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tikhub-xiaohongshu-search

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Lightweight TikHub Xiaohongshu image-search workflow. Prioritizes single-request usage with curl or minimal Python, saves raw API JSON by default, and includes a small stdlib post-processor for CSV and simplified JSON. Use when the user wants Xiaohongshu keyword image search, page-based pagination, or structured note/image metadata from TikHub without a heavy wrapper.

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TikHub Xiaohongshu Search

What this skill gives you

This skill is optimized for the common case: one keyword search request.

It provides:

  1. Minimal request patterns

    • curl for quickest validation
    • tiny httpx example for people who prefer Python
  2. Raw JSON saving

    • save the full TikHub response after each request
    • useful for audit, replay, and later post-processing
  3. One optional post-processor

    • postprocess_xiaohongshu_raw.py
    • reads one raw file or a directory of raw files
    • writes xiaohongshu_search_summary.csv and xiaohongshu_search_summary.json
  4. Optional pagination guidance

    • enough information for later page turning
    • intentionally brief, not the main path

Does not import TikHub-Multi-Functional-Downloader or any other project package.

API key requirement

This skill intentionally does not contain any API key.

Use one of these:

  • environment variable: TIKHUB_API_KEY
  • ask the user to provide an API key explicitly

If the key is missing, stop and ask for it instead of hardcoding one into scripts.

Install

pip install httpx

Post-processor: no extra packages.

API (for reference)

  • Image search: GET https://api.tikhub.io/api/v1/xiaohongshu/app_v2/search_images?keyword=...&page=1&source=explore_feed
  • Header: Authorization: Bearer <API_KEY>

Notes from real requests

  • In curl, Chinese keywords should be URL-encoded. Directly putting 壁纸 into the query caused 400, while %E5%A3%81%E7%BA%B8 succeeded.
  • A working minimal first-page request was: keyword=%E5%A3%81%E7%BA%B8&page=1&source=explore_feed
  • The first-page response returns pagination context: search_id, search_session_id, word_request_id, and next_page
  • Search results are in: data.data.items
  • Useful nested sections include: image_info, note_info, share_info, and user_info

Preferred path: single request

1. Quickest: curl

First page:

curl --location --request GET "https://api.tikhub.io/api/v1/xiaohongshu/app_v2/search_images?keyword=%E5%A3%81%E7%BA%B8&page=1&source=explore_feed" \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $TIKHUB_API_KEY"

Another keyword example:

curl --location --request GET "https://api.tikhub.io/api/v1/xiaohongshu/app_v2/search_images?keyword=%E6%B2%BB%E6%84%88%E7%B3%BB&page=1&source=explore_feed" \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $TIKHUB_API_KEY"

2. Preferred Python pattern: tiny httpx

If the user wants Python, prefer a small request snippet, not a framework.

Search and save raw JSON:

import json
import os
import urllib.parse
import httpx

api_key = os.getenv("TIKHUB_API_KEY", "").strip()
if not api_key:
    raise SystemExit("Missing TIKHUB_API_KEY")

keyword = "壁纸"
url = "https://api.tikhub.io/api/v1/xiaohongshu/app_v2/search_images"
params = {
    "keyword": keyword,
    "page": 1,
    "source": "explore_feed",
}
headers = {"Authorization": f"Bearer {api_key}", "Accept": "*/*"}

with httpx.Client(timeout=30.0, follow_redirects=True) as client:
    raw = client.get(url, params=params, headers=headers).json()

safe_keyword = urllib.parse.quote(keyword, safe="")
with open(f"xiaohongshu_search_{safe_keyword}.json", "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
    json.dump(raw, f, ensure_ascii=False, indent=2)

items = raw.get("data", {}).get("data", {}).get("items", [])
for item in items[:5]:
    note = item.get("note_info", {})
    share = item.get("share_info", {})
    user = item.get("user_info", {})
    print(note.get("title", ""))
    print(share.get("link", ""))
    print(user.get("nickname", ""))

Save raw JSON by default

For this workflow, the recommended default is:

  1. request the API
  2. save the full raw JSON immediately
  3. print only a few useful fields for quick inspection
  4. optionally run the post-processor later

Suggested file naming:

  • first page raw: search_<keyword>_page1_<request_id>.json
  • next page raw: search_<keyword>_page2_<request_id>.json

If request_id is unavailable, hash the keyword plus page number.


Pagination

Only care about this if the user wants page 2 or beyond.

From the first response, keep these fields:

  • search_id
  • search_session_id
  • word_request_id
  • next_page

Then use them in the next request:

curl --location --request GET "https://api.tikhub.io/api/v1/xiaohongshu/app_v2/search_images?keyword=%E5%A3%81%E7%BA%B8&page=2&search_id=<search_id>&search_session_id=<search_session_id>&word_request_id=<word_request_id>&source=explore_feed" \
--header "Authorization: Bearer $TIKHUB_API_KEY"

If the endpoint behavior changes, trust the latest response fields over assumptions.


Post-process raw JSON

Save as postprocess_xiaohongshu_raw.py (stdlib only).

Input:

  • one raw search JSON file
  • or a directory containing multiple raw JSON files

Output:

  • xiaohongshu_search_summary.csv
  • xiaohongshu_search_summary.json
#!/usr/bin/env python3
from __future__ import annotations

import argparse
import csv
import json
import os
import sys
from glob import glob
from typing import Any, Dict, List


def collect_inputs(path: str) -> List[str]:
    if os.path.isfile(path):
        return [path]
    if os.path.isdir(path):
        return sorted(glob(os.path.join(path, "*.json")))
    raise FileNotFoundError(path)


def as_list(value: Any) -> List[dict]:
    return value if isinstance(value, list) else []


def flatten_for_csv(row: Dict[str, Any]) -> Dict[str, Any]:
    out: Dict[str, Any] = {}
    for k, v in row.items():
        if v is None:
            out[k] = ""
        elif isinstance(v, (dict, list)):
            out[k] = json.dumps(v, ensure_ascii=False)
        else:
            out[k] = v
    return out


def simplify_raw(raw: dict, source_file: str) -> Dict[str, Any]:
    outer = raw.get("data") or {}
    inner = outer.get("data") or {}
    items = as_list(inner.get("items"))
    first = items[0] if items else {}
    note = first.get("note_info") or {}
    share = first.get("share_info") or {}
    user = first.get("user_info") or {}
    image = first.get("image_info") or {}
    return {
        "source_file": os.path.basename(source_file),
        "request_id": raw.get("request_id"),
        "api_code": raw.get("code"),
        "router": raw.get("router"),
        "keyword": (raw.get("params") or {}).get("keyword", ""),
        "page": inner.get("page"),
        "next_page": inner.get("next_page"),
        "search_id": inner.get("search_id", ""),
        "search_session_id": inner.get("search_session_id", ""),
        "word_request_id": inner.get("word_request_id", ""),
        "item_count": len(items),
        "top_note_id": note.get("note_id", ""),
        "top_title": note.get("title", ""),
        "top_desc": note.get("desc", ""),
        "top_liked_count": note.get("liked_count"),
        "top_collected_count": note.get("collected_count"),
        "top_comments_count": note.get("comments_count"),
        "top_share_link": share.get("link", ""),
        "top_user_nickname": user.get("nickname", ""),
        "top_user_id": user.get("user_id", ""),
        "top_image_url": image.get("url", ""),
        "top_image_original": image.get("original", ""),
    }


def main() -> int:
    ap = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="Raw TikHub Xiaohongshu JSON -> CSV + simplified JSON")
    ap.add_argument("--input", "-i", required=True, help="One .json file or a directory of .json")
    ap.add_argument("--out-dir", "-o", default=".", help="Output directory (default: current working directory)")
    args = ap.parse_args()

    try:
        files = collect_inputs(args.input)
    except FileNotFoundError as e:
        print("Input not found:", e, file=sys.stderr)
        return 2

    if not files:
        print("No JSON files found.", file=sys.stderr)
        return 2

    out_dir = os.path.abspath(args.out_dir)
    os.makedirs(out_dir, exist_ok=True)
    csv_path = os.path.join(out_dir, "xiaohongshu_search_summary.csv")
    json_path = os.path.join(out_dir, "xiaohongshu_search_summary.json")

    rows: List[Dict[str, Any]] = []
    for fp in files:
        try:
            with open(fp, "r", encoding="utf-8") as f:
                raw = json.load(f)
        except Exception as ex:
            rows.append({"source_file": os.path.basename(fp), "error": f"json load: {ex}"})
            continue
        rows.append(simplify_raw(raw, fp))

    with open(json_path, "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
        json.dump(
            {
                "generated_from": os.path.abspath(args.input),
                "record_count": len(rows),
                "records": rows,
            },
            f,
            ensure_ascii=False,
            indent=2,
        )

    flat = [flatten_for_csv(r) for r in rows]
    fieldnames = sorted({k for row in flat for k in row.keys()})
    with open(csv_path, "w", encoding="utf-8", newline="") as f:
        writer = csv.DictWriter(f, fieldnames=fieldnames, extrasaction="ignore")
        writer.writeheader()
        for row in flat:
            writer.writerow({k: row.get(k, "") for k in fieldnames})

    print("Wrote:", csv_path)
    print("Wrote:", json_path)
    return 0


if __name__ == "__main__":
    raise SystemExit(main())

Commands:

python postprocess_xiaohongshu_raw.py --input ./xiaohongshu_raw
python postprocess_xiaohongshu_raw.py --input ./search_%E5%A3%81%E7%BA%B8_page1.json --out-dir .

Optional: multiple pages or multiple keywords

Only use this when the user clearly needs:

  • multiple keywords
  • page 2+
  • bulk result collection

Keep the batching layer thin:

  1. accept a list of keywords
  2. request page 1 first
  3. store the returned pagination fields
  4. fetch more pages only if needed
  5. save one raw JSON per request
  6. reuse postprocess_xiaohongshu_raw.py afterward

Recommended limits:

  • start sequentially or with max_workers=2 to 3
  • reduce concurrency if you hit 429
  • avoid assuming pagination tokens are reusable across different keywords

Do not lead with a big wrapper if the task is only one keyword search.


End-to-end workflow

  1. Provide TIKHUB_API_KEY.
  2. Make a single image-search request with curl or a tiny httpx snippet.
  3. Save the full raw response JSON.
  4. Inspect a few important fields directly.
  5. If needed, run postprocess_xiaohongshu_raw.py on one file or a directory of raw files.
  6. Only then expand to page 2+ or multiple keywords.

Troubleshooting

  • 401/403: invalid API key or missing Xiaohongshu scopes.
  • 400 with Chinese keyword in curl: URL-encode the keyword.
  • No items: keyword too narrow, source changed, or upstream result shape changed.
  • 429: rate limit; retry later or reduce concurrency.
  • Page 2 fails: confirm you passed the latest search_id, search_session_id, and word_request_id from the prior response.

What this skill does not cover

  • note detail endpoints
  • note comment crawling
  • downloading all images from every note as a batch export
  • non-search Xiaohongshu workflows