Courtyard House: Rebirth of a Shopkeeper in 1937

The gentleman lowered his head and neatly wrote "Jieling Jinxianpu Songji Huopu" at the end of his notebook with his fountain pen. His handwriting was neat and strong, the strokes fluid. After finishing, he closed the notebook and put it in his pocket. His gaze swept over the counter, curiously examining the feather pen his father held, his eyes filled with wonder. He exchanged a few more pleasantries with his father, carefully inquiring about precautions for the journey and whether there were any bandits. He was immediately delighted to find that there were no bandits between here and the medicine shop, and that there were even villagers repairing the road along the way. When paying the bill, the gentleman gave an extra silver dollar, smiling and saying, "Shopkeeper, your food is so delicious, clean and tasty! I'll definitely come again if I have the chance!"

After saying this, the teacher led the students out the door and boarded the carriage in an orderly fashion. With a few shouts of "Giddy up!", the carriage slowly drove away, gradually disappearing into the distance until it vanished at the end of the road.

Seeing that the carriage had completely disappeared, Xingbao quickly approached his father, stood on tiptoe, gripped the edge of the counter with his little hands, and whispered in his father's ear, "Dad, I just noticed that some of the students were carrying guns, just like the guns of the Guangxi Army officers we saw before! They were all short and tucked into their waistbands, it was really scary."

Father continued gazing in the direction the carriage had gone, his eyes heavy and deep, like an inky night sky. After a long while, he spoke slowly, his voice extremely low: "They didn't just have a few guns. You didn't look closely; apart from those teachers, every student was armed, though some were better concealed." He paused, his fingertips lightly tapping the counter. "And they've probably fired some shots these past few days—didn't you see how many of them were deathly pale, their eyes filled with lingering fear, as if they'd been traumatized? The others were all tense, none of them truly relaxed. This world!" With that, Father sighed softly, his tone filled with helplessness and lament for the chaotic world, and a barely perceptible worry for the teachers and students who had yet to arrive.

Upon hearing this, Xingbao's face instantly scrunched up, his brows furrowed tightly, and he asked with a worried expression, "Dad, I just heard them say that their school has a junior high and a senior high section, and they even admit female students. If all the students in this school are carrying guns like they are today, will my older brother still be able to go to school? Will he be in danger? Also, the tuition fees must be expensive. My senior brother's school costs thirty silver dollars per term, and Sanmin Middle School must be even more expensive. Can our family afford it?" A series of questions came out of his mouth, every word filled with worry.

Father gently patted Xingbao's shoulder, the touch light yet soothing, and continued in a low voice, "Studying can't be rushed. After your older brother graduates from Shuangfeng Academy, these students from Nanjing should have settled down or even graduated by then. The school will eventually need to recruit some locals. We'll figure it out then." He paused, his eyes becoming serious. "Just tell your older brother about this secretly, so he doesn't go around asking the other students. If he finds out, he'll overthink things and get distracted, which will affect his studies."

Xingbao nodded emphatically, keeping his father's words in mind: "Yes! I understand, Dad."

As evening approached, the sun gradually sank behind the mountains, painting the sky with a faint orange hue. The eldest brother, who had slept for most of the day, finally woke up. He had slept from morning till sunset, recovering from the fatigue of the past few days, though his stomach was growling loudly. As soon as he woke, he followed the aroma of food into the main room. His mother, prepared in advance, had specially left warm food for him. Seeing him awake, she quickly brought it out and also heated up a bowl of winter melon soup for him.

The eldest brother took the bowl and chopsticks, and without saying a word, began to wolf down his food, his mouth stuffed full, his chopsticks moving rapidly—clearly, he was starving. Gui Xiang, joining in the commotion, chattered on about the day's events at the canteen. When she mentioned the teachers and students from Sanmin Middle School passing by, the eldest brother's chopsticks suddenly stopped, and he forgot to swallow his food. A look of deep regret instantly crossed his face. He put down his bowl, frowning and scolding, "Yan Guo, Xing Bao, why didn't you wake me up for something this important? I wanted to ask those teachers and students about the school and the admissions!"

The second brother had just put down his work and walked over when he heard his eldest brother's scolding. He was about to speak up when he saw his eldest brother roll up his sleeves, looking like he was about to teach them a lesson. Seeing this, Xingbao quickly stepped forward and said, "Big brother, don't be angry! They're just the school's advance party. In a while, more than two hundred teachers and students will pass through here. We'll have plenty of opportunities to ask them!" Afraid that his eldest brother wouldn't believe him, he tugged at his father's sleeve, signaling him to take out the small flag he had just put away.

Seeing this, Father smiled and took out the small blue triangular flag from his pocket, handing it to his eldest brother: "Look, this is the flag they left behind. They told us to put it at the entrance so that the teachers and students behind will come in to rest. You can ask them about the school later." The eldest brother took the flag, his fingertips tracing the four characters "Sanmin Middle School" embroidered on it. His eyes lit up, and the regret on his face gradually faded. He didn't pursue the responsibility of his second brother and Xingbao any further. He picked up his rice bowl again and urged Guixiang: "Quick, continue talking about what happened earlier. What else did they say about the school?" His eyes were full of longing for this school from the capital—after all, it was a school from Nanjing, and the teachers' and students' vision and knowledge were incomparable to those of local academies.

The eldest brother wolfed down his meal. Perhaps because he had been starving earlier, he ate exceptionally well. He put down his chopsticks, patted his round belly, and told his parents, "I'm going out for a walk to digest," adding, "and I'll also check on how the cabbages at the experimental base are growing." Xingbao's eyes lit up instantly at the mention of going out. He immediately grabbed Guixiang's hand and followed. Guixiang then woke up Xueqiu, who was curled up and dozing at her feet. The three of them and the dog followed their eldest brother out the door in a lively and cheerful manner.

Along the way, Gui Xiang skipped and hopped ahead with Xue Qiu, who occasionally stopped to let out a few cheerful "woof woof" sounds. Xing Bao slowed down and walked alongside his older brother. Remembering his father's earlier instructions, he lowered his voice and carefully recounted the situation at Sanmin Middle School to his brother: from the teachers' and students' neatly laundered uniforms and gleaming school badges, to the detail of him accidentally discovering guns concealed on their waistbands. He even specifically mentioned his father's suspicion—these people had probably fired a gun recently, their expressions showing lingering fear and tension. Finally, Xing Bao also explained his father's plan in detail: his brother should focus on his studies at Shuangfeng Academy for now, and make further plans when the school recruited local students. He shouldn't inquire about Sanmin Middle School students for the time being, so as not to be distracted and affect his studies.