Courtyard House: Purchasing Agents' Comeback from the Great Famine

Wang Feng pushed his bicycle from the front yard to the middle yard, the pheasants and rabbits on the handlebars attracting particular attention.

Today is Sunday, and most people are in the yard, so many people saw it.

Both rabbits weighed over four pounds, and the pheasant weighed about three pounds. People in the yard couldn't help but drool when they saw them.

In this year, many residents in the courtyard can't even afford cornbread, but Wang Feng can still hunt pheasants and rabbits and eat meat every few days, which is very enviable.

"Wang Feng, you've caught some game again? Oh, you caught two pheasants and two rabbits!"

"Wang Feng, let my wife kill these pheasants and rabbits for you. Let me tell you, my wife is the best at killing pheasants and rabbits."

"Wang Feng, you're such a good hunter. When you go hunting in the mountains sometime, take my Erleng with you. My Erleng doesn't know how to hunt, so he can help you carry things. If you catch any game, just share some with my Erleng."

"Aunt Liu, no need, I'll have Aunt Wu help me kill it later, thank you."

"Aunt Li, your Erleng has a secure job at the factory. This mountain is so dangerous, you shouldn't let him take the risk."

Wang Feng responded with a smile, politely declining, as he didn't want to offend these older women for no reason.

Back inside, Wang Feng took the pheasants and rabbits off the handlebars and said to Qin Jingru:

"Jingru, have Aunt Wu kill one of these pheasants and one of these rabbits. Kill the remaining pheasant and rabbit in a couple of days."

Qin Jingru took the pheasant and rabbit, smiled and nodded: "Okay, I'll go find Aunt Wu now."

As she spoke, Qin Jingru put a pheasant and a rabbit in the chicken coop. Anyway, they would be killed in a couple of days, so it wouldn't be a big problem.

Carrying a pheasant and a rabbit, she walked towards the front yard. The older women in the yard greeted Qin Jingru with envious looks in their eyes.

Qin Jingru, a country girl, is truly blessed. She married Wang Feng and not only does she have no worries about food and drink, but Wang Feng is also such a skilled hunter that she can often eat meat in this era, which is already what most people aspire to in their entire lives.

Qin Jingru responded to each one with a smile, thoroughly enjoying the envious glances from others.

Only Jia Zhangshi, who was sitting at the Jia family's door sewing shoe soles, looked at Qin Jingru with resentment and malice.

"Eat, eat, all you ever do is eat! Why don't you two bastards eat yourselves to death?!"

"You have good food, but you don't even bring it to show your respect to your old mother. You deserve to have no descendants!"

Jia Zhangshi knew she couldn't gain any advantage over Wang Feng and Qin Jingru, so she didn't go up and make a fool of herself. The better Wang Feng and Qin Jingru were doing, the more uncomfortable she felt.

Why is it that the Jia family, a prestigious and wealthy family, lives a life worse than those two little bastards, Wang Feng and Qin Jingru? This is just too unfair.

When Qin Jingru returned to the house from Aunt Wu's house, she brewed a pot of tea for Wang Feng and said with a smile, "Brother Wang Feng, I just gave the pheasants and rabbits to Aunt Wu so she could help me kill them. The aunties and grandmas in the yard were so welcoming to me. That silly old lady even wanted me to let her kill the pheasants and rabbits, but I refused."

Wang Feng took a sip of tea and smiled indifferently: "It's normal. Right now, every household is short of food. They're just trying to curry favor with you to take advantage of you. Don't worry about them. We'll just do what we need to do."

"Anyway, this is game we hunted, so no one can say anything against us. If they're so capable, let their men go hunting too. We can just eat it openly and honestly."

"Uh-huh."

Qin Jingru smiled and nodded: "Brother Wang Feng, the aunties and grandmas in the yard were so envious of me just now. They said that I, a country girl, am living a life of luxury by marrying you. Some of the aunties even asked me to talk to you and ask you to bring their sons with you next time you go hunting, but I didn't agree."

Wang Feng smiled slightly and waved his hand, saying, "It's right that you don't agree, Jingru. Let me tell you, all the people in our courtyard are selfish and self-serving. If I take them hunting, it's fine if they catch something, but if they don't, or twist their ankles, or get gored by wild boars, they will definitely ask us for compensation. We should never do such a thankless task."

"Hehe, of course I know what kind of people these aunties and grandmas in the courtyard are. How could I possibly agree to something like this?" Qin Jingru laughed.

Just as Wang Feng and Qin Jingru were chatting and laughing, a crowd gathered around the pool in the central courtyard.

Aunt Wu was squatting by the pond in the middle courtyard, killing pheasants and rabbits, when a group of middle-aged women gathered around.

"Aunt Wu, Wang Feng and Jingru have been incredibly good to your family. I think they're not against eating chicken butts and innards; they're just deliberately taking care of you."

"Yes, offal and chicken butts are good stuff; who wouldn't eat them in this kind of year?"

"Aunt Wu, I really envy you. Wang Feng is a grateful young man. You helped him out a little when he was in trouble, and look, this is his reward!"

"That's right. If it weren't for Wang Feng, your family would have been unable to make ends meet long ago. I really regret not being able to help Wang Feng when he was in trouble."

Aunt Wu plucked the chicken feathers, looked at the older women beside her, and said with a smile, "You all shouldn't be envious. Wang Feng's life is so prosperous because of his own hard work. Now that the harvest is not good, it's better for your men to work hard in the factory to learn skills and get promoted. That's better than anything else."

"Aunt Wu, you make it sound so nice, but do you think you can just get promoted like that? I really regret it! I'm so regretful I could die."

Aunt Li was taken aback, then asked, "Aunt Hu, what are you regretting? Wang Feng is successful now, what does it have to do with you? I remember when Wang Feng's father had his accident, you wouldn't even lend him a stool."

Aunt Hu waved her hand and said urgently, "Oh dear, that's not what I was talking about. When Wang Defa was still alive, he mentioned to me that my eldest niece, Niu Niu, should date Wang Feng. But I saw that Wang Feng didn't have a proper job and just loitered around like a street urchin all day, so I didn't agree. You know, if I had agreed back then, wouldn't that have been so great?"

Several middle-aged women were stunned when they heard this, and even Aunt Wu was stunned for a long time.

"Oh dear, Aunt Hu, Wang Feng is such a good kid, and you still looked down on him. Now look what you've done! You regret it, don't you? He's a deputy section chief now, earning 87.5 yuan a month. And Wang Feng has become such a good hunter. If you had let your niece date Wang Feng back then, maybe they would have gotten together. Would your family still be short of meat then?"

"Yes, we've watched Wang Feng grow up. He's handsome, and his dad's a purchasing agent. How could he not be a good match for your niece?"

"That's right. I've met your eldest niece. She's not that good-looking, far inferior to Jingru. And you're still looking down on Wang Feng?"