country bumpkin

Chapter 228 Xiujin's Family

Kong Xiangdong walked out of the gate and saw the village chief and several young men from his family.

He caught up with the group and asked, "What's wrong with Uncle Youliang?"

Kong Youliang led the way, followed closely by his son, Kong Fujian. Then came the villagers, and a few middle-aged women who followed behind to watch the spectacle.

Kong Youliang frowned. "Here's what happened: Kong Shangwu's cellar at the west end of the village collapsed, burying all the grain inside. His wife is crying in distress. We went to help get the grain out; we'll try to salvage whatever we can." Kong Youliang said as he walked.

Upon hearing this, Kong Xiangdong felt a pang of anxiety. Grain was incredibly precious in those days, and any family that ran out of grain would be in trouble.

When they arrived at Kong Shangwu's house, they found the cellar entrance in a mess, and his wife, Yuan Yicao, was sitting on the ground wiping away tears.

Kong Youliang quickly stepped forward to comfort her, "Niece-in-law, don't worry, everyone's here, we'll definitely be able to get the grain out." With that, he directed the young men to begin clearing the debris from the cellar entrance. Kong Xiangdong didn't stand idly by either, joining in the work.

Everyone had a clear division of labor: some were responsible for moving large stones, while others were responsible for clearing away the mud. With everyone's efforts, the entrance to the cellar was gradually cleared out.

Everyone carefully entered the cellar and began searching for the buried grain. After some effort, most of the grain was salvaged. Yuan Yicao smiled through her tears and thanked Kong Youliang profusely, holding his arm.

Kong Youliang smiled and said, "We're all from the same village, and besides, we're from the same clan. Don't be so polite. If you have any difficulties in the future, just let us know, and we'll all help you out."

The matter was more or less resolved, and Kong Shangwu hurriedly returned from the blacksmith shop. It was his youngest son who informed him of what had happened at home.

When Kong Shangwu returned, he saw that his clansmen had already helped to resolve the situation. He stepped forward, grasped the village chief's hand, and said gratefully, "Uncle Youliang, thank you so much for organizing the villagers to help. I am so grateful; otherwise, I don't know what would have happened."

Kong Youliang relaxed his brow and said, "What's the big deal? Most of the people who came are family. Besides, we're all from the same village, so we should help each other out."

Kong Shangwu nodded repeatedly: "Yes, Uncle is right." Then he looked at everyone present, bowed, and said, "Thank you all, brothers and sisters. You have helped my family a lot. I will definitely help you if you need anything in the future."

Yuan Yicao wanted to invite these people to stay for tea, but they all declined, saying they had things to do at home and went home.

After these people left, Yuan Yicao thought of her daughter and started wiping away tears again. "Shangwu, where did that wretched girl Xiujin go? We haven't heard a word from her. Now things aren't going well at home either; the cellar collapsed. Sigh!"

Kong Shangwu said angrily, "Who knows where she ran off to? She didn't work properly at the factory, she just messed around and now she's been fired. She even ran off with an old married man, what a disgrace! We'd rather not have a daughter like that."

Yuan Yicao was still worried about her daughter, thinking to herself, "I'll have my eldest son secretly go to the city again in a few days to inquire about her."

Last time, it was the eldest son who went to the factory and found out where his daughter was.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, she herself went to Mu Shuyun's house to ask Kong Xiufang. The two used to be very close, but they stopped contacting each other at some point.

When asked, Kong Xiufang only said that she had resigned, and she didn't know what exactly happened at the factory.

In fact, her son had already heard some rumors about Kong Xiujin from the women in the factory. She had also guessed some of them, but she just didn't want to admit it.

She couldn't accept that her daughter had done such a thing, which was why she refused to believe it.

Her eldest son was already married, and his wife was a girl from the same village. She was a nice person, but she had a big mouth. So she could only let her son go secretly, and couldn't tell his wife.

The second son broke his leg while playing on the wall as a child, and now he walks with a limp. It was difficult for him to find a wife, so they used connections and spent money to buy one for him in Yunnan.

When this daughter-in-law arrived, her skin was very dark, and she couldn't understand what she was saying. So everyone in the family called her "Manman".

Manman wasn't used to the North at first, but she could eat her fill here, so she felt comfortable staying.

Manman is quiet but very capable. When her family goes to work in the fields, she follows along diligently and learns quickly, mastering the skills in just a few days. She works very hard. Her family likes her very much.

Back home, she ate rice, but here she ate pancakes, steamed buns, fried dough sticks, large steamed buns, dumplings, noodles, and more. She fell in love with this place.

When they bought her, they also transferred her household registration, so she was a legitimate second daughter-in-law who married into the family, not someone who was sold here.

The gossipy women in the village all said behind their backs that they had bought her, but her family refuted this, saying that she was introduced to them by someone.

Manman wasn't cunning or scheming; this family treated her well. Her husband doted on her and loved her. She also got new clothes and a variety of delicious meals, so she didn't want to leave.

Kong Xiujin is the third child in her family, with a younger brother who is still in junior high school in town. She rides her bicycle to and from school every day.

With many children in the family, Kong Shangwu and Yuan Yicao's most beloved child is their youngest son, Kong Xiangwei.

The eldest son has already separated from the family and lives in the next courtyard. The second son lives in the same courtyard as the elderly couple. Because Manman was bought from outside, Yuan Yicao was afraid that she would run away, so she dared not let them live separately.

Manman needs someone to watch over her at all times. Yuan Yicao feels that once Manman has a child, she won't want to leave.

Actually, she's gotten used to life here now and won't run away. Back in her hometown, not having enough to eat is a common occurrence.

Many girls her age were sold to old bachelors. Others were sold to "hair salons" and "massage parlors" in big cities. Among them, she was considered to have a relatively good ending.

Because the second son got married, he can't share a room with the third son, so the house is quite crowded.

They vacated Kong Xiujin's room for the third son. The second son and his wife shared a separate side room.

If Kong Xiujin returns, she can only stay in the small room next to the kitchen. This room used to be used for storing miscellaneous items; it's quite small and can only fit a single bed, so she'll have to make do for now.

Kong Xiujin works away from home most of the year and doesn't come home often, so there's no need to reserve a large room for her.

Although Yuan Yicao favored her son, she had also given birth to her daughter with great difficulty and raised her. She couldn't just let her disappear without a trace.

They didn't dare call the police, after all, it was shameful for their daughter to be someone's lover, so they could only wait for news.

She hoped that one day her daughter would come home on her own, so her son wouldn't have to keep searching for her.

Time passed day by day, and the daughter still hadn't returned. The eldest son went to the garment factory in the city again.

This time he brought back news that his sister and that man had quit their jobs and disappeared.

He guessed that either his sister had run off with the man, or the two of them had been abandoned somewhere by the man's wife.

Murder is unlikely, after all, we live in a society governed by law, and that woman wouldn't do anything reckless.

The eldest son, Kong Xianglong, and his parents were constantly worried about his younger sister, but they had no other choice but to wait.