Then, along with family and friends, the donor peeled, washed and cut the bamboo shoots before eight hours of cooking. When the work was done, it was close to midnight.

"The bamboo jars may be small, but they're full of our most sincere wishes to everyone in Shanghai," the anonymous donor said.

At the end of the letter, the writer said: "I hope you overcome difficulties, prevail over the pandemic and return to normal life as soon as possible."

The shoots were given to residents in a neighborhood of Minhang district in Shanghai.

"So touching," one netizen commented on China's Twitter-like micro-blogging platform Sina Weibo. "The elderly donor has a kind heart."