Rebirth in a Courtyard: I Am a Little Hunter

Wei Changsheng was taken aback, clearly not expecting his nephew to have come all this way just for this matter. He pondered for a moment, then took out the pipe tucked into his belt, slowly filled it with tobacco, struck a match, lit it, and took a deep drag. The pungent smoke swirled around his weathered face.

"Planting trees is a good thing... adding shade and bearing fruit is a blessing." Wei Changgeng spoke slowly, his voice hoarse with a hint of smokiness, "But Chenzi, things are different now. Let alone trees, even a blade of grass belongs to the collective. You want to buy..."

He puffed on his cigarette, his brow furrowing as usual. "This matter isn't a big deal, but it's not insignificant either. We have to follow the rules; we can't let people gossip and say that our Wei family is taking advantage of the collective."

Wei Chen nodded understandingly: "Uncle, I understand. I'll pay whatever it costs, I won't make things difficult for you. I just want to choose two sturdy, big trees so they can survive and bear fruit sooner next year."

"A big tree?" Wei Changsheng looked up at Wei Chen. "Those aren't cheap, and they're labor-intensive and difficult to move. It's not the season for planting trees now."

"I know it will be hard work, so I'll pay for it and find people to dig it myself, so as not to trouble the village." Wei Chen said sincerely, "As for the price, you can decide, as long as it's reasonable."

Wei Changsheng took two more puffs of his pipe, and through the swirling smoke, he seemed to be weighing his options. After a while, he tapped the pipe on the sole of his shoe and made up his mind: "Alright! You wait here, I'll call the accountant." He turned and shouted towards the threshing ground: "Lao Gen! Lao Gen! Come here for a second!"

A middle-aged man wearing glasses, carrying a tattered abacus and account book under his arm, and with a face covered in cigarette ash, jogged over. It was the village meeting. "Secretary, what's up?"

Wei Changsheng briefly explained the situation, and concluded by saying, "Chenzi wants to buy two large trees, one jujube tree and one peach tree, and they need to be sturdy. Lao Gen, what do you think... what price would be appropriate? We need to consider our own children while also protecting the collective interest; we can't let the public lose out."

Zhao Laogen pushed up his glasses, which had slipped down to the bridge of his nose, opened the account book, and unconsciously fiddled with the abacus beads a few times, muttering to himself, "The trees belong to the collective... removing one means one less... and they're big, fruitful trees... this loss... must be made up..."

He raised his eyelids and looked at Wei Chen through his thick glasses, tentatively saying, "Wei Chen, look... five yuan for one tree, okay? Ten yuan for two. This price... is a bit expensive, but the trees are big, and the transplanting losses are greater, so it's easier to explain to the villagers." After he finished speaking, he looked at Wei Changgeng.

Five yuan a tree! In those days, that was definitely a high price. You have to understand, a strong laborer's full work points a day would only amount to a few cents. Ten yuan was almost a month's income for a laborer!

But Wei Chen wanted big trees, quick results. He nodded without hesitation: "Okay! Accountant Zhao, it'll be as you said, ten yuan for two trees! Please give me a receipt, I'll pay right now."

As he spoke, he pulled two crisp five-yuan bills from his pocket and handed them over.

Zhao Laogen stared at the two brand-new bills for a moment, then quickly took them. He tore a receipt with a red stamp from the ledger and wrote in a crooked hand with his pencil: "Received payment from Comrade Wei Chen for the purchase of one jujube tree and one peach tree from the collective, totaling ten yuan." He signed his name and handed it to Wei Chen. He was quick and efficient, as if afraid Wei Chen would change his mind.

Wei Chen put away the receipt and said to Zhao Laogen, "Accountant Zhao, would you please take me to the orchard to choose a tree? I need a big tree with a thick trunk, a good shape, and that looks healthy and vigorous, preferably with a diameter of more than ten centimeters."

"Alright! Follow me!" Zhao Laogen tucked the money in his pocket, grabbed his account book and abacus, and led Wei Chen toward the collective orchard on the hillside behind the village.

Watching his nephew's retreating figure, Wei Changsheng lit another pipe, his eyes filled with complex emotions through the smoke. This nephew of his was truly successful in the city; he bought two trees for ten yuan without batting an eye.

The village's collective orchard is located on a hillside. It's not very large, but it's well-maintained. It has apples, pears, peaches, dates, apricots, and all sorts of fruit trees common in northern China. But at this moment, the orchard is quiet. There are no people thinning flowers, pruning branches, or removing pests as usual. Only some teenagers are picking up dry twigs blown down by the wind under the trees—this is also the fuel for "steelmaking."

Zhao Laogen led Wei Chen around the garden. Wei Chen had a clear goal and headed straight for the jujube and peach trees. He carefully examined each tree, checking if the trunk was straight and thick, if the crown was symmetrical, and if the branches and leaves were healthy and free of pests.

"This one!" Wei Chen stopped under a jujube tree. The jujube tree had a straight trunk, dark brown longitudinal cracks in its bark, and several thick main branches branched out from a little over a foot above the ground. The tree had a broad crown and lush foliage, clearly a good tree in its prime. He measured it with his feet, and the diameter of the roots was definitely over ten centimeters.

"Good eye! This jujube tree is one of the best-bearing trees in the garden!" Zhao Laogen nodded.

Wei Chen then walked to the peach tree area and quickly took a liking to a peach tree with a thick trunk, low branching points, and a naturally open-center shape. It was also lush and full of vitality.

"Just these two!" Wei Chen pointed to the selected trees. "Accountant Zhao, could you please mark them?"

Zhao Laogen picked up two pieces of red brick from the ground and forcefully drew a cross mark at the base of the two trees that Wei Chen had specified.

"Alright, the markings are done. When are you coming to dig? You need to do it soon; moving trees is bad for their health, so you have to be careful," Zhao Laogen reminded him.

"Come first thing tomorrow morning!" Wei Chen looked at the two marked fruit trees, which seemed to already belong to him, his heart filled with anticipation. "Thank you, Accountant Zhao!"

The next day, just as dawn was breaking, a thin layer of bluish-gray mist still shrouded the village and fields. Wei Chen had already led several strong young men to the orchard.

Leading the group was his cousin Wei Feng, a kind, sturdy, and incredibly strong farmer. Also present were his younger cousin Wei Yan, and two other quick-witted young men from the village who usually got along well with Wei Chen: Wang Tiezhu and Li Shuanzi.

"Chenzi, are these the two trees?" Wei Feng asked, pointing to the two trees marked with red bricks, holding a gleaming shovel in his hand.

"Yes! Brother Feng, these are the two! A jujube tree and a peach tree." Wei Chen nodded, distributing the shovels, pickaxes, and a large bundle of sturdy hemp rope he had brought to everyone. "Thanks for your hard work, brothers! Now is not a good time to transplant trees. To ensure they survive, we need to bring plenty of 'old lady soil,' and dig big clods of earth!"

"Don't worry, Chenzi! We've got this covered!" Wei Feng patted his chest, spat into his hands and rubbed them together, then called out, "Brothers, let's get moving! Let's dig up the jujube trees first! Tiezhu and Shuanzi, you two start digging from this side! Weiyan, come with me and dig from the other side! Chenzi, you keep an eye on things and direct the size of the mounds!"

Several strong young men immediately surrounded the thick jujube tree, wielding shovels and pickaxes. The metal tools sank into the soil with a dull "thud."

They dug very deep and very carefully, trying not to damage the main root. As the pit grew larger, the exposed tree roots twisted and turned, carrying the damp, earthy smell of the soil.

Wei Chen directed from the side: "Expand it a bit further outwards! Yes! Try to preserve the main root! If the lateral roots are too long... and there's no way to get around them, you'll have to break them off and cover the cut with mud!"

After digging for nearly an hour, a large pit, about 1.5 meters in diameter and almost 1 meter deep, was finally formed. The huge jujube tree, along with the massive clod of earth around its roots, was carefully separated from the surrounding soil. The clod of earth resembled a giant ball of mud encasing countless roots.

"Use the rope!" Wei Feng shouted. Several people worked together, using the thick hemp rope they had brought, to wrap, tighten, and secure the huge mound of earth tightly, like tying up a rice dumpling, to prevent it from falling apart during transport and damaging its foundation.

"Prune!" Wei Chen commanded again. Wei Yan and Wang Tiezhu picked up the pruning shears and large saw they had brought, and following Wei Chen's instructions, they sniped away the overly dense twigs, crossing branches, and some overgrown shoots from the canopy, leaving only the main branches. This would greatly reduce water evaporation after transplanting and improve the survival rate. The jujube tree's leaves rustled down, and the originally dense canopy became much tidier.

"Come on! One, two, three! Lift!" Wei Feng, as the main force, shouted, and several young men, their faces red and veins bulging, used their shoulders and arms to lift the jujube tree, which was still incredibly heavy and covered in a huge clump of mud, to "pull" it out of the deep pit!

The heavy tree root, along with the soil, hit the ground with a dull thud, making the ground seem to tremble. Even though the young men were strong, they were all panting heavily from the effort.

Next was the peach tree. The same procedure: carefully dig, preserve the huge mound of earth, tightly bind it with hemp rope, and prune away excess branches and leaves.

The peach tree's root system seemed more developed than the jujube tree's, and its clod of earth was also larger, making it more difficult to lift out. By the time both trees were properly handled, trimmed, and securely tied, it was nearly noon.

The young men were covered in sweat, their clothes caked with mud and grass clippings, but they all wore satisfied smiles as they looked at the two large trees that had been "armed" up.

"Let's go! Carry it to the abandoned outpost!" Wei Chen called out. The outpost was located on the hillside road not far from the east end of the village. It was the only way to get into the mountains and also the agreed delivery point for the steel mill trucks.

Several people used two thick wooden levers they had brought to thread through the hemp rope binding the earthen mounds, and like carrying a sedan chair, four people in a group, chanting in unison, slowly and carefully carried the two incredibly heavy trees out of the village.

The heavy tree trunks and mounds of earth bent the wooden beams slightly, and the young men walked with heavy steps, sweat glistening on their faces and necks in the early autumn sun. Villagers passing by glanced at the sight and discussed Wei Chen's extravagant gesture.

Finally, the two large trees were laboriously carried to a relatively flat roadside next to the abandoned outpost, carefully laid down, and leaned against a half-collapsed earthen wall. By then, the sun was already high in the sky.

"You guys have worked hard! Let's go back to the village canteen! It's on me! All you can eat! I've already told the manager not to charge for your meals, it's on me today!" Wei Chen said loudly, looking at his exhausted companions.