Thawtar Swe - His Blood and His Sword

November 11, 1946.

Looking out over the Tagaung harbor that night, the lights on the many boats and motorboats were shining brightly, reflecting the water, making it a very pleasant sight. In the early evening, the Tagaung people and their families came to the shore to enjoy the breeze... They enjoyed this view.

However, at around 10 p.m., gunfire could be heard from a place about a mile or two outside Tagaung. The elders of Tagaung...

"Hey...all the fires in the river are extinguished, the Bo Than Lettsi villages are flowing," they shouted, and the entire riverbank became completely dark, and the whispering of people...

Tonight...are there any good ones coming?

This village, this city, this town, there is an armed force to defend it.

If it comes, will it come by sea or by land?

On land, we just slip out of the water.

Well... I don't think it would be easy if they came with their troops from the water.

Haha...he just ran away.

They will shoot with a gun.

So, good luck...

The Burmese people's "good deeds" and the "God's will" of other religions are different words, but the meaning is the same. Although they are discouraged, in their hearts they find comfort by relying on their own merits and relying on their own God.

That's right. That night, the Burmese people did good deeds. They didn't give alms to the religious people there. Around midnight, the gunshots that were heard stopped and nothing happened in Tagaung, and the morning sun was shining brightly.

The entire neighborhood, which had been dark and quiet all night, has now come back to life at dawn. People are moving around, shops are opening, fishermen who went fishing at night have returned, people from boats and motorboats have come ashore, sat in teahouses and chatted. Although they are merchants from different villages in each town, they are now friends who have been stranded in Tagaung for a long time, so they have become close friends.

During the period after the war, food was scarce in the Myitkyina district of Upper Burma, which was located on the banks of the river. Rice, oil, salt, chili, onions, and beans were obtained from the lower regions. Therefore, merchants from Inwa, Sagaing, Mandalay, and Amarapura went up the banks of the river to forage. They ate meat in moderation.

That time, they will be separated. Bo Than Letthi is waiting at the riverbank. Fishermen who have gone fishing tell us. The place is very rich in fish, so the fishermen provide Bo Than Letthi's group with all the fish they need by fishing boats every day. Bo Than Letthi and his group are looking for basic food such as rice, oil, salt, chili, onion, and beans. These are the foods that are currently available in the boats and motorboats that are docked at Tagaung River Port.

Therefore, the merchants are in a state of shock. The government's combined ships come and escort them, and when they reach Katha, the goods are piled up, so they can't get a good price. Meanwhile, while they are stranded in Tagaung, they have to feed the boatmen every day. The boatmen are very big eaters. They eat three times more than the average person. They spend most of their time in their boats and don't have the habit of eating snacks. The food is just plain bad.

Therefore, no one is happy with the merchants who sit and moan in the tea shops along the Tagaung River.

Someone who dares to give up

However, don't you know that a young, innocent boy of about the same age as a merchant who arrived in a motorboat with two sidecars this evening is waiting for Bo Than Lett at the riverbank?

He was so happy that he went to the beach in the morning to have tea and then they went out on their motorbike.

My God...my God...this little boy is so brave.

He was dressed in a smart suit, long trousers and a coat. His appearance was sharp.

"Hey, guys, are you really going to the top this morning?"

"Yes, sir."

"What goods are included?"

“100 bags of rice, 100 bags of chickpeas”

"Don't you know that Bo Than Lett is waiting at the narrow river?"

"I know, sir."

"So you don't think that beans and rice will become staple foods?"

"So, if you feed each other, you have to feed each other, and if you feed each other, you have to feed each other."

"You're the one who came to win, huh?"

"Yes, sir, I came from Paungthi City."

“Aung Ma Paung Tsing, what was his name?”

"Thunder, sir."

“Aung Ma Paung Tsing Thar, is it true that the thunderbolt trade was done long ago? If Bo Than Letthiyan had escaped and reached Minganthar now, the rice and bean prices would have been very good.”

"This is just a matter of hope, sir, and the earth and the golden umbrella."

Another old man

"The earth is full of things"

"It's okay. Now, if you'll allow me, I'd better leave before the sun rises."

"Another young man"

"Go to the cold, Bo Than Lettsi early and bring food."

However, the thunderbolt, who was not angry at these words, smiled and said...

" You should pray the same way, because if I get 100 bags of rice and 100 pieces of chickpeas from you, the Bo Than Lath will be full of food, so you will return from the river. So you can go to Katha in peace, " said the young man named Moeung and went down into the river with a determined look. The two motorcyclists behind him did not seem to be worried at all.

About 10 minutes later, hundreds of eyes on Tagaung Harbor watched in amazement as two side-by-side sampans and a motorboat set off from Tagaung Harbor.