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

Xu An felt his legs, clad in a military overcoat, trembling at a visible frequency.

This is like a fledgling quail plunging headlong into the territory of eight hundred geese.

Before he could finish saying, "I'm from Xujia Village," the old man in front of him, wearing a white vest and carrying a birdcage, glared at him and snapped his folding fan shut.

"What kind of talk is this!"

The old man took a step forward, his nose almost touching Xu An's face, and the scent of floral water mixed with jasmine tea hit Xu An's forehead.

"Serving as a lackey for that old shrew? What does 'serving as a lackey' mean?"

"That's called a messenger! That's called a wild goose! That's called... Oh dear, this tall guy looks like a doormat!"

The old man turned and whistled at the myna bird in the cage: "Baldy, come check on the newcomer!"

The black bird in the cage flapped its wings twice and yelled in a hoarse voice, "Trump! Trump! Give me money! Give me money!"

Xu An hunched his neck, clutching the canvas bag in his arms tightly, feeling as if he had been stripped naked and thrown into the spotlight.

"Sir... I'm Xu An. Uncle Qian asked me to deliver something."

Xu An's voice was so soft it was like a mosquito's hum, and his eyes darted around, sometimes looking at the ants on the ground, sometimes at the scallions in the corner.

Ma Dazui laughed.

He hung the birdcage on the crooked jujube tree next to him, put his hands on his hips, and looked more like he was about to hold a court hearing than to receive a letter.

"Xu An? Oh—! Is that the one online, the one who played the erhu for the tiger, and the one who went down the slide in Harbin?"

"Wow! This coat, really! It looks even more like an unearthed artifact than the one I wore when I went to the countryside back then."

As Ma Dazui spoke, he circled around Xu An, making clicking noises.

"I watched the live stream. The young man is good, but he's too dull."

"Once you get to Tianjin, open your mouth! What, Mr. Qian? That's Old Miser Qian!"

Just then, three heads suddenly poked their way in through the courtyard gate.

A middle-aged woman with curly hair was holding a bunch of half-picked chives in her hand.

A shirtless man with a white towel around his neck.

There was also a chubby little boy in a school uniform carrying a backpack, holding half a jianbing guozi (Chinese crepe) in his hand.

"What's going on? What's going on? Uncle Ma, who is this? He looks quite impressive, but why does he look like a wronged little wife?" The curly-haired aunt shouted in a loud voice, shaking the entire alley.

Xu An felt like dying.

In the live stream, hundreds of thousands of netizens were laughing so hard they couldn't take care of themselves.

[ID: Deyun Club Unofficial Staff]: Hahahaha! Anzi's "Who am I? Where am I?" expression is so classic!

[ID Tianjin Sister]: I know this lady! She's the head of the intelligence center at the alley entrance! Anzi, you're going to be asked what color your underwear is today!

[ID Xujiacun Accountant]: Ma Dazui! You old lecher! Stop bullying the kids! Answer the message now!

Ma Dazui seemed to sense his old comrade's anger, and grinned at the camera, revealing two gold teeth.

"Alright, alright, don't scare the child so much he wets himself."

"Here you go, what did that old shrew bring me? If it's a debt collection note, turn left and put it in the trash can. Goodbye!"

Xu An felt as if he had been granted a pardon and quickly pulled out the bulging envelope from his pocket.

The envelope was still warm from my body and had a faint smell of Red Bull.

Ma Dazui's method of receiving the letter was very sophisticated.

He first wiped his sweaty hands on his vest, then squeezed the thickness of the envelope, his eyebrows instantly furrowing into a deep frown.

"Oh? It's hard?"

"Could this be... the silver coin he owed me for that tripe meal back then?"

The neighbors didn't leave either; they all swarmed around, forming a tight "spectator encirclement."

Xu An was squeezed in the very center, weak, pitiful, and helpless.

"Quickly open it and take a look! This is a 30-year-old item!" the curly-haired woman urged, the chives in her hand almost poking Xu An's face.

Ma Dazui took a deep breath, and with a flick of his fingernail, the envelope opened.

He turned the envelope upside down and poured it into his calloused hands.

A crisp "clang" sounded.

A tiny, metallic-looking object, about the size of a fingernail, rolled out.

The entire venue was deathly silent.

That's... a valve core.

Moreover, these weren't ordinary valve cores; they were the kind used in the early days of the "Forever" brand 28-inch motorcycles, and they were even meticulously polished until they shone brightly, looking like works of art.

Besides the valve core, there was also a neatly folded piece of paper.

Ma Dazui stared at the valve core, his entire body frozen as if he had been struck by an acupuncture point.

A full five seconds passed.

He suddenly slapped his thigh, his eyes instantly turning red, but he still wouldn't let up.

"Oh my god!"

"That old bastard! That vengeful old bastard!"

"Didn't I secretly remove the valve core from his cart when we went to the market years ago, making him push it for ten miles?!"

"Does he really need to hold a grudge for thirty years?! Huh?!"

"He sent it back to me? What does this mean? Does he expect me to reinstall it for him? The car is gone!"

Ma Dazui cursed as he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

The action was both comical and heartbreaking.

Xu An, standing to the side, added quietly, "Uncle Qian said... this debt should be settled."

"Calculate? How do you calculate it?"

Ma Dazui gripped the valve core tightly in his hand, as if he were holding some precious treasure.

He unfolded the letter.

The letter contained only a few lines of text, written so neatly that it looked like a printed bill.

[Big Mouth:]

[Back then, you pulled out the valve stem of my tires, and I demanded five cents in compensation. You thought I was stingy and broke off all contact with me.]

Later I found out that you wanted me to give you a ride that day, but I didn't understand and rode off on my bike.

This is an original item I found at a flea market. Here you go.

[Also, Xu An is shy around strangers. When he gets to your place, don't just keep talking nonsense. Get him a set of jianbing guozi (Chinese crepes) with three eggs. It's on me.]

[Signature: Old Abacus]

After Ma Dazui finished reading the letter, his hands were trembling as he held it.

The neighbors around also stopped making a fuss.

The curly-haired woman sighed and tossed the chives in her hand into the basket: "Look at this mess, these two old folks, arguing their whole lives over a valve core."

Ma Dazui sniffed and suddenly turned to look at Xu An.

The shrewdness in his eyes was gone, replaced by the kind of loving look an elder has for their own silly child.

"Kid, is your Uncle Qian... still in good health?"

Xu An nodded: "He's tough, he can eat two bowls of stewed noodles, and he can even chase after my second uncle and beat him up."

"That's good, that's good."

Ma Dazui carefully placed the valve core into his inner pocket and patted his chest.

"This isn't a valve core; it's the breath that old man has been holding for thirty years."

"I wanted to ride in his car back then, but I twisted my ankle that day and was too embarrassed to say so."

"I was thinking of just pulling out the valve stem, letting him push the bike, and me walking with him. Who would have thought that this old rascal would pick up the bike and run away, faster than a rabbit!"

"Later, when I returned to the city, I wanted to find him, but I was afraid he would ask me for the five cents back, which would be embarrassing."

At this point, Ma Dazui chuckled to himself.

"Alright! Since Old Abacus has spoken, add three eggs!"

Ma Dazui waved his hand, exuding an air of heroic pride.

"Second Aunt! Stop picking chives! Go home and make pancakes! Use the best mung bean flour!"

"Okay!" the curly-haired woman agreed readily. "I'll fry two more youtiao (Chinese fried dough sticks) for the kid, fresh out of the fryer!"

For Xu An, the next half hour was both hell and heaven.

The reason it's hellish is because these Tianjin neighbors are too enthusiastic.

The shirtless man insisted on talking to him about the international situation, from oil prices to the cotton content of Xu An's coat.

The chubby boy surrounded him, asking if he could teach him how to play the erhu on the ice.

Ma Dazui was frantically recounting his amusing anecdotes from his time as a sent-down youth, speaking so fast that Xu An's brain needed a buffer.

Heaven is because... this jianbing guozi (Chinese crepe) is so delicious!

Three eggs, double the crispy crackers, spread with sweet bean sauce and fermented bean curd, and sprinkled with chopped green onions.

One bite, and it's so crispy it crumbles, the aroma explodes in your mouth.

Xu An squatted on the steps in front of Ma Dazui's house, holding a pancake bigger than his face in his hands, his cheeks bulging from eating it.

Social anxiety?

At this moment, it was temporarily sealed away by this lively atmosphere.

Seeing Xu An wolfing down his food, Ma Dazui fanned him with a palm-leaf fan.

"Eat slowly, no one's going to take it from you."

"I'm full. Go back and tell your Uncle Qian."

"I've taken the valve core; the accounts are settled."

"When it gets warmer in a while, I'll go to Xujia Village and check out his White Rabbit canteen."

"And while you're at it, return that five cents to him from back then, with interest!"

Xu An swallowed the last bite of the pancake, feeling a heavy weight in his stomach and a heavy weight in his heart.

Thirty years of estrangement could be resolved with just a valve core and a set of jianbing guozi (Chinese crepes).

This is the friendship of the older generation.

Awkward, yet pure.

After eating and drinking his fill, Xu An got up to take his leave.

Mr. Zhao's car was already parked at the entrance of the alley.

Ma Dazui and a group of neighbors escorted him to his car.

Just before getting into the car, Ma Dazui suddenly took off the birdcage and shoved it into Xu An's hand.

"Take it!"

Xu An was startled: "Sir, I can't accept this, it's your bird..."

"Damn it! This is just a broken record!"

Ma Da Zui glared, "This bird is being given to that old shrew!"

"This bird can't do anything else but yell 'Give me back my money' and 'You're so stingy.'"

"Let him support it; listening to it every day is like me nagging him!"

Xu An hugged the birdcage, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

This gift is so hardcore!

As the car started, Xu An looked through the rear window and saw Ma Dazui still standing at the alley entrance, waving his tattered palm-leaf fan.

That figure, in this somewhat noisy morning, appeared both exceptionally lonely and exceptionally vibrant.

Xu An touched the myna bird in the cage.

The myna bird tilted its head, looked at Xu An, and suddenly blurted out, "Great! Great!"

It seems this bird is a language genius; it learned a couple of sentences of Henan dialect from Xu An just now.

The laughter in the live stream hadn't stopped, but there was a touch more warmth in it now.

【ID Time Thief】: I laughed and then cried. In those days, the journeys were slow. A lifetime was only enough to love one person and hate one valve stem.

[ID Xujiacun]: Accountant Qian was laughing so hard in the cafeteria that his dentures flew out! He said he was waiting for this bird to come back and argue with him!

[ID Next Stop]: Anzi, where to next? This pace is so comfortable!

[ID Next Stop]: Anzi, don't rush off. Now that you're in Tianjin, you should at least take a look around.