The mountaintops are verdant, and the birdsong is like a complex sonata.
The summer afternoon was slightly warm, but in the mountains and forests, you could only feel gusts of cool breeze brushing against your ears and hair.
Li Xian carried a small cloth bag on his back and a snakeskin bag in his other hand, which contained trap-setting equipment and some glutinous rice picnic ingredients.
Holding Xu Nuo's hand tightly with his other hand, the two walked slowly along the mountain path.
Her face, hidden under a small straw hat, was as white as jade, with a touch of cherry pink. She looked up at him with a smile and asked, "Can we really catch the little rabbit?"
Li Xian nodded: "Yes, it's easy to catch them once they've set a trap."
The two had been walking for about ten minutes, climbing all the way up from the foot of the mountain. Xu Nuo was a little tired, slowed down, and asked breathlessly, "Did you often come here to catch rabbits before?"
Seeing that she was tired, Li Xian stopped, bent down, picked her up, and hugged her tightly, asking, "Are you tired?"
Xu Nuo originally wanted to walk by herself, but she noticed yesterday that Li Xian's foot injury hadn't fully healed. However, she was indeed tired now, so she wrapped her arms around his neck, leaned on his shoulder, and giggled, saying coquettishly, "A little bit."
A patch of grass not far away seemed to be nudged by something. Li Xian, with his sharp eyes, gently reminded her, "Nuonuo, look."
Xu Nuo turned her head and saw the small gray animal dart past quickly. She exclaimed in surprise, "A rabbit!"
Her big eyes widened with surprise and curiosity, as if she had discovered a new continent. She shook Li Xian's neck twice and asked, "Was that a rabbit just now?"
Li Xian looked at her with a smile on his face.
"Yes, I'll catch it for you in a bit."
Xu Nuo was already eager to catch the rabbit and urged him to walk faster, so he obediently quickened his pace.
Reaching the edge of the trap, he put Xu Nuo aside, squatted down, and quickly lowered the bait.
Xu Nuo squatted to the side watching, and suddenly had a whimsical idea. She reached out and dripped a drop of herbal water into the container.
A delicate fragrance immediately spread.
After baiting the basket, the two took the empty basket and went into the mountains to look for wild mushrooms.
On the way up the mountain, Li Xian noticed that the tips of the leaves were damp, indicating that it must have rained lightly in the mountains the night before.
After the rain, if you look into the bushes, you can see a lot of wild mushrooms.
Clumps of them fell beneath the trees.
Xu Nuo pointed to a pine tree: "There are green mushrooms here."
Li Xian walked over to pick it, but Xu Nuo stopped him: "Isn't it said that brightly colored mushrooms are poisonous?"
He reached out and picked one, showing it to her in his palm, and whispered, "This is a green-headed mushroom, it's edible."
Seeing that he said it was edible, Xu Nuo boldly reached out and took it. The mushroom was plump, with a pale blue cap and patterns, and it didn't smell very good.
She put the green-headed mushrooms into the small basket.
After picking all the wild mushrooms in this area, the two walked further in.
The further they went into the mountains, the denser the plants became. Every few steps, they would find a clump of mulberries and wild berries. Xu Nuo was very happy and picked them all and put them in her basket. She even asked Li Xian to dig up two clumps and take them back with the roots.
In denser forests, the light is somewhat dim, with one green tree after another stretching endlessly.
Li Xian stood among the bushes, his gaze calmly fixed on a piece of rotten wood for a while, then stopped.
Xu Nuo followed his gaze and saw it too.
On the moss-covered, decaying wood, two flat, cloud-like objects were perched, their openings light brown, while the round, flat tops were mostly purplish-brown with small black parts, possessing a lacquer-like sheen and appearing very hard.
Oh my god.
They turned out to be two wild Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms.
Such precious Ganoderma lucidum naturally went into Xu Nuo's small basket, which was piled full of various sizes of wild mushrooms, with two purplish-brown Ganoderma lucidum in the very center.
On their way back home, Xu Nuo's steps became even more cheerful, no longer thinking about the rabbit in the trap. These two Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms were much more valuable than the rabbit.
When she reached the trap, she almost screamed.
The wooden cage, which had been empty just moments before, was now crammed full of prey.
Trapped in the wooden trap, they kept calling to each other. Most amazingly, there was a wild rabbit outside trying to squeeze in, but when it saw the two approaching, it had no choice but to give up the delicious food in the cage and hop away.
Wow, so many!
Xu Nuo ran over and counted several times. There were five rabbits and two pheasants in total.
She said happily, "One is braised, one is stir-fried, and the rest... let's give them to Xu Yan."
Xu Yan is best at cooking meat dishes. Xu Nuo still misses the braised duck she made last time.
Let her make a braised rabbit; it would surely taste delicious.
Li Xian nodded; he naturally had no objection to whatever she said.
…
Shanghai.
Komei sat at her desk, pen in hand, and wrote a few lines. She paused, lost in thought for a while, and didn't write anything more for a long time.
I sent a letter to my second sister's son a few days ago, and I don't think he has received it yet.
She was a little worried, wondering if the clothes she had sent would fit and if she could wear them.
In my memory, my second sister's husband and sister were both tall, so I figured Li Xian wouldn't be much shorter. I should have asked carefully before sending it, but Ke Mei happened to see some fabric she liked on the street and made the clothes in a moment of impatience.
Fortunately, it's big enough that I think I can wear it.
Thinking of this, she opened the drawer again and took out two thin sheets of paper.
Looking at the letter, her eyes reddened.
That child didn't talk much, only a few words, but his handwriting was perfect, so he must have been a strong and resilient child.
After a while, Komei raised her hand to wipe her eyes, put the things away, and got up to walk out.
She lives on the second floor and was going downstairs to get a glass of water.
As she reached the corner on the second floor, a voice made Komei slow down.
Ke Han's voice was blocked by the wooden door, but it still reached Ke Mei's ears.
"Dad, doesn't my second sister still have a house?"
Komei's eyelashes fluttered, she gritted her teeth, and slowly walked towards the door, leaning against it.
The study was built in an antique style, with red carved wooden furniture that exuded a subtle and refined air. One wall was covered with picture albums and manuscripts, neatly arranged on the bookshelves.
A man with graying temples sat on a mahogany chair. He had a refined appearance, a handsome nose, but his eyes were somewhat cloudy.
This person was Ke Wei's father, Ke Chongshan.
Ke Chongshan glanced at Ke Han and said wearily, "It's done. Let's rest for a while."
Ke Han had been massaging Ke Chongshan's shoulders for quite a while, and her hands were already tired. Hearing this, she sat down on another chair and looked at Ke Chongshan, saying, "Dad, the house is just sitting empty, isn't it? Xiao Jun is already in his mid-twenties, and he was clamoring to move out a while ago. I was thinking, isn't there still an empty house? Why don't we just let Xiao Jun live there?"
When the topic of the house came up, Ke Chongshan hesitated for a moment. Before he could speak, the unlocked door was pushed open.
Ke Mei walked in, not looking at Ke Han, but looking at Ke Chongshan and saying, "Dad, that house can't be moved. Second Sister's son will be returning to Shanghai soon."
When Ke Han realized that Ke Mei had overheard him, his face darkened, and he was very displeased: "Third sister, what are you saying? How can that child come back to Shanghai? Dad has been ashamed for half his life because of your second sister's matter, and you are going to continue to shame him?"
Komei rarely argued with her eldest sister, but at this moment she had to say, "Eldest sister, how can you say that? That's second sister's son."
Ke Han sneered: "What do you think Dad agreed for? It's just to tell everyone in Shanghai, that's all."
As for bringing that child back, Ke Han would never agree to it.
Ke Chongshan actually shared the same thoughts as Ke Han. He had no feelings for his grandson whom he had never met, and he never even thought of asking Li Xian to come back to Shanghai.
Wouldn't it bring shame to the Ke family if a child who grew up in the countryside were to enter their household?
Ke Chongshan remained silent, but Ke Mei said anxiously, "Dad, what kind of place is that countryside? Do you want my second sister's son to stay there for the rest of his life? Have you forgotten how my second sister knelt down and begged you before she was arrested?"
Ke Chongshan was stunned.
As if the curtain of time had been lifted, Ke Chongshan's cloudy eyes became somewhat moist.
Ke Wei was his proudest child.
She was beautiful and intelligent. She went abroad to study at the age of fifteen. Whenever Ke Chongshan's friends mentioned Ke Wei, they would pat Ke Chongshan on the shoulder and say, "Like father, like daughter!"
Unfortunately, what happened next greatly angered Ke Chongshan.
Ke Wei sent a letter from overseas, explaining her relationship with Li Chengyan and Li Chengyan's family background. After reading it, Ke Chongshan felt dizzy and smashed a teacup that was next to him.
He demanded that Ke Wei break off her relationship with that man and return to China immediately, or he would sever all ties with her.
Ke Wei was obedient from a young age, and Ke Chongshan felt that she would not dare to disobey him.
This time, however, Ke Wei was as stubborn as a bull.
Ke Chongshan was furious.
Two years later, Ke Wei and Li Chengyan returned to China together. They knelt at the Ke family's gate for a whole day, but Ke Chongshan didn't even see them.
He values his reputation above all else and cannot accept this.
He thought that Li Chengyan's family had fallen from grace, and that he, with no background, would not be able to stay in Shanghai. Unexpectedly, Li Chengyan turned out to be a capable person.
Before he went abroad, he had already purchased properties in Shanghai: a detached villa in Shouyang Mountain and a two-bedroom apartment on Jinfeng Road.
Because of these two properties, Ke Chongshan was finally able to meet the two men, but the good times didn't last long. Six months later, the two men were sent back to the countryside for labor reform.
At the time, Ke Wei was pregnant. She cried and begged him, "Dad, I know the matter is serious. You just want to distance yourselves from it, but my child is innocent. If there's any way, please treat him well in the future."
He and Ke Wei never saw each other again after that.
Thinking of his daughter who died young, Ke Chongshan felt a pang of pity and sighed, "That child, would you like to come back?"
Seeing that Ke Chongshan still cared about his second sister, Ke Mei breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Yes, I'm willing. My second sister's son is named Li Xian. He has beautiful handwriting. Dad, I'll get it for you if you want to see it."
Having grown up in the countryside and possessing beautiful handwriting, Ke Chongshan was unlikely to be an illiterate country bumpkin. Feeling a bit better, he waved his hand and said, "No need. What's there to see? Just tell me what he said."
“He is willing to return to Shanghai. I sent him another letter a few days ago, but he may not have received it yet.”
Ke Han felt that his third sister was really bored and had nothing better to do. She was a shameful relative, and he should just pretend she didn't exist, but instead she had to bring her over.
She sneered, "He's just a country bumpkin, how could he not want to come back? But what can he do when he comes back? Farm in Shanghai? Let Dad support him? You know our family's situation, and you still want him to come back? Dad, I don't agree to this."
Ke Chongshan opened his slightly aged eyes for a moment. His face bore a five-point resemblance to Ke Han, which was why he was particularly fond of this eldest daughter.
Ke Chongshan said, "Alright, your second sister's son is back. He can work as an assistant for Aijun. After all, he's one of our own, and we trust him more than outsiders."
Ke Han didn't speak. She couldn't possibly agree to it. Wouldn't a clueless country bumpkin like him just be a hindrance to Ai Jun? Besides, what would happen to the house if he came back?
Ke Han looked at Ke Chongshan: "Dad, why don't you give me the house first?"
Komei said, "Eldest sister, you're living in your second brother-in-law's house now, right?"
Ke Han arrogantly raised his chin and deliberately said, "What second brother-in-law's house? That unlucky man is long dead. Now the house belongs to Dad, and whoever Dad says he can have it can have it."
Ke Mei felt this was inappropriate: "Dad, this house belongs to my second sister's husband. Now that my second sister and her husband are gone, it naturally belongs to their son. When Li Xian comes to Shanghai, you will give the house to him, right?"
Ke Chongshan naturally didn't have such thoughts, so when Ke Mei said that, he saw it as somewhat accusatory.
He said unhappily, "Alright, you can leave now, I'm tired."
Ke Chongshan was tired of talking, so Ke Mei naturally couldn't say anything more and left, feeling a little chilly inside.
As soon as Ke Mei left, Ke Han sat down next to Ke Chongshan: "Dad, what are you saying, Third Sister? She's so ignorant. What kind of family is our Ke family? Why would we need to covet that man's house? Third Sister, don't you think about how many scornful looks you've suffered over the years because of Second Sister?"
Ke Han really hit the nail on the head with Ke Chongshan. Over the years, he had been scolded so many times and suffered so much scorn for no reason.
This is all thanks to Li Xian and Ke Wei.
Speaking of houses, Ke Chongshan said with some annoyance, "Didn't you take one with you?"
Ke Han's heart sank, and she said pitifully, "But Xiao Jun insists on living outside. What can I do? You know, our current salary is only enough to cover our expenses. We can't afford a house at all."
Ke Chongshan understood Ke Han's meaning, and rubbed his temples wearily: "But what if he comes back then..."
Ke Han leaned closer and whispered, "Dad, we can't let that kid know about the house."
Ke Chongshan lifted his eyelids but didn't say anything.
"Dad, think about it. It was my second sister who was so stubborn in wanting to marry such a man. If she had listened to you and married the son of the Liu family, Phoenix would be in such a bad state now, and we would be suffering so much because of her."
The biggest knot in Ke Chongshan's heart was Ke Wei's marriage.
He sighed.
Even a family like the Liu family, how dare that wicked girl refuse them, causing the Liu family to cut off all ties with the Ke family.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com