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

After leaving Aunt Wu's courtyard, Xu An felt a slight cramp in his calves.

It's not that I'm tired, it's that feeling from earlier, like cotton stuck in my chest, both sore and swollen.

Before even reaching the construction site, the rumbling sound of machinery could be heard from afar.

Looking up, Xu An almost dropped the Extraordinary Master in his hand.

"What's going on?"

What was originally just a large pit with a foundation now has more than a dozen steel pillars standing up.

The red steel frame gleamed in the setting sun, resembling a giant steel beast crouching at the village entrance.

This doesn't look like a cafeteria.

This setup suggests that Xu Andu believes they are going to build a high-speed rail station.

Li Daguo, wearing a white safety helmet and holding blueprints, was standing on the excavator bucket directing operations.

That voice was louder than an excavator engine.

"Group Two! Where did everyone from Group Two go?"

"Roof slab! Hoist the roof slab up!"

"The main beam must be joined before midnight tonight!"

"If anyone messes up, they can forget about having stir-fried radish and pork tomorrow morning!"

Xu An felt a chill run down his spine.

Stir-fried dried radish with meat?

That was a family heirloom left by my great-grandmother; it seems these infrastructure-obsessed people have used it as a stimulant.

Xu An hunched his neck and tried to sneak into the makeshift kitchen from the side.

"Teacher Xu!"

With a loud shout, Li Daguo, with his sharp eyes, locked onto Xu An from fifty meters away.

As the excavator bucket turned, Li Daguo looked down at him like a general.

"Where's the fish?"

"I just watched the live stream, and you made some big promises to Aunt Wu."

"The whole team even skipped their lunch break for this fish!"

Xu An was stared at by hundreds of green eyes, and his social anxiety instantly kicked in.

He instinctively put his hands into his sleeves and stammered in response.

"In...in the basin."

"It's already packed up."

"I saw everyone working so enthusiastically that I didn't dare to disturb them."

Li Daguo jumped off the bucket, landing with a dull thud that shook the ground around his feet.

"Stop talking nonsense!"

"Fire!"

"Academician Zhang asked three times already, saying he can't smell the fish, and the drawings are all crooked!"

In the live stream, two million netizens watched this scene, and the barrage of comments flew by.

[ID Civil Engineering Dog]: I'm crying! This is the client we wanted!

[ID: Construction Site Rice Eater]: Dean Li is truly a man of character! This isn't a construction team, it's a legend of hungry wolves!

[ID Breaking Bad]: Academician Zhang drew crooked blueprints? Xu An should still take the blame!

Xu An had no choice but to bite the bullet and walk up to the large iron pot, which was 1.5 meters in diameter.

This is a cooking pot left over from the previous Raptor car club.

At this moment, the firewood under the pot was already laid out, and the flames were leaping high.

In the large stainless steel basin next to it, the pickled grass carp chunks were piled up like a small mountain.

Although it's a common grass carp, it was raised in spring water from the Taihang Mountains, resulting in firm flesh and no muddy taste whatsoever.

Xu An took a deep breath and handed his phone to a construction worker next to him.

His social anxiety dissipates considerably whenever he touches the stove.

After all, he didn't know how to deal with people.

But how to deal with pork and fish is an instinct ingrained in my bones.

"that……"

"Family members."

"Since Dean Li has already urged us."

"Then let's begin."

"This fish, well, there's nothing special about it, it's just a big pot of stew."

As Xu An spoke, he poured oil into the hot pan.

That's homemade rapeseed oil, golden and viscous, and its aroma explodes the moment it hits the pan.

"Sizzle—"

Add ginger slices, scallion segments, and dried chili peppers, and they burst into a pungent aroma.

Xu An didn't even use a spoon; he simply picked up the stainless steel basin, which weighed several dozen kilograms.

A flick of the wrist.

Dozens of kilograms of fish pieces were neatly slid into the pot like dumplings.

This move left Li Daguo, who was standing nearby, speechless.

"Wow, impressive arm strength!"

"That hand is so steady, it's a shame he's not operating an excavator!"

Xu An ignored his mutual flattery and continued to twirl the large iron shovel in his hand.

Pan-fry the fish until golden brown on both sides to lock in the moisture.

Then, he picked up a bucket of spring water from the side and poured it into the pot.

"Glug glug—"

The white broth instantly began to boil, becoming as thick as milk.

Next, is the main event.

Xu An grabbed a handful of white powder from the bamboo basket next to him.

That's dried sweet potato starch.

He then grabbed a handful of dark brown dried vegetables.

"What is this?"

Li Daguo leaned closer, his nose twitching like a police dog.

"Dried green beans."

"And dried sesame leaves."

"This stuff absorbs oil; when stewed with fish, it's even more fragrant than meat."

As Xu An spoke, he threw all the side dishes in and put the heavy wooden lid on top.

"Suffocate for twenty minutes."

Medium heat.

The waiting time is the hardest to endure.

The aroma relentlessly wafted out through the gaps in the pot lid.

The entire construction site, which had been filled with the roar of machinery just moments before, has now become eerily quiet.

The workers' pace slowed down.

Even the huge tower crane paused in mid-air for a few seconds.

Academician Zhang Debang arrived at some point.

The old man had his hands behind his back, wore thick glasses, and was covered in mud.

He didn't say anything, just stood by the pot, his eyes fixed on the steaming hole.

Xu An was a little flustered.

"Mr. Zhang... Mr. Zhang."

"Why don't you go rest in the shed for a while?"

"There's a lot of smoke here."

Academician Zhang waved his hand, his face serious.

"No."

"I'll just smell it here."

"This tastes a bit like what I ate back in the Great Northern Wilderness."

"That was in 1960..."

Academician Zhang began reminiscing about the bitter past and appreciating the sweet present, while Xu An could only smile along and occasionally add a piece of firewood to the stove.

In the live stream, viewers were already drooling.

[ID's failed weight loss attempt]: I hate it! Why did I even click on this live stream?! Suddenly the salad in my hand doesn't taste good anymore!

[ID Five-Star Chef]: This cooking method... doesn't care about the heat or the plating at all, but the color of the soup... is amazing! This is a game-changer for the ingredients!

[ID Missing Home]: When I saw those sesame leaves, tears welled up in my eyes. My grandma used to stew them like that too.

Twenty minutes later.

Xu An glanced at the time.

"alright."

He stood up and gripped the handles of the pot lid with both hands.

"rise--"

As the lid was lifted, a column of white steam shot into the sky.

Immediately following was the rich, almost overwhelming aroma of fish, mixed with the aged fragrance of sesame leaves, which instantly swept across the entire threshing ground.

"Gulp."

Xu An clearly heard Li Daguo and Academician Zhang beside him swallow at the same time.

The sound was exceptionally loud on the quiet construction site.

"Dinner's ready!"

Xu An gave the order.

The engineers, who were just moments ago so polite and refined, instantly transformed into hungry wolves.

They lined up in a long queue, each holding a stainless steel lunchbox, their eyes gleaming with a green light.

There were no formalities, no polite refusals.

The only sound was the crisp clinking of the spoon against the lunchbox.

Xu An didn't rush to eat.

He took out a thermos, which was the one his grandfather used to use to bring him meals.

I carefully picked out a few pieces of meat from the fish's belly.

That's the place with the fewest thorns.

I ladled out another large spoonful of soup and soaked two pieces of flatbread in it until they softened.

"Dean Li."

"You guys eat first."

"I'm going to deliver food to Aunt Wu."

Li Daguo, his mouth full, nodded indistinctly and gave Xu An a thumbs up.

Xu An carried the insulated bucket and walked out of the noisy construction site.

Night had fallen.

On winter nights in the Taihang Mountains, the wind is harsh, stinging your face.

But the thermos in Xu An's arms was warm.

The camera in the live stream was focused on Xu An's back.

The streetlights cast a long shadow over him.

The hem of the military overcoat swayed gently with each step.

[ID: Humanity is Clear-headed]: That pot of fish just now must have cost at least several hundred yuan to make, right? The blogger didn't receive a single penny.

[A die-hard fan of ID Xu An]: He's not stupid; he genuinely treats these road construction workers as family.

[ID with tears in his eyes]: Look at how carefully he picks out the fish meat, as if he's afraid of finding even a single bone. If Aunt Wu knew, she would definitely scold him again.

I returned after delivering the food half an hour later.

Xu An didn't go into the construction site, but instead sat on a stone roller by the roadside, looking at the bright lights in the distance.

The fish soup in the big pot had almost run out.

After the workers had eaten and drunk their fill, they began a new round of hard work.

That enthusiastic and lively atmosphere made this hollow village, which had been silent for more than a decade, seem to have come back to life.

Xu An glanced at his phone screen.

The comments were still scrolling, but the speed had slowed down.

Everyone was immersed in this rare tranquility.

Suddenly, two blinding beams of headlights pierced the darkness on the distant mountain road.

That was a heavy semi-trailer truck.

The vehicle was large and drove very slowly on the narrow mountain road, with the chassis lowered, clearly indicating that it was carrying heavy cargo.

Xu An was stunned for a moment.

Who would run into the mountains so late at night?

Could it be the materials truck that Li Daguo called?

The truck slowly came to a stop at the entrance of the village.

The car door opened.

A middle-aged man in a leather jacket, with a stubble beard and a tired look, jumped down.

He glanced at Xu An standing by the roadside, then at the construction site behind him.

I asked a question tentatively.

"Fellow villager."

"I want to ask you something."

"That...the anchor who scared the Culture and Tourism Bureau to tears."

"Do you live here?"

Xu An instinctively shrank back a little.

It’s over.

Is this a case of haters coming after us?

Or which creditor?

He tightened his military overcoat and muttered under his breath.

"What...do you want with him?"

The middle-aged driver grinned, revealing a set of teeth stained yellow from smoking.

He pointed to the massive truck behind him.

"It's nothing serious."

"I came from Shandong."

"A truckload of scallions and 5,000 jin of potatoes were delivered."

"It's grown on our own land, so it's not worth much."

"I saw on the live stream that you're going to build a canteen for all the elderly people in the village."

"I'm thinking about it."

"Since meals are provided..."

"Someone has to take care of the food, right?"

Where should I unload this cargo?

Xu An was stunned.

The cold wind was howling, but he felt a little hot around his eyes.

The chat room, which had just calmed down, exploded instantly.

[ID: Shandong Big Man]: Holy crap! It's one of our brothers from Shandong! That was awesome!

[ID moved to tears across the internet]: What did I say again! Sincerity for sincerity! This is true mutual support!

[ID Doesn't Want to Work Overtime]: Blogger, don't just stand there! Quickly get people to unload the goods! This truckload of green onions is enough to feed the whole village for half a year!

Xu An sniffed and looked at the honest-looking driver.

He hadn't stuttered when facing millions of fans just now, but now he was speaking a little incoherently.

"that……"

"Big brother."

"About unloading the goods."

"I can't do it alone."

"But I can call in reinforcements."

Xu An turned around and shouted at the top of his lungs at the brightly lit construction site behind him.

This might be the loudest he's ever been in his life.

"Li Daguo!"

Stop dawdling!

"We've got some work to do!"

"A job even bigger than that pot of fish we just had!"