How did hiring someone to press a pig image during Chinese New Year become a top trend?

The wind was a bit harsh, making Xu An's face sting.

After saying goodbye to the blind musician Li Guohua, Xu An felt as if he had just woken up from a deep dream.

The streetlights in the square came on, and the dim yellow light cast a long shadow of the earthquake memorial, like a stabilizing pillar, firmly holding down this land that had once been overturned.

The live stream was still bustling with activity; millions of people were quietly watching Xu An stroll around.

The comments scrolled slowly, but they were incredibly moving.

[ID Tangshan Earthquake Survivor]: The song "Hawthorn Tree" that you just played brought tears to my eyes. With your skills, Grandpa Li was definitely a pillar of the art troupe back in the day.

[ID Xujiacun Accountant]: That taciturn Stone, he's usually so quiet you can't even fart, I never expected him to have such a big secret on his mind. This old guy is really good at hiding things.

Xu An tightened his coat collar; the two chess-piece pancakes he had just eaten had whetted his appetite, and he was now clamoring for them even louder than Er Tuzi.

"Hey Baldy, wanna eat some meat?"

Xu An lowered his head and asked a question.

The myna bird in the cage has now completely let loose, tilting its head and its beady green eyes shining brightly in the night.

"Make it up! Make it up! We absolutely have to make it up!"

Xu An's lips twitched. This bird not only speaks Henan dialect and Tianjin dialect now, but its Tangshan accent is also getting more and more authentic. If it stays for another two days, it can probably become a straight man in Deyun Club.

He didn't want to go to fancy hotels; those opulent places made his legs weak.

He ventured into the alleyways along the roadside, hoping to find one of those small restaurants with greasy curtains hanging at the door and piles of coal briquettes at the entrance.

Not far along, a strange, burnt smell wafted over.

Ahead was a large food stall, a tarpaulin-covered tent, inside which was bustling with activity, the sounds of people playing drinking games and boasting making the roof shake.

There was a sign at the entrance with several large, cursive characters written in chalk: "[Authentic Da Ge Gu, Ge Gu Skin, Ge Gu Box]".

Xu An was stunned.

He recognized the word, but what was this thing?

Glutinous rice cake?

Why does it sound like "Ge Zha" (格渣), like that kind of construction waste?

Just as I was hesitating whether to go in, a shirtless man with half a ribbonfish tattooed on his back (actually a dragon) came out carrying a basin of vegetable washing water.

The eldest brother was a big, burly man with a fierce face, looking like a hero who had just come down from Liangshan Mountain.

The two walked past each other at the door.

Xu An's social anxiety radar instantly went off the charts. He instinctively reached for his sleeves and turned to run away.

"Hey bro! Ready to eat?"

The older brother had a loud, clear voice with a rising intonation at the end, carrying the unique warmth of the Tangshan dialect. He reached out and grabbed Xu An's sleeve.

"Don't go! Judging by your clothes, you must be from out of town. Come inside! It's warm inside!"

Xu An was practically dragged into the shed by this enthusiasm.

"Honey! You're here! Get that table inside ready!"

The older brother pressed Xu An down in front of a slightly shaky square table and casually hung the birdcage on a nearby pillar.

Er Tu Zi wasn't shy at all, and shouted at his older brother, "Big brother! Good! Big brother! Tough!"

The eldest brother's eyes narrowed into slits with delight, and the fat on his face instantly turned into a kind expression.

"My goodness! This bird's got some kind of magic! It even knows how to flatter!"

The live stream audience was laughing hysterically.

[ID Tangshan Native]: Anzi, run! This guy has entered the Spider Cave (just kidding). This guy looks like the kind who would give you his entire fortune if he got drunk!

[ID Science Popularizer]: Gege! That's a delicacy bestowed upon us by Empress Dowager Cixi! Made from mung bean flour, it's the lifeblood of Tangshan people!

Xu An looked at the menu on the wall and reluctantly ordered.

"Um... Brother, I'd like a serving of stir-fried rice dumplings with vinegar, and also... a fried rice dumpling box."

A short while later, the dishes were served.

Xu An was dumbfounded.

The sweet and sour dumplings were golden yellow, cut into diamond-shaped pieces, and looked exactly like those yellow floor tiles.

The fried dough sticks are even more hardcore, golden brown and crispy, with a satisfying crunch when you bite into them.

Xu An picked up a piece of "floor tile" and carefully took a bite.

Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a perfect balance of sweet and sour, a rich aroma of mung beans bursts in your mouth.

"Mmm...that feels good!"

Xu An's eyes lit up.

This is so delicious! Although it looks like building materials, the taste is absolutely amazing!

The older brother sat down with two bottles of beer, ignoring Xu Anshe's social anxiety, and started trying to open the bottles with his teeth.

"Brother, I saw you over at the square just now. Wasn't that Blind Li?"

The older brother took a big gulp of wine and sighed.

"That old man is so stubborn. He's been sitting there for almost thirty years. Everyone in the neighborhood knows he's waiting for someone. We never expected him to actually wait for us."

With his mouth full of snacks, Xu An asked indistinctly, "Big brother, do you know him?"

"Of course I know him! During the great earthquake, he was in the cultural troupe, and I was a coal miner."

The older brother pointed to the tattoo on his back.

"This ribbonfish... oops, this dragon, it was used to cover up scars back then."

"Tangshan was a terrible place back then, with corpses strewn everywhere. Blind Li's eyes were smashed, and his zither was gone. Later, everyone chipped in to repair it for him."

As the older brother spoke, his eyes became a little red.

He said he had a brother who was mute. He ruined his voice trying to save him, and they got separated because there were no phones back then and nowhere to look for him.

"He thought the mute man was dead or had gone back to his hometown to enjoy his retirement, so he didn't dare to disturb him. He just stayed under this monument, thinking that if the mute man came back to pay his respects, he might run into him."

Xu An felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this.

Losing contact in those days truly meant being separated by life and death.

Without WeChat, without location services, even a letter might disappear without a trace due to a change of address.

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Huixian County, Henan Province, in Xujia Village.

It was late at night, but the village's "White Rabbit Canteen" was still brightly lit.

There's a big TV in the canteen, and all the villagers, young and old, watch the live broadcast there.

On the screen was a picture of Xu An eating glutinous rice balls at a food stall in Tangshan.

At the very front of the crowd sat a thin, old man.

The old man was wearing old work clothes covered in stone dust, and he was tightly gripping a hammer that had been used for decades.

He was a mute stonemason, "Stone".

The old man has been crying ever since the song "Hawthorn Tree" started playing in the live stream.

Crying silently.

Tears streamed down her deeply lined face, soaking the front of her clothes.

He can't hear.

But he saw the red accordion, and the old man wearing sunglasses, his face pressed against the stone slab as he wept bitterly.

His calloused hands were frantically gesturing in the air, making "hoho" sounds in his throat.

Although the old woman next to her was blind, she could feel the stone trembling.

She reached out and gently patted the stone's back.

"Old Stone, did you see that? Did you hear that?"

"They haven't forgotten you. They're playing their violin for you at the foot of that monument."

Although Stone couldn't hear, he understood what Aunt Hua meant and nodded vigorously, as if he wanted to nod his head for the rest of his life.

He suddenly stood up and stumbled to a corner of the canteen, where several pieces of bluestone he had just carried back from the back mountain were piled up.

He picked up the hammer and chisel.

"Ding! Ding! Ding!"

The crisp tapping sound echoed through the late-night cafeteria.

He struck the hammer quickly and forcefully, each strike sending sparks flying.

Uncle Xu Qiang, holding a teacup, watched this scene, and his eyes also welled up with tears.

He took out his phone, recorded a video of the stone, and sent it to Xu An.

Second Uncle: Anzi, Shi Tou saw it. He's carving a monument, saying he wants to carve the score of that piece of music on the big stone at the entrance of our village, so that everyone who comes to the village in the future will know that there is a kind of friendship in this world, where the deaf hears the blind man's music.

……

Tangshan, street food stalls.

Xu An's phone vibrated, and he saw a video sent by his second uncle.

In the video, the gaunt figure is wielding a hammer. Although no sound can be heard, the powerful release of energy is palpable even through the screen.

Xu An handed his phone to the tattooed man across from him.

"Brother, look, that mute guy... he's replying to a letter too."

The older brother leaned over for a look, and the burly man suddenly buried his face in his beer glass.

After a long while, he finally raised his head and wiped his face.

"Beat! It's fucking good!"

"Brother, this meal's on me tonight! Don't anyone try to take it from me! I'll fight anyone who does!"

Xu An didn't steal it.

He knew this wasn't about money.

This is a toast from the men of Tangshan to this sentiment.

After finishing his meal, Xu An didn't rush back to the hotel.

He carried Er Tuzi and wandered aimlessly through the streets of Tangshan.

The city is new, the roads are wide, and the buildings on both sides are sturdy and impressive.

But he always felt that beneath these reinforced concrete structures flowed a warmth that was unique to this place.

When passing by Nanhu Park, Xu An saw a group of middle-aged women doing square dancing.

The music was very energetic, and the older women were dancing enthusiastically.

There were several old men cracking whips nearby, making a "crack crack" sound. Each crack seemed to dispel the gloom in the air.

The people here seem to know better than anyone else how to live life passionately.

Xu An found a bench and sat down, placing the birdcage on his lap.

He pulled the tin box out of his pocket.

There were also several letters inside.

But he didn't open it.

Grandpa used to say that delivering mail depends on fate; you can't rush things.

"Hey Baldy, where do you think we're going next?"

Xu An muttered to himself.

Er Tuzi was pecking at the pastry skin that Xu An had secretly given him, and mumbled a reply:

"Let's take a stroll! Let's go for a walk to digest!"

Xu Anle is happy.

This bird is finished; it's been completely assimilated into a street urchin.

In the live stream, netizens were still discussing the snacks they had just eaten with great enthusiasm.

[Food Blogger ID]: Found it! Tangshan gezi comes in many varieties, including sweet and sour, caramelized, and stewed, and you can even fill them! This thing is a "multi-purpose brick" in Tangshan; you can use it anywhere you need it, and it's so delicious you'll cry!

[ID Foodie Squad]: That's the character of Tangshan. It looks tough, but one bite is full of flavor and it's soft inside.

Xu An looked at the comments and smiled.

He looked up at the brightly lit Nanhu Park in the distance. Phoenix Terrace shimmered in the night, like a divine bird ready to take flight at any moment.

This city has suffered the most severe wounds.

But it also grew the hardest bones and bloomed the most beautiful flowers.

"Let's go, Baldy."

Xu An stood up and exhaled a puff of white breath.

"Go back to bed and sleep. Tomorrow... I'll go see this different city again tomorrow."

He didn't take a taxi; instead, he carried the birdcage and strolled slowly along the bustling Jianshe Road.

The tattooed guy who had treated Xu An to a meal earlier didn't chase after him, but as Xu An passed the intersection, he stood far away under the lights of the food stall, raised his half-empty bottle of beer, and gave a distant toast.

No words were spoken.

All that was his less-than-perfect salute and his big, white teeth.

Xu An stopped, took his hand out of his sleeve, and respectfully returned the bow.

This is the world of martial arts.

A bowl of rice cakes, a song, a bottle of beer—that's the bond of life and death.

Back at the budget hotel he had found, Xu An fed Er Tu Zi some water and placed it on the bedside table.

He lay in bed, listening to the occasional sound of traffic outside the window, stroking the stone book envelope that had already been delivered in his hand.

The remaining letters lay quietly inside the tin box.

Each letter is a piece of a long-forgotten story.

Each letter represents a burning heart.

Xu An closed his eyes, his mind filled with the image of the blind musician playing his violin in the wind today, and the bald guy who could only say "dejin".

In his dream, he seemed to see a ruin covered with red hawthorn flowers.

Among the flowers, some people were laughing, some were singing, and some were eating meat heartily.

That's the taste of being alive.