There are more than 200 miles between the capital Luoyang and Huaidu. There is a direct Chidao with a post station every 30 miles. The transportation is very fast and you can take a round trip on the

There are more than 200 miles between the capital Luoyang and Huaidu. There is a direct Chidao with a post station every 30 miles. The transportation is very fast and you can take a round trip on the same day. Liu Xiu often came to the Huai Palace to live and listen to politics, and he regularly came to the ancestral temple to worship his ancestors. The royal relatives and civil and military ministers often came and went. Some relatives of the emperor and high-ranking civil and military officials relied on their power to do whatever they wanted in the city of Huaidu, plundering and plundering the city, making Huaidu a mess. Local officials pretended to be deaf and did not dare to take care of it. People in the city find it difficult to complain about their grievances and complain. Liu Xiu felt very troubled when he learned that this situation was getting worse. He was afraid that it would develop and endanger his country and the country, so he named Dong Xuan, who enforced the law impartially and was not afraid of power, as the magistrate of Huai County.

As soon as Dong Xuan became the magistrate of Huai County, he went deep into the people, understood the voices of the people, and issued a general order that "everyone is equal before the king's law, and the prince who breaks the law is guilty of the same crime as the people." Those who violated the law and discipline were immediately punished. There has been a lot of restraint, and social order has improved unprecedentedly. However, some relatives of the emperor believed that this order was just a piece of paper for them, and did not take him as a small magistrate of Huai County seriously. Uncle Yin Guo was one of them. Uncle Yin Guo is the younger brother of Queen Yin Lihua, and her sister Yin Lihua has loved him very much since she was a child. He was favored by his brother-in-law Liu Xiu because of his military exploits. Therefore, relying on his power, he acted tyrannically, bullied men and women, and took advantage of others, becoming the notorious "money-greedy Tai Sui" in Huaidu City. He was addicted to money and hated his lack of money, so he opened a large gambling house and tried every means to lure ordinary people to come and gamble. Big gambling houses only rely on power, without any capital or profits, and make money every day; many people who participate in gambling have lost their fortunes, hanged themselves, and their wives and children have been separated.

Let’s say that there is a family in Huaidu City. The head of the household, Zhao Youcai, owns a Huai medicine shop and is rich in money. He is married to Dong and has a son, Zhao Deng, who is seven years old. He is very smart and cute. The family of three lives happily. Unexpectedly, Zhao Youcai was deeply attracted by the temptation of "making a huge fortune and getting rich overnight" in the big gambling house. The more he gambled, the more he lost, and the deeper he got into. Not only did he lose all his money, but he also had high debts that he could not repay. On the sixth day of the first lunar month, the gambling houses opened with great success. Uncle Yin Guo led gambling thugs to extort debts by force, and Zhao Youcai hanged himself. Uncle Yin Guo did not spare even orphans and widowed mothers. He claimed that "the father's debt must be repaid by the son", and he snatched his son Zhao Deng from his mother's arms to pay off the debt. Dong's widow screamed for help. It attracted many villagers to watch. The villagers took pictures of Uncle Yu Yin's power. Everyone was filled with indignation and dared to be angry but dared not speak out.

Dong Xuan, the magistrate of Huai County, paid a private visit incognito to observe the people's sentiments. He happened to pass by this place and heard the noise and miserable cries of people, so he hurried inside to watch. When he learned the ins and outs of the incident in detail from the onlookers, he also felt that it was difficult to manage. On one side is the uncle of the current dynasty, who has a high and powerful position, but he is not a small county magistrate at all. Uncle Yin Guo held in his hand the IOU and the debt repayment commitment written by Zhao Youcai. On the surface, he looked high-sounding and confident. On the other side are orphans and widowed mothers who are in a miserable situation. They are really pitiful and cannot be tolerated. They cannot be ignored. Dong Xuan was so anxious that he kept walking in circles and was helpless for a while. All the villagers talked about Yin Guojiu, and the word "uncle" in Yin Guojiu filled Dong Xuan's ears. Some villagers lamented that Widow Dong was pitiful, and the word "Dong" of Widow Dong began to swirl in Dong Xuan's mind. These two words made Dong Xuan suddenly enlightened, and he became wise in his desperation and made a plan. He pretended to be a real person, squeezed into the center of the crowd, and cried loudly: "My brother-in-law, brother, I am late, you died miserably!" He took advantage of the thugs to be stunned for a moment, and without any precautions, he took the child Zhao Deng snatched it and handed it into the arms of Widow Dong. The thugs became angry and stepped forward to beat Dong Xuan. Dong Xuan stood up and shouted: "I am the county magistrate Dong Xuan, who dares to beat me!" The thugs did not dare to move again. Uncle Yin Guo came forward and recognized that it was indeed Dong Xuan. He held up the IOU and the debt repayment commitment in his hand and said, "It is only natural to pay back debts. How to settle this account?" Dong Xuan handed over these two written receipts. Grabbing it in his hand, he replied loudly: "Ms. Dong is my sister, Dong Xuan, and this Zhao Deng is my nephew. I, Dong Xuan, will settle this matter." Uncle Yin Guo couldn't tell the truth for a while, and he couldn't stand down, so he had to deal with it perfunctorily. After saying a few words, he led the thugs away angrily.

Widow Dong took little Zhao Deng and thanked Dong Xuan profusely.

Four long dragons, clear, white, yellow and black, wind and dance. The surging crowds came in an endless stream to watch this luxurious lantern delivery scene.

When my nephew Mao Changxi was "lighting up a lantern to shine on his uncle", because he was a high-ranking official, he played thirteen gongs to clear the way. There were ceremonial guards and retinues, crowds in front and behind, cars and riders holding each other's hats, and flags fluttering. The imperial court favored using half of the Luanjia, including pairs of flags, pairs of gongs, pairs of cards, pairs of umbrellas, pairs of fans, golden melons, moon axes, and sky-facing stirrups. The flags are embroidered with dragons and phoenixes, which are made according to official ranks. The name of the official, "avoidance", "quietness", etc. are written on the cards. The opposite fan is two meters high and the handle is one meter long. There is a small mirror embedded in the fan, which is shining. The opposite umbrella is more than one foot high. The golden melon, the moon axe, and the heaven-facing stirrup are also in pairs, and are more than one foot long. The pumpkin on top is similar to the cantaloupe today. The moon ax is a crescent-shaped axe. A skyward stirrup is a stirrup, but with the top of the pole facing toward the sky.

Mao Changxi held a lantern to shine on his uncle, and knelt down to invite his uncle to sit on the eight-carriage sedan. The sedan bearers wore special red satin mandarin jackets and walked in unison, elegantly and slowly. Mao Changxi led the hike while carrying a lantern. When he arrived at the gate, his uncle symbolically held up the lamp hanging above his nephew's door. At the thanksgiving banquet, Mao Changxi knelt three times and kowtowed to his uncle, respectfully inviting him to the banquet. The banquet was a full banquet of Manchu and Han Dynasties, with singing, dancing and singing, which was very lively. Officials from all over the country rushed to congratulate each other and sent piles of gifts.

As the saying goes: "Nephews and uncles are related by blood. Broken bones are connected by tendons." Because mother and uncle are siblings and have similar genetic genes, many nephews look like uncles.

I also look a lot like my uncle. My uncle treats me closer than his own son. When I was five years old, I lived at my uncle's house in Hantian. My cousin and I were sleeping side by side, and my uncle forced my cousin to get out of bed to pee. I wanted to get out of bed, but my uncle pushed me down on the bed and refused to let me down. He told me to pee on the straw mattress while I was covered with a quilt, for fear that I would catch a cold. My uncle's family is very poor and they usually don't have salt to eat. As long as I go to his house for dinner, he will treat me as the most distinguished guest and try his best to borrow some salt so that I can eat it alone, for fear that I will be a little wronged. When I was admitted to junior high school in 1963, my mother refused to let me go to school because I had no money to pay 12 yuan for books and miscellaneous fees. After my uncle heard the news, he came to my house and had a fight with my mother, and patiently persuaded her to allow me to continue going to school. He went back and sold the only food rations at home to pay my tuition and fees. Because my father died early, my uncle had the final say on all major family matters for my mother.

I have loved my uncle very much since I was a child and have special feelings for him. The nursery rhyme says: "On February 2, children's heads are shaved, big warehouses are full, small warehouses are full, children are filial, and daughters are filial. Life is sweet, and there is no need to worry about food, drink, and clothing. Boys are the top scorers in high school, and girls are rich and live in high-rise buildings. Children, if you don't shave your heads, you will get pimples. He has lice and his head is as swollen as a big lantern. His parents fight and scold him all the year round. His uncle will die in the twelfth lunar month of winter, so he will have his head shaved on the second day of the twelfth lunar month. The nursery rhyme also says: "My little nephew, light a lantern and take care of your uncle on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Invite your uncle to a banquet and kowtow your head." I keep this nursery rhyme in mind and "take care of my uncle" on time every year. Although my uncle was very poor and just gave me a small paper lantern, I felt it was very precious. Even though my family was not rich, I just treated my uncle to a home-cooked meal, and he was also very happy.

After I was discharged from the army and returned home, I had a "huge wealth" of 150 yuan in my pocket for the first time. I spent 100 yuan to hold a "Lighting a Lantern, Taking Care of Uncle" event. A solemn ceremony to repay my uncle for his great kindness to me. I couldn't help but kneel down to my uncle at the banquet. My uncle held me tightly in his arms. My nephew and uncle held each other's arms and cried. Everyone present also shed tears. All the true feelings were melted into words without words. In action.

Nowadays, some young people don’t even want to be filial to their parents, let alone their uncles. They even disdain and sneer at the traditional custom of “lighting up lanterns and taking care of their uncles”.

Nowadays, it is rare to see lanterns during Chinese New Year and festivals. Paper lanterns have been replaced by plastic lanterns of various shapes, and the candles used in the lanterns have also been replaced by batteries and light bulbs. However, I personally think it would be a pity if some traditional virtues were lost.

I really don’t want the traditional folk custom of “lighting up a lantern to shine on my uncle” to show respect for the elderly to disappear and become just a distant memory for the elderly.