Sweet and Tender

An ancient alley a hundred years old, and a pot of braised pork that carries people through reincarnations. Those who eat the meat fall asleep and dream: the poor find riches, the wicked face judgment, and heroes meet their tragic ends. Some find a lifetime’s regrets made right here, while others see the filth that has stained half their lives. When those in power dream of a blade poised to behead them, and the keeper of the alley looks back on a thousand years at the Wu River, this gentle illusion spanning past and present finally falls silent to the cry of a baby. “The meat is sweet.” It is humanity’s final obsession, and the ultimate letting go of reincarnation.