Outsider: The Fifth Young Master of the Kang Family

Chapter 55 Qingming Festival
"Wow, coke and ginger! So good!"

It was almost Qingming Festival, and it rained a lot during the Qingming Festival. The cold air from the rain had caused Kang Qirui to catch a cold these two days, and then he passed it on to Azu, Ayao, and the second sister-in-law. On the contrary, Zhu Wanling, who slept next to him every day, was fine. It can only be said that the hospital environment can really kill viruses.

The old lady saw that several people were sick, and the Kang family kept coughing. Today, she didn't make the traditional soup, but boiled coke and ginger.

"What is this? Why does it smell weird?" Yumi asked puzzledly when she drank it for the first time.

"So you Shanghai girls don't understand, right? It's called eating in Guangzhou. This is Guangzhou's special cola-cooked soup." A-Zu served a bowl to Yumi, "Here, take a sip. It's delicious."

"Coke and ginger can cure colds and coughs, it's the best for you to drink." The old lady ordered Azu, Ayao, the second sister-in-law, and Kang Qirui. Yumi also drank a bowl after hearing it, "It's really delicious."

The praised mother happily drank a bowl of wine, put down the bowl and said, "I will go back to the countryside to pay respects to the ancestors the day after tomorrow. Who of you will go with me?"

When Ayao and Azu heard this, they turned their heads away from the old lady and pretended not to hear it. Seeing this, Kang Qirui said, "Madam, Wanling and I will accompany you back. It just so happens that Wanling has not been there yet, so let's just treat it as meeting a relative."

"Yes, okay." Zhu Wanling first responded to Kang Qirui's words, and then said to the mother: "Grandma, we will accompany you back. It happens that I have a day off that day." Although the nurses' rest time is not fixed, they can still rest for several days every month.

"Okay, okay." The mother didn't force it. It was enough for her to go back with someone. If she was young, she would be able to go back by herself. But now that she is old and can no longer weed the graves, she wants her son to go back with her.

"Auntie, what does 'Baishan' mean?" "Baishan" is a term used in Guangdong and Guangxi, and Yumei didn't understand it.

"You don't even know how to worship the mountain?" A-Zu teased Yumi, clasping his hands together and saying, "As the name suggests, it means worshipping the mountain like this."

Yumei followed suit, making everyone laugh. Kang Qirui had no choice but to say, "Okay, Fourth Brother, stop teasing us. Yumei, Baishan actually means tomb sweeping. In Guangdong and Guangxi, the tombs of ancestors within three generations from parents are called 'Jiashan', and the tombs of clan ancestors more than three generations are called 'Zushan'. Baishan got its name from this."

"So that's how it is." Yumi nodded. Of all the people in the Kang family, she liked A-Zu the most because he was fun and easy to get along with. And the one she admired the most was Kang Qirui because he was rich and educated.

"By the way, speaking of going back to meet relatives, among the five of you, your fourth uncle has not been back yet. How about you go back with him to help meet the relatives?" After the second sister-in-law finished drinking, she suggested that Grandpa should go back with her so that he could meet the relatives in the countryside. Last time my cousin came, no one recognized him. How embarrassing.

"Don't bother me. These ancient customs are not suitable for me." A Zu was unwilling.

"Paying respect to the mountain is an ancient custom? Then you are very modern?" The old man was unhappy when he heard what A Zu said, "A Rui, tell him about paying respect to the mountain."

The old man knew that he couldn't convince Grandpa, so he asked Kang Qirui to do it. Kang Qirui thought for a moment and said, "Ms. Bing Xin wrote in her essay collection "To Young Readers" that 'Tomb-sweeping during Qingming Festival, although paper money is not burned, it can also train children to pay respect to their ancestors in a respectful and silent way.' This shows that tomb-sweeping is not an ancient idea. It is more about inheritance, gratitude, awe, and remembrance."

"Just like Tianxiu's school organized a visit to the Martyrs' Cemetery on Qingming Festival. Why? To remember the heroes and express respect and gratitude to them. By paying homage to the Martyrs' Cemetery, they told the students that today's peace and stability were hard-won and were defended by the martyrs with their blood and lives. This is to cultivate and promote patriotism in the children and enhance their national consciousness and sense of collective honor."

"Oh, can't I go? You keep giving long speeches. I'm afraid of you, Teacher Kang." A Zu understood what he heard, but he was still a little annoyed with Kang Qirui. He felt that after being a teacher for such a long time, Kang Qirui also acted like a teacher at home.

On the morning of Qingming Festival, when Kang Qirui and his mother were about to leave for the countryside, his cousin Bing arrived at Guangfu first. He had a lot of bags and a big black bag on his back, but no one knew what was inside. "Aunt and Uncle." Cousin Bing greeted them as soon as he entered the door.

"Cousin, long time no see." Last time, Cousin Bing was arranged by Kang Qirui to work as a laborer in the renovation of the second store. After the renovation was completed, Cousin Bing returned to his hometown. That month, Cousin Bing was exhausted and he never gambled again, for fear that he would be arranged to be a laborer again.

"A Bing, why are you coming out at this time? I'm just about to go back to the countryside." The old woman was very puzzled. On this Qingming Festival, why was A Bing not visiting graves in the countryside but coming out to Guangzhou?

"Why go back to the countryside?" Cousin Bing was also confused.

"Go back to the countryside to pay respect to the mountain."

"No need to worship, I brought out Grandpa's ashes." Cousin Bing turned the black cloth bag he was carrying to the front, which scared everyone. "What a bad boy, Grandpa was buried well, why did you dig him out?" The old woman was so angry. She respected her parents very much. Married women rarely went home to visit the graves, but the old woman went back to visit her parents' graves every year. As a result, her father was dug out by her nephew. The old woman was so angry that she picked up a feather duster and wanted to hit Cousin Bing.

"Aunt, do you think I'm thinking that?" Cousin Bing also felt aggrieved. "Now the countryside is undergoing construction, and the graves need to be relocated and the remains need to be cremated. What can I do?"

"After digging up your grandfather's ashes and cremating them, find a place to bury them in the countryside. Why bring them out to Cantonese?" My father could understand the unified relocation of the graves, but he didn't understand my cousin Bing.

"Uncle, before Grandpa died, he told me that his greatest wish in life was to be a resident of the provincial capital. After he dies, we, the younger generations, should help him realize this wish, right?" Cousin Bing explained.

"No way? Cousin, you came from a long way and yet you brought him here to fulfill your wish?" The second sister-in-law was even more frightened, and her voice was still trembling.

"Yes, anyway, my aunt is the only one in our family who is from the provincial capital. Where else can I take it if not here?" Cousin Bing said as if it was a matter of course.

"There's nothing I can do about it. Once you leave this room, nothing outside belongs to me." The old maid said she was helpless.

"The provincial capital is so big, is there no place to bury my grandfather?" This time it was Cousin Bing's turn to be confused.

Kang Qirui shook his head and said helplessly: "Cousin, there are already enough Cantonese people, and there are even more people working here. There are still many living people who have no place to live. They have to live under the overpass. Where is the place to bury the dead?"

"It's not that serious, right?" Cousin Bing still didn't believe it. After putting his things away, he said he wanted to go out for a walk by himself. He still felt that Guangzhou was so big that he would definitely be able to find a place where the dead were buried.

When she was out, it was already dinner time and she hadn't come back yet. When she was setting the dishes, Xianglan put her cousin Bing's black cloth bag on the table. Her second sister-in-law was shocked and asked, "Are you kidding me? You can put this on the table?"

"What is that?" Xianglan didn't know what it was.

"A dead person's ashes." Tianxiu pointed at the black cloth bag and spoke without restraint.

"Are you kidding me? Madam." Er Lao called out to the old nanny in the kitchen, "Why is this thing in the dining room? Put it in the utility room."

"Okay." The old woman had no choice but to agree. She took it to the utility room and put it away. After putting it away, she came back to wash her hands and eat when her cousin Bing finally came back. "A Bing, you don't do serious work, but go shopping all day." The old woman was still angry with her cousin Bing.

"No, aunt. I traveled all over Guangzhou today and finally made an important discovery. I think you are unworthy of being Guangzhou people." Cousin Bing really never stops saying shocking things.

Second Brother: "What did you say?"

Old Father: "A Bing, what are you bragging about?"

"Uncle, you finally found a place for me to bury my grandfather's ashes." My cousin Bing said proudly.

"Cousin, you actually found a place to bury grandpa's ashes in Guangzhou?" The second brother asked in surprise, "Haizhu Square?"

"Which road was it?" Cousin Bing recalled and said with certainty, "Zhongshan Road."

This time even Kang Qirui was surprised, "No way? That's the city center."

(End of this chapter)