Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Wei Chen nodded and didn't ask any more questions. He bent down, took two pheasants out of the basket, and handed them to her: "Okay, big sister, you've had a tough time, especially with your baby at home. Here, take these two pheasants."

The woman took the two pheasants, her hands trembling slightly, and thanked him repeatedly, "Thank you! Thank you so much! Young man, you've really saved our family from a crisis!" As she spoke, she took out a handkerchief pouch from her pocket, unfolded it layer by layer, and inside were neatly stacked bills. "This is five yuan, is that enough? I know that a chicken costs more than three yuan on the black market now, but I'll give you five yuan, for both..."

"That's enough." Wei Chen took the money, didn't count it, and put it directly into his pocket. "Big sister, take the chicken back and make some soup for your daughter-in-law."

The woman then pulled something out of her pocket and stuffed it into Wei Chen's hand: "Young man, take this. I don't have anything else on me, so please take this flashlight voucher. It's a small token of my appreciation. Flashlights are hard to buy these days, and even with a voucher, you might not be able to get one. But take this; whenever you need to buy one, just come to the department store and find me!"

Wei Chen looked down and saw it was a flashlight coupon. He was somewhat surprised and a little moved. The people at the department store really did have a different level of generosity; a flashlight coupon was indeed precious in these days.

He wanted to decline, but the woman had already stuffed the ticket into his hand and recited her address again: "Young man, my surname is Liu, my name is Liu Yun, and I live at No. 12 Liushu Hutong in the south of the city. If you have anything good, be sure to think of me. I won't let you down. If you need anything, like fabric, soap, or candy, come find me, and I'll get it for you."

Wei Chen nodded and put the ticket away. "Okay, Sister Liu, I'll remember that. I'll think of you first if I get anything good in the future."

Liu Yun thanked him repeatedly, carrying the two pheasants, and walked briskly towards the city. After taking a few steps, he turned back and called out to him, "Young man, next time you have something good, be sure to come back!"

Wei Chen waved to her, watched her walk away, then got on his bike and continued riding towards the steel mill.

When he rode to the factory gate, Old Li, the gatekeeper, poked his head out again. His eyes lit up when he saw the wild rabbit in Wei Chen's basket: "Wei Chen, how many good things have you brought back on these trips? Wild boar yesterday, rabbit today, you must be connected to the hunters in the mountains, right?"

Wei Chen stopped the car and smiled: "I was delivering money to a friend yesterday, and he happened to have a few wild rabbits, so I bought them."

"Your luck is truly unbelievable," Old Li, on guard duty, clicked his tongue twice, then lowered his voice, "The canteen is slaughtering a pig today, and the workers are all waiting. That wild boar you brought over will definitely come in very handy today."

Wei Chen responded and pushed his bike into the factory area. He didn't go straight back to the security department, but instead turned and rode towards the office building. When he arrived at the office building, he parked his bike, took a wild rabbit out of the bamboo basket, carried it in his hand, went upstairs, found the office with the sign "Deputy Chief of Security Department," and knocked on the door.

"Come in." A deep voice came from inside the room.

Wei Chen pushed open the door and entered. Jin Aiguo was sitting behind his desk, flipping through a document. Seeing Wei Chen come in, he looked up and said, "Wei Chen? What brings you here? Isn't it your shift today?"

"I'm not on duty, something came up." Wei Chen walked to the table and placed the rabbit he was holding on it. "Section Chief Jin, I brought you something."

Jin Aiguo looked down and saw a plump wild rabbit, its fur grayish-brown, weighing at least three or four pounds. He paused, then looked up at Wei Chen: "A wild rabbit? Where did you get this?"

Wei Chen smiled and said, "Yesterday I caught a wild boar, and this morning I took the money to my hunter friend. He happened to have a few wild rabbits, so I shamelessly bought them. There are three in total. One for you, one for Master Li Zhijun, and one for myself to treat my family to something nice."

Jin Aiguo looked at the wild rabbit but didn't speak immediately. He leaned back in his chair, remained silent for a while, and then said, "Wei Chen, I appreciate your kindness. But this is too precious; you should keep it for yourself. Your family is large, with elderly people and children, so you need it more than I do."

Wei Chen shook his head: "Section Chief Jin, please don't refuse. Now that I've brought it, there's no reason for me to take it back. Besides, you've always been very kind to me. I'm new to the security department and don't know anything, and you've given me a lot of pointers. A rabbit is nothing. Please accept it, find a chef to cook it for you tonight, treat yourself, and you need to take care of your health too!"

Upon hearing this, Jin Aiguo smiled slightly. He didn't refuse any longer, took the rabbit, and weighed it in his hand. "Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony. I'm free tonight, so I'll call Lao Zhou and Lao Wei, get a couple of dishes, and have a couple of drinks." He paused, then added, "You're a good man. I wasn't wrong to recruit you from the purchasing department."

Wei Chen smiled and said, "Section Chief Jin, you're busy, I'll head back now. Have someone take care of that rabbit, don't let it spoil."

"Alright, I got it. Here, take the money, consider it a purchase!"

"Okay, you're the boss, you decide!" Wei Chen smiled and took the money. He knew that Jin Aiguo and his men were never short of money, but they were always short of meat.

Wei Chen left Jin Aiguo's office, went downstairs, pushed his bicycle, and headed towards the armory. The armory was located at the very back of the factory area, right next to the wall, and it was unusually quiet with few people around. When he reached the armory entrance, he saw an old man sitting on a chair by the door, holding a rag and wiping an old-fashioned rifle.

The old man was Li Zhijun. Li Zhijun was in his fifties, with deep wrinkles on his face, gray hair, and wearing a faded old military uniform. His rough hands were calloused. Hearing footsteps, he looked up, saw Wei Chen, and lowered his gun: "Wei Chen? You're here. Weren't you out shopping these past few days?"

Wei Chen propped up his bicycle, took a wild rabbit out of the bamboo basket, and walked up to Li Zhijun: "Master Li, I just came back from shopping and brought you something."

Li Zhijun looked down at the wild rabbit, paused for a moment, then shook his head: "Wei Chen, this thing is too precious, I can't accept it. You keep it for yourself."

Wei Chen shoved the rabbit into his hand: "Master Li, please don't refuse. I brought a wild boar to the factory yesterday, and I got a few more rabbits today. I kept one for myself, and this one is for you. You have a grandson at home, right? He's just been weaned and needs a lot of nutrition. Take this home and give it to your grandson and daughter-in-law to improve their lives."

Li Zhijun remained silent for a long while after hearing this. He looked at the plump rabbit in his hand, his Adam's apple bobbing, but in the end he didn't refuse: "Wei Chen, you're so kind, kid." He took out a few yuan from his pocket and handed it to Wei Chen, "Take this money, I can't take your things for nothing."

Wei Chen wanted to say no, but seeing Li Zhijun's serious expression, he knew the old man would feel bad if he didn't accept the money. He reached out and took the money, readily putting it in his pocket: "Alright, Master Li, I'll take the money. You go back and make your grandson a good pot of meat soup."

Li Zhijun's face showed gratitude: "Xiao Chen, you're too kind! You still remember my family matters." He paused, then added, "If you ever need anything in the future, just come to me. As long as it's related to the armory, there's nothing I can't handle."

Wei Chen smiled and said, "Alright, Master Li, I'll head back now."

He pushed his bicycle away from the armory and headed towards the office next door. Once there, he took the remaining rabbit from the bamboo basket, put it in a cloth bag, and placed it under the desk. Then he sat down, took a sip of water from his enamel mug, and leaned back in his chair to rest for a while.

Old Zhou came in from outside, saw him, and greeted him: "Wei Chen, I heard you caught a few more wild rabbits today?"

"Yes, three." Wei Chen didn't hide anything from him. "One for Section Chief Jin, one for Master Li, and one for myself."

Old Zhou clicked his tongue twice: "Your methods are really wild. Others struggle to even get a chicken, but you manage to get a pig and several rabbits every day. Everyone in the factory says you're a reincarnated Bodhisattva, here to save everyone's stomachs."

Wei Chen smiled but didn't reply. He glanced at his watch; it was almost lunchtime.

As soon as it was time to leave work, Wei Chen picked up his cloth bag, pushed his bicycle, and left the factory gate. The setting sun painted the sky a vibrant orange-red. On his way home, he passed a vegetable market and saw a crowd gathered at the entrance. He went over to take a look and saw that they were queuing to buy cabbages. After thinking for a moment, he decided not to join the crowd and continued riding home.

When he returned to the courtyard house, his third uncle, Yan Fugui, was squatting at the door picking vegetables. Seeing him come back, he stood up and said, "Wei Chen, you're back? What good stuff did you get today?"

Wei Chen took the cloth bag out of the bicycle basket, opened a corner to reveal the wild rabbit inside: "I caught a rabbit."

The old man's eyes widened immediately: "A rabbit again! You got a wild boar for the factory yesterday, some fish the day before, and now a rabbit! Wei Chen, you're living the life of a god!"

He lowered his voice, with a hint of emotion, "You have no idea, everyone in the courtyard envies your family now. Last night, your family stewed chicken, and the aroma filled the whole courtyard. My kids were so hungry, they kept asking me, 'Dad, when can we eat meat too?' I couldn't even answer them."