At 7 a.m., Wang Liping, a maker of traditional flower-shaped steamed buns (hua mo) in Linshu County, Linyi City, Shandong Province, is already busy at work. On the board, flour, vegetable juices and other ingredients are neatly arranged. Wang and several villagers sit together to knead, pinch, cut and press—ordinary dough is quickly transformed into longevity peaches, apples, golden ingots, and, especially popular in the Year of the Horse, a “horse treading auspicious clouds” design.
Freshly steamed large blossom buns come out of the steamer hot and fragrant, the air redolent with wheat aroma, drawing many customers. While efficiently bagging orders, Wang explains, “Many regulars choose us because we use high-quality flour—the texture is firmer and the wheaty aroma stronger, so people feel more confident eating them.”
On a nearby display rack sit Wang’s many hoa-mo creations in a dazzling array of shapes. “For birthdays you give longevity peaches; for business openings you bring a lion for good luck; in leap months you give koi. It’s about wishing good fortune—literally eating blessings bite by bite,” she says with a smile.
Wang began making hua mo out of simple interest. She later found the craft has low barriers to entry and requires only basic tools, so local women and mothers can easily learn it. “Having something to do keeps your hands busy,” she says, her eyes brightening as she talks about it. Now she travels with the county women’s federation’s “Rural Empowerment Center” project to teach in communities, village committees and farmhouse courtyards—wherever people want to learn, she goes.
Riding the wave of short-video platforms, Wang also started livestreaming. Every night at 8 she appears in her livestreaming room to introduce her hua mo to viewers across the country. Orders pour in through the internet: “We steam from morning till night—using about 200 kg of flour a day and selling roughly 400 jin of buns. Life keeps getting better,” Wang says contentedly.
As the buns come out of the steamer, steam fills the room. Those round, plump flower buns—hot and sweet—have softened and enriched Wang Liping’s life. They travel to thousands of tables and, carried in the rising steam of everyday life, have kneaded this corner of rural intangible cultural heritage into the fabric of local livelihoods.
