Courtyard House: Rebirth of a Shopkeeper in 1937

That noon, Qianjin suddenly arrived. He was on his way to deliver a letter to the countryside, and since the errand wasn't urgent, he arranged to meet Xingbao's father at the shop that evening for a detailed chat. During their conversation, he brought some bombshell news: the government had already announced the relocation of the capital to Chongqing on November 20th! Upon hearing this, everyone in the room was stunned. Although they had known this day would come, hearing the news of the capital relocation still filled them with a heavy sense of unease.

As darkness fell, Qianjin arrived at the shop right on time. As soon as he entered, he excitedly shared his recent activities with everyone—he had been training with the security team, not only practicing marching drills but also learning Bajiquan from Captain Li. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he added, "Brother Liangjie told me about Bajiquan; he even learned it from your family!" Without waiting for a reply, he pulled his older brother towards the backyard, insisting on a demonstration and a friendly exchange of moves.

Upon hearing that there was something exciting to watch, Xingbao, Guixiang, and their siblings immediately followed. Even Sister Shanshan, who was busy in the inner room, put down her work and joined the crowd at the backyard entrance with a smile. The open space in the backyard was just enough for the two of them to perform. Qianjin got into position and deliberately said in a deep voice, "Yanbang, I'm not holding back!" As he spoke, he threw a punch forward. His moves looked impressive, but they were all just for show, lacking any real power or technique.

As expected, Qianjin's skills were all show and no substance. While the eldest brother was slightly inferior to the second brother, who was more agile due to years of heavy labor, in boxing, he was more than capable of dealing with Qianjin. Moreover, the eldest brother regularly drank the medicinal spring water that Xingbao provided, making his physique far superior to ordinary people. The nourishment from the spring water not only compensated for the lack of systematic training and tonics, but also made him strong and incredibly resilient. All he lacked now was practical experience. Within a few rounds, Qianjin was completely disoriented by the eldest brother, taking several feints and nearly falling.

Everyone burst into laughter. Qianjin wiped the sweat from his brow, undeterred. Actually, with his family connections, he didn't need to endure the hardships of being exposed to the sun and rain in the security force. However, his younger brother was getting on in years, and with the ongoing conflict, there was no guarantee he wouldn't be drafted. If the district couldn't recruit enough men, they couldn't let their young brother suffer in the army. That's why he volunteered for security training, hoping to learn some real skills to protect his family in the future.

Besides, Qianjin was also the inspector sent by the district when the village distributed pensions last time. No wonder he used to deliver messages on foot, but this time he came on a donkey – he was benefiting from being on official business. He spoke of this with a smug look on his face. His eldest and second brothers exchanged a glance, both seeing amusement in each other's eyes. They immediately took the guise of instructing him on his moves and took turns "training" him. The eldest brother focused on correcting his technique, his blows light yet precise, each strike hitting the key points of his power, making him wince in pain. The second brother, on the other hand, emphasized practical sparring, his footwork agile, forcing him to retreat repeatedly. Before long, Qianjin was exhausted and collapsed on the ground, exclaiming, "I can't take it anymore!"

After dinner, remembering the news about the relocation of the capital that Brother Qianjin had brought, Dad had some plans in mind. He counted the days on his fingers and, seeing that the students from Sanmin Middle School wouldn't arrive for a while, decided to take advantage of the free time to go into the mountains and cut down the trees he had previously ordered from Uncle Youcai. The weather was getting colder every day, and the wind was biting cold; it might snow any day now. These trivial matters needed to be settled as soon as possible to put his mind at ease.

The heavy work of felling trees was naturally not the responsibility of Xingbao and his older brothers, who were only a teenager. Early the next morning, their father asked their eldest uncle to help, having him lead the donkey into the mountains with the charcoal. It wasn't until noon that the two of them slowly returned, leading the donkey and dragging two thick logs. In the afternoon, the eldest and second brothers joined in the fun, going into the mountains again to bring back two more trees. They also gathered up the pruned branches and twigs, and dug up some young charcoal (lignite). This type of coal didn't store well, had a low ignition point, and produced a lot of smoke, so ordinary families didn't like to use it. But in winter, mixing it with loess to make briquettes could cover the open flame and reduce smoke; one briquette could burn for most of the day. Students loved to put them in their braziers to bring to school to warm their feet; families in the village with elderly members would also make some as a reserve every winter.

Making coal briquettes wasn't strenuous work; it didn't require much effort, and Xingbao and Guixiang could both lend a hand. The siblings first crushed and ground the tender coal they had dug up, sifting out the pebbles. Then, they mixed it with yellow soil in the right proportions, added a suitable amount of water, and stirred it until it became a soft, pliable coal slurry. The eldest brother used four small rice bowls as molds, pressing and smoothing the coal slurry inside. He then gently inverted the bowls onto the ground sprinkled with wood ash, pried them open with a small stick, and neatly repaired any damaged parts. He even poked a hole in the center of each briquette with his finger. His movements were fluid and skillful, clearly indicating he had done this many times. The second brother was also quite adept, and Xingbao quickly learned after a couple of tries. Only Guixiang remembered being jokingly called a "coal miner," and initially hesitated. However, after trying to make two, she gradually became more skilled and proficient. Amidst laughter and chatter, the group finished making all the coal briquettes needed for the winter in just one afternoon, lining them up neatly in rows to dry against the courtyard wall. It's not advisable to make too many coal briquettes; even if carefully stored in a dry, well-ventilated place, they will crumble on their own before next winter, and their firepower and insulation will be far inferior to newly made ones. Enough to last until spring when the weather warms up is perfectly adequate.

Taking advantage of the recent sunny weather, the hardworking villagers couldn't stay idle. They grabbed rakes and hoes and rushed to their fields to thoroughly plow the land before the snow fell, preparing for next year's spring planting. As the rakes swept across the ground, hard clods of earth were turned upside down and exposed to the sun. This way, when the winter snow falls, the thick blanket of snow will freeze and kill any insect eggs and pathogens hidden in the soil, while allowing the snowmelt to slowly seep into the soil. When the soil thaws in the spring, it will be exceptionally loose and aerated, making planting easier and resulting in a better harvest. The eldest and second eldest brothers also joined in the fun, carrying small hoes and running to their grandfather's field to help turn the soil. However, the two brothers were clumsy and, before half the afternoon had passed, their grandfather jokingly and disapprovingly sent them back—saying they weren't cut out for farming. They were only focused on digging forward, and as soon as they loosened and leveled the soil, they would walk back and forth on the freshly turned ground, compacting the soft soil as if it hadn't been dug at all, only causing their grandfather to have to redo the work. The two brothers, having been turned away, had no choice but to take their machetes and follow the village's other young men to the mountains to collect some dry branches, filling the woodshed to the brim, making ample preparations for winter.