He Yuyang: The tough eldest brother of the courtyard house

In the summer of 1943, the sun scorched the bluestone slabs in the alley, and the air was filled with the aroma of drying wheat and the fishy smell of purslane growing at the base of the walls. The cicadas' chirping in the afternoon was like an endless thread, making people feel uneasy, but the children in the courtyard couldn't stand it. They gathered in groups of three or five under the big locust tree and played "cops and robbers" noisily.

Clutching his gleaming wooden top, He Yuzhu squatted in the shade of the locust tree, his eyes sparkling as he watched the field. The top had been carved for him by He Yuyang from scraps of wood, painted red and black, and spun like a little lantern—a prized possession coveted by all the children in the yard. He was only eight years old, half a head shorter than other children his age, with thin arms and legs, looking easy to bully. He could only squat on the sidelines and watch, too afraid to approach.

"Zhu Zi, come on!" Jia Dongxu, five years his senior, shouted at him, waving a wooden stick as a "spear." "Lend me your spinning top to play with, and I'll let you be an 'official' for a while!"

Jia Dongxu was thirteen years old, the kind of age where he's neither too young nor too old and likes to act like the boss. Taking advantage of his height, he often bossed around the younger children in the yard. He Yuzhu tucked the spinning top into his clothes and whispered, "I won't lend it to you. My brother made it for me."

"Hey, you dare say no?" Jia Dongxu's eyes widened, and he rushed over, grabbing He Yuzhu's arm. He was a head taller and stronger than He Yuzhu, easily pulling him back. "Give it to me or not? If you don't, I'll just take it from you!"

He Yuzhu's face turned red with anxiety, and he gripped the spinning top tightly, shouting, "Let go of me! This is mine!"

"Yours? In this yard, I'm in charge!" Jia Dongxu snatched the spinning top from He Yuzhu's hand with a strong pull, weighed it in his hand, and tossed it around. "This thing looks alright, it's mine."

"Give it back to me! Waaah..." He Yuzhu was so anxious he was about to cry. He tried to grab it, but Jia Dongxu pushed him on the butt. The pebbles on the ground hurt him, and tears welled up in his eyes, but he bit his lip tightly to keep them from falling.

"Cry? If you cry again, I'll throw it in the latrine!" Jia Dongxu spun the top triumphantly, causing his henchmen to burst into laughter.

"Jia Dongxu, do you mean what you said?"

A clear voice came from behind the tree. He Yuyang stood there with his arms crossed, the sleeves of his white coarse cloth jacket rolled up to his elbows, revealing his strong forearms. He was a year younger than Jia Dongxu, but about the same height, and his eyes held a calmness rarely seen in people his age.

When Jia Dongxu saw it was him, the smugness on his face lessened a bit, but he still stuck out his neck: "Yu Yang? What's it to you? I'm playing with a little kid."

"Playing is fine, but what kind of skill is it to steal things?" He Yuyang walked over, pulled He Yuzhu up from the ground, and patted the dirt off his pants. "Zhuzi, why are you crying? Have you forgotten what I taught you? Tears are the cheapest thing."

He Yuzhu sniffed, holding back his tears, and whispered, "Brother, he stole my spinning top."

He Yuyang ignored Jia Dongxu and turned to her younger brother, saying, "Where are the copper coins you've been saving? Take them out."

He Yuzhu paused for a moment, then took out a small cloth bag from his pocket, untied the knot, and five shiny copper coins rolled out—these were the coins he had saved up by running errands for Grandpa Zhang at the alley entrance, buying cigarettes and taking out the trash; they were so worn they were almost worn smooth from holding them so much.

"Here you go." He Yuyang stuffed the copper coins into her younger brother's hand. "Tell him you can borrow the spinning top for three days. These five copper coins are yours, on the condition that he protects you for those three days and doesn't bully the little ones in the yard anymore."

He Yuzhu blinked, looked at his brother, then at Jia Dongxu, and mustered his courage to walk over and hand over the copper coins: "Jia Dongxu, I... I'll give you five copper coins, and you can play with the spinning top for three days. You... you can't bully me, and you can't bully them either." He pointed to the few children next to him who were too scared to make a sound.

Jia Dongxu's eyes lit up. Five copper coins could buy three sugar figurines, enough for three days' allowance. He took the coins, weighed them in his hand, glanced at He Yuyang, and shoved the spinning top back into He Yuzhu's arms: "Alright! I'll take the deal! For the next three days, you're under my protection!"

He Yuzhu hadn't expected it to be so easy. Holding the spinning top he had just recovered, his eyes shone like stars. He secretly glanced at his brother, his eyes filled with admiration.

Seeing that there was no more excitement to watch, the children scattered to play again. He Yuyang pulled He Yuzhu aside and called out to Jia Dongxu, "Dongxu, come here, I need to tell you something."

Jia Dongxu's heart skipped a beat, and he walked over hesitantly: "What's wrong?"

"Did you take the silver coins from under your mother's pillow yesterday and buy a string of candied hawthorns?" He Yuyang's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "And you even told your mother you lost them, making her so worried she cried?"

Jia Dongxu's face turned deathly pale. He had kept it a secret, how could they have found out? He opened his mouth, stammering, "You...you're talking nonsense!"

"Whether I'm lying or not, you know yourself." He Yuyang stared into his eyes. "That silver coin was your mother's money to buy medicine for your father, right? If you bully Zhuzi or any of the other kids in the yard again, I'll go tell Aunt Jia, not only about the silver coin, but also that you secretly took the cured meat that Grandma Li was drying."

Jia Dongxu trembled with fear. His mother could chase him for three blocks when she was angry; if she found out he not only stole money but also meat, she'd skin him alive. He quickly nodded, "I...I won't bully him anymore, okay? From now on, he's my little brother, and I'll fight anyone who bullies him!"

"That would be for the best." He Yuyang patted his shoulder, the force neither too light nor too heavy. "Zhuzi is honest. As his older brother, you should protect him, not bully him. Otherwise, next time, it won't be as simple as just telling your mother."

Jia Dongxu nodded repeatedly, clutched the five copper coins, and slunk away.

"Brother, how did you know he stole the money?" He Yuzhu asked, looking up at him with curiosity in her eyes.

"The day before yesterday, I went to deliver cigarettes to Grandpa Zhang and saw him come out of the grocery store with a candied hawthorn in his hand and a silver coin coin falling out of his pocket." He Yuyang picked up a twig from the ground and drew circles on the ground. "Later, I heard Aunt Jia talking to my mother about how she lost a silver coin and was very anxious. I guessed it was him."

He Yuzhu nodded as if he understood, then asked, "Then why should I give him copper coins? I've been saving them up for a long time."

"Because if you try to take it directly from him, you won't win; if you cry, he'll be even more smug." He Yuyang handed the branch to her younger brother. "We trade him something he wants; that's called a deal. A deal has to be kept. If he takes your coins, he has to follow the rules. But if he doesn't follow the rules, we have to have a way to deal with him; that's called having confidence."

He squatted down and looked into his younger brother's eyes: "Zhuzi, remember this: you have to keep your word. When lending something, you have to agree on the terms. If someone makes a promise to you, you have to make sure they deliver on it. But more importantly, you can't let anyone bully you. If someone treats you with respect, you have to treat them with even more respect. If someone tries to take advantage of you, you have to stand up straight. Either reason with them or find their weakness so they won't dare to have any more crooked thoughts."

He Yuzhu took a twig and drew a crooked spinning top on the ground, whispering, "What if... no one else has a weakness?"

"Everyone has a weakness." He Yuyang smiled. "Like Grandma Wang in the courtyard, who dotes on her grandson the most; Uncle Li at the alley entrance, who is most afraid that his wife will find out he drinks. Everyone has things they care about. As long as you don't harm others, there's nothing shameful about using some methods to protect yourself."

Just then, Jia Dongxu ran back and shoved the spinning top into He Yuzhu's hands: "Zhuzi, here you go, I'm not playing anymore. I was wrong just now, I want to apologize." After saying that, he awkwardly bowed, which made the children next to him laugh.

He Yuzhu paused, then looked at his brother. He Yuyang nodded to him, "Take it. Tell him that we'll play together from now on, and he shouldn't always act like the boss."

"Okay!" He Yuzhu took the spinning top and said loudly, "Jia Dongxu, stop bullying people from now on. Let's play 'cops and robbers' together, and I'll make you the general!"

Jia Dongxu scratched his head and chuckled, "Okay! I'll do as you say!"

That afternoon, the games under the big locust tree were especially lively. As expected, Jia Dongxu stopped bullying others and even protected He Yuzhu from being bullied by the children from other courtyards. He Yuzhu clutched his wooden top, running back and forth, his little face full of pride—a real sense of "prestige" from no longer being afraid of being bullied.

During dinner that evening, He Yuzhu told his parents about it, his face beaming with excitement. Liu Yan listened, amused: "Did your brother teach you that?"

"Yeah! My brother said we can't let others bully us, and we can't bully others either!" He Yuzhu mumbled, shoveling rice into his mouth.

He Daqing put down his chopsticks, glanced at He Yuyang, and said with approval in his eyes, "You did the right thing. In this world, being honest isn't enough; you need to have brains and principles. Knowing what you can and cannot give up is true skill."

He Yuyang took a sip of corn porridge and didn't say anything. Looking into his younger brother's bright eyes, he knew that something was quietly sprouting—something more important than "prestige" was the confidence to stand firm in these turbulent times.

Night fell into the courtyard, and the locust tree leaves rustled in the wind. He Yuzhu carefully placed his wooden top on the windowsill, then put the five copper coins into his cloth bag and hid it under his pillow. He touched the half-eaten candy that Jia Dongxu had insisted on giving him in his pocket, and felt a sweet warmth in his heart.

He thought, "My brother is right. Keeping your word and not being bullied is such a pleasant thing."

He Yuyang sat on the threshold, looking at the crescent moon in the sky, knowing in his heart that this was just the beginning. The future was long, and he had much to teach his younger brother. But at least today, the "sapling" in this little courtyard had learned how to stand tall and face the wind.