Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Wei Chen pushed open the moon gate leading to the middle courtyard of his house. As soon as he stepped inside, he saw his third uncle, Yan Bugui, pacing back and forth between the front yard and the moon gate, his hands behind his back. His eyes, like radar, kept glancing at Wei Chen's house.

As soon as he saw Wei Chen come out, Yan Bugui immediately became like a wound-up toy, his face instantly filled with smiles, and he "casually" moved over.

"Hey! Wei Chen! You're back from get off work? Have you eaten yet?" Yan Bugui's voice was deliberately enthusiastic, but his eyes quickly glanced at the closed door behind Wei Chen, as if trying to see through the door to what was inside.

"Uncle, not yet, I'm just about to go call Xiao Ran," Wei Chen replied with a smile.

"Oh, Xiao Ran?" Yan Bugui rubbed his hands, as if he had just remembered. "By the way, Wei Chen! I saw that you haven't put up the couplets on your doors yet, right? I've got nothing better to do, so I prepared a calligraphy brush and wrote a few 'Fu' characters for your house! Do you want them?"

"And couplets, your family has many doors, you must have five or six pairs, big and small, right? How about I write them all for you? I guarantee the calligraphy will be beautiful and the meaning auspicious!" He patted his chest, but his eyes were fixed on Wei Chen's face, observing his reaction.

Wei Chen knew perfectly well that the Third Uncle was "testing the waters," using writing couplets as an excuse to inquire about wild boar meat.

He feigned surprise: "Oh! Thank you so much, Uncle! I was just worried about this! Your calligraphy is among the best in our alley! The couplets haven't been written yet; we need six for both the main and side doors! How could I let you work for nothing? I'll bring you the red paper I bought in a bit!"

"Hey! What are you saying? We're neighbors, writing a few words is nothing, you're being too polite!" Yan Bugui said politely, but in his heart he was overjoyed. There was hope!

He casually glanced around. There weren't many people in the courtyard at the moment. The Jia family's doors were closed, and only light shone from Sha Zhu's room.

He immediately leaned closer to Wei Chen, his voice low and urgent: "Um... Wei Chen... did you get the things back?" He gestured with his eyes towards the south gate of Wei Chen's house.

Wei Chen lowered his voice, almost whispering, "Yes, I got it back. Tonight, after everyone in the yard has gone to sleep, come over from my south gate. Remember, whatever you do, don't let anyone see you, and don't let anyone know."

Yan Bugui's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down completely. He nodded repeatedly with excitement, his face crinkling into a wide smile: "Understood! Understood! Don't worry! Third Uncle knows the rules! I guarantee no one will know!" As if he had received a royal decree, he walked back to his house with his hands behind his back, humming a little tune, his back swaying lightly.

Wei Chen smiled and shook his head, then called out at the top of his lungs, "Xiao Ran! Wei Ran! Come home for dinner!"

"Hey! Brother! I'm here!" A clear voice came from Aunt Liu's house in the west wing of the middle courtyard.

Wei Chen followed the sound and pushed open the slightly ajar door of Aunt Liu's house. The house was dimly lit and simply furnished. Wei Ran and Niu Xiaocao were squatting on the ground, playing a game of "jacks" with a few small stones, their little faces full of seriousness and joy.

Niu Dali was in the corner of the room, mending a tattered wicker basket in the dim light. His hands were covered in wicker scraps. Hearing the noise, he looked up and gave a simple, honest smile.

Aunt Liu was sitting on the edge of the bed mending clothes when she saw Wei Chen come in. She quickly got up, a sheepish smile on her face: "Wei Chen's here? Please sit down... the room is messy..."

"Aunt Liu, no need to sit down." Wei Chen waved his hand, his gaze sweeping over Xiao Cao's obviously malnourished face and Da Li's rough hands. "I'm here to call Xiao Ran home for dinner. Aunt Liu, Da Li, Xiao Cao, you guys come along too. My mom cooked a big pot of stew today, it has meat broth, radishes, cabbage, seaweed, everything, it smells delicious! The steamed buns are ready too, plenty for everyone! Want to come and have something hot?"

The room fell silent instantly upon hearing this. Xiao Cao stopped playing her game, her big eyes looking timidly at Wei Chen, then at her mother, her little hands instinctively clenching the hem of her clothes.

Dali stopped repairing the food, a hint of longing flashing across his dark face, but he immediately shook his head vigorously and said in a muffled voice, "Thank you, Brother Wei Chen, no... no need, I... I've already eaten." His lying skills were very clumsy.

Aunt Liu waved her hands repeatedly, her face full of fear and gratitude: "Oh dear! Wei Chen! This...this is not right! No, no! We have food at home, we have food! We can't go and cause trouble! Your family isn't well-off either..."

These days, food is life itself. Sending your child to someone else's house for a meal is tantamount to taking advantage of them, and you'll be the subject of gossip. Although Aunt Liu's life is tough, she still has her principles.

Wei Chen knew this would happen. He squatted down, touched Xiao Cao's withered hair, and said in a gentle but firm tone, "Aunt Liu, please don't be shy. It's no trouble at all! It's just a simple meal. Look at Xiao Cao, she's growing a lot, she needs to eat more."

Dali, too, he's a grown boy who's always eating his father's fill. He'll work hard but won't get enough to eat. My mom specifically told me to make sure Xiaocao and Dali came along. We cooked a huge pot of stew, but there are only three of us in our family; we can't possibly finish it all. It would be such a waste if it went bad. Just consider it helping out, okay?

Besides, I went to call Xiao Shitou, and Grandma Li agreed. It's lively when the children are all together, and Xiao Ran is happy too." He brought up the reason that "it will spoil if we don't finish it," and then added Xiao Shitou, also pointing out that it was Wang Xiulan's idea.

Aunt Liu looked at her son Dali, who was desperately trying to suppress his longing but was shaking his head, and then at her daughter Xiaocao, whose eyes wanted to get close to Wei Ran but dared not. Her nose tingled and her eyes reddened.

Wei Chen's family genuinely wanted to help, and they had already said so much... Her lips trembled, and she finally nodded with difficulty, her voice choked with sobs: "Wei Chen... Aunt... Aunt will thank you and Xiulan on behalf of Xiaocao... Xiaocao... Go... Listen to your older brothers and sisters, don't... don't be naughty..." In the end, she didn't let Dali go; the boy was only half a child and ate too much.

"Mom!" Xiaocao called out timidly. After receiving her mother's approval, her face lit up with surprise and joy. She immediately ran to Wei Ran's side and held her hand tightly.

Dali looked at his younger sister, smiled innocently, and lowered his head to continue repairing the wicker basket with great effort, but his movements seemed to be even more forceful.

As soon as Wei Chen, Wei Ran, and Xiao Cao left Aunt Liu's house, they saw Xiao Shitou already helping Grandma Li stand at the entrance of the passageway leading from the backyard to the middle yard.

Grandma Li had obviously heard the commotion as well, her wrinkled face filled with gratitude and a hint of unease: "Wei Chen... I'm so sorry to have troubled your family again... that child Shi Tou..."

"Grandma Li, please don't say that!" Wei Chen quickly stepped forward. "It's just a matter of adding a pair of chopsticks. Stone, come on, let's go home for dinner! Little Grass is coming too!" He smiled and called to Little Stone.

Little Stone looked at his grandmother, and after receiving an affirming look, he immediately darted to Wei Ran's other side like a little monkey. The three children held hands, their faces filled with pure, childlike joy.

The commotion was quite loud; several families in the middle courtyard heard it. Behind the windows, there were envious glances and mixed expressions.

Especially behind the tightly closed door of the Jia family, Jia Zhangshi's mean face was almost pressed against the window glass as she watched Wei Ran lead the two "poor devil" children happily toward Wei Chen's house. A surge of anger suddenly rose up.

"Pah! You short-lived wretch! You heartless wretch!" Madam Jia suddenly pulled back from the window, spitting fiercely at the ground. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was filled with resentment and malice.

"When there's good food, you only know how to feed those good-for-nothings and beggars! Our Banggeng is the real deal! He's the only son of the Jia family! Are you blind? Why don't you call our Banggeng over? What are you showing off for? A little meat or vegetables and you're already wagging your tail in the sky!"

They have no respect for the elderly, no sense of sharing with neighbors! My son Dongxu works himself to the bone at the steel mill, life is so hard, and they don't even send him anything! Heartless bastards! They deserve to live in that shabby little house! They'll get their comeuppance sooner or later!

She cursed more and more fiercely, her voice gradually rising and echoing in the quiet room. Qin Huairu huddled in the corner of the kang (heated brick bed), head down, not daring to utter a sound. Jia Dongxu, annoyed, rolled over and pulled the blanket over his head: "Mom! Keep your voice down! What will people think if they hear us!"

"So what if they hear? Do you think I'm afraid they'll hear?" Madam Jia became even more agitated. "Am I not telling the truth? The Wei family is heartless! They look down on our Jia family!..."

In Wei Chen's courtyard, however, the scene was quite different.

Under the dim light, the small square table was spotless. In the center sat a large pot of steaming, fragrant stew!

In the thick, dark red broth, orange-red radish chunks, stewed until tender and translucent, soak up the essence of the meat juices. Dark green kelp slices unfold, thick and soft, and are garnished with emerald green cabbage leaves.

A layer of glistening oil floats on the surface, gently swaying with the steam, releasing an incredibly enticing complex aroma—the richness of the broth, the sweetness of the radish, the tenderness of the cabbage, and the oceanic scent of the kelp blended perfectly.

Next to them were fluffy, white steamed buns, freshly taken from the steamer, still steaming. In front of each person was a small bowl of golden, thick corn porridge.

"Quickly! Sit down! Don't be shy!" Wang Xiulan greeted them warmly, her face beaming with a loving smile. She first served Xiaocao and Xiaoshitou each a full bowl of stew, adding extra tender radishes, seaweed, and several large chunks of fatty meat.

"Little Stone, Little Grass, eat up!" Wei Chen stuffed the two largest steamed buns into the children's hands and added several pieces of meat to their bowls. "Eat up! There's plenty more in the pot!"