Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

After carrying the two bags of flour, Wei Chen didn't rush back to the steel mill. Although he was currently working in the security department, he still held the position of purchasing agent, so his movements outside were perfectly legitimate. No one would ask any questions—purchasing agents were used to running all over the city; getting things was a skill, not getting them would be strange.

He rode his bike slowly, turning two streets, and stopped at the entrance of a quiet alley. He propped up the bike, took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, took two puffs, and pondered where to go next.

He thought for a moment and decided to go to the department store first. Yesterday, he ran into Liu Yun on the street, who gave him a flashlight ticket, which he had kept in his pocket. Since he happened to be passing by today, he used it.

The house occasionally experiences power outages, and using a kerosene lamp at night is inconvenient; a flashlight is much more convenient. He already has one, a gift from Tiger. He's just about to buy another one for his family.

He stubbed out his cigarette, got on his bike, and turned onto the main road. The department store wasn't far; it took him less than ten minutes to get there. He locked his bike at the entrance and went inside.

Upon entering, one is greeted by a whiff of mixed smells of cloth, soap, and kerosene. In the 1960s, the presence of this smell indicated that this place was no ordinary place. The first floor was the general merchandise section, with enamel mugs, thermos flasks, towels, and soap displayed behind glass counters.

Wei Chen walked to the appliance counter, looked down, and saw several flashlights on it. They were all similar in style, with metal casings, painted green, and thick at the top and bottom, looking sturdy.

The sales clerk was a young woman in her early twenties, with two braids, knitting a sweater. Hearing footsteps, she looked up, her face displaying the typical, albeit somewhat overly warm, politeness of a sales clerk: "Excuse me, what would you like to buy?"

"A flashlight." Wei Chen pointed to the one on the counter. "How much?"

"Three yuan and sixty cents, with two batteries." The girl put down her sweater, took a flashlight from the counter, took out two batteries, put them in, tightened the back cover, and pressed the switch. A beam of light shone out, bright and clear. She handed the flashlight to Wei Chen, "Please try it."

Wei Chen took it, pressed the button twice, and the beam of light became stable without flickering. He nodded in satisfaction: "Okay, this one will do." He took out his money, counted out three yuan and sixty cents, and handed over a flashlight ticket.

The young girl took the ticket, examined it carefully, then looked at Wei Chen, a hint of surprise on her face: "Comrade, where did you get this ticket? Flashlight tickets are hard to come by these days."

"A friend gave it to me." Wei Chen didn't explain further, put the flashlight in his pocket, and casually asked, "Comrade, could you tell me about someone? Do you have a man named Liu Yun around here? He works in the clothing district."

The young girl thought for a moment: "Liu Yun? You mean Aunt Liu in the clothing section on the second floor? Yes, she's worked there for seven or eight years. Are you looking for her?"

"Yes, she's a distant relative of mine. I just happened to be shopping and thought I'd drop by to see her," Wei Chen said. "The second floor, right? I'll go up and find her."

The little girl nodded without asking any further questions. Wei Chen went up the stairs to the second floor. The second floor was the fabric section, with rows of glass counters displaying bolts of fabric—cotton, polyester, corduroy—mostly in blue, gray, and black, with a few brightly colored scraps of floral fabric standing out. A few customers stood sparsely in front of the counters, mostly looking but not buying—in those days, you needed ration coupons to buy fabric, and even with coupons, you weren't guaranteed to get any; everyone was just admiring the clothes.

Wei Chen walked around and saw Liu Yun behind a row of clothing counters. Today she was wearing a blue and white floral blouse, her hair was neatly combed, and she was standing behind the counter, introducing a floral cotton-padded jacket for children to a middle-aged woman.

Upon seeing Wei Chen, her eyes lit up. After the middle-aged woman with the floral cotton-padded jacket had walked away, she quickly approached and whispered, "Young man, what brings you here?"

Wei Chen smiled and lowered his voice, "Sister Liu, I came to buy a flashlight, and I just remembered you were here, so I came up to see you."

Upon hearing the address "Sister Liu," Liu Yun smiled. "Oh, young man, you have a sweet tongue. My son is probably older than you. Don't call me 'sister,' call me 'auntie'!" As she spoke, she sized up Wei Chen. "Did you buy the flashlight?"

"I bought it." Wei Chen took out a flashlight from his pocket and shone it. "The power sometimes goes out at home at night, so I bought one to keep on hand."

Liu Yun nodded: "Of course we need one. These days, power outages are common, so a flashlight is much more convenient." As she spoke, she remembered something else, "By the way, young man, since you're up here, see if you can find any clothes you like? I've been working here for seven or eight years, I know which shops have good stuff. If you have any fabric coupons, I can pick out a few good pieces for you."

Wei Chen thought for a moment and said, "Aunt Liu, I have a younger sister and an elderly mother. It's almost Chinese New Year, and I'd like to buy them a couple of new outfits in advance. Could you help me think of some suitable ones?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yun perked up: "That's easy! Come with me." She led Wei Chen to a row of ready-made clothes, pointed to a bright red floral cotton-padded jacket, and asked, "How about this one? How old is your sister?"

"Thirteen," Wei Chen said.

"Thirteen? Then this one is a bit too big, it's for adults." Liu Yun then pointed to a floral blouse, "How about this one? It'll fit the little girl perfectly, and the colors are bright too."

Wei Chen glanced at the cardigan; it was floral, blue with white flowers, and looked simple yet pretty. He nodded, "Okay, I'll take this one. Anything else?"

Liu Yun then picked out a navy blue corduroy jacket: "This one will fit your mom perfectly. It's elegant and the material is sturdy; it can last for years." She then picked up a gray-white cotton shirt: "This one is for your sister to wear; it can be worn in spring and autumn."

Wei Chen looked at the three pieces of clothing and estimated in his mind that, including the cloth coupons, they would cost about ten yuan. He had accumulated quite a few cloth coupons in his spatial storage, all of which were given to him by Brother Hu and his group. He had all kinds of coupons and hadn't used them much, but now they came in handy. He took out the money and cloth coupons from his pocket, counted them, and handed them to Liu Yun: "Aunt Liu, I'll take all three. Please wrap them up for me."

Liu Yun took the money and bills, counted them, and nodded: "That's enough. Wait here, I'll wrap them up for you." She turned around and took out a few old newspapers from under the counter, folded the three pieces of clothing one by one, wrapped them up, tied them with paper string, and handed them to Wei Chen. "Here you go. These clothes are all made of good material. Your mother and your sister will definitely look good in them."

Wei Chen took the package and was about to thank him when Liu Yun lowered his voice and asked, "Young man, did you bring anything good with you today?"

Wei Chen glanced at her and lowered his voice, "Aunt Liu, I didn't manage to get any meat, but I did get some flour, high-quality white flour."

Liu Yun's eyes lit up immediately: "Flour? Refined grains? Those are even harder to get than meat! How much do you have?"

"Two bags, fifty pounds each," Wei Chen said. "I can spare one bag for you."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yun quickly said, "Alright, young man, you must save that bag of flour for your aunt! You don't know, refined grains are rationed, only a few pounds a month, which is simply not enough. My daughter-in-law is about to give birth, and the doctor said she needs to eat some refined grains to nourish her body after delivery, but these days, white flour is harder to come by than gold. This bag of flour of yours has really saved your aunt from her predicament."

Wei Chen smiled and said, "Okay, Aunt Liu, you can keep that bag of flour. I'll bring it to you whenever it's convenient for you."

Liu Yun thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll take a short leave now and come downstairs with you. You can give me the noodles and also visit my house to get acquainted with the area. That way, if you have anything good in the future, you can just deliver it to me." As she spoke, she turned around and greeted the sales clerk next to her, "Xiao Zhang, I'm going out for a bit. Could you keep an eye on the counter for me? I'll be right back."

The saleswoman nodded: "Okay, Aunt Liu, you can go ahead."

Liu Yun took off her apron, clapped her hands, and led Wei Chen downstairs. Outside the department store, Wei Chen pushed his bicycle to a corner, lifted the old cloth covering the bamboo basket, revealing a sack of flour inside. The white sack was bulging, weighing at least fifty pounds. Liu Yun reached out and squeezed it, then untied the knot to examine it. The flour was pure white, as fine as snow. She nodded in satisfaction: "Good flour, really good flour. Young man, you're really good at this!"

As she spoke, she walked to an old bicycle next to her, unlocked it, and pushed it over: "Let's go, my house is in the family compound in the south of the city, not far from here. You can ride with me."

Wei Chen responded, got on his bike, and followed Liu Yun southwards. After turning two corners and passing through an old town area, they arrived at the entrance of a residential compound.

This courtyard was different from ordinary residential courtyards. There was a gatekeeper at the entrance, and barbed wire was strung around the wall. Inside were rows of three-story buildings, which looked much more impressive than the homes of ordinary people. Liu Yun stopped the car at the gate and called out to the gatekeeper, "Uncle Li, open the gate, my cousin has come to see me."

The gatekeeper, Uncle Li, poked his head out of the guardhouse, looked at Liu Yun, then at Wei Chen behind her, and nodded: "Comrade Liu, please go in." He then pressed a switch, and the iron gate slowly opened.

Wei Chen pushed the bike and followed Liu Yun into the courtyard. The courtyard was paved with cement, clean and smooth, and the buildings on both sides had red brick walls, with a few clothes hanging to dry in the corridors. Liu Yun parked the bike in front of a building, locked it, and led Wei Chen up to the second floor. Reaching a door, she took out her key and opened it: "Come in, young man."

Wei Chen carried the bag of flour into the house. The furnishings were better than he had expected. The living room wasn't large, but it was spotless. There was a square table, a few chairs, a sewing machine against the wall, and an enamel tea tray and several glasses on the table.

A calligraphy scroll in Mao Zedong's style hung on the wall, its signature illegible. Against the other wall stood a wardrobe, its red lacquered wood gleaming. A newspaper and a pair of reading glasses sat on the coffee table. Such furnishings were uncommon in ordinary homes. Wei Chen knew in his heart that Aunt Liu's husband was probably no ordinary person.