The chapter opens with the narrator, Netsai, and the little child Shupikai watching Baburukuru’s convoy approach the homestead from a hilltop. After a brief vigil they rush down, shouting and chanting his name, while Aunt Gladys (Tete Gladys) arrives in a rattling old Austin. Babamukuru’s large green car pulls in, and the narrator sings a welcome song. The crowded yard erupts in ululation, dancing, and loud praise from the father, who brandishes a spear and declares Babamukuru a “returning prince” and heralds his English education. Relatives—Babamunini Thomas, his wife Mainini Patience, and many aunts, uncles, cousins—surround him. The narrator tries to embrace Babamukuru, who spreads his arms for hugs. A chaotic welcome follows, with the narrator helping in the kitchen, preparing meat, vegetables, sadza and tripe sausages while many women comment on her skill. She serves water for hand‑washing, repeatedly kneeling before male relatives in the wrong order, causing confusion and a spilled dish of water. The gathering proceeds to a feast of meat, gravy and vegetables, with mahewu as the only drink because the abstinent Babamukuru prohibits alcohol. Music erupts; drummers, hosho and improvised singing fill the night. The narrator observes her cousins Nyasha and Chido, noting Nyasha’s inappropriate dress and her self‑consciousness, and feels a growing sense of superiority over them. She also reflects on her brother Nhamo’s arrogance and her irritation with him.

Babamukuru then addresses the assembled family, outlining a policy that each branch must ensure at least one child reaches Form Four, ideally more, to secure the family’s future. He stresses education as the path out of poverty and cites his own master’s degree as proof. The father, uncle Thomas, and Tete Gladys echo his points, while the narrator notes the tension between Jeremiah (the father) and Babamukuru over resources. Babamukuru decides that Nhamo, who is finishing Standard Three, should be taken to the mission school and registered for Standard Four. The family celebrates this plan.

Later, Nhamo returns home after his first year at the mission, physically changed—taller, healthier, but his Shona has faded, and he now speaks mainly English, which the father lauds as a sign of emancipation. The narrator feels jealous and angry at his newfound status. Soon after, Nhamo falls ill with a neck pain that is diagnosed as possible mumps; he is taken to the mission clinic, then to the General Hospital, where he dies. Babamukuru comforts the grieving parents, attributing the loss to divine will. The mother collapses in grief, accusing Babamukuru and the mission of bewitching Nhamo. The family mourns, with keening that lasts all night, and Nhamo’s body is eventually buried in the family plot.

In the aftermath, Babamukuru revives the discussion on family education, insisting that the lack of a male heir makes it vital to educate the next generation, including the younger cousin Tambudzai. The mother fiercely opposes sending Tambudzai to the mission, fearing another death; she threatens to die herself. The father urges her to relent, but she remains adamant. The narrator, encouraged by Babamukuru’s earlier endorsement of her own schooling, decides to go to the mission despite her mother’s deteriorating health, feeling vindicated.