai's retreat is quiet, and there are dewdrops under the steps. With the arrival of autumn, spring flowers and autumn fruits, a kind of wild fruit growing in the mountains, are taken to the alley by country people to sell. This kind of wild fruit is called "Maoli" by both country people and city people. Hairy chestnuts are similar to chestnuts, only a few parts in the shape of chestnuts, small but full. Mainly contains starch, sugar, vitamins and other ingredients, sweet and delicious, for the human body to absorb naturally, a real green food. Rural people sell chestnuts without scales and have special measuring tools. Measuring tools are bamboo tubes, large and small, or a tube of ten cents or twenty cents, which is simple and practical. Because hairy chestnuts are delicious, buyers often pester sellers to pick some. Gather a few, anyway, they are all picked from the mountains, so we can't lose any money. The seller is willing to be reborn and get to know each other twice. As the ancients said, harmony is precious.
There is also a flat cake, similar to wonton, which is a traditional snack in the town. As early as the Republic of China, there were several osmanthus alleys in the south gate, a flat cake shop called Jingchunge, and a "first floor" restaurant in Porcelain Street, which was quite famous. It is quite complicated to make: 20 pieces of flat skin, one or two pieces of fresh meat stuffing, four small pieces of glutinous rice cake, and a catty of meat and bone soup. Wrap the flat skin with stuffing, cook it in boiling water, then pour it into the hot meat and bone soup, add the freshly steamed glutinous rice cake, add monosodium glutamate, lard and soy sauce, sprinkle with pepper and chopped green onion, and a bowl of soup is fresh and tender with rice.
Babies born in alleys seem to be born naughty. I was a naughty boy when I was a child. In the alley, people often carry bamboo baskets full of hair cakes and shout, "The hair cakes are so sweet." I hid at home and responded, "Take a cake, take a cake (wrestling in Jingdezhen dialect)." A prank made the cake seller laugh and cry and left in frustration.
Water tofu, sugar man, hairy chestnuts, bean jelly, fried rice and steamed cakes are hard to list. Memory is washed away by time, and there must be many loopholes.
Reprinted from Ancient Town Encounter —— Urban Culture Series of Guanyao Scenery Lane