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

The sound of the train horn still echoed in the valley, causing the snow on both sides of the mountain road to fall in a rustling sound.

Xu An stopped playing the rattle drum and stared blankly at the winding mountain road.

There, a long black dragon was tearing through the winter twilight, forcefully entering everyone's field of vision.

The car leading the way was the black SUV.

Overbearing and domineering.

The tires screeched as they rolled over the gravel, and what followed was neither a pump truck nor a cement mixer truck.

Instead, they were all heavy semi-trailers, with dark green tarpaulins covering the cargo beds, stretched taut so that it was impossible to tell what was inside.

But looking at the flattened tire, it's definitely not light.

"Buzz—"

The SUV executed a beautiful drift and came to a steady stop less than five meters from Xu An.

The car door opened, and a foot wearing an old leather boot stepped onto the dusty ground of Xujia Village.

Immediately afterwards, the man who only showed his back in the photo and said in the text message that he "peed all over himself" appeared.

He was very tall, at least 1.85 meters, half a head taller than Xu An.

He was wearing a black leather jacket with a badly worn, white collar, and his face was covered in stubble.

Those eyes were long and narrow, with deep wrinkles at the corners, as if carved by the winds of the Taihang Mountains.

He had a half-smoked cigarette dangling from his mouth.

His gaze swept across the entire area, over the three roaring pump trucks, and over the dumbfounded Li Daguo.

The final image focuses on Xu An, who is holding a rattle drum and crying with snot bubbles all over his face.

The entire room fell silent.

Even Aunt Wu's loudspeaker stopped working.

That aura is so strong.

He was so strong that he didn't seem like a wanderer returning home to visit relatives; he looked more like a ruthless bandit leader coming to collect protection money.

There was even a brief lull in the chat during the live stream.

It then erupted instantly.

[ID scared me so much I dropped my sunflower seeds]: Holy crap! This...this is my second uncle? This is some kind of gangster boss!

[ID Gangster Movie Vibe]: That leather jacket, that gaze, and that convoy behind them! Where's the background music? Give me "A Hero in Troubled Times"!

[ID Protection for Streamers]: Streamer, run! I feel like he's about to pull out a gun any second!

The man spat out the cigarette butt from his mouth, crushed it with the sole of his shoe, and strode towards Xu An.

With each step he took, Xu An's heart skipped a beat.

Those are memories etched into my bones, the dizziness of being lifted high as a child, and the long-held fear of losing loved ones.

Xu An instinctively shrank back, hiding his body behind the dilapidated tricycle, gripping the rattle drum tightly in his hand.

"What are you hiding from?"

The man's voice was deep, with a husky, smoky quality.

"It's been twenty years since we last met."

"They don't even recognize their second uncle anymore?"

Xu An opened his mouth, but his throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn't make a sound. Only tears streamed down his face uncontrollably.

"Two...two..."

"You're kidding me!"

The man strode up to Xu An and extended his large, calloused hand.

Xu An instinctively closed his eyes, expecting a flick on the forehead.

However, there was no pain as the rough, large hand landed on his head.

He gently ruffled Xu Ann's already wind-blown hair, turning it into a bird's nest.

"You've grown so tall."

The man's voice suddenly softened and trembled.

"They're all taller than my second uncle."

"You've lost some weight."

"Like your father."

Xu An suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the face so close to his.

It overlapped with the young figure in my memory. Although he had aged and become darker, the doting look in his eyes had not changed at all.

"Wow--"

Xu An could no longer hold back. He was a 23-year-old man, in front of millions of netizens and the entire village.

She buried her face in his arms, which smelled of tobacco and leather, and burst into tears.

"You're not dead!"

"I said you're dead!"

"We even built a grave for you on the back hill!"

"I burn paper money for you every year during Qingming Festival!"

"I even burned two paper replicas of young models for you!"

"Why are you only getting back now!"

Xu An cried incoherently.

She poured out all the grievances of the past twenty years, along with those absurd offerings.

The man's lips twitched violently, and the sadness he had been building up shattered instantly.

"Young...young model?"

"You little brat..."

"Was that burned for me?"

"No wonder I kept having erotic dreams those two years!"

The atmosphere in the live stream suddenly changed.

Netizens who were initially commenting "tears welling up" almost burst out laughing.

【ID Filial Piety is Powerful】: Hahahaha! Young model! Xu An, you know how to be filial!

[ID Second Uncle's reputation is being harmed]: Second Uncle: I was moved for less than three seconds, I just wanted to hit someone.

【ID This is Henan】: Stop crying, stop crying, or your second uncle will settle this score!

Xu Qiang sighed helplessly and patted Xu An on the back, just like he used to coax him to sleep when he was a child.

"Alright."

"Stop howling."

"If you keep howling, you'll shake the roof of this cafeteria down."

Xu Qiang pushed Xu An away, took out a crumpled tissue from his pocket, and roughly wiped Xu An's face.

Then he turned around and looked at the cafeteria, which was already half-completed, his eyes sharpening.

"This building."

"Did you build this?"

Xu An sobbed and nodded.

"Um."

"It has just been topped out."

"Those pump trucks were provided by Dean Li."

Xu Qiang nodded.

His gaze fell on Li Daguo, who was standing on the scaffolding, and Li Daguo felt a chill run down his spine from that look.

I actually felt a sense of tension, like I was being inspected by the client.

"Then I can't go empty-handed."

Xu Qiang raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

"Beep—"

Behind them, on the highway, the five heavy semi-trailer trucks honked their horns simultaneously, the sound deafening. Xu Qiang pointed at the convoy.

The voice wasn't loud, but it carried an air of arrogance.

I heard.

"You need to build a canteen for the elderly in the village."

"Cement alone is not enough."

"The first car was equipped with aluminum alloy windows, triple-glazed windows, which were soundproof and kept warm, so those old folks wouldn't get cold in the winter."

"The second vehicle is made of Class A fireproof rock wool and external wall insulation panels. Since we've built it, it has to be warm in winter and cool in summer."

"The third vehicle is on paved roads, which are non-slip, so you won't fall."

"The fourth vehicle is a complete set of stainless steel kitchen utensils. I've been wanting to get rid of that old, broken pot of yours for a long time."

"As for the fifth one..."

Xu Qiang paused, then turned to look at Xu An, a hint of mockery in his eyes.

"That's for you."

"A whole train carload of walnut milk."

"Boost your brainpower."

"So that I won't have to burn any more young models for you next time."

The entire audience erupted in uproar.

This isn't a family visit, it's practically a construction crew!

And judging from their tone, all these materials are high-end.

Li Daguo listened upstairs, his eyes practically popping out of their sockets.

He's an expert.

That truckload of aluminum alloy windows alone would cost hundreds of thousands.

This second uncle...

What exactly are they doing outside?

This is such a grand display!

The live stream chat exploded.

[ID I also want my second uncle]: This is what a real second uncle is like! He took care of both the hard and soft furnishings!

[ID: Overbearing CEO]: With that kind of charisma and style, does Uncle still need a nephew? The kind who can eat well!

【ID Brain-Boosting Walnut】: Hahahaha, you can't get over the walnut milk meme, huh!

Xu An looked at the long convoy.

He looked at those high-end goods that he usually only dared to look at at the entrance of the building materials market.

My head is spinning.

"This...this is too much..."

"Second Uncle, what you've done..."

"Did they steal some construction site?"

Xu Qiang snorted coldly.

"Rob?"

"I've spent my whole life working in engineering."

"This is money I saved from my own teeth!"

"Alright."

"Stop talking nonsense."

"Unload the truck!"

Xu Qiang waved his hand, and the truck drivers jumped down one after another.

They were all strong and agile, clearly old brothers who had followed Xu Qiang for many years.

Without the villagers needing to intervene, this group of people, like a well-trained army, began unloading the goods in an orderly manner.

The once quiet construction site suddenly became bustling with activity.

Xu An stood to one side, holding the rattle drum, watching the tall figure who was calmly directing the crowd.

Suddenly, it felt like the sky really wouldn't fall down.

It feels so good and reassuring to have someone cover for me.

"That...that one."

"Family members."

"Looks like we saved money on the cafeteria renovation."

"My second uncle..."

"He's probably a contractor."

"The really good kind."

Xu An smiled foolishly at the camera, explaining that the tear stains at the corners of his eyes were still wet.

[ID Contractor]: What the hell is this contractor?! Whose contractor has this kind of aura?! He's clearly the director of the construction bureau!

[ID Godly Rich Uncle]: Streamer, how many hidden big shots are there in your family? Is your great-grandfather going to come back in an aircraft carrier?

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from the village entrance.

"Where's that bastard?!"

"Where is that unfilial descendant?!"

A powerful roar, like a thunderclap from a clear sky, shattered the newly established domineering CEO atmosphere.

Xu An shrank his neck; he recognized the voice all too well.

It's Grandpa.

There was Mr. Xu, who was over seventy years old, carrying a cloth shoe with a thousand layers of soles in his hand.

Barefoot, he was sprinting towards them at top speed, his agile figure making it impossible to tell that he was an elderly man in his seventies.

Xu Qiang was directing the unloading when he heard this sound. His originally straight back bent instantly, and his fierce bandit aura instantly turned into that of a quail.

"father?!"

Xu Qiang turned around and saw the cloth shoe flying towards him; his expression changed drastically.

"father!"

"Let me explain!"

"Snapped!"

The cloth shoe landed precisely on Xu Qiang's face, leaving a clear shoe print.

It is not very harmful and extremely insulting.

"Explanation my ass!"

"You bastard!"

"Haven't been home for twenty years!"

"I've erected a monument for you!"

"I've burned some paper money for you!"

"They'll even set the table for you during holidays and festivals!"

"You're still alive?!"

"How dare you do this to all the paper money I burned for you?!"

Grandpa rushed up, swung his other shoe, and gave Xu Qiang's buttocks, which were covered in an expensive leather jacket, a good beating.

"I'll let you fake your death!"

"That'll teach you to come back!"

"You dared to scare Anzi!"

Xu Qiang, who had been so arrogant just moments before, was now running away in terror, circling Xu An's dilapidated tricycle and begging for mercy as he ran.

"father!"

"Stop hitting him!"

"So many people are watching!"

"Give me some face!"

"I've come back to bring warmth!"

Grandpa wouldn't listen at all.

"face?"

"You've already made me lose all face!"

"If I don't skin you alive today, I'm not a Xu!"

In the live stream, hundreds of thousands of netizens watched this scene and laughed uproariously.

【ID One Thing Subdues One Thing】: Hahahaha! What goes around comes around! How domineering he was just now, how pathetic he is now!

[ID Bloodline Suppression]: This is the Chinese father-son relationship! No matter how successful you are outside, you still have to get a beating from your dad's shoe when you get home!

[ID Grandpa is awesome]: The way he whips the soles of these shoes is so relaxing!

Xu An stood to the side, watching the chaotic scene unfold, seeing his second uncle being chased around by his grandfather, and watching the dust swirling in the air.

He laughed, laughed out loud, and then tears streamed down his face.

This is what home is all about—noisy, noisy, even a little bit rough, but it's warm and alive.

"that……"

"Family members."

"That's what it's called..."

"Father's love is as solid as a mountain...and the body is prone to landslides."

Xu An sniffed, held up the rattle drum, and shook it gently.

"Thump—"

The sound remained muffled, but at this moment, under the setting sun over the Taihang Mountains, on this bustling construction site, it was clear that...

This sound is more beautiful than any music; it is the sound of reunion, the sound of the New Year.

"Second Uncle."

Welcome home.

Xu An silently said to himself.

At this moment, the three pump trucks finally stopped roaring, and the last truckload of concrete was poured.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the wet rooftop, making it glow with golden light.

It was like a golden hat placed on the head of Xujia Village.

The house is finished, the home is complete, and everyone is together.

At least... most of them are complete.

Xu An touched the letter on his chest and looked at the distant, rolling mountains.

Uncle is back, what about you guys?

Are you on your way home too?

"Stop hitting him!"

"father!"

"I brought some alcohol!"

"Twenty-year-old Moutai!"

Xu Qiang finally unleashed his trump card: the shoe sole that Grandpa was holding in mid-air stopped.

"real?"

"real!"

"Right in the car!"

Grandpa snorted, put on his shoes, and patted the dirt off his trousers.

"If there's no alcohol tonight."

"I'll break your legs!"

A disturbance was temporarily quelled by the allure of fine wine.

Xu Qiang, clutching his buttocks and grimacing, walked over to Xu An and glared at him irritably.

"laugh?"

Still laughing?

"Hurry up!"

"Download!"

"Go home and cook!"

"I'm starving!"

Xu An chuckled and reached his hand out from his sleeve.

"Yes, sir!"

"Second Uncle."

"What would you like to eat?"

"Pork stew?"

Xu Qiang glanced at the empty pigsty and sighed.

"There are no pigs left."

"What a load of crap, this 'pig-killing feast'!"

"Let's boil dumplings."

"Add more vinegar."

"Along the way..."

"It's very sour."

Xu An paused for a moment, looking at his second uncle's slightly tired eyes.

These past twenty years.

What exactly did he experience outside?

How many untold stories are hidden behind that phrase "it's so sour"?

But now is not the time to ask, Xu An nodded.

"middle!"

"You can eat your fill!"

"that……"

"Family members."

That's all for today.

"The cafeteria building has been completed."

"My second uncle didn't die either."

"fine."

"See you tomorrow."

Xu An turned off the live stream, and the world finally became quiet.

Only the mountain wind in the distance, blowing through the crooked tree, made a whistling sound, as if it were telling a story.

This long story of waiting and returning has only just begun.