Chapter 8 - 8 8 A Bowl of Rabbit Meat

Chapter 8: Chapter 8: A Bowl of Rabbit Meat Chapter 8: Chapter 8: A Bowl of Rabbit Meat Chen Xiaohu carried a cloth sack containing five pounds of sorghum rice and headed toward Chen Jie’s house.

Halfway there, he spotted Chen Sanliu’s family relaxing under a big tree, basking in the sun after a hearty meal.

“Uncle.”

Chen Xiaohu nodded in greeting.

Chen Sanliu gave a faint nod, his greeting indifferent, while a young man in his early twenties sitting beside him spoke up, “Hu Zi, what’s with the sack of rice?”

Chen Xiaohu replied, “Fourth Brother’s family is out of food, so I’m taking some over to help.”

“Oh, you silly kid, are you crazy?”

At those words, Chen Sanliu—who had been silent until now—stood up and said, “That boy Jiu Si is hopeless. He’s a gambling addict; everyone avoids him like the plague, and yet your family goes out of its way to offer help. Feeling rich, are you? Go home, go home!”

Chen Sanliu sounded serious as he spoke to Chen Xiaohu.

But Chen Xiaohu countered, “Uncle Sanliu, my dad says Fourth Brother has turned over a new leaf.”

“Turned over a new leaf my ass! If he could do that, pigs would fly! Trust your uncle and get home before this sack of rice goes to waste.”

“Exactly, Hu Zi, don’t be foolish. That Chen Jiusi deserves to starve. We keep our distance from him; last time he knocked on our door to borrow food, we pretended not to be home. And now you’re offering him rice? Are you stupid?”

This time, the young man added his own attempt to dissuade Xiaohu.

Hearing his uncle and cousin’s advice, Chen Xiaohu hesitated before saying, “Alright, I’ll go home and ask my dad about it.”

With that, Chen Xiaohu turned around and headed back toward home.

Watching Xiaohu leave, Chen Sanliu glanced toward Chen Erba’s house and grumbled, “That cripple Erba is naive. His eldest uncle is dead; there’s no more benefit to be had, so why bother helping an outsider like that?”

Chen Sanliu shook his head as he spoke.

“When our uncle handed his medical skills to you back then, who would have thought it’d lead to this mess today?”

The young man added.

The two shook their heads in frustration, visibly angry.

*They inwardly cursed Chen Jie as a good-for-nothing, completely unaware of their own role in leading Chen Jiusi astray. Years ago, when Jiusi gambled for the first time, it was this very cousin who took him along. After Jiusi became addicted, the cousin stopped playing. Eventually, this led to Jiusi’s household’s decline and the sorry state it’s in today.*

*But the root of it all started because their uncle refused to pass his medical knowledge to their father. Even when their father knelt before the old man, promising lifelong care in exchange for his secrets, the stubborn elder still wouldn’t relent.*

Chen Xiaohu returned home, and when he arrived so quickly, Chen Erba asked, “Did you deliver the food?”

Chen Xiaohu shook his head and replied, “I ran into Uncle Sanliu on the way.”

Chen Erba put down the half-finished basket he was weaving and asked, “What did he say?”

“He said Fourth Brother is a bottomless pit and warned us not to waste the grain.”

Chen Erba frowned upon hearing this and asked, “Do you think he’s right?”

Chen Xiaohu paused briefly and then said, “I don’t know, so I came back to ask you, Dad.”

Chen Erba’s expression softened slightly, and he said, “Sanliu doesn’t care about gratitude; I, however, will not follow his example. Deliver the grain—but take the long way.”

“Alright!”

Chen Xiaohu set out once more as Chen Erba sighed. At that moment, his wife emerged and said, “Erba, Sanliu has received far more from Uncle than you ever did. If he doesn’t care, why should you bother?”

Upon hearing this, Chen Erba glared at his wife and scolded, “What do you know, woman? Go make dinner.”

Saying this, he resumed weaving his basket. Each basket brought him two cents, and if he made one more, he’d earn an extra two cents.

*In truth, his wife’s words were entirely correct. Compared to Sanliu, Erba had received much less from their uncle.*

*Sanliu was born with a silver tongue and flattered their uncle endlessly while he was alive. Their uncle, a renowned doctor in the region who earned good money, had only one daughter, which in their world essentially meant his line was at an end.*

*As a result, he treated his nephews exceptionally well. For instance, when Sanliu got married, their uncle paid to build him a new house and gifted him three acres of farmable land as a foundation for his livelihood.*

*It could be said that this was treatment akin to what one would give a biological son.*

*On the other hand, Erba lacked the charm to win their uncle’s favor. His uncle saw his poor social skills and physical disability and instead arranged for him to learn a craft. He apprenticed Erba to the Old Bamboo Weaving Master from the neighboring village to teach him basket-weaving skills.*

*This provided him with a means to survive, and because of this small kindness, Erba felt deeply indebted to their uncle for a lifetime.*

*As for Chen Jiusi, despite being born to a husband invited into the family, he was included in the Chen family’s ancestral record.*

*He addressed Erba as “Uncle,” and Erba never treated him as an outsider.*

*In the past, when Jiusi was a compulsive gambler, Erba couldn’t overstep or afford to intervene. However, now that Jiusi seemed to be on the path to reform, Erba felt he couldn’t ignore his nephew’s plight.*

Chen Xiaohu took a detour and arrived at Chen Jie’s house. He knocked on the door, and soon someone came to answer—it was none other than Su Yunjin.

Chen Xiaohu immediately greeted her, “Hello, Sister-in-law!”

Su Yunjin had a good impression of Xiaohu and said, “Oh, Xiaohu, what’s this?”

Xiaohu replied, “My dad asked me to bring some sorghum rice for your family.”

He gestured to the sack of rice. Hearing his words, Su Yunjin hesitated, unsure if she should make the decision herself. Just then, a voice called out from inside the house, “Who is it?”

Su Yunjin said, “It’s Xiaohu. Why don’t you take the rice directly to your brother?”

“Oh, alright.”

Following her directions, Xiaohu entered the yard to find Chen Jie.

*In the past, Xiaohu had a good relationship with Chen Jie. But after Chen Jie became a gambling addict, drinking and hitting people, Erba forbade Xiaohu from hanging out with him.*

*Having grown up watching his father’s struggles firsthand, Xiaohu understood that his family couldn’t afford reckless behavior. That’s why he stopped keeping company with Chen Jie.*

When Chen Jie saw Xiaohu, memories connected to him surged in his mind. Overall, Xiaohu was a sensible kid.

Chen Jie said to Xiaohu, “Hu Zi, what’s the matter?”

Xiaohu replied, “My dad said your family is out of food, so he sent me with some sorghum rice for you.”

*Hearing this, Chen Jie felt touched, silently noting this unexpected act of kindness. He smiled and said, “Alright, Yunjin, take the rice. Let’s make a pot of sorghum rice to eat. By the way, Hu Zi, I caught a plump rabbit today—it’s simmering in a pot. Want some?”*

“Rabbit meat?”

*Gulp!*

At the mention of rabbit meat, Xiaohu swallowed hard but still shook his head, saying, “No thanks, Fourth Brother. I’ve got plenty of baskets at home I need to finish, so I won’t stay.”

Saying that, he started to leave. Chen Jie quickly called out, “Wait.”

He walked over to the pot and saw that the rabbit stew with wild vegetables was ready. He ladled out a large bowlful.

“Here, Hu Zi, take this home and thank Uncle Erba for me.”

“Ah, no, this—this won’t do, Fourth Brother. I can’t accept this.”

Xiaohu tried to refuse. This bowl of rabbit meat was far more valuable than five pounds of sorghum rice—it was meat, after all!

Chen Jie said, “Enough, no more arguing. Just take it. If you don’t, I’ll be angry.”

Unable to decline, Xiaohu reluctantly accepted and carried the bowl of meat back home. When he got there, his mother had just finished making wild vegetable dumplings. Seeing the bowl of meat, she exclaimed, “Where did you get meat?”

Xiaohu replied, “Fourth Brother gave it to me.”

“This...”

His mother didn’t know what to say.

Uncle Erba returned just then and spotted the bowl of rabbit meat. Xiaohu, being thoughtful, said, “Dad, Fourth Brother gave this to us. Should I return it?”

Uncle Erba paused before saying, “Keep it and eat it; it’s Jiusi’s heartfelt gesture.”

“Wouldn’t that make us seem like we’re after his meat? Here’s what—Hu Zi, take six dumplings to Fourth Brother. Your mother made these really well; she added half a bowl of sorghum flour to them. While you’re at it, return the bowl he gave you.”

“Alright, I’ll go right now.”

Xiaohu poured the meat from the bowl into one of their own, and his mother carefully picked out six of the largest dumplings to send back to Chen Jie’s house.