Maung Tun Thu - Love is not enough

Chapter ( 1 )

A few years ago, a Russian man of noble birth and traditional ideas named “Kirill Petrovich Troekurov” lived on his estate. His wealth, good lineage, and good connections made him a very prominent figure in the area where his lands and estates were located. As a result, his neighbors treated him with great respect. He could not help but laugh at the slightest joke. The local government officials trembled at the mere mention of his name.

Kirill Petrovich considered these courtesies to be something he deserved and deserved, and he was very happy about it. His house was always full of guests. The guests often took part in the entertainments that the royal elite enjoyed. However, the parties he organized were not only very rough, but sometimes very wild.

No one dared to refuse an invitation from him. In the village of Pokrovskoye, where he lived, even on special occasions, the villagers did not dare to go to him without paying him homage. Kirill Petrovich's married life was also devoid of any civility. His habits were so strong that they were full of flaws. He was very self-willed. Since childhood, he had been accustomed to luxury, so when he wanted something, he would indulge it without thinking about it seriously. He also had a habit of wanting to experience it without hesitation, when his mind was not yet full, he had a habit of wanting to experience it without hesitation.

Because of his unique body structure, he had a habit of overeating three or four days a week. He also had a habit of drinking heavily and getting drunk every night. He had several dormitories in his mansion, and in one of them, sixteen female servants were kept. They were given the task of embroidery and sewing. All the windows of the dormitory were barred with wooden bars. The entrance and exit doors were always locked. He himself kept the keys to the doors.

At set times, the girls were allowed to walk in the garden in the courtyard, supervised by two older women. Kirill Petrovich would occasionally find husbands for these girls. He would find new men to replace the few girls who were given away as they were married off.

He is harsh in his dealings with the farmers on his land and the servants in his house. He is often domineering. He acts without mercy. However, all the people under him respect and love him. They are proud of the wealth and fame of their landowner. They rely on the protection of their lord with great power. They tend to do what they want, even without caring about the people around them.

Kirill Petrovich's main activities were hunting in the vicinity of his farms, entertaining people, and physically teasing his acquaintances. In fact, he was not only a prankster who would tease his acquaintances, but also his old friends and acquaintances. He was a well-planned prankster who would hurt them.

There was only one person who did not follow her and made an exception. That person was Andrei Gavrilovich Dubrovsky. Dubrovsky was a retired officer of the security forces and Kirill Petrovich's closest neighbor. Dubrovsky was a landowner who owned only seventy serfs.

In fact, Kirila Petrovich was a very proud man. He was also arrogant. He did not care much for people of the highest rank. However, he treated Dubrovsky, who was inferior to him in financial wealth, with the utmost respect. There was reason enough for such treatment. After all, Kirila Petrovich and Dubrovsky had once been comrades-in-arms, had they not worked together?

Kirill Petrovich knew his friend Dubrovsky very well. Dubrovsky was a man of strong character, but very violent. The two, separated by time and circumstances, met again after many years. During their separation, Dubrovsky's business went bankrupt and his situation deteriorated. He had to return to his village, where he had landed. Kirill Petrovich, hearing this news, felt sorry for his friend. He told Dubrovsky that he would help him as much as he could, and that he could come and live on his land at any time. Dubrovsky thanked his friend for his offer, but did not accept the help.

A few years later, Kirill Petrovich, having retired from the army and returning to his homeland as a retired general, met again. From that time on, not a day passed without the two of them meeting. Kirill Petrovich, who never visited anyone's house, always visited his friend Dubrovsky's house.

They are the same age. They were born into the same class and grew up in the same environment. In some places, they have the same temperament and likes. In some places, they have the same fate.

Both had married out of love. Soon after their marriage, their wives died one after the other. Each had one child. Dubrovsky's son had gone to Petersburg to study, and Kirila Petrovich's daughter was living with her father. Seeing their common interests, Kirila Petrovich often said to Dubrovsky, "Dubrovsky... when your son Volodya comes of age, I will marry him to my daughter Masha. He may be as poor as a mouse in the churchyard. I am ready to marry him."

"No, Kirill Petrovich," Dubrovsky would say, shaking his head every time he heard that. "My son Volodya is not worthy of Masha. A poor man like him would do best to marry a poor girl like her. It would be better for him to marry a poor woman and become the head of a family than to be the steward of a beautiful woman who has been spoiled by her desires since childhood." Almost everyone was jealous of the friendship that existed between the arrogant Kirill Petrovich and his poor neighbor, Dubrovsky. They were also surprised. They were especially surprised when they saw Dubrovsky's bold speech.

Sometimes, sitting at Kirila Petrovich's table with the other guests, Dubrovsky would boldly express his views that differed from Kirila Petrovich's.

Usually, no one dared to speak against Kirila Petrovich. Kirila Petrovich himself did not tolerate any opinions that differed from his. If anyone did, he would treat them rudely and harshly. Therefore, everyone looked at him and spoke according to his own taste. Dubrovsky was not like that; he spoke according to Kirila Petrovich's taste. He did not care whether he had the same or different opinions with Kirila Petrovich. He did not care whether Kirila Petrovich liked it or not, but spoke freely and boldly, as he felt it.

In fact, only Dubrovsky dared to do such a thing. Kirill Petrovich and Dubrovsky remained calm. They did not react to each other's conflict, but an unexpected event occurred that changed everything.

One early autumn day, Kirill Petrovich was preparing for a hunting trip. The day before he set out, he ordered his grooms and hunters to be ready by five o'clock the next morning. A canvas tent and cooking utensils had already been sent to the place where he had planned to have dinner.

The night before the hunt, the hosts and guests went to the kennels. There were about five hundred dogs in all, and they were all different types of hunting dogs. The dogs were very healthy thanks to the generous feeding of their owner, Kirill Petrovich. There was also a small “dog hospital” for dogs that were not well. The veterinarian Timoshka was responsible for the health of the dogs. The kennel had a separate ward for the bitches who were giving birth and their puppies. In this ward, you could see many puppies nursing.

Kirill Petrovich is very proud of the kennel he has built. He boasts to his visitors. Almost every visitor who comes here has seen this kennel and listened to the owner's boasting at least twenty times.

Now Kirill Petrovich, along with the visitors, Doctor Timoshka and the dog handlers, were inspecting the dog hospital. He stopped in front of some of the kennels and checked the health of the dogs. When he came across dogs he liked, he would clap his hands and whistle, and he would make a fuss. He spoke in a sweet, calm voice. All the visitors, as usual, were amazed at what they had seen in the dog hospital, which they had seen before, and they liked Kirill Petrovich's. They did strange things and spoke of his praise.

In the group of guests, Dubrovsky was the only one who kept his mouth shut and frowned. Hunting was Dubrovsky's favorite pastime. However, he was not a wealthy man and could not afford to keep many hunting dogs. He could only keep two guide dogs and a pair of hunting dogs. Therefore, he could not help but feel jealous when he saw the dogs and the kennels that were so beautiful that he could not help but feel jealous.

"What's wrong, my friend? Why are you so gloomy?" Kirill Petrovich asked. "What...? My own people don't like my kennel?"

"Your kennels are first-class, what can I dislike?" Dubrovsky replied dryly. "Even your servants know that your dogs do not live in the same conditions."

Hearing this, one of the dog keepers was indignant. “We are not dissatisfied with this,” he said. “We are grateful to God and our master for this. I think many gentlemen would be happy if they could exchange their houses for our dog kennels. That way, they would be well fed and warm.”

Kirila Petrovich, hearing his pupil's words, burst out laughing. When he laughed, the guests laughed too. Of course, they all knew that the dog-keeper's joke had hurt them all. But they laughed at Kirila Petrovich's whim. Doubrovsky neither laughed nor smiled, nor said a word.

At that moment, a dog keeper brought in a litter of newborn puppies and showed them to Kirill Petrovich. Kirill Petrovich was so absorbed in the puppies that he forgot what had happened earlier. He chose two of the puppies that he liked best and ordered the rest to be killed by drowning. At this moment, Dubrovsky disappeared from the guests. No one noticed him leaving.