Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Qin Huairu sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and upon hearing these words, tears welled up in her eyes again. She bit her lip tightly, trying not to cry out loud. White flour steamed buns? They couldn't even afford cornmeal porridge anymore, so where would white flour steamed buns come from? She herself had almost forgotten what white flour tasted like.

Jia Zhangshi lay on the other end of the kang (a heated brick bed), her body swollen, her face sallow and ashen. She had lost all her former energy and spirit. The old lady who used to stand with her hands on her hips, spitting as she spoke, and whose fighting spirit was off the charts, was now like a lump of mud with its bones removed.

Her triangular eyes were half-open, half-closed, her cloudy gaze unfocused. Her lips moved, muttering something unintelligible. All her usual sharp words and tantrums had vanished with her exhaustion. All that remained were her opening and closing mouth, and indistinct, repetitive murmurs: "Hungry...hungry..."

Qin Huairu listened to her mother-in-law's murmurs, feeling a mix of anger, resentment, and helplessness. She hated her mother-in-law for her shortsightedness and selfishness back then. More than once, she had thought that if her mother-in-law had listened to her husband and moved the whole family's household registration to the city, things wouldn't be like this now. But she knew even more clearly that hatred was useless, and regret was useless. The most urgent thing was to find food so that her two children could survive.

Jia Dongxu, the "pillar" of the family, was almost crushed by the weight of the situation. He did heavy physical labor at the steel rolling mill, but could only drink a few bowls of thin gruel every day. He was so hungry that his legs were weak and his vision was blurring.

He dared not give up; he was the family's sole breadwinner. Every day at work, he felt like he was walking a tightrope, mechanically moving his feet and performing the simplest tasks, his mind a blank, with only the burning hunger searing his stomach and nerves like a raging fire. When he returned home from get off work and saw the empty stove and his family lying in bed, the immense sense of powerlessness and guilt almost consumed him.

That evening, Jia Dongxu dragged his weary and hungry body home, only to be greeted by an empty stove and four pairs of despairing eyes. He finally broke down. He slammed his fist on the dilapidated table with a dull thud, startling everyone in the room.

"Fuck you! I can't live like this anymore!" he growled hoarsely, his eyes bloodshot, like a wild beast trapped in a desperate situation.

Qin Huairu trembled with fright, tears welling up again, but she dared not utter a sound. Jia Zhangshi was slightly jolted awake by the noise, her cloudy eyes looking at her son, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something, but Jia Dongxu's next words choked her back.

"It's all your fault!!" Jia Dongxu turned around abruptly, pointing at Jia Zhangshi on the kang (a heated brick bed). His long-suppressed anger and resentment overwhelmed his reason like a flood bursting its banks. "Back then! If you had listened to me and moved Huai Ru and the children's household registration to the city, things wouldn't be like this now!!"

"I'm the only one in my family with a ration quota, supporting five people on my own! Look at Wei Chen from the east wing! He also works alone, but he's smart; he got his mother and sister's household registrations transferred to the city a long time ago! Now his whole family has ration quotas; even at their worst, they're ten or a hundred times better off than us!"

He grew angrier and angrier, his voice trembling, "You laughed at them back then! You laughed at them for making such a mess! You said the countryside had land, they wouldn't starve! And now?! Where's the land?! The cooperative took it all away! Where's your land?! You'd better produce some grain!!"

Jia Dongxu's roar echoed in the small room, like a knife piercing Jia Zhangshi's heart. Jia Zhangshi trembled all over, her lips shaking even more violently. Looking at her son's furious and distorted face, the long-buried past and recent despair intertwined, leaving her speechless for a moment.

After a long pause, she finally spoke, her voice trembling with tears, in a tone of grievance and resentment: "I...I...wasn't it all for the good of our family! I thought that if we had land, we could grow more grain and save money on buying it! Who knew...who knew that damned cooperative would be established just like that, taking away our land just like that! I just wanted our family to have a better life! Who knew it would turn out like this..."

Her explanation was weak and feeble, more like a form of self-consolation. She knew in her heart that besides thinking about the land, she was also somewhat reluctant to give up her rural "roots," fearing that settling down in the city would be too difficult and troublesome, and she also coveted the fact that Jia Dongxu's salary plus the harvest from the land would make their lives more comfortable.

There was another unspeakable thought in her mind—she was holding onto the compensation money the factory had given her when Old Jia died in a work-related accident, saving it to earn interest. In addition, Jia Dongxu gave her three yuan a month without fail as a retirement fund, so she wasn't struggling financially.

So she didn't care about the household registration issue, even thinking she could gain an advantage this way! She had land in the countryside, so she wouldn't go hungry. But who knew that times would change faster than turning the pages of a book, and all her plans fell through.

After she finished speaking, she realized she was at a loss for words. Her grievances and sophistry seemed so ridiculous and powerless in the face of cruel reality. She slumped back onto the kang (a heated brick bed), letting out desperate, intermittent sobs.

Jia Dongxu, exhausted from yelling, slumped to the ground, clutching his head and letting out a low, beast-like howl. He recalled the old days, when although he often worried about money, at least he had enough food to eat.

Although Jia Zhangshi was mean-spirited, she had money and could secretly cook herself an egg every now and then to nourish her body. Bang Geng was also well-fed and plump, always smiling, and was a lovable little chubby boy.

But now, everything has changed. His once-proud "fat son" is now so thin he's unrecognizable, and he doesn't even have the strength to cry. His heart aches as if it's being cut by a knife.

The room was deathly silent, save for Jia Zhangshi's desperate sobs and Jia Dongxu's heavy breathing. Qin Huairu stood numbly in the darkness, tears streaming silently down her face.

After a long while, Jia Dongxu seemed to remember something and suddenly raised his head. He couldn't just give up. He still had one last hope—his master, Yi Zhonghai.

Yi Zhonghai was the backbone of the institute, a level seven worker with high quotas and extensive connections. He had often helped people in the institute in the past. He composed himself, wiped his face, stood up, and said to Qin Huairu, "I'll go find my master to think of a solution." After saying that, he dragged his heavy steps out of the house.

The light in Yi Zhonghai's house was still on, but it was dim and almost devoid of warmth. Jia Dongxu knocked and went in, finding Yi Zhonghai sitting at the table, staring blankly at an enamel mug. Without beating around the bush, he entered and said in a tearful voice, "Master, my family... my family really can't go on! We've run out of food! Banggeng and Xiaodang are too hungry to get out of bed! Huairu cries every day! My mother too... sigh! Master, please think of something! I really have no other choice!"

His tearful plea was heartfelt, filled with the hope that his master would lend him a hand as he had in the past. Looking at his apprentice's disheveled and desperate state, Yi Zhonghai felt a tightness in his chest. His feelings towards the Jia family were complex.

On one hand, he genuinely felt sorry for his apprentice, Jia Dongxu, and also pitied the two children. But on the other hand, he was also aware of the Jia family's true situation. The Jia family claimed to be poor, but what was their reality?

Jia Zhangshi held Old Jia's pension in her hand. It was a considerable sum of money, and she had saved it over the years. Combined with Jia Dongxu's monthly pension of three yuan, she was living a comfortable life.

Although Qin Huairu always complained about being poor, when rations were plentiful, the Jia family's food was considered above average in the courtyard. The fact that Bang Geng was raised to be plump and healthy is proof of that.

The problem with the Jia family is that they are used to taking advantage of others and being cunning and sly. They never calculate carefully and make money steadily like Yan Bugui.

In the past, when there were opportunities to take advantage of others, life was quite comfortable; now that the environment has changed, all avenues for taking advantage of others have been blocked, and the Jia family's meager resources and their incapable nature of scheming have been immediately exposed.

He knew he couldn't give the Jia family too much. If he gave them too much, they would take it for granted and wouldn't try to find their own solutions in the future; instead, they would develop an even bigger appetite for it.

But he couldn't completely ignore it. He needed Jia Dongxu, this "filial" apprentice, and a "one of his own" with stable support in the courtyard to consolidate his prestige and status as an elder.

Therefore, he wanted to keep the Jia family "hanging" around, so that they would always be grateful to him and dependent on him. It's like fishing; you need to give them bait, but not enough, so that the fish keep biting the hook but never get enough to eat.

Having figured this out, Yi Zhonghai sighed, remained silent for a long while, then turned and took out a cloth bag from a hidden corner under the bed. Inside the bag was his meager rations—five jin of cornmeal. He gritted his teeth and handed the bag to Jia Dongxu: "Take this back first, it'll be enough for an emergency."

Jia Dongxu took the light cloth bag, so grateful he almost knelt down: "Master! Thank you! Thank you so much! This...this is truly a lifesaver!"

Yi Zhonghai waved his hand, but his face showed no relief, only a more serious expression: "Take it back first and make some thin porridge for the children. But this is only an emergency and won't solve the fundamental problem. Your family is large, and the future... I need to think about it carefully. Go back first and let me think about it."

Jia Dongxu left, profusely thanking him. Yi Zhonghai sat under the lamp, watching the flickering flame, his brows furrowed into a deep frown. Five jin of cornmeal was a drop in the ocean for the Jia family, and for him, it was a desperate measure to mend his own wounds.

He couldn't keep providing aid like this, nor did he have that much ability. But he couldn't just stand by and watch his apprentice's family starve to death, could he? More importantly, he realized that his meager savings wouldn't be enough to sustain the entire courtyard through the winter. He had to find a new source of food.

Yi Zhonghai sat in the house for a long time, smoking one cigarette after another. Finally, he stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, stood up abruptly, as if he had made a momentous decision. He pushed open the door, braved the cold wind, and walked towards Liu Haizhong's house.

"Old Liu, are you asleep?" Yi Zhonghai knocked on the door in a low voice.

A moment later, Liu Haizhong, still wearing a coat and looking sleepy, opened the door. Seeing Yi Zhonghai, he looked surprised: "Old Yi? What's up so late?"

"Something came up. Let's talk inside." Yi Zhonghai slipped inside and lowered his voice.