Kapitel 18: | A Girl's Life In Times of War (Part I)
[Chapter theme - "Rhythmic Tribal Sounds" - copy-paste tinyurl.com/hofsotsound in the browser ]
It had begun. The war, the marching, the camping and the fighting. First, the king and the Tang emperor ordered them to take Goguryeo and adjoin it to the Tang-Silla alliance. When things didn't go as planned, the king rebelled and the Tang ambassadors were exiled and their armed forces were pushed out. But the Tang emperor would not let Silla slip out of his controlling claws without a fight. He was amassing his armies and Sillian troops were forced to fight and defend the frail emerging kingdom they created a short while back.
From all the plotting and fighting, a much-needed respite came from time to time whenever the enemy's troops halted their advance and retreated to regroup, a stone's throw past the ever-shifting border. Each drop of Sillian blood was a coin they paid for the ultimate goal: independence. Min-Jun's troops also fell back to regain their strength, their main base being the fortress of the Heejaehyeon region.
Calling home either the field tent or her and her grandfather's tiny room in the fort's keep, came naturally for Soo-Ah. She adapted quickly as a child's mind and body are easily moulded. And for all those times she felt a girl's destiny was not for her she gladly ripped the benefits of passing for a boy.
No one looked at her sideways when repeating the litany of teachings out loud or if she spoke in riddles from the teachings of the great masters. No one was surprised to see her carry around a book instead of a sewing kit. In fact, from the uneducated soldiers to the learned commanders, everyone praised her diligence and foresaw a great future once the war was over. Whatever her future would bring, at least Soo-Ah hoped she would continue to impress. She relished too much being admired and heard.
It was a strange feeling to enjoy the attention of those she should be wary of.
The early morning buzz around the fortress reached Soo-Ah's ears. "Keep your enemies closer, Keep your enemies closer," she muttered in a hushed tone, as the first thing before getting out of bed. Despite being on the first line of the war she was not referring to the Tang empire she kept hearing mentioned in her grandfather's reports. Her fellow soldiers had their fights cut out for them and she had hers. Or so her grandfather said. He had made her repeat this particular teaching of Great Master Sun-Tzu for a few years now since she first arrived at the fortress. The wise did not speak wise words in vain, he would say.
In the beginning, she shared Min-Jun's fears with good reason. The men fighting to defend her country and her life were not her enemies, but they had potential. Every day she lived in treachery. All around her were men, living their lives on the edge, who could become a menace to her. Most of them might have morals, but living close to danger does strange things to morals.
After a almost four years living among the soldiers though, she no longer connected to her grandfather's fears. She understood his logic, but the feeling was hardly there. She was conflicted.
Looking in the small handheld mirror, Soo-Ah did not know who she looked at. Her eyes pierced back at her. Some called them beautiful. To her, they looked weird standing a little too far apart and with feminine dark eyelashes rims along the upper half of the almond shape. With the years passing by, she outgrew the big round eyes and plump cheeks that made her look deliciously adorable and indistinguishable from a boy. Now her face was shaping into delicate features. Her skin was a little too tanned when compared to that of girls she had seen in villages or countryside towns. They smiled when they saw her and she awkwardly smiled back.
In the confinement of her room, Soo-Ah draped the sheets around her and tried to act like them. She twirled once and imagined how she would look if she was a girl and how those girls would still giggle with her. In her make-belief, she giggled back. If she laughed, the gap-tooth would show from behind her lips, the upper lip slightly larger. It was eye-catching especially when her black hair was pulled back in a masculine-style topknot.
One more glance in the mirror. No, she did not feel like a girl either. She slumped on the bed and let the mirror slip from her hand. The sun sneaked in through the small window slit, blinding one eye and making it watery. It was getting late. As usual, her grandfather awoke before dawn and must have been already attending to his duties as general. It was time she got to her duties as a young recruit.
She glanced at the table in the room. Her breakfast had been brought in along with her grandfather's and by this hour it was already cold and not very appetizing. But she had to take at least a couple of bites. She knew the aid would tell if she did not eat and her grandfather would scold her. At least she remained the ever so dutiful child.
Before stepping out of her room she had her routine. To make the bed where a grandson and a grandfather slept. To wash the face of a boy, to comb and pin her hair high in the top knot of a young man, to dress in the uniform tunic and pants of a recruit. To put on the boots and walk in the shoes of a soldier. Only after she felt ready to step out of the door.
The early morning training, alongside the new recruits, awaited her. Gaining basic fighting discipline and stamina was an everyday job. For as long as the sun rushed towards the lunch hour, she stood in line with other boys or young men, and she struggled to not stand out either by not falling behind or by not showing she was too adept. Because she was adept at fighting for her age.
Min-Jun turned out to be a terrific tutor for her, sharing his knowledge whenever he could spare the time. Soo-Ah learned from him the artistry of the sword and martial arts. There was something in the rhythmic grace of Kung-Fu movements that suited her delicate body construction and tamed her restless mind. But she needed someone with some free time on his hands to practice with. It was an easy pick: Duri was eager to help and the only one comfortable to be around.
So comfortable that after many times spent in his company, Soo-Ah could forget she was in disguise. What reminded her of reality was Duri's butch attitude toward her and his latest witty remarks about her voice delaying to changing into that of a young man's. With overconfidence comes carelessness, Soo-Ah reminded herself of what her grandfather used to say to her whenever she boasted to him about being easy to pass for a boy.
After saluting the few recruits she used to exchange words with and exiting the training ground, Soo-Ah went to look for Duri. At this hour he had his chores around the fortress' animal pen.
Behind the sheds, in this remote corner of the Heejaehyeon fortress, Soo-Ah found the liveliest atmosphere. The farm birds were strutting around the yard, pecking the dirt. The sounds and the smells of wet animal fur, ruffled feathers and dust clawed under the chicken feet and beaks reminded Soo-Ah of her grandfather's manor. How could she not feel comfortable around here? The goats were bleating and came to lick her hand as soon as she climbed over the fence. While she was here, Duri and his friends were not. Strange, she thought.
Men's voices, gradually increasing in volume, did reach her from beyond the sheds. Soo-Ah exited the animal's enclosure, making sure to close the gate behind her and headed to see what the agitation was about.
She could barely distinguish what went on, because in the large space between the huts there was a wall of two dozen soldiers, standing in a circle and shouting curses at someone standing in the center. On a closer look, he was not standing. The soldier kneeled but the filthy words thrown at him were meant for a woman.
Soo-Ah slipped past the men to reach the front when she heard Duri call her name and he made his way to her.
"Would you look at that, young master," he pointed with disdain at what appeared to be a scared soldier, "a whore dared to pass as one of us. Can you imagine? A woman wearing a soldier's uniform? By the gods, such an offense."
Only now did Soo-Ah realise the one kneeling and looking scared had the sweet features of a woman. She had to take the heavy words and the mud aimed at her face and dared say nothing. But her eyes were pleading.
Women of pleasure, calling themselves gisaengs, were brought inside the fortress or followed the war camps. They were here as one of the few things that the soldiers did to enjoy what they called the pleasures of life. Soo-Ah knew when they said pleasures they were referring only to their pleasures.
"Why – why is she wearing a uniform," asked Soo-Ah.
"It does not matter, Young Master. She's tromping over the holy emblem of our troops." Then Duri addressed those around. "Hey, listen here. Let's have the young master teach the whore a lesson. What you all say?"
The men around eagerly agreed and Duri pushed Soo-Ah front and center, instructing her, "Go and slap that wretched woman so she learns her lesson."
Soo-Ah had no time to protest because now she was looking down at the scared eyes of the girl.
"Please, forgive this unimportant person, young master. Please forgive me." She raised her hands in penitence.
"Why are you wearing regimentals?"
She barely glanced sideways, at a soldier sitting on the sideline and biting his fingers. Barely noticeable, she signaled with her head in his direction, "he made me do it. He wanted to play. He is a kinky one, a child like you would not understand."
Soo-Ah stared at the soldiers and now understood he looked guilty. The people around continued to urge her to slap the whore. It took some courage but So-Ah managed to ask loudly, "Whose uniform is this?"
The woman stared at her incredulously, then turned her gaze to the man who made her do it and slowly pointed her finger. The man dared say nothing. He seemed to have enough dignity not to deny it.
Soo-Ah raised her voice again, though it was shaking. "He made her do it. He should be punished as well."
The shouts ceased. There was some free space around the singled-out soldiers as those around him took a step back. A couple of voices were heard from the crowd, "Slap him too!" but that was it. Everyone else remained to wait. Soo-Ah looked at Duri for approval and he showed her she should carry on.
She came face to face with the soldier but he stood tall. She could not reach his face unless she stood on her toes so she kept staring at him until the man understood. He bowed closer to her and she slapped him as hard as she could, making him squint a little. Then he righted himself and rubbed his cheek. Silence still ruled their little tribunal under the clouds.
Soo-Ah needed to inflict the other punishment as well. She put herself in the place of the woman and as she got closer she began to understand her grandfather's fears.
As she got closer to the woman, the man began shouting again. This time, the woman looked differently at her, as if she had gained her respect. She took away the hair from her face and got ready, closing her eyes. Soo-Ah lifted her hand, but it trembled in the air. The soldier's shouts came louder, "Do it, do it!"
Geschenke
-- Geschenk
erhalten Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein