In ancient times, mooncakes were eaten as sacrifices during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Over time, mooncakes have evolved into Mid-Autumn Festival foods and gifts. The custom of eating mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival appeared in the Tang Dynasty. During the Northern Song Dynasty, this kind of cake was called "Gong Cake" and was popular in the palace, but it also spread to the people. At that time, it was commonly known as "small cake" and "moon cake". Later it evolved into a circle, which symbolizes reunion and happiness. Moon cakes usually refer to the cakes that people eat during the specific festival of Mid-Autumn Festival, and are usually round in shape. Judging from historical records, the first time that cakes were associated with the moon of the Mid-Autumn Festival was when General Li Jing returned victorious from the conquest of the Huns on August 15th. Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty accepted the Hu cakes offered by Turpan merchants, smiled and pointed to the moon and said: "We should bring Hu cakes to the moon." Cake invites toad.” During the Northern Song Dynasty, this kind of cake was called "Gong Cake" and was popular in the palace, but it also spread to the people. At that time, it was commonly known as "small cake" and "moon cake". Later it evolved into a circle, which symbolizes reunion and happiness. According to "Luozhong Insights", Emperor Xizong of the Tang Dynasty ordered the imperial kitchen to use red silk to reward new scholars with cakes on the Mid-Autumn Festival. But it was not called mooncakes at that time. The term mooncake first appeared in Wu Zimu's "Meng Liang Lu" in the Southern Song Dynasty. The mooncakes at that time were rhombus-shaped and existed at the same time as chrysanthemum cakes and plum blossom cakes. . It can be seen that mooncakes at this time are not only eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. As for the origin of the term mooncake, there is no way to verify it. However, Su Dongpo, a famous scholar in the Northern Song Dynasty, left a poem that said, "Small cakes are like chewing the moon, with crisp and glutinous rice in them." Perhaps this is the origin of the name of moon cakes and the basis for the making of moon cakes. There are a lot of records about moon cakes since the Ming Dynasty. At this time, the moon cakes were already round and were only eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. They were the main offerings during the Mid-Autumn Festival that became popular among the people starting from the Ming Dynasty. "A Brief Introduction to the Scenery of the Imperial Capital" says: "When worshiping the moon on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, the fruit cake must be round." "If a household sets the moonlight in the direction of the moon, and worships toward the moon, the moonlight paper will be burned, the offerings will be removed, and the family members will be dispersed. The moon cakes and fruits will be given to each other by relatives, and the cakes are two feet in diameter." The widely circulated story about Zhu Yuanzhang using moon cakes to convey news of the uprising on August 15th is inconsistent with historical facts, because Zhu Yuanzhang never led it. During the uprising, he just joined Guo Zixing's team and took Guo's adopted daughter as his wife, who was Queen Ma. If the legend about using mooncakes to convey news of the uprising is true, it was most likely done by Zhang Shicheng. But this legend proves from another aspect that the Yuan Dynasty had the custom of eating mooncakes on the Mid-Autumn Festival. Moon cakes symbolize reunion, and they should have started in the Ming Dynasty. If we look at the information about moon cakes and Mid-Autumn Festival folk customs in the Ming Dynasty, we should be able to see the historical trajectory of moon cakes meaning reunion: after worshiping the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival, the whole family would sit around and share moon cakes and fruits (moon offerings) . Because moon cakes are also round and shared by the whole family, moon cakes have gradually come to represent family reunion. Related records: It is said that in ancient my country, emperors had the ritual system of worshiping the sun in spring and the moon in autumn. Among the people, during the Mid-Autumn Festival in August, there is also the custom of worshiping or offering sacrifices to the moon. "The moons are full in August and the fifteenth, and the Mid-Autumn moon cakes are fragrant and sweet." This famous proverb describes the custom of urban and rural people eating on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Moon cakes were originally used as sacrifices to the moon god. Later, people gradually regarded moon viewing and tasting moon cakes as a symbol of family reunion during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Gradually, moon cakes became festival gifts. Mooncakes originally originated as a food for the Tang Dynasty army to celebrate victory. During the reign of Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty, General Li Jing conquered the Huns and returned in triumph on August 15th. At that time, some people from Turpan who were doing business presented cakes to the emperor of the Tang Dynasty to celebrate his victory. The great ancestor Li Yuan took the gorgeous cake box, took out the round cake, pointed at the bright moon in the sky with a smile and said: "You should invite the toad with the Hu cake." After speaking, he distributed the cake to the ministers to eat together. The word "mooncake" has been found in the book "Old Wulin Stories" of the Southern Song Dynasty. It can be seen from the book that mooncakes at that time were steamed. This steamed noodle cake is a must-eat during the Mid-Autumn Festival and is still a popular custom in Shandong, Henan and other places. The word "mooncake" already exists in Wu Zimu's "Mengliang Lu" of the Southern Song Dynasty, but the description of admiring the moon and eating mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival is only recorded in the "West Lake Tour Zhihui" of the Ming Dynasty: "On August 15th, it is said During the Mid-Autumn Festival, people send moon cakes to each other to symbolize reunion." By the Qing Dynasty, there were more records about mooncakes, and their production became more and more sophisticated. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, mooncakes have become a Mid-Autumn Festival delicacy throughout our country. "History of the Ming Dynasty" records that "in August, begonias and hostas were admired in the palace. From the beginning of the year, there were mooncake sellers... By the 15th, every family offered mooncakes, fruits... If there were any leftover mooncakes, they were all sold separately. Collect them in a dry and cool place and share them with the family at the end of the year, which is called 'Reunion Cake'." Shen Bang's "Wanshu Miscellaneous Notes" recorded the customs in Beijing during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty: "Moon cakes are given to the common people in August. The moon cakes, which vary in size, are called "moon cakes". Today, moon cakes have become more diverse and have different flavors depending on the region. Among them, Beijing-style, Su-style, Cantonese-style, Chao-style moon cakes are widely popular in all parts of the north and south of my country. People love to eat. Moon cakes symbolize reunion and are a must-eat during the Mid-Autumn Festival. On the festival night, people also like to eat reunion fruits such as watermelon to wish their families a happy, happy and safe life. Moon cakes are also called moon cakes. Moon cakes, palace cakes, small cakes, moon cakes, reunion cakes, etc. are offerings to worship the moon god during the Mid-Autumn Festival in ancient times. According to historical records, the custom of eating moon cakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival has been passed down. As early as the Yin and Zhou dynasties, there was a kind of "Taishi cake" with thin edges and thick heart in Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas to commemorate Taishi Wen Zhong. This is the "ancestor" of Chinese mooncakes.

When Zhang Qian of the Han Dynasty was on his mission to the Western Regions, he introduced sesame seeds and walnuts to add auxiliary ingredients to the production of moon cakes. At this time, round cakes filled with walnut kernels appeared, called "Hu cakes". In the Tang Dynasty, there were already bakers engaged in production among the people, and bakery shops began to appear in Chang'an, the capital. It is said that on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival one year, when Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty and Concubine Yang Guifei were enjoying the moon and eating Hu cakes, Emperor Xuanzong thought that the name "Hu cakes" was not nice. The name "Mooncake" gradually spread among the people. The royal family of the Northern Song Dynasty liked to eat a kind of "palace cake" during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which was commonly known as "small cake" and "moon cake" among the people. Su Dongpo has a poem that says: "Small cakes are like chewing the moon, with crispness and joy in them." Song Dynasty writer Zhou Mi mentioned the name "moon cakes" for the first time in "Old Wulin Stories", which described what he saw in Lin'an, the capital of the Southern Song Dynasty. By the Ming Dynasty, eating mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival gradually became popular among the people. At that time, the ingenious bakers printed the mythical story of Chang'e flying to the moon as a food art pattern on mooncakes, making mooncakes a must-have food for the Mid-Autumn Festival that is more popular among the people. Among the people, during the Mid-Autumn Festival in August, there is a custom of worshiping or offering sacrifices to the moon. When the moon is full in August and fifteenth, Mid-Autumn moon cakes are fragrant and sweet. This famous saying expresses the custom of eating moon cakes in urban and rural areas on the night of Mid-Autumn Festival. Mooncakes were originally offered as sacrifices to the moon god. Later, people gradually began to appreciate the moon and taste mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival as a symbol of family reunion. Gradually, mooncakes also became festival gifts.