Everyone has eaten maltose, but the sound of the gong used to call people to sell maltose paste in the streets has a fixed tone. I think many people may not know this. A small gong the size of a palm, the sugar seller's arm was hanging leisurely on the end of the pole on his shoulder. The small gong was in his hand, his fingers moved slightly, and the small mallet connected to the rope of the small gong struck intermittently along the way. Listen carefully. Isn't the sound made by this little gong exactly the same as the "Mai-Ya-Gao-" tone and rhythm of our island's southern Fujian accent?

In the early morning of the week in early autumn, the lazy bed is full of people. I was awakened by the crisp and sweet "dang-dang-dang" sound, and the melodious cry of "malt paste" came from far and near. This reminds me of the sweet taste of malt in my mouth when I was a child. The maltose in my childhood should be considered one of the many "crazy children's toys" that I liked in my collection "Once Upon a Time in the Ancient City".

When I was young, cracking candy bars and malt paste should be the two favorites of children in our era. The sugar seller walking on the street carries two baskets of children's "sweet wishes" with the pole on his shoulder. There is a dustpan covered in the front basket of the load, and a short flat iron bucket is placed on the top, covered with a small piece of "midge cloth" (mosquito net mesh cloth), which contains stretched golden and translucent maltose. There are also small bamboo slices and bamboo skewers needed to pick out the maltose. The small bamboo slices are greased with oil, which can separate and lubricate the sugar paste, so that the small bamboo skewers and fingers will not be stuck by the maltose. Whenever someone comes to buy, the salesman unloads his load at any time, with his legs crossed or squatting, and he gently lifts the cover of the iron bucket. Using both hands, he skillfully uses bamboo pieces to wrap around and pull out a handful of maltose from the bucket. Quickly wrap it around the top of the bamboo branch, and then use a pair of broad-bladed scissors to make a decisive cut, and a deal will be concluded.

You can buy it with pocket money of 30-50 cents, or you can exchange it with scrap toothpaste rinds, chicken feathers and pig bones, or scrap plastic. With a "ding" sound, knock a small piece of "sugar knock" with a thick middle and thin and irregular tips on both sides and put it in your hand. This small light yellow candy crunches in your mouth. Chew it again and it will taste sweet. Sticky and sticky. Behind the candy load, there are usually a few greedy children, drooling and staring at the candy cone, not afraid that their eyeballs will be stuck with the candy, but when we were young, everyone was holding back the candy. Are you greedy? "The turtle laughs at the turtle's tail, and the turtle laughs at the rough skin of the turtle." So no one has time to laugh at anyone.

Children generally do not pay attention to the other basket of goods, and it has no bearing on the children's needs. Because the basket contains mountain groceries that are needed for home life, such as local specialties such as "send root vines and Guanyin skewers" and other edible medicinal materials, as well as small daily necessities such as needles, thread, and knitting, as well as sesame oil pressed by the farmers themselves. Class food condiments.

Speaking of cracking sugar cubes and maltose, I think that in the minds of many middle-aged and elderly people, there should be such a beautiful memory: when I was young, I often heard the sound of clang, clang, clang. Then there are shouts of "chicken feathers, meat bones...chicken gizzard membranes...scrap copper and iron...". At this time, the children will rummage through the boxes and cabinets at home, "copying and searching", grabbing the old things as if they have found a treasure. After chasing the salesman in a hurry, he was finally able to exchange the scraps for candy cubes. Or spend one or two cents to get a sprig of maltose, and lick it with satisfaction. The sweet fragrance fills the back of the tongue, and the feeling of instant awakening of the taste buds is nostalgic...

Many years later, the "mutual relationship" related to sugar, The full sense of happiness will always ripple in my memories, making it unforgettable for a long time.

Perhaps it is difficult for today’s younger generation to understand, or they may think it is a joke. However, in that era of economic difficulties and material scarcity, when it was still a problem for ordinary families to have enough to eat, adults were actually reluctant to give their children even a cent or two of pocket money. "Sugar will cause tooth decay and tooth decay" first comforted and threatened, and then gave maltose paste sugar an extremely evil name-"chicken paste". The original meaning of the local dialect is chicken excrement. To put it bluntly, it is chicken paste. Shit, extremely derogatory and slanderous. However, for greedy children, they are still willing to accept this snack with a disgusting name regardless of it. In that era of material scarcity, although "Tangkejigaotang" is not a candy, it is definitely a good substitute for candy. Therefore, "it will never tire of being stuck with Pile Candy" and has become a beautiful memory that accompanies children in their childhood. .

In my early impression, candy sellers especially liked to wander around the school. The small gong in the palm of the hand was struck gently at different intervals, and the clear and melodious metallic sound of "ding-ding-dang" came out. The shouting sound from the mouth came intermittently, sometimes near and sometimes far away, and slowly led to the sound of the gong. The greed in your mouth has hooked your soul.

As soon as the bell rang for the end of get out of class, the students were like "little birds released from their nests", following the sound of the "ding-dong" gongs to find the candy sellers who had been waiting for business. Lang, each person holds a bamboo stick and a piece of maltose or sugar, holding it in his hand like a treasure, sucking on the sweetness and softness. Since I was reluctant to take a big bite, I slowly licked the edge of the candy bar, carefully feeling the sweetness of the maltose, sipping it in my mouth and letting it melt slowly.

When eating maltose, remember not to chew it hard with your back molars, otherwise, it will be so sweet that it will knock your teeth out, and at the same time, you will not have time to savor it carefully, and you will eat it so quickly. After eating snacks), it is both "wasted" and regretful.

Of course, don’t underestimate the significance of recycling waste such as “chicken feathers, meat and bones”. In those days, every household was thrifty and thrifty. Likewise, don’t take small things like toothpaste rinds seriously. The toothpaste rinds at that time were different from today’s aluminum alloys or plastics. Instead, they were made of metal and pure lead, which were recycled and dissolved into liquid lead. , can be made into a sinker for island fishing tools, which can be reused for multiple purposes and is valuable.

According to today's business theory, cargo carriers exchange "chicken feathers, meat and bones" for sugar and crack sugar cubes. They exchange equal values, each gets what he needs, door-to-door service, and achieve a win-win situation... He is rich in marketing skills and business practices. Whenever a child calls out, "Selling chicken paste~" "Candy knock~"... If you need to buy candy for candy, even if you have a rest, you can sit on the pony that you carry with you and leisurely tell a story to the children. The children around listened and encouraged those who did not have pocket money in their pockets to go home as soon as possible and look for old things to exchange for candies. I remember when I was a kid, a neighbor kid was so greedy that he deliberately squeezed out the white liquid in his own toothpaste and went to exchange the toothpaste skin for candy. The consequences can be imagined, and of course there is no escaping it. The adults in the family are "treating a sumptuous bamboo fish feast" (beating them up).

As I grew up, I slowly realized that maltose, also called maltose, is one of the famous southern Fujian delicacies. It is commonly called "Mai Zai Gao" in most places in areas where the southern Fujian dialect is spoken. It can be used as a raw material for food processing, or it is also an important Chinese medicinal material (mostly sold in pharmacies nowadays). When we consume maltose in spring and autumn, it can not only moisten the lungs, relieve coughs and relieve dryness, but also has medicinal effects such as strengthening the spleen and stomach, antibacterial, detoxifying and nourishing. Although maltose is not as sweet as sucrose, it is golden and smooth in color, rich in viscosity, soft and sweet, which aids digestion. It is deeply loved by people, so the older generation are happy to buy some when they encounter sugar sellers and store them at home. From time to time, it can be used as snacks for children to satisfy their cravings.

Nowadays, there are a wide variety of exquisite and delicious snacks, ranging from leisure travel foods to ancient souvenirs, all of which are labeled as traditional handmade snacks. The green and exquisite packaging is very attractive, but the media often exposes or warns consumers that certain food additives, preservatives, food colorings, etc. seriously exceed the standards.

Every time inadvertently, from the entrance of the street, the sound of small gongs or plane blades is heard, as well as the long-lost and familiar shouts of sellers. It always reminds me of selling sugar cubes and malt paste when I was a child. There are vivid scenes in Sugar Seller. Although people nowadays downplay it so much, I think it’s mostly because we can no longer taste the strong, astringent and mellow nostalgia, and the sweet yet bitter taste of wheat in our childhood...

< p> Du Fu's poem said: How many springs and summers are there in life, if there is no fragrant mash, it will be as sweet as honey. In my memory, the salesmen walked around the streets and alleys of the ancient city with baskets on their shoulders. The gongs sounded, and they shouted in a foreign accent: "Malt paste~Malt paste~", their figures slowly approached, and then gradually moved away. Fading away.

Although sugary malt paste is very simple, it still brings great satisfaction to our childhood that we can never go back to. "The Book of Songs Daya Mian": "Viola tea is like glutinous rice".

This may be the narrative of "sweet sugar" and "chicken feathers for sugar"...

? 2018/10/08 draft