At this moment, the flavor of the New Year is strong. The streets and alleys are decorated with lights and colorful decorations, draped in red and green, and a lively folk activity is taking place, depicting a vivid scene of welcoming the Chinese New Year. From the national celebration on the local stage to the sweet new chapter of the ancient charm of the water town; From the ingenuity and brilliance of intangible cultural heritage to the flowing New Year's flavor of snow covered trains... The new scenery of New Year customs from all over the world carries profound cultural roots and reflects the prosperous and upward trend of life in the new era. The lively welcome and joyful celebration of the Chinese New Year are the romance and persistence engraved in the bones of the Chinese people. When old traditions encounter new expressions, old flavors merge with new joys, and what remains unchanged is the hope for reunion and the longing for beauty. It is the warm force that unites and moves towards the new. In this issue, we cross mountains and rivers to embark on this hot Chinese New Year together. This year's "Village Evening" is not an ordinary story: Zhou Xiaoyong, Director of the Culture and Tourism Bureau of Tongzi County, Guizhou Province, is approaching the New Year, and the New Year's flavor of Tongzi is also rising along with the "Village Evening". On the wall of my office, there are 68 activity schedules of 25 towns and streets in the county: basketball match in Shixi Town, Miao singing and dancing in Huanglian Township, "playing glutinous rice cake and making rice dumpling" in Rongguang Town, and public welfare film week in Chumi Town. This list of activities is the "New Year cultural gift package" we present to the villagers. The 'Village Evening' in Tongzi was originally a spontaneous' lively 'event among the common people. Several villages gather together to play a game of ball, sing a song, and have a meal, with the intention of celebrating reunion. In recent years, the comprehensive revitalization of rural areas has been steadily advancing, and people's demand for spiritual and cultural life is increasing. We have taken advantage of this opportunity to integrate and enhance the scattered "village evenings", and create a county-level cultural brand. This year, in response to the call of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism for the national relay live broadcast of "My Village, My New Year", we will hold a different "Village Evening" - not only to make every village and town lively, but also to showcase the New Year's flavor, customs, and specialties of Tongzi to the national audience through a large-scale live broadcast on New Year's Eve. Where is the new place for this' village evening '? It is a party that can be 'eaten'. 26 tables of "Water Eight Bowls" are set up, and the audience watches the performance while eating New Year's Eve dinner. We have specially designed a "singing dish" segment, where each dish is accompanied by auspicious words, making eating a cultural experience with a sense of ceremony. It is a performance without walls. There are no restrictions on the stage, and actors enter the room: high pitched mountain songs play at the dining table, acrobats interact with the audience with wine jars above their heads, "Sun Wukong" and "God of Wealth" come to pay New Year's greetings with flower boats... Everyone is a participant in the "Village Evening", not just an observer. It is a grand celebration of global linkage. 25 townships and streets simultaneously carry out activities, such as basketball games, oil tea banquets, Miao ethnic songs and dances, theme parks... From December to January, there are activities almost every day, and every village is lively. It is a chain that integrates online and offline. We have partnered with logistics companies and county integrated media centers to set up an intangible cultural heritage New Year's goods market and live streaming sales area at the event site. Tongzi square bamboo shoots, Maotai flavor Baijiu, bacon sausages and other large waves of "good taste in the countryside" are moving across the country through the screen. In order to hold this "village evening" well, we started preparing three months ago, and the most touching thing is the enthusiasm of the masses: calligraphy enthusiasts in Chumi Town voluntarily signed up to write Spring Festival couplets, aunties in Loushanguan Street rehearsed their own dances until late at night, and villagers in Rongguang Town prepared glutinous rice and earth pigs early... Everyone said "the village evening is their own business". If you are in Tongzi, you are welcome to walk into any activity venue in a village or town, play ball games, sing songs, guess riddles, and have meals, all for free and open to the public; If you are out of town, open the live broadcast and search for "Tongzi Village Evening" to "Cloud New Year". The New Year is a heartwarming ceremony engraved in the genes of Chinese people, and the "Village Evening" is adding fire to this warmth. We are waiting for you to come and celebrate a lively Chinese New Year together. The Joyful Event of Water Town "is narrated by Su Jun, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Yuxing Community in Tongli Town, Wujiang District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. The festive atmosphere of Tongli is hidden in the sound of oars and wrapped in sweetness. As one of the six ancient towns in Jiangnan and one of the first batch of famous historical and cultural towns in China, the water here is alive, and the water town wedding customs that have been passed down for a hundred years are becoming increasingly popular. Since I was young, I have loved to squeeze into the crowd and watch the welcoming ceremony of the water town - a fleet of boats with the big red "Xi" sign slowly approaching, the sound of drums, silk, and bamboo echoing through the streets and alleys. The bride, adorned with phoenix crowns and rosy cheeks, and the groom, dressed in a long robe and vest, carefully walked across the three bridges of "Taiping", "Jili", and "Changqing" with the help of Xiniang. Along the way, red dates, peanuts, and candy were scattered, sweet enough to enter the hearts of neighbors and villagers. This lively moment engraved in memory has now become an intangible cultural heritage that we take pride in. We also realize that this unique water town wedding custom is not just a "household matter", but also a highly attractive tourism resource. So, we began to systematically explore and organize the process of wedding customs, inviting folk experts and old artists to work together to remove the dross and preserve the essence, making traditional rituals retain their core charm while also being more ornamental and experiential, and turning this "sweetness" into a "sweet cause" that drives the development of the ancient town. More and more newcomers are recognizing the "sweet blessings" of their peers and coming here to capture important moments in their lives. In 2025, a total of 1098 couples signed marriage documents in Tongli Ancient Town, a year-on-year increase of 33%. On average, there are 20 to 30 couples getting married and taking photos in the ancient town every day. The bluestone roads, ancient bridges, flowing water, and century old courtyards have all become witnesses of their love. I have witnessed too many warm moments of happiness, among which the wedding of a couple of overseas returnees left a deep impression on me. They held their wedding on the lawn of the century old Lize Girls' School. Coincidentally, several foreign tourists passed by and thought it was a folk performance, stopping to watch with great interest. The newlyweds simply used fluent English to introduce to foreign friends the symbolism of the Three Bridges, the meaning of happy candy, and Jiangnan culture in the wedding customs of the water town, and warmly invited them to share their happiness. This unexpected exchange has become a great story in cross-cultural communication. The revival of wedding customs in water towns has also made me deeply realize that true protection is not about sealing them up in museums, but finding ways to resonate with modern life. In the future, we will continue to delve deeper into the cultural values embedded in wedding customs, such as family traditions, family education, prayer etiquette, etc., and develop more design oriented wedding customs cultural and creative products, so that this sweet experience is not only in form, but also touches the soul. Now, Tongli Ancient Town has been filled with a festive atmosphere, and we have hung red lanterns all along the streets and alleys along the river. The New Year activities of "Qi Ji Na Fu He Sui Tong Li" will also be lively throughout the whole month of January, including the wedding customs of walking three bridges, the parade of top scholars, welcoming the God of Wealth, and announcing the scroll in the same neighborhood. On the Slow Train, Catch the Big Episode Narrator: Jiang Zhiwen, the conductor of Qiqihar Passenger Transport Section of China Railway Harbin Group Co., Ltd. I am the conductor of K7103 train and have been following the train for 12 years. Recently, our "green train" that covers a total distance of 719 kilometers and stops at 18 stations is a bit different - we have directly moved the lively Northeast New Year's Eve into the carriage. As soon as the passenger gets on the bus, their eyes will definitely light up. There are red lanterns hanging at the junction of the carriage, which were personally arranged by me and the cabin crew. On both sides of the aisle hang golden corn skewers and red dried chili peppers, which are also decorations we specially prepared. On the car window, the word "Fu" and the magpie climbed onto the plum Paper Cuttings, and the whole carriage was immediately wrapped in the flavor of New Year, which was very festive. Just after passing Harbin Station, the "Train Grand Gathering" of carriage 3 officially started. The Errenzhuan actor first raised his voice and sang a playful and enthusiastic song called 'The Grand Sedan'. The boldness of the Northeasterners ignited the atmosphere, and the passengers clapped and cheered along. The aisle was packed with people. After singing over here, the magic show continued over there. The children tiptoed around, their eyes wide open, and their astonishment made my mouth involuntarily curl up. The "hometown flavors" on the collection are carefully selected by us, including hazelnuts, fungus, blueberry fruit wine, and more. The passengers carried heavy gift boxes in their hands and hurried briskly to their seats. These packages contain not only the heartfelt wishes for family members, but also the livelihood and hope of the villagers along the route. The intangible cultural heritage exhibition area at the other end of the carriage is also bustling. The birch bark craftsman's fingertips flickered, turning ordinary bark into exquisite pendants; As soon as the Paper Cuttings artist's scissors are opened and closed, the words of "spring" and "good luck" appear on the paper. On the small table next to it, old games such as "Chagalaha" and "Mini Plowing" attract parents and children to play together, and laughter and joy fill the carriage. This year, we have added many thoughtful new ideas. The dining car offered pickled Chinese cabbage stewed noodles for ten yuan each, which was warm and solid; There is a live streaming corner in the carriage, where e-commerce experts tell the story of planting black soil agricultural products and the picking process of mountain goods to the camera. The interaction in the live streaming room is non-stop; During the ethnic costume parade, the distinctive costumes of the Oroqen and Korean ethnic groups were showcased one after another. Passengers raised their phones and captured this unique Northeastern New Year flavor with their cameras. This train connects the mountains and waters of the Songnen Plain and the Greater Khingan Range, as well as the daily lives of various ethnic groups and villagers along the route. The residents of Wulubu Railway and Chaoyang Village are scattered, and many Oroqen villagers rely on this slow train for medical treatment, visiting relatives, and handling affairs. In previous years, we often saw people carrying big and small bags to rush to the market and then to the bus, exhausted and gasping for breath. So this year, we have made up our mind to move the New Year's market onto the bus. Let everyone get all the New Year's goods on the journey, less hustle and bustle, and more warmth. For the past 12 years, I have followed the K7103 train through the forest and snow plains, witnessing the increasingly prosperous lives of my fellow villagers. I have always believed that trains should not only deliver passengers to their destinations, but also add warmth and beauty to the journey. In the future, we will also carry more intangible cultural heritage projects and good things from Longjiang onto the train, allowing this slow train to carry a strong sense of the New Year and thick friendship, and continue to shuttle through the snowy plains, becoming a forever warm scenery. Hengqu Lantern Upgraded Narrator: Gao Haiwang, a lantern worker from Hengqu Village, Xiangyang Town, Jiancaoping District, Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province. In our Hengqu Village, the New Year's flavor does not come from the kitchen, but rather "lights up". Light up one by one, string by string of flower lights, that's what we call Chinese New Year. I grew up with lanterns, and now I have become a lantern worker myself, personally shaping the light and shadow of the New Year. As soon as New Year's Day passed, our village started operating at full capacity. Everyone was busy from morning till night and had to work until the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month before taking a break. Why are you so busy? Orders are all queued up! Not only are local customers in Shanxi vying for it, but customers from other provinces are also placing orders based on their reputation. Especially for this year's "Dragon and Horse Spirit" and "Success on the Move" themed lanterns, they were sold out as soon as they were released, and lanterns in ancient architecture and mythological shapes were also selling well. If we don't work hard, we won't be able to supply them. In Hengqu Village, making lanterns is an old craft. According to legend, there has been a custom of making lanterns since the Song Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, the villagers relied on this craft to support their families. The old saying 'Without land in Hengqu, it's all about playing tricks' has been passed down to this day. For us, lanterns are no longer just handicrafts, but cultural cards and collective memories of the people of Hengqu. In 2023, the production technique of Hengqu lanterns became a municipal intangible cultural heritage, and our busy schedule also added a heavy responsibility. Times are changing, and our lanterns are also upgrading. Previously, incandescent lamps were paired with silk fabric, but now they have been replaced with LED lamps and colored satin fabric, resulting in a bright and dynamic outline; We also used new technologies such as sound, light, and electricity, allowing the lanterns to rotate, swing, and "dance", transforming static lights into vivid "living lights". From sketching, shaping to welding and rust removal, all six or seven processes rely on manual "grasping",