Chapter 2
Bach Tung
A gaunt, lowly man, his visage hollow, rat-eyed and withered, descendeth from the hill, followed by a train bearing staves and arms. Lan casteth her gaze downward, lacking the courage to behold the censurer, trembling as she clingeth to Nam's back. The elder sneereth and draweth nigh unto Nam's face:
- Ah, I had nigh forgot—you art but a ragged wretch, void of shame!
Lan feared her father more than the devil himself; the heartless man had lashed her with a whip many times, the agony of body and soul haunting her night after night. She was forced to regard the man who bore her as the Divine; to defy her father was to commit sacrilege against the Divine.
Yet tonight, though she suffer a beating unto death upon her return, she defies the Divine to guard the honor of her beloved.
- Father, you do not oppress excessively!
The malicious elder glares, waving his hand to bid the servants seize her. Nam shields her, his piercing gaze sweeping over each one, and they recoil in dread, shrinking afar. The malicious elder sneers and spits:
- All this while, I deemed the one lingering about my daughter a man of worth, yet you prove fit only to overawe base servants. A toad coveting a swan!
His retainers burst into smug laughter. The townsfolk whisper amongst themselves, some pitying the ill-fated lovers. Overcome with indignation, Lan meets her father's eyes:
- Father, if you persist in hurling insults, the one disgraced shall be yourself!
- Shut your mouth! - The malicious elder bellows, his face contorted with rage as he points straight at Nam - This wretch kneels before the wealthy. Open your eyes! He is about to become another's son-in-law!
Nam no longer remembered how many times he had been humiliated. Each insult he endured, he swallowed his wrath. Yet the words "bastard child" kindle a fury within him, his bloodshot gaze fasteneth upon Lan's father:
- Speak ill of me as you will, yet I forbid you to profane the honor of my parents! Were you not but a child ere you became a father?
The malicious elder cackled in scorn:
- Flowery words indeed! You bend the knee as a hound to the nobility, yet you dare speak of guarding the honor of your parents!
He jerked his chin toward Lan:
- Do you see clearly now? If he had any real mettle, he'd fight with his own strength. But no — he chooses to act like a hound. From the start, I knew he was nothing but a scoundrel. Follow him, and you'll suffer for the rest of your days.
Finding words useless, Nam stepped forward, aiming to corner the malicious elder:
- Do you really think they gave me power just so I could flaunt it? Even children aren't as naïve as you.
Lan understands Nam's provocation at once. She feigns sorrow, lowers her head, and makes as if to wipe away tears, yet beneath her sleeve she hides a secret smile, awaiting her father to step into the snare. The malicious elder scoffs and spits upon the earth:
- Do you believe that a few strokes as feeble as those of a crippled cat can shake the realm? How laughable!
Nam's heart swells with quiet delight:
- Your face is flushed but a moment ago — why does it turn pale now? Ah, perhaps you fear that my words shall come to pass, don't you?
The malicious elder curses all the more fiercely, while Thiet Nam goads him further. At last, bereft of reason, the malicious elder shrieks like one possessed:
- The Emperor shall soon hold a martial contest upon Mau Son! If you truly have the skill, then go forth and claim victory! When that hour comes, I, Bach Tung, declare before all Hoa Ban village: I am nothing but a child, clad in the guise of an aged man!
Nam smirked, treating Bach Tung as nothing more than a three-year-old child:
- I care not for such things. All I want is for you to marry Lan to me. If you fear losing your daughter and unveiling your true countenance, just pretend I never said anything. I shall not hold it against you.
Bach Tung knew he had fallen into a trap but was determined to maintain his face.
- I shall await your becoming champion—that shall be the bride price.
This well-worn stratagem made Nam and Lan recall the first time they met him. Seeing his strength and resourcefulness, Bach Tung devised a plan to take advantage of him. The malicious elder acted friendly and dealt kindly with him.
One year later, upon the occasion of the Hoa Ban village festival, Bach Tung declared that he had observed Nam over time and saw that he was upright and did not transgress propriety with Lan. Bach Tung then proclaimed that if Nam served his household for three years, he would permit him to wed Lan.
Nam's labor would serve as the dowry. Bach Tung urged him to live in his house for convenience. The malicious elder schemed to have Nam stay as a dwelling as a son-in-law, making it easier to control him and prevent any improper advances before marriage. Bach Tung showed much benevolence, oft inquiring about Nam's health and spirit every day and instructing his household members to take good care of him.
In gratitude to his future father-in-law, Nam worked tirelessly from dawn to late at night. As the three-year deadline drew near, Bach Tung revealed his true nature of excessive concern for face. But he constantly sought excuses to shift blame and devised schemes to break a promise.
Bach Tung bribed a woman, heavy with child begotten outside lawful wedlock, that she might spread a scandalous report claiming Thiet Nam had made her with child. One rumor turned into ten, and ten into a hundred, causing the folk to cast doubt and shun the man who had always been willing to help them.
After discovering the biological father of the fetus, Thiet Nam, filled with rage, contemplated destroying all he had built. He could never have imagined that as the three-year mark approached, Bach Tung secretly mixed his family's ancestral poison into Lan's food. As the poison neared its effect, the malicious elder secretly detoxified her, only to continue poisoning his own daughter.
Just as Nam was about to set everything ablaze, the poison gnawed at Lan with fierce cruelty, causing her immense suffering. Bach Tung locked his daughter in the livestock pen. Nam was forced to swear before the villagers that he would neither elope with Lan nor harm the malicious elder or his property. Bach Tung partially detoxified her and returned her to her room.
Lan failed to find the antidote. Fearing she might fall into despair and take her own life, Bach Tung confined her in a prison chamber barred with iron, assigning servants to guard her day and night. He threatened that if she dared to disobey again, he would devise a scheme to bring Nam to the point of death.
Anger plunged Thiet Nam into a dilemma; he could not flee with her. He feared that Lan would be judged by the folk as a woman who had forsaken her home to follow a man. Should they attempt escape, she would endure the gnawing of the parasite venom — a fate worse than death. From that moment forth, she was placed under house arrest.
That afternoon, Bach Tung departed for the West village. Holding authority in the East village, he was sought by both sides to settle their affairs. The matters in the West were grave and would not conclude until the morrow.
In the days before Thiet Nam set foot in the village, sudden clashes often broke out between the two villages. Were he to provoke any disturbance now, it could be suspected that Bach Tung had orchestrated a trap.
For many months the waves were calm and the winds at rest; Nam raised no turmoil, and Bach Tung had no cause to wage strife. Thiet Nam understood his own standing, and the old man was not mad enough to confront him directly. Seizing this chance, Lan's mother and a maid named Thu resolved to free her. The mother wavered, fearing the star-crossed pair might refuse. Thu swore she had a way to persuade them.
- I shall explain it later.
Carrying a basket, Thu left the house and came upon several servants. When Bach Tung was present, they dared not act carelessly. But now, with him absent, they sat upon the ground, playing of dice openly — even the guards set to watch Lan's iron-barred chamber had joined in.
Thu said she was going out to buy food. They only grunted, too lost in their sport of chance.
She walked a long way before turning toward Thiet Nam's dwelling and revealed all. Her words greatly disturbed him. He feared that if the plan were discovered, Bach Tung would strike in wrath and innocent people would suffer.
Seeing his hesitation, Thu took drastic measures. She threatened to end her own life if he refused, forcing him to go to the place where he had once met Lan.
- Sister Lan wastes away, nigh to madness from missing you! She waits already at the meeting place. If you do not go, she shall be defiled by those of base intent — you'll regret it for the rest of your life.
Having spoken thus, she departed swiftly. She returned home with the basket and spoke to Lan's mother of how she had forced Nam. The mother still hesitated. But Thu fell to her knees, her eyes brimming with tears.
- Had Sister Lan not saved me, I would have died long ago. Though I am but a lowly servant, I must repay kindness with gratitude. This may be my only chance. Please, I beg you—allow me to fulfill my wish!
Bach Tung's treachery tore apart the bond between father and daughter. The mother felt anguish as her husband tortured their child. A father by blood, yet his 'heart' toward his child was not even equal to that of a beast. Unworthy of being a father, and even his dignity as a human was beneath that of a so-called lowly servant.
- Daughter, you are more noble than anyone! - The mother held the "lowborn" girl to her chest, wept bitterly - From now on, you are a daughter in my heart!
In her heart, she had already regarded the girl as her own, but she dared not openly acknowledge it. She feared that this adopted daughter would suffer the same tragic fate as her biological child. The orphan had long wished for a kind and virtuous mother, and at this moment, her eyes welled up with tears of happiness. She sobbed and softly choked out a call:
- Mother!
The woman wiped away Thu's tears. The two selected a few items from the food basket, crushed them, and mixed them into a sleeping potion. When Bach Tung was young, his jealousy was overwhelming, forcing his wife to conceal her ability to craft such remedies. Now, she quietly approached the counter and discreetly poured the potion into several bottles of wine.
The servants were too engrossed in their playing of dice to notice. After drinking, they took more bottles, nearly finishing them before gradually falling into slumber.
The mother managed to free Lan, intending for Thu to temporarily take her place. However, Lan stubbornly refused the plan. The mother was willing to sacrifice her own life in exchange for a moment of freedom for Lan. Ultimately, Thu resorted to threatening suicide, forcing Lan to comply.
Bach Tung arrived home sooner than expected. Though the servants had awakened before his return, the plan for Thu to take Lan's place temporarily was soon discovered, and Bach Tung at once sought her.
The humiliation robs all trust in Bach Tung. The entire village already knows that the malicious elder is as sly and slippery as a catfish buried in the mud. Yet, the two lovers still firmly believe that Thiet Nam will be the champion. They are convinced that Bach Tung will eventually arrange their marriage—not only to bring himself joy, but more importantly, to flaunt before the realm that Thiet Nam is his prized son-in-law. The malicious elder sneers, mocking that hope:
- Let me warn you first: if you miss the chance to fight for the highest position, I will marry Lan off to the village chief. When you fail, you are not to cause any chaos!
The malicious elder's smile grows even more venomous:
- Oh, I almost forget — the poison still courses through her body. Think not of fleeing. Should you dare to take your own life, I shall compel my younger daughter to wed the village chief in place of her elder sister. As for your mother, it is beyond belief that the wretched woman dares to let you go. I have already placed her and your maid in separate confinement.
Pointing at the two of them, the malicious elder utters with cold contempt:
- Beware! Should you attempt any further guile, I shall slay these two women at once!
The village chief has been a man of ninety years, the wealthiest and most powerful in the region. He has taken nine lawful wives and countless scheming concubines, ever plotting against one another. Yet, even after having subjected his daughter to misery and humiliation, this father has remained unsated in his cruelty—he has even tormented her mother and her fourteen-year-old sister unto death. Lan's mind has descended into hell as she has beheld her father in horror. The bond between father and daughter has long been fractured… and now, in her heart, it has been utterly shattered.
Arguing further with Bach Tung brings only disgrace upon his beloved. Thiet Nam growls in a low voice, issuing a warning:
- In my absence, you must take good care of Lan! If she suffers any harm, the consequences shall be dire!
The icy tone in his voice forces Bach Tung to curse aloud, masking the trembling fear within. The malicious elder roughly seizes Lan, yet she violently pulls her hand away, shouting:
- Don't touch me! Fathers cherish their daughters as their own lives, yet you heartlessly castest me into the mud. You art no human!
Bach Tung flies into a rage, attempting to use force to chastise his daughter. Thiet Nam grips the malicious elder's hand tightly, pressing his face—veined and straining—close to Bach Tung. The elder's countenance twists in panic, forcing a strained, mocking smile:
- The lives of the mother and her two daughters, all are in my keeping!
The threat compels Thiet Nam to release the malicious father.
- I shall take Lan home.
Bach Tung bellows, ordering the servants to rush forward. Thiet Nam lifts his heel and kicks a knife from the ground. The blade whirls through the air, striking the flagpole with such force that it sinks deep, leaving only the handle exposed. The terrified servants scatter in all directions. Bach Tung watches helplessly as his 'unfilial' daughter walks away with the man he despises most.