CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- “I’d like two liang of Xiaomian.” Most Chongqing people begin a new day with a bowl of Xiaomian (noodles), plain noodles seasoned with chili oil and topped with braised beef or braised pig’s large intestines. In Chongqing, more than 84,000 stores sell up to 12.8 million bowls of Xiaomian every day. Xiaomian is undoubtedly the favorite staple food of Chongqing people. However, do you know how much liang is in one gram?

When an international student tried Xiaomian for the first time, he asked for ten liang of noodles after knowing that one liang is equivalent to 50 grams. Then when the store owner brought a big bowl of noodles, he was stunned and confused about liang, the Chinese unit of mass. How do we measure the weight of noodles in liang? It’s difficult to answer the question. It’s a long story.

More than two thousand years ago, the First Emperor of Qin wanted to unify the weights and measures of the Six Kingdoms, so he entrusted the task to the prime minister Li Si. After successfully formulating standards for coins and length, Li Si ran out of ideas on standards for weight. How much liang is in one jin? He asked the first Emperor for instructions, and the emperor wrote down four characters for him: "天下公平" (All people are fair and equal). Li Si was puzzled by the answer, and then an idea came up to his mind: he took the number of strokes of "天下公平" as the standard and determined that one jin was equal to 16 liang.

The origin of "liang" dates back one thousand years earlier than Li Si's "brilliant idea". It is said that the ancestors found that there were 16 stars in the sky: seven stars in the Big Dipper, six stars in the Southern Dipper, and three stars of fortune, prosperity, and longevity. In ancient times, it is believed that the Big Dipper was in charge of the death of people, the Southern Dipper was in charge of the life of people, and the three stars were in charge of the fortune, prosperity, and longevity of people; if businessmen get short measure, they will have less fortune, prosperity, and longevity. That’s why one jin is equivalent to 16 liang in ancient China.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, it was ruled that one jin equaled 10 liang instead of 16 liang so as to facilitate calculation. With the progress of society, we later follow the international metric system for weights (one liang equals 50 grams). However, the Chongqing xiaomian is still served in portions of two liang instead of 100 grams. Liang seems to be a legacy of the planned economy. At that time, you have to bring cash and food stamps with you when dining out. The value of food is measured in terms of money, and food stamps represent the eligibility to buy food. Jin and liang are units of weight used by food stamps. Normally, no one uses a scale to weigh food measured in jin or liang. It is general knowledge that one liang of steamed stuffed buns equals three, one liang of fried buns equals four, one liang of dumplings equals six or seven, and two liang of xiaomian equals one bowl...

Besides, the “two liang” in the “two liang of Xiaomian” refers to the weight of dry flour. Most of the noodles are dietary alkaline noodles in Sichuan and Chongqing, which are known as “shui mian”. “One jin of alkaline noodles cooked with three bowls of water” has been a code of practice in the Chongqing Xiaomian industry over the years. The owner of the noodle shop usually weighs the noodles by hand, so two liang of Xiaomian is not always weighing two liang. It is a symbol of the down-to-earth lifestyle of Chongqing people. (Translated by Yuki, Fathom Language Limited)