Chapter 57 - Writing Spring Festival Couplets (1/2)

Chapter 57: Writing Spring Festival Couplets

Xue Dongting frowned. “How could Old Zhang just throw them away? I’m certainly going to tell Sister Xu about this!”

Song Yuming was still smiling, but to himself he thought, “Old Zhang, ah, I’m gonna have to let you take the heat on this one. It’s no big deal, I’ve done the same for you many a time and accepted a lot of blame in front of your wife!”

Xue Dongting was still indignant. She pointed at the outer robe he wore. “That’s Old Zhang’s right? Don’t return it!”

Song Yuming looked at his little wife and nodded, all serious. “I won’t return it and I’ll give him what for!” He turned and went to the wardrobe and got the red paper they had bought. “It’s only three days till New Year’s Eve, let’s write Spring Festival couplets.”

Xue Dongting looked at the red paper and quit arguing about the clothes. “Let’s think about what we should write.”

“We need three couplets, one for the courtyard gates, one for the main hall doors, and another for the kitchen. I’ll think of the ones for the courtyard gate and the kitchen, you come up with one for the main hall doors? Sound good?”

Xue Dongting nodded and pondered and soon had an idea. “For the main hall, let’s write ‘Two zithers in harmony, maybe their spring be fruitful; Man and heaven in harmony makes the moon full’, and for the horizontal scroll we can write ‘Forever of One Mind.’”

Song Yuming paused, then laughed. “Alright, that’s a good one.”

“We just got married, so it’s suitable. If you don’t like it we can change to something else.”

“As long as you come up with it, I will like it.”

Xue Dongting felt all warm and fuzzy inside when he said that. She asked softly, “Do you have brush and ink?”

“There’s a big brush in the drawer by the bed, and there should be an ink stick in the cabinet. I’ll go check.”