Fiction REINCARNATION, Vol. 1

Life as a Fisherman's Wife

<6> Life as a Fisherman's Wife

Hwa-young went into a fishing village in Muan County with Dal-son and his mother. The old Park, facing Hwa-young, started to weep in embarrassment. He would never have imagined to meet Hwa-young, who became a widow since he had failed to properly protect her. He still thinks it a pity not to apologize to his master after the accident.

"Hwa-young, I've committed a crime worth dying for. Your family treated me well, but I ran away without doing my duty."

"Everyone would have acted that way under such circumstances. My bad luck has made me unhappy, and you too."

"No. It's all my fault. I went into a mountain full of wild beasts without any preparation. I don't know how to apologize to your late husband and your parents in Andong."

"It is all water under the bridge. Now forget about the past, and think of everything as fate."

"It's very kind of you to say so. I will do my best to apologize to you."

"Apology? Now that I have changed my name to Yu-jin, please forget about Hwa-young."

On arriving in Muan County, Hwa-young hurriedly held a wedding ceremony with Dal-son. It was a very small wedding, only attended by parents-in-law. On the occasion of her marriage, she changed her name completely from Hwa-young to Yu-jin. She gladly accepted the new name which was composed of letters chosen from parents' name.

Hwa-young was satisfied with handsome and good-hearted young man, while Dal-son was thrilled to marry his master's daughter, whom he had a crush on, as his wife. Mr. and Mrs. Park were very happy to welcome a woman of noble birth as their daughter-in-law.

They bought a new house and a boat with the funds provided by Kim Yu-chan and started fishing off the coast. As Mr. Park had already settled in, they quickly became familiar with the people in the village. Men caught fish outside and women took over the housework, so the family property increased rapidly. Newlyweds used to fall asleep at night, whispering "we must work harder to buy each child a house and a boat.

In fishing villages, boat owners are considered rich. The livelihood of the shipowners differs greatly from that of the employed fishermen. In the village where Dal-son's family settled, there were indigenous shipowners. They were known to be descendants of illegitimate children born between the exiled official and the local concubine, and have been posing like aristocrats for generations.

The villagers were hired by the native shipowners for fishing. But when the catch is small, they had to return empty-handed and even when it is large, they received only a small share of the catch. The indigenous shipowners acted highhandedly by exploiting the fishermen's labor, filling their bellies, and offering bribes to public officials.

But a rival appeared who threatened their vested interests. Park was a shipowner, but he and his son worked just like fishermen, and provided workers with generous portions depending on the amount of fish they caught. The fishermen competed with each other to get on Park's boat. Park and his family treated the people in the same way Kim Yu-chan treated them. And they tried to enjoy and suffer together with villagers and fishermen.

The Park family's attitude was in stark contrast to the behavior of the native shipowners, and the villagers were unwilling to get on the ship of the native owners. They had no choice, but now they have a great alternative. As a result, the indigenous shipowners found it difficult to attract workers and their catch has dropped considerably. As a result, the native shipowners became hostile to Park and his family.

Meanwhile, Dal-son visited Andong every year to greet Kim Yu-chan. He helped farm work there, and sold dried fish and salt taken from Muan at bargain prices. Since fish and salt were very scarce and expensive in inland areas, the villagers were very welcoming to Dal-son's visit. Hwa-young's family also welcomed Dal-son for bringing sea products, but Kim Yu-chan looked forward to his visit to hear about his daughter. Since Hwa-young can also hear the news of her parents through Dal-son, she often sent her husband home. Whenever Dal-son visits his home, Yu-chan secretly talks with him about Hwa-young, but other family members don't know about it at all.