My last ride

With just a week to go before leaving Nanning, I had an accident with my bicycle. While navigating the chaotic traffic in front of the main gate of Guangxi University, I was hit by an older couple on an electric bicycle (an older model, with heavy lead-acid battery). We both saw it coming, and both braked, but it was too late, and they hit me from the left on my rear wheel, which folded on impact. It was a low-speed hit, but the mass of their vehicle easily destroyed my rear wheel. Nobody was injured.
The Chinese usually remain very calm after a traffic incident, all smiles and apologies. In this case it was the same. The driver looked at the damage and told me he could replace the wheel himself, no problem. I did not understand everything he said, but Xian An was with me, so could translate. Luckily she was not on the backseat while it happened, but walking just ahead of me, through the maze of waiting taxis and moto-tricycles, pedestrians, and motorized traffic.
The man drove away to get a new wheel, while his wife stayed with us. They both live and work on campus, probably as maintenance workers. The man apparently used to be a bicycle repair man, that's why he was so confident in fixing the damage.
After quite a while he returned with a rusty wheel, fitted with a reasonable looking tire, inflated hard. It took him only 15 minutes to replace my broken wheel, including transferring the sprocket, with a minimum of tools (a hammer, an adjustable wrench, a screwdriver, and a nail). I had replaced the outer tire on the broken wheel just a week ago, so he was so kind to transfer it to the front wheel, which tire was almost worn out. I did a quick test drive, and all seemed ok.
However, the next day I didn't feel so happy anymore, since the replacement wheel seemed to have some trouble. It didn't ride very smoothly, especially under heavy load, with Xiao An on the back seat (no offense). The ball bearings are completely worn out, so it feels like you're riding with a flat tire. I will leave my rusty vehicle to rest in peace, and will spend my last days in Nanning on foot.