Shin Yun-bok
Nineteenth Painting - Reconciliations And Plans

"Open the door, open the door!" as the first ray of sunlight gleamed at the break of dawn, someone was knocking hard at the door of Green Willow Villa.

"Coming, coming. Eh?' the one who opened the door was not the usual door man but a little servant girl who usually served within the inner halls. "You are, oh, you are Mr. Seo," the little servant girl was taken aback and had to stare hard at Yunbok for a few moments before recognising him.

"Quickly, bring me to see Lady Hyang," he rushed into the courtyard and suddenly, he saw his reflection in the lotus pond and remembered that he had pulled away the moustache he had used as a disguise. No wonder the servant was not able to recognise him.

"But Mr. Seo, Lady Hyang, she... she is...," the servant girl following behind him said timidly.

"What happened? She, what happened to her?" he stopped abruptly and turned on her anxiously, reining in the urge to shake the answer out of her as she shrank back uneasily. Did Cheonsang fail to stop Jeong-hyang?

"Last night, she, she didn't come back to the villa. Master had sent people out to the streetmarket to look for her and even went to her house to look for her but they couldn't find her. Last night, master and young master Yoon brought everyone from the villa and went... went to look for her. They are not back yet," the little girl said timidly, not daring to look at Yunbok straight in the eyes.

"Hyangya, I'm wrong again," Yunbok felt lost. Where would Jeong-hyang go? He turned and rushed to the horse. Lady Min's voice shouted from behind, "Brother Seo! You... you're fine?!" She could not believe her eyes as she ran up. Yunbok looked almost as he was the day she met him. His eyes were clear, the shadow between his brows had faded and his colour was good. He was startled when she involuntarily enveloped him in a crushing hug in her relief.

"I'm fine for now," he said, patting her back reassurringly. "Sister-in-law, time is limited. I can't explain it to you right now. Please don't worry, I'm fine. I want to look for Hyangya. I'll come back and explain to you in detail," Yunbok said as he mounted the horse and urged it forward.

"What on earth is happening? Is there really a god in this world who came to save him?" Lady Min looked at Yunbok's figure and sighed in her heart,

"Is it really that when there is no hope left anywhere, but as you come towards the end of the darkness, it's a new bright light again? These things really cannot be understood so simply."

Even though the wound in his chest was jolting with pain with each gallop on the horse, Yunbok could not care less about it as he was extremely anxious and was really troubled to the point that he had almost forgotten that he was still gravely injured and was not completely rid of the poison. He was praying silently, praying for Jeong-hyang's safety.

"Hyangya, Hyangya!," there was not a single person in the street market this morning. There was only Yunbok's voice echoing within the sub-roads.. He turned the horse around and rode away quickly. "Jeong Hyang, Jeong Hyang!' Yunbok knocked on the main door of the old and worn out small house. It was still the same, no one answered. He went to her brother's home. "Jeong-hyang, where is she?" he asked Jeong-hyang's sister-in-law.

"Her brother had also gone out to look for her," Park Daehe's wife did not know this man who came charging into the house in the early hours of the morning and was frightened out of her wits. She stumbled over her words as she replied, half wondering what was going on. Yunbok rushed out.

"Where else, where else?" he swung on to the horse and thought anxiously. His own house! He had not gone to look at his own abode. Suddenly, he felt a gust of wind rushing pass his ears and his heart was beating fast, "Thump, thump, thump…" He had a foreboding that he had only moments left to find her before it was too late.

"Hyangya, Hyangya," at the door of the little house, Yunbok was surprised to find that the door was opened. Was she in there?. He rushed in but was disappointed as there was no sign of the figure he had been so familiar with. There was only a stack of clothes folded neatly on the table. He walked towards it, knelt at the side of the table and took up the clothes with shaking hands.

"Ah, this is the shirt she had made for me. She had brought it along as she was afraid that I might be cold, but the sleeve of the coat which was once torn is neatly sewn back."

Besides the clothing, there was a painting which he had yet to complete. She must have left it here and did not bring it along. But there were stains on the paper which were left by tears which had dried up. Even the colouring had run. He felt distressed as he looked at what was in front of him. He could imagine how hopeless she must have felt last night. How long had she been sewing his clothes as her tears rolled down?

"Jeong-hyang, I know I'm wrong. I've really made a mistake, but where are you right now?" Yunbok leaned at the side of the table holding the shirt, trying to think. "Where else can there be? Other than that place, where else will you go?" He lowered his head and thought of the places where she might be and he stood up abruptly. He ran out of the house and jumped on to the little black horse, "There's only, there's only that place now. Jeong-hyang, please, you have to be there, please, Chia!"

"Painter, you've said before that you would be waiting for me there. I'll go and look for you now, alright? I don't have the strength anymore. I am really tired, really tired. I don't feel like holding on any longer. Painter, I'm coming. You have to wait for me," Jeong-hyang lowered her head as she sat beside the water. Last night, since Yunbok disappeared, she had recalled everything which happened in the past. She felt empty There was nothing anymore. She did not feel like thinking of anything. She only felt that she was really tired. It was really hard. Her legs brought her to the little house located in the middle of the hill slope. Her thoughts were distracted, as if thinking that Yunbok might be inside waiting for her, but when she pushed open the door, it was vacant. She lighted the oil lamp and looked at the warm light which reminded her of the night where both of them had been reunited, she could not help but smile foolishly.

"Eh, isn't this the coat I made, why aren't you wearing it? But it actually fits really well, but why is the sleeve so crumpled? Aigoo, who sewed it for you? The skills are really crude. Painter, really, who was the one who helped you to sew the sleeve? Such crude skills, shall I help you to sew it?" Jeong-hyang mumbled to herself, as if Yunbok was right beside her. She was still foolishly looking at what she, herself was doing and with a silly smile. She took out an embroidered pouch which contained the necessary needles and tread and she started sewing the sleeve which had been made crumpled by Kim Yun's sewing.

"Look, it's sewn back, how is it? Do you like my skills?" she talked distractedly and smiled. She folded the shirt which took quite a while to sew and neatly folded and placed it on the table. Suddenly, she saw a folded painting which was discarded at a corner of the house and went over hurriedly and picked it up. "Painter, what were you planning to draw? Ah, it must be me, the woman inside the painting is with the gayageum, who else can it be other than myself? But why didn't you finish painting it? I really wish to know if the person who is looking upon the woman in the painting is you. Painter," she mumbled to herself and her tears came flowing down. Her tears dripped on the painting. "Ah, no,' she wiped her tears away hastily with her hand but it only smeared the painting which had been drawn with charcoal.

"I'm sorry, Painter, I've ruined your painting. You won't be angry, will you, Painter?" she looked up and searched for Yunbok's shadow within the house, but she only saw an empty room. There was only her all this while. "Painter, you're angry. Are you angry that I've ruined your painting. Aon't you want me anymore? Painter," she called out for Yunbok as if she had lost her mind. Without noticing it, she had walked to the little courtyard. The oil lamp in the house was still lit, the main door of the little house was still opened. Without her realising, she was already walking down the slope.

"Hyangya, please, you must be safe. Otherwise, I won't have anything to live for. Even if I have a hope to live on, but without you, what use will that hope be? Jeong-hyang, you, you must be there for sure right?" Yunbok whipped the little black horse as he prayed frantically. As he looked ahead, there seem to be a figure sitting down beside the small lake. "Hyangya, it must be," he urged the little black horse even faster.

"Painter, I really like the butterfly you gave me. I really like it and your paintbrush. I will bring them along with me on your behalf. I.. I am going to go look for you. You must, must recognise me, must recognise me," she was lucid for a while but losing it in a minute, switching between being clarity and not. She kept on mumbling nonstop. She got to her feet, closed her eyes and prepared to jump into the water.

"Jeong Hyang!' Yunbok shouted from afar when he saw what she was about to do.

"Painter!" She came to her senses a little as she heard the cry but she thought it was her hallucination so she opened her eyes wide and looked towards the source of the voice. Yunbok galloped the side of the small lake and pulled the rope on the horse. The little horse neighed loudly before stopping. As if it too, was shouting at her, "Wait!"

"Painter, Painter!" she had now completely regained her senses and she knew that Yunbok who was in front of her was not any hallucination and did not know if she was feeling happy or angry. She only knew that she ran towards him involuntarily.

"Jeong-hyang!" Yunbok tumbled down the horse and not bothering to wipe away the dust and soil on his clothes, he ran towards her and hugged her tightly.

"I'm sorry, Jeong Hyang, I'm sorry," Yunbok was shaken. The feeling was not similar to the last reunion where he felt as if he had gained something he had once lost. This time, he felt that he would not be separated from this woman another time. For certain, no matter if it was life or death.

"Painter, you, where have you been?" Jeong-hyang demanded angrily though she was crying hard and hugging his neck tightly.

"Ah, I... I went to Hell last night. But the Lord of the underworld said that there is still a person waiting for me in the living world that I could not bear to part with and so I came back, is that alright?" Yunbok said jokingly.

"You.. you," she let go and pushed him away. "You go on with your own way in the future and I shall go on with mine. We are no longer associated," and with that, she walked away. He charged forward and grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her back forcefully. "No, you're not allowed to go anywhere."

'You, you!" she turned her face around to look at Yunbok, looked daggers at him and pulled up his hand and bit hard.

"Ow! Alright, good, harder, even harder," he winced and bore the pain and encouraged her laughingly.

Listening to that, she let go of his hand and cried as she sat on the ground. Yunbok sat down beside her, putting his arms around her. Her hot tears fell on him.

"It's fine, don't be angry anymore. I know I've made you suffer. It's all my fault," He caressed her back to soothe her and whispered how sorry he was into her ears. She looked up slowly, the anger in her eyes fading away. There was only sadness and pain. That even made him ached for her sufferings even more.

"You, the poison in your body, has it been cured?" she cried and asked as she touched his cheeks, realizing he looked almost like himself.

"Though it's not cured completely, there's still hope. You shall follow me to China. There will be an antidote there which can save me for sure," Yunbok held on to the her hand on his face.

"We shall go and look for it together. Look for the antidote for that poison. We will find it for sure, for sure," she hugged his neck tightly as she said.

"We will," Yunbok hugged Jeong-hyang tightly and felt happiness surging through his whole body. At that time, the little black horse which had brought Yunbok to Jeong-hyang, acted as if it has the intelligence of a human. It seemed as though it was relieved after seeing Yunbok reunited with Jeong-hyang. With a long neigh and a few trampling of hooves on the ground, like saying its goodbye, it then turned around and galloped away.

"Your horse, Painter," she let go of Yunbok hurriedly and shouted.

"Don't move, let it be. It will go back to its home," he did not even bother to turn around as he continued to hug her tightly in his arms and mumbled, "This is good enough, this is good enough…"

Within Hanyang, in the private residence of the Kim family

"Look, we are already old. My hair has turned white and your beard has turned white too," Queen Jeong-soon who was wearing commoners' clothing sighed as she leaned against her lover and looked up at his white beard.

"Haha, we are not old. I can still remember that red gown you wore when you were still young. It really looked good, the colour was so bright."

"Sigh. It's a pity."

"What's a pity?'

"No, nothing. I've done so much evil deeds, and I've caused so many people to suffer, do you think heaven will punish me?"

"Um."

"Look, don't you think that the scenery of the sun setting is ever so beautiful…"

"Brother, I shall see you off here. When you reach the checkpoint, Uncle Kim and the others would make the necessary arrangements for you," Joongho had brought along his wife and family to the border between Korea and China, just to send off a friend.

"Brother, Sister-in-law, thank you very much, Hyangya and I are really grateful," Yunbok bowed his thanks and respect to the Min couple.

"Go on, we will be waiting for your good news," Lady Min smiled as she waved her hand. Cheonsang, Kim Yun and Yaksong added their farewells.

Yunbok held on to Jeong-hyang's hand and smiled as he waved back. A small boat headed to the opposite shore of Ammok River and disappeared as it went further away.

"Let's go, we should go back as well," Joon-ho turned around to hold his wife hand and said as he started to walk.

"Wife, whom do you think that Brother Seo had met that was able to help him that much? And also, do you think that he will manage to get the antidote which can cure his poison completely?"

"I don't know, everything has to go with the flow."

"Then will Brother Seo die?"

"Yes, of course he will."

"Then why did you let both of them leave? You should have at least try to think of something to save both of them." Joongho stopped short.

"Aigoo, you're such a silly. Who will not die? Are you telling me that only this brother whom you've taken in will die? I will die too. We will die one day. It's just that we don't know when. Sigh. Really, how on earth did I fall for such a stupid person like you all those years ago?" Lady Min said with a mischievous smile as she knocked her husband's head playfully.

"Who wouldn't die? No one is able to control when they are born and the time of their death. It's impossible to determine what will happen the next moment, or what will be happening tomorrow. Then you just don't need to think about it, isn't it better to appreciate what you have now? Being able to be with the person whom you are close at heart, isn't that called happiness?" Lady Min said slowly as she looked up the sapphire blue sky.

"Haha, having a wife like this, what else can a husband ask for?" Joongho smiled with genuine happiness and hugged his wife.

"But, why do I feel that for some reason Brother Seo is not the same since that night he came back. As for what it is, I can't really tell. It's really strange," Joongho said as he had some questions in his mind.

"Haha, I do know that," Lady Min knew what her husband was having doubts on.

"You know? What's that?" Joongho was really interested.

"Haha, the secrets from heaven is not to be revealed," Lady Min threw up her hands and walked briskly.

"Aigoo, haha, the secrets from heaven? There will be a day when I will know as well, hmm," Joongho smiled and chased after his wife.