Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

With a whoosh, three and a half brand-new "Great Unity" bills were laid out. Next to them was a small stack of colorful receipts—grain coupons, meat coupons… all kinds.

The room fell silent instantly. The only sound was the sizzling of shredded potatoes in the iron pot on the coal stove.

Wang Xiulan nearly dropped the spatula in her hand. Her eyes widened as she stared intently at the pile of money and bills. Her lips trembled, and it took her a long time to finally utter a sound: "Thirty... thirty-five yuan? And so many bills? Xiao Chen... where... where did you get so much money? We can't... we can't do something so wrong!" Her voice was filled with terror.

Wei Ran was also stunned. Her mouth was agape in an "O" shape as she looked at the money, then at the big yellow dog next to her, who was clearly smug because of the attention from its owner and family, and whose tail was wagging even more enthusiastically.

Seeing his mother's anxious expression, Wei Chen quickly explained, "Mom, don't panic. This money isn't mine. It belongs to Da Huang."

"What?!" Wang Xiulan's voice suddenly rose, filled with disbelief, "Big Yellow's?!"

"Yes." Wei Chen picked up the brand-new "work permit," opened it, and pointed to the words and paw prints on it. "Dahuang was officially granted a police dog status by the factory's security department today. This is its first month's police dog allowance and special supply ticket, thirty-five yuan, and the ticket is also issued according to the standard. It will receive one every month from now on."

"Police...police dogs? Staffing? Salary?" Wang Xiulan felt her mind was a little confused. She looked at the real money and bills on the table, then at the big yellow dog squatting on the ground, sticking out its tongue and with a "I earned this" expression on its face. Her worldview was shocked like never before.

"This...this dog...is now a government employee? No...a government dog? And...and gets paid? More than...more than many regular employees?" She muttered to herself, still unable to process this fact.

She had worked hard all her life and knew how difficult it was to earn money. A strong laborer was considered to have a good income if he earned twenty or thirty yuan a month. But her own dog... only thirty-five yuan a month?

Wei Ran finally reacted, screamed and rushed over to hug Da Huang's neck: "Wow! Da Huang! You're amazing! You've become a police dog that gets paid! You're a hero dog!" She buried her face in Da Huang's thick fur and rubbed against it. Da Huang also stuck out his tongue and licked her face, making a satisfied purring sound in his throat.

The news spread like wildfire through the courtyard, like cold water being poured into a pot of boiling oil.

The news first spread among the steel mill workers who had returned from work around the same time as Wei Chen. In the front yard, at Yan Bugui's house, Yan Jiefang rushed in, not even having time to put down his schoolbag, shouting, "Dad! Mom! It's amazing! Wei Chen's dog, Da Huang, has become a full-fledged police dog! He's got a job! He gets paid! Thirty-five yuan a month! And lots of coupons!"

"What?!" Yan Bugui, who was fiddling with the abacus beads and calculating this month's expenses, suddenly jerked his hand, and the abacus beads clattered loudly. The old woman also dropped her needlework.

"How much? Thirty-five?" Yan Bugui's eyes widened instantly, his voice trembling. "Seven yuan and fifty cents more than a newly promoted worker's wage?!"

In the Jia family compound, Qin Huairu was holding and soothing her several-month-old baby boy by the stove. Jia Zhangshi sat on the kang (heated brick bed), struggling to poke a hard, greasy shoe sole with an awl, habitually muttering curses about everyone else. Jia Dongxu hadn't returned yet.

An older neighbor peeked in, her face filled with exaggerated surprise: "Sister-in-law Jia! Huai Ru! Have you heard? Wei Chen's big wolfhound in the backyard, the one named Da Huang! It's become a government dog! The security department issued it a license! It gets a salary of thirty-five yuan a month! Plus meat and oil coupons! My goodness! This dog is more precious than a person!"

"Clatter!" The awl in Jia Zhangshi's hand fell onto the kang mat. Her mean face twisted instantly, and her triangular eyes shot out disbelief and extreme hatred: "What?! Thirty-five?! What a load of bull! A beast! Why?! Why does he get so much money! That's all the country's money! It's the blood and sweat of us workers and farmers! Did he feed the dogs?! Damn it! Heartless!" She didn't dare to curse loudly, afraid that it would be heard in the backyard, but her low voice was full of resentment, and she gripped the sole of the shoe in her hand tightly, as if it were Wei Chen's or Da Huang's neck.

Qin Huairu was stunned, forgetting to pat Xiaodang on the shoulder. Thirty-five yuan? Her husband Dongxu worked himself to the bone in the factory, how much did he earn in a month? And he had to support the whole family. A dog… thirty-five yuan a month? This huge difference made her heart feel like it was stuffed with wet cotton, suffocating and bitter, and even looking at the crying Xiaodang in her arms made her feel even more annoyed. She subconsciously looked towards the backyard, her eyes filled with complicated and unreadable emotions.

In the backyard of Liu Haizhong's house, Uncle Er was holding a teacup, preparing to enjoy a moment of leisure after get off work. Aunt Er also told him what she had heard.

"Pfft—cough cough cough!" Liu Haizhong spat out a mouthful of tea, choking and turning his face red as he coughed violently. Finally catching his breath, he slammed the teacup on the table with a bang, splashing tea all over it. His face turned a deep purplish-red, and his finger trembled as he pointed towards the backyard: "Outrageous! Outrageous! This is utter nonsense! A dog! A beast! He actually... he actually gets paid in broad daylight? Thirty-five?! That's more than my salary as a level six blacksmith... more..."

He was so angry he could barely speak. "This is a matter of principle! A matter of policy! It's the sugar-coated bullet of capitalism! It's corruption and decadence! I'm going to report this to the factory leaders! I must report it! What kind of talk is this?!"

The second aunt, frantically wiping the table, added fuel to the fire: "Exactly! Wei Chen is getting special treatment! He's exploiting state funds to keep a pet! Our family giving flour and rice to those in need is the right thing to do! It's class solidarity! What is this? Is keeping a dog more precious than keeping his own parents? Bah!"

Sha Zhu, carrying a net bag containing two lunchboxes, sauntered through the moon gate of the central courtyard and overheard several old women gossiping. "Have you heard? Wei Chen's dog gets thirty-five yuan a month!"

"Oh my god, really? Sha Zhu, how much is your salary again?" Sha Zhu stopped in his tracks, his lazy smile instantly freezing, his small eyes widening: "Thirty-five?! Who? Wei Chen got a raise again?"

"It's not Wei Chen! It's his dog! Big Yellow! He's become a police dog! He's getting paid by the government!"

"Fuck!" Sha Zhu blurted out, nearly dropping the lunchbox in his hand. He was a level nine chef, working himself to the bone, enduring smoke and flames, and only earned thirty-one yuan and fifty cents a month! This was... worse than a dog?! A nameless rage surged to his head; he felt his skills and dignity had been insulted like never before.

"What the hell is this?! Is there no law?! My arms hurt from flipping the wok so much, and I'm not even as good as a watchdog?!" He cursed loudly, his voice filled with resentment and bitterness. He slammed the lunchbox back to his room and slammed the door shut.

Yi Zhonghai stood silently in the shadows under the eaves of his house, his hands behind his back. The commotion in the front yard, the discussions in the middle yard, and the shouts and curses in the back yard all reached his ears clearly.

His face was expressionless, but deep within his cloudy eyes surged a turbulent undercurrent. Regret, like cold vines, once again tightly bound his heart.

Thirty-five yuan. The salary of a dog. More than many people in the neighborhood who have regular jobs. Wei Chen's family... is now a true "dual-income" family.

Why was he so blinded by greed to scheme against Wei Chen? Why did he have to try to control him? Was it all for that insignificant sense of control and the vanity of being respected? And what was the result? He completely pushed a young man who could have been an asset, someone who could have brought him honor, to the opposite side.

Look at him now, Wei Chen is rising through the ranks, even his dog has become a government employee, receiving enviable treatment. Meanwhile, he, the "old man," is losing his voice in the courtyard day by day.

That stingy Yan Bugui is now treating Wei Chen like a god! This huge difference is like a dull knife cutting into his flesh, making his heart feel cold and painful.

He let out a long, silent sigh, his back seeming to hunch even more. He turned and went back into the house, closing the door and shutting out the noise outside and his heavy regret.

Unlike the complex thoughts of adults, children's world is simple and passionate.

After the initial shock and elation, Wei Ran was immediately enveloped by a tremendous sense of honor. She carefully held Da Huang's brand-new work ID with the police badge, then proudly led the equally imposing Da Huang out of the house.

"Big Yellow! Let's go! Let's tell them you're a salaried hero police dog!"

"Woof!" Big Yellow seemed to sense its little master's excitement and barked in response.

Soon, the children playing in the front and middle yards were attracted over. "Wei Ran! Wei Ran! Da Huang has really become a police dog?" Niu Xiaocao was the first to run over, looking enviously at the collar around Da Huang's neck and the work badge hanging on Wei Ran's chest.

Little Stone, Yan Jiefang, Yan Jiekuang, Yan Jiedi, Liu Guangfu... The children in the yard swarmed around, their eyes all sparkling as they stared at Big Yellow and the magical document.

"Of course it's true!" Wei Ran puffed out her little chest, as proud as a general. She carefully picked up her work ID and pointed to the paw prints and words on it. "Look! These are Da Huang's paw prints! This is its name! Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill Security Department! Official police dog! It will get a salary every month! Thirty-five yuan!" She repeated what she had heard from her brother.

"Wow—!" A chorus of exclamations rang out. "Thirty-five yuan! That's more than my dad's salary!" Yan Jiefang exclaimed. "Big Yellow is amazing!" "Did it catch a lot of bad guys?" "Sister Wei Ran, tell us how Big Yellow did such a good deed!"

The children chattered excitedly, their admiring gazes fixed on Big Yellow like searchlights. At that moment, in their eyes, Big Yellow was no longer the frightening wolfhound in the backyard, but a living, breathing, legendary "dog hero" who could catch bad guys and earn a living wage!