Dulin Kesma is the third son in the Kesma family. In addition to two older brothers and an older sister, he also has three younger brothers and two younger sisters. It can be said that the Kesma family is thriving at least until Dulin's generation.

However, it is a pity that Kesma is not a prominent surname with a deep background. The so-called "family" is just a joke from rural people towards Mr. Kesma, who happens to have many children.

Yes, Dulin is just a farmer's son who needs to complete extremely heavy physical labor every day before enjoying a little bit of free time after dinner.

If nothing unexpected happens, Dulin may use one or two donkeys as dowry and marry a woman with pockmarks on her face who works equally hard in farming as his wife when he turns twenty years old. Then he will be driven out of his home by his father and build his own small wooden house near home with the help of his siblings like his farmer father did.

During the day, he will cultivate land as much as possible to expand cultivation area and take good care of crops that are actually not easy to go wrong.

At night, he will try his best to work on his wife's belly for enough offspring to reduce burden on himself in future period of time.

Almost all farmers live their lives plain and unremarkable like this way. There may be some slight flashes in their simple life but those flashes are only tiny dissatisfaction under sunlight which cannot attract attention at all.

But our story starts from an accident happened to Dulin!

"My God! How could it turn out like this?" Mrs.Kesma covered her mouth incredulously watching her eldest son Mason and second son dragging unconscious Dulin down from the carriage.

Obviously, he had head injury with dried bloodstain on forehead. If it was not because he drank Mr.Kesma's wine and fell down on the ground hitting a stone, it would be because he went to steal bird's nest.

There are not many entertainment projects in this rural area far away from the city except for that period of time after turning off lights at night. Therefore, most young people spend their slightly free time drinking, gambling and peeking at girls. Of course, if possible, they will also consider their own stomachs a little bit by getting some wild game as reward for their empty stomachs.

Eldest son Mason rolled up his sleeves and wiped the sweat off his forehead with a bitter smile while briefly explaining what happened. In short, after finishing their work secretly on haystacks, three of them were hit by a stone flying from somewhere unknown which hit Dulin's forehead causing him unconscious until now.

With tears in her eyes, Mrs. Kesma walked to Durin's side and gently smoothed his hair with her rough hands, feeling his still somewhat firm little face. "My poor Durin..." When she looked up again, her gaze became somewhat fierce. "Do you know who threw the stone?"

In the countryside, if a woman has the temperament of a "young lady," she may not live past thirty and will die prematurely due to depression. Do not underestimate the killing power of rural people; repetitive heavy farm work has given them an unfriendly mouth and a barbaric nature that far exceeds what they show on the surface. Swearing? That's just post-dinner entertainment. Family fights caused by small things that can't be put on the table are what people really enjoy talking about.

Mason scratched his head sheepishly and said he didn't see who did it.

After scolding Mason as useless, Mrs. Kesma had her two brothers move Durin back to his creaky bed.

They didn't call for a priest or doctor because they needed to wait. If Durin hadn't woken up after one or two days, they would invite the only priest in town to come see him or ask that doctor who lost four teeth from being beaten up and couldn't speak properly anymore to diagnose him.

Perhaps in city folks' eyes this was simply murder but in rural areas this was considered correct practice.

They wouldn’t spend any money unless absolutely necessary!

Durin had a complicated dream while unconscious where he saw all sorts of strange things and experienced an indescribable journey before waking up when something called a bullet pierced through that poor creature.

The first thing he said after waking up caused waves in this family which had been calm for decades: "I want to go to the city!"

Mr. Kesma sat with his legs crossed on a hard wooden chair, the cigarette in his hand burning down to its end. He shivered and flicked the last bit onto the ground, crushing it underfoot. When he looked up again and raised an eyebrow, all members of the household kept their heads slightly bowed with serious and humble expressions.

Mr. Kesma was truly the master of this family; without him, none of those present would be here today. In this backward countryside, Mr. Kesma's power clearly exceeded that of both divine law and imperial law.

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"Do you...want to go to the city?" Mr. Kesma tried to make his tone less aggressive; in his view, it was simply a foolish idea altogether. Could just anyone go to the city? If rural areas were havens of peace and comfort, then cities were hellish dens full of demons where every moment was torture - even breathing seemed like it cost money.

No money?

Then one could only become a beggar or homeless person who might get lucky enough for someone kind-hearted to give them food or shelter for a night; if not so fortunate they may be caught by human traffickers and sent northward into forced labor camps as strong young men like Durin were highly sought after by mine owners.

In response to Mr.Kesma's inquiry,Durin nodded earnestly,"Yes father,I want to go to the city.I cannot waste my life away in such a place.Life is precious,and if I can't shine brightly,it's no better than being dead."

"You can't read! Once you're in the city,you'll be like a blind man with eyes wide open.You won't understand road signs,newspapers or even job postings!"

Although Durin knew that Mr.Kesma was doing everything possible to stop him from leaving,the decision had already been made.He couldn't rot away slowly like walking corpses in this place.He needed to go and create his own life.

Just like that poor guy in the dream, even if he ends up with a broken family, even if he ends up with nothing, even if he dies under something called a bullet, he still wants to release his own dazzling light.

If it's mediocre, it's better to die!

"Father, I know you have your own ideas. But I want to leave here and try my luck outside. I can repair shoes and umbrellas. These are skills that can help me survive in the city. And I can endure hardship, father. I don't need wages; just give me a place to live. I believe someone will hire such a fool like me." Convincing Mr. Kesma was the only way for Dulin to leave the countryside.

A car passes through this place called Wild Alfalfa Town every week, but money is needed to get on board.

In Kesma's big family, except for Mr. Kesma who has money in his hands, not even Mason, the 19-year-old eldest son has touched much money let alone him as an outsider.

"Are you sure you want to leave us - your mother and siblings?" Mr.Kesma's tone became stern now because parents from rural areas cannot tolerate ignorant children rejecting their kindness and constantly defying their wills.

Dulin remained silent for a moment before standing up and taking off his belt made of cowhide which was very strong due its thick layer of grease coating on top of it . He placed it on the table then took off his shirt before lying face down on the ground.

"If you wish to execute family law," said Dulin firmly "then please do so before I leave! Because I have already made my first and most important decision in life: leaving here for the city."

"Even if I get hurt or die there someday,it is still my own choice.I respect you,father,and love you for giving me life. But I hope that in my life, there will be a day when I can personally control my own future! Father!"

Mr. Kesma did not pick up the belt in the end. He smoked two cigarettes in a row, occasionally glancing at his children beside him. Although he didn't have much education and didn't understand any profound truths, life had given him the wisdom that every human being should possess. When one puppy ran out of the nest, other puppies would not want to stay inside anymore. Dulin may not even realize that his ideas have changed not only himself but also his siblings.

It was a silent night, and no one felt like communicating as they all thought about Dulin's imminent departure.

Early in the morning, Mr. Kesma was already sitting at the table outside the kitchen with a small box about palm-sized next to him. It was something he brought back from a trip to the city once - it used to be filled with filtered cigarettes which Mr.Kesma regarded as treasures until...it turned out that some of them were covered with mold during Chinese New Year's Day on its second year after purchase.

He regretfully put those moldy cigarettes under direct sunlight hoping to salvage some of them but ultimately proved futile.

Since then, this little iron box has become an instrument for storing important things for him and is hidden under the third wooden board under his bed frame hollow space.

Yes, everyone in their family knows where he hides things except himself who thinks otherwise.

Perhaps knowing that he will leave this countryside full of decayed air today and go to big cities to create his own future made Dulin unable to sleep all night long; yet still feeling energetic when morning came around dressed neatly wearing linen suspenders pants paired with light blue canvas jacket commonly seen in rural areas washed white on certain parts by frequent use . He exuded hopefulness towards what lies ahead for him.

"Father!"

Dulin greeted Mr.Kesma who pointed at a chair next to him asking him sit down before pushing away the cup in front of him. He hesitated for a moment before handing over the small iron box to Dulin.

"There are twenty dollars inside, which is enough for you to live in the city for at least three months. After three months, you will have two choices: either live your own life or come back here because of hunger." Mr.Kesma seemed to have many feelings that were not usually seen on him as he patted Dulin's shoulder hard and then tightly pinched it, causing Dulin to feel pain. "Remember, you are a member of the Kesma family. No matter whether you can be like those decent guys in the future or not, don't forget that there is always a way out."

"No matter when, we will welcome you home!"

It was hard for Du Lin to imagine that his father, who usually didn't smile and always gave people a rigid impression, could say such emotional words. His nose inexplicably felt sour, and he nodded vigorously. "I understand. If I ever come back, it won't be because I'm forced to like a loser. I'll make sure the ground is covered in flowers and there will be musicians playing on the roadside because they will welcome a returning king!"

Mr. Kesma smiled and slapped Du Lin's head with his palm. "Let's go, kid. Stop talking."

The two left home without saying goodbye to their family members and walked silently out of town until they waited for more than half an hour when an old-fashioned bus with sixteen wheels slowly approached them looking somewhat clumsy.

As the bus came to a slow stop, Mr.Kesma suddenly hugged his son tightly whom he sometimes got angry at while patting him on the back as if trying to remember something firmly: "Go ahead! Go ahead! Young birds have to leave their nests someday and live alone.I can't give you a wealthy family but I won't stop you from soaring high in the sky!"

Du Lin took a deep breath as he looked at his father whose face had wrinkles now; hair also appeared yellowish-white.He blinked away tears forming in his eyes before boarding the bus where he chose a window seat gradually leaving behind this small town that had nurtured him for sixteen years under his father's reluctant gaze.