The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 247 New Year's Eve 1979, Carnival on Taishan Road

Xu Weidong realized what was happening and called to his men, who then closed the doors and windows as needed.

The doors and windows were tightly shut, cutting off the raging cold winds and the hustle and bustle of the world outside.

"Done! Get everything out here!" Xu Weidong shouted excitedly.

Zhu Tao, Shi Zhentao, Su Changshun, and Zhao Bo immediately took the lead and rushed to the corner covered with an old tarpaulin, making a clattering sound as they dragged it.

A large, all-black dual-cassette recorder was carried out and placed on the desk.

Following closely behind were a tangled mess of power cords and four large, old-fashioned speakers.

Upon seeing the tape recorder, the young people's eyes shone brightly:

"Oh, it's a tape recorder. Do you have any tapes?"

"What is this? I've never seen anything like it before. Why is the power cord so long?"

"Is it a speaker? I saw one of these things at the university gate when I took my brother to college..."

The four speakers were placed in the four corners of the room.

They came with very long wires, which Qian Jin bought separately and connected himself.

Chen Xing pulled a large bag out from under a pile of tattered quilts and poured out dozens of colorful cassette tapes with brightly colored covers!

Teresa Teng, Liu Wen-cheng, Paula Tsui...

These names and numerous photos full of Hong Kong and Taiwan style are printed on the plastic box, like a magic box from another world!

Wang Dong hurriedly stuffed a cassette tape labeled "Teresa Teng's Sweet Honey" into the cassette player's slot, but Xu Weidong pushed it away: "Do you know how to use it? Can you even use it?"

He tossed his head at Qian Jin and said, "Mr. Qian, it's up to you!"

Qian Jin looked at him in surprise: "Hey, Brother Dong, that's a pretty good line."

Xu Weidong tossed his head again, feigning nonchalance: "My girlfriend is an English teacher. What can I do? My English is improving by leaps and bounds!"

Wang Dong was stunned, then immediately looked as if he had lost his parents: "What the hell! What did you do to Su Ya?"

Su Ya was the female teacher that Qian Jin had painstakingly asked Song Zhiyuan to invite from the Foreign Languages ​​Department of Haibin University so that his subordinates could also learn English.

Xu Weidong pushed him away and said, "Please address me as Teacher Su—or Sister-in-law."

"Hehe," he couldn't help but laugh, "To be honest, comrades, after my sincere efforts and persistent pursuit, Xiaoya has agreed to be my girlfriend. We'll have the wedding banquet next year!"

Wang Dong thought about Su Ya's pretty face and intellectual, elegant demeanor, and jumped up and down in anger:
"Xu Weidong! You bastard, you shameless bastard!"

"Teacher Su teaches us knowledge and culture, and you want to trick her into bed?"

"No, Brother Dong, I call you Brother Dong, or Master Dong, you can't marry Teacher Su! Look at you, look at your dog face, are you worthy of Teacher Su?"

"Listen to me, listen to your brother. I'll have my wife introduce your cousin to you later..."

Qian Jin laughed wildly.

Wang Dong grabbed his arm, almost bursting into tears: "The sky has fallen, Chief Qian! The sky has fallen! How am I going to get through the New Year..."

Xu Weidong hummed a song, swayed his hips, and pressed the play button hard. The red light came on, and the gears rubbed together, making a slight hissing sound.

Amidst the laughter and anticipation of the crowd, the tape recorder paused for a few breathless seconds, then the slight hum of the current abruptly amplified, and a gentle, sweet, honey-like female voice rang out:
"Sweet, sweet, your smile is so sweet..."

"Buzz!" The gentle, sweet sound seemed to create an invisible wave of sound.

Everyone, whether it was a smiling face counting money or a rough hand fiddling with cookies, froze instantly.

Someone was still talking when they were immediately silenced by the person next to them: "Be quiet, listen to the music!"

Xu Weidong blinked: "That's not right, this is the sound of a tape recorder, why aren't the four speakers making any sound?"

Qian Jin rolled his eyes: "Idiot, what's the point of just connecting a tape recorder if you don't even give it power?"

He went to plug it in.

Almost simultaneously, all four speakers emitted a piercing, hissing sound. Just when some people thought there was a problem, the speakers started blasting loud music again.

"It's like flowers blooming in the spring breeze. Walking together, walking together among the flowers, we feel boundless joy..."

Hundreds of eyes were drawn to the speaker as if by a strong magnet.

That sound was so loud!

This is a sound that can penetrate the soul and resonate throughout the body!

Music, authentic Hong Kong and Taiwan pop music!

The soft, gentle singing voice, carrying a raw and undisguised tenderness, flowed through the bodies of these young people like an electric current.

Now I don't have to suppress my emotions and keep my mouth shut.

"Aww—!" one of the young men shouted first.

Upon hearing the singing, Zhou Shanhu immediately sprang to his feet like a spring, grinning widely and twisting his body haphazardly.
"Dance, brothers and sisters, comrades, dear comrades-in-arms, what are you waiting for? Let's dance together..."

He is agile, so even if he doesn't hit the beat when he dances, his overall dance moves are still quite beautiful.

Many young men wearing leather shoes then went up to jump.

Chen Xing, Zhao Bo, then Su Changshun, Shi Zhentao, Feng Guangyuan...

A group of people yelled and kicked aside the benches that were in their way, and began to clumsily and wildly twist and turn in the narrow gap between them.

My body felt like it was wound up.

The female team members were more restrained, their faces flushed red, and they were too embarrassed to go on stage to dance. They just stood together with their arms crossed, watching the male team members chuckle.

Qian Jin laughed even harder.

A massive, early human dance-off!

Various roasted snacks were served, including melon seeds, peanuts, candied chestnuts, and other new items added to the mobile canteen in December.

Those who wanted to dance did so haphazardly, while those who didn't would pull up a chair, grab a handful of peanuts and melon seeds, and eat while listening to music.

Happy and lively.

Peanut shells and melon seed shells were scattered everywhere, then kicked up by excited footsteps and flew in all directions.

The hard candy wrappers shimmered and drifted down through the air.

Then came roasted pumpkin seeds, roasted sunflower seeds, and piles of roasted soybeans covered in white sugar frosting. Xu Weidong called out, "Where's the tea? Hurry up and bring the tea!"

"Coming, coming, please don't rush me, sir." Wang Lijuan found work, put on the arm sleeves from her pocket, and went around pouring water from the kettle.

The hot, yellowish water, brewed from scalding hot jasmine flower stems, steamed and had a wonderfully fragrant aroma.

Several green military-style canteens were also brought over, all with aluminum casings and corks.

"Want some soda? I just bought some bulk soda at the department store this morning. They have orange and banana flavors, which are only available during the Lunar New Year!"

Upon hearing this, Qian Jin remembered something and shouted to Xu Weidong:
"Hey, stop jumping! Didn't I ask you to bring a big plastic jar? Where did you put it? It's milk tea inside. It's the most comforting thing to drink on this cold day if you brew it with hot water."

Xu Weidong scratched his head, ran to a corner and rummaged around for a while, finally grinning as he pulled out a huge plastic jar.

Someone asked curiously, "Milk tea? Is it the kind of milk tea made in pastoral areas by boiling tea leaves and milk?"

Qian Jin mumbled, "It's about the same, but different. This is a foreign product, and it has a lot of white sugar added, so it's very sweet."

Pour the milk tea powder into an enamel basin, then pour in a large pot of hot water.

Immediately, a rich, sweet aroma wafted over.

Even the few young men who were awkwardly dancing nearby stopped, put their arms around each other, and asked, "Hey? Why does it smell so good?"

Enameled mugs and teacups swarmed in like a bee.

These days, people don't care about anything.

Xu Weidong used his enamel mug as a ladle and a spoon to scoop out the milk tea and distribute it to each person.
"Hey, I still have to go dance. Are you guys treating me like a waiter?"

"You've been oppressing the people for a year, it's time to serve them," someone joked.

The huge study room was in complete chaos.

The smell of sweat, the smoky aroma of roasted nuts, the bitterness of tea, the cloying sweetness of milk tea, the smell of various brands of tobacco, and even the smell of simple cosmetics like face cream...

In short, it's a complete mess.

As everyone danced, and as pots of hot water boiled, the study room was completely transformed into a giant steamer.

On this freezing day, sweat streamed down the young men's temples, soaking their hair and the old fleece under their cotton-padded coats.

Distributing welfare items to more than two hundred people took quite a long time. Since the daytime is short now, after a period of awkward dancing, dusk fell.

The sound of firecrackers popping and crackling could be heard.

Someone greeted him: "Happy New Year, Chief Qian! I'm sending you my New Year's greetings in advance. I wish you a prosperous New Year, and I wish you and Teacher Wei a long and happy marriage. I have to go back now; my family is waiting for me for New Year's Eve dinner..."

"I'm going back too, Sixi, what about you? Let's go together."

"I'm not going back. I told my mom they can eat first, I'll stay here and play, and I'll go back around 10 o'clock to grab a bite..."

"I'm not going home either. We agreed before I left that we'd spend New Year's Eve together as the commando team..."

Mi Gang suddenly asked Qian Jin, "Chief Qian, shall we have dumplings made by Teacher Wei tonight?"

"What are you thinking?" Qian Jin rolled his eyes. "Two hundred people, and you expect her to make dumplings for you?"

"But you guys are lucky. I paid for the meat, and she and my sister-in-law helped prepare the filling. We'll roll out the wrappers and make dumplings ourselves."

Yu Lijuan was delighted to hear this: "That's fine too. I'm good at making dumplings. I'll make dumplings later."

"I've heard that Teacher Wei is really good at making dumpling fillings, so I'll have to try it today."

The sky was completely dark, and ink-black light spilled through the window.

The door was pushed open from time to time, and people were leaving and arriving.

Not only did the commando team members arrive, but news of their gathering in the study room to spend New Year's Eve together spread, and many young people from the neighborhood came in groups of three or five to join in the fun.
"Move in, squeeze in, there's room inside, we can't get in..."

Such calls are heard from time to time.

Outside on the street, more unfamiliar figures were moving about.

Young people from other nearby streets also arrived, crowding together, standing on tiptoe, peering through the door frame with great curiosity and envy on their faces.

Some of the bolder ones tried to get close to Wang Dong and Cao Youzhi, who were guarding the door, and offered them a cigarette: "Brother, can we come in and ask for a cup of hot water since we're from Huashan Road?"

"Come in, all of you come in!" Wang Dong waved his hand, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. "What's wrong with being unable to come in during the New Year? Go in and have some fun, but don't try anything funny, I'm from the security department, I'll break your legs if I catch you..."

Xu Weidong squeezed out, his face flushed and sweat pouring down his face. The collar of his old military cotton-padded coat was soaked with sweat: "Damn, there are too many people, it's too hot in there, I need to cool off—hey, isn't this my old classmate?"

"Go in and have fun! We'll provide food and drinks, our labor commando team will make sure you're well-fed. Of course, you have to be able to catch up, because the milk tea is no longer available!"

As night deepened and the weather grew colder, the door became increasingly difficult to close, and more and more young people arrived after hearing the news.

People, whether they knew them or not, from other streets near Taishan Road, continuously brought in the chill.

The already crowded room was instantly crammed together like a compressed biscuit.

But no one complained.

Music that many people had never heard before roared from all four corners, then suddenly began to chant "HOO, HA, HOO, HA..."

The singing was very loud, and the singer's voice was extremely penetrating.

However, the melody of the song did not match the aesthetic tastes of young people who were used to listening to revolutionary songs, so some people shouted, "What is this?"

The lyrics began to play: "Amidst the wind and sand, we chased each other, singing passionately..."

It was all in Cantonese, and nobody could understand it.

As a result, more people complained: "Change the song, this one isn't good..."

Others countered: "Too much trouble! Why change it? Just listen to what you hear. Besides, isn't this song good? It's not good, but it's very rhythmic and perfect for dancing..."

Upon hearing this, Qian Jin laughed and said, "Hurry up and listen to it, hurry up and learn it! You'll really like this song once you get used to it!"

Genghis Khan!
80s disco anthems!
This song was originally sung by a German band, but it was covered and released in Cantonese by George Lam at the beginning of the month, January 1st. Qian Jin brought the cassette tape with him.

This wasn't a product from the mall; it was one of the items procured by the foreign business office.

The melody of "Genghis Khan" is magical. The first time you hear it, you think, "What the hell is this?" The second time, you think, "This isn't good either." The third time, you hear, "Hooray! Hooray!"

Qian Jin was hungry.

But there's no way to eat.

As planned, after dancing for a while, everyone would have dinner. The meal would be simple, and everyone would definitely eat hot pot together.

With the weather cold and crowds large, hot pot is the perfect choice.

However, people keep coming in, and they start eating sunflower seeds and peanuts, jumping around the room dancing wildly, and they just can't stop.

It's so crowded, let alone eating hot pot, even eating sunflower seeds is difficult.

But everyone was having so much fun that they didn't even have time to eat.

In particular, many people come out to play after having their New Year's Eve dinner at home. They dance to digest their food and are even less likely to think about eating.

There was nothing Qian Jin could do; he was hungry, so he asked Xu Weidong and the others, "Are you hungry?"

Xu Weidong shook his big butt and shouted, "Hungry wolf? Awooo! I am a hungry wolf..."

"Damn it!" Qian Jin yelled helplessly, "Aren't you hungry? Let's eat!"

Wang Dong pondered for a moment, then patted his stomach and chuckled, "I'm hungry. What should we do? Boss Qian, we can't cook hot pot here."

Qian Jin asked, "Where's the charcoal stove? Is it ready?"

Wang Dong pointed outside: "It could happen at any time!"

All the stoves in the house were moved out.

There was no other way; there were too many people in the house, and the stove had become a dangerous item, as people could easily be pushed onto it in the crowd.

Qian Jin waved his hand: "Let them dawdle here, let's go to the repair shop in the back for lunch!"

Thankfully, the study room has already been partitioned, otherwise we wouldn't have anywhere to eat tonight and might have had to eat hot pot outside in the cold wind.

Several large charcoal stoves, freshly lit, were brought inside, their white smoke mingling with scattered sparks.

A huge, charcoal-black earthenware pot with copper hoops sits on the stove.

Boiling water was poured in, and soon the red oil broth started to boil and bubble.

The already washed and chopped white cabbage, frozen tofu, dried vermicelli, potato slices, glass noodles, frozen pork meatballs, piles of sliced ​​frozen lamb rolls, and several strings of frozen pork slices tied with straw rope...

A variety of ingredients were piled up like a small mountain on the long table.

Qian Jin brought over a plate of frozen tofu.

This is a genuine food product made in the freezing cold; the tofu cubes are frozen with honeycomb-like holes, and their color is a uniform, deep yellow—very beautiful. The hot pot broth is boiling, and huge plumes of steam are billowing out like smoke from a chimney.

Qian Jin poured the frozen tofu in, and Wang Dong said, "Let's eat meat! I love lamb rolls..."

"I'm so hungry I could eat sheep poop," Xu Weidong cursed.

Soon, pairs of chopsticks flew up and down rapidly amidst the swirling white steam.

Qian Jin said, "There's plenty of food, definitely enough to eat. Don't worry, it's not cooked yet..."

"It tastes best when it's half-cooked," Wang Dong casually replied, then shoveled slices of meat into his mouth.

The bright red slices of meat change color instantly when dipped into the boiling red broth; the cabbage and tofu soften and limp in the boiling soup; and the frozen mutton rolls quickly unfold and curl up in the boiling broth, turning into tempting slightly curled slices of meat.

Qian Jin had no choice but to go and pour the wine.

Soon the room became lively.

The shouts, clinking of glasses, coughs from choking, hissing from being burned, and laughter from scrambling for ingredients mingled together, like a newly emerging storm.

Many team members hadn't gone home for dinner and were now hungry, so they lined up to come in and eat.

The enamel mug I used to drink tea from has now become my rice bowl.

As for the wine glasses, that's easy to handle too.

They found a few empty glasses, filled them with wine, and the young people didn't care about hygiene at all. They took turns drinking, one sip after another.

This is a habit I developed during my time working in the countryside.

After a few drinks, the team members started a drinking contest.

Qian Jin squatted on a high stool to watch the commotion, but how could the crowd let him off the hook?

He quickly became the center of the drinking frenzy.

Mi Gang, Zhao Bo, and their group surrounded him, their open glass never leaving his hand.

They have all kinds of alcohol.

Qian Jin had originally prepared several large barrels of bulk liquor.

Despite being packaged in large barrels, this liquor is a high-quality pure grain liquor.

As he drank, he noticed that the liquor was becoming cloudy, and then someone told him it was sweet potato liquor.

Where did this sweet potato fritter come from?!
He was completely dazed by the drink.

People kept coming to him for drinks.

His wine glass was empty, and then it was kept being filled.

The pungent and acrid liquor poured down my throat like a torrent of scalding iron.

At first, it burned fiercely, but then he felt the wine become milder, and eventually it became smooth and sweet...

Oh no, I've had too much to drink!

This was his last conscious thought; afterwards, he could only hear people shouting incessantly.
"Chief Qian, I salute you! You've given our brothers a way out!"

"Chief Qian, Happy New Year!"

"Captain Qian, why don't you be the captain of our Huashan Road Labor Commando Team next year too..."

Qian Jin could only chuckle foolishly, like a puppet, mechanically raising his glass and gulping it down his throat.

Ultimately, my stomach churned violently.

A sudden surge of hot, sour, putrid odor rose up...

"Uh...wow!"

He used his remaining sanity to run out, bent over, and leaned against the wall to vomit violently.

"Holy crap!" A passerby jumped up, but just laughed and cursed as he dodged away.

The people inside chased after them, and then burst into even louder, more unrestrained laughter and cheers:

"It's no use, Captain Qian!"

"Take a break, take a break!"

"Change of players! Keep drinking!"

Qian Jin vomited violently, feeling as if he had vomited up his bile, and his nasal cavity was filled with the pungent smell of alcohol and a sour stench.

He was dragged by Chen Xing and Su Changshun to a corner where he was sheltered from the wind and thrown down.

Xu Yonghong quickly handed him a wet, tattered rag that had been stained with some kind of oil to wipe his face.

The cold, damp cloth, reeking of grease, clung to Qian Jin's face, causing him to gag violently once more.

He hid here, pretending to be drunk, desperately trying to breathe.

Then Wei Qinghuan arrived: "How did he get so drunk? Dayong, you weren't even watching him order!"

Qiu Dayong's voice rang out in a muffled voice: "Teacher Wei, I'm innocent! I just arrived, I really just arrived!"

"Alright, stop talking and quickly help me up..." Wei Qinghuan was not happy.

Seeing her husband lying blankly in the corner like a rag doll, she felt heartbroken.

Qian Jin stood up groggily, grabbed someone's arm, and said, "Da Yong's here? Damn, why are you so late? Drink, drink up..."

Wei Qinghuan's voice rang out: "Pinch his mouth open and make him drink tea quickly, drink a lot of strong tea..."

Qian Jin drank it and then started vomiting again.

After several attempts, I finally became much more sober and recovered from my drunkenness.

He leaned against the cold brick wall and lamented, "Damn it, these guys aren't human, they're animals! They're all talking about money, and they didn't hold back at all when they were pouring me drinks!"

Wei Qinghuan wiped his face with a scarf and said irritably, "So you're going to drink it? You should drink less."

Qian Jin shoved Qiu Dayong: "Go in and get back at me. Hey—isn't this my older brother?"

Upon hearing the news, Qian Cheng arrived, ready to carry the men away. Qian Jin grabbed his shoulder and said, "Brother, aren't you a heavy drinker? Go in and take them down."

Qian Cheng said, "They're nothing compared to us. The way we drink in the Northwest is truly wild..."

"Come on, let's drink!" Someone overheard this and dragged Qian Cheng away.

This will also affect the condition of other people.

Outside the door, there were several bamboo poles lying flat on the ground for some reason. The drunken Xu Weidong slipped on them and stumbled, but Feng Guangyuan grabbed his arm to prevent him from falling.

Qian Jin pointed at him and laughed heartily.

"The time has come!" someone shouted with all their might!
The door to the study room was kicked open from the inside.

The crowd surged out like a burst dam, rushing into the cold, dark open space.

People picked up the bamboo poles lying on the ground outside, and others hung firecrackers on them.

Qian Jin patted his forehead.

I remembered.

They were going to set off firecrackers together, and he had someone prepare bamboo poles in advance.

Sun Hongqi saw Qian Jin, who was staggering outside the crowd, and went up to him, half-dragging and half-pulling him out.

Then someone slipped a large, ten-thousand-shot whip into his hand, covered entirely in deep red crepe paper and cellophane, with a bright peony pattern on it.

"Light one up." Wang Dong handed him the cigarette he was holding in his mouth, the flickering red glow of the cigarette butt in the wind.

Qian Jin was still in a daze.

He knew he had to tear open the firecracker's seal to find the fuse before he could light it.

But when he casually tore off the cellophane, the fuse was exposed.

He then casually took the cigarette butt, lit the fuse, and handed the string of firecrackers back to Wang Dong: "Keep smoking."

Wang Dong also drank alcohol.

He looked down at the heavy firecrackers in his hand—

"Damn it!" Qiu Dayong slapped the phone away and pulled Wang Dong into the crowd.

"Sizzle—hiss—"

The faint, anxious sound was unusually jarring in the brief silence...

Next!

Crackling and popping!

The firecrackers were thrown on the ground, lit, and exploded, bouncing around like a snake.

The crowd was in chaos.

People in front pushed backwards, and those behind squeezed outwards. A few firecrackers fell and landed at people's feet, causing some to cry out in pain...

Qian Jin was also arrested.

Wei Qinghuan dragged him away.

He asked blankly, "What happened? Why isn't the whip hanging properly? Wang Dong, are you even capable? Stop thinking about women all day and start thinking about doing something serious..."

Wang Dong stared blankly, then suddenly realized what he meant and shouted, "You have the nerve to talk about me like that?"

"Damn it! I almost died because of you!"

Orange-red sparks sprayed and exploded wildly, and blue-green smoke expanded and burst everywhere.

The pungent smell of sulfur and gunpowder mixed with the acrid odor of firecracker scraps filled the air.

In the distance, cheers of "Let's set off the firecrackers!" rang out, and the entire Taishan Road, and even the whole city, erupted in chaos at midnight.

The atmosphere in the study room was lively, but also chaotic.

Firecrackers hanging on bamboo poles were lit, and some people imitated Qian Jin by lighting them and throwing them on the ground.

then……

"Bang! Smash! Beep!"

"dong dong dong dong..."

The air was shaking, and the earth was almost trembling!
"Swoosh—whoosh—boom!"

A firecracker flew crookedly and whistled into the half-open window of the study room, exploding into a cloud of smoke inside, which drew even more frantic screams and laughter from inside.

Seeing that this wasn't working, Wei Qinghuan quickly called on Qiu Dayong and the others who drank less to maintain order:
"What are you doing? Something bad is going to happen!"

"Quickly, quickly, close all the doors and windows! No throwing firecrackers into the classroom or into the crowd! Stop causing trouble!"

"You, you! Can't you hear me? Qiu Dayong, you're hitting me!"

Qiu Dayong and his fellow educated youth got to work and managed to avert a near disaster!

Wei Qinghuan had someone bring Qian Jin home.

Upon hearing the news, Wei Xiongtu arrived and helped her maintain order at the scene.

Qian Jin was unaware of what happened next and waited until he woke up the next morning.

My head is throbbing!

He came out groggily, rubbing his temples and sighing, "Damn, my head hurts, my head hurts so much..."

In the living room, a few people were chatting and laughing while eating sunflower seeds and drinking tea.

Upon closer inspection, he realized it was Sun Jian and several of his employees:

"Hey, when did you guys get here?"

"Happy New Year, Director Qian! You've finally woken up." Sun Jian stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and wished him a Happy New Year.

Qian Jin exchanged New Year's greetings with them, and then there was a knock on the door.

Another person has come to wish us a Happy New Year!
Throughout the morning, crowds of people came to offer New Year's greetings.

Qian Jin exclaimed, "Does everyone know I'm awake now?"

Wei Qinghuan rolled her eyes: "People came to wish us a Happy New Year before dawn, but you were drunk then, so they couldn't see you and had to go back. Sun Jian and the others insisted on waiting for you to wake up..."

Qian Jin asked, "How did I get so drunk last night?"

Wei Qinghuan was too lazy to pay him any attention.

The female teacher didn't sleep all night to take care of him, and she was exhausted.

After finishing a bowl of dumplings, Qian Jin went outside to get some fresh air and sober up.

It snowed all afternoon yesterday, and the white snow covered every rooftop, bare branch, and windowsill.

He walked to the vicinity of the study room, and many children ran towards it and then came out, holding handfuls of firecrackers in their hands.

So he advised the children, "These are all duds, be careful, or you'll hurt your hands!"

Following the children's footsteps to the Taishan Road Study Room, there was not a trace of frost or snow to be seen nearby.

Only red!
No wonder so many children come to collect duds.

Last night, countless firecrackers were set off here; the firecracker debris on the ground looked like a red snow.

It's thick and fluffy; in some places, it can submerge a child's ankles when they step on it.

The shredded paper was piled up layer upon layer, and they were like fishermen in a river, reaching out and sweeping through the shredded paper, occasionally pulling out a dud.

This scene shocked Qian Jin.

Countless red firecracker debris was shattered, falling to the ground and sticking together, being whipped and tumbled by the cold north wind, only to be covered by newly fallen debris.

What he saw was nothing but a blinding, crimson sea of ​​shredded paper.

Even after a whole night, the strong smell of gunpowder, sulfur, and burnt paper still lingered. You could still smell it in the cold air even if you took a deep breath...

Qian Jin shook his head, muttering repeatedly, "Reckless, utterly reckless!"

Recalling last night.

His memory was somewhat hazy.

But the feeling is very clear—

It was lively and exciting!
(End of this chapter)