A few years ago, my brother had a trip back to Taiwan. One late night (or early morning, depends on how you look at it) he came back home and was parking his scooter at a small parking lot nearby. While he was doing it, he saw a woman across the street staring at him.
That woman owned a family-operated tofu plant, and they usually started their business around 3 am. To be frank, I grew up with this family-owned business on my street and I didn't find it noisy or anything. As a matter of fact, last time I went back home, I found the plant's steam-releasing sound soothing, a nostalgic-like sensation that helped me sleep.... Anyway, one thing different from before was this woman's loud voice--it was almost like she was in a fight with her customers or something; back when her mother-in-law was in charge, it was never like that.
Apparently one of ours neighbors couldn't stand it anymore and reported it to "環保局". So, that's what happened to my brother--a guy from the environmental protection office was measuring the noise level the small plant made (or she made), and it just so happened he was standing in a corner behind my brother.
A few days later, my brother had a cold, so he went to a doctor in our neighborhood. During the visit, my brother told him this story and he said, "Well, to tell you the truth, I'm the one called the office(*1). It's been ten years; I can't stand it anymore."
(*1) 主格關代省略
Yes, he is a doctor, but even a doctor doesn't always talk in a (most) formal manner. Besides, my brother knew him very well and they chatted quite often. When people chat, that's how they usually talk, so after some thinking, I dropped the who between one and called (but I keep it intact in my old blog).
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