country bumpkin

Chapter 211 Nephew persuades son to apologize

On the way back, Kong Xiangwei asked Kong Xiangdong what had happened. He didn't believe that someone as hardworking as his third aunt would rest so early because she was tired.

Kong Xiangdong couldn't help but tell Kong Xiangwei what had happened that night.

Upon hearing this, Kong Xiangwei angrily said, "How could my elder brother treat my third aunt like this? Doesn't he know what kind of woman his own wife is? How could he be so easily sowed discord? I'll go and talk to him about this tomorrow."

Zhou Caiyun said worriedly, "Aren't you afraid of a fight if you go to talk to her tomorrow? Our sister-in-law is such a fierce and unreasonable person."

Kong Xiangwei said, "I went to the carpenter's shop to find my older brother, but Wang Cuihua wasn't there."

Kong Xiangdong also advised him, "Why don't you not go? He'll figure it out eventually. If you go now, I'm afraid it will backfire, and he'll be even more confused and listen to his sister-in-law."

Kong Xiangwei fell into deep thought. He said, "I'll go home and think about it some more. I'll talk about it tomorrow."

At the fork in the road, the two parted ways and went their separate ways home. Kong Xiangdong carried his son, while Zhou Caiyun followed behind, holding onto her husband's clothes.

Kong Xiangwei returned home and lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. He remembered that Kong Xiangguang hadn't been like this before. How had he become so unable to distinguish right from wrong?

It seems there's some truth to the saying, "One who stays near vermilion gets stained red, and one who stays near ink gets stained black." Spending too much time with someone like Wang Cuihua can corrupt even a good person's sense of right and wrong.

Thinking this through, Kong Xiangwei finally decided that he still had to go to the carpenter's shop tomorrow to find his older brother and give him a good talking-to about his pig-headedness.

At night, the moonlight shines on the roof tiles, as if draping them in a layer of silver gauze; it shines on the woodpile, making the usually messy firewood look soft.

In the moonlight, the distant mountains were only faint outlines, like sleeping giants.

The stream beside the fields shimmered with tiny lights under the moonlight, its waters flowing gently as if softly humming an ancient ballad.

The willows by the river, their slender branches edged with silver by the moonlight, sway gently in the breeze, as if whispering to the moon.

There was no noise around, except for the occasional bark of a dog, which only accentuated the tranquility of the night.

The moonlit night on the Lantern Festival in the village is simple yet enchanting, holding endless tenderness.

The next morning, Kong Xiangwei arrived at the carpenter's shop. Kong Xiangguang was organizing his tools and was a little surprised to see Kong Xiangwei.

Kong Xiangwei didn't stand on ceremony and pulled Kong Xiangguang to sit on a wooden stool to the side.

“Brother, you were wrong about what Third Aunt did yesterday,” Kong Xiangwei said bluntly.

Before Kong Xiangguang could retort, Kong Xiangwei continued, "You believed your third aunt just because of a few words of instigation from your sister-in-law? Have you forgotten how your third aunt secretly saved food for you when you were little, and how she sewed clothes for you by the light of an oil lamp at night?"

Hearing Kong Xiangwei's words, Kong Xiangguang lowered his head, a hint of guilt on his face. "But your sister-in-law said..."

"Brother, don't you know what kind of person your sister-in-law is? She's so petty, always thinking about how to take advantage of others. Your third aunt is a kind person, she's never held a grudge. She's your own mother, do you think you're less perceptive than your nephew?"

Kong Xiangwei continued, "Do you remember when Jianjun was born? Your sister-in-law was about to give birth, and you ran to find the village doctor. It was your third aunt who took care of your wife by her bedside the whole time. She also came to your house every day, rain or shine, to help with her postpartum care. She even took out the only 100 yuan she had to buy meat and eggs for your wife to help her recover. Don't you remember all of that? Your third aunt was so hungry that she was skin and bones. Didn't you see that?"

Kong Xiangwei berated his elder brother while wiping away tears, as if he were Mu Shuyun's biological son.

Kong Xiangguang remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking, "Xiangwei, you're right. I was confused. I'll go apologize to your third aunt right now."

Kong Xiangwei's expression improved, and he smiled slightly, patting his older brother on the shoulder. The two brothers then walked together towards their third aunt's house.

The morning sunlight shone on them, as if foreshadowing that the misunderstanding would soon dissipate and the harmony in the family would be restored to normal.

Kong Xiangwei walked in front, and Kong Xiangguang followed behind. Kong Xiangwei looked down on his timid and hesitant appearance.

Upon arriving at the old house, Kong Xiangwei pushed his eldest brother, who was behind him, forward and said, "Third Aunt is inside. Go in and talk. I'll wait outside."

Kong Xiangwei was very thoughtful; if he went in, he was afraid his elder brother would lose face and be too embarrassed to speak up.

Kong Xiangguang approached Mu Shuyun and said awkwardly, "Mother, I'm sorry. I was wrong yesterday. I was out of my mind to believe those slanderous words against you. Please don't be angry."

Mu Shuyun looked at her son, stepped forward and grabbed his arm, saying, "No, Mother is not angry, Mother is just sad. I have always treated every child equally, how could you believe in other people's instigation? Now that you know you were wrong, Mother forgives you."

When Kong Xiangguang heard that his mother had forgiven him, the heavy weight in his heart was finally lifted.

Kong Xiangguang looked at his mother, scratching the back of his head and grinning foolishly. Hearing his laughter, Kong Xiangwei knew that his third aunt had definitely forgiven him. Now it seemed his guess was correct; his third aunt was indeed a soft-hearted person.

He also felt that his older brother was a fence-sitter, always changing his mind. He never firmly established his own stance. With such a personality, he feared that something like what happened today would happen again in the future.

He didn't have a good solution either, so he could only take it one step at a time and see what happens.

As Mu Shuyun stepped out of the house, she saw Kong Xiangwei standing at the doorway, staring straight into the house, showing no intention of going in.

Mu Shuyun immediately guessed that it was Kong Xiangwei who had called her eldest son to apologize. Her eyes were full of gratitude. She went over and said affectionately, "Xiangwei, how long have you been here? Why don't you come inside and sit down? Your third aunt will pour you some tea."

Kong Xiangwei smiled and said, "Third Aunt, don't bother. I just came here with my brother. Now that everything's alright, I should go back."

Mu Shuyun grabbed his arm and said with a smile, "Silly child, now that you're at your aunt's house, don't be shy. Come inside, and I'll get you an apple. Apples are hard to come by in winter, so these were brought by your older sisters for the New Year. Here, have one to try."

As she spoke, Mu Shuyun pulled him into the house. She went to the bedroom, took out four apples from a cardboard box, and went to the kitchen to wash them.

After washing the apples, he handed two to his eldest son and two to his nephew, Kong Xiangwei, saying, "Try them first and see if they're good."

Without saying a word, Kong Xiangguang started munching on it. Kong Xiangwei took a bite and said with a smile, "It's so sweet, Third Aunt, you should have one too."

As he spoke, he handed the other apple back to Mu Shuyun.

Mu Shuyun smiled and pushed the food back into his hands, saying, "These things are too cold to eat in winter. People my age don't like to eat them. It's you young people who like to eat snacks like this."

Kong Xiangwei understood perfectly well that his third aunt was simply reluctant to eat it. In his mind, his third aunt had always been frugal and thrifty; how could she bear to eat such precious fruit?

Winter fruits are indeed precious to them right now!