The Solar Terms Book Under the Old Wall

The old locust trees in Qingwa Lane have fallen and turned green again. Lin Wan guarded the "solar terms restaurant" left by her grandmother and lived the twenty-four solar terms into enjoyable days - the excitement of egg-fighting in the Beginning of Summer, Xiao Man's patience in grinding lacquer, the sincerity of drying grain in the Autumn Equinox, and the sweetness of glutinous rice balls in the Winter Solstice. They were all hidden in Aunt Zhang's cold noodles, Lao Zhou's lacquer cards, and Xiao Man's grasshopper cage. A yellowed solar term book records the old saying "White dew tea is stained with frost, and you won't cough after drinking it". It also remembers the warmth of neighbors who would give you a handful of spinach and I would give you half a bag of brown sugar. There is no grand plot, only the smoke of fireworks on the bluestone, the laughter by the coal stove, and Lin Wan's little wish for her grandmother's recovery. The days are slow and the human kindness is warm. A mouthful of hot rice and a word of conversation in every solar term are the most down-to-earth life. Opening this book is like living in Qingwa Alley, following Lin Wan, and living every day with the fragrance of the season and the warmth of the neighborhood.