A faint reddish glow on the horizon illuminated the pastoral setting. By now, the oxen had been set free from under the burden of their ploughs and were goaded towards the stables, taking along the flies that had been pestering them all day. The workers were picking up their bundles, ready to get home and wash off the sweat and the smell of manure and stirred soil from their skin, for one night at least, until the next day.
Trailing behind them, two wee silhouettes walked on the dirt path, bordering the cropland. The boys' fight eventually ended when Jung-In could not be budged from sitting on top of his friend and he was declared the winner. At least he'd managed to win something today, apart from busted lips and dirty clothes.
Soo-Ah walked by his side, peeking at his sour expression, guilt chewing at her conscience. She tried to take him by the hand, but he jerked it away, letting out a displeased "Ntz!"
"Your clothes are all stained, Jung-In. And how are you going to explain your face to your father?" the little girl asked, in an attempt to appear caring, yet above everything that had happened.
Jung-In spat out probably some dust or grass and rubbed his lips. "What's it to you? You did not care much when you dared to touch my precious ball, that I have created with these two hands."
"I'm sorry. I wanted to make you come home with me."
In his exasperation, Jung-In stopped and threw his hands in the air. "Why do I have to do everything with you? You should have stayed home when I told you so, or played with the girls." He started walking again, with purpose. It was indeed getting late. A miracle would be required for them not to get an earful from Ha-Rin Noona.
"You know the girls in the village call me Fake Bone too. And they are boring. I don't like to play alone, Jung-In," she muttered under her breath.
Jung-In heard her well enough. "And I don't like silly girls sticking their noses in my business." If it wasn't for her dummy head, he would have won his race and they would be home by now.
Frustrated, Soo-Ah raised her voice, "I will tell grandpa! And he will tell the magistrate to give you a straw-mat beating."
"Why he gonna' beat me for?" Jung-In staggered and asked her, confused.
"For not playing with me!" Soo-Ah replied, crossing her arms.
"Who says I should play with you?"
"The law. Big brothers should play with their sisters."
Jung-In creased his forehead trying to recollect something. " I never – That's not the law!" he snapped, "They don't give beatings for that."
"Yes, they do!"
"No, they don't!"
"Then, you'll have to play with me because I say so. You have to listen to me. You wait until I grow up and I'll order you around like Grandpa does Uncle."
"When you grow up you won't order me around. Old Master will send you away to get married."
"No, I won't marry anyone. I will be just like grandpa and ride to the fields and the village and have people listen to every word I say. I will be smart like he is and I will live here forever."
"You can't live here forever, stupid. Father says the Old Master is to give the manor to a boy from his clan."
"No, he won't. He'll give it to me."
"He can't give it to a girl. And certainly not to –" Jung-In shut his mouth in time.
"Say it! Say I am not his blood. This is what you meant, isn't it?" Soo-Ah yelled at him, her little hands turning to fists.
"I don't need to say anything. He must give it to a son from his family and that's the bon-gwan law. And Father says this, and father knows best." With shrewd delight, he added, "Plus if you make trouble for the Old Master, heonly gonna marry you off sooner."
"No, he won't."
"Yes, he will. He gonna' let the husband teach you to behave. Can't wait for him to take you off my head. You follow him around and pester him as you do me and you'll be the one who gets a beating."
Soo-Ah began to whine, rubbing her eyes, "But, I don't want to marry anyone. I want to stay here with you and grandpa."
Jung-In got closer to Soo-Ah and said as cocky as he could muster, "Well, if you keep bothering me, I'll tell the old master you are a naughty girl. He'll find you a husband and send you away sooner."
"You are so mean, Brother Jung-In. I'll... I'll..." She snarled at him and shoved his shoulder. Instead of budging the sturdy boy from his spot, she ended up pushing herself away unwillingly. It was like shoving a rock, immovable in the ground. But she did not care. So what if he was chubby and taller than her? How could he wish for her to be sent away? She kept shoving him to no avail.
Jung-In could not abstain from laughing at her puny attempts, easing his inflamed state in the process. "What are you trying to do with those tiny hands? How stupid are you? You cannot fight me." He was almost two years older after all.
"I'm going to spank your butt for being an idiot!" she spat out, every word forceful with her determination.
"I just beat that dumb ass for you. You would not dare. You are only a stupid little girl," Jung-In goaded her, feeding on every reaction he could get from his unique, life-long companion.
So, now he was provoking her. Fine. She would show him what she was capable of. Soo-Ah looked around and picked up a sturdy stick and chased Jung-In with it, yelling after him, "Don't you dare say a word to grandpa about me."
The boy loved the chase and his distinctive pair of amber eyes lit up. They were the most beautiful asset of his face and had the magical power to project whatever he had going on inside. "Na Na Na. I am too fast for you! I'm gonna tell on you!" Jung-In melodically teased her as he dashed and dodged while she was making futile swings with her stick.
In a fit of despair, Soo-Ah threw the stick at the boy's head, and somehow the stick did not miss its target. Jung-In fell to the ground with the left part of his back-head throbbing. The pain hurt him less than the fact that she had dared to hit him. He rubbed the lump and ruffled his brownish hair. "Look what you did to me, stupid! What if I die from all this pain? I was joking before but I am telling on' you now. You just wait, Soo-Ah!" Once he got up, he started to run for the house.
After a brief feeling of triumph, Soo-Ah soon realized what she had done. Hearing Jung-In would snitch on her she became frightened. It was his fault for making all this trouble, and she was going to pay for it? Never. She ran after the boy, yelling at him to stop.
***********************
Master Min-Jun and his administrator Han-Gyeol were in the main sitting area. They had the manor and the upcoming harvest on their minds that evening, talking about how to better distribute the labourers. Would the freed slaves and the new villagers be enough hands to put to work? Everything was carefully counted on the abacus.
"Old Master, Old Master, look what Soo-Ah did to me. She hit my head. It hurts so bad, old master. Why would she hit me?" Jung-In cried loudly as soon as he entered the courtyard.
Both grown men tensed up. Nothing good would follow. And they were so close to finishing the day.
Jung-In dashed inside the sitting area not realising that the lamps in the room would bring to light the truth of how he was all smudged and bruised.
Panting from trying to catch up with Jung-In, Soo-Ah slipped and almost fell at the threshold, but she made sure to make her plea, "Grandpa, you can't send me away!"
Master Min-Jun remained in his chair, keeping calm, disarmingly waiting for the real ruckus to commence.
Sitting on his right, Han-Gyeol yelled in the direction of the kitchen, "Ha-Rin! Get yourself in here, woman." He didn't wait for Ha-Rin to exit through the kitchen door because he began scolding her.
"You were supposed to call the children in," he added in a cutting tone, making the woman stop in her tracks and bow her head. "Are you as useless as a dog? Look how they turned up."
While the children babbled and argued, Ha-Rin's eyes grew wide in shock. Soo-Ah's face was dirty with grime and traces of tears. Plus, Jung-In's appearance was not encouraging either. It made her forget Han-Gyeol's bashing. She was accustomed to it and always prized more what Master Min-Jun had to say because he was a benevolent man. But now, she had some work cut out for her. "What have you two been up to?" Ha-Rin turned them around one by one, dusting off their clothes and assessing the damage, thinking sourly about how she would have to scrub the fabric to make it look new.
The two children ignored Ha-Rin, fighting instead for the old general's attention.
"Old Master, tell her she is not supposed to hit me."
"Grandpa, I don't want to be sent away," Soo-Ah began to whine.
"Silence!" The old general put on a stern face. "First of all, both of you are late and you came back home in this deplorable state. Only the Venerable Lord Tao knows what you got yourselves into and I want to hear none of it." His gaze was set on Soo-Ah. "On top of that, child, what are you saying? No one is sending you away. And hitting? Soo-Ah, you know in this house sisters and brothers do not hit each other."
Soo-Ah needed to step out of the heat and throw Jung-In in her place. "It's Brother Jung-In's fault, Grandpa," she puffed her feathers, pointing her accusing finger at her lacking big brother. "This morning, he stole paper, he messed with your ink, and he fought one of the village boys." He was the one who wanted to rat on her, so why should she feel remorse for doing the same.
Jung-In pierced her from under his lush eyelashes with his mouth corners bent downwards. The reproach in his eyes made Soo-Ah avoid his gaze and stare at the ground. She was not so sure she was doing the right thing anymore.
"Enough!" the old master's voice barked. "I want you two to apologize to each other right now for your wrongdoings. Soo-Ah?"
Soo-Ah was on the verge of sobbing and kept fiddling with the hem of her tunic. "I will not make trouble anymore, I promise." She turned to Jung-In, saying in a hurry and bowing with feigned respect, "Sorry for hitting you, Brother Jung-In."
"And you better behave as I taught you, child," Min-Jun added sternly, making Soo-Ah fearful for her future. "Now is Jung-In's turn to make amends," encouraged the old master.
The boy glanced with scared eyes at his father's infuriated gaze. Knowing full well what was coming for him after, he bowed, "Please forgive this insignificant servant, Old Master. I am sorry I upset you and Sister Soo-Ah," said he with sincerity in his voice. Then he raised his little face, feeling his frustrations bubbling up. "But she always follows me around, Old Master and yells at me and calls me stupid."
Listening to Jung-In's words, Soo-Ah's eyes grew wide in protest. She was not going to be blamed for this also. "I don't yell at you, stupid. You always do stupid things; you call me names and you never listen to me."
"You're not the Old Master, I don't have to listen to you. Play with the sewing box or brew tea with Ha-Rin Noona, don't chase me around," objected Jung-In, while he and Soo-Ah were in each other's faces arguing.
"I can't sew. You heard Auntie say I have hands of clay," Soo-Ah shouted back, frustrated.
"Enough with the fighting, children. You two are meant to treat each other like family. It is time you two learn the weight of your actions. As punishment, both of you will be in charge of feeding the chickens for the next ten days. And Soo-Ah, for hitting Jung-In you will have to share your rice cakes with him." Soo-Ah wanted to protest, but Master Min-Jun's raised hand made her swallow her words. "Now wash up for dinner. After, I am sure Noona can take care of that hit on your head and the busted lip, Jung-In, my boy." The Old Master swiftly dismissed them so he could get back to the other important issues.
After dinner, Jung-In went to find Ha-Rin Noona in the kitchen. She had medicine and special chants to cure anything. No one else knew better than him, judging by the countless times she made him pray in her chamber, at the altar dedicated to the gods and spirits of the house and their well-being.
Yes, for sure Ha-Rin Noona would be able to mend his head. And tomorrow, hopefully, she will also have a cure for the pain his buttocks would suffer. A beating from his father awaited him before bedtime.
*
The next day, when their punishment of feeding the chickens began, Jung-In swore he would say no words about the beating his father gave him. He only admitted that he was punished to go without breakfast for a couple of days. But when he kept scratching his bum, wincing he had to tell Soo-Ah everything.
"I am sick and tired of doing what everyone tells me," Jung-In added, throwing with disdain the grains around the chicken coop. "Can't wait to go away. You wait until I grow up. I'll go to the capital or join the army or find a wife from far away and –"
"If you find a wife, you'll have to bring her here and stay with Uncle Han-Gyeol. That's what you said. Boys stay with their family. But I don't think anyone is gonna marry you." Soo-Ah spoke, condescendingly, while sprinkling with studied gestures the bird seeds and breakfast leftovers.
"I'll be a man and I'll do anything I want. I can travel, I can join the army. I'll get myself a girl and we will go and find another village if we want to. Or maybe she and I will build our own. I heard Father talk. They look for farmers in the new territories, you know?"
"All you talk about is marriage. Look at Grandpa. He's not married. Uncle is not married either. Marriage is dumb and you are dumb for wanting to leave. I don't want to leave here. I want to grow up wise like grandpa and have people come to me for advice. I'll take care of the manor and the villagers and do whatever I want. You heard grandpa, I am not going anywhere," she added, rubbing her hands clean on her pants.
"Well you can't do whatever you want forever. Master will make sure to find a husband, probably a big nobleman with many more wives, so you'll call them Sister."
"You will go to his home," Jung-In continued and Soo-Ah vehemently shook her head. "Yes, you will. Oh, how I feel sorry about your poor future husband. If you are so much trouble now, imagine when you grow up. Maybe he will convince you to behave. That's what father says."
"No, I won't go anywhere. And grandpa won't do that if I ask him not to."
"Master has to. It's tradition. Everybody has to get married at least once." Before he finished saying this, Jung-In's stomach growled. He stared embarrassed at Soo-Ah and better fastened his tunic around his waist.
When they met again the next day to fulfil their duty, she wordlessly handed a part of her breakfast to him.
Jung-In was bewildered even while stuffing himself. He asked with a full mouth, "Is this for me? But you already have to share your rice cakes."
"I need to feed you. Who knows what will happen to you if I let you go hungry?" replied a worried Soo-Ah."What if you die? Or worse, what if you have no more strength to pull me in the cart "Uncle" Han-Gyeol made me? And who is going to tell me the legends about the gods of old?"
Jung-In hid behind the cop and began devouring his food. "You do like those legends, don't you? What story do you want to hear while we eat our rice cakes?" he asked with his mouth full.
"Oh, I like the one about the god of Amnok River, Habaek."
Jung-I nodded while taking another bite. "Perhaps that's a sign. Master said he saw water in your eyes when he found you, that's why he named you Soo-Ah. You must be the goddaughter of Habaek. I am sure Habaek blessed you so you can also put out fires as he does. You should try it sometimes."
"I never heard that before. Putting fires out by myself? How would that even work?" Soo-Ah questioned a lot of Jung-In's logic.
Jung-In pondered and rubbed his chin like he saw The Old Master do. "I know, try to stare into the flames tonight, see if you can make them move."
"And if I can't?" Soo-Ah asked, distrusting.
After swallowing the last bite, he placed his arm over her shoulder, feeling all-knowledgeable like the old master. "What does the old master always say? Practice makes perfect," he said with a grin.