Golden Peacock - The Seventh Collection of Short Stories

Bird watching while receiving alms

[ 1 ] A bird is flying while receiving alms.

In Western Europe, the aggression of the German dictator Hitler and the forcible annexation of small, weak countries led to a major war with Britain and France, and the Sino-Japanese conflict also disrupted shipping traffic and trade in some countries, affecting trade in an unintended manner.

( This is because you may have read in the newspapers about the theft of statues and images that were intended as a sacred place of worship, but which are considered insignificant in terms of worldly value.)

Therefore, one morning, I read that a statue of a young man, as tall as a new monk, had disappeared from a brokerage house on Lanthit and had been reported to the Lanthit Office, but Dr. Thaung Htike and I ignored it and skipped over it, thinking it was insignificant.

Every day, before going to the nursing station and pharmacy in Pansodan, I would stop by Dr. Thaung Htike's "P.I.B. (Private Investigation Bureau)" office near the police station on Bar Street (Mahabandula Park Road) to greet and chat.

As usual, we were about to finish our usual discussion of war news and politics, and as we were about to get up, we pulled back our chair, when a student came in and said that he wanted to see two guests. Okay. "Hey, I've never heard of those names. I don't know what they're about. Listen to them."

At that moment, two guests entered the door and I sat down again. The first guest ... "I've only met the doctor once, so I'll be back."

Doctor U Tha Tun .. “Uh... I remember someone else, (turning to Dr. Tha Thaung Htike) I don’t think I’ve seen Maung Ba Tu. He recently passed the “BA, B.A.” (BABL) bar exam. He’s hanging out with Watlon U San Ra.”

(Turning to Maung Batu again) “Well, I’ll have to introduce you when we meet. My friend is the one you’ve heard of, Dr. Thaung Htaik. As for the detective…”

Maung Ba Tu . . “Yes, I came here deliberately to meet the doctor. It’s not my business, it’s the business of the broker U Maow who came with me.”

Okay .. “Sit down, I’ll tell you what’s going on.”

Same .. “The doctor who spoke is U Tha Tun, not someone else.”

( Turning to the shy broker U Hmaw and giving him a look that said it didn't matter if he knew) "Now, tell me yourself."

Broker U Maw hesitated again.

"There's no need to avoid U Tha Htun. You should consult with him. If you have any questions, you should ask for advice. Especially when it comes to medicine, he's not finished."

Hmaw .. “My case is not because the material is valuable, but it is embarrassing to have to come and speak to such famous people in person, but still.”

Same .. “Just say it, time is very precious for these great people.”

Broker U Maow picked up the newspaper spread out on the table and turned to the desired page.

"You will read about it," he said, pointing with his hand to the missing "bone" statue mentioned earlier .

" Yes , I read it. The newspaper article is not interesting at all, so don't pay any attention to it."

Hmaw .. “Yes, but I only reported the gart as a regular complaint. Since it is a valuable item, I don’t think the police will take any action.”

"If it's interesting, we'd like to take great care of it and do it."

Hmaw . . “Oh my God, this Buddha is a Buddha that I have been worshipping for a long time. When he came to my house and offered it to me, we were happy and our business was growing. When this Buddha disappeared, I was heartbroken. The morning after he disappeared, my niece who was born at home slipped and fell from the bridge in front of the house. My wife also went shopping in the Thein Kyi market. She couldn’t find the coolie with her basket full of things, so she returned home empty-handed. The bus that was sent to Pazundaung and Kyimyindaing also had two tires punctured. How can I be happy when this Buddha has been showing such bad omens since he left the house in the same day?” Doctor U Tha Htun. . “Do you mean that the Buddha is in trouble because he is gone?”

Hmaw .. “Come back, it’s the same old boy, Maung Ba Tu, who asked the same question. He’s young and doesn’t have any beliefs, so let him have them.”

Tun .. “We should be able to think when we are old.”

" That 's what I was saying on the street. If what happened now is because the Buddha left the house, then what will happen if the mother of the great leader of Waso U dies?"

" Oh , that's old, I'm happy to die."

" Okay .. "Leave your beliefs and obsessions aside, tell me how God disappeared."

Hmaw . . “The disappearance is very strange. It is impossible to say when and how it appeared and disappeared. The morning flowers, cold water offerings, and evening oil lamp offerings to the Buddha are performed by the chief guest himself. The previous night, at 6 o’clock, when the lamp was offered, I carefully checked the glass door in front of the temple with a cloth. The next morning, when I went to offer flowers at 7 o’clock, I realized that it had disappeared.”

"Isn't there a single person coming and going in and out of the house ? "

Hmaw .. “No strangers are allowed in or out, and no one else in the house is allowed to touch the people except me and the chief guest. I also went to sleep in Twante for one night and returned the next morning.”

Okay .. “Is the school building locked?”

Magic . . “I never open it, the key is attached to the iron under the school building. But the thief came and took it with his key, and even his key was left in the lockbox.” Tik . . “What else is missing?”

Magic .. “Besides, no traces of the work were lost. If other items were lost, I don’t know yet.”

"Okay .. "If the people living in the house are not suspicious, who are they?"

Hmaw . . “I live with my family. The wife is a maid, my daughter, and my niece. The husband is me and my uncle. I can be completely reliable with the family.” Taki. . “Aren’t there any people at home?”

Hmaw . . "I can't say it's a lie, it's just something like that. That night, the women went to the Rama play in the street, and Uri Daw was the housekeeper. As usual, he sat at the door, dressed in a robe, waiting."