Chit Oo Nyo - Maha Thanopati

Chapter (1)

From the first time I met him, I was aware that he was a man of extraordinary temperament.

It was snowing that day.

The snow was so thick that the water was not visible from the moat of the Golden City of Amarapura. Even the red-brown brick walls were blurred in the snow. On the other side of the moat, the road to Nay Pyi Taw was no longer visible.

The sound of the snow falling seemed like raindrops. The long spear bone I held in my hand was cold. There was a stove in the tent, but in the really cold Amarapura winter, the fire was not enough to keep me warm. Only the part closest to the flame was warm, while the rest of the car was clearly feeling the effects of the cold.

I long for the warmth within me.

In such a cold, early morning, I had to pour a glass of alcohol into my stomach...

But the thought was immediately dismissed.

During his service, when he was on guard duty at the eastern gate of the city wall, the burden of the guard was enormous. He had to keep his eyes and ears alert and watch with all his might.

My duty, which began at midnight, would end at dawn. The blood-drinking Ye Min Tin, who was on guard duty with me, was not in good health, and his asthma was especially bad in this bitterly cold winter. If he had a single cough, he would be out of place. I thought that the poor man, who was coughing so hard, would only have time to breathe. So I made him a bed by the fire in the guardhouse and made him rest all the time. The blood-drinking Ye Min Tin was certainly not fit to serve in the garrison. He had also taken to opium in search of relief for his asthma.

He didn't smoke opium because it was his duty as a guard.

I thought Ye Min Htin was in pain, breathing heavily and making a loud noise in his chest. I couldn't do anything except keep him warm, so I had to light two stoves on either side of his bed.

Now, Ye Min Htin was curled up between two stoves, his knees pressed against his chest, sleeping.

The hot water in the earthen pot was already gone as he was cleaning it up. I was alone in the shelter, holding the cold shaft of my spear. My "cap" was also wet from the snow. Since I had given my cloak to the chief, there were also snowdrops on my body.

Because I was used to it, I didn't feel sleepy, but my eyelids were still closed from the impact of the cold.

The bloodthirsty warrior, sleeping warmly, thinks.

The stove is already starting to burn.

Snowflakes falling in torrents.

The water of the moat is rising in a puff of steam.

The view is obscured by thick fog.

I am alone in the harsh winter of the golden city of Amarapura.

The fingers holding the spear shaft were numb. The muscles in his legs were aching. The tip of his nose and eyelids were feeling the cold more.

Just as I was thinking about how time had flown by, I heard the sound of a doorbell ringing.

If I said that the sound of the gong made my whole body warm, I would be considered eloquent.

I'm not shy about speaking. It's really warm.

My patrol duty is over, and the next patrol will be arriving. I need to rest and sleep.

Between the two stoves in the tent, Ye Min Htin was still sleeping soundly.

At that moment, voices were heard from somewhere unseen beyond the snowdrifts.

"Wait... who is it?"

I shouted and asked, readying my long spear.

"Thit... We, the brave warriors, are changing the guard"

"Say your name" "Ngatay and Ngakha"

Ye Mek Nga Tay's voice reassured him. Soon, Nga Tay appeared from the mist. Behind him, Nga Kha. .

"It's so cold, I can't even control my own chin anymore."

Nga Tay moaned with a grinding, grinding sound. White smoke billowed from his mouth.

"My dears, from midnight until now

"What do you think, policeman..."

I asked him to point me in the direction of where the policeman was sleeping.

"This asthma and the guard don't bite."

I woke up Ye Min Htin. He got up in a daze and started the stove.

"The guard's turn has changed, you bloodthirsty old man, go back to your own home, you've won the opium war, t...t"

The wind was pulling Ye Min Htin closer. I took the robe from Ye Min Htin and wrapped it around my body. It was delicious to feel the robe warmed by the steam from Ye Min Htin's body and the heat from the stove.

"What's the big deal, Nga Thit?"

"No problem, everything is peaceful."

"Is the commander here to check?"

"Not coming"

After the usual rotation of guards, I left the guardhouse with Ye Min Htin. Nga Tay and Nga Kha disappeared on the other side of the snow-capped mountain.

"How are you, bloodsucker?"

"Now it's better, this kind of disease is worse when it's cold. Earlier, I thought I was going to die from coughing."

Ye Min Htin is about eight years older than me. He is over thirty years old. However, his body is so pale due to illness that he looks like he is over forty. Although we call him the Blood Drinker, he is actually just a “superintendent” who rules over ten of our warriors. He is not yet the “blood drinker” who rules over five of our warriors. He is about ten years older than his actual age, so we call him the Blood Drinker. .

The two of us arrived at the top of the moat bridge.

As the morning approached, the cold grew more intense, and the policeman, who had thought he had recovered, suddenly fell ill at the top of the bridge. His long, unbearable cough was heard again.

"Hey... Bloodsucker, you can't go home like this. Ho Ho Ho Road."

There is a small fried food stall under the tamarind tree in the corner. Put some food in your stomach and drink some hot water. It will make you feel better. I am also hungry. Let's eat some fried food."

"I just want to go home and have some heroin."

"Come back after you eat the fried food, please try it."

The day after the guard's duty, we soldiers did not have to return to the palace camp. We were allowed to go home and rest. The king of the army was living with his brother in a village north of the Golden City.

By the time we reached the hut under the tamarind tree, the snow had not yet broken. It was even thicker.

The frying pan had just come out. There were only four or five fried green beans and yellow lentils on the tray next to the frying pan.

"Sit down, drink some hot water. It's like the soldiers came early to take turns guarding."

The old woman greeted me. There was no one else in the teahouse except the two of us. She blew on a mug of steaming hot water and drank it down. At that moment,

"Hey.. have you got the fried rice? Hurry up."