An and Nghia were woodcutter who used to go in forest together, cut down trees, pulled them out and sold to traders. Days they worked and stayed together made they turned familiar till An got married. An’s wife was a beautiful woman who loved An so much.
Nghia turned unhappy as his friend go married he envied. He used to think: “More handsome than him, stronger than him and cleverer than him but why what he has better than me”. Now, his heart was filled full by jealousy and bad thinking.
One day as normal, they brought their axes, made their way to forest. Nghia lied that he found out a rare tree and led An went to forest deeply, crossed three mountains and six waterfalls. While An was in a deep wooded valley looking for the tree, Nghia after him threw a noose through An’s body. Though An had tried his best to resist but Nghia was stronger than him. So, short time later, An was tied.
“Please, let me go”. An begged, “If you want money, I will find the way to give you enough”.
“Oh my friend. I don’t want your money but your wife. You know if you are still alive, I can not go with her. So, I have no choice but to kill you.” said Nghia, “Have something to talk to your wife”.
An scolded Nghia when he saw the real face of him. Nghia still didn’t change his intent he raised his ax.
“Don’t worry I will made for you a feast every year on this day”, said Nghia.
But angry eyes belonging to An stared at Nghia without a blink which made Nghia tremble because of scare. Therefore, Nghia laid his ax on ground he thought: “Don’t need to kill him by myself. I will tie him here and beasts will do what I don’t yet. Maybe, beasts will not but he, course, will die because of hunger and thirst”. Therefore, Nghia tied An’s back against a tree then turned back home.
Nghia lied An’s wife that An went deeply forest to find rare wood in few days. He said her not to worry and made his way to home. Two days later, Nghia went back the place where he tied An. He stood remotely and observed.
“What the hell is he doing?” thought Nghia when he saw An sticking out his tongue, “Oh that’s right. He is drinking drops which fall down from leaves. Thirsty he is”.
Nghia turned back. Another two days, he came back again and observed. An had died his head fell down against his chest. Knew surely An had died, Nghia turned back and rumored that An had left away.
Each few days, Nghia went to An’s house and pretended as if he came to hear something about An. He used to help An’s wife, giving her some food, money or repairing something in her house. While her husband was absent, a man, his husband’s friend, used to help her whenever she needed that made her feel grateful. Later, the rumor that An was killed by robbers at somewhere in forest came to her, she turned more dependent on him. Besides, Nghia continued treating her well.
Time passed. At last, they married. Nghia brought her to his hometown, the place was far away their recent place.
Nine years passed, Nghia had never told his wife a word about his crime and his wife also had nothing to doubt her recent husband. They, now, were happy and wealthy. Nice building, servants and business relationships were things Nghia had now. Thought that he continued enjoyed the life till he died but,
A day in summer, while they were eating under their building eaves, Nghia saw a toad stand on its two hind legs against a tree and stuck out its tongue to drink raindrops. Suddenly, Nghia laughed without notice. His wife looked at him surprisingly.
“What make you laugh, my husband?” she said.
“See the toad, don’t you? It makes me remember…” he stopped because he realized he nearly told her his secret. On other side, his wife thought that he had another lover so she tried to ask him. At last, they had a violent argument.
Angry turned to regret, Nghia spent much time thinking.
“She may understand me. I and she have lived together for many years from the time I was poor woodcutter to now when I was rich man. Therefore, she may be not angry if I say to her my story. She must know that I and she can marry because of that”.
The next morning, Nghia decided to talk to his wife all things. When his wife had heard, she chose not to say anything and also kept her calm but a flame of hatred was burning inside. She had never thought that the person sitting front her face who slept with her each day was too cruel. She felt sorry for her old husband who was killed brutally by his best friend but she had to force herself to act normally.
An's anniversary of a death came, they cooked a feast. The wife bought a lot of wine. After they had a ceremony, the wife served Nghia as much as wine he could drink. Later, Nghia slided down on table. The wife took him to bed tied him carefully then she went away and brought back a sharpen knife. She cut his belly took out his heart laid on a dish then put the dish on altar of her old husband.
When all things done, she made her way to mandarin and confessed.
THE END
"Translator: Hung Nguyen"
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