The Legendary Life of Dai Ge

Old Xu, a watch repairman in Panjiayuan, has been waiting for someone for thirty years.

That year, in the twelfth lunar month, Dai Ge stood outside the Tuanjie Restaurant. His leather shoes sank into the snow, and he looked up and said something that silenced the entire alley.

Later, he headed south to Shenzhen and never came back.

Old Xu says Dai Ge bowed his head only twice in his life: once to mourn a brother, and once to light a cigarette for an opponent.

I grew up listening to him tell these stories.