Morning glory

(Baonghean) - Muong opened a shop on the beach. It was a shop made of coconut leaves and bamboo panels, with the wind blowing freely. Muong's signature item, always in high demand, was her sweet Siamese coconuts, sweet even because the shop owner herself looked as sweet as the coconuts. The soldiers at the nearby outpost were regular customers of Muong. They called her shop "The Windy Shop."

Biển, a new recruit, often went to the bar alone, feeling very lonely. His compatriots had all joined the army at other outposts.

The sea has a bronze-colored complexion. Its muscles ripple like waves, and its smile reveals teeth as bright as white sand. The sea comes to the Silent Wind Inn to drink water, then sits for hours gazing out at the distant ocean.

Unlike Bien, who was a group of old soldiers, they went to the bar to drink alcohol, coconut water, and say obscene things. They often made lewd remarks and made inappropriate advances towards Muong.

Illustration: Nam Phong

Once, Muong overheard them saying:

- What kind of person is that new recruit, Bien?

He's a man of few words.

- We should give this one a try.

- By what means?

- Bring him out to serve drinks!

A little while later, Bien was summoned to the shop. After hearing his senior's instructions, Bien silently complied. Muong's eyes looked at Bien with tears. The next day, Bien went to the shop as usual. Muong started a conversation:

- Hey, how old are you, Mr. Bien?

- 20.

- Is he married?

- Not yet.

- It seems like Bien is too kind, doesn't he?

That day, Muong cleverly declined Bien's offer for drinks. A month later, it was the same group of former soldiers at the tavern.

- Bien, where did you go last night?

The boss's voice:

Yes, he went with his girlfriend.

A younger boy replied:

- Who is his girlfriend?

- Yes, I'll only say it if you give me permission, boss!

Go ahead and speak.

Yes, she's the boss's older sister.

- That's a lie!

Yes, I saw it myself.

- What did you see?

- They, yes, they "feed" each other.

- And then what?

Then they became entwined.

- Stop!

Fifteen minutes later, Bien was called in:

"Pour the wine for the boss, understand?" the boss ordered.

Bien took the bottle of wine, poured a glass for his boss, and a glass for himself.

- This guy's cheeky, scratch the boss's back, quick!

The sea hesitated, its gaze fixed on the person opposite it.

- What are you looking at? Scratch the boss's butt, understand?

Biển swung his arm unexpectedly. A thunderous punch landed squarely on the thug's chest. The thug's eyes rolled back, and he fainted. Biển went to prison… After a few months in prison, thanks to a fellow inmate who had been released due to family connections, Biển bribed his way out of prison. Biển fled to the resistance zone and became a revolutionary cadre.

Ten years later, the country was at peace. At a re-education camp, Officer Luong Van Bien went down to inspect the living conditions of the inmates.

- Yes, officer, do you remember me?

Voice of a camp inmate:

- You are…

Yes, I used to work at the same police station as you.

- Ah, I remember now.

- No, back then, the boss didn't die. They said he died to extort money to cover up his crimes.

- Ah, I see.

Yes, the boss is also in the same camp as me.

Back in his office, Bien opened his notebook and saw it: Tran Bao Ca, Captain, Station Chief… Wow, what a coincidence to meet the boss. Bien thought to himself. In the late afternoon, under the soft twilight, a young woman came to visit her husband. She was about Bien's age, with a smile like a purple flower.

"What's your name?" Bien asked.

- Yes, Pham Thi Muong.

Oh, are you Muong?

- Oh my God, Mr. Bien.

Who are you visiting?

- It's Tran Bao Ca.

Why did you become his wife?

- Yes, he forced me; he made my brother enlist in the army if I didn't obey him...

The sound of Muong's sobs was muffled. Night fell quickly in the camp, punctuated by the startled cries of a few wild animals. That night, Bien couldn't sleep. Outside, in the quarters for the prisoners' families, there was also a woman who couldn't sleep. She remembered that in her hometown, there was a type of flower, purple in color, that grew on the sandy slopes by the sea. People called it the sea morning glory…

Short stories byPhan Xuan Hau

(Yen Thanh)