Preface: In China, there is a special day called Xiao Nian （小年，the Little New Year）. It serves as a prelude to the Spring Festival, marking the beginning of people’s busy preparations for the new year. Today, let me tell you the story of Little Year.
很久很久以前 ， 在一个遥远的村庄里 ， 人们过着平静的生活 。 但是 ， 每年冬天 ， 一只凶猛的野兽 “ 年 ” 都会来到村里 ， 吃掉牲畜 ， 甚至伤害村民 ， 让大家非常害怕 。
Long, long ago, in a distant village, people lived peaceful lives. But every winter, a fierce beast called ”Nian” would come to the village, eating livestock and even harming villagers, causing everyone to be very frightened.
为了保护村庄 ， 村民们想出了一个办法 。 他们发现 ，“ 年 ” 害怕红色 、 火光和响声 。 于是 ， 每年冬天 “ 年 ” 要来的时候 ， 村民们就会穿上红色的衣服 ， 点亮灯笼 ， 放鞭炮 ， 以此来驱赶 “ 年 ”。
To protect the village, the villagers came up with a plan. They discovered that ”Nian” was afraid of red, firelight, and loud noises. So, every winter when ”Nian” was about to arrive, the villagers would wear red clothes, light lanterns, and set off firecrackers to drive ”Nian” away.
后来 ， 人们发现 “ 年 ” 总是在腊月二十三或二十四这两天出现 ， 于是就把这两天定为小年 ， 提前做好迎接 “ 年 ” 的准备 。 在小年这天 ， 家家户户都会打扫房屋 ， 贴上红色的对联和窗花 ， 希望把一年的晦气都扫走 ， 迎接新年的好运 。
Later, people found that ”Nian” always appeared on the 23rd or 24th day of the 12th lunar month, so they designated these two days as Little Year, preparing in advance to welcome ”Nian”. On the day of Little Year, every household would clean their house, paste red couplets and paper-cuts on windows, hoping to sweep away all the bad luck of the year and welcome good luck for the new year.
除了打扫卫生 ， 小年还有一个重要的习俗 ， 那就是祭灶 。 传说灶王爷会在小年这天上天向玉帝汇报人间的善恶 ， 所以人们会在灶台上放上甜食 ， 希望灶王爷上天后多说好话 ， 保佑家人来年平安幸福 。
Apart from cleaning, there is another important custom during Little Year, which is sacrificing to the Kitchen God. According to legend, the Kitchen God would report on the good and evil of human beings to the Jade Emperor on the day of Little Year, so people would put sweets on the stove, hoping that the Kitchen God would say good things after going to heaven and bless their families with peace and happiness in the coming year.
就这样 ， 小年成了中国传统节日中不可或缺的一部分 ， 人们通过庆祝小年 ， 寄托着对美好生活的向往和期盼 。
In this way, Little Year has become an integral part of Chinese traditional festivals. By celebrating Little Year, people express their longing and hope for a better life.
通过阅读中国神话、民间故事、历史典故、人物传记学汉语，简单易学，中英对照，适合初学者！
Learning Chinese through reading Chinese mythology, folk stories, historical allusions, and biographies is easy to learn and bilingual, suitable for beginners!