Seaside Pavilion - Short story by Le Duc Duong

1.

There was a loud scream that tore through the sea! He's in trouble, folks! He's in trouble! A whale as big as a black, capsized boat appeared on the beach. The sea still splashed over its body, foaming as if it was crying.

The whole village rushed to the beach. Everyone wiped their faces, worried, as if they couldn’t believe their eyes: The whale was gone! The most worried was Mr. Kha - the village treasurer. He unconsciously put his hand in his pocket as if counting money. So he had to worry about him! According to the custom of the fishermen, whenever a whale washed up on the village beach, they had to bury him carefully and thoughtfully like their parents. On the Dong Gang sand hill, there were still 5 whale graves that had not yet dried, and the sea cucumbers had not yet turned green. So now there was this one… Mr. Kha looked up at the blue sky and sighed. Just like a person, his burial had to be complete with rituals. Flags, fans, funeral cloth, pigs and chickens as offerings. As if understanding his feelings, the owner of the big boat whispered to the village treasurer to keep it that way. They loved and trusted him, so they came to our village to deposit their bones! The village’s communal house was storing dozens of their skeletons.

Illustration: Van Nguyen

The whole village was saddened as a large crane, the kind hired from the port, came to carry him up the hill.

The bucket truck dug up a grave as big as a small pond. The village elders wore neat white robes, flags, drums, and trumpets. Rolls of white cloth were carefully spread out to wrap him, placing them neatly as if he were swimming in the sea. Long and the village boys dug sand, covered him with cloth, and then all cried out in a mournful voice: Dear Nam Hai, you were in the blue ocean, where did you go and what happened to you that you ended up on this deserted beach of our village? Oh, how painful! Now that you love and know how to entrust yourself to this world, you can rest assured. We will pray and burn incense to you all year round until eternity, just like our ancestors did! The village returned dejectedly in the wind. The sea in the distance still rose up as if it wanted to claim the whale's body from the sea.

2.

When he was young, Long lived with his grandmother in a small stilt house on the edge of a cliff. After several storm seasons, the waves swallowed almost everything except for a few poles. If the sea wanted to, it could have swallowed everything, but his grandmother said that it was thanks to the protection of the South Sea God that it was still there. Long did not think so. He said that his grandmother was strong, so even if it collapsed, she would rebuild it. The remaining land was covered with tarpaulin and tents. The house was exposed to the sea like the last tooth on her gums. After several seasons of roaring, it still could not be pulled out. The sea was angry, angry, and helpless before the old woman who looked after the sea.

Although there was still a house, only his grandmother was there, and every night Long would sneak into the communal house and sleep under the electric light. His grandmother could only smack her lips… From then on, Long was given the nickname "Long Dinh".

That year the village held a big fishing festival. They invited a traditional opera troupe to come and sing An for three days and three nights with great excitement. Everyone carried mats and spread them out across the communal house yard to eat and watch the performance. The artists sang and danced until their makeup faded and then stopped. Other actors painted their faces and danced. Only the talented ones who danced with flags, carried spears and swords kept waiting to be stabbed to death, so they snuck backstage and slept until their legs were kicked and they got up to perform.

That night, the play Vo Dong So bid farewell to Bach Thu Ha was like the eye of a storm, attracting all the villagers to watch. The communal house yard was packed with people, leaving only the upper mats for the elders, village elders and dignitaries to sit and drink wine and enjoy. The old opera lovers all prepared their waistbands with coins. The rich ladies took out five thousand green bills and stuffed them into their fan cards. The village chief, Mr. Khiem, sat in front of the drum to reward the actors and actresses. Every time the play went up and down, it was sweet or sad, Mr. Khiem's ​​reward drum beat happily. The older ladies competed to throw their fans with the bonus money. Those who didn't have fans threw the money straight at Vo Dong So and Bach Thu Ha. The young servants ran back and forth, picked up the money, put it in their pockets and went backstage. At that time, singing An to earn money was a way to reward, so the artists' veins popped out in their necks to show their gratitude. The actresses loved Bach Thu Ha and every time she sang, money rained down...

The scene was played late at night when Vo Dong So said goodbye to Bach Thu Ha and went to battle, then... Bach Thu Ha fell down, writhing in pain. The sound of thunderous applause and rain of money poured down on Bach Thu Ha. It was thought that Bach Thu Ha would swim up with the money, but she still rolled around. The manager standing outside turned pale and asked her brother to carry her out. Everyone praised her, the performance was so good that many children innocently asked, did she die because she missed her husband? Many old people shed tears, mourning the eternal separation of the talented couple.

Backstage, it was different. Bach Thu Ha's dress was soaked in blood! Several women turned pale. Bach Thu Ha gave birth to a baby boy! Standing next to her was Tu. Holding the cute baby boy, it seemed like Tu had a hunch that he was her child from a previous life.

Please look after the boy while I come back to pick him up… Bach Thu Ha wiped away her tears and said to Ms. Tu - the woman at the communal house, who would later become Long’s maternal grandmother. Much later, the boy trotted along the banyan tree at the communal house but his mother never returned. Some said that his mother later fell ill and died. Others said that the boat carrying the whole group sank at the estuary… Everything rushed with the wind to the vast and deserted sea. Long lived with Ms. Tu and the communal house from then on.

3.

Bup admitted that Long was very good at cooking. Something as simple as fish noodle soup, when in his hands, was delicious. Just boiled tuna, a little fried flying fish cake, a few slices of onion, and fragrant coriander leaves, but it made me faint. Banh can - a type of cake of the poor in coastal areas, only ground rice flour into a tiny clay bowl, but Long made all kinds of cakes. If you want to eat shrimp, peel the meat and put it in the baking pan to make it fragrant; squid with browned edges is sweet to the tongue; if you don't have anything, sprinkle some dried shrimp... But everything must be dipped in a legendary dipping sauce made of sweet fish sauce, thinly sliced ​​green onions, and red chili so that anyone who doesn't eat chili will have tears flowing down their faces and runny noses like they're crying for a ghost. Bup herself had eaten it and it made Long laugh so hard he almost fell off the stove. Sometimes, when her father and second brother went on a boat trip to her mother's distant death anniversary, Bup would come over to visit and without any coaxing, Long knew he had to show off his skills to make it for her. At those times, her grandmother just sat there, smiling and silently looking at the boat owner's little daughter. She was a true seafarer, without a grain of sea salt on her hair. There was no smell of fish on her hands. Perhaps she was exactly like her mother when she became a daughter-in-law. Every time the boat returned, the basket was full of fish, but Ms. Lien did not pay any attention, just sat there calmly calculating and collecting the money. Unlike the fish seller who held bundles of money soaked in seawater or fish blood. Ms. Lien threw the money in her pocket and took it to the gold shop to exchange for rings and necklaces. Some people even said that even her husband had to wash off alcohol if he wanted to share the same bed! However, her first child was born as dark as a tree that was used to build a boat. It was only when she was born that she became the true image of her mother. When she was a child, her mother had covered her legs with gold and silver. When she grew up, she would buy anything at the fashion market first. Because the god of the South Sea blessed her father's boat, it always caught the most fish in the village. Every time they docked, they were so suffocated that they couldn't breathe. People joked that these were the most polite and well-behaved boats in Cua Be village. When he returned, he bowed to the gods at the communal house and was blessed! Hearing that, the boat owner just silently thanked them! Every big full moon, he would offer a 50kg roast pig at the communal house porch to the gods and the village's edict, along with beer. So when he heard the village elder hinting at wanting to repair the communal house, the boat owner clasped his hands and prayed, "I will set aside all the money from the biggest fishing boat of the fishing season to offer to the village to repair the communal house." He just muttered that, but just a few days later, the whole village was scattered like anchovies jumping out of a net. The God had reserved one billion for the village to repair the communal house! Hearing that, the elders nodded and silently praised, but his wife, Mrs. Lien, was as angry as silver in salt water.

Mr. Thien stopped by and saw Long sitting and slurping a pot of fish noodles for dinner, so he stopped by. Long took the hint and scooped him a big bowl. He sat down and ate heartily and asked the temple keeper, "If you have the strength, come with me to work at sea to earn some capital to get married instead of staying home to sweep the temple and doing the three youth jobs of the ward, wasting your energy." Long was silent but secretly thanked him. Because in the past, going to sea with a boat was a big deal, but now it was simply because the village boys were lazy and only liked to eat, drink, drink coffee and play cards, so sometimes the boat was filled with oil and crushed with ice but still not enough hands to help, making the boat owner pale. Actually, although each trip paid five to seven million, compared to today, this job was too hard. Not to mention the many disasters. So the boys were less interested in pursuing this job.

After finishing the bowl of noodles, Mr. Thien suddenly stood up and was startled. There was a familiar hat in the corner of the tent, but he couldn't remember it... Only when he got home did he suddenly remember that it was the hat of the Doll. He ran back, but the tent was silent, without any sign of people or firewood, just like a dream. He looked over to the communal house where Long was burning incense at the altar.

4.

Bup had a haughty appearance since childhood because of her elegant face with dreamy eyes that seemed to have nothing in mind, especially her sons. Every time her father's boat left the dock, the hired boys would pretend to run back and forth, carrying things in front of them, but Bup treated them like flies and wasps, not even bothering to move. One time, An got his captain's certificate and showed it off in front of Bup and her mother. Lien was amazed and immediately took out 2 green papers to give as a greeting, but Bup didn't even bother to pay attention. Or the tall and handsome border guard captain named Hoang carried a pole to his father's house to give him a travel permit. But Bup glanced at him and mumbled, "Hello, border guard uncle Hoang!" The captain's face was covered with cold ice water. Hoang could not take off the "uncle" hat as big as a thorn on his head. Actually, Bup also knew that Hoang, An, and Long... all liked her. Dad didn't say it, but Mom liked An because he was tall, dignified, kind, and loyal to Mr. Thien for nearly ten years working at sea. Hoang was too mature. As for Long at the temple...

5.

Long slept soundly under a pile of cloth behind the main hall, the smell of roast pork and offerings still lingering throughout the temple. The fishing ceremony had just ended, and now the Chief Pilot - the one who sang Ba Trao for nearly 10 hours on the boat - was as exhausted as a sponge. He had been the Chief Pilot for several seasons, but this was the hardest time because he had just recovered from a week of Covid. His body was sore, his neck was sore, but no one could replace him, so he persevered.

When he was a child, he wandered around the edge of the communal house, and the Trao song from spring was the lullaby that his grandmother planted in Long's soul. When he was sad, he would sit and hum the song. Hearing the boy sing, Mr. Ca Ngu was surprised and then rejoiced because from the roof of the communal house was born a person who did not need to be taught but became a master. When the old man showed him a green-covered book with a string tied to the spine that said: Ho Ba Trao Melody, Long just skimmed through it as if to assess if there was anything he did not know. It turned out that he knew two-thirds of the book. During the fish praying ceremony, the master sang for hundreds of people on the boat.

Long woke up when he felt someone gently pull the blanket over him. Get up, Long! Are you tired? Something to do! What to do? He felt his grandmother's hand stroking his head when he was a child in the corner of the tent. Long, go help Ba Pup by boat!

6.

Bitten, Brother Bay! There was a sound from the bow of the ship in the pitch black night.

There were three people who came to take care of this fish. An, Long and the one-armed man pulled the line. The tuna, though deep in the water, was uncomfortable when the rod pulled it up. Everyone worked hard, shaking their heads as they pulled.

The line puller was hooked up to speed up as the fish showed signs of going berserk. The line vibrated violently. Tens of minutes had passed, but the hands were still diligently pulling the line. Hey, drop the shockwave!

Mr. Thien gave the order. A worker lowered the electric cable down with the line. It turned out to be a big, strong tuna that was fighting back fiercely. If left too long, it would break free. We had to drop the electrode down to inject it to numb it. When it got close to the surface, the tuna was still swaying like an arrow in the water. On the deck, 3 sailors were ready to hook and pull… Mr. Thien walked on the deck, holding the hook ready.

Brother Bay! The one-armed worker shouted loudly. He wrapped the fishing line around his remaining arm and held it tight. The fishing line squeezed his forearm so hard it bled, but he still held on.

Long and An used their hooks to catch the fish but both missed. Mr. Thien got angry and jumped out to grab the hook. Suddenly the ship tilted because of the big wave, causing the ship owner to lose his balance and fall into the sea. It sank. The sea was covered in blood and foam. Everyone was stunned, not knowing what to do. An turned away, trembling.

One person threw a buoy down and jumped in, it was Long. The sea surface was so foamy and bloody that it was impossible to distinguish between fish and people. The whole boat panicked. A moment later, people and fish appeared on the water surface… Long held Mr. Thien’s armpits to keep his balance. Both faces were covered in blood.

The bow of the boat near the dock bowed down to pay respect to the communal house. Little Bup walked forward… Mr. Thien helped Long up and said affectionately, wake up young man, we have reached the communal house!

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mai-dinh-bien-truyen-ngan-cua-le-duc-duong-185250412185523295.htm