Date ….

A long video clip shot what had happened in the year 1945 was the key turning-point of the film.

Hai Yen was not only planted herself on Stone Farming House in But Nam to follow close behind camera crew but even asked for playing a role as a figurant as well.

-       I now realize that it worth the effort for you to make the film and I suggest that you should respect the history and stage-manage 100% exactly same it without using any invention, modification or distortion. Let me give some more capital and you let my father Vu Hung play the leading person in the delegation which seized power in the District building in 1945 as he used to be.

Date ….

The little boy Vu Hung whose clothes were in tatters and who looked just like a beggar when he appeared in Stone Farming House of the old days had sooner become a “person of capital importance” there. He had been regarded by Doctor of Letters’ wife, District Chief Vinh and his better half, the first generation house-owner’s second son Duc Ham and his spouse, Miss Land-lady Lan Vien. He was really a member of that family, or rather, a steward despite his original position of a “servant”. Nobody dared to think nothing of Hung. Hung was the guy arranged all the activities in the household. Hung was a commander-in-chief of all kinds of trans-planters and ploughmen.

The Stone Farming House was just like a house of no host with Hung’s absent and everything was going to be in a mess: Nobody knew where the farmers were and what to eat on that day … The wives of Mr. Vinh’s and Mr. Ham’s were bone-lazy. They didn’t touch anything. They didn’t know where their fields were, how many fields they had, when the dates of plough, of planting or of harvesting, where to keep the paddy after cutting.

-       Hung! How many quintals does this sticky rice pile? – Vinh’s better half asked.

-       Hung! Go to buy grilled rice snack for cooking sweet soup on mid autumn festival, pleased! – Ham’s spouse informed.

-       Hung! Come here and let me tell you! Prepare all the necessary things such as chicken and pigs, pleased! The date of our boss’ death anniversary is coming. – The Doctor of Letters’ wife reminded.

-       Hung! Inform me the quantity of green rocks which were used for tiling the remains places so that I can make an order, pleased! – District chief asked.

-       Mr. Hung! Pleased help me to go to the Post Office in Phu Street and send the letter to my friend Le Diem living in Hanoi. – Miss Lan Vien begged.

And the last little owners Lu and Trung:

-       Uncle Hung! The summer is coming. Pleased whittle away the bamboo splints and combine them into the kite …

Hung had done all their instructions with high quality …

A help man Hung turned out to be a “big” powerful man in August 1945. His rank went beyond the scope of Stone Farming House and spread all over the But Nam commune, Thuan An District. Hung appeared to be in another image after a night only. All the members in the Stone Farming House and villagers strictly obeyed and listened to him.

The people living in But Nam commune, Thuan An District were used to lead their quiet lives: Do the farming works in the morning and drive the buffaloes to their cages in the evening while smokes were rising in late afternoon beside the glows were flickering behind the bamboo screens of their kitchen, how plaintive the crows chirped at sun-baked noon! What sad water hens’ voices in the nights the moon presented! It would not take buds whose cheeks were pink and whose lips were red long to turn destitute matrons whose ball stomach and portly rears were embraced by their men beside the meal of cooked rice and husked manioc roots that were hold by glazed terra-cotta bowls placed on wooden trays while village mayors and bully were eating party in the village temple. Loads of paddies were continuously carried to landlord houses whenever taxable rice season coming. The couples were cuddling each others on straw mattresses. The village watchmen appeared with rattan switches on their hands. Wooden bells resounded through melancholy paths …

Then, the whole village seemed to be exploded. Women were correctly dressed with shoulder poles on their hands as though they were taking the rifles and were passing the troops in review in a real military training in the village temple. They were stepping according to the counting voices one two two one … Were they going to entangle each others in a combat? For sure, they were actually preparing for fighting. Mandarin was not female work. The court was not a place for widows. Was it the crows of the hen? Yes, it was able to be considered like that. All the village women were training and singing “Join in heroic troops. Walk with regular steps … To be a sacrifice unto ourselves. Women! Go!”

Canes and shoulder poles were roughly raised just like the real rifles. The men and women of the old days had never been gotten closed together. They then crowded in the yard of the temple and acted as if they had been suddenly free from ethical behavior. They gave the others pinches or touches on their breasts while they were “joining in heroic troops”. Like that, they kept stepping, shouting “Women! Go!”, going to the “community world” without any boring.

The villagers’ weapons were falchions and the lengths of some inches of male bamboo. Hung was the most majestic person due to his matchlock taking from the depository of the Stone Farming House. He hung it on his shoulder. Hung was chosen as the leader of Civil Defense Delegation which was hundreds of people. His title was the same rank of the Sixth French mandarin (Colonelcy). It appeared that Vietminh had admitted him to their organization for long. He had been collected and awoken to the revolutionary ideas since when. Vietminh liked him because he was more impressive than anyone else. It appeared that he had played a nice servant and done his job such as taking care of the Stone Farming House, following District chief Vinh’s orders and he was secretly nominated for the position of “the Sixth French mandarin” in deed by Vietminh. He had never opened his condition with public until the revolution achieved a success on that day. Taking the national red flag in the middle of which the yellow star stood and blowing his whistle which was placing between his lips, he assembled his staffs. The village mayor in very thin dress with two long panels and long sleeves and ready-to-wear turban was obsequiously unfastening his bag to take out a bronze seal and present it to Hung. Hung had it – the thing represented the very long power of feudalism and colonialism for years – under his belt. On those days, nobody remembered to work on fields but kept talking about revolution. Do revolution. Don’t go farming.

The first generation house-owner’s second son Duc Ham used to say: “Our lives are standing on the smoldering live crater which is going to boil and explore”. Hung had considered it and he had realized that it was true. It was exploring. But Nam and other villages seized power in the District building dated 19 August.

Everybody stayed awake all night before the date the event of “making a surprise revolutionary attack” happened. Rice was cooked at the first night-watch and was pressed into balls, held by fabric, separated to each person to have each ball by one’s side. They looked like a grenades. People hurried off and went with lances, broadswords, sticks, shoulder poles. The sky was full of stars. The roads leading to the District were dim. The streams of people were flowing from all the streets. The big drums taking from the village temples were being beaten.

-       Long live revolution!

-       Topple feudalism and colonialism!

-       Long live Vietminh

-       Wrest power to the people!

-       Wrest control of the government from feudalism and colonialism!

-       Abolish the oppression and the exploitation!

-       Remove our long term chains of slavery.

The slogans was resounded and heavily echoed on the roads leading to District. The darkness gradually disappeared and the day had begun to break. The dawn was as red as the color of the revolutionary flag or vice versa.

Hung was delegation header. He let out a string of loud shots to show off their strength. The Civil Defense Delegation which was attempting with spears, scimitars, rifles was accompanying Hung. The red flag was being taking on Hung’s hand and was fluttering in the wind above his head. Hung put his feet on the three steps staircase of the District block in front of his mass of people.

The District chief Nguyen Duc Vinh in brocade clothes and ready-to-wear turban with a badge of a mandarin on his chest was obsequiously coming. He was subservient followed by his staffs. It was an adverse circumstance. Hung had behaved like that with District chief Vinh for years and then he received the contrary.

In brave huge tall figure, Hung clamorously shouted: “Long live revolution”. Thousands of people responded: “Long live”. Hung was surrounded by bright swords and lances. He proudly held his head up. He looked like a general of the army.

District chief was quivering. He lowered his head with a seal, documents, royal diplomas and certificates and badge of a mandarin which had just taken out of his neck on his raising hands. Hung bended his body forwards to take all the things, hand over them to his guard and turned his face to the crowd. He informed:

-       Revolution government has seized control of Thuan An District since these minutes. The people have been masters of their destinies since these moments. We have neither king nor feudal mandarins that used to tread on our necks anymore. Long live independent Vietnam …

-       Long live! Long live!

A forest of people hailed.

Turning his face towards District chief Vinh, Hung announced:

-       Mr. Nguyen Duc Vinh is a citizen, a civilian in the independent Vietnam from now on. Revolution receives you as a person who is abreast of the times when you have quickly surrendered us. We will have large-hearted for all the people who have left their old titles and follow us …

Looked at the shriveling group of employees with the mandarin, head-clerk of district mandarin’s office, body-guards whose weapons were seized, Hung made a signal by his hand:

-       Revolution was charitable for all of you. You have the right to go home and do your own business. However, remember not to do anything which was harmful to our people …

-       Dear revolutionary officers and all the people – District chief Vinh seriously addressed – We would like to follow your revolution to make anti-imperialist, to make anti-feudalism. That was our tradition. Our grandpa was Great Oldest Uncle commander whose territory was Nha Son mountain area. During the past years, he had never stopped fighting against France till he was displayed his head in the market. Our father was the Doctor of Letters Nguyen who used to be a member of Modernistic movement. He used to develop trading services, open the school to teach Material about new ideas for the purpose of renovating our country and thus he was sent into exile for life with other patriotically feudal intellectuals in Con Dao. Our younger brother is Duc Ham who was sent away from his school because he had the thoughts of making anti-imperialist, making anti-feudalism, struggling for independence.

I would like to be a civilian from now on …

- Don’t use the word “We or our” – reminded a man who had severe and good manners. He was a “revolutionary officer” who was directing the movement of rising up in arms in the areas located on Thanh Do province. He presented not only in the event of seizing power in the District building in Thuan An on that day but also in all the events of seizing power in other District blocks in all other places. He found, “contacted” the excellent persons like Hung and assigned them as “biggest birds of flocks” to head the demonstrations in the movements of rising up in arms in all the Districts. He organized, masterminded and controlled all the things. His clandestine activities were engaged. Nobody knew his real name even but his alias “Try to develop”. He used to be a prisoner in Con Dao and used to attend a jailbreak and was staying in underground hideouts to set up “foundations in the people’s hearts”, to mobilize and enlighten the youth to follow the revolutionary idea, to gather and create line-ups, to prepare for the movements of rising up in arms that made anti-imperialist and anti-feudalism to wrest power to the people …

Choosing Hung as a person who headed the demonstration in seizing power in the District building in Thuan An, received the bronze seal, badge of a mandarin and documents from his District chief Vinh had a capital significance: “The servant” position was risen and “the boss” condition was knocked off his pedestal …

Date …

Duc Ham used to lead an effervescent life. He had gathered up his mind in writing his columns of French newspaper whose owner was Clementy since the date he was sent away from school. The main topic was: asking for independence, democracy and freedom for Vietnamese country. Using his quite at home knowledge of English and French languages, Ham listened to the wooden electric radio which was as big as a trunk. He switched on the English, French, American channels to follow the world situation and the Second World War happenings. He read the current information from piles of French and American newspapers whose owner was his “high class” friend. Ham understood the historical tendency, understood the “blowing trend” of the thunderstorm in Great War so that he could forecast the future of the world.

He was very sad to realize the paradox in the person of life. Mankind had appeared since the utmost antiquity and the war had presented accordingly. Fore sure, strong men had the habit of bullying the weak ones. The big fish swallowed the small ones. The former Roman Empire used to rule the roots of the world. Mongolian nomads used to occupy almost the whole Asia, half of Europe. The Tartar soldiers (Mongolian) used to dance and drink on the boards which were put on the heads of their noble prisoners of war whose complexion was fair. Napoleon used to lead his French troops to conquer everywhere on the world such as Egypt, Italy, Russia … The firearms, ammunition (that replaced the swords) and ironic boats which had ability to go across the seas were created since the mechanical era in Europe appeared. Every country flocked to invade other ones as their colonies. Great British had so many colonies which located on a large number of latitudes and longitudes that they were highly presumptuous with their own expression: “England had no sunset”. The Great China with thousands of historical years was stationed occupying troops in by the smaller country Japan just because Japan had carried out “clear-sightedly modernistic rule” and studied the Western techniques on time while China was sinking in Confucianism. The Vietnam with thousands of historical years was also bombarded by French “ironic and bronze vessels” in Son Tra peninsula. They had invaded “six Southern provinces”, attacked Hanoi stronghold. The Vietnamese court in Hue was considered as puppet dynasty. That was life. The strong men killed the weak ones. How deeply resent to feel great anguish! That was the non-stop making war history. There were some places on earth had peace in some periods when the balance was taken place. The latter America had extremely developed after defecting English troops, taking its independence. It could compare with Europe in all aspects, or rather, the great progress. Even so, it “picked a quarrel” to rearrange the territories on the world.

People had never wished for war. No civilian in England, France, Germany, Italy and Japan wished for war. The battles happened in their country because of “ruling corporations”. To dominate the world, to rob the assets, to recruit the slaves from other countries, the stronger foxes bit the weaker ones. They changed to foxes. The people’s theory was very good but their acts were effected in by a very simple rule called instinct: The strong men killed the weak ones. The words: republic, freedom, equality and humanity were originated from France. The Declaration of Human Rights: “The Equality rights have been applied for everybody since they were born. The Creator gave them the rights which no one can deny and in which were the rights to live, to have freedom and wish for happiness” was uttered in America. On the contrary, France and America had controlled their troops and attacked everywhere. How everybody could stand. That was why people had struggled and thus war happened. The war had taken place from generations to generations.

The First World War experienced from 1914 – 1918 and then the Second World War was developing. The German man named Hiller would like to have the whole Europe. He had France, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Belorussia … He was on the brink of the world hegemony. However, life was not so easy. The Xo Viet Union Red Army was fighting with his forces by tanks in the arc of Kirghizia. They had won in Xtalingrate. The German troops were suffering a complete defeat. American, English and French allied troops had landed in Normandy and opened a new Western front to make the second pincer movement … Germany was going to struggle to death. The Japanese troops were defeated in Quan Dong in Eastern front. They were hopelessly crowded …

Ham was happy to view the result of the largest World War in the humanity history.

Days after days, Ham more and more believed that there was justice on earth when he received the news about the victories of allied troops. For sure, the people of crazy, being extravagant who were trampling on the human beings’ simple truth would be punished. The God should give us the equality. The quarrelsome fascists must be exterminated. Mut-xo-li-ni was hung. The Xo Viet Union Red Army had put their steps on the ground of Berlin. Hiller had killed himself. Japan surrendered unconditionally after receiving two terribly atomic bombs …

Ham felt happily and very light. Time for seizing independence of a lifetime came in Vietnam. Ham reached the Square in front of the Opera-house to attend the meeting organized by “General Association of Civil Service” which was a current pro-Japan government dated 17 August 1945. The Vietminh great national red flag in the middle of which the yellow star stood was suddenly hanging on the top of the Opera-house. The Vietminh’s representative – a youth interrupted the speech. The three chairmen in the meeting organized by “General Association of Civil Service” didn’t say a word. Their conditions were just like a feather of a fowl flying in the whirl-storm. Japan had surrendered allied troops three days before. It meant 14 August. They lost their support. Their government was collapsed in deed. The technical employee seriously gave the micro to the eagerly overpowering majesty Vietminh youth who scared nothing. There was a Japanese barrack which took some hundred meters from there and the soldiers were pointing their light machine-gun at Opera-house. The youth read Vietminh’s declaration about their General uprising to demolish feudal regime and colonialism and fight for independence. He had a sonorous voice. However, he delivered the speech in an unsmooth way due to his hastiness. Emotiveness was not expressed. A nice gentle-lady who looked like an intellectual living in Hanoi City immediately got closed to him and helped him in reading. A clear connected free and easy speech was resounded on loudspeaker. That gave everybody a strange feeling … the image of revolution should be a powerful combatant with threatening appearance. On the contrary, it was a high society snobbish beautiful and romantic girl who attracted everybody.

Ham was moved. He disconcertedly looked at the great deal of the national red flags in the middle of which the yellow stars stood which were fluttering everywhere. There were propaganda leaflets which looked like butterflies. There was a secret force of “Vietminh soldiers” who were clandestinely mingling with the disorderly crowd in order to protect the event of interrupting the speech in the meeting. The content of the meeting was rapidly turned into another direction. A stream of people was rushing on the street named Trang Tien. An independent march happened to demonstrate their force.

The official uprising was taken place in Hanoi dated 19 August. Ham was mingling with the disorderly crowd on the streets and shouted clamorously the slogan. He presented in a group of people who were surrounding Northern Block – the place King’s special High-ranking envoy worked and the place headquarter of the government was located. The ironic gate was closed tight. Each small group of civil defense was climbing on the ironic fence and dropped themselves on the yard. Voices were shouted clamorously. The gate was open. The delegation of people with red flags and simple weapons on their hands overwhelmed the place. King’s special High-ranking envoy was captured. Ham followed everybody and presented inside Northern Block. He would like to see the historical moments. He had witnessed the people’s independent aspiration and its strength. He hadn’t seen the revolution official army force yet. They were still in the forest and were on the way to Hanoi. They hadn’t presented on the streets in Hanoi yet. Even so, the local revolution forces in Hanoi had already seized the government and the people had already done their own insurrection.

There, Japanese troops had “taken no action”. They were in condition of defeated soldiers. Japan had already surrendered allied troops. They were waiting for their allies. They were laid down their arms and they would be at their country. The Japanese officers were no longer hanging their swords dragging closed on the ground in their general headquarters in Pham Ngu Lao street. They did nothing but looked how Vietnamese people rising up in arms, how the public seizing power.

In Hang Bai civil-guard camp, Hanoi Vietminh girls in Vietnamese dress as if they were attending the festival got closed to the guards and convinced them to hand over the weapons to Revolutionary troops. The beautiful innocent ladies with bare hands settled an armed obstinate confrontation. The civil-guard camp had surrendered. What a talent revolution – Ham shook his head. It was not sure for the civil-guard camp of their full complement and weapons to surrender if the camp was encircled and attacked by civil defense. Ham had seen with his own eyes how “revolutionary women” became the lovely housewives in cooking rice, boiling vegetables and preparing the meals for the soldiers in civil-guard camp. They were just like a family.

Ham had seen Vietnamese people who delivered the crows of escaping from invaders’ occupation since the dates of August. The delegations who were seizing power from districts to provinces were marching with stamping noises on the streets all over the country. The District chiefs and Province chiefs working for Vietnamese dynasty rapidly took turn to surrender Revolutionary government. The king Bao Dai abdicated and became a civilian living in independent country Vietnam. The feudal regime existing thousands of years in Vietnam was collapsed.

Ham presented at Three Temples flower garden dated 2 September for listening to the representative of revolutionary power who read “independent declaration”. He had translated the speech into French language on that night right after receiving the document in hand. He did that work for nothing but fun. The French newspaper whose owner was Clementy had stopped issuing for so long. He did that work because he loved the very eloquent masterpiece essay which marked a new period of Vietnamese country.

On the first week of September, there was a special guest visited Hoang Lan villa some days after independent day. He was Duc Vinh’s classmate in the school named Mandarin-to-be. He didn’t receive mandarin title but disappeared. Nobody knew about his trace even his wife or his children. Nobody had ever seen him until revolutionary uprising exploded. It turned out that he had engaged in clandestine activity, done revolution. He was a capital important person working for Vietminh.

Ham had a little bit information about him and Duc Vinh was not his closed friend.

-       Brother Ham! – The guest said – I have a liking for you. I had attended in a meeting organized by a group of intellectuals and traders in Mind and Moral Developing House last year. I had listened to your speech about our nationally independent aspiration. Your confidential idea had moved everybody and I was moved as well. You are a patriot but you are quite innocent, according to my opinion. Your policy was to mobilize and appeal to colonial for returning An Nam’s independence so that An Nam was able to self-control its own country. How they could accept. When they could spit out and thus, revolutionary violence was used, chances were taken advantage and independence was consequently succeeded …

Now, your aspiration has come true. There aren’t any Japanese and French invaders. Our Vietnam is independent. I come here to invite you to be my co-worker. You are high education. You are good at English and French. You are enthusiastic. You are a patriot. You love revolution. The new government needs all people like you. I am working in diplomatic service and helping the highest-ranking cadres in talking to French and Allies in the minutes of being put to fire and sword. French troops were determined to return here. They had never given up their colony …

I would like to invite your elder brother to be revolutionary officer as well. Pleased inform him to forget his mandarin past and join in our new line-up … Your knowledge and skills are highly appreciated.

The guest – Mr. Thanh Quang – left the invitation letter which had the red stamp on it and Duc Vinh was the name addressed. The next week, Duc Vinh set out from the Stone Farming House. He worriedly drove his backside of the duck-like car:

-       Ham! I shouldn’t stay in our hometown. I feel anxiously. I used to be a mandarin anyway. The old events such as judging a case in court, creating animosity, being richer person made us being hated. They are now seizing power. We have to look after ourselves …

-       The current chairman of our commune is no one else but the guy Hung – Ham informed.

-       Correct! But there isn’t only Hung, is there?

-       Haven’t they invited you to work for them?

-       Yes, they have. I am the chairman of Pan-Viet front. My job is to act as a stooge and gather the upper classes such as mandarins, intellectuals, officials, landlords, traders … in order to support Vietminh in deed. However, I am only a puppet guy as I well know. I take the reason of “lacking the prestige” to refuse the title. Actually, they didn’t need my body but my name. I know that the condition hasn’t been stable yet and the safest way is to leave our village. I am quite familiar with Vietnamese countryside. Normally, the people here are very modest, good-hearted, hesitating and timid. However, let’s have a serious observation when the adverse eventuality happens. The people turn out to be ferocious and they are able to kill each other as though they kill a young frog. Let’s recall the date they “seized power in the district building” and you will understand them. The above mentioned cloddish people who used to tremblingly stand in the district court while their heads were hanging without having any look at a term for a mandarin had changed into tigers or panthers on that day. How clever I was when I surrendered and submitted my seal and thus I was unhurt. I ask you: If my staffs were stubborn and changed their tactics by firing some guns or being against them my staffs would be immediately beaten to deaths and I would be beheaded, displayed my head, my district court would be shot up. I knew all those things and that was why I had to show an overmodest attitude, pretend to be nervous and I had to obey them. Our happiness and virtue were still full when the leader of the delegation which had seized power in district block was the fellow Hung. He had received the feeling of gratitude from our family for years. We had considered him as our son. And hence, being a revolutionary person, he was light-handed with us. If he was another cruel person who had personal hard feelings he would ask his civil defense to tight me before executing on the spot on that day. Nobody could do anything with him.

Ham! According to my view, the current situation is higgledy-piggledy despite the fact that the revolution had just exploded and the power is taken over by their Revolution because their position-of-strength policy is not firm enough. They haven’t got the large and powerful army force. French troops had already occupied Southern area and they are going to take back their colony as they belong to Allies part which was the winner in the Second World War. The history trend is supporting them. Vietminh has nothing but sticks, harquebus, spears, broadswords … How they can fight against their enemy’s tanks and canons.

-       The French colonialism is as bold as brass and they are quite thick-skinned. – Ham interrupted his brother – They had just been beaten to a pulp by German troops and thus they had to leave Paris city open. Even so, Germany could freely occupy. They like the children who had just lost their mother and their family and hence they had to live in exile. Thanks to their Allies, thanks to the history trend, they can take back their country. How they can immediately go into battle and finish invading Indochina. The French should love the people who have lost their country because the French has just been sufficient the sense of shame when they lost their country. Where they put their sympathetic vibration. Where they put their conscience. And where the truth is. They were hear-felt when they lost their country, when they appealed to independent truth for all people in the world. They right away eat the other countries’ “independence” when they had just “escaped from the dangerous situation and become self-satisfied”. Their truth is on their mouth. Their obvious acts are worth hurling a stream of abuse at their father, at their saying. That is life by nature.

-        Actually, I am worrying about my weak destiny in this eddy – Duc Vinh added – French troops have turned back with their invading intention. The Chinese skinny, hungry and thirsty troops whose leader is Tuong who is stuck the Allies mark is “Joining Vietnam with Chinese troops”. They are forcing the Japanese troops to lay down their arms and are lying as a protest in the place where people are as hungry as bending thatches. It is the most un-equable situation I have ever seen. I wonder whether Revolution can stand steady on their legs in such a storm while they are just like a young tree which has just sprung. How it can struggle for life against the storm which can shake and uproot it. The political arms will be in contact with each other. They will confront each other. The war will happen. “Seventh ten was died. King appeared, died two, survivor was one”. They will kill each other as though they are killing young frogs. Success or victory will be gained by mountains of bones, blood flowing into rivers but not meetings, demonstrations, marches, crying out the slogans. Flies and mosquitoes will die while buffaloes and oxen are fighting. Our conditions of shrimps and tiny shrimps will be the first roasted things. How to find our own way for living now …

-       I don’t expect to realize that you have such a pessimistic and negative idea like that – Ham commented.

-       That is life aspiration. How you can consider it is pessimistic and negative when I am trying to find the way to live. – Vinh gave opponent remark.

-       Life must have an idea. What was the reason for our grandfather Great Oldest Uncle to rise up in arms? What is the purpose of our father – Doctor of Letters Duc Nguyen to do the Modernist activities? OK! You and I are two kinds of different people as if we are water and fire. That is the way we have been for so long. We are different. We are opposite just like the life contains the conflicts by nature. OK! Let it be. We are brothers by birth. We love each other. That’s all. I can’t orient the way you go and vice versa.

Ham showed Vinh the invitation letter which Mr. Thanh Quang gave:

-       How about this thing? What is your decision? The new government is deprived of human resources. They want to gather intellectuals, the quintessence elements to their side. Building a new social foundation, they need lots of people …

-       No! You help me in refusing it … I used to be a mandarin anyway. I was their object of overthrow. I lost my way and I am now in their line-up just like “a help or a servant” who is serving them in some periods. They will never believe me. It looks like a story of “leaving the lemon peel after squeezing its juice”. You are different. Your “curriculum vitae” is clear. You have the same independent idea with them. You have your future. You are going to have a job with career prospects while I am not. Frankly speaking, I suspect their existence. They have no foundation. They are so weak and everything is very illusory. The French troops are going to turn back. In this period, it has better for me to give the slip – I am going to take holy orders in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda.

-       What? Where? – Ham asked to confirm.

-       To become a monk in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda near Three Temples flower garden. It is a True Taoism. It takes 15 minutes on foot to reach there. It is an out-of-the-way pagoda where the former king Ly Hue Tong used to take the veil when he was forced to cede his throne in favor of his eight years old daughter Ly Chieu Hoang by Tran Thu Do in the old days. Passing by there, Tran Thu Do uttered his famous saying “Exterminate, root out” when he saw the monk king was pulling weeds. Ly Hue Tong garroted himself at that night. Ly golden dynasty was ended. It is a very large pagoda despite of its wildness. What a quite strange place! It seems to be forgotten and nobody cares it. I have to show my condition if I go into Quan Su pagoda which is the face of Buddhism. It’s inconvenient. Eight Towers is mixing with the space on the fringes of society where I can lead an honest life and I will be free from hardship. I will shave my head, wear monk’s robe, officially keep a vegetarian diet, say my prayers, obey the Buddhist rules and spend some merit amount to renew it. I will have a image of a true monk so that I can “live and let live” and seclude myself from the stormy world …

-       Why have you to be like that? – Ham questioned closely.

-       You are young. You haven’t been able to understand the world. The coming tempest is very terrible. I have to keep my life alive … I have already arranged new lives for everyone in the Stone Farming House. They shouldn’t wear nice dresses but normal clothes like their neighbors. They shouldn’t eat delicious meals in front of strangers. They should lead simple lives like the poor people. The waste is forbidden. All of them have to save some money or gold and hide them in their waist. The more rice is hidden in the underground hideout the better it is. To save for life. I have even buried some quintals of salt in the underground hideout built by cement material. We are in the time of disturbances. Everything will be in a mess. This car will have some mechanical parts dismantled, released its inner tubes, put away its chairs. It will look like a scrap-iron car. We have to put away all the furniture in Hoang Lan villa as well. Bring all the things to the underground hideout below the living room. There will be nothing in the house but its walls. Let all the rooms were kitchen rooms by cooking works. Our villa will not look like a house but the image of poverty and retrograde. I am going to be a monk and lurk. You have to look after our great family. There are no man in the Stone Farming House but women and children. Nobody wants to harm women and children. I have already “renewed” the Stone Farming House by making it looks like the ravages of war before I come here. There aren’t any horizontal lacquered boards on which the golden blaze counter sentences are written and the smoke of frankincense will not pervade the air anymore. Our family has full of happiness and virtue due to Hung’s present. He is our closed member no matter that he is Vietminh’s “big boss”. He is very good, loyal and grateful. He is helping and protecting our family. The Stone Farming House of women and children will be scattered without him. However, everything will not stand still. Nothing can stand till if the war happens. Troubles will visit everywhere, in the countryside, in Hanoi. You have to act very fast and on time. You have to be flexible in evacuating our women and children from the heavy trouble place to the weak one. They can move to this Hoang Lan villa or return back the Stone Farming House. It’s up to each situation in each period of time. It’s not a far distance. The train and the trucks are still working. Everybody should not be fearful of hardship when traveling on foot even. The 30 kilometers long is not a very far distance.

Hey, Ham! What a quite strange life! Up to now, richness, luxury and knowledge are high appreciated. Everybody tries their best to be better, to be rich and to be respected. Excellent people have the right to rule, to lead other people. That is the social order: High class, middle class and low class. The high class is the upper rank in society. They play the role of motive force and are obeyed by low class. Everything is now upset: The legs are standing on the head. The bulbs of banana tree should be in the ground and the young leaves should bud towards the sky but now it is the vice versa. It is the golden age for the people who are poor, illiterate and atrocious. Rich people are wrinkled up because of fear. The poor people are supercilious. In the old days, the person who wanted to be district chief had to be a Doctor, a learned man, a person of thorough comprehension of ancient and modern learning was accredited by the king. To my time, it was really a “lower quality”. What the mentioned person needed was to finish from law school, Mandarin-to-be school and took the Bachelor of Art certificate. And now, things become more “ridiculous”. The chairman of Thuan An district hasn’t finished studying in Elementary school. He used to be a woodworker. The carpenter only specializes in “washing a saw in the morning, sharpening a chisel in the afternoon and advising soon to prepare the meal in the evening” but doesn’t know anything about administrative job. He is now assigned to be a term for a mandarin in Thuan An district because he is venturesome, he penetrates everywhere, he is a leader in the delegation which had seized power in the province head quarters, he isn’t scare of being in prison, being exiled, being shot, he isn’t care of Japanese or French soldiers … I can’t understand what he had done everyday. He sits at the desk at which I used to sit. He sits on the chair on which I used to sit and he works in the district court in which I used to work. However, he can only know how to spell the Vietnamese language and can not understand the French language or Han scripts even a word. It is right to say that “What a misconduct of the Heaven! Gentleman is changed to humble person and vice versa”. For the reason of that, we have to look after ourselves otherwise “is it a head? No, it isn’t. It must be an ear” … - Duc Vinh breathed a sigh. His distinguished face looked more despondent.

7

Date …

It was in Ha Noi in 1946. Ham had gone to the palace where the King’s special envoy was working – the new name was the Palace for Northern Region – on Ngo Quyen street since 5 o’clock in the early morning. That day was on 16 April. Everybody in Has Noi was well sleeping. A few Vietminh’s guards were on the beat. It had been 6 months since the date “Independent declaration” was read in the Three Temples flower garden. So many political fluctuations had been happened for a half year. It was happened exactly the same to what Ham and Duc Vinh had forecasted. French thanked to its Allies England and its troops had invaded Southern Region since the date 23 September of the previous year. Vietnamese government had step by step made concessions. The preliminary convention was signed dated 06-03-1946. In the capacity of replacing 200 thousand Chinese soldiers whose general was Lu Han and whose president was Tuong and taking the job of their Allies which was to force Japanese troops to lay down their arms, French soldiers were overwhelming Hanoi and other places. The Chinese troops of Tuong had returned their country. And then, the French troops were superciliously occupying the ancient stronghold Hanoi – the place where Hoang Dieu and Nguyen Tri Phuong had held their ground and struggled against French colonialism to the last minutes. One more time, the ancient strong-hold Ha Noi belonged to France and it became French’s general headquarters. They supervised Ha Noi and Vietminh at the same time. There are “pan-checking” policemen in Ha Noi.

Ham’s credit was gradually increasing after several months working for Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Mr. Thanh Quang’s assistant. Ham had become an “important person” due to his hearty patriotism, independent idea, wide knowledge, dialectical argument, dignified and serious manner and authority. He was chosen as a member of diplomatic delegation which would attend in the preparatory conference organized in Da Lat. That was a preparation step for a Viet – France high ranking negotiation taken place in Fontainebleau (France) in which Vietnam would insist its independence and territorial integrity and France would want to be a colonial who were able to rule Indochina.

The diplomatic delegation set out at 6 o’clock in the morning. The rain was spitting. It was blurred in Sword Lake. The Tortoise Tower was sunk in the opalescent curtain of dew. Ham looked attentively at the view of Hanoi. Everybody was sleeping. With some missions on his shoulders, Ham departed. Ham started making his theories written in French newspaper which had struggled for independence and he was sent away due to that reason into real life. At that moment, Sir Duc Vinh was chanting intercessions and saying masses and striking the wooden bell in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda while Ham started rushing into a severe battle of great meaning. He had had to run after the circle of the eddy, the great move without coming to halt or separating since then. He had become an official member of Vietnam revolution.

Gia Lam airport was so small and so sad. The weak looking plane Dakota had taken off. It was the first time the view of villages, fields, mountains, rivers and sea appeared in front of Ham’s eyes. It looked like a drawing. He was moved. His work then associated with that appearing picture. The spiritual notion of mother country and nation described in prose and verse was appeared. The plane landed on Pacxe (Laos) for getting petrol at early noon. It had problem when it was going to continue its schedule. How dangerous it was! It made Ham shivered. Was the plane carrying Modernist King from Reunion isle in Africa to Vietnam had explored in the middle of the sky in 1945? Was there anything for ensuring? What an old Dakota plane! The mission was too big while the thing guarantee him safety was so small. Another reserve Dakota plane was arrived from Sai Gon. The journey was continued and Da Lat destination was waiting.

The delegation and Ham stayed in Lang-bi-ang hotel which looked the romantic lake. Da Lat was quite beautiful. It was the first time Ham came there. The hill extended endlessly with pine trees. The villas were as nice as pictures. The sky was blue with fresh cool air. It was not his tourist trip for relaxing or peace and quiet. Ham had to engage immediately in the battle despite the fact that he was a member or an employee in the delegation only. However, Ham played the role of a speaker. The independently struggling dialectics would be performed by Ham’s standard French.

D’Argenlieu – he was a monk who had transgression of a commandment, a high and mighty commander-in-chief. A satirical saying “Were you strong enough to be against us? How easily it was if we lost our 80-year-long colony!” was alternately appearing and disappearing after his skinny lips. Ham imagined the greedy look from the High Commissioner of Indochina which seemed to say: Hi romantic and dreamy “negotiator”. I had known you since you were a student whose face as young as a baby and you had just finished the French grammar program. You had hurriedly written French articles asking for independence. I should instruct police inspectors to capture you and to give you some blows “xantan” for fun. However, I hadn’t done it. You were now going to use dialectic argument to ask for your Southern Region as a part of Vietnam, to show that Vietnamese country belonged to Vietnamese people and our France was a visitor. No, we weren’t a guest. We had tanks, canons, planes. What did you have? Justice was a spiritual notion. It was not enough for you if you had only justice. Wasn’t France justice? Yes! We hadn’t sent away and hadn’t triumphed German till we had chance, we had our own forces and we got the help from our allies. We understood that invading Vietnam was immoral but we kept following the law of big fish swallowed small one … what should you do? If you were reasonable you should surrender and accept to be our colony and the new mark would be the Theory “French Union” written by Paul Mus professor.  French Union (Union Francaise) would be a house in Europe whose front looked Atlantic Ocean (façade atlantique) – it was France itself – and whose back looked Pacific Ocean (façade pacitique) named An Nam, Ai Lao and Cao Mien …

I knew the origin of bloodstream in your blood-vessel was the unyielding one which used to be against French troops. It belonged to the leader of insurgent army Great Oldest Uncle, to Doctor of Letter opening Modernist. You wanted to cope with me in the conference. You would get in stuck. You should remember that your grandfather used to be beheaded and displayed his head in the Nha Son market about a month by French. Your grandpa’s eyes had wide-open looked at the ravens and hawks giving their pecks and nibbles. The next generation French sent your daddy to Con Dao for a hard labor “holiday”. You could not make a joke with me …

Ham felt a deep resentment against the trickily colonialist guy.

There was a problem happen in the first day in Da Lat Conference. D’Argenlieu had planned the program by himself as though he was a “boss” doing his arrangement. He invited the two French - Vietnamese delegations to his residence building which was able to understand as the Indochina Confederation palace. Then, he declared the conference open in High Commissioner of Indochina capacity.

The French delegation presented at 10 o’clock in the morning. The press was there in full strength but not Vietnamese delegation which was staying in Lang-bi-ang hotel. They delivered a “firm” decision by staying without going. They rejected the avuncular opening of the commander-in-chief or High Commissioner. The leader of Vietnamese delegation assigned Ham to go there for negotiation with D’Argenlieu.

At 11 o’clock. The French delegation kept waiting. The meeting between two sides and one of which was absent. How it could start. The position of an independent and sovereign country was performed by the determination and self-respecting attitude of Vietnamese delegation.

D’Argenlieu showed his embarrassment, awkwardness and his surrender. He had to discuss with Ham how to solve the matter by inviting Vietnamese delegation to come to the party in difference capacity compared with the opening conference. Vietnamese delegation “climbed down” and accepted. They arrived. The meeting between the two Vietnamese and French delegations was taken place round the eating table. D’Argenlieu had no chance to be the host of the Conference in High Commissioner of Indochina capacity.

Ham affirmed that France would never spit out Vietnam colony after almost a month of negotiation. The only way to get independence was to arm, to carry out a war of resistance in order to drive away French. Among Vietnamese delegation was Ham. All of them suddenly stood up and left the meeting room after a sensational argument dated 10 May. The message which Vietnamese delegation sent to the whole France through the conference was “La Cochinchine, c’est la chair de notre chair, c’est le sang de notre sang (To us, Southern Region is just like the meat and blood in the body) “Nous ne L’ abandonnerons Jamais” (We will never leave our Southern Region) (The Vietnamese Leader’s declaration). It was a vague idea if French wanted to detach Southern Region from Vietnam in order to “merge” it into France. Vietnamese people would confront and fight to the last for independence and territorial integrity.

Ham realized his role in the official mission was too small. However, he felt happy to know that he had done the job which was suitable for his ideal.

Returning Hanoi, Ham came back his hometown, his Stone Farming House in But Nam by his excessively light Steclin bicycle. He had officially become Vietminh’s staff, Revolution’s member. Moreover, he was considered as a “higher authority” by local administration. Attending Da Lat Conference was not a joke work. Thuan An District had already organized a meeting in which Ham was going to talk about the world situation, the national trend, the state of affairs in Da Lat Conference as well as the coming guideline and policy. Attendances at the meeting were Vu Hung and many cadres staying in But Nam and working for communes and suburban districts. One more time, the reputation of “the Nguyen Duc line” was automatically increasing as though the kite was flying up. It was quite a roaming over story: rising up in arms, overthrowing, or even overthrowing their family member (District chief Vinh). In the new age, the employee of the recent Revolution was also their family member (Duc Ham).

In the evening, the lamps were not in use because of the moon light. “The first generation owner’s second son - higher authority” Duc Ham and “the servant – the chairman of the commune” Vu Hung were sitting in the drawing-room and discussing “the family works”

-       You are now a “host” in the Stone Farming House. You have to take care of everything in the house and look after our Doctor of Letter’s wife, Mrs. Vinh’s better half, my spouse and all the children and Miss Lan Vien specially. She is just like a soft and weak flower which is in need of protector. Nobody can attend upon her but you. A heavy pole of all the things in our house was not able to stay on my shoulders or brother Vinh’s ones but yours. Our brother Vinh has already taken holy orders and led the life of a recluse. And I am not able to keep hanging about this corner. I have my own job. I am a bird which has to fly on the high sky. I can not walk around a bun of grass and lay my eggs, find the food and serve my children. Do you understand what I say?

-       Yes, I do. Don’t worry. – Vu Hung changed his way of addressing. The word “my owner” was replaced by the words “you” (older brother) when he called and “I” (younger brother) when he addressed. The chairman of But Nam commune was not a low position. Nobody can be the chairman’s “owner”. However, he had to address “I” as he was a member of the family in the Stone Farming House and he had to sometimes look after everybody just like a “help”. He directed the farming works such as transplant and harvest, harvest the autumn rice crop and even the meal in the Stone Farming House: what kinds of vegetables, fish and meat would be used in cooking (The two wives of Vinh’s and Ham’s still kept bone-lazy and didn’t wish to change their mind in order to catch up with the revolution). He directed the two boys named Lu and Trung whose wishes were making the kites … I used the word “directed” to fix the circumstance in chairman capacity. He did all the things by himself in deed otherwise it would be undercooked rice or overcooked rice and nobody could eat it on that day.

Date …

The chairman Vu Hung sometimes presented in his office in But Nam Provisional Revolutionary Committee.

There wasn’t much Revolutionary administrative work. Birth certificates issued by “loll” village mayor was used for offspring delivery in the old days were thrown away as Revolution hadn’t got the new form. And hence, there was no document issued. Everybody was free in having babies because they were revolution citizens. They were equality and freedom.

The “legal proceedings” was “annulled”. Formerly, people could sue to the districts at any time and for any reasons. Ones gave loans, ones paid neither interests nor capital and they went to law-court. The payers pad to use their house or their fields to pay for their debts. It was changed in revolutionary time. People were so poor that they had to borrow with interest but they were not effort to return and the thing was reconcile based on the spirit of mutual affection, mutual love, human community, helping each others. The poor people were the social majors. The rich people were bloodsuckers who were not good and thus they had to be careful. They didn’t dare to make fuss as the new government would not forgive them. Previously, head-money produced a stir in the hamlets and villages every year. The village mayors could not eat and sleep well because of it. They would be dismissed from their duties and the district chiefs would whip the walking-sticks against their posteriors if they could not collect enough money. Poll-tax was then erased under the control of revolution. Revolutionary people could hold their head high when living under the dome of independent sky because they hadn’t to submit any cents to anyone. The chairman of the district or even his father had requested didn’t dare to whip the walking-stick against the chairman of the commune’s posteriors. In the feudal society, the thieves might be cut their hoof tendons and had become lame fellows since the date they were arrested. They would be so afraid that they didn’t dare to steal anymore. Everything was changed then. The reasons for stealing would be analyzed. It was because of the poorness. Why were they poor? It was due to the rich people’s exploitation. Well! They had to be sympathized. The essential solution was education as they and revolutionary people were the same class. The only work that made Hung busy was to concern to the militia unit including men and women. He trained them with the verbal commands one two one and all of them walked with regular steps in the yard of the temple. More falchions were forged, ramparts were constructed embankments and communication trenches were dug. But Nam was become a fighting village which was the purpose of higher authorities. The happening situations were more and more complicated. The French troops had already attacked Southern Region. They were sure to return. The whole population had to be ready in carrying out a war of resistance …

Revolution had just succeeded and thus they were still poor. The whole people had to support them. To Hung, the happiest period was “the golden week”. But Nam was noisy with drums and was colorful with flags. The whole population was called upon to advocate revolution by their gold. Gold was carried in trunks which were covered by red fabric and were respectfully put on the desk of honor with two watch-militiamen flanking it and firearms were carried by them. Nobody came to give gold in the whole morning. What a misfortune! But Nam people were poor by nature. They hadn’t got enough food to eat. How they could have gold. The people who lived in Hanoi and in provinces were rich. They flocked to supportive places in the golden week. On the contrary, the richest But Nam people were the luckiest ones that had a silver circle and had put it on their child’s neck.

Chairman Vu Hung took the loudspeaker and sonorously read the poem:

Tiredness came from heaviness due to earrings

Inconvenience weighted by necklace bringing, you knew!

Well! It was meaningless like that. The necks and the ears were weighted. Nevertheless, they raised a subscription to take all the meaningless and invaluable things for what …

Vu Hung returned his house and advised:

-       Mrs. Doctor of letters! Our family should be an example …

Mrs. Doctor of Letters visited the temple of the village and the firearms carrying militiamen welcomed her. Her ring and earrings were dropped into the trunk.

Vu Hung wrote National contribution certificate. Mrs. Doctor of Letters went home. The firearms carrying militiamen welcomed her again. How happy the rich people were! Minutemen had to welcome them.

The days of the golden week were happy but the mass education movement was happier. Everybody in every house repeatedly called each other to come to the temples which were lighted as bright as the stars. In the olden days, there were only children who were used to go to school with books under the arms and there weren’t any adults learning a letter as they didn’t realize the purpose of studying. But then, the people lived in the independent country. They were revolutionary people who had to be literate. It was very easy to learn Vietnamese language and to spell alphabetic letters A, B, C. It took some months for them to be able to read and write. They had no reason for no studying while they spent no money for that activity. They were happy. Young men and buds liked studying best. They could sit closed together as well as give each other some pinches at their will and pleasure. The chairman Vu Hung was an enthusiastic teacher. He held a clumsy hand of a girl to write the words o, a. That was a skillful hand when she hoed, transplanted, harvested. However, it was inflexible as though it had no tendons and bones when it held the pen which was so tiny but neither big nor heavy. Her zigzags handwriting looked like an earthworm which was crawling. She was writing and giggling. The girls took turn to be held hands and to be trained. The girls’ wrists were round and glossy and fair. Their respirations were closed to his ear. There were some buds who pressed their heads and necks against Hung’s chest. How funny the mass education was! How the feudal mandarins and colonials could not realize in their time. Revolutionary people were the only ones who discovered. What a talent revolution! The mass education taught the girls how to spell the word “look” like that: “touch … me … pleased”. That was the way how the word look spelled. The alphabetic letter touch (x), the word me (em). They combined together to form the word look. However, it turned out to have the meaning as if the girls asked the boys to touch their bodies to see what they felt when that word was spelled. The story was like that. It was not wrong if it was called fun.

The chairman Vu Hung assigned Lan Vien to be “Buds department manager” in But Nam National Women Association which included 20 young and unmarried girls. They gathered to do meeting and activities that supported the three fronts “Kill the hungry enemy, the illiterate enemy and the invaders”.

Lan Vien and her staffs were examples in carrying out “Rice jar for starvelings” by taking out one handful of rice from the part of rice used for every time of cooking and put it in the mentioned jar to give it to the hungry people whenever they washed the rice before cooking. It meant that they reduced one or two bowls of rice everyday, summed them up and delivered that quantity to undernourished people. That brought a quite good result. Many people’s eyes dewed with tears when receiving their part of “rice aid”. Lan Vien hardly went to each house to collect the rice before dividing them.

Lan Vien stood out from the front of killing illiterate. It was no need to say. She was the most salient person. Her learning was highest because she used to be a student in the school named Dong Khanh. She knew French. Even so, she taught Vietnamese language only. Every night, she gave lessons to the densest class with tens of people in the temple. Everybody could read and write after three months of learning from Vien.

In the front of “fighting against invaders”, Vien was less good. She was afraid of “one two one” performances, shooting trainings, digging fortified positions in order to fence the village and preparing for combating. However, she one more time stood out from the “front of letters and arts”. Her buds department often practiced singing. “Revolution had appeared on Vietnamese country in an old autumn. A great deal of the youth’s attack sounds was suddenly shouted. They broke chains …” The song showed flaming momentum …

“Troops of National Defense Army hadn’t dispatched yet

But if they went they never wished for returning

They kept going to protect Vietnamese country

To go forward despite of death …”

What a harmonious, hurried and high spirit song!

Vien had a clear voice which was imitated by the whole group and the peals of claps were conducted.

They were singing and dancing under the moon light on the yard of the Stone Farming House. Twenty girls were in white short sleeves shirts showing their bare arms with silky and velvety complexion which were dexterously wriggling just like waves. In chairman capacity, Vu Hung had responsibility in directing and getting in close contact with buds department and canvassed them for positively joining in revolutionary works. He had never missed any dancing evening of training. All the dance movements were invented by Lan Vien in deed. Lan Vien sometimes applied the waltz which she had chance to know since she was a student in the school named Dong Khanh for her “new” revolutionary dance. It was not a difficult job for Lan Vien to “create new dances”. For example, to the “Happy production”, the sketch movements such as carrying on one’s shoulder with a pole and two hangers, “pull up young plants of rice”, “transplanting”, “harvesting”, “paddy threshing” were applied. A harmonious and suitable song was chosen to be dance rhythm. And a product was formed. Buds department manager Lan Vien was so self-confident that they used such an item to perform in the district show. It was warmly welcomed. The aspect which buds department was highly appreciated was the new age spirit or equality between men and women. The women were considered the same level with the men under revolutionary time. The women in the old days had no right to present at the temple but men were different. They could be there so as to spread a mat and had a drink. The women could only go to pagoda for worshipping the Buddha.

The men could marry as many wives as they willed under the feudal time. Normally, the rich man could have three spouses at least. He married his first better half when he was 16 or 17 and the first child was born. She took care of the family including the fields, the houses. She had husband to feed and he would study or wander. He married the second wife when he was around 40. Her main work to do was to give birth. She had to have as many babies as she could. The more they had children the luckier they were. She was usually younger than her man 15 or 20 years old. He married the third spouse who was around 40 years old younger than him when he was around 60. All elderly love young girls while his first two wives had already been slovenly, loose muscles and full-bodied with their breasts dangling loosely by their belly-buttons, their crazed skin in the stomach area which looked like a highly starchy casaba melon, their complexion and their meat under the skin were flabby. The 20 year-old-buds had powder-like skin. Their breasts were as firm as nails. Their bodies were of sturdy build. They were all the old fortune men’s wish. He didn’t realize the beauty from the buds was very precious when he was young because he certainly had it. However, he was then more experienced in observing. He more understood the life than lived. Sixty-year-old elder’s love. Three times more passionate than that of twenty years old ones.  That was what it was. Revolution then helped the women in “revenging”. Great aristocratic family, the rich men, the government officials were so scared of revolution that none of them dared to “play paper tambourine in their old time” or had the second wife, the third better half.

Women were nothing under the feudal society. A family had an offspring if they had a son at least but not tens daughters. The women had no right to be village mayors, canton chiefs, village watchwomen, commune controllers, Head-clerks of district mandarins’ offices, employees with the mandarins, district chiefs … Head-money was not applied for women but men. What a devaluation the women had! Women were not named in the “roll of tax-payers book” of the commune.

Revolution gave women the right to take part in all kinds of social activities. It appeared the positions of vice-chairwoman of district, minute-women who practiced one two one together with men. Women had the right to vote in parliamentary election dated 6 January.

Well! According to the above mentioned spirit, the buds department whose manager was Lan Vien did all activities. There were no more husbands who were brutal toward women called guys whose feet were high and whose hands were low in the family. Lan Vien caught a man who was beating his better half when she was doing one two one training and he was unfounded jealousy. He was denounced publicly in the commune female conference by the buds department. He had to plead guilty and had to promise not to do it again.

In many houses, the wives had retorted their husbands by crack words and the men didn’t do anything since the date of “seizing power”. The husbands used to play “leading” role in the house and the wives had to obey them. The two sides were then the same. There was no “boss”. Everything would be settled if they were discussed and gone into conclusion. It was very good. However, it would be in the status that no one wanted to listen to the other when it went “beyond measure”. The family turned out to have no order. Despite of that, the buds department whose manager was Lan Vien kept carrying out their new spirit. At times, the buds department played the role of a magistrate who arbitrated quarrels which the couples were in disagreement with each other and the winners were always women.

It was quite a time of “the hens’ crows”. The men had to shake their heads.

Date …

The lights were suddenly switched off when Ham was standing on the terrace of Hoang Lan villa at 8 o’clock 3 minutes dated 19-12-1946. Hanoi was sunk into the darkness. The sounds of canons launched out from Lang stronghold were roaring and the sky seemed to be moved. That gave the signal of carrying out a war of resistance against the French colonialists opened.

Ham hurriedly rushed downstairs to collect his camera and took the picture of that fire and sword scenery. The whole sky was flashed many times with pinky light. Ham had purchased the camera for a long time t wait for that thing happened. It had to be happened. He had forecast that thing since the date he attended in the Da Lat conference. He felt that was an unavoidable trend when he concerned to the Vietnam – France high ranking Conference and accompanied his leaders to carry out the “confidential talks” with Saintony in a secret house near the edge of Sword Lake.

What had to be happened had happened when all the talks were brought to a nonplus. Ham’s work was “finished”. A new plan was set up because he had “journalist” which was rising up in his blood. He wanted to be “a witness” to the historical minutes. He wanted to save the historical images and wanted to inform the hottest news updated from the epoch events. His superiors had already given him all favorable conditions like necessary documents. Moreover, they assigned a task. He had to tell not only our national people but also the world about “historical events”. By connecting with Reurters press agency, he had to righteously supply all the events without letting the world misunderstand due to the shortage of information …

The canon sounds were resounded from the Lang Stronghold. Those growls were buoyant, self-righteous, self-confident and victorious. Radio had caught the voice of Vietnam channel broadcasted from Tram Son Tay pagoda. It stated the appeal the war of resistance on the national scale written by supreme leader: We can use rifles if we have rifles, we can use swords if we have swords, swords can be replaced by hoes, spades, sticks and canes, cold steel … Let’s make a dart at French at the same time and strike them. We are ready to receive the death and will never accept to be their slaves one more time …

Such a saying was full of details and summarized the revolutionary spirit and people’s morale. Ham was going to mix with the stream of events. The voice of his camera sounded tack tack for many different angles. The pictures could have vague background because of lacking the light but they fore sure had the “historical flashes” caused by “historical fires” which were the opening of carrying out a consecrated war of resistance.

The terrace of Hoang Lan villa seemed to be shaken violently due to the effect of guns and ammunition. Even so, Ham didn’t scare. A feeling which wasn’t easy to describe appeared in Ham’s mind. It could be called as eagerness but not discouragement.

French troops seemed not to be in passive status. They knew the situation well. Morlieøre, expeditionary commander in North Indochina, had already arranged his troops to be placed on full alert. They were expected and didn’t surprise. The only thing made them amazed was that why new and young armed forces like that of Vietnam’s with bad-equipped actively dared to attack them, a modern expeditionary troop.

According to Ham’s collected documents, they showed that the quantity of French soldiers in Hanoi was around 6.500 including one infantry regiment, one tanks and armored regiment, one cannon battalion, one section of raiders, one section of paratroopers, many soldiers working for air force and naval forces. Besides, there were around 7.000 overseas French people living in Hanoi who were distributed weapons and were in the state of participating in a war at any time. There were around 90.000 French expeditionary people in all over Indochina. For our side, the quantity of servicemen was 82.000 in our whole country. In brief, our soldiers were less than theirs. It was not a big gap. However, we had quite large difference in the way of arrangement and technical preparations. But, Vietnam dared to take part in such a war because we had a capital important named nation and to be side by side with our people.

Ham’s collected documents were quite meticulous and accurate based on official and non-official sources of information. He didn’t show off it on the newspaper but he had to know. He was chosen in joining several meeting organized by the former Hanoi military headquarters in order to discuss the fighting project. According to Ham’s figures, there were around 2.500 people in Hanoi including 5 National Defense battalions and 8.000 national salvation militiamen, factory defense people, the guards in Hoang Dieu stronghold and volunteer policemen.

That was the time Vietnamese nation started their most important war in Vietnam which would be recorded in the world’s history with insecure army forces and rudimentary weapons. Ham had mixed himself in his journey to be historical witness with the following baggage: An ironical hat on which a rampart defense round star was stuck, a submachine gun, a camera, a pen, a pile of loose sheets. He had photographed scenery of which lots of delegations of untidily carrying things on their shoulders left dreamy and luxury Hanoi to evacuate from the context of noisily lethal weapons and high sky fire and sword on suburban streets; landscape of which the imposing system of defense works were made up in vertical and horizontal directions here and there on the streets in order to intercept the French troops on the march; the view of which the streets used to be in the shade of green tamarind trees, used to have the perfume of milk flowers pervaded in the air, the brightly red flamboyant, another kinds flowers whose color were dark purple, the images of girls in gracefully long dresses … and then were loaded with broken lamp-posts, family appliances such as beds, cabinets …, ancestral altars … so that the enemy’s vehicles would be blocked. Civilian population had contributed their wedding beds or their altars which used to place incense-burners for worshipping their family ancestors because they had neither bombs nor firearms. The most important thing at that moment was to struggle against the enemy.

Ham visited the system of defense works and saw with his own eyes the French troops leading by tanks and armored vehicles and following by soldiers whose clop-clop of their shoes were echoing were dislodged and thus they could not move any steps ahead. The sounds of drums used to be beaten time thump clack for the songstresses or prostitutes who were indulging in familiarities with their talks and smiles and delivering their singings in the houses located on Kham Thien Street where was then bawling out a string of sounds caused by light machine-guns, grenades. They were treading on the neck of expeditionary elements whose soldiers were so panic-stricken that they had to scream aloud when they were running away. At Vong hospital, the people taking the three angles bomb rushed directly into a tank and it was exploded. The defense soldiers were shooting and withdrawing to the second floor. Two platoons of national defense soldiers and 50 partisans had laid down their lives for their motherland. For compensation, hundreds of invaders were died and were wounded. The blood was flowed in abundance and the hospital area was flooded. The dead bodies were scattered here and there. A fierce combat was happened in Dong Xuan market in which the opponents were running after one another among the booths.

According to the news Ham collected, five national defense battalions had attacked and destroyed several important positions such as Yen Phu power-station, waterworks, fuel dump, a Long Bien bridge and Gia Lam air port in the first day of fighting. Some journalists coming from Western press agency were the same to Ham who was penetrating everywhere to collect the information. Ham met a newspaperman working for Reurters at Metropol hotel. He said: The French troops are driving back at low speed the national defense forces which belong to the third interregional and the second interregional to the southern suburban area of the city. They can only move forwards 200 meters a day. The war resistance forces in the first interregional (Sword Lake) have already retreated and are determinedly holding their ground. The most severe battle will happen in this area …

They exchanged information with each other and Ham gave him some related pictures as he had his own mean of delivery news to the world.

The correspondent was about the age of Ham. He was brisk, courageous and lusting for blood of his career despite of danger. He fell upon the exchanging fire places because of his professional ideal. How Ham could hesitate or avoid it when the war was necessary for his independent ideal which he was pursuing.

Ham took the pictures of which the soldiers were staying on the system of defense works to protect the North Regional Building, House of municipal administration, the Edge of Lake Post Office. The battles there were violent. French insisted on reoccupying and Vietnamese people were trying their best to protect their country. Ham felt very happy to imagine the minutes when his photographs were placed an advertisement in the international paper.

One night, Ham left Hoang Lan villa which was located at number 15 Quang Thanh Street. He paid the “monk” Duc Vinh a visit at Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda which was completely deserted, pitch-dark, awfully devastated. The colossal statue guarding the main gate was as superb as a small mountain. It looked unclear in the darkness and its wide open eyes looked quite fierce. Ham’s heart was rapidly beaten thud thud due to fearfulness in deed. The statuses of Buddha gather in great number and in disorder looked like the shades of people who surrounded Ham. Duc Vinh was still there or he had already evacuated. To be honest, he had to be very brave to live there. He scared the life in the world. However, nobody was sure that it would be less fearful to live there in such the context.

-       My dear Vinh! Brother Vinh! – Ham called. His voices were echoing the whole gloomy House of Three Refuges.

Duc Vinh appeared from some corners with American lamp on his hand. He was applying himself strenuously to light it.

-       Don’t you evacuate?

-       No, I don’t. I stand my ground. It is in safety to stay under the altar on which Buddha statuses are arranged. Some days ago, they exchanged fire right on Doi Can Street and at the gate of the pagoda but they harmed neither me nor the pagoda. I had invited the militiamen in the nearby system of defense works the meal and some drink after cooking. They thanked to my kindness. They had already driven to the suburban. And this area is then quite calm. Is the war only happened in Sword Lake and Dong Xuan market?

-       It’s correct.

-       Have French troops controlled our city? – Vinh asked.

-       It has to take long time.

-       But, Vietminh’s policy is only to pin French down in Hanoi. The maximum period of time for them to exchange fire in order not to loose their face is around one month. Then, they will withdraw their army forces to Northernmost Vietnam base.

-       You hide yourself here for reading the sutra and praying to Buddha. How you can know all the war situations so well …

Ham weakly felt that such a pretended monk would never keep eating vegetarian food forever. He was waiting for his time. His eyes lit up when he talked about Vietminh’s withdrawing out of Hanoi.

Ham breathed a sigh. He ignored it. He ignored him. Ham’s brother had his own life and he had to live. Ham couldn’t take care of him …

What the monk Vinh said about Hanoi of those days was correct. The exchange fire was concentrated in the first interregional (Sword Lake). There, Ham saw thousands of minutemen. They knew nothing about arms and ammunition by nature but they then volunteer fought in dangerous circumstances and the deaths were very close to them. Workers, poor people, shopkeepers, pupils, students, noodle soup peddlers, shoeshine boys, flowers sellers … were then side by side to form a team by accident. The real cadre there was one national defense company only and some trained partisans. The rest soldiers were the people who were “spontaneous” to become combatants. Several ten thousands of people who didn’t had enough time to evacuate had appeared to be some ten thousands of warriors. How strange it was! The ancient houses which had been built since the previous century and had neither bastions nor firm fortified positions for defense were still struggling proudly against the enemy no mater that the bombs were thrown, the tanks attacked, the skillful expeditionary soldiers tightened the encirclement. There were thousands of times difference about the real strength between both sides. Ham fell into the first interregional. He followed the steps of militants who were the little communication boys. He crept through broken walls which were used as an indoor road connecting between houses and were used to support the mobile moves of the “warriors” while the enemy had to take a long way from one street to another. In the interregional, the soldiers crept just like mice and appeared to kill the enemy at one lane before disappeared to pass through another lane. The whole interregional looked like a huge beehive and according to Ham’s imagination, it had to be adhesive. The atmosphere in the front of combat trenches was warm like a family at times. The girls who wore their curly hair in puffs and the suburban buds whose teeth were black were very friendly. The loud and clear laughs were raised beside the fast and thick spurt of machine-gun fire. The hot bowls of noodle with its smoke spiraling up were placed on the system of defense works on the cold winter nights. The young girl gracefully put her hand on the fighter’s shoulder. The bud’s glint was overflowing with autumn sun in the burnt space of bombs and ammunition, ill smelling blood …

The above mentioned series of shots were recorded in Ham’s camera. His present lifted the spirit of the combatants. They clustered round him. Ham made questions and recorded the answers. After that moment, they hid themselves in the broken wall-sills beside the piles of collapsed bricks and shot the French. If the French discovered them they would be fired fast and thickly. They would die. But then, their names, ages, careers, addresses were written by Ham. They were taken photographs by Ham as well. They would be excitedly happy when beautiful ladies gave them handkerchiefs which were full of the smell of buds’ complexion. One of them told that his house was in Ngoc Ha village. There was an old century ylang ylang in the garden. He used to pick off its flowers which his mother used to sell on the streets. How sweet the blossoms were! However, he and his mom could not effort to live and hence he had to buy a bicycle rickshaw for carrying customers. He used to take his mummy with her flat winnowing basket of flowers around and around the crowded streets every afternoon. She followed everybody to Ha Dong for evacuation in the first day of war resistance in the whole country when he stayed there and fought. She asked him to accompany her but he replied: We will lose our Hanoi if everyone goes. He belonged to ready-to-die team which specialized in using three angles bombs to attack the enemy’s vehicles. There were 12 people in his team and 11 of them had already died. He was the only survivor. How strange it was! His Mom prayed to Buddha for him every night in her evacuation area. The three angles bombs were the home-made ones which had handles for holding. The bomb was as big as a bushel which had a sharp pointed figure. There were three ironic sticks placed inside the bomb and jutted out from the bomb. That was the reason why it was call three angles. He said that we had to be brave if we wanted to use such a bomb for fighting because we would die for sure. We took a bomb and hid somewhere. Seeing the enemy’s vehicle, we would rush out and beat it on the vehicle. When the bomb explored we would die accordingly as the length of the bomb handle was only one meter and a half. And ready-to-die was named. – He smiled – However, he was still alive because he stood in a far distance and threw the bomb as though it was a “javelin” last time. The enemy’s vehicle was burnt and he was thrown out far away by the bomb gas. He went on all fours, stood up and run towards that place. It made everybody surprised. They said: “Well! You are the only person who is still alive after using the three angles bomb. You must stay here and live in order to tell everybody what the three angles bomb is. You are not assigned to use the three angles bomb anymore. Move you to ambush department”. And he kept going on his life to that moment.

-       Where is your bicycle rickshaw now?

-       It is chained to the foot of ylang ylang tree in my house. However, I will never drive it anymore but go fighting.

-       There is also an ylang ylang tree in my house. The perfume of its flowers pervades the air. – Ham informed.

-       You are right. What a sweet smell of ylang ylang flowers! You know! There are many ylang ylang trees in Hanoi. I have sometimes missed that good smell since I stay here …

There were then so many people in the first interregional. It had to be ten thousands of people including inhabitants and people from many other places volunteered to stay there for battling. The plan was set to fulfill the food for around 5.000 people who were living and fighting there within three months. However, the people were then increased by many times. How to settle the problem? They acted as if to join into the system of defense works so as they could hold the first interregional was to attend the festival. They were enthusiastic and love struggling. They like taking the guns and shooting the French. That was a correct wish. The French used to be always swaggering about on the streets and everybody had to avoid them otherwise they would be whipped by truncheons. On the contrary, they then could “strip to the waist” and “exchange blows” with French. They were overjoyed because they satisfied their hearts’ contents. Let’s fight and nobody knew which cat would be bitten or who would be the winner.

… Political opponent had come to an agreement about an armistice within 24 hours so that civilian population, Chinese overseas, Indian overseas could be moved out of the first Interregional. There was nobody there but 500 ready-to-die warriors. However, the quantity of people staying there remained 1.200 ones in which there were 200 women and 150 children who had tried their best to hide themselves in some corners. It was regretful for them if they had to leave “their struggling and warm place” named the first Interregional. Ham asked a 12-year-old kid:

-       Why don’t you move?

-       I will be happy to stay here. I used to always get a shower of blows from my father whenever I was running back and forth on the streets or climbed tamarind tree or dracontomelum tree. I am now able to roam about the area in which the houses have their broken walls. I can easily move from one house to another. All the owners of the houses had already evacuated so that I can do anything I want in their houses. I can sleep on the kind of tough wooden short terra-cotta seat-like furniture or Hong Kong beds on which the mattress is put. There are a great deal of things which I can take anything I want such as the Chinese cups or bowls, padded cotton blankets, a little glassware pond in which the yellow fish is swimming, bunches of lamps, pots and pans, books, toys … I have never seem them in my life but they are discarded and are scattered here and there. The inhabitants here are very rich. However, I haven’t taken anything as I can’t “face out a circle of blockade” and bring them for selling or carry them to my house. I take a shepherd dog which is as big as a calf and it was left. It is because it follows me by itself. Its boss had gone away and forgotten it. It is sad and lonely. It was beside itself with joy when it saw me. Life s changed and it’s funny. Previously, if I appeared in front of its rich owner’s gate it might bark with raucous noises at me and made me frightened out of my wits and run away. It now lowers its tail, rubs its snout against me in order to toady to me. I am a fighter in the first Interregional myself and the dog is so smart. So, he “makes friend” with me. He follows me to anywhere. I get closed to the edge of the wall to hide myself and throw the grenade at the French, he accompanies me and he also hides himself and holds its breath to keeps the secret. He rushes out and barks with raucous noises as if he wants to queen it over somebody whenever the grenade is explored and the French soldiers are died.

I am very happy when “combating with” French. I used to be pulled my ear by French cu-lit while I was making water beside a foot of a tree planted on the bank of the Sword Lake. He had twisted my ear so hard that it seemed to be kept apart from my body. I keep remembering that animosity. And now, I have chance to hold the grenade, wait for the right time and throw it at the French. What things can make me happy like that?

The children living nearby my house used to play a game “combat” by using the “pop-pop” guns. The gun was a small ivory bamboo cylinder. We chewed and rolled the paper into ball before thrusting it in the small bamboo tube. Then, we shot. The paper bullet took flight and stuck on the other boy’s forehead and the pop sound was made. How pleasant to hear! Ones who chewed the paper quickly could shot many times and the losers were the ones whose teeth were decayed and thus they chewed the paper slowly.

Well! It’s quite boring to “combat” like that now because I am given grenade. I have it under my belt before hanging around the streets. The French took no notice at the children like me so that I throw the grenade at them and slipped out of the scene by running into a lane. It is worth to fight like that. In the “combat”, I had to tiredly chew the paper to stuff paper balls into the “pop-pop” gun and I could get only one sound “tack”. By using the grenade, I can get the “um” sound which is an earth-shaking explosion noise. How happy it resounds. My friends who used to play “pop-pop” gun with me have to call me “elderly” whenever meeting me.

-       Are you going to stay here forever?

-       Of course! I was provided with everything when staying here. I always have something to eat when it is time for meal. The women cook and bring them to me. The food includes meat of chicken and pig that are done to a turn, medium noodle soup, well-done noodle soup and even sweet lotus seeds soup. The men are struggling by the system of defense works while the women are cooking the meals during the day and bring them to warriors. If I leave here and evacuate to the villages I will be uncared-for and have nothing to eat. I have to continue hunting for crabs and picking up shell-fish for living. It’s boring.

-       Don’t you scare of the death?

-       What is death?

-       Death means … when you throw the grenades at the French, they can not survive because they … died.

-       I don’t know.

Ham interviewed a militiawoman:

-       Why do you stay here?

-       I used to take “buying bottles and scrap iron” as my career. I used to tramp on the streets. I had no sweetheart and nobody wanted to marry me. Joining in this team, I had met Mr. Nghia who used to be a drain dragger. We had felt in love with each other. Mr. Nghia has been assigned civil defense squad leader who is the manager of more than ten people and his old job title drain dragger was not in use anymore. He has given me the rank of vice-squad leader. We do fighting in the commanding position at Hang Dao Street. We exchange fires everyday. Mr. Nghia told me that if there was a girl staying next to him when he was struggling he seemed to have an amulet and he was always in safe situation because the bullets would never touch him. I’m not sure what he said is true. But, he always tempestuously fires whenever I am beside him. We have already announced that we were married. The platoon chief had certified and given us the marriage certificate which was written on the paper sheet tore out from his book. He placed the sheet on his thigh and wrote marriage certificate. We didn’t sign but press our finger-prints on it as we are illiterate. Their “wedding ceremony” was taken place without getting the presents of bridegroom’s family and bride’s family since nobody dared to come to that area. The people in their squad celebrated the wedding by treating them to a round of sweet lotus seeds soup. I am pregnant. So, I will be at the place he is and that is why I stay here.

Ham was walking on Luong Van Can Street dated 08-02-1947 while two Spritfire aero-planes were flying along the streets named Hang Bong and Hang Gai. They got closed to the top of the trees and right above the roofs of the houses. They dived and the people sitting on the planes shot at a row of even number houses. The front line was separated by an asphalted road. Revolutionary troops were in the even number houses and the enemy is in the uneven number houses. They gave frightfully violent shots. Ham accompanied two minutemen who were carrying machine-gun and rifle on their shoulders. They went upstairs and stopped on the roof of the house number 18, Luong Van Can Street. The heart rending sounds of the planes flying were above their heads. The voices of flying bullets resounded chew chew. There was a very short gap between the roof and the planes. Their flying height was from 200 to 300 meters. Two burst of gunfire were taken by Brenno light machine-gun. The first one aimed at behind their planes and the second one aimed at their front space. Ham adjusted the line of sight. The Spritfire plane was immediately hit by bullets right after the third spurt of gunfire was noisily performed. The black uncertainly smoke was appeared on the plane and it shot headlong into a sand-bank of Red river which was opposite to Black Ferry-boat.

What we learned from the militiamen’s experiment in the first Interregional was that the enemy planes could be shot down with infantry rifles. The atmosphere of combating in the first Interregional was brightened up by a new life full of vitality …

The enemy’s stranglehold was increasing. Exchange fire was strongly violent. Ham was no longer able to return his Hoang Lan villa. He and the civil defense stood their first Interregional. Ham spent his Tet holiday with minutemen within the enemy’s blockade in the year of the pig 1947. The square glutinous rice cakes, lean pork paste and pickled welsh onion were also sent to them by compatriots who even offered a branch of Nhat Tan peach and lots of fresh flowers. Ham and his fellows stayed in a villa whose middle-class owner had evacuated without moving anything in the house. The bright altar-things were red lacquer trimmed with gold. The kind of tough wooden short terra-cotta seat-like furniture in the salon was shining black. Water hyacinth and porcelain big-bellied jar which was made under the Chinese Thanh dynasty were precious. Ham arranged the branch of Nhat Tan peach into the vase and placed it in the middle of the house. Then, he read his poem to wish the soldiers a Happy New Year. Everybody were singing, shouting and cheering the whole afternoon in the last day of the old year. In the evening, their forces were silently divided into several groups but they one and all opened many directions of attack in many places in the city at the same time in the minutes of New Year’s Eve. The national red flag in the middle of which the yellow star stood was put on the top of Turtle Tower.

Ham was emaciated after nearly two months of throwing himself about the war. Nobody could recognize the young graceful and gentlemanlike man in his business suit when he attended Da Lat Conference in the old days.

One very cold night, Ham accompanied the civil defense delegation which were withdrawing from the Capital. They were quietly walking on the sand-bank of the Red river under the Long Bien Bridge. Ham said goodbye to Hanoi. He slipped his hand into the pocket and felt a bunch of keys used for opening Hoang Lan villa’s doors. He threw it in the water of Red river. He imagined that Mr. Duc Vinh with his close-shaven head which was covered by light grey hat and in his frock which was replaced by his black suit was leaving Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda and was one by one unlocking the rooms of Hoang Lan villa at that moment. The perfume of ylang ylang was pervading in the air at night. Mr Duc Vinh opened his lips as though he was sipping the aromatic flavor of his life after a succession of days on which he was sneezing and his nose was running due to the effect of incense-smoke burnt on the altar …

… Ham’s imagination was correct. On the last day of that weekend, Duc Vinh was looking for breakdown mechanic among collapse houses in Hanoi after 60 days and nights of being ruined by fire and sword. Two smeared repairmen had finished installing the machinery and tires of his “scrap-iron” backside of the duck-like car within a day. He took the petrol-cans which had been reserved since “the date the war hadn’t exploded yet” out of the underground hideout. The car was smoothly running. “The monk in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda” immediately drove back the Stone Farming House and picked up his wife, his children, Ham’s better half and the little boy Trung within that morning. His car stopped at the house number 15 Bis Quan Thanh Street. The reason for his action was that the “peace” had returned Hanoi while the dangerously “troubled times” was still remaining in the countryside. Nevertheless, Doctor of Letters’ spouse and Lan Vien insisted on staying in the Stone Farming House without moving to Hoang Lan villa. Doctor of Letters’ wife said that she had to stay there to look after the house and the fields. Vietminh, France or what was called Nation, she didn’t care. She didn’t follow any sides. She paid no attention to them. She occupied the middle ground because she was a woman who only knew doing business and worshipping her ancestors. Nobody wanted to harm her. To hang about at Hoang Lan villa within its four walls was just like to go to prison. About Lan Vien, she “read her like a book”. Lan Vien had showed her love towards Hung and thus she would never leave him …

Date ….

A long video clip shot what had happened in the year 1945 was the key turning-point of the film.

Hai Yen was not only planted herself on Stone Farming House in But Nam to follow close behind camera crew but even asked for playing a role as a figurant as well.

-       I now realize that it worth the effort for you to make the film and I suggest that you should respect the history and stage-manage 100% exactly same it without using any invention, modification or distortion. Let me give some more capital and you let my father Vu Hung play the leading person in the delegation which seized power in the District building in 1945 as he used to be.

Date ….

The little boy Vu Hung whose clothes were in tatters and who looked just like a beggar when he appeared in Stone Farming House of the old days had sooner become a “person of capital importance” there. He had been regarded by Doctor of Letters’ wife, District Chief Vinh and his better half, the first generation house-owner’s second son Duc Ham and his spouse, Miss Land-lady Lan Vien. He was really a member of that family, or rather, a steward despite his original position of a “servant”. Nobody dared to think nothing of Hung. Hung was the guy arranged all the activities in the household. Hung was a commander-in-chief of all kinds of trans-planters and ploughmen.

The Stone Farming House was just like a house of no host with Hung’s absent and everything was going to be in a mess: Nobody knew where the farmers were and what to eat on that day … The wives of Mr. Vinh’s and Mr. Ham’s were bone-lazy. They didn’t touch anything. They didn’t know where their fields were, how many fields they had, when the dates of plough, of planting or of harvesting, where to keep the paddy after cutting.

-       Hung! How many quintals does this sticky rice pile? – Vinh’s better half asked.

-       Hung! Go to buy grilled rice snack for cooking sweet soup on mid autumn festival, pleased! – Ham’s spouse informed.

-       Hung! Come here and let me tell you! Prepare all the necessary things such as chicken and pigs, pleased! The date of our boss’ death anniversary is coming. – The Doctor of Letters’ wife reminded.

-       Hung! Inform me the quantity of green rocks which were used for tiling the remains places so that I can make an order, pleased! – District chief asked.

-       Mr. Hung! Pleased help me to go to the Post Office in Phu Street and send the letter to my friend Le Diem living in Hanoi. – Miss Lan Vien begged.

And the last little owners Lu and Trung:

-       Uncle Hung! The summer is coming. Pleased whittle away the bamboo splints and combine them into the kite …

Hung had done all their instructions with high quality …

A help man Hung turned out to be a “big” powerful man in August 1945. His rank went beyond the scope of Stone Farming House and spread all over the But Nam commune, Thuan An District. Hung appeared to be in another image after a night only. All the members in the Stone Farming House and villagers strictly obeyed and listened to him.

The people living in But Nam commune, Thuan An District were used to lead their quiet lives: Do the farming works in the morning and drive the buffaloes to their cages in the evening while smokes were rising in late afternoon beside the glows were flickering behind the bamboo screens of their kitchen, how plaintive the crows chirped at sun-baked noon! What sad water hens’ voices in the nights the moon presented! It would not take buds whose cheeks were pink and whose lips were red long to turn destitute matrons whose ball stomach and portly rears were embraced by their men beside the meal of cooked rice and husked manioc roots that were hold by glazed terra-cotta bowls placed on wooden trays while village mayors and bully were eating party in the village temple. Loads of paddies were continuously carried to landlord houses whenever taxable rice season coming. The couples were cuddling each others on straw mattresses. The village watchmen appeared with rattan switches on their hands. Wooden bells resounded through melancholy paths …

Then, the whole village seemed to be exploded. Women were correctly dressed with shoulder poles on their hands as though they were taking the rifles and were passing the troops in review in a real military training in the village temple. They were stepping according to the counting voices one two two one … Were they going to entangle each others in a combat? For sure, they were actually preparing for fighting. Mandarin was not female work. The court was not a place for widows. Was it the crows of the hen? Yes, it was able to be considered like that. All the village women were training and singing “Join in heroic troops. Walk with regular steps … To be a sacrifice unto ourselves. Women! Go!”

Canes and shoulder poles were roughly raised just like the real rifles. The men and women of the old days had never been gotten closed together. They then crowded in the yard of the temple and acted as if they had been suddenly free from ethical behavior. They gave the others pinches or touches on their breasts while they were “joining in heroic troops”. Like that, they kept stepping, shouting “Women! Go!”, going to the “community world” without any boring.

The villagers’ weapons were falchions and the lengths of some inches of male bamboo. Hung was the most majestic person due to his matchlock taking from the depository of the Stone Farming House. He hung it on his shoulder. Hung was chosen as the leader of Civil Defense Delegation which was hundreds of people. His title was the same rank of the Sixth French mandarin (Colonelcy). It appeared that Vietminh had admitted him to their organization for long. He had been collected and awoken to the revolutionary ideas since when. Vietminh liked him because he was more impressive than anyone else. It appeared that he had played a nice servant and done his job such as taking care of the Stone Farming House, following District chief Vinh’s orders and he was secretly nominated for the position of “the Sixth French mandarin” in deed by Vietminh. He had never opened his condition with public until the revolution achieved a success on that day. Taking the national red flag in the middle of which the yellow star stood and blowing his whistle which was placing between his lips, he assembled his staffs. The village mayor in very thin dress with two long panels and long sleeves and ready-to-wear turban was obsequiously unfastening his bag to take out a bronze seal and present it to Hung. Hung had it – the thing represented the very long power of feudalism and colonialism for years – under his belt. On those days, nobody remembered to work on fields but kept talking about revolution. Do revolution. Don’t go farming.

The first generation house-owner’s second son Duc Ham used to say: “Our lives are standing on the smoldering live crater which is going to boil and explore”. Hung had considered it and he had realized that it was true. It was exploring. But Nam and other villages seized power in the District building dated 19 August.

Everybody stayed awake all night before the date the event of “making a surprise revolutionary attack” happened. Rice was cooked at the first night-watch and was pressed into balls, held by fabric, separated to each person to have each ball by one’s side. They looked like a grenades. People hurried off and went with lances, broadswords, sticks, shoulder poles. The sky was full of stars. The roads leading to the District were dim. The streams of people were flowing from all the streets. The big drums taking from the village temples were being beaten.

-       Long live revolution!

-       Topple feudalism and colonialism!

-       Long live Vietminh

-       Wrest power to the people!

-       Wrest control of the government from feudalism and colonialism!

-       Abolish the oppression and the exploitation!

-       Remove our long term chains of slavery.

The slogans was resounded and heavily echoed on the roads leading to District. The darkness gradually disappeared and the day had begun to break. The dawn was as red as the color of the revolutionary flag or vice versa.

Hung was delegation header. He let out a string of loud shots to show off their strength. The Civil Defense Delegation which was attempting with spears, scimitars, rifles was accompanying Hung. The red flag was being taking on Hung’s hand and was fluttering in the wind above his head. Hung put his feet on the three steps staircase of the District block in front of his mass of people.

The District chief Nguyen Duc Vinh in brocade clothes and ready-to-wear turban with a badge of a mandarin on his chest was obsequiously coming. He was subservient followed by his staffs. It was an adverse circumstance. Hung had behaved like that with District chief Vinh for years and then he received the contrary.

In brave huge tall figure, Hung clamorously shouted: “Long live revolution”. Thousands of people responded: “Long live”. Hung was surrounded by bright swords and lances. He proudly held his head up. He looked like a general of the army.

District chief was quivering. He lowered his head with a seal, documents, royal diplomas and certificates and badge of a mandarin which had just taken out of his neck on his raising hands. Hung bended his body forwards to take all the things, hand over them to his guard and turned his face to the crowd. He informed:

-       Revolution government has seized control of Thuan An District since these minutes. The people have been masters of their destinies since these moments. We have neither king nor feudal mandarins that used to tread on our necks anymore. Long live independent Vietnam …

-       Long live! Long live!

A forest of people hailed.

Turning his face towards District chief Vinh, Hung announced:

-       Mr. Nguyen Duc Vinh is a citizen, a civilian in the independent Vietnam from now on. Revolution receives you as a person who is abreast of the times when you have quickly surrendered us. We will have large-hearted for all the people who have left their old titles and follow us …

Looked at the shriveling group of employees with the mandarin, head-clerk of district mandarin’s office, body-guards whose weapons were seized, Hung made a signal by his hand:

-       Revolution was charitable for all of you. You have the right to go home and do your own business. However, remember not to do anything which was harmful to our people …

-       Dear revolutionary officers and all the people – District chief Vinh seriously addressed – We would like to follow your revolution to make anti-imperialist, to make anti-feudalism. That was our tradition. Our grandpa was Great Oldest Uncle commander whose territory was Nha Son mountain area. During the past years, he had never stopped fighting against France till he was displayed his head in the market. Our father was the Doctor of Letters Nguyen who used to be a member of Modernistic movement. He used to develop trading services, open the school to teach Material about new ideas for the purpose of renovating our country and thus he was sent into exile for life with other patriotically feudal intellectuals in Con Dao. Our younger brother is Duc Ham who was sent away from his school because he had the thoughts of making anti-imperialist, making anti-feudalism, struggling for independence.

I would like to be a civilian from now on …

- Don’t use the word “We or our” – reminded a man who had severe and good manners. He was a “revolutionary officer” who was directing the movement of rising up in arms in the areas located on Thanh Do province. He presented not only in the event of seizing power in the District building in Thuan An on that day but also in all the events of seizing power in other District blocks in all other places. He found, “contacted” the excellent persons like Hung and assigned them as “biggest birds of flocks” to head the demonstrations in the movements of rising up in arms in all the Districts. He organized, masterminded and controlled all the things. His clandestine activities were engaged. Nobody knew his real name even but his alias “Try to develop”. He used to be a prisoner in Con Dao and used to attend a jailbreak and was staying in underground hideouts to set up “foundations in the people’s hearts”, to mobilize and enlighten the youth to follow the revolutionary idea, to gather and create line-ups, to prepare for the movements of rising up in arms that made anti-imperialist and anti-feudalism to wrest power to the people …

Choosing Hung as a person who headed the demonstration in seizing power in the District building in Thuan An, received the bronze seal, badge of a mandarin and documents from his District chief Vinh had a capital significance: “The servant” position was risen and “the boss” condition was knocked off his pedestal …

Date …

Duc Ham used to lead an effervescent life. He had gathered up his mind in writing his columns of French newspaper whose owner was Clementy since the date he was sent away from school. The main topic was: asking for independence, democracy and freedom for Vietnamese country. Using his quite at home knowledge of English and French languages, Ham listened to the wooden electric radio which was as big as a trunk. He switched on the English, French, American channels to follow the world situation and the Second World War happenings. He read the current information from piles of French and American newspapers whose owner was his “high class” friend. Ham understood the historical tendency, understood the “blowing trend” of the thunderstorm in Great War so that he could forecast the future of the world.

He was very sad to realize the paradox in the person of life. Mankind had appeared since the utmost antiquity and the war had presented accordingly. Fore sure, strong men had the habit of bullying the weak ones. The big fish swallowed the small ones. The former Roman Empire used to rule the roots of the world. Mongolian nomads used to occupy almost the whole Asia, half of Europe. The Tartar soldiers (Mongolian) used to dance and drink on the boards which were put on the heads of their noble prisoners of war whose complexion was fair. Napoleon used to lead his French troops to conquer everywhere on the world such as Egypt, Italy, Russia … The firearms, ammunition (that replaced the swords) and ironic boats which had ability to go across the seas were created since the mechanical era in Europe appeared. Every country flocked to invade other ones as their colonies. Great British had so many colonies which located on a large number of latitudes and longitudes that they were highly presumptuous with their own expression: “England had no sunset”. The Great China with thousands of historical years was stationed occupying troops in by the smaller country Japan just because Japan had carried out “clear-sightedly modernistic rule” and studied the Western techniques on time while China was sinking in Confucianism. The Vietnam with thousands of historical years was also bombarded by French “ironic and bronze vessels” in Son Tra peninsula. They had invaded “six Southern provinces”, attacked Hanoi stronghold. The Vietnamese court in Hue was considered as puppet dynasty. That was life. The strong men killed the weak ones. How deeply resent to feel great anguish! That was the non-stop making war history. There were some places on earth had peace in some periods when the balance was taken place. The latter America had extremely developed after defecting English troops, taking its independence. It could compare with Europe in all aspects, or rather, the great progress. Even so, it “picked a quarrel” to rearrange the territories on the world.

People had never wished for war. No civilian in England, France, Germany, Italy and Japan wished for war. The battles happened in their country because of “ruling corporations”. To dominate the world, to rob the assets, to recruit the slaves from other countries, the stronger foxes bit the weaker ones. They changed to foxes. The people’s theory was very good but their acts were effected in by a very simple rule called instinct: The strong men killed the weak ones. The words: republic, freedom, equality and humanity were originated from France. The Declaration of Human Rights: “The Equality rights have been applied for everybody since they were born. The Creator gave them the rights which no one can deny and in which were the rights to live, to have freedom and wish for happiness” was uttered in America. On the contrary, France and America had controlled their troops and attacked everywhere. How everybody could stand. That was why people had struggled and thus war happened. The war had taken place from generations to generations.

The First World War experienced from 1914 – 1918 and then the Second World War was developing. The German man named Hiller would like to have the whole Europe. He had France, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Belorussia … He was on the brink of the world hegemony. However, life was not so easy. The Xo Viet Union Red Army was fighting with his forces by tanks in the arc of Kirghizia. They had won in Xtalingrate. The German troops were suffering a complete defeat. American, English and French allied troops had landed in Normandy and opened a new Western front to make the second pincer movement … Germany was going to struggle to death. The Japanese troops were defeated in Quan Dong in Eastern front. They were hopelessly crowded …

Ham was happy to view the result of the largest World War in the humanity history.

Days after days, Ham more and more believed that there was justice on earth when he received the news about the victories of allied troops. For sure, the people of crazy, being extravagant who were trampling on the human beings’ simple truth would be punished. The God should give us the equality. The quarrelsome fascists must be exterminated. Mut-xo-li-ni was hung. The Xo Viet Union Red Army had put their steps on the ground of Berlin. Hiller had killed himself. Japan surrendered unconditionally after receiving two terribly atomic bombs …

Ham felt happily and very light. Time for seizing independence of a lifetime came in Vietnam. Ham reached the Square in front of the Opera-house to attend the meeting organized by “General Association of Civil Service” which was a current pro-Japan government dated 17 August 1945. The Vietminh great national red flag in the middle of which the yellow star stood was suddenly hanging on the top of the Opera-house. The Vietminh’s representative – a youth interrupted the speech. The three chairmen in the meeting organized by “General Association of Civil Service” didn’t say a word. Their conditions were just like a feather of a fowl flying in the whirl-storm. Japan had surrendered allied troops three days before. It meant 14 August. They lost their support. Their government was collapsed in deed. The technical employee seriously gave the micro to the eagerly overpowering majesty Vietminh youth who scared nothing. There was a Japanese barrack which took some hundred meters from there and the soldiers were pointing their light machine-gun at Opera-house. The youth read Vietminh’s declaration about their General uprising to demolish feudal regime and colonialism and fight for independence. He had a sonorous voice. However, he delivered the speech in an unsmooth way due to his hastiness. Emotiveness was not expressed. A nice gentle-lady who looked like an intellectual living in Hanoi City immediately got closed to him and helped him in reading. A clear connected free and easy speech was resounded on loudspeaker. That gave everybody a strange feeling … the image of revolution should be a powerful combatant with threatening appearance. On the contrary, it was a high society snobbish beautiful and romantic girl who attracted everybody.

Ham was moved. He disconcertedly looked at the great deal of the national red flags in the middle of which the yellow stars stood which were fluttering everywhere. There were propaganda leaflets which looked like butterflies. There was a secret force of “Vietminh soldiers” who were clandestinely mingling with the disorderly crowd in order to protect the event of interrupting the speech in the meeting. The content of the meeting was rapidly turned into another direction. A stream of people was rushing on the street named Trang Tien. An independent march happened to demonstrate their force.

The official uprising was taken place in Hanoi dated 19 August. Ham was mingling with the disorderly crowd on the streets and shouted clamorously the slogan. He presented in a group of people who were surrounding Northern Block – the place King’s special High-ranking envoy worked and the place headquarter of the government was located. The ironic gate was closed tight. Each small group of civil defense was climbing on the ironic fence and dropped themselves on the yard. Voices were shouted clamorously. The gate was open. The delegation of people with red flags and simple weapons on their hands overwhelmed the place. King’s special High-ranking envoy was captured. Ham followed everybody and presented inside Northern Block. He would like to see the historical moments. He had witnessed the people’s independent aspiration and its strength. He hadn’t seen the revolution official army force yet. They were still in the forest and were on the way to Hanoi. They hadn’t presented on the streets in Hanoi yet. Even so, the local revolution forces in Hanoi had already seized the government and the people had already done their own insurrection.

There, Japanese troops had “taken no action”. They were in condition of defeated soldiers. Japan had already surrendered allied troops. They were waiting for their allies. They were laid down their arms and they would be at their country. The Japanese officers were no longer hanging their swords dragging closed on the ground in their general headquarters in Pham Ngu Lao street. They did nothing but looked how Vietnamese people rising up in arms, how the public seizing power.

In Hang Bai civil-guard camp, Hanoi Vietminh girls in Vietnamese dress as if they were attending the festival got closed to the guards and convinced them to hand over the weapons to Revolutionary troops. The beautiful innocent ladies with bare hands settled an armed obstinate confrontation. The civil-guard camp had surrendered. What a talent revolution – Ham shook his head. It was not sure for the civil-guard camp of their full complement and weapons to surrender if the camp was encircled and attacked by civil defense. Ham had seen with his own eyes how “revolutionary women” became the lovely housewives in cooking rice, boiling vegetables and preparing the meals for the soldiers in civil-guard camp. They were just like a family.

Ham had seen Vietnamese people who delivered the crows of escaping from invaders’ occupation since the dates of August. The delegations who were seizing power from districts to provinces were marching with stamping noises on the streets all over the country. The District chiefs and Province chiefs working for Vietnamese dynasty rapidly took turn to surrender Revolutionary government. The king Bao Dai abdicated and became a civilian living in independent country Vietnam. The feudal regime existing thousands of years in Vietnam was collapsed.

Ham presented at Three Temples flower garden dated 2 September for listening to the representative of revolutionary power who read “independent declaration”. He had translated the speech into French language on that night right after receiving the document in hand. He did that work for nothing but fun. The French newspaper whose owner was Clementy had stopped issuing for so long. He did that work because he loved the very eloquent masterpiece essay which marked a new period of Vietnamese country.

On the first week of September, there was a special guest visited Hoang Lan villa some days after independent day. He was Duc Vinh’s classmate in the school named Mandarin-to-be. He didn’t receive mandarin title but disappeared. Nobody knew about his trace even his wife or his children. Nobody had ever seen him until revolutionary uprising exploded. It turned out that he had engaged in clandestine activity, done revolution. He was a capital important person working for Vietminh.

Ham had a little bit information about him and Duc Vinh was not his closed friend.

-       Brother Ham! – The guest said – I have a liking for you. I had attended in a meeting organized by a group of intellectuals and traders in Mind and Moral Developing House last year. I had listened to your speech about our nationally independent aspiration. Your confidential idea had moved everybody and I was moved as well. You are a patriot but you are quite innocent, according to my opinion. Your policy was to mobilize and appeal to colonial for returning An Nam’s independence so that An Nam was able to self-control its own country. How they could accept. When they could spit out and thus, revolutionary violence was used, chances were taken advantage and independence was consequently succeeded …

Now, your aspiration has come true. There aren’t any Japanese and French invaders. Our Vietnam is independent. I come here to invite you to be my co-worker. You are high education. You are good at English and French. You are enthusiastic. You are a patriot. You love revolution. The new government needs all people like you. I am working in diplomatic service and helping the highest-ranking cadres in talking to French and Allies in the minutes of being put to fire and sword. French troops were determined to return here. They had never given up their colony …

I would like to invite your elder brother to be revolutionary officer as well. Pleased inform him to forget his mandarin past and join in our new line-up … Your knowledge and skills are highly appreciated.

The guest – Mr. Thanh Quang – left the invitation letter which had the red stamp on it and Duc Vinh was the name addressed. The next week, Duc Vinh set out from the Stone Farming House. He worriedly drove his backside of the duck-like car:

-       Ham! I shouldn’t stay in our hometown. I feel anxiously. I used to be a mandarin anyway. The old events such as judging a case in court, creating animosity, being richer person made us being hated. They are now seizing power. We have to look after ourselves …

-       The current chairman of our commune is no one else but the guy Hung – Ham informed.

-       Correct! But there isn’t only Hung, is there?

-       Haven’t they invited you to work for them?

-       Yes, they have. I am the chairman of Pan-Viet front. My job is to act as a stooge and gather the upper classes such as mandarins, intellectuals, officials, landlords, traders … in order to support Vietminh in deed. However, I am only a puppet guy as I well know. I take the reason of “lacking the prestige” to refuse the title. Actually, they didn’t need my body but my name. I know that the condition hasn’t been stable yet and the safest way is to leave our village. I am quite familiar with Vietnamese countryside. Normally, the people here are very modest, good-hearted, hesitating and timid. However, let’s have a serious observation when the adverse eventuality happens. The people turn out to be ferocious and they are able to kill each other as though they kill a young frog. Let’s recall the date they “seized power in the district building” and you will understand them. The above mentioned cloddish people who used to tremblingly stand in the district court while their heads were hanging without having any look at a term for a mandarin had changed into tigers or panthers on that day. How clever I was when I surrendered and submitted my seal and thus I was unhurt. I ask you: If my staffs were stubborn and changed their tactics by firing some guns or being against them my staffs would be immediately beaten to deaths and I would be beheaded, displayed my head, my district court would be shot up. I knew all those things and that was why I had to show an overmodest attitude, pretend to be nervous and I had to obey them. Our happiness and virtue were still full when the leader of the delegation which had seized power in district block was the fellow Hung. He had received the feeling of gratitude from our family for years. We had considered him as our son. And hence, being a revolutionary person, he was light-handed with us. If he was another cruel person who had personal hard feelings he would ask his civil defense to tight me before executing on the spot on that day. Nobody could do anything with him.

Ham! According to my view, the current situation is higgledy-piggledy despite the fact that the revolution had just exploded and the power is taken over by their Revolution because their position-of-strength policy is not firm enough. They haven’t got the large and powerful army force. French troops had already occupied Southern area and they are going to take back their colony as they belong to Allies part which was the winner in the Second World War. The history trend is supporting them. Vietminh has nothing but sticks, harquebus, spears, broadswords … How they can fight against their enemy’s tanks and canons.

-       The French colonialism is as bold as brass and they are quite thick-skinned. – Ham interrupted his brother – They had just been beaten to a pulp by German troops and thus they had to leave Paris city open. Even so, Germany could freely occupy. They like the children who had just lost their mother and their family and hence they had to live in exile. Thanks to their Allies, thanks to the history trend, they can take back their country. How they can immediately go into battle and finish invading Indochina. The French should love the people who have lost their country because the French has just been sufficient the sense of shame when they lost their country. Where they put their sympathetic vibration. Where they put their conscience. And where the truth is. They were hear-felt when they lost their country, when they appealed to independent truth for all people in the world. They right away eat the other countries’ “independence” when they had just “escaped from the dangerous situation and become self-satisfied”. Their truth is on their mouth. Their obvious acts are worth hurling a stream of abuse at their father, at their saying. That is life by nature.

-        Actually, I am worrying about my weak destiny in this eddy – Duc Vinh added – French troops have turned back with their invading intention. The Chinese skinny, hungry and thirsty troops whose leader is Tuong who is stuck the Allies mark is “Joining Vietnam with Chinese troops”. They are forcing the Japanese troops to lay down their arms and are lying as a protest in the place where people are as hungry as bending thatches. It is the most un-equable situation I have ever seen. I wonder whether Revolution can stand steady on their legs in such a storm while they are just like a young tree which has just sprung. How it can struggle for life against the storm which can shake and uproot it. The political arms will be in contact with each other. They will confront each other. The war will happen. “Seventh ten was died. King appeared, died two, survivor was one”. They will kill each other as though they are killing young frogs. Success or victory will be gained by mountains of bones, blood flowing into rivers but not meetings, demonstrations, marches, crying out the slogans. Flies and mosquitoes will die while buffaloes and oxen are fighting. Our conditions of shrimps and tiny shrimps will be the first roasted things. How to find our own way for living now …

-       I don’t expect to realize that you have such a pessimistic and negative idea like that – Ham commented.

-       That is life aspiration. How you can consider it is pessimistic and negative when I am trying to find the way to live. – Vinh gave opponent remark.

-       Life must have an idea. What was the reason for our grandfather Great Oldest Uncle to rise up in arms? What is the purpose of our father – Doctor of Letters Duc Nguyen to do the Modernist activities? OK! You and I are two kinds of different people as if we are water and fire. That is the way we have been for so long. We are different. We are opposite just like the life contains the conflicts by nature. OK! Let it be. We are brothers by birth. We love each other. That’s all. I can’t orient the way you go and vice versa.

Ham showed Vinh the invitation letter which Mr. Thanh Quang gave:

-       How about this thing? What is your decision? The new government is deprived of human resources. They want to gather intellectuals, the quintessence elements to their side. Building a new social foundation, they need lots of people …

-       No! You help me in refusing it … I used to be a mandarin anyway. I was their object of overthrow. I lost my way and I am now in their line-up just like “a help or a servant” who is serving them in some periods. They will never believe me. It looks like a story of “leaving the lemon peel after squeezing its juice”. You are different. Your “curriculum vitae” is clear. You have the same independent idea with them. You have your future. You are going to have a job with career prospects while I am not. Frankly speaking, I suspect their existence. They have no foundation. They are so weak and everything is very illusory. The French troops are going to turn back. In this period, it has better for me to give the slip – I am going to take holy orders in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda.

-       What? Where? – Ham asked to confirm.

-       To become a monk in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda near Three Temples flower garden. It is a True Taoism. It takes 15 minutes on foot to reach there. It is an out-of-the-way pagoda where the former king Ly Hue Tong used to take the veil when he was forced to cede his throne in favor of his eight years old daughter Ly Chieu Hoang by Tran Thu Do in the old days. Passing by there, Tran Thu Do uttered his famous saying “Exterminate, root out” when he saw the monk king was pulling weeds. Ly Hue Tong garroted himself at that night. Ly golden dynasty was ended. It is a very large pagoda despite of its wildness. What a quite strange place! It seems to be forgotten and nobody cares it. I have to show my condition if I go into Quan Su pagoda which is the face of Buddhism. It’s inconvenient. Eight Towers is mixing with the space on the fringes of society where I can lead an honest life and I will be free from hardship. I will shave my head, wear monk’s robe, officially keep a vegetarian diet, say my prayers, obey the Buddhist rules and spend some merit amount to renew it. I will have a image of a true monk so that I can “live and let live” and seclude myself from the stormy world …

-       Why have you to be like that? – Ham questioned closely.

-       You are young. You haven’t been able to understand the world. The coming tempest is very terrible. I have to keep my life alive … I have already arranged new lives for everyone in the Stone Farming House. They shouldn’t wear nice dresses but normal clothes like their neighbors. They shouldn’t eat delicious meals in front of strangers. They should lead simple lives like the poor people. The waste is forbidden. All of them have to save some money or gold and hide them in their waist. The more rice is hidden in the underground hideout the better it is. To save for life. I have even buried some quintals of salt in the underground hideout built by cement material. We are in the time of disturbances. Everything will be in a mess. This car will have some mechanical parts dismantled, released its inner tubes, put away its chairs. It will look like a scrap-iron car. We have to put away all the furniture in Hoang Lan villa as well. Bring all the things to the underground hideout below the living room. There will be nothing in the house but its walls. Let all the rooms were kitchen rooms by cooking works. Our villa will not look like a house but the image of poverty and retrograde. I am going to be a monk and lurk. You have to look after our great family. There are no man in the Stone Farming House but women and children. Nobody wants to harm women and children. I have already “renewed” the Stone Farming House by making it looks like the ravages of war before I come here. There aren’t any horizontal lacquered boards on which the golden blaze counter sentences are written and the smoke of frankincense will not pervade the air anymore. Our family has full of happiness and virtue due to Hung’s present. He is our closed member no matter that he is Vietminh’s “big boss”. He is very good, loyal and grateful. He is helping and protecting our family. The Stone Farming House of women and children will be scattered without him. However, everything will not stand still. Nothing can stand till if the war happens. Troubles will visit everywhere, in the countryside, in Hanoi. You have to act very fast and on time. You have to be flexible in evacuating our women and children from the heavy trouble place to the weak one. They can move to this Hoang Lan villa or return back the Stone Farming House. It’s up to each situation in each period of time. It’s not a far distance. The train and the trucks are still working. Everybody should not be fearful of hardship when traveling on foot even. The 30 kilometers long is not a very far distance.

Hey, Ham! What a quite strange life! Up to now, richness, luxury and knowledge are high appreciated. Everybody tries their best to be better, to be rich and to be respected. Excellent people have the right to rule, to lead other people. That is the social order: High class, middle class and low class. The high class is the upper rank in society. They play the role of motive force and are obeyed by low class. Everything is now upset: The legs are standing on the head. The bulbs of banana tree should be in the ground and the young leaves should bud towards the sky but now it is the vice versa. It is the golden age for the people who are poor, illiterate and atrocious. Rich people are wrinkled up because of fear. The poor people are supercilious. In the old days, the person who wanted to be district chief had to be a Doctor, a learned man, a person of thorough comprehension of ancient and modern learning was accredited by the king. To my time, it was really a “lower quality”. What the mentioned person needed was to finish from law school, Mandarin-to-be school and took the Bachelor of Art certificate. And now, things become more “ridiculous”. The chairman of Thuan An district hasn’t finished studying in Elementary school. He used to be a woodworker. The carpenter only specializes in “washing a saw in the morning, sharpening a chisel in the afternoon and advising soon to prepare the meal in the evening” but doesn’t know anything about administrative job. He is now assigned to be a term for a mandarin in Thuan An district because he is venturesome, he penetrates everywhere, he is a leader in the delegation which had seized power in the province head quarters, he isn’t scare of being in prison, being exiled, being shot, he isn’t care of Japanese or French soldiers … I can’t understand what he had done everyday. He sits at the desk at which I used to sit. He sits on the chair on which I used to sit and he works in the district court in which I used to work. However, he can only know how to spell the Vietnamese language and can not understand the French language or Han scripts even a word. It is right to say that “What a misconduct of the Heaven! Gentleman is changed to humble person and vice versa”. For the reason of that, we have to look after ourselves otherwise “is it a head? No, it isn’t. It must be an ear” … - Duc Vinh breathed a sigh. His distinguished face looked more despondent.

7

Date …

It was in Ha Noi in 1946. Ham had gone to the palace where the King’s special envoy was working – the new name was the Palace for Northern Region – on Ngo Quyen street since 5 o’clock in the early morning. That day was on 16 April. Everybody in Has Noi was well sleeping. A few Vietminh’s guards were on the beat. It had been 6 months since the date “Independent declaration” was read in the Three Temples flower garden. So many political fluctuations had been happened for a half year. It was happened exactly the same to what Ham and Duc Vinh had forecasted. French thanked to its Allies England and its troops had invaded Southern Region since the date 23 September of the previous year. Vietnamese government had step by step made concessions. The preliminary convention was signed dated 06-03-1946. In the capacity of replacing 200 thousand Chinese soldiers whose general was Lu Han and whose president was Tuong and taking the job of their Allies which was to force Japanese troops to lay down their arms, French soldiers were overwhelming Hanoi and other places. The Chinese troops of Tuong had returned their country. And then, the French troops were superciliously occupying the ancient stronghold Hanoi – the place where Hoang Dieu and Nguyen Tri Phuong had held their ground and struggled against French colonialism to the last minutes. One more time, the ancient strong-hold Ha Noi belonged to France and it became French’s general headquarters. They supervised Ha Noi and Vietminh at the same time. There are “pan-checking” policemen in Ha Noi.

Ham’s credit was gradually increasing after several months working for Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Mr. Thanh Quang’s assistant. Ham had become an “important person” due to his hearty patriotism, independent idea, wide knowledge, dialectical argument, dignified and serious manner and authority. He was chosen as a member of diplomatic delegation which would attend in the preparatory conference organized in Da Lat. That was a preparation step for a Viet – France high ranking negotiation taken place in Fontainebleau (France) in which Vietnam would insist its independence and territorial integrity and France would want to be a colonial who were able to rule Indochina.

The diplomatic delegation set out at 6 o’clock in the morning. The rain was spitting. It was blurred in Sword Lake. The Tortoise Tower was sunk in the opalescent curtain of dew. Ham looked attentively at the view of Hanoi. Everybody was sleeping. With some missions on his shoulders, Ham departed. Ham started making his theories written in French newspaper which had struggled for independence and he was sent away due to that reason into real life. At that moment, Sir Duc Vinh was chanting intercessions and saying masses and striking the wooden bell in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda while Ham started rushing into a severe battle of great meaning. He had had to run after the circle of the eddy, the great move without coming to halt or separating since then. He had become an official member of Vietnam revolution.

Gia Lam airport was so small and so sad. The weak looking plane Dakota had taken off. It was the first time the view of villages, fields, mountains, rivers and sea appeared in front of Ham’s eyes. It looked like a drawing. He was moved. His work then associated with that appearing picture. The spiritual notion of mother country and nation described in prose and verse was appeared. The plane landed on Pacxe (Laos) for getting petrol at early noon. It had problem when it was going to continue its schedule. How dangerous it was! It made Ham shivered. Was the plane carrying Modernist King from Reunion isle in Africa to Vietnam had explored in the middle of the sky in 1945? Was there anything for ensuring? What an old Dakota plane! The mission was too big while the thing guarantee him safety was so small. Another reserve Dakota plane was arrived from Sai Gon. The journey was continued and Da Lat destination was waiting.

The delegation and Ham stayed in Lang-bi-ang hotel which looked the romantic lake. Da Lat was quite beautiful. It was the first time Ham came there. The hill extended endlessly with pine trees. The villas were as nice as pictures. The sky was blue with fresh cool air. It was not his tourist trip for relaxing or peace and quiet. Ham had to engage immediately in the battle despite the fact that he was a member or an employee in the delegation only. However, Ham played the role of a speaker. The independently struggling dialectics would be performed by Ham’s standard French.

D’Argenlieu – he was a monk who had transgression of a commandment, a high and mighty commander-in-chief. A satirical saying “Were you strong enough to be against us? How easily it was if we lost our 80-year-long colony!” was alternately appearing and disappearing after his skinny lips. Ham imagined the greedy look from the High Commissioner of Indochina which seemed to say: Hi romantic and dreamy “negotiator”. I had known you since you were a student whose face as young as a baby and you had just finished the French grammar program. You had hurriedly written French articles asking for independence. I should instruct police inspectors to capture you and to give you some blows “xantan” for fun. However, I hadn’t done it. You were now going to use dialectic argument to ask for your Southern Region as a part of Vietnam, to show that Vietnamese country belonged to Vietnamese people and our France was a visitor. No, we weren’t a guest. We had tanks, canons, planes. What did you have? Justice was a spiritual notion. It was not enough for you if you had only justice. Wasn’t France justice? Yes! We hadn’t sent away and hadn’t triumphed German till we had chance, we had our own forces and we got the help from our allies. We understood that invading Vietnam was immoral but we kept following the law of big fish swallowed small one … what should you do? If you were reasonable you should surrender and accept to be our colony and the new mark would be the Theory “French Union” written by Paul Mus professor.  French Union (Union Francaise) would be a house in Europe whose front looked Atlantic Ocean (façade atlantique) – it was France itself – and whose back looked Pacific Ocean (façade pacitique) named An Nam, Ai Lao and Cao Mien …

I knew the origin of bloodstream in your blood-vessel was the unyielding one which used to be against French troops. It belonged to the leader of insurgent army Great Oldest Uncle, to Doctor of Letter opening Modernist. You wanted to cope with me in the conference. You would get in stuck. You should remember that your grandfather used to be beheaded and displayed his head in the Nha Son market about a month by French. Your grandpa’s eyes had wide-open looked at the ravens and hawks giving their pecks and nibbles. The next generation French sent your daddy to Con Dao for a hard labor “holiday”. You could not make a joke with me …

Ham felt a deep resentment against the trickily colonialist guy.

There was a problem happen in the first day in Da Lat Conference. D’Argenlieu had planned the program by himself as though he was a “boss” doing his arrangement. He invited the two French - Vietnamese delegations to his residence building which was able to understand as the Indochina Confederation palace. Then, he declared the conference open in High Commissioner of Indochina capacity.

The French delegation presented at 10 o’clock in the morning. The press was there in full strength but not Vietnamese delegation which was staying in Lang-bi-ang hotel. They delivered a “firm” decision by staying without going. They rejected the avuncular opening of the commander-in-chief or High Commissioner. The leader of Vietnamese delegation assigned Ham to go there for negotiation with D’Argenlieu.

At 11 o’clock. The French delegation kept waiting. The meeting between two sides and one of which was absent. How it could start. The position of an independent and sovereign country was performed by the determination and self-respecting attitude of Vietnamese delegation.

D’Argenlieu showed his embarrassment, awkwardness and his surrender. He had to discuss with Ham how to solve the matter by inviting Vietnamese delegation to come to the party in difference capacity compared with the opening conference. Vietnamese delegation “climbed down” and accepted. They arrived. The meeting between the two Vietnamese and French delegations was taken place round the eating table. D’Argenlieu had no chance to be the host of the Conference in High Commissioner of Indochina capacity.

Ham affirmed that France would never spit out Vietnam colony after almost a month of negotiation. The only way to get independence was to arm, to carry out a war of resistance in order to drive away French. Among Vietnamese delegation was Ham. All of them suddenly stood up and left the meeting room after a sensational argument dated 10 May. The message which Vietnamese delegation sent to the whole France through the conference was “La Cochinchine, c’est la chair de notre chair, c’est le sang de notre sang (To us, Southern Region is just like the meat and blood in the body) “Nous ne L’ abandonnerons Jamais” (We will never leave our Southern Region) (The Vietnamese Leader’s declaration). It was a vague idea if French wanted to detach Southern Region from Vietnam in order to “merge” it into France. Vietnamese people would confront and fight to the last for independence and territorial integrity.

Ham realized his role in the official mission was too small. However, he felt happy to know that he had done the job which was suitable for his ideal.

Returning Hanoi, Ham came back his hometown, his Stone Farming House in But Nam by his excessively light Steclin bicycle. He had officially become Vietminh’s staff, Revolution’s member. Moreover, he was considered as a “higher authority” by local administration. Attending Da Lat Conference was not a joke work. Thuan An District had already organized a meeting in which Ham was going to talk about the world situation, the national trend, the state of affairs in Da Lat Conference as well as the coming guideline and policy. Attendances at the meeting were Vu Hung and many cadres staying in But Nam and working for communes and suburban districts. One more time, the reputation of “the Nguyen Duc line” was automatically increasing as though the kite was flying up. It was quite a roaming over story: rising up in arms, overthrowing, or even overthrowing their family member (District chief Vinh). In the new age, the employee of the recent Revolution was also their family member (Duc Ham).

In the evening, the lamps were not in use because of the moon light. “The first generation owner’s second son - higher authority” Duc Ham and “the servant – the chairman of the commune” Vu Hung were sitting in the drawing-room and discussing “the family works”

-       You are now a “host” in the Stone Farming House. You have to take care of everything in the house and look after our Doctor of Letter’s wife, Mrs. Vinh’s better half, my spouse and all the children and Miss Lan Vien specially. She is just like a soft and weak flower which is in need of protector. Nobody can attend upon her but you. A heavy pole of all the things in our house was not able to stay on my shoulders or brother Vinh’s ones but yours. Our brother Vinh has already taken holy orders and led the life of a recluse. And I am not able to keep hanging about this corner. I have my own job. I am a bird which has to fly on the high sky. I can not walk around a bun of grass and lay my eggs, find the food and serve my children. Do you understand what I say?

-       Yes, I do. Don’t worry. – Vu Hung changed his way of addressing. The word “my owner” was replaced by the words “you” (older brother) when he called and “I” (younger brother) when he addressed. The chairman of But Nam commune was not a low position. Nobody can be the chairman’s “owner”. However, he had to address “I” as he was a member of the family in the Stone Farming House and he had to sometimes look after everybody just like a “help”. He directed the farming works such as transplant and harvest, harvest the autumn rice crop and even the meal in the Stone Farming House: what kinds of vegetables, fish and meat would be used in cooking (The two wives of Vinh’s and Ham’s still kept bone-lazy and didn’t wish to change their mind in order to catch up with the revolution). He directed the two boys named Lu and Trung whose wishes were making the kites … I used the word “directed” to fix the circumstance in chairman capacity. He did all the things by himself in deed otherwise it would be undercooked rice or overcooked rice and nobody could eat it on that day.

Date …

The chairman Vu Hung sometimes presented in his office in But Nam Provisional Revolutionary Committee.

There wasn’t much Revolutionary administrative work. Birth certificates issued by “loll” village mayor was used for offspring delivery in the old days were thrown away as Revolution hadn’t got the new form. And hence, there was no document issued. Everybody was free in having babies because they were revolution citizens. They were equality and freedom.

The “legal proceedings” was “annulled”. Formerly, people could sue to the districts at any time and for any reasons. Ones gave loans, ones paid neither interests nor capital and they went to law-court. The payers pad to use their house or their fields to pay for their debts. It was changed in revolutionary time. People were so poor that they had to borrow with interest but they were not effort to return and the thing was reconcile based on the spirit of mutual affection, mutual love, human community, helping each others. The poor people were the social majors. The rich people were bloodsuckers who were not good and thus they had to be careful. They didn’t dare to make fuss as the new government would not forgive them. Previously, head-money produced a stir in the hamlets and villages every year. The village mayors could not eat and sleep well because of it. They would be dismissed from their duties and the district chiefs would whip the walking-sticks against their posteriors if they could not collect enough money. Poll-tax was then erased under the control of revolution. Revolutionary people could hold their head high when living under the dome of independent sky because they hadn’t to submit any cents to anyone. The chairman of the district or even his father had requested didn’t dare to whip the walking-stick against the chairman of the commune’s posteriors. In the feudal society, the thieves might be cut their hoof tendons and had become lame fellows since the date they were arrested. They would be so afraid that they didn’t dare to steal anymore. Everything was changed then. The reasons for stealing would be analyzed. It was because of the poorness. Why were they poor? It was due to the rich people’s exploitation. Well! They had to be sympathized. The essential solution was education as they and revolutionary people were the same class. The only work that made Hung busy was to concern to the militia unit including men and women. He trained them with the verbal commands one two one and all of them walked with regular steps in the yard of the temple. More falchions were forged, ramparts were constructed embankments and communication trenches were dug. But Nam was become a fighting village which was the purpose of higher authorities. The happening situations were more and more complicated. The French troops had already attacked Southern Region. They were sure to return. The whole population had to be ready in carrying out a war of resistance …

Revolution had just succeeded and thus they were still poor. The whole people had to support them. To Hung, the happiest period was “the golden week”. But Nam was noisy with drums and was colorful with flags. The whole population was called upon to advocate revolution by their gold. Gold was carried in trunks which were covered by red fabric and were respectfully put on the desk of honor with two watch-militiamen flanking it and firearms were carried by them. Nobody came to give gold in the whole morning. What a misfortune! But Nam people were poor by nature. They hadn’t got enough food to eat. How they could have gold. The people who lived in Hanoi and in provinces were rich. They flocked to supportive places in the golden week. On the contrary, the richest But Nam people were the luckiest ones that had a silver circle and had put it on their child’s neck.

Chairman Vu Hung took the loudspeaker and sonorously read the poem:

Tiredness came from heaviness due to earrings

Inconvenience weighted by necklace bringing, you knew!

Well! It was meaningless like that. The necks and the ears were weighted. Nevertheless, they raised a subscription to take all the meaningless and invaluable things for what …

Vu Hung returned his house and advised:

-       Mrs. Doctor of letters! Our family should be an example …

Mrs. Doctor of Letters visited the temple of the village and the firearms carrying militiamen welcomed her. Her ring and earrings were dropped into the trunk.

Vu Hung wrote National contribution certificate. Mrs. Doctor of Letters went home. The firearms carrying militiamen welcomed her again. How happy the rich people were! Minutemen had to welcome them.

The days of the golden week were happy but the mass education movement was happier. Everybody in every house repeatedly called each other to come to the temples which were lighted as bright as the stars. In the olden days, there were only children who were used to go to school with books under the arms and there weren’t any adults learning a letter as they didn’t realize the purpose of studying. But then, the people lived in the independent country. They were revolutionary people who had to be literate. It was very easy to learn Vietnamese language and to spell alphabetic letters A, B, C. It took some months for them to be able to read and write. They had no reason for no studying while they spent no money for that activity. They were happy. Young men and buds liked studying best. They could sit closed together as well as give each other some pinches at their will and pleasure. The chairman Vu Hung was an enthusiastic teacher. He held a clumsy hand of a girl to write the words o, a. That was a skillful hand when she hoed, transplanted, harvested. However, it was inflexible as though it had no tendons and bones when it held the pen which was so tiny but neither big nor heavy. Her zigzags handwriting looked like an earthworm which was crawling. She was writing and giggling. The girls took turn to be held hands and to be trained. The girls’ wrists were round and glossy and fair. Their respirations were closed to his ear. There were some buds who pressed their heads and necks against Hung’s chest. How funny the mass education was! How the feudal mandarins and colonials could not realize in their time. Revolutionary people were the only ones who discovered. What a talent revolution! The mass education taught the girls how to spell the word “look” like that: “touch … me … pleased”. That was the way how the word look spelled. The alphabetic letter touch (x), the word me (em). They combined together to form the word look. However, it turned out to have the meaning as if the girls asked the boys to touch their bodies to see what they felt when that word was spelled. The story was like that. It was not wrong if it was called fun.

The chairman Vu Hung assigned Lan Vien to be “Buds department manager” in But Nam National Women Association which included 20 young and unmarried girls. They gathered to do meeting and activities that supported the three fronts “Kill the hungry enemy, the illiterate enemy and the invaders”.

Lan Vien and her staffs were examples in carrying out “Rice jar for starvelings” by taking out one handful of rice from the part of rice used for every time of cooking and put it in the mentioned jar to give it to the hungry people whenever they washed the rice before cooking. It meant that they reduced one or two bowls of rice everyday, summed them up and delivered that quantity to undernourished people. That brought a quite good result. Many people’s eyes dewed with tears when receiving their part of “rice aid”. Lan Vien hardly went to each house to collect the rice before dividing them.

Lan Vien stood out from the front of killing illiterate. It was no need to say. She was the most salient person. Her learning was highest because she used to be a student in the school named Dong Khanh. She knew French. Even so, she taught Vietnamese language only. Every night, she gave lessons to the densest class with tens of people in the temple. Everybody could read and write after three months of learning from Vien.

In the front of “fighting against invaders”, Vien was less good. She was afraid of “one two one” performances, shooting trainings, digging fortified positions in order to fence the village and preparing for combating. However, she one more time stood out from the “front of letters and arts”. Her buds department often practiced singing. “Revolution had appeared on Vietnamese country in an old autumn. A great deal of the youth’s attack sounds was suddenly shouted. They broke chains …” The song showed flaming momentum …

“Troops of National Defense Army hadn’t dispatched yet

But if they went they never wished for returning

They kept going to protect Vietnamese country

To go forward despite of death …”

What a harmonious, hurried and high spirit song!

Vien had a clear voice which was imitated by the whole group and the peals of claps were conducted.

They were singing and dancing under the moon light on the yard of the Stone Farming House. Twenty girls were in white short sleeves shirts showing their bare arms with silky and velvety complexion which were dexterously wriggling just like waves. In chairman capacity, Vu Hung had responsibility in directing and getting in close contact with buds department and canvassed them for positively joining in revolutionary works. He had never missed any dancing evening of training. All the dance movements were invented by Lan Vien in deed. Lan Vien sometimes applied the waltz which she had chance to know since she was a student in the school named Dong Khanh for her “new” revolutionary dance. It was not a difficult job for Lan Vien to “create new dances”. For example, to the “Happy production”, the sketch movements such as carrying on one’s shoulder with a pole and two hangers, “pull up young plants of rice”, “transplanting”, “harvesting”, “paddy threshing” were applied. A harmonious and suitable song was chosen to be dance rhythm. And a product was formed. Buds department manager Lan Vien was so self-confident that they used such an item to perform in the district show. It was warmly welcomed. The aspect which buds department was highly appreciated was the new age spirit or equality between men and women. The women were considered the same level with the men under revolutionary time. The women in the old days had no right to present at the temple but men were different. They could be there so as to spread a mat and had a drink. The women could only go to pagoda for worshipping the Buddha.

The men could marry as many wives as they willed under the feudal time. Normally, the rich man could have three spouses at least. He married his first better half when he was 16 or 17 and the first child was born. She took care of the family including the fields, the houses. She had husband to feed and he would study or wander. He married the second wife when he was around 40. Her main work to do was to give birth. She had to have as many babies as she could. The more they had children the luckier they were. She was usually younger than her man 15 or 20 years old. He married the third spouse who was around 40 years old younger than him when he was around 60. All elderly love young girls while his first two wives had already been slovenly, loose muscles and full-bodied with their breasts dangling loosely by their belly-buttons, their crazed skin in the stomach area which looked like a highly starchy casaba melon, their complexion and their meat under the skin were flabby. The 20 year-old-buds had powder-like skin. Their breasts were as firm as nails. Their bodies were of sturdy build. They were all the old fortune men’s wish. He didn’t realize the beauty from the buds was very precious when he was young because he certainly had it. However, he was then more experienced in observing. He more understood the life than lived. Sixty-year-old elder’s love. Three times more passionate than that of twenty years old ones.  That was what it was. Revolution then helped the women in “revenging”. Great aristocratic family, the rich men, the government officials were so scared of revolution that none of them dared to “play paper tambourine in their old time” or had the second wife, the third better half.

Women were nothing under the feudal society. A family had an offspring if they had a son at least but not tens daughters. The women had no right to be village mayors, canton chiefs, village watchwomen, commune controllers, Head-clerks of district mandarins’ offices, employees with the mandarins, district chiefs … Head-money was not applied for women but men. What a devaluation the women had! Women were not named in the “roll of tax-payers book” of the commune.

Revolution gave women the right to take part in all kinds of social activities. It appeared the positions of vice-chairwoman of district, minute-women who practiced one two one together with men. Women had the right to vote in parliamentary election dated 6 January.

Well! According to the above mentioned spirit, the buds department whose manager was Lan Vien did all activities. There were no more husbands who were brutal toward women called guys whose feet were high and whose hands were low in the family. Lan Vien caught a man who was beating his better half when she was doing one two one training and he was unfounded jealousy. He was denounced publicly in the commune female conference by the buds department. He had to plead guilty and had to promise not to do it again.

In many houses, the wives had retorted their husbands by crack words and the men didn’t do anything since the date of “seizing power”. The husbands used to play “leading” role in the house and the wives had to obey them. The two sides were then the same. There was no “boss”. Everything would be settled if they were discussed and gone into conclusion. It was very good. However, it would be in the status that no one wanted to listen to the other when it went “beyond measure”. The family turned out to have no order. Despite of that, the buds department whose manager was Lan Vien kept carrying out their new spirit. At times, the buds department played the role of a magistrate who arbitrated quarrels which the couples were in disagreement with each other and the winners were always women.

It was quite a time of “the hens’ crows”. The men had to shake their heads.

Date …

The lights were suddenly switched off when Ham was standing on the terrace of Hoang Lan villa at 8 o’clock 3 minutes dated 19-12-1946. Hanoi was sunk into the darkness. The sounds of canons launched out from Lang stronghold were roaring and the sky seemed to be moved. That gave the signal of carrying out a war of resistance against the French colonialists opened.

Ham hurriedly rushed downstairs to collect his camera and took the picture of that fire and sword scenery. The whole sky was flashed many times with pinky light. Ham had purchased the camera for a long time t wait for that thing happened. It had to be happened. He had forecast that thing since the date he attended in the Da Lat conference. He felt that was an unavoidable trend when he concerned to the Vietnam – France high ranking Conference and accompanied his leaders to carry out the “confidential talks” with Saintony in a secret house near the edge of Sword Lake.

What had to be happened had happened when all the talks were brought to a nonplus. Ham’s work was “finished”. A new plan was set up because he had “journalist” which was rising up in his blood. He wanted to be “a witness” to the historical minutes. He wanted to save the historical images and wanted to inform the hottest news updated from the epoch events. His superiors had already given him all favorable conditions like necessary documents. Moreover, they assigned a task. He had to tell not only our national people but also the world about “historical events”. By connecting with Reurters press agency, he had to righteously supply all the events without letting the world misunderstand due to the shortage of information …

The canon sounds were resounded from the Lang Stronghold. Those growls were buoyant, self-righteous, self-confident and victorious. Radio had caught the voice of Vietnam channel broadcasted from Tram Son Tay pagoda. It stated the appeal the war of resistance on the national scale written by supreme leader: We can use rifles if we have rifles, we can use swords if we have swords, swords can be replaced by hoes, spades, sticks and canes, cold steel … Let’s make a dart at French at the same time and strike them. We are ready to receive the death and will never accept to be their slaves one more time …

Such a saying was full of details and summarized the revolutionary spirit and people’s morale. Ham was going to mix with the stream of events. The voice of his camera sounded tack tack for many different angles. The pictures could have vague background because of lacking the light but they fore sure had the “historical flashes” caused by “historical fires” which were the opening of carrying out a consecrated war of resistance.

The terrace of Hoang Lan villa seemed to be shaken violently due to the effect of guns and ammunition. Even so, Ham didn’t scare. A feeling which wasn’t easy to describe appeared in Ham’s mind. It could be called as eagerness but not discouragement.

French troops seemed not to be in passive status. They knew the situation well. Morlieøre, expeditionary commander in North Indochina, had already arranged his troops to be placed on full alert. They were expected and didn’t surprise. The only thing made them amazed was that why new and young armed forces like that of Vietnam’s with bad-equipped actively dared to attack them, a modern expeditionary troop.

According to Ham’s collected documents, they showed that the quantity of French soldiers in Hanoi was around 6.500 including one infantry regiment, one tanks and armored regiment, one cannon battalion, one section of raiders, one section of paratroopers, many soldiers working for air force and naval forces. Besides, there were around 7.000 overseas French people living in Hanoi who were distributed weapons and were in the state of participating in a war at any time. There were around 90.000 French expeditionary people in all over Indochina. For our side, the quantity of servicemen was 82.000 in our whole country. In brief, our soldiers were less than theirs. It was not a big gap. However, we had quite large difference in the way of arrangement and technical preparations. But, Vietnam dared to take part in such a war because we had a capital important named nation and to be side by side with our people.

Ham’s collected documents were quite meticulous and accurate based on official and non-official sources of information. He didn’t show off it on the newspaper but he had to know. He was chosen in joining several meeting organized by the former Hanoi military headquarters in order to discuss the fighting project. According to Ham’s figures, there were around 2.500 people in Hanoi including 5 National Defense battalions and 8.000 national salvation militiamen, factory defense people, the guards in Hoang Dieu stronghold and volunteer policemen.

That was the time Vietnamese nation started their most important war in Vietnam which would be recorded in the world’s history with insecure army forces and rudimentary weapons. Ham had mixed himself in his journey to be historical witness with the following baggage: An ironical hat on which a rampart defense round star was stuck, a submachine gun, a camera, a pen, a pile of loose sheets. He had photographed scenery of which lots of delegations of untidily carrying things on their shoulders left dreamy and luxury Hanoi to evacuate from the context of noisily lethal weapons and high sky fire and sword on suburban streets; landscape of which the imposing system of defense works were made up in vertical and horizontal directions here and there on the streets in order to intercept the French troops on the march; the view of which the streets used to be in the shade of green tamarind trees, used to have the perfume of milk flowers pervaded in the air, the brightly red flamboyant, another kinds flowers whose color were dark purple, the images of girls in gracefully long dresses … and then were loaded with broken lamp-posts, family appliances such as beds, cabinets …, ancestral altars … so that the enemy’s vehicles would be blocked. Civilian population had contributed their wedding beds or their altars which used to place incense-burners for worshipping their family ancestors because they had neither bombs nor firearms. The most important thing at that moment was to struggle against the enemy.

Ham visited the system of defense works and saw with his own eyes the French troops leading by tanks and armored vehicles and following by soldiers whose clop-clop of their shoes were echoing were dislodged and thus they could not move any steps ahead. The sounds of drums used to be beaten time thump clack for the songstresses or prostitutes who were indulging in familiarities with their talks and smiles and delivering their singings in the houses located on Kham Thien Street where was then bawling out a string of sounds caused by light machine-guns, grenades. They were treading on the neck of expeditionary elements whose soldiers were so panic-stricken that they had to scream aloud when they were running away. At Vong hospital, the people taking the three angles bomb rushed directly into a tank and it was exploded. The defense soldiers were shooting and withdrawing to the second floor. Two platoons of national defense soldiers and 50 partisans had laid down their lives for their motherland. For compensation, hundreds of invaders were died and were wounded. The blood was flowed in abundance and the hospital area was flooded. The dead bodies were scattered here and there. A fierce combat was happened in Dong Xuan market in which the opponents were running after one another among the booths.

According to the news Ham collected, five national defense battalions had attacked and destroyed several important positions such as Yen Phu power-station, waterworks, fuel dump, a Long Bien bridge and Gia Lam air port in the first day of fighting. Some journalists coming from Western press agency were the same to Ham who was penetrating everywhere to collect the information. Ham met a newspaperman working for Reurters at Metropol hotel. He said: The French troops are driving back at low speed the national defense forces which belong to the third interregional and the second interregional to the southern suburban area of the city. They can only move forwards 200 meters a day. The war resistance forces in the first interregional (Sword Lake) have already retreated and are determinedly holding their ground. The most severe battle will happen in this area …

They exchanged information with each other and Ham gave him some related pictures as he had his own mean of delivery news to the world.

The correspondent was about the age of Ham. He was brisk, courageous and lusting for blood of his career despite of danger. He fell upon the exchanging fire places because of his professional ideal. How Ham could hesitate or avoid it when the war was necessary for his independent ideal which he was pursuing.

Ham took the pictures of which the soldiers were staying on the system of defense works to protect the North Regional Building, House of municipal administration, the Edge of Lake Post Office. The battles there were violent. French insisted on reoccupying and Vietnamese people were trying their best to protect their country. Ham felt very happy to imagine the minutes when his photographs were placed an advertisement in the international paper.

One night, Ham left Hoang Lan villa which was located at number 15 Quang Thanh Street. He paid the “monk” Duc Vinh a visit at Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda which was completely deserted, pitch-dark, awfully devastated. The colossal statue guarding the main gate was as superb as a small mountain. It looked unclear in the darkness and its wide open eyes looked quite fierce. Ham’s heart was rapidly beaten thud thud due to fearfulness in deed. The statuses of Buddha gather in great number and in disorder looked like the shades of people who surrounded Ham. Duc Vinh was still there or he had already evacuated. To be honest, he had to be very brave to live there. He scared the life in the world. However, nobody was sure that it would be less fearful to live there in such the context.

-       My dear Vinh! Brother Vinh! – Ham called. His voices were echoing the whole gloomy House of Three Refuges.

Duc Vinh appeared from some corners with American lamp on his hand. He was applying himself strenuously to light it.

-       Don’t you evacuate?

-       No, I don’t. I stand my ground. It is in safety to stay under the altar on which Buddha statuses are arranged. Some days ago, they exchanged fire right on Doi Can Street and at the gate of the pagoda but they harmed neither me nor the pagoda. I had invited the militiamen in the nearby system of defense works the meal and some drink after cooking. They thanked to my kindness. They had already driven to the suburban. And this area is then quite calm. Is the war only happened in Sword Lake and Dong Xuan market?

-       It’s correct.

-       Have French troops controlled our city? – Vinh asked.

-       It has to take long time.

-       But, Vietminh’s policy is only to pin French down in Hanoi. The maximum period of time for them to exchange fire in order not to loose their face is around one month. Then, they will withdraw their army forces to Northernmost Vietnam base.

-       You hide yourself here for reading the sutra and praying to Buddha. How you can know all the war situations so well …

Ham weakly felt that such a pretended monk would never keep eating vegetarian food forever. He was waiting for his time. His eyes lit up when he talked about Vietminh’s withdrawing out of Hanoi.

Ham breathed a sigh. He ignored it. He ignored him. Ham’s brother had his own life and he had to live. Ham couldn’t take care of him …

What the monk Vinh said about Hanoi of those days was correct. The exchange fire was concentrated in the first interregional (Sword Lake). There, Ham saw thousands of minutemen. They knew nothing about arms and ammunition by nature but they then volunteer fought in dangerous circumstances and the deaths were very close to them. Workers, poor people, shopkeepers, pupils, students, noodle soup peddlers, shoeshine boys, flowers sellers … were then side by side to form a team by accident. The real cadre there was one national defense company only and some trained partisans. The rest soldiers were the people who were “spontaneous” to become combatants. Several ten thousands of people who didn’t had enough time to evacuate had appeared to be some ten thousands of warriors. How strange it was! The ancient houses which had been built since the previous century and had neither bastions nor firm fortified positions for defense were still struggling proudly against the enemy no mater that the bombs were thrown, the tanks attacked, the skillful expeditionary soldiers tightened the encirclement. There were thousands of times difference about the real strength between both sides. Ham fell into the first interregional. He followed the steps of militants who were the little communication boys. He crept through broken walls which were used as an indoor road connecting between houses and were used to support the mobile moves of the “warriors” while the enemy had to take a long way from one street to another. In the interregional, the soldiers crept just like mice and appeared to kill the enemy at one lane before disappeared to pass through another lane. The whole interregional looked like a huge beehive and according to Ham’s imagination, it had to be adhesive. The atmosphere in the front of combat trenches was warm like a family at times. The girls who wore their curly hair in puffs and the suburban buds whose teeth were black were very friendly. The loud and clear laughs were raised beside the fast and thick spurt of machine-gun fire. The hot bowls of noodle with its smoke spiraling up were placed on the system of defense works on the cold winter nights. The young girl gracefully put her hand on the fighter’s shoulder. The bud’s glint was overflowing with autumn sun in the burnt space of bombs and ammunition, ill smelling blood …

The above mentioned series of shots were recorded in Ham’s camera. His present lifted the spirit of the combatants. They clustered round him. Ham made questions and recorded the answers. After that moment, they hid themselves in the broken wall-sills beside the piles of collapsed bricks and shot the French. If the French discovered them they would be fired fast and thickly. They would die. But then, their names, ages, careers, addresses were written by Ham. They were taken photographs by Ham as well. They would be excitedly happy when beautiful ladies gave them handkerchiefs which were full of the smell of buds’ complexion. One of them told that his house was in Ngoc Ha village. There was an old century ylang ylang in the garden. He used to pick off its flowers which his mother used to sell on the streets. How sweet the blossoms were! However, he and his mom could not effort to live and hence he had to buy a bicycle rickshaw for carrying customers. He used to take his mummy with her flat winnowing basket of flowers around and around the crowded streets every afternoon. She followed everybody to Ha Dong for evacuation in the first day of war resistance in the whole country when he stayed there and fought. She asked him to accompany her but he replied: We will lose our Hanoi if everyone goes. He belonged to ready-to-die team which specialized in using three angles bombs to attack the enemy’s vehicles. There were 12 people in his team and 11 of them had already died. He was the only survivor. How strange it was! His Mom prayed to Buddha for him every night in her evacuation area. The three angles bombs were the home-made ones which had handles for holding. The bomb was as big as a bushel which had a sharp pointed figure. There were three ironic sticks placed inside the bomb and jutted out from the bomb. That was the reason why it was call three angles. He said that we had to be brave if we wanted to use such a bomb for fighting because we would die for sure. We took a bomb and hid somewhere. Seeing the enemy’s vehicle, we would rush out and beat it on the vehicle. When the bomb explored we would die accordingly as the length of the bomb handle was only one meter and a half. And ready-to-die was named. – He smiled – However, he was still alive because he stood in a far distance and threw the bomb as though it was a “javelin” last time. The enemy’s vehicle was burnt and he was thrown out far away by the bomb gas. He went on all fours, stood up and run towards that place. It made everybody surprised. They said: “Well! You are the only person who is still alive after using the three angles bomb. You must stay here and live in order to tell everybody what the three angles bomb is. You are not assigned to use the three angles bomb anymore. Move you to ambush department”. And he kept going on his life to that moment.

-       Where is your bicycle rickshaw now?

-       It is chained to the foot of ylang ylang tree in my house. However, I will never drive it anymore but go fighting.

-       There is also an ylang ylang tree in my house. The perfume of its flowers pervades the air. – Ham informed.

-       You are right. What a sweet smell of ylang ylang flowers! You know! There are many ylang ylang trees in Hanoi. I have sometimes missed that good smell since I stay here …

There were then so many people in the first interregional. It had to be ten thousands of people including inhabitants and people from many other places volunteered to stay there for battling. The plan was set to fulfill the food for around 5.000 people who were living and fighting there within three months. However, the people were then increased by many times. How to settle the problem? They acted as if to join into the system of defense works so as they could hold the first interregional was to attend the festival. They were enthusiastic and love struggling. They like taking the guns and shooting the French. That was a correct wish. The French used to be always swaggering about on the streets and everybody had to avoid them otherwise they would be whipped by truncheons. On the contrary, they then could “strip to the waist” and “exchange blows” with French. They were overjoyed because they satisfied their hearts’ contents. Let’s fight and nobody knew which cat would be bitten or who would be the winner.

… Political opponent had come to an agreement about an armistice within 24 hours so that civilian population, Chinese overseas, Indian overseas could be moved out of the first Interregional. There was nobody there but 500 ready-to-die warriors. However, the quantity of people staying there remained 1.200 ones in which there were 200 women and 150 children who had tried their best to hide themselves in some corners. It was regretful for them if they had to leave “their struggling and warm place” named the first Interregional. Ham asked a 12-year-old kid:

-       Why don’t you move?

-       I will be happy to stay here. I used to always get a shower of blows from my father whenever I was running back and forth on the streets or climbed tamarind tree or dracontomelum tree. I am now able to roam about the area in which the houses have their broken walls. I can easily move from one house to another. All the owners of the houses had already evacuated so that I can do anything I want in their houses. I can sleep on the kind of tough wooden short terra-cotta seat-like furniture or Hong Kong beds on which the mattress is put. There are a great deal of things which I can take anything I want such as the Chinese cups or bowls, padded cotton blankets, a little glassware pond in which the yellow fish is swimming, bunches of lamps, pots and pans, books, toys … I have never seem them in my life but they are discarded and are scattered here and there. The inhabitants here are very rich. However, I haven’t taken anything as I can’t “face out a circle of blockade” and bring them for selling or carry them to my house. I take a shepherd dog which is as big as a calf and it was left. It is because it follows me by itself. Its boss had gone away and forgotten it. It is sad and lonely. It was beside itself with joy when it saw me. Life s changed and it’s funny. Previously, if I appeared in front of its rich owner’s gate it might bark with raucous noises at me and made me frightened out of my wits and run away. It now lowers its tail, rubs its snout against me in order to toady to me. I am a fighter in the first Interregional myself and the dog is so smart. So, he “makes friend” with me. He follows me to anywhere. I get closed to the edge of the wall to hide myself and throw the grenade at the French, he accompanies me and he also hides himself and holds its breath to keeps the secret. He rushes out and barks with raucous noises as if he wants to queen it over somebody whenever the grenade is explored and the French soldiers are died.

I am very happy when “combating with” French. I used to be pulled my ear by French cu-lit while I was making water beside a foot of a tree planted on the bank of the Sword Lake. He had twisted my ear so hard that it seemed to be kept apart from my body. I keep remembering that animosity. And now, I have chance to hold the grenade, wait for the right time and throw it at the French. What things can make me happy like that?

The children living nearby my house used to play a game “combat” by using the “pop-pop” guns. The gun was a small ivory bamboo cylinder. We chewed and rolled the paper into ball before thrusting it in the small bamboo tube. Then, we shot. The paper bullet took flight and stuck on the other boy’s forehead and the pop sound was made. How pleasant to hear! Ones who chewed the paper quickly could shot many times and the losers were the ones whose teeth were decayed and thus they chewed the paper slowly.

Well! It’s quite boring to “combat” like that now because I am given grenade. I have it under my belt before hanging around the streets. The French took no notice at the children like me so that I throw the grenade at them and slipped out of the scene by running into a lane. It is worth to fight like that. In the “combat”, I had to tiredly chew the paper to stuff paper balls into the “pop-pop” gun and I could get only one sound “tack”. By using the grenade, I can get the “um” sound which is an earth-shaking explosion noise. How happy it resounds. My friends who used to play “pop-pop” gun with me have to call me “elderly” whenever meeting me.

-       Are you going to stay here forever?

-       Of course! I was provided with everything when staying here. I always have something to eat when it is time for meal. The women cook and bring them to me. The food includes meat of chicken and pig that are done to a turn, medium noodle soup, well-done noodle soup and even sweet lotus seeds soup. The men are struggling by the system of defense works while the women are cooking the meals during the day and bring them to warriors. If I leave here and evacuate to the villages I will be uncared-for and have nothing to eat. I have to continue hunting for crabs and picking up shell-fish for living. It’s boring.

-       Don’t you scare of the death?

-       What is death?

-       Death means … when you throw the grenades at the French, they can not survive because they … died.

-       I don’t know.

Ham interviewed a militiawoman:

-       Why do you stay here?

-       I used to take “buying bottles and scrap iron” as my career. I used to tramp on the streets. I had no sweetheart and nobody wanted to marry me. Joining in this team, I had met Mr. Nghia who used to be a drain dragger. We had felt in love with each other. Mr. Nghia has been assigned civil defense squad leader who is the manager of more than ten people and his old job title drain dragger was not in use anymore. He has given me the rank of vice-squad leader. We do fighting in the commanding position at Hang Dao Street. We exchange fires everyday. Mr. Nghia told me that if there was a girl staying next to him when he was struggling he seemed to have an amulet and he was always in safe situation because the bullets would never touch him. I’m not sure what he said is true. But, he always tempestuously fires whenever I am beside him. We have already announced that we were married. The platoon chief had certified and given us the marriage certificate which was written on the paper sheet tore out from his book. He placed the sheet on his thigh and wrote marriage certificate. We didn’t sign but press our finger-prints on it as we are illiterate. Their “wedding ceremony” was taken place without getting the presents of bridegroom’s family and bride’s family since nobody dared to come to that area. The people in their squad celebrated the wedding by treating them to a round of sweet lotus seeds soup. I am pregnant. So, I will be at the place he is and that is why I stay here.

Ham was walking on Luong Van Can Street dated 08-02-1947 while two Spritfire aero-planes were flying along the streets named Hang Bong and Hang Gai. They got closed to the top of the trees and right above the roofs of the houses. They dived and the people sitting on the planes shot at a row of even number houses. The front line was separated by an asphalted road. Revolutionary troops were in the even number houses and the enemy is in the uneven number houses. They gave frightfully violent shots. Ham accompanied two minutemen who were carrying machine-gun and rifle on their shoulders. They went upstairs and stopped on the roof of the house number 18, Luong Van Can Street. The heart rending sounds of the planes flying were above their heads. The voices of flying bullets resounded chew chew. There was a very short gap between the roof and the planes. Their flying height was from 200 to 300 meters. Two burst of gunfire were taken by Brenno light machine-gun. The first one aimed at behind their planes and the second one aimed at their front space. Ham adjusted the line of sight. The Spritfire plane was immediately hit by bullets right after the third spurt of gunfire was noisily performed. The black uncertainly smoke was appeared on the plane and it shot headlong into a sand-bank of Red river which was opposite to Black Ferry-boat.

What we learned from the militiamen’s experiment in the first Interregional was that the enemy planes could be shot down with infantry rifles. The atmosphere of combating in the first Interregional was brightened up by a new life full of vitality …

The enemy’s stranglehold was increasing. Exchange fire was strongly violent. Ham was no longer able to return his Hoang Lan villa. He and the civil defense stood their first Interregional. Ham spent his Tet holiday with minutemen within the enemy’s blockade in the year of the pig 1947. The square glutinous rice cakes, lean pork paste and pickled welsh onion were also sent to them by compatriots who even offered a branch of Nhat Tan peach and lots of fresh flowers. Ham and his fellows stayed in a villa whose middle-class owner had evacuated without moving anything in the house. The bright altar-things were red lacquer trimmed with gold. The kind of tough wooden short terra-cotta seat-like furniture in the salon was shining black. Water hyacinth and porcelain big-bellied jar which was made under the Chinese Thanh dynasty were precious. Ham arranged the branch of Nhat Tan peach into the vase and placed it in the middle of the house. Then, he read his poem to wish the soldiers a Happy New Year. Everybody were singing, shouting and cheering the whole afternoon in the last day of the old year. In the evening, their forces were silently divided into several groups but they one and all opened many directions of attack in many places in the city at the same time in the minutes of New Year’s Eve. The national red flag in the middle of which the yellow star stood was put on the top of Turtle Tower.

Ham was emaciated after nearly two months of throwing himself about the war. Nobody could recognize the young graceful and gentlemanlike man in his business suit when he attended Da Lat Conference in the old days.

One very cold night, Ham accompanied the civil defense delegation which were withdrawing from the Capital. They were quietly walking on the sand-bank of the Red river under the Long Bien Bridge. Ham said goodbye to Hanoi. He slipped his hand into the pocket and felt a bunch of keys used for opening Hoang Lan villa’s doors. He threw it in the water of Red river. He imagined that Mr. Duc Vinh with his close-shaven head which was covered by light grey hat and in his frock which was replaced by his black suit was leaving Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda and was one by one unlocking the rooms of Hoang Lan villa at that moment. The perfume of ylang ylang was pervading in the air at night. Mr Duc Vinh opened his lips as though he was sipping the aromatic flavor of his life after a succession of days on which he was sneezing and his nose was running due to the effect of incense-smoke burnt on the altar …

… Ham’s imagination was correct. On the last day of that weekend, Duc Vinh was looking for breakdown mechanic among collapse houses in Hanoi after 60 days and nights of being ruined by fire and sword. Two smeared repairmen had finished installing the machinery and tires of his “scrap-iron” backside of the duck-like car within a day. He took the petrol-cans which had been reserved since “the date the war hadn’t exploded yet” out of the underground hideout. The car was smoothly running. “The monk in Eight Towers – Thousands of Precious Objects pagoda” immediately drove back the Stone Farming House and picked up his wife, his children, Ham’s better half and the little boy Trung within that morning. His car stopped at the house number 15 Bis Quan Thanh Street. The reason for his action was that the “peace” had returned Hanoi while the dangerously “troubled times” was still remaining in the countryside. Nevertheless, Doctor of Letters’ spouse and Lan Vien insisted on staying in the Stone Farming House without moving to Hoang Lan villa. Doctor of Letters’ wife said that she had to stay there to look after the house and the fields. Vietminh, France or what was called Nation, she didn’t care. She didn’t follow any sides. She paid no attention to them. She occupied the middle ground because she was a woman who only knew doing business and worshipping her ancestors. Nobody wanted to harm her. To hang about at Hoang Lan villa within its four walls was just like to go to prison. About Lan Vien, she “read her like a book”. Lan Vien had showed her love towards Hung and thus she would never leave him …