Min Swe - Sword

Chapter (1)

Looking down from the side window of the tall, long-stilted house, he saw the three of them under the shade of a large tree in the courtyard.

One of the three was a girl, probably about seven years old, with a pure, pale complexion and a face that was so beautiful that she would one day grow up to be considered one of the most beautiful women in the world.

Moreover, a prominent dark mole on the tip of her right chin seems to be supporting her beauty.

The other two were boys who seemed to be three or four years older than the girl, so judging by their appearances, they seemed to be close friends of Min Min Swe, who had been playing together in the world, and who met frequently.

The place was a large yard on the edge of a village of about two hundred houses in Thayarwady Township. A man who looked like a guest, about 40 years old, was looking down from the side window of a tall house. He turned to an older man of his own age and said...

“Hey, Ko Phyo Tint, it’s easy for us to move to Yangon this month. My daughter seems to be very fond of your son and that boy. Your son is also very fond of her. Isn’t it difficult to separate them?”

The host, Ko Phyo Tint, looked down and nodded his head gently. Then they sat down again...

“Now, Ko Bo Htin, it’s not like these things are going on anymore, you have business to do. In any case, it’s important that one day, when the future comes, they settle down. But it can’t be forced. The adult should give the way, and we have a promise, Ko Bo Htin, so respect it.”

"Confident Ko Phyo Tint"

Then the two men whispered to each other. You could tell by the look on their faces that it was very important.

Suddenly, a loud noise was heard from below the house, and as the two adults watched, the girl's quick hand ran to the left cheek of one of the boys. The boy who was being beaten covered his cheek with his palm and stared at the girl, while another boy holding a guava fruit watched them both.

"Did you see, Ko Bo Htin... your daughter slapped my son?"

"Oh, I'm still praising you. If that's the case, I'll have to discipline the girl," Ko Bo Htin said, as he was about to call his daughter...

"Nay Pei Si... Nay Pei Si, even though she's a girl, no one would dare to insult someone with such a quick wit. I like it... I like it. Look at my son too... don't think you'll tolerate it."

As he spoke, the boy removed his hand from his cheek, turned around and grabbed a broken branch. Just as he was about to rush in, Ko Phyo Tint called out, “Hey, kid... come here,” and Min Swe followed, and the boy threw down the broken branch and climbed up.

"Did you pray this morning?"

"I forgot because the guests were coming."

"Go.. bow down widely"

"I have many responsibilities. I will die on land, I will die in the water, I will be crushed in the air, I will live at the highest point. I will go to meet the coming disaster and not escape. The guest must not insult the host. Take revenge on the enemy ..... Amabande"

Ko Bo Htin listened in amazement to the strange boy's worship. Ko Phyo Tint said..

"Did you hear that, Ko Bo Htin? He's still young and doesn't understand. He has the wrong idea. Don't be upset. He's a housewife, and your daughter is a guest..."

Ko Phyo Tint stopped talking, stood up, and turned to look at his son, who was standing nearby...

"It's not your place to be angry... How could you imagine doing this to a girl?"

"They stole a malachite fruit because it fell, and I only had to eat one bite. You said, 'You're welcome,' so they snatched it from my hand and gave it to that guy."

"Well... well... you'll be fine after you take a bite."

"I asked him why he was doing this, so he approached me and slapped me on the cheek."

"They are just guests"

"A guest is a rich man, so why would you insult the host? It is said that guests should not insult the host, right?"

The boy, displeased, went to another window and watched. Ko Phyo Tint...

“My son used to be a shy child. He would cry when I touched him with my finger. Now I have completely removed all those fears. And... when we Burmese people meet, we want to hold his feet. I always teach him not to hold his feet, but to hold his shoulders. Even if he gets hurt and starts crying, I never let him down. The way I soothed him... made him cry. You must have heard my advice too.”

Soon, Ko Bo Htin came down from the house to say goodbye and took his daughter by the hand and left. This small incident was not a new and fresh incident. It happened three years before the great Saya San Thu Pon, who was in power during the 1992 Burma dictatorship, had already disappeared into the dust and dust.