The Underground Village: Short Stories by Kang Kyeong-ae by Kang Kyeong-ae

Author:Kang Kyeong-ae [Kyeong-ae, Kang]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Honford Star
Published: 2018-11-29T23:00:00+00:00

November 1937

Sympathy

‘Have a cup of cool water every morning and go for a walk.’

Ever since the doctor gave me this advice, I had been going to the banks of the Hailan River each morning to drink a cup of water from the well there.

At first I only carried a towel, my soapbox, and a cup, but I was so struck by the sight of the women bringing water from the well that I soon brought a water bucket of my own to carry on my head. The well was almost always surrounded by women, and I would have to wait for a long time for my turn. I suppose this was because it had the best-tasting water in Longjing.

There was a woman whom I happened to meet every time I carried my bucket on my head and passed the eggplant field studded with baby eggplants or the dewy millet field next to it, and we would not say a word as we walked more or less together to the well. She happened to be the only other person passing by those shoulder-high millet stalks, and she was also the only woman by the well who never spoke.

Here she is again! And she’s still ignoring me!

I couldn’t help thinking this whenever I ran into her.

Soon, the autumn elongated the pearls of the eggplants and coloured them a deep purple, and the millet stalks made a whooshing sound as they swayed in the cool wind. I heard footsteps plodding behind me; lo and behold, it was her.

Her face was swollen, and there was a large bruise on her right cheek. I wondered if she had fought with her husband or stumbled somewhere the day before. Perhaps it was my curiosity that made me want, more than ever, to hear her speak.

I finally got up the courage to ask, ‘Are you all right? What happened to your cheek?’

Her downcast eyes looked up at me and she smiled. Then, she sighed.

‘It’s nothing, just my bad luck … Where do you live? You’re always coming from that direction.’

I was glad to find she was happy to talk to me as well. ‘I live behind Yongshin School. What about you?’

She was silent for a moment as we walked. Then, she sighed and said, ‘What kind of home would a wench like me have?’

It was obvious that all was not well with her. ‘Why say such a thing? Even a bird has a nest to return to, and you are a person, no less …’

‘Ha! I’m no better than a common bird. In fact, I wish I were a bird! I could fly through the sky to my heart’s content.’

She looked up at the sky, and I could tell she was near tears. It broke my heart. I wanted to know what made her so sad.

We reached the well. We were a bit early today and there was only birdsong to greet us. I filled my bucket and took up my cup to drink underneath the willow trees that let down their long branches by the well.

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