Courtyard House: Rebirth of a Shopkeeper in 1937

The mother stood at the door for a moment, but in the end she didn't say anything more. She just turned around and told Xingbao and the other children, "You eat first. I'll heat up the food again so your father can have some when he gets back." But no one in the family touched their chopsticks. Xingbao and his brothers sat on the stone steps at the door, while Guixiang sat against the counter, all looking in the direction of their maternal grandfather's house.

A short while later, they saw their father and grandfather walk out of their grandfather's house together and enter the Long family home—the home of the owner of the dry land that Xingbao had been thinking about. About an hour later, their father came out of the Long family home and hurriedly went to the homes of their great-uncle and Chief Wang. Not long after, their father returned with their great-uncle and Chief Wang, and also asked their eldest brother Yanbang to bring the writing materials. The group then went into the Long family home again.

It wasn't until late at night that the Long family's door opened again. Father and eldest brother saw Grandfather, Great-Uncle, and Chief Wang home. Their shadows stretched long in the moonlight, and occasional hushed conversations could be heard, but were muffled by the night wind. Xingbao and his second brother, seeing their father and eldest brother finally return, quickly rose to greet them. They noticed that although their father's face showed weariness, a barely perceptible smile lingered at the corners of his lips.

Mother had already prepared the meal and called everyone to eat. Xingbao and Guixiang were already sleepy, so they ate a few bites and went to bed. Mother, along with her two older brothers, listened to Father recount the events surrounding the land purchase while they ate. After hearing Father's story, Mother couldn't help but sigh, "Our Xingbao has such good foresight! Although we bought it at a high price now, once the road is built, that land won't be worth two silver dollars. If someone else takes it, our shop won't be able to stay in business!"

"Dad, does that mean we're going to have to build a new house again?" The second brother perked up instantly at the mention of the kitchen, his eyes gleaming with excitement. He put down his chopsticks and pressed on, "If we're building a new kitchen, my eldest brother and I can definitely lend a hand!"

"The road construction has ruined that land. You brothers should take some time to tidy it up first. Go and loosen it up, then sow some vegetable seeds. Plant some vegetables to tide you over, so the land doesn't go to waste." As he spoke, he suddenly lowered his voice, leaned forward slightly, and leaned closer to the group, his tone becoming more serious: "As for building a house, we absolutely cannot mention it now. I told the Long family that I bought this land so that we could grow some vegetables and radishes nearby. In the future, when we entertain guests, we can pick fresh vegetables whenever we want, which seems more practical. If we start building a house right after buying it, and that's revealed, the Long family might hold a grudge and start gossiping in the village, causing trouble instead. We should postpone the construction as long as possible. It's not too late to plan it slowly after everyone has forgotten about it."

The eldest brother, Yanbang, immediately understood his father's intention and nodded steadily: "Father has thought things through. We know what to do and won't give ourselves away." The second brother also suppressed his excitement and replied seriously: "Don't worry, Father, we'll just focus on preparing the land and planting vegetables, and we won't mention building a house at all."

Seeing that the two brothers nodded in agreement, the father said nothing more. He picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of cured meat, and then instructed, "Be careful when preparing the land. Don't leave any pebbles in the soil, or they will affect the growth of the seedlings." The mother smiled and added a spoonful of soup to the father's bowl, saying, "Eat quickly, the vegetables are getting cold. The children will have to get up early to work tomorrow."

July 9th, the second day of the sixth lunar month. He went to school as usual in the morning and was dismissed at noon. After school, instead of playing in the backyard as usual, he deliberately stayed by the counter of the shop, listening intently to the conversations of passersby—but from noon until the afternoon, there wasn't a single word about the war. Xingbao secretly pondered, "Perhaps the higher-ups have already made arrangements, deliberately preventing the news from spreading, fearing it would cause panic among the people, thus maintaining the peace of this small mountain village."

The afternoon sun wasn't as scorching as at midday. Xingbao sat under the eaves of his house, his gaze fixed on the opposite side of the ditch—his eldest and second eldest brothers were busy leveling the newly purchased dry land. They were using hoes to pick out the loose stones and break up the compacted clods of soil, occasionally stopping to discuss how to divide the plots into vegetable beds. Xingbao looked at the land, also mentally planning his planting, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the hem of his clothes, his thoughts drifting into his spiritual spring space.

Inside the space, the sweet potatoes irrigated with spiritual spring water were already ripe. Beneath the lush green vines, the sweet potatoes buried in the soil were astonishingly large, two or three times the size of ordinary sweet potatoes. Xingbao looked at these enormous sweet potatoes and hesitated, thinking, "Such large sweet potatoes, if I take them out directly, people will definitely suspect something. I can only put them in the thatched hut along with the vines and potatoes, and discuss with Father tonight what to do." Looking at the beans, loofahs, and pumpkins beside him, the vines climbed all over the trellis, and the pale purple and tender yellow flowers grew exceptionally lushly, but there was still no fruit— Xingbao slapped his forehead, realizing he had forgotten to pollinate them. He quickly crawled into the space, carefully picked a male flower, and gently rubbed it against the stamen of the female flower. The pumpkin flowers were fine; he had picked them and cooked them in his previous life. The bean and loofah flowers were too small to be easily distinguished.

Not far away, bunches of bluish-purple grapes hung heavily on the grapevines, plump and full, with a faint fruity fragrance that could be smelled from close up. They would be ready to eat in a few days. The orange and jujube trees, though lush with leaves, were not yet in season to bear fruit. Xingbao carefully gathered a small handful of tender buds from the tea bush in the corner. It was too little, so he put them into the thatched hut, thinking he would tell his parents when he had collected more.

Just as Xingbao was busy pollinating the last few pumpkin flowers, he caught a glimpse of Wang Jiazhang leading several people towards them from the west of the village. Leading the group was the township head. Xingbao was startled and immediately exited his spatial dimension, running into the house with a hurried voice: "Dad, Mom, Wang Jiazhang and the township head are here!"

At that moment, his father was in the backyard repairing the bamboo he had just cut down from the mountain, intending to use it to irrigate the vegetable garden. Hearing Xingbao's shout, he immediately put down his machete, dusted off the bamboo leaves on his hands, and hurried to the front yard. Just as he reached the door, he was met by Wang Jiazhang and the township head and his entourage.

"Township Chief, Old Wang, please come in!" Father greeted them warmly, bowing and exchanging pleasantries as he led everyone into the main room. Mother also hurried out of the kitchen, busy boiling water to make tea.

After everyone was seated on the benches in the main room, and the teacups had just been placed on the table, the township head put down his teacup and went straight to the point: "Dawei, the personnel for the wolf-hunting coaching job I mentioned to you before have been finalized. There are six people in total, and they will be arriving in the village the day after tomorrow. When they arrive, don't hold back; you must teach them all the skills you gained in the army!"

The father nodded quickly, his tone sincere: "Township head, rest assured, I would never hold back! I will teach them diligently and ensure they learn real skills so they can protect the villagers!"

"Good, I'm relieved to hear that." The township head nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Wang Jiazhang beside him, and said to his father, "Also, Mr. Wang, could you please ask around in the village if any of the team members who participated in the wolf hunt last time are willing to join the county's wolf-hunting team? If so, have them train with those six militiamen the day after tomorrow. From now on, we'll have to rely on them to deal with the wolf problem around the county."

Hearing the township head's instructions, Father and Wang Jiazhang nodded hurriedly and assured him, "Township head, rest assured, we will definitely convey the township's message properly. We will convene the wolf-hunting team to discuss it this evening!" After exchanging a few more polite words, the township head glanced at the sky, stood up, and said, "I'm busy with official duties, so I won't stay any longer. I'll have to trouble you to take care of the follow-up training." Father and Wang Jiazhang quickly got up to see them off, escorting them all the way to the village entrance, and only turned back after watching the township head and his entourage walk away.

Back in the village, Wang Jiazhang immediately stopped several teenagers playing at the village entrance. He took out a few red dates from his pocket and gave them to them, instructing them, "Go door to door and tell everyone that the team members who participated in the wolf hunt should gather at the threshing ground this evening. They have something important to tell you, so don't forget anyone!" The children happily accepted the dates and ran off into the village. Wang Jiazhang turned to his father and said, "Dawei, I'll go to the threshing ground first this evening. You can come over after you've finished your chores at home." His father nodded in agreement, and the two parted ways.

When Father returned home, he didn't go to the backyard to continue pruning the bamboo. Instead, he went straight into the kitchen, sat down at the table, and frowned deeply, looking utterly worried. Mother, who was sewing clothes for Guixiang, saw his expression and quickly put down her needlework and came over, asking in confusion, "Honey, isn't it a good thing that the county is forming a wolf-hunting team? I overheard the township head saying something in the inner room just now, and it didn't seem wrong at all. Why are you so worried?"

The father looked up, got up, and walked to the kitchen door. He glanced outside, and seeing no one was around, closed the door and sat down. He then instructed Xingbao, "Xingbao, go keep watch at the door. If anyone comes, let them know." Xingbao quickly ran to the door and leaned against the frame, watching warily outside. The father then lowered his voice and said to the mother, "When I took the township head to the village entrance, he quietly told me, 'Grain prices are going to go up.' Think about it, the early rice harvest is coming soon. Logically, with the new grain coming in, the price should be going down. Why is it going up instead? Either a major disaster is about to happen, or something terrible is about to occur—it's most likely going to be war!"

Upon hearing this, Mother's face instantly changed, and her voice trembled slightly: "Then... then shall we go to the village now and collect some grain to store? The more we store, the more at ease we'll feel!"

"We can't buy it in the village!" Father immediately waved his hand. "This can't be kept secret for long. There are only so many families in the village with grain. If we buy it at the price we saw in the spring, and the price goes up in a few days, we won't be able to buy grain in the village anymore. Tomorrow I'll go to Yongfeng City. They have plenty of grain there, and the price is cheaper than in the village. I'll buy a lot at once and secretly transport it back and hide it. The township head told me this to repay a favor from last time and to remind us to prepare early!"

Xingbao, who had been guarding the door, lit up when he heard "go to Yongfeng Town." He rushed in, tugged at his father's sleeve, and said, "Dad, take me with you tomorrow! I can help watch things and go with you to the grain store to ask about prices!" As he spoke, he winked at his father—he had already been planning to look for suitable seeds of all kinds when he got to Yongfeng Town.

Seeing Xingbao's expectant eyes and remembering his space, the father nodded, "Alright, I can take you, but you have to behave in town and not run around, understand?" Xingbao nodded vigorously, a smile spreading across his face. The mother chimed in, "Then you should leave early tomorrow, be careful on the road, bring plenty of money, don't be stingy, and make sure to buy plenty of food." The father agreed, his worries easing slightly—at least he could make some preparations for the family in advance.

At this moment, Xingbao pointed to the ditch outside the door and said, "Dad, there's something else—could you build a small bridge over the ditch, or turn it into a culvert? That would make it easier for us to go to the newly prepared fields. Otherwise, we have to go around from the threshing ground to the road, which is a much longer walk!"

"No need for all that trouble!" Before the words were even finished, the second brother, Yan Guo, who had just returned from the fields to get a drink of water, pushed open the door and interrupted, "That ditch isn't wide; we can just jump over it!"

Xingbao immediately widened his eyes, looked at his second brother, and deliberately said, "Great! From now on, if I want to go over there, I'll just ask you, second brother, and you can carry me and jump over!"

The second brother was drinking water from his bowl when he heard this. He choked on his water, splashing it onto his clothes, and his face turned bright red instantly. He himself had to find a stick to support himself to jump across the ditch, so how could he have the strength to carry someone?

"Okay, okay! Second brother, quickly pick me up and jump over! I want to go see our land!" Gui Xiang suddenly appeared out of nowhere, rushed to her second brother's side, grabbed his arm and walked outside, her little face full of anticipation.

Now the second brother was even more embarrassed. He stood there, unsure whether to leave or stay, not knowing what to do with his hands. Seeing this, their mother quickly stepped forward, pulled Guixiang away, and said with a smile, "Alright, Guixiang, your second brother was just playing around with Xingbao! He just came back from the fields and is very tired. He doesn't have the strength to carry you!"

Gui Xiang finally let go, and her second brother seized the opportunity to rush out the door, his steps somewhat hurried, not wanting to stay in the house for even a moment longer. Watching her second brother's fleeing figure, Gui Xiang stood there dumbfounded, while her parents and Xing Bao couldn't help but burst into laughter, instantly dispelling much of the tense atmosphere in the kitchen.

The father rubbed his sore eyes from laughing and said to Guixiang, "Guixiang, listen to me. That field has just been prepared, there's nothing there yet, so don't go over there. In a couple of days when I have some free time, I'll find some planks and make you a little wooden bridge. Then you can go over there anytime to pick vegetables and play." Guixiang nodded, and a smile returned to her little face.

As evening approached, the threshing ground gradually became lively—the wolf-hunting team members arrived one after another, gathering in twos and threes to chat. Many curious villagers also gathered around, wanting to hear what Chief Wang had gathered them for. Once most people had gathered, Chief Wang cleared his throat, walked to the center of the threshing ground, and gestured for quiet: "I've gathered everyone here today because I have some good news to tell you."

The noise gradually subsided, and everyone's eyes were focused on Wang Jiazhang. He continued, "The township head came in person today and said that the county is going to form a wolf-hunting team. They will send six people to our village the day after tomorrow, and Dawei will help with the training. If any of our village's wolf-hunting team members want to join the county's wolf-hunting team, you can sign up here now and train together. There's no need to rush to decide; go back and discuss it with your families, and give me an answer by the morning of the day after tomorrow at the latest."

No sooner had he finished speaking than someone in the crowd called out, "Old Wang, can those who aren't members of the Wolf Pack join? My son is young and strong, and he wants to learn some skills so he can protect our family in the future!" Upon hearing this, many villagers echoed his sentiment, their eyes filled with anticipation.

Wang Jiachang turned to look at his father beside him, and the two whispered a few words before turning to the crowd: "Those who don't fight the wolf team can also sign up, but they must be young and strong. Dawei will put in a lot of effort to train them. Those who want to learn skills can train with us, but they must wait until the training is finished and are not allowed to leave halfway!" Upon hearing this, the villagers became even more excited. Some said they wanted to sign up on the spot, while others said they would go back and discuss it with their families.

Seeing that no one asked any more questions, Wang Jiazhang announced the dismissal, but the crowd didn't disperse immediately and continued discussing joining the wolf-hunting team. Taking advantage of the situation, the father pulled Wang Jiazhang to the edge of the threshing ground, pointed to the mountain path and the newly purchased land in the distance, and said with a smile, "Old Wang, you see, I bought that dry land from the Long family yesterday. I was thinking of digging a small ditch along this mountain path, burying a bamboo pipe, and diverting the water from the washing well along the edge of the threshing ground to the land. What do you think of this?"

Wang Jiachang looked at the terrain in the direction his father pointed out—the water from the washing well flowed along the stinking ditch into the river, indeed not taking up anyone's water source. He nodded and readily said, "No problem! This well water was just flowing away anyway, not competing with anyone for water, so consider it a reward from the village. I'll tell everyone later, and I guarantee no one will have any objections."

"Thank you so much, Mr. Wang!" The father quickly clasped his hands in thanks, finally feeling relieved—with this water, there would be no need to worry about water shortages for planting crops on the newly purchased land.

The crowd on the threshing floor hadn't dispersed yet when they heard the conversation between the two, and the discussion started again: some people envied the father for being able to draw water from the well to irrigate the fields, saying that he was "calculating"; a few people were a little jealous and muttered under their breath, "He gets all the benefits," but no one stood up to object - after all, the well water didn't bother anyone, and besides, the father had just led everyone to drive away the wolf pack and received an award from the county, so everyone remembered his good deeds.

After Wang Jiachang left, Father immediately called his eldest son Yanbang and second son Yanguo. They went home, grabbed hoes and brought over the thick bamboo pipes they had prepared beforehand. They started digging a ditch on the side of the mountain road closest to the threshing ground. "We need to dig this ditch first, bury the pipes in it, and then we'll boil glue tomorrow and continue diverting it into the field. Don't delay everyone's journey," Father said to his two sons as he wielded the hoe.

Xingbao and Guixiang weren't idle either; they started looking for small stone slabs around the area—their father had said that after the bamboo pipes were buried, they should be covered with stone slabs to prevent them from being trampled. Ding Ge, Dashan Ge, and several other friends who usually played with Xingbao saw them busy and ran over to help: some handed them hoes, some helped look for stone slabs, and others squatted down to pick up stones and help clear debris from the ditch.

As darkness fell, the last glimmer of light disappeared, leaving only fireflies emerging from the grass, their flickering glow barely illuminating the threshing ground. Using this faint light, the group finally finished digging the ditch on this side of the mountain path, buried the bamboo pipes in the ground, covered them with the stones they had found, and then filled the path with soil to level it, ensuring that they wouldn't sink underfoot.

Gui Xiang wiped the sweat from her forehead and, remembering that her father was going to Yongfeng City to buy things the next day, smiled at her friends and said, "When my dad brings back red dates from the city, we'll each get one!" Xing Bao nodded in agreement, "You'll keep your word, we'll definitely save some for everyone!" Hearing this, the friends cheered, their previous tiredness returning. They continued until they had tamped down the last bit of soil before laughing and going home.