Mr. Bai is over seventy this year, his wife died early, and he alone raised his son, Lam Khun. After many years of working on the land left by his father, he built Lam a decent house, and married a decent daughter-in-law. He still thinks that his life is so satisfying, as long as he is old and has children and grandchildren to gather his pants.

But unexpectedly, people’s hearts change.

When returning to be a bride, Thao – Lam’s wife – always showed obedience and respect for her father-in-law. But after giving birth to her first child, her personality changed completely. She often whispered to Lin:

“Brother, my land is so big, but it’s all in my father’s name. If something happens to him in the future, will it be troublesome?

At first, Lam brushed it off:
“That’s my father’s land, I’ve been working for it all my life. If you die later, you will leave it to me, what are you worried about?

But Thao refused to stop. She sowed sweet but calculated words in her husband’s head:
“You are so naïve. What if Dad changes his mind, sells it or gives it to someone else? People are old, sometimes someone instigates one and loses everything. It’s better to ask my father to change his name first.

Day after day, that whisper became a thorn in Lam’s head. He began to look at his father differently, instead of gratitude, suspicion and calculation.

One afternoon, while eating, Thao bluntly said:
“My father is a godfather, how can he manage land if he lives alone? Or my father completely transferred the land to my wife and I so that we would be worried.

Mr. Bai heard this, put down the bowl, and looked sad and lazy:
“This land is a memento left by my grandparents, and I keep it until I close my eyes to be at ease. You can rest assured, I will never sell anywhere.

But Thao couldn’t bear it, she whispered to her husband, using tears to force it. In the end, Lam – the only son that Mr. Bay loved with all his heart – uttered a sentence that hurt him to the core:
“Dad… Or my father goes out to live alone for a while, this house and land are for my wife and children to take care of.

Mr. Bay was stunned. During the years of raising his children, he never thought that one day his own children would want to kick their father out of the house. He quietly gathered up some clothes and walked out of the house he had built with his own hands. There was not a single tear, not a single word of pull from the daughter-in-law, only a cold silence that choked her heart.

Mr. Bay moved to a small hut next to the edge of the field. Everyone in the neighbors was sad, but he just smiled sadly:
“It’s my child, what do I blame?”

But just a week later, the story suddenly turned in the other direction.

One morning, commune officials and people from the court came to Lam’s house. They brought documents confirming that the land where Lam and Thao were living was under the planning to expand the inter-district road. Many years ago, the government carried out measurement procedures, but because Mr. Bay was in his name, all compensation was notified to him. The papers are still intact, just not yet the deadline for clearance, so he has not told his son.

The officer said in a stern voice:
– According to regulations, the entire amount of compensation and resettlement land will be given to the person named in the red book – that is, Mr. Bay. You and your wife do not have the right to complain.

Hearing that, Thao’s face turned pale, and Lam fell apart. They kicked her father out of the house, thinking they would occupy the whole land, but unexpectedly pushed themselves out.

Within just a few days, the news spread throughout the village. People whispered:
“Children are unfilial, heaven does not forgive.
“The land cannot be kept, but it also loses its virtue.

Thao bitterly cried and apologized to her husband for her “dirty scheme”. Lam stood in front of his father’s leaf hut, knelt down and begged him to come back, tears welling up in her eyes:
“Dad, I was wrong. I was foolish to listen to my wife’s instigation, begging me for forgiveness…

Mr. Bay looked at his son bowing his head and crying, his heart was both painful and sad. He said slowly:
“I don’t blame you, because you are the only one. But I remember, the sandy land is only ephemeral. If you lose filial piety, you will never get it back in your life.

After that, he still agreed to receive compensation and buy a small house near the market to live in old age. As for Lam and Thao, they had to comb themselves, rent an inn outside, and experience the deprivation.

Everyone in the village said that it was a bitter end to greed and disloyalty. And Lam himself was also poignant: a week of mistakes, at the cost of both honor and friendship.