Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Wu Degui was surprised that Wei Chen agreed so readily. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, followed by a solemn expression of trust: "Great! Comrade Wei is a straightforward man! Don't worry, I, Old Wu, will never lie! I'll bring people in tomorrow! First, we'll clear the site, demolish the dangerous buildings, and fill in the pits! At the same time, we'll prepare the materials!"

"I'll try to get you in your new house within a month and a half! As long as God doesn't mess things up, I'll have it all sorted out in a month and a half! I'll check on the workers tomorrow and then let you know about lunch expenses."

"Alright! Then I'll leave it to Master Wu!" Wei Chen extended his hand.

Wu Degui extended his calloused hand and shook it firmly with Wei Chen: "It's a deal!"

"Master Wu, how about this?" Wei Chen took out a thick wad of banknotes wrapped in old newspapers from his canvas satchel—actually, from his spatial backpack—and opened it in front of Wu Degui. "I'll pay you half as a deposit, eight hundred yuan. I'll pay another four hundred after the main structure is completed. The remaining four hundred will be settled immediately after everything passes inspection. What do you think?"

The brand-new ten-yuan "Great Unity" bills were neatly bundled, exuding the scent of ink. Eight hundred yuan! A thick stack! Wu Degui's breathing quickened slightly as he looked at this "huge sum." He'd worked most of his life and rarely encountered a client who paid a deposit so readily! This young man was truly capable!

"Great! Absolutely great!" Wu Degui beamed and agreed repeatedly. "Comrade Wei is very efficient! Let's do it this way!" He immediately took out a receipt book and inkpad from his toolbox, placed them on his knees, and neatly wrote a receipt for the 800 yuan deposit. He signed his name, pressed his fingerprint, and solemnly handed it to Wei Chen.

Wei Chen carefully put away the receipt and handed over the eight bundles of banknotes. Wu Degui also carefully took them, counted them carefully, then carefully wrapped them again with newspaper, stuffed them into the innermost layer of his tool bag, and held them tightly to his chest.

"Then it's settled, Master Wu. You can start with your team first thing tomorrow morning. I have some things to take care of back in the village. I'll officially start work next Monday. I'll come and visit when I have time," Wei Chen said.

"Don't worry! You can rest assured that you'll leave it to me. I'll bring my men over at dawn!" Wu Degui patted his chest and assured him, full of energy as he carried the heavy deposit.

The two walked out of the east courtyard together. When they moved the wooden planks back into the front yard, Aunt Yang Ruihua immediately crowded around again, her eyes quickly scanning Wu Degui's bulging tool bag, her smile widening: "Master Wu, Comrade Wei Chen, is it all settled? We'll start work tomorrow?"

"It's settled, Auntie. Master Wu will bring people over to clean up tomorrow," Wei Chen replied with a smile.

"Oh, that's great! If you need any help, Comrade Wei Chen, just let me know!" The three aunties said enthusiastically.

"I'll have to trouble you a lot," Wei Chen said politely, and walked out of the gate of No. 95 courtyard with Wu Degui.

Watching the two figures leave, especially Wu Degui's careful way of protecting his tool bag, the women in the front yard erupted in gossip once again.

"My goodness! It's settled already? Look at how bulging Master Wu's bag is, he must have paid a hefty deposit, right?"

"Definitely! Building houses! And on such a large area! It'll cost at least a thousand or eight hundred thousand!"

"Tsk tsk, Wei Chen... he's really rich! Yesterday it was wild boar, today it's building a house, he doesn't even blink!"

"He doesn't look very old, I wonder which lucky girl will be so fortunate..."

"Go back and talk to my husband about it..."

The 800 yuan deposit was paid, like planting a seed of hope on barren ruins. The blueprint has been drawn up, and tomorrow, bulldozing and filling the pits will break the decades-long silence of the East Wing.

A truly independent fortress belonging to Wei Chen is about to rise from these ruins. This will become the solid foundation for him to establish himself and protect his secrets in this turbulent era.

The Golden House Project has officially broken ground.

"Time to go back and prepare some candy and stuff," Wei Chen muttered to himself, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. He knew all too well the complexities of this courtyard house.

Building a house is no small matter; it involves a lot of noise and takes a long time, especially since it involves moving walls to open side doors and connecting plumbing, which is bound to touch a nerve with some people. Rather than letting gossip breed trouble, it's better to take the initiative and first use a small incentive to shut some people up, while also finding out the background of the various "gods" in this courtyard.

He pushed his bicycle, but instead of immediately returning to courtyard number 95, he turned around and pedaled toward the nearest supply and marketing cooperative.

The supply and marketing cooperative was still filled with the unique smell of soy sauce, vinegar, and kerosene. Wei Chen had a clear goal and headed straight for the non-staple food counter.

The glass display case didn't have many varieties of candy; the most eye-catching items were loose fruit hard candies and a type of milk candy with simple packaging.

He pointed to the brightly colored fruit hard candies wrapped in transparent cellophane: "Comrade, could you please weigh out five jin of these fruit candies for me?" He then pointed to the milk candies next to them, wrapped in wax paper with simple red lettering: "Weigh out two jin of these milk candies."

Five pounds of fruit candy and two pounds of milk candy! The quantity made the saleswoman glance at Wei Chen a few more times. These days, candy was an absolute rarity, a valuable commodity reserved for visiting relatives and friends, weddings, and funerals. For ordinary families, buying even two ounces for their children to sweeten their mouths was considered a luxury. Wei Chen's generosity was undeniably extravagant.

"Young man, why are you buying so much? Is there a celebration at home?" the older woman asked curiously as she deftly weighed the items and packed them in brown paper.

Wei Chen smiled and mumbled, "No, I just moved to a new place, so I'm sharing it with the neighbors and letting them get acquainted with the place." He paid for the candy and gave them the coupons, which he had exchanged at the ghost market a while ago. They came in handy, and he carefully put the heavy bag of fruit candy into the canvas bag hanging on the handlebars, and put the two pounds of milk candy into his spatial backpack.

When he rode his bike back to the entrance of No. 95 Nanluoguxiang, sure enough, the alley was bustling with activity. People in various work clothes, their faces showing the weariness of a day's work, entered the alley in twos and threes from different directions. The sounds of bicycle bells, greetings between acquaintances, and children playing and chasing each other filled the air. The air was filled with the faint smells of engine oil, sweat, and the aroma of cooking fires rising from the kitchens.

In the front yard, Aunt Yang Ruihua was washing vegetables at the tap in front of her house, water splashing everywhere. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Wei Chen pushing his cart in, and especially when she saw the bulging satchel on his handlebars, her eyes lit up instantly, and her face broke into a smile even more enthusiastic than in the afternoon: "Oh! Comrade Wei Chen is back! Did you get everything done? As for Master Wu..." Before she could finish speaking, her gaze was fixed on Wei Chen's satchel as if drawn by a magnet.

"I've taken care of the three aunties, we'll start work first thing tomorrow morning." Wei Chen parked the car, smiling as he took out the heaviest bag of five pounds of fruit candy from his bag, unwrapped the kraft paper wrapper to reveal the colorful, crystal-clear cellophane candies inside. A rich, sweet aroma immediately filled the air.

"Oh dear! This is...candy?" The third aunt's voice rose a octave, she forgot to wash the vegetables in her hands, and the tap was still running.

"Yes," Wei Chen grabbed a handful of fruit candies and stuffed them into the hands of the third aunt without saying a word. "Third aunt, I'm building a house, so it's bound to be noisy. I'll be pushing down walls and digging ditches, which will be dirty and noisy and will inevitably disturb everyone's rest."

"This little bit of candy is just to sweeten the children's mouths. Please, Uncle San, and all the neighbors, be understanding and forgiving!" He spoke beautifully and sincerely, adopting a very humble attitude.

A heavy, colorful handful of candy landed in Yang Ruihua's hands, and she felt a surge of joy rush to her head. Her face broke into a wide smile: "Oh my! Comrade Wei Chen! You...you're too kind! You've gone to so much trouble! It's only right that neighbors help each other out!"

"Don't worry! Building a house is a big deal, what's there to be afraid of with a little noise? Everyone has to build a house sometimes, right? With me and Lao Yan here, you can rest assured about the front yard! I guarantee no one will dare to say anything!" She patted her chest to assure them, her voice loud and clear, as if declaring her "jurisdiction" and support for Wei Chen to the entire front yard.

As she spoke, she quickly and carefully gathered the candies in her hands, afraid of dropping a single one, and then hurriedly called into her house, "Jie Kuang! Jie Di! Come out quickly! See what good things our new neighbor, Comrade Wei Chen, has brought you!" Her tone was full of boastfulness and pride.

Hearing the noise, Yan Jiekuang and Yan Jiedi rushed out of the house. Their eyes widened at the sight of the huge handful of candy in their mother's hands; they'd never seen so much candy before. Yan Jiefang, six years old, and Yan Jiedi, five, rushed towards the candy. The aunt then remembered the tap was still running and hurriedly went to turn it off, muttering words of thanks.

Just then, a middle-aged man with a thin build and wearing thick glasses pushed a worn-out bicycle into the courtyard. It was none other than Uncle Yan Bugui, the third uncle.

He had clearly overheard the conversation and seen his wife and children excitedly gathered around the huge bunch of candy. A glint flashed in Yan Bugui's small eyes, hidden behind thick glasses, and he quickened his pace in pushing the cart.

"Old Yan! Come here quickly!" When the third aunt saw her husband return, she immediately felt reassured and raised her voice even louder. "Look! Comrade Wei Chen is so considerate! He was building a house and didn't want to disturb everyone, so he specially bought so much sugar to share with the neighbors! And here it is, he brought it to our house first!" She emphasized the word "first".

Yan Bugui parked the car, adjusted his glasses, and immediately put on an extremely enthusiastic, even slightly flattered, smile. He quickly walked up to Wei Chen, stretched out his hands, and tightly grasped Wei Chen's hands, shaking them vigorously: "Oh my! Comrade Wei Chen! Thank you so much! Thank you so much! Look at you... you've already spent so much money since I just arrived!"

Your aunt is right, building a house is a joyous occasion! What's a little noise? Everyone's happy about it! Don't worry, with me, Yan Bugui, here in the front yard, I'll absolutely guarantee your construction goes smoothly! If anyone dares to complain, I'll be the first to object!

He spoke with absolute certainty, but his gaze involuntarily drifted to the handful of candy in the aunt's arms. He was already rapidly calculating the value of the candy in his mind. He figured one candy would be enough for the children, and the rest could be saved for the New Year, so they wouldn't need to buy any more and could save a lot of money.