| Sword of a General, Touch of a Gentleman (Part 3)

"Nothing except that he was a trickster. He appeared to be gentle and kind but was a monster in disguise. I saw him hurting a woman when I was eight or nine." Soo-Ah answered, looking confused as to why he was so interested in this subject.

His shocked expression was quickly tucked away. "A woman?"

"Yes. She must have been a woman of pleasure. He did not know her for sure. But he did not have to treat her the way he did."

He shifted in his seat and thought carefully before placing the following question. "What did he do to that woman to make you say such harsh things about him?"

"He – he grabbed her violently and he did some things to her mouth that made her choke and cry. After, he pushed her onto the bed and went on top of her. I will not demean myself to explain what happened next, but I remember she was screaming, and I could not stand it anymore, so I ran away."

Sung-Ho fought his dismay as he rubbed his chin and then straightened his stance. "A child so young, interpreting such a scene for the first time," He paused and pursed his lips. "That would sound like something serious indeed. Do tell more. Was the woman forced to stay with him? Did she call for help?"

"I... I can't remember. I heard her say Please. But she came by herself, she undressed." said Soo-Ah, as if she remembered a forgotten detail that surprised her.

"I am curious, Lady Soo-Ah. How did you get to see all of this on display, so easily?"

"He was recently injured and in my childish innocence, I was worried he was ill. So, I spied on him. I was trying to make sure nothing bad would come to him. But something bad was actually happening to the woman he was with."

A somewhat amused Sung-Ho had only one conclusion, delivered as he fixed the placing of his cutlery that needed no fixing, "I am so sorry for your big brother."

"Of course, you would say that General Sung-Ho," said Soo-Ah, raising an eyebrow at him. "It is only natural to take the side of your kin. You, feeling sorry for him, does not make him any better, nor his actions less revolting. He was corrupted to the core. All men are capable of such things if something arises in their interest. It's in your nature." She squinted her eyes as bitterness drenched her face and pointed at him. "You with your wars and suffering, with your way of living life without caring about anyone. Most of you without an ounce of gentleness."

Her fiery heart, he so wanted to get to know, ignited at the indignation that must have laid smouldering for all this time. And now she had found someone to spat at.

"Those are some harsh accusations, Lady Soo-Ah."

"You know what I am talking about," she continued. "The Tangs are doing it, but we do it too. I heard the soldiers speak of it whenever they found villages or cities disloyal to our King. You all rape, pillage and destroy in the name of war, and call that your right, as if you have no better way to subdue people or an idea. War is about glory for the likes of you and misery for the rest. All you do is take and take and cause suffering. Look at you, how you came like a vulture to take over my grandfather's hard work." How she came alive being able to throw in his face all that she thought about him and his gender.

Sung-Ho had been keeping silent, watching her with intent.

["Isn't this what the Great General Min-Jun was also doing? He was a general like me, was he not? War never caused any joy to anyone, Lady Soo-Ah. We are not so free-willed about the choice to wage war or not. Most often war chooses us and all we can do is pick our small battles and do whatever it is in our power to fight them. I would have guessed that all these years growing up on the war-front you would understand that sometimes war is a necessity."

"Especially because I understand. The Tang want to gain dominance. And all that you want is to keep it. None of you cares about the costs. And I have seen the cost of war."

"I don't know where you got these ideas. I know General Min-Jun had his peculiar ideas about war but even he saw our fighting as a necessity to keep our people united."

"I knew my grandfather. He was a good man who had to do bad things. All the others I have seen seemed to take pleasure in what they did. Besides, it is not just about the evil in men fighting a war. It's about men being cruel even in their everyday life. A life where you have no respect or care for anything, including other humans. Especially women. Always acting like a brute around them."]

Brute? He was no brute. At least no brute that anyone had ever complained about.

"Lady Soo-Ah, what on earth are you talking about? How can you judge the relationship between men and women in such a harsh manner?"

"I am entitled to judge because I am a woman who has lived among your gender for long enough. I have seen the likes of you, around the loose women who were following the camp. I know what you are capable of doing to them, General Sung-Ho."

Did she know? Concern surged through him. He jumped, letting his hand drop hard on the table surface. "How do you know? Did anyone ever touch you in the wrong way? Tell me at once who he is."

"Gods no! Not me! My disguise worked well. I would never allow anyone to touch me like that." Soo-Ah responded, a little startled.

Perhaps his reaction was exaggerated. But at the moment, her absolute reply allowed him to relax. He wanted to be the shield to protect her and the sword to serve her interest if she would allow him. "Then what do you find so wrong with what goes on between a man and a woman, if you do not know for yourself?"

"What else is there to know? You… rape them. You hurt them, and you make them scream in pain. Even the one I called Big Brother did it."

"No, no." Sung-Ho disagreed and was not afraid to show it. "I fear you have misunderstood your big brother terribly. But I am sure you were too young, so you did not know what you were witnessing. If what you call rape is the only way you view a relationship between man and woman, derived in all the years spent among men, fighting wars, know you are wrong."

But Soo-Ah was resolute and stuck to her affirmation, "I know what I was seeing. It was rape. I never saw or heard my grandfather do any of those things." she added sharply, not giving in on her determination.

Sung-Ho grimaced. "Maybe you did not know this, but General Min-Jun was injured in combat. A horse trotted over him sometime before you came into his life. The injury he suffered prevented him from doing ′those things".

"What? He was injured?" Soo-Ah's pathos mellowed down. Surprise rose on her face.

Sung-Ho simply continued his thoughts out loud. "And I guess your grandfather never explained to you any of the intimate aspects of life. I am sure you never asked either, thinking that the visions of a young girl were enough to make up your mind about the… the joining of the essences between man and woman."

"I am sure my grandfather never said anything because there was nothing good to say about it," she stated plainly, sure of herself.

"There is a lot to say about this matter. It is the very reason any of us is alive." Wanting to make sure she was not entirely oblivious, he asked in a condescending tone, "You do know that don't you, Lady Soo-Ah?"

Soo-Ah rolled her eyes, at being treated like a child, "Of course, I am aware. It is simply something I would never do."

What a pity he thought and offered an intriguing smile, "You do not know what you are missing. It's the best thing to do for a healthy, happy, long life." The thought of all the things she was missing made him miss them too as a certain part of himself twitched at the most inopportune moment. "I might be breaking the Code of Good Manners, but I must offer you insight into the art of the bed-chamber since no one else did. Men and women are like heaven and earth. They should be linked together in harmony, but now are split apart. When man and woman come together it is like heaven descending on earth. Through the pleasures of intimate joining, they feed each other life-giving energy. The screams and the reactions you disregard are not those of women being tortured as you say. What you heard were most likely shouts of pleasure."