Silk River

He immersed himself in the moonlight with the fragrant scent of mulberry, as if afraid that the Ngan Huong area would be plowed tomorrow. Suddenly, Hinh felt like someone was whispering to him. What are you doing out here at this late hour? Go home and rest, tomorrow you can pick leaves. Then he was lured by the moonlight into a magical, dreamlike, real area. Oh my, oh my, I, the one who “eats standing up”, live the life of a silkworm, the life of a silkworm, if we love each other, then come back to spin and weave silk. Later, when we have a beautiful piece of silk, we can sew clothes together, weave dreams of peace. Hinh stretched out his hand to catch the moonlight, the wind blew into his face. He staggered, suddenly his foot slipped, making his body sway…

It was late at night. The dew was cold. He dragged his body home in the cold. The days of picking mulberries, his mind was hazy, remembering the uncertain feeling. Yen Chi left to follow the merchant when he came to the village to get goods, heard that he was incredibly rich. She was his first love, but left a desolate and empty area for Hinh. I wish the wind would blow steadily forever, soothe the pain and caress the mulberry fields that were still green in the weary waiting. The village was becoming more and more deserted. Young people flocked to the city to find work, some jumped into the industrial parks that were bustling with vehicles in the morning and evening. Some fathers and mothers burned trays and looms to work as servants in the city. The houses in the countryside were deserted and silent. The alleys were sad, remembering the village in the prosperous days when customers were flocking to buy cocoons and silk, tying bundles of silk to take far away. At the entrance of the village, there were several large shops selling elaborately woven silk, now shrunk. Mr. Ca Dai had a talented daughter who sewed ao dai, but now she has gone to the city to make a living. The village no longer has Yen Chi. There are also no longer any hard-working, tall girls, who, despite the hardship, still have smooth hands and charming rosy cheeks. Mr. Ca Dai now keeps the profession with a few workers to ease his longing, not caring about profit. When he was young, he was close friends with Hinh's father. That year, Hinh's father went to the battlefield, and Ca Dai also went to the fierce fire zone after two years of studying fine arts. Hinh's father died before the country was unified. Mr. Ca Dai was discharged from the army and returned to his hometown to make silk, not studying fine arts anymore.

Whenever Ca Dai felt lonely, he would call Hinh over for tea and a chat. He could read the sadness in Hinh's eyes, a person who was sad and stayed in the village, immersed in the world of silkworms and busy work. Sometimes he sighed and said: "If I had known that, I would have married Giang to you". He said that because he did not know the deep feelings between Hinh and Yen Chi. He poured tea into his cup and his own, to ease the confusion in his heart. Then he lightened the heavy atmosphere with a word of encouragement: "Well, the village still has a few people like you, like me. That is enough to keep the fire of the profession smoldering."

The picture makes my mouth bitter. In this age of technology, everything changes so quickly that a smoldering fire is of no use.

After the tea ceremony, Hinh returned to the village crossroads and met Yen Chi's mother. Mrs. Thuoc invited him to come home to visit. "My husband is also home." Hinh replied: "Yes." Anyway, his heart was restless today, so he followed her. Mr. Than and Mrs. Thuoc loved Hinh. The story of him and his daughter made them secretly regretful. They only heard their daughter say that she went to sell silk in the city, but it was silk from other villages. Hinh tried not to let out a sigh. Their daughter followed someone else, there was no happiness anywhere, but she didn't look home for a whole year...

***

The room was deserted. Hinh was surfing the internet in the quiet night, when he suddenly jumped when he saw a Facebook page displaying silk products with the Tan Long brand. He wondered: These products are from his village, not Tan Long. Who is the one who is “hanging a sheep’s head but selling dog meat”, mixing his village’s silk with the products of the newly rich village? The village only has ten households making silk cocoons and spinning silk, with a few dedicated people still doing the job. There are only a few customers coming back to buy. Could it be that they were the ones who brought his village’s silk, labeled it Tan Long and sold it? The next day, piecing together information, Hinh finally knew that the person behind the traders who still came back to the village to buy goods was Yen Chi. Yen Chi had insolently betrayed the village, doing illegal business, and the man known as the silk tycoon must have been pulling the strings behind the scenes. His meeting with Yen Chi became extremely awkward. His ex-lover suddenly became a stranger, speaking with a pragmatic tone. All the way home, he still couldn't understand why he loved and missed such a person.

Mr. Ca Dai was shocked when he heard this news. All his life, he and the honest artisans had kept the brand, stuck to the profession, hoping that one day the fire would flare up, but who would have thought that the village girl chasing after profit was muddying the village's traditions as well as the skillful techniques passed down for generations. The whole village closed its doors to the old traders. The head of the family sent Hinh and another young man to the city to find out their tricks. Hinh knew that when his village's goods were mixed with silk from other places, people would sell them for many times higher prices.

As soon as Hinh returned, Mr. Ca Dai came to find him, his face serious. He invited him and the skilled craftsmen, who had put down their looms, to the village hall for a meeting. A few days later, he and Hinh packed their bags and went to several southern provinces to meet fellow craftsmen and artisans who were working hard to build a brand. After a ten-day trip, Hinh envisioned the path of the village. The village still had many skillful hands, just waiting for a new wind to continue working hard, as diligent as a bee. He made friends with a few famous people to create opportunities for the village's silk. Then the village built a showroom for visitors from all over to enjoy the beautiful silks, nurturing the dreams of those who loved their homeland. The remaining young people created additional channels on social networks, with pictures and videos that were all beautifully perfect. The village built a brand, the village name was included in the sightseeing itinerary on the tourist route to the scenic area. The roads are not wide but are enough for vehicles to follow each other, leading visitors from all over to enjoy the scenery, see the river with flocks of storks spreading their wings, the green mulberry fields and many small flower paths connecting fields to fields, hamlets to hamlets.

The silk exhibition room at the corner of the communal house, under the canopy of a kapok tree that is more than two hundred years old, is a witness, reflecting the achievements of the ancestors in building the village... Visitors from afar say that the silk village is rapidly changing. Mr. Ca Dai said that the village has revived thanks to the people who know how to sew a suitable shirt, who know how to learn from others to do good things for the village and for silk. Several households doing business in the South have returned to replant mulberry trees, raise silkworms, and buy spinning machines. They have accumulated capital so they can build large factories. Hinh is happy because among them there are brothers and friends who are now like-minded, rolling up their sleeves to do great things. He is busier but his joy has also increased. The village is bustling from the houses, alleys to the green mulberry fields. The reputation of the village is growing, several silk villages far and wide have come to study.

***

One day, the car parked in the communal house yard. The owner of the car was a big trading company, including silk, which was said to have helped many places prosper. He came to meet Mr. Ca Dai. Mr. Ca Dai called Hinh over. After an open conversation, everyone agreed on an order that would breathe more life into the village. More silk from the village would be exported abroad, to large cultural regions. Mr. Ca Dai called Giang back. His daughter had lived in self-consciousness for many years because she felt she had failed with silk, and now she was starting a new business while the village was on the rise. Hinh was spinning like a pinwheel, so the job of picking mulberry leaves was left to others. He was cheerful during the days of introducing it to visitors from near and far who came to visit the exhibition house and take souvenir photos. Giang's weaving and sewing workshop was right across the street, so it was convenient for the two to talk, and their feelings grew close without them realizing it. Occasionally, Hinh took Giang to the moonlit riverbank. The moon was as gentle as the silk of the village, cool and soft. Thanks to her foreign language skills and fluency, Giang can talk fluently to international visitors to the village. The visitors are fascinated by the scarves and shirts with many patterns and flowers that she skillfully embroidered on silk. The village is proud to have Giang.

***

The sky was sunny. The roses and frangipanis were blooming in the courtyard. Hinh had just finished receiving the foreign guests when Mrs. Thuoc passed by. Seeing Hinh, she turned to confide in her. She said: “Yen Chi has had a hard life, my dear. She followed that man…” Then she told the story. The man Yen Chi had followed had gone bankrupt. He gambled, was a drunkard, neglected his work, and was tricked by his juniors, leaving him with almost nothing. He beat Yen Chi, then chased her out of the house. When she stepped out of that house that reeked of cigarette smoke, beer, and alcohol all year round, Yen Chi still had no identity. She was like a duckweed clinging to a rotten tree, and when the water flowed strongly, she was swept away. “She said she regretted leaving you and that she had sold her conscience because she trusted others.” After saying that, she stood up, her eyes filled with tears. Hinh also felt her heart clench.

The village held a party to honor those who contributed to the silk industry. The river sent its wind to the village to attend the party. The river murmured with small waves. Among the groups of guests, there were those who would carry silk scarves far away. Late in the afternoon, Hinh sat down to rest and have tea when she received a handwritten letter from Yen Chi. She wrote: “For the past few days, I have only dared to look at you from afar, and I see that your life is very good. I am a misfit, have made a big mistake, and do not deserve forgiveness. But I ask that you let me work, and in the future I can buy silk from the village to make shirts. I borrowed money from you to open a small tailor shop in the district. I will also make shirts, to remember the past and to make up for my mistakes with myself…”

Hinh put the letter back, his heart sinking. A cool breeze just blew again. Yen Chi had made him feel restless and thoughtful. Giang's voice called him back to reality. She boasted that she had just finished creating a new pattern on a silk shirt, very beautiful...

Short story by Que Phuong

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/song-lua-post545842.html