Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

"Chenzi...you...are you serious? Really...for my family?" She managed to squeeze out these words, her voice hoarse.

"It's absolutely true, sister." Wei Chen's voice was steady, carrying a reassuring strength. "I've checked all the procedures. As long as the person meets the requirements, they just need to take the quota and report for duty. You and your brother-in-law discuss who is suitable to go. Decide as soon as possible so I can submit the name."

"I...I..." Wei Zhenzhen was so excited she couldn't speak coherently. She suddenly stood up, spun around in place, then squatted down and picked up her bewildered son, Hu Zi, holding him tightly in her arms, as if only then could she confirm she wasn't dreaming. Her face was flushed with excitement, tears streaming down her face, yet she forced a smile, her expression momentarily comical. But to Wei Chen, it only brought heartache and relief.

"Quick! Fengzi, help me hold Huzi!" Wei Zhenzhen suddenly remembered something, shoved the child into Wei Feng's hands, and wiped her face haphazardly with her sleeve. "I'm going to find your brother-in-law! I'm going to find your brother-in-law and my father-in-law! I have to tell them right away! Tell them to come back!" She spoke very quickly, her voice barely audible.

After saying that, before Wei Chen and Wei Feng could react, she rushed out of the house like a gust of wind, forgetting even to take off her apron. She stumbled and trudged out of the yard, heading towards the commune's grain store. She wanted to immediately tell her husband and her father-in-law this incredible good news!

Wei Feng, holding his little nephew Hu Zi, exchanged a glance with Wei Chen and both laughed. Hu Zi, unaware of what was happening, didn't cry or fuss while being held by his uncles, but simply looked curiously at these two unfamiliar uncles.

"Chenzi, look how happy Sister Zhenzhen is," Wei Feng said with a simple smile.

"How could I not be happy?" Wei Chen looked at the empty courtyard gate and said softly, "For them, this may be their only hope for the rest of their lives."

The Xingshou Commune Grain Store was considered one of the more "impressive" buildings in the surrounding villages, consisting of several brick and tile houses and a sizable courtyard used for drying and storing grain. Although grain was scarce these days and the store was rather deserted, it was still a government-owned enterprise, and working there, even as a temporary worker or warehouse keeper, was considered a respectable job by the villagers.

Wei Qiang was currently in the backyard of the grain store, laboriously moving empty sacks and miscellaneous items. He was a man in his mid-twenties, stocky and honest-looking, wearing a patched old cotton-padded jacket, sweat beading on his forehead. This job was something his father, Wei Changshuan, had painstakingly found for him; it was temporary help, paid daily, not much, but at least it was some income, better than staying idle at home. And even this was only possible because of his father's long-standing reputation as a warehouse manager at the grain store, a position he'd held for over a decade.

"Qiangzi! Qiangzi!" A woman's voice, trembling with tears and filled with urgency, came from the front.

Wei Qiang was taken aback. Why did that voice sound so much like his wife's? He put down the sack in his hand, wiped his sweat, and walked to the front gate. Sure enough, he saw Wei Zhenzhen running towards him, panting, her face flushed, and her eyes filled with tears. Her hair was a little disheveled.

"Zhenzhen? What brings you here? What happened?" Wei Qiang's heart skipped a beat, thinking something terrible had happened at home, and he quickly went to greet her.

"Father...where is Father?" Wei Zhenzhen, breathless from running, grabbed Wei Qiang's arm and asked anxiously.

"They're checking the accounts over at the warehouse. What happened? Is it Tiger...?" Wei Qiang panicked even more.

"It's not Tiger! It's good news! It's incredibly good news!" Wei Zhenzhen gasped for breath, her face a mixture of tears and laughter, her expression extremely complicated. "Go and call Dad! Hurry! Call Dad out, let's go home and talk! Hurry!" She pushed Wei Qiang forcefully.

Wei Qiang was confused by her, but seeing his wife's almost insane excitement, he knew it couldn't be anything bad. He didn't dare to delay and quickly said, "Wait here, don't worry, I'll go call Dad right away!" After saying that, he turned around and ran towards the warehouse.

Inside the grain store warehouse, Wei Changshuan, wearing reading glasses, was working on his abacus and ledgers by the light streaming in from the window. He was an old man in his fifties, slightly hunched, with deep wrinkles on his face, but his eyes were still relatively clear. Hearing his son rush in in a panic without even knocking, he frowned: "Qiangzi, what's with all the shouting and yelling? What kind of behavior is this!"

"Dad! Dad! Hurry, hurry home! Zhenzhen is here, she says there's... there's some really great news! She's so anxious!" Wei Qiang didn't bother to explain and grabbed Wei Changshuan to leave.

"Good news? What good news?" Wei Changshuan stumbled, nearly dropping his abacus, as his son pulled him. "You silly boy, explain yourself! I still have accounts to settle!"

"Zhenzhen is outside, crying and laughing in a panic. I didn't even ask what happened, I just told you to hurry home!" Wei Qiang was also anxious.

Seeing that his son didn't seem to be faking it, and hearing that his daughter-in-law was waiting outside, both crying and laughing, Wei Changshuan began to have doubts. Could it be that his in-laws had some great joyous occasion? But they hadn't sent any advance notice.

He took off his reading glasses, closed the ledger, and said, "Alright, alright, stop pulling me. I'll go with you to take a look. Old Wang, I have some urgent business at home, so I'll go back first. We'll reconcile the accounts this afternoon!" He said goodbye to an old colleague next to him, and then his son pulled him out of the warehouse.

Upon arriving at the front yard and seeing his daughter-in-law Wei Zhenzhen's appearance, Wei Changshuan was startled: "Zhenzhen, what happened? What's wrong at home?"

"Dad! Let's talk at home! Let's go home quickly!" When Wei Zhenzhen saw her father-in-law, she became even more agitated and immediately grabbed Wei Changshuan's arm to walk out.

Wei Changshuan and his son Wei Qiang were completely bewildered, but judging from Wei Zhenzhen's demeanor, they knew that something extremely important must have happened, otherwise their usually composed daughter-in-law wouldn't have lost her composure like this. Wei Changshuan didn't care about anything else, and told the others who were peeking out of the grain store that "there's an emergency at home," before hurrying home with his son and daughter-in-law.

Along the way, Wei Zhenzhen wanted to speak several times, but felt that it was not clear on the road. She just kept saying "Chenzi is here", "Great news", "Job opening", which made the Wei father and son feel like they were being scratched by a cat, both curious and uneasy.

"Chenzi? Your cousin who works as a laborer in the capital?" Wei Changshuan asked.

"Yes! It's him! And my brother Fengzi is here too!" Wei Zhenzhen nodded vigorously.

"Job openings? What job openings?" Wei Qiang pressed.

"Oh dear, let's talk about it when we get home! You'll find out when we get home!" Wei Zhenzhen stamped her foot in frustration.

The father and son exchanged a glance, a vague, unbelievable guess forming in their minds, and their steps quickened involuntarily.

The three of them practically ran back to their courtyard. As soon as they entered, they saw Wei Feng holding and playing with Hu Zi in the main room, while Wei Chen sat quietly on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) drinking water.

"Chenzi! Fengzi!" Wei Qiang greeted them quickly, then looked at his father.

Wei Changshuan caught his breath and his gaze fell on Wei Chen. He had a deep impression of this cousin of his son. He had visited his home a month ago. He was generous and spoke politely. Now he worked in a large factory in Beijing and was very successful.

"Uncle Wei, Brother Qiangzi." Wei Chen stood up and greeted them politely.

"Chenzi's here, sit down, sit down quickly." Wei Changshuan waved his hand, sat down on the other side of the kang (heated brick bed), glanced at his still excited daughter-in-law, and then looked at Wei Chen, asking directly, "Chenzi, Zhenzhen called us back in such a hurry, saying there was something urgent? What happened?"

Wei Chen knew Wei Changshuan was a straightforward person, so he didn't beat around the bush and simply repeated what he had said to Wei Zhenzhen earlier. He emphasized that these were factory-rewarded permanent employee positions; one had been given to his cousin Wei Feng, the other had been declined by his third uncle's family, and with the consent of his elders, he had decided to give it to his cousin.

As Wei Chen narrated, Wei Changshuan's expression shifted from doubt to surprise, then to shock, finally settling on an unbelievable, ecstatic joy! His hand holding the pipe trembled slightly, not even noticing the tobacco spilling out. Wei Qiang's mouth gaped open, his eyes wide, staring intently at Wei Chen, as if trying to confirm whether he was joking.

Beijing! Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill! Permanent employee! Government-employed! Grain supply! Salary!

These words, like thunderclaps, exploded in the ears of the Wei father and son! Wei Changshuan had worked in the commune's grain store for half his life, and he knew all too well what a formal position in a large state-owned factory meant! It was the most secure job of all, a golden opportunity that countless people would fight tooth and nail for! It was many times better than his job as a warehouse manager in the commune's grain store!

He worried day and night about his son's lack of stable employment, and even planned to retire early in two years so that his son could take over his job. Unexpectedly, a golden opportunity fell from the sky and landed right on their head! It was a gift from his daughter-in-law's brothers!

"Chen...Chenzi," Wei Changshuan's voice trembled with excitement. He took several deep breaths to calm himself down. "You...you're telling the truth? This...this spot, can it really be for our family? Our Zhenzhen..."

"Absolutely true, Uncle Wei." Wei Chen's tone was certain. "I've already checked the paperwork. As long as the person meets the requirements—age, health, and a clean family background—they just need to take the employment registration form here and the village certificate to report for duty. Then I thought of my eldest sister!"

Wei Chen also played a little trick here. Although he was fine with giving the job to his eldest sister and brother-in-law, he made sure to say it was for his eldest sister. This way, he could make it clear to his brother-in-law's family that he was offering the job opportunity for his eldest sister's sake! Even if his brother-in-law ended up taking the job, his eldest sister's family would still be able to distinguish between the two!

Wei Qiang didn't pay attention to any of this at that moment! This was such a stroke of good luck, he desperately wanted a job!

"Chenzi, I'll go. Your older sister... Hu Zi is still young..." Wei Qiang blurted out almost without thinking, his face flushed red, his chest heaving. "I'm young and strong! I'll work hard at the factory!" He desperately wanted a stable job! He was fed up with the precarious existence of odd jobs, having to be subservient to others, and earning meager wages! Now that the opportunity was right in front of him, he couldn't wait to fly to Beijing!

Wei Changshuan, being older and more experienced, quickly calmed down after his initial excitement. He glared at Ji Zi and said, "What's the rush! Let Chen Zi finish speaking!" But his trembling hands and shining eyes betrayed his inner turmoil.