Past Events in the Old City: Half Spent

"Once Upon a Time in the Old City: Half Time" is a realistic novel focusing on the changes of the times and humanistic sentiments. The story is set in "Jinxi", an old southern city facing demolition, and tells the story of Shen Changqing, the third generation owner of the old street "Changqing Teahouse". As the last "tinker" in the city, Shen Changqing not only repairs broken porcelain, but also tries to repair the memories and emotions of his neighbors that have been eroded by time. Amidst the roar of bulldozers, Jinxi's old days are being erased bit by bit. In the form of a unit drama, the novel connects a series of dusty past events through old objects such as a peachwood comb split in two and a broken purple clay teapot. Behind these objects lies Mr. Zhao's endless longing for his deceased wife, as well as the confusion and reluctance of the old neighbors facing the disappearance of their homeland. The title of the book, "People Are Half-Washed Lately," is not only the emotional tone of the book, but also a profound lament for the torrent of the times. In the current era of rapid development, the old city is disintegrating, the older generation is aging, and those once vivid people and things are irrevocably heading towards a "semi-disappeared" state. Shen Changqing uses traditional gold-stitching techniques to trace gold threads in the incomplete parts, not only to preserve the objects, but also to find a final destination for the nostalgia and warmth that have nowhere to rest in the current of times. This is an elegy about farewell and remembrance. With delicate and tender writing, the author explores how we should place those forgotten people and events of the past in the cold modernization process, and how to keep the green hills and tenderness in our hearts amidst irreversible disappearance.