The Story#
A long, long time ago, there was a monster called “Nian.”
Nian looked very scary: it had horns on its head, a big mouth, and sharp teeth.
It usually lived deep in the sea. But every New Year’s Eve, it would come out to find food.
“Roar—”
Nian would eat the livestock in villages and sometimes hurt people too.
People were very afraid. Every New Year’s Eve, they would hide in the mountains.
One New Year’s Eve, an old grandfather came to the village. He said: “I’m not afraid of Nian. Let me deal with it!”
At night, Nian came!
The old grandfather put on red clothes, pasted red couplets on the door, and set off firecrackers.
“Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!”
Nian saw the red color and heard the firecrackers. It trembled with fear and ran away!
It turned out Nian was most afraid of red, firelight, and loud noises!
From then on, people knew how to deal with Nian.
Every New Year’s Eve, everyone wears red clothes, pastes red couplets, sets off firecrackers, and hangs red lanterns.
Nian never dared to come again!
This is the origin of Chinese New Year. Little friends, during New Year, we paste couplets, set off firecrackers, and wear new clothes—all to drive away Nian and welcome the new year!
What the Story Teaches Us#
People used wisdom to defeat the scary Nian monster. This story teaches us not to panic when facing scary things—use your brain to find solutions.