Book excerpt: Yan'er is excited to help her grandmother prepare Laba congee for the Laba congee festival. It's a lot of work--organizing, cleaning, and preparing the ingredients, then cooking it on a wood-burning stove. It smells so good, even a puppy can't resist the aroma. Then Yan'er must carry some of the Laba congee to share with men and women in the village. And after she finally fills her own belly, Yan'er discovers that leftover Laba congee has other uses, too.