Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Upon arriving at the front yard, Uncle Yan Bugui was stretching his limbs with his hands behind his back in front of his own door, but his eyes kept glancing toward the direction of Wei Chen's small door.

Seeing Wei Chen push the stroller out, he immediately beamed with an exaggeratedly enthusiastic smile: "Hey! Wei Chen! Xiu Lan! Xiao Ran! Is this... going back to your hometown?"

"Yes, Uncle, go back and visit the elders," Wang Xiulan replied with a smile.

"Good, good, good! Of course, of course!" Yan Bugui nodded repeatedly, his gaze seemingly unintentionally sweeping over Wei Chen's bicycle back seat and the bundle on Wang Xiulan's back.

His smile widened, carrying an unspoken sense of closeness. "Drive carefully! Be careful on your bike! Give my regards to my family back home! When the couplets are written, come and pick them up when you return." He said the last sentence specifically to Wei Chen, with a hint of seeking praise and reminding him.

"Alright, Uncle, thank you for your trouble!" Wei Chen replied with a smile, pushing the cart and leading his mother and sister out of the heavy vermilion gate of the courtyard house.

Outside, the biting wind felt like countless tiny knives, stinging one's face. The sky remained overcast, with low-hanging, leaden clouds.

"Mom, Xiaoran, get on!" Wei Chen propped up the bicycle. Wei Ran cheered and skillfully climbed onto the front crossbar and sat down. Wang Xiulan sat sideways on the back seat, one arm around Wei Ran and the other tightly gripping the support under the seat.

"Hold on tight!" Wei Chen instructed, then pushed off with his long legs, and the bicycle steadily rode into the cool morning light. He didn't ride fast, trying to maintain a steady pace.

A biting wind howled through their collars, and Wei Ran buried her face in the back of her brother's cotton-padded coat, while Wang Xiulan also hunched her shoulders. Wei Chen, however, stood tall and straight, seemingly oblivious to the piercing chill. His powerful internal energy flowed naturally, forming an invisible warm current that enveloped him and even subtly dispelled the chill that approached his back, making his mother and sister feel much better.

I cycled through the gradually awakening city streets and onto a dirt road leading to the suburbs. The fields beside the road were covered with a thick layer of snow, a desolate scene, with only a few bare trees standing stubbornly. Occasionally, I could see an old farmer who had gotten up early to collect manure, wrapped in a tattered cotton-padded coat, his figure hunched over in the cold wind.

After safely delivering his mother and sister to the Qianmen Bus Station and watching them buy tickets and board the old bus that was packed with people returning home, Wei Chen finally felt relieved.

"Mom, Xiaoran, be careful on the bus! Wait for me inside when we get to the commune station, don't come out and get cold! I'll ride fast, we'll be there soon!" Wei Chen reminded her through the bus window.

"Okay, bro! Ride your bike slower too!" Wei Ran shouted, clinging to the car window.

"Chen'er, be careful on the road!" Wang Xiulan also gave her a concerned instruction.

Watching the bus, billowing black smoke, chug away from the station and merge into the traffic, Wei Chen then mounted his bicycle and sped off towards the outskirts of the city.

He certainly wasn't going to any "friend's house," but instead chose a shortcut and pedaled furiously toward Baoyuquan Village.

Once outside the city, the roads became even bumpier and muddier, and the cold wind became even more relentless. Fortunately, Wei Chen possessed martial arts skills, his blood and energy were abundant, and his internal strength protected him, so he didn't find it too unbearable. If it were an ordinary person, riding a bicycle for dozens of miles in the dead of winter would surely leave them frozen solid.

He sped along, leaving the city far behind, the scenery on both sides gradually replaced by vast fields covered with remnants of snow and rolling mountains.

After riding for about an hour, the low-lying houses of the commune could be seen in the distance. Wei Chen didn't go directly to the station, but stopped two or three miles away from the commune, near a secluded grove of trees. He cautiously observed his surroundings, and after confirming that no one was around, he channeled his mental energy into his spatial backpack.

In an instant, a heavy, coarse cloth bag appeared in the bamboo basket beside the bicycle. Inside the bag were ten jin of neatly cut, perfectly marbled, high-quality pork belly, and a cloth bag containing five jin of snow-white high-gluten flour. After doing all this, he got back on the bicycle and rode towards the commune bus station.

The commune bus station was a simple mud-brick courtyard with a few single-story houses and a bare bus stop sign. As soon as Wei Chen rode to the entrance, he saw Wang Xiulan and Wei Ran standing at the entrance of the waiting room, anxiously peering out onto the road on tiptoe.

Wei Ran, with her sharp eyes, spotted her brother first and immediately jumped up and down, waving and shouting, "Brother! Brother! We're here!"

Wang Xiulan saw it too, and a relieved smile instantly bloomed on her face. She pulled Wei Ran along and quickly came out to greet them.

"Chen'er! We've finally arrived! Are you freezing? Quickly drink some hot water!" Wang Xiulan looked at her son's cheeks, which were red from the cold wind, with heartache. This was because Wei Chen had deliberately suppressed the effects of his internal energy. She quickly handed him the military water bottle that she had been keeping warm in her arms.

Wei Chen took the kettle, unscrewed it, and took a big gulp of warm water, a warm current flowing straight to his stomach. "It's okay, Mom, I'm strong! Come on, let's go home!" He patted the bag that was tightly tied on the back seat.

"Wow! So much meat and flour! Grandpa and Grandma must be overjoyed!" Wei Ran's eyes lit up as she looked at the bag.

"Let's go, it's still several miles away." Wang Xiulan looked at the heavy bag, feeling both relieved and moved. Her son had really thought of everything.

Wei Chen pushed the cart, with Wang Xiulan and Wei Ran following on either side, and the three of them embarked on the last stretch of country road leading to Baoyuquan Village.

The fields on both sides of the road were silent, and the outlines of distant villages were faintly visible in the winter mist. The air was filled with the scent of earth and a faint smell of firewood.

The closer Wang Xiulan got to the village, the lighter her steps became, and the brighter her eyes shone—a mixture of eagerness and excitement for a wanderer returning home. Wei Ran, on the other hand, was like a bird released from its cage, chattering incessantly, imagining the scene of seeing her friends.

From a distance, the sharp-eyed village children spotted them. A little boy with snot running down his face paused for a few seconds, then, as if discovering a new continent, he shouted at the top of his lungs towards the village: "Uncle Wei Chen is back! Grandma Xiu Lan is back! Xiao Ran is back!" His childish yet high-pitched voice, like a pebble thrown into calm water, instantly shattered the tranquility of the winter morning in Baoyuquan Village.

The little boy's shouts were like a fuse that ignited the deathly silence of Baoyuquan Village, bringing it to life in an instant!

"What? Wei Chen's back? Xiu Lan's back too?" "Quick! Go see them!"

The previously tightly closed courtyard gates creaked open, and villagers wearing bulky cotton-padded coats poked their heads out of their houses, their faces filled with surprise and disbelief.

The man who was drawing water from the well at the village entrance put down his carrying pole, the young man who was chopping firewood in his yard threw down his axe, and the old woman who was sitting on the kang sewing shoe soles also leaned against the door frame and looked out shakily.

The first to react were a group of teenagers. Like a herd of frolicking ponies, they burst out from every corner of the village, kicking up a cloud of snow, and raced toward the village entrance.

"Xiao Ran—!" "Brother Chen—! Aunt Xiulan—!" Running at the front were Wei Ran's cousins, Wei Guo and Wei Min!

Wei Guo, a stocky man, was panting heavily as he ran, his face beaming with undisguised excitement. Wei Min, with her two braids, had rosy cheeks from the cold and bright eyes, waving as she ran. Behind them followed Er Gou, Tie Dan, Xiao Hua, and a group of Wei Ran's best friends from the village.

"Brother Weiguo! Sister Weimin! Ergou! Xiaohua! I'm back!" When Wei Ran saw them, she was so excited that she forgot about the cold. She let go of her mother's hand and rushed towards them like a little cannonball!

The two groups of children instantly merged together, and Wei Ran was surrounded by them. A cacophony of greetings, laughter, and playful shouts filled the air.

The children jumped and danced excitedly, brushing the snow off each other. Wei Ran eagerly pulled out her treasured fruit candies from her pocket and distributed them to her friends like spoils of war. The children who received the candies treasured them like precious gems, carefully licking or clutching them in their palms, their faces filled with pure and immense happiness.

"Chen'er! Xiulan! You're finally back!" A deep and excited voice rang out.

Wei Chen's eldest uncle, Wei Changsheng, a burly, dark-skinned farmer, strode over, his face beaming with genuine joy. Behind him followed Wei Chen's aunt, an equally robust woman with a hearty smile, and Wei Chen's third uncle, Wei Dahe, who was more reserved but couldn't hide his smile either.

"Uncle! Aunt! Third Uncle!" Wei Chen and Wang Xiulan hurriedly went to greet them.

"It's good to be back! It's good to be back! Your parents have been talking about you every day!" Wei Changsheng patted Wei Chen's shoulder hard, then looked at Wang Xiulan with concern in his eyes, "You must have caught a chill on the way, right? Hurry! Hurry home! Your parents are waiting for you inside!"

Wei Chen untied the bag from the back seat. When Wei Dashan saw the heavy ten pounds of bright, fatty pork belly and five pounds of dazzling white high-gluten flour, the honest farmer's eyes widened instantly, his mouth gaped open enough to fit an egg, and his voice trembled: "My God! Chen'er! This...so much meat?! And...and flour?! How much...how much did this cost?!"

The surrounding villagers also gathered around, and when they saw what was in the bag, they all gasped in amazement and envy. Ten pounds of meat! Five pounds of flour! This was simply the most shocking "huge sum" at the end of the year! The children also temporarily forgot about the candy, and curiously squeezed over to take a look, their little faces full of surprise.

"Uncle, it didn't cost much. A friend in the city helped with it. It's just a little something for Grandpa and Grandma and the family for the New Year," Wei Chen explained casually, handing the bag to his cousin Wei Feng beside him. "Here, let's go home!"

"Good! Good! Let's go home! My parents will be so happy to see us!" Wei Changsheng's voice trembled with excitement.

He straightened his back, his face beaming with pride, and called out loudly to the villagers who had gathered around, "Everyone, please disperse! Come over to my house tonight! Let Chen'er and Xiulan rest a bit!"

Amidst the envious, amazed, and kind gazes of the villagers, and surrounded by the laughter of the children, Wei Chen pushed his bicycle, Wang Xiulan pulled Wei Ran along, and Wei Dashan carried heavy bags. The family, in a grand procession, headed towards the familiar farmhouse courtyard deep in the village, where smoke was rising from the chimney.

The bluish-gray smoke rising from the chimney curled upwards in the cold air, carrying the unique warmth of firewood and the deep comfort of travelers returning home. It melted away the winter chill and ignited the entire village's hopes for a "good year."

Startled by the sudden commotion, several sparrows on the old locust tree at the village entrance fluttered their wings and flew into the leaden sky, their chirping seemingly playing a joyful prelude to this warm homecoming.

On this winter morning, Baoyuquan Village was filled with a strong festive atmosphere and warmth of human kindness because of the return of Wei Chen's family.