Chapter 418: Chapter 418
With a heavy sigh, Mr. Mu put on a very solemn expression.
"Third son, I know I did wrong in the past, and I apologize to you!"
"Dad, why would you say that? You and Mom gave birth to me and raised me. You don’t need to apologize to me." Mu Dashan got anxious, for Mr. Mu had never been before him.
"Third son, listen to me. I know, in the past, your mother and I were indeed biased towards your eldest brother. But you know, in this lifetime, I just want someone from the family to become an official; otherwise, we’ll always be pointed at and called peasants."
"For your brother, your mother and I have suffered so much, endured countless hardships, all just to see him succeed and lead the entire family out of the mire."
"Third son, I’m not forcing you today, I just have no other way..."
When Mr. Mu got emotional, tears and snot were flowing, and Mu Dashan was heartbroken to see it.
"Dad, I..." Mu Dashan’s eyes grew redder, and his chest felt stifled.
"Third son, don’t feel pressured. I’ll write you an IOU, and pay you back once your brother passes the exam. What do you think?"
"An old man like me probably doesn’t have many years left. My only wish is for your brother to succeed, to help the Old Mu Family overcome its difficulties."
Mr. Mu played the emotional card throughout, and the line called affection inside Mu Dashan started to waver.
"Dad, I’ll discuss this with Shuangshuang later. My brother’s matter is my matter, I’ll try my best..."
There was no need for Mu Dashan to finish his words, Mr. Mu already knew eighty to ninety percent of it, but he still assured himself.
"Third son, if you feel overwhelmed, just let it be. I won’t blame you!"
"Dad, I’ll take the talk. Don’t worry about it!"
Mu Shuangshuang busied herself at Lu Yuanfeng’s house for a while before carrying an empty bowl back home.
The kitchen had long been tidied up, dishes dried and stacked neatly in the cupboard, and the kitchen itself was spotlessly clean.
Placing the bowl in the cupboard, Mu Shuangshuang left the kitchen and entered Mu Dashan’s room.
"Dad, I’ll pour you a cup of tea. Don’t tire yourself out, take a rest!"
"No need to fuss, Shuangshuang. Dad wants to discuss something with you." Mu Dashan had thought long and hard, finally deciding to ask Shuangshuang if there was a way to help his brother.
Mu Dashan, finding it inconvenient to move, usually kept the tea in the room, so pouring a cup of water was convenient.
"Shuangshuang, your grandpa came to see me today!" Mu Shuangshuang’s action of pouring water halted momentarily, then she resumed filling the cup.
She said nothing, wanting to hear what Mu Dashan intended to say.
But just by pondering, Mu Shuangshuang knew what Mr. Mu had come for.
"Your grandpa said many things, said our third branch had suffered in the past, and mentioned that your uncle always cared about our third branch."
"Your uncle has been sick lately and spent quite a bit of silver in Qianzhou Prefecture. Your grandpa cried today, wanting to borrow the silver we saved for buying land."
Mu Shuangshuang felt a wave of turmoil inside because she knew Mr. Mu had come to borrow money.
But she never thought Mr. Mu would target the silver meant for buying land.
"Did Dad agree to Grandpa?" Mu Shuangshuang asked.
"No, Dad only said he’d come back and consult with you. Do you think our family should help Uncle since Grandpa took the trouble to visit?"
Mu Dashan felt conflicted in his heart at this moment.
A father who had raised him for nearly thirty years cried so bitterly, merely wanting this son to help his elder brother.
"Help? With what?" Mu Shuangshuang’s attitude wasn’t overly warm.
Mu Dashan was a softie, that she always knew.
Even Yu Si Niang had recently shown signs of switching to his side.
She wasn’t sure if it was because the family’s condition had started improving, causing Baozi’s parents to forget past hardships.
Yu Si Niang had been helping Mrs. Liu cook these past days. It sounded nice to say she was helping Mrs. Liu, but wasn’t the Old Mu Family benefiting from it?
The fourth branch still hoped for good news from the first branch, then to live a better life.
But in this world, such perfect things don’t exist.
Want the wind; get the wind. Want the rain; get the rain!
"Shuangshuang, that’s not what Dad means. Dad doesn’t want to pressure you. It’s just that Dad thinks if our family isn’t in a hurry to buy land, wait until your uncle..."
"Dad, how can we not be in a rush to buy land? Until now, the greens we have are wild vegetables from the mountains. Aunt Xiao Yun’s family brings some every few days, but my grandma? Those vegetables, she’d rather throw them away than give them to the third branch."
"The dry land we have totals only five mu. If it weren’t for Fengzi and me cultivating the wilderness, or your sixth uncle and my mom doing the same, our five mu wouldn’t even suffice for a vegetable plot."
"If we don’t buy land now, where will our winter vegetables, next year’s rape, cotton, and sweet potatoes come from?"
"To really talk about money, over the years, everyone’s money has been handed to Grandpa and Grandma. Do you and my mom have any savings at all?"
"No! At the time of the family split, Grandpa and Grandma didn’t give us a single grain of rice. If our family wasn’t resilient enough, coordinating here and there, we would have starved to death long ago!"
Mu Shuangshuang recounted events one by one to Mu Dashan.
Mr. Mu could play the emotional card, and so could Mu Shuangshuang.
A few words made Mu Dashan blush with embarrassment. Thinking of those past days, his previously wavering heart grew a bit firmer.
Seizing the opportunity, Mu Shuangshuang continued, "Dad, our family is different from others. We don’t seek great wealth and status, just for our family to be safe and sound together. If we need money, we’ll earn it ourselves, not rely on others!"
"Maybe you think Shuangshuang is too ambitious, wanting to send Xiao Han to school, but I do want to send him, regardless of whether he can pass or not!"
"I want others to know that our third branch isn’t always looked down upon. We have the capability to send a child to school without everyone in the family going famished to support just Xiao Han!" Check latest chapters at 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱
In Mu Shuangshuang’s heart, Mu Dade’s existence was always a tragedy, not individually, but a tragedy of an entire era—putting the family’s hopes on one person, when that person eats well and dresses well.
The rest, just for eating a piece of meat, would be scolded beyond recognition.
The entire Old Mu Family fell into a pathological vicious cycle, with everyone hoping for Mu Dade to rise and turn his fate.
For all the time wasted, the money spent on Mu Dade over the years probably could have bought a house in town by now.
Unfortunately, those people don’t understand!
Mu Shuangshuang’s words caused Mu Dashan to fall into deep self-blame, recalling his previous thoughts, and he felt immensely ashamed.
He couldn’t think of a principle even a child could understand.
His father, his mother must have some savings in hand, and if they really took it out, it should be enough to fill his brother’s gap.
The third branch doesn’t seek to enjoy wealth and splendor with elder brother; just being able to survive is heaven’s gift.
"Shuangshuang, Dad won’t say anything more. Whatever you think should be done, just do it!"