He Yuyang: The tough eldest brother of the courtyard house

On the morning of the 20th of the twelfth lunar month, the sky was overcast like a tattered cloth soaked in ink, and the cold wind swirled snowflakes, howling through the alley. He Yuyang had just moved the newly harvested cabbages from his spatial storage into the cellar when he heard a series of chaotic footsteps coming from the alley entrance, mixed with chattering shouts—it was the sound of a Japanese chicken.

His heart skipped a beat, and the cabbage in his hand fell to the ground with a thud. Although things had been tense lately, the Japanese rarely raided the alleys during the day. What was going on today?

"Yangyang, what's wrong?" Liu Yan heard the noise, came out of the house with her hand on her waist, and looked worried.

"Mom, come inside quickly!" He Yuyang grabbed her arm, her voice urgent, "The Japanese are here, looks like they're going to search!"

"What?" Liu Yan's face turned pale instantly, and she gripped He Yuyang's arm tightly. "The...the grain in the cellar..."

"Don't worry about it, I'll handle it!" He Yuyang didn't have time to explain in detail, and pushed his mother into the house. "Where's Dad?"

"Your dad went to the restaurant early this morning, saying he needs to prepare a lot of dishes today..." Liu Yan's voice was choked with sobs, her hand on her stomach, her breathing erratic.

He Yuyang gritted his teeth, turned around, and ran towards the cellar. The cellar contained not only food, but also medicine he had prepared to support Old Wang, several bolts of fine cloth, and spare parts he had taken from his spatial storage but hadn't had time to move—if these were found, his entire family would lose their heads!

He lifted the cellar door and nearly tripped over potatoes as he jumped down. In the dim light, he frantically shoved the medicine and cloth hidden in the secret compartment into the space, then stuffed all the disassembled parts inside. The entrance to the space opened in the blink of an eye, swallowing all the "contraband" except for the surface layer of coarse grains and potatoes used to conceal the contents.

"Quick! Search every inch of the place thoroughly! Don't miss a single spot!" The shouts of the Japanese thugs and the sound of banging on the door echoed from the alley, making Liu Yan tremble inside the house.

Without even catching his breath, He Yuyang rushed back to the main room and stuffed the few notes hidden in the kang (heated brick bed) hole—the contact address Old Wang had asked him to pass on—into his spatial storage. Finally, he glanced at the jar of spiritual spring water on the stove, hesitated for a moment, and then put it in as well, leaving only an empty jar.

After doing all this, he leaned against the door frame to catch his breath; his cotton-padded coat was soaked with cold sweat.

"Knock, knock, knock!" A violent banging sound rang out, accompanied by a broken Chinese shout: "Open the door! Open the door! Open the door now!"

He Yuyang took a deep breath, walked to the courtyard gate, and slowly pulled open the latch. The door had barely opened a crack when it was kicked open, and several Japanese men in yellow military uniforms rushed in, guns pointed directly at his chest.

The leader was a short, stout Japanese man with triangular eyes, a mustache, and a military knife at his waist. He looked at He Yuyang as if he were a lamb to the slaughter. "Who are you?" he asked in broken Chinese, spitting all over He Yuyang's face.

"I...I'm the son of this family." He Yuyang forced himself to calm down, lowered his head, and pretended to be frightened. "Sir, what...what is it?"

"Enough with the nonsense!" The short, fat Japanese man waved his hand. "We received a tip that anti-Japanese elements are hiding here! Search the whole place!"

The few Japanese thugs behind him immediately scattered and rushed into the house like mad dogs. The sounds of rummaging through drawers and cabinets, the sound of breaking porcelain, and Liu Yan's suppressed sobs mingled together, piercing the eardrums.

He Yuyang's heart was in his throat. His eyes were fixed on the Japanese chicken that had entered the room, and his hand secretly clenched the small dagger hidden in his sleeve. He had prepared it just in case and would never use it unless absolutely necessary, but it gave him some confidence at this moment.

"Sir, we're just ordinary people, how could we harbor anti-Japanese elements?" He Yuyang deliberately put on a mournful face. "My father works at a restaurant, preparing dishes for you every day. Our whole family are law-abiding citizens!"

The short, fat Japanese chicken ignored him completely, walked to the woodpile in the corner of the yard, kicked the neatly stacked firewood away, and seeing that there were only dry branches inside, kicked the coal pile, scattering coal chunks all over the ground.

The search of the house continued. One of the men threw the half-sewn clothes Liu Yan had started to wear on the ground, poked the kang mat with the butt of his rifle, and then lifted the mattress. Finding nothing, he howled in anger. Another man ransacked the kitchen, smashing pots and pans to pieces. He even smashed a hole in the water vat with the butt of his rifle, and water gushed out, piling up on the ground.

"Mother!" He Yuyang heard Liu Yan groan in pain and couldn't help but want to rush in, but was stopped by the short, fat Japanese man with a gun.

"You, stand still!" His triangular eyes flashed with a fierce light. "If you dare move, you're dead!"

He Yuyang could only watch helplessly, his nails digging deep into his palms. Liu Yan was pregnant; how could she withstand such a shock? He saw his mother leaning against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), her face ashen, her forehead covered in cold sweat, and her lips bitten until they bled.

"Sir, my mother is pregnant and can't take a fright!" He Yuyang almost pleaded. "What are you looking for? I'll help you find it, just don't frighten her..."

"Shut up!" the short, fat Japanese chicken roared impatiently, turning and shouting into the house, "What did you find?"

"Report to the squad leader, no suspicious items found! Only some coarse grains and tattered clothes!" the Japanese chicken in the house shouted.

"Useless!" the short, fat Japanese chicken cursed, then rushed into the house. He Yuyang's heart clenched, his eyes fixed on the direction of the cellar—please, please don't go to the cellar!

But what I feared most came to pass. The short, fat Japanese chicken circled the room, his gaze landing on the cellar door in the corner. His eyes lit up, and he pointed his military knife at He Yuyang: "What's that? Open it!"

He Yuyang's legs were cramping, but he forced a stiff smile: "Sir, that's a cellar, it's full of cabbages and potatoes for the winter..."

"I told you to open it!" The short, fat Japanese man slammed his military knife into the ground, sending sparks flying. "You think you can resist?"

Liu Yan screamed in fright, then suddenly clutched her stomach and doubled over in pain.

"Mom!" He Yuyang couldn't care less about anything else and rushed over to support his mother. "What's wrong?"

"My stomach hurts..." Liu Yan's voice was weak and feeble, cold sweat streaming down her face. "Yangyang, I... I think I'm going into labor..."

"What?!" He Yuyang's mind went blank, both shocked and frightened. There were still more than two weeks until her due date, how could she suddenly be going into labor? She must have been scared by the Japanese chicken!

The short, stout Japanese man frowned, looking at Liu Yan who was trembling in pain, then at He Yuyang's anxious expression, seemingly convinced it wasn't faking. He hesitated for a moment, then pointed his military knife at the cellar door: "Yours, open it! I'll just take a look and leave!"

He Yuyang gritted his teeth, helped Liu Yan lean against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and turned to open the cellar door. He deliberately slowed his movements, his mind racing—there was only coarse grain in the cellar, so everything should be fine, but his mother's condition…

"Hurry up!" the Japanese chicken urged impatiently.

The cellar door was pulled open, and a damp, cold draft rushed out. The short, stout Japanese chicken peeked inside and saw that it was filled with corn, potatoes, and cabbage—just ordinary winter storage for ordinary families, nothing special—and a look of disappointment appeared on its face.

"Bang!" He kicked the cellar door. "Bad luck! Let's go!"

Several Japanese men walked out, cursing and swearing. As they passed the yard, one of them, probably feeling embarrassed for not finding anything, kicked the water vats in the yard. With a "crash," the two half-full vats shattered, and clear water mixed with broken tiles spilled all over the ground, steaming in the cold wind.

"Sir! That was the water we were saving for the winter!" Liu Yan looked at the broken water vat, her heart aching so much that tears streamed down her face. She couldn't catch her breath and suddenly clutched her stomach, crying out in pain that she couldn't straighten up.

"Mother!" He Yuyang quickly hugged her. Seeing his mother's face as white as paper and her lips turning purple, he was burning with anxiety. He suddenly remembered the spiritual spring water in his space. With a thought, an empty bowl appeared in his hand, and the spiritual spring water instantly filled it to about half full.

"Mother, you'll feel better if you drink some sugar water!" He didn't dare say it was from the magic spring, so he had to lie, holding the bowl to his mother's lips, "Drink it quickly, it will make the pain go away."

Liu Yan groggily opened her mouth, and the warm "sugar water" slid down her throat, bringing a strange warmth as it flowed into her stomach. In just a moment, the intense pain actually subsided, and her breathing gradually became steady.

"Water...drink some more..." she said weakly.

He Yuyang poured her another half bowl. After watching her mother finish drinking it, her face gradually regained some color. He finally breathed a sigh of relief, though the cold sweat on his back had frozen into ice crystals.

The footsteps of the Japanese thugs gradually faded into the distance, and the sounds of crying and cursing came from the alley. Some people were shouting, "My grain has been stolen!" "My husband has been taken away!"... It made people's hearts tighten.

Liu Yan leaned against He Yuyang's chest, tears streaming silently down her face: "Yangyang... you scared your mother to death... what if... what if the baby were gone..."

"Mom, it's alright now. Look, the baby is fine." He Yuyang gently stroked her mother's belly, her voice extremely soft. "You drank the sugar water and you've recovered. It's alright now."

He knew it was the spiritual spring water that had worked. This stuff not only strengthened his body but also had the effect of stabilizing the pregnancy—a stroke of good luck amidst misfortune.

After an unknown amount of time, He Daqing came running back like a madman. As soon as he entered the door, he shouted, "Honey! Yangyang! Are you alright?" His face was covered in snow, his cotton-padded coat was open, and his hair was a mess like a bird's nest. He had obviously run all the way back.

"Husband..." Liu Yan cried even harder when she saw her husband.

He Daqing rushed to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) and saw that his wife's face was pale but her breathing was steady. He looked at the mess on the floor and stamped his feet in heartache, "These beasts! These damned beasts!" He turned to He Yuyang, "They didn't find anything, did they? The things in the cellar..."

"Father, I've already put away the important things. They only saw some coarse grains." He Yuyang shook his head, his voice still trembling slightly. "It's just that Mother was terrified and had a miscarriage, but thankfully she's stable now."

Only then did He Daqing notice the broken tiles and empty water vat on the ground. Looking at his wife, he was so terrified his legs went weak, and he almost collapsed to the ground. "It's all my fault...it's all my fault for not being home..." he pounded his thigh, his eyes reddening. "If anything had happened to you two, I...I wouldn't want to live either!"

"Don't be like this..." Liu Yan held his hand. "Our family is all safe and sound, that's more important than anything. We can save up the food, we can buy another water tank if it breaks, as long as everyone is alright..."

He Daqing held his wife's hand, which was ice-cold. He quickly tucked it into his arms to warm it, saying, "Yes, yes, it's good that you're alright. I'll go buy a water tank and some brown sugar to help you recover."

"Dad, please don't go. We don't know what's going on outside." He Yuyang stopped him. "I'll go. You stay home and keep Mom company."

He turned around and put on a thicker cotton-padded coat, then tucked the few silver dollars he had hidden in the stove into his pocket—this was emergency money, just in case. As he left, he glanced at his mother on the kang (a heated brick bed), and seeing that she was resting with her eyes closed against the pillow, looking much better, he closed the door with peace of mind.

The alley was a scene of utter chaos. Zhang the Butcher's door had been kicked down, and he was squatting at the entrance, weeping, saying that his only two sacks of grain had been stolen. Yan Bugui's window had been smashed, and his third aunt was standing in the yard, cursing and swearing. Several other men had been taken away by thugs, and the women, chasing after them, were crying and being driven back by rifle butts…

He Yuyang walked quickly forward with his head down, feeling as if a stone was pressing on his heart. He knew that the sudden search by the Japanese was definitely not without reason. Could it be that Lao Wang and his men's operation had been discovered? Or had someone tipped them off? He thought of Yi Zhonghai's calculating eyes, and a chill ran down his spine.

The shop selling water vats wasn't far away. The shopkeeper, seeing him, sighed and said, "Judging by today's scene, something bad is about to happen. I heard they found a hideout of anti-Japanese elements in the east of the city and arrested quite a few people, which is why our alley has been implicated..."

He Yuyang's heart sank; something had indeed gone wrong. He didn't dare ask any more questions, paid the money, asked the shopkeeper to help carry the water tank to the door, bought two pounds of brown sugar, and hurried back.

When they got home, He Daqing had already tidied up the house. The broken porcelain pieces on the floor were swept aside, and Liu Yan was leaning against the kang (a heated brick bed) drinking the rice soup that He Daqing had cooked.

"Mom, I bought brown sugar. I'll make you some water with it." He Yuyang handed the brown sugar to her father.

He Daqing took the brown sugar, quickly made a bowl of brown sugar water, and handed it to his wife's lips: "Drink some quickly, it will warm you up."

Liu Yan took a couple of sips of her drink, looked at her husband and son, and suddenly said, "Husband, Yangyang, let's share some of the grain in the cellar with Zhang the butcher's family. Their son Dazhuang was confiscated, and now their grain has been taken away. How are they going to survive..."

He Daqing was taken aback for a moment, then nodded: "You're right, we should help them. Yangyang, go get some cornmeal and potatoes and take them to Butcher Zhang."

"Yes," He Yuyang replied, but her heart was filled with mixed feelings. Her mother had just escaped death, yet she was still thinking of helping others; this kindness was more precious than gold.

He went to the cellar, scooped out two ladles of cornmeal, and took a dozen or so potatoes, putting them in a basket to deliver to Zhang the butcher's house. When Zhang the butcher saw him, he immediately knelt down: "Yangyang... Uncle, thank you... thank you to your family..."

"Uncle Zhang, please get up quickly." He Yuyang hurriedly helped him up. "We're all neighbors, it's only right that we help each other out."

It was already dark when He Yuyang returned from Zhang the butcher's house. He cleaned up the remaining fragments of the water vat, then helped his father install the new vat and filled it with water. Watching the room gradually return to normal, he felt utterly exhausted and leaned against the doorframe, not wanting to move.

At night, the family of three huddled together on the kang (a heated brick bed), none of them speaking. Liu Yan leaned against He Daqing's chest, sleeping restlessly, occasionally whimpering, as if she were dreaming of the day's events again. He Daqing stared at the ceiling, his hands tightly protecting his wife, his knuckles white from gripping her so tightly.

He Yuyang lay on the outside, listening to his parents' breathing, his mind a jumbled mess. This search by the Japanese was a warning. They wouldn't let it go easily, and next time they came, he might not be so lucky to move his things in time.

He quietly took out a small jade pendant from his spatial storage—a talisman he had received from signing in, said to have calming properties. He gently placed it under his mother's pillow, silently praying: "I must protect my mother and sister and keep them safe and sound."

The wind was still howling outside the window, like countless wild beasts roaring in the darkness. He Yuyang clenched his fists, a fierce glint in his eyes. He wasn't afraid of the Japanese returning, but he was afraid of his family being frightened again.

If that day ever comes, he wouldn't mind letting these beasts taste what real fear is.

On the kang (heated brick bed), Liu Yan turned over, seemingly sleeping more peacefully. Looking at his mother's sleeping face, He Yuyang secretly vowed: no matter the cost, he would protect this family and safeguard the peace within this small space.

The night was still long, but he knew that as long as the family was together, they would eventually make it to dawn.