The guy went down from his mountain to visit the town.
Some people chuckled at the guy. Most young women who were by the well stopped what they were doing and stared at the guy with blushing faces.
The guy ran around in the mountain so much that he had broad physique with evenly suntanned skin. His manly appearance was enough to make young women of the town to sigh in admiration.
Nobody would guess that the guy used to look like a mountain bandit who did not clean for months on end.
With the guy's look, he could have had any woman in town. The men in the town all congratulated the guy for marrying a good bride but, in truth, they pitied the guy for not being able to play around.
The stanch that always accompanied the guy disappeared, replaced by clean clothes and herbal scented hair.
The clean clothes that the guy wore had neat embroideries.
The ornaments and the embroideries were very outstanding that even some shop owners would stop the guy in his tract to inquire the clothes' whereabouts.
If you think that the guy improved only in his appearance, you will be wrong. The guy changed inside and out.
The guy who brought whatever caught his fancy now only brought things that his bride wanted him to buy.
The merchants who sometimes tricked the guy to buy their things in higher prices were surprised to fine the guy refusing to buy any of their goods. The guy stated that if the prices don't match the prices that his bride had set then he would not buy their products.
Feeling awkward, the merchants complained that the guy's bride is frugal and sold their goods in appropriate price.
Originally, the town's people did not believe the guy to have a bride.
Long time ago, there was a tale about a princess who married an impaired person and made him into a general. They now saw that the story became a reality for the guy and his bride.
Becoming curious about the guy's bride, people began asking different questions about the bride.
"Where did your bride come from?"
"Bring your bride to the town sometime."
"How does your bride look like?"
Because the guy closed his mouth shut whenever the questions about his bride comes up, the town's people's assumption about the bride grew and some became suspicious of the bride's existence.
Despite the town's people assuming different things about his bride, the guy could not reveal anything.
He was scared that if the people saw his bride or even talk to him, they will see his beauty and take his bride away.
When the guy first saw Ho-Chi, he thought Ho-Chi must be a celestial being who flew down from heaven.
The guy could not help but want the celestial being as his bride. That is why, the guy took lost Ho-Chi and hide him in his house*.
*There is a tale about a fairy and a woodman. It is about a woodman stealing a fairy's clothes (special clothes that makes you fly) and hide them so that the fairy can't fly away to heaven. The woodman promised the fairy that he will give her clothes back when she marries him and births three of his children. (now that I have grown up, I see how horrifying this sounds)*
Ho-Chi became the guy's bride.
To protect his bride from others, the guy did not say anything about Ho-Chi except that he is his bride.
If people knew about Ho-Chi's celestial origin, maybe Ho-Chi will fly away to the sky.
When the guy returned to his house, he saw Ho-Chi sitting on the outside corridor*.
*MRu: Korean style corridor. *
Ho-Chi did not say any friendly greetings like 'welcome back', or 'I waited for you'.
Even without saying anything, Ho-Chi's figure sitting in his house made the guy very happy. The guy's mouth was wide open with smile. He ran towards Ho-Chi but, remembering his lesson, stopped and turned to the well instead to wash up.
The guy also learned to clean his games thoroughly before cutting them into small pieces. He then salted the pieces and dried under the sun. Unlike before,
The guy went into the kitchen and prepared their meals. He brought the table full of food onto the corridor where his bride sat.
Changed out of his hunting clothes, the guy looked clean and handsome. Ho-Chi and the guy sat across from each other, the table in between, and ate their meal.
The guy quietly ate his meal while adding some side dishes onto Ho-Chi's bowl.
Ho-Chi did not say anything to the guy.
However, the guy knew.
When he comes back from the hunt and the market, his bride waits for him on the corridor.
Some days, the guy finds the holes of clothes and shoes mended. He sometimes finds new embroideries on his clothes.
The fishes that were drying under the sun are flipped to the other side by Ho-Chi, so to be dried thoroughly.
When the guy is sleeping, Ho-Chi brings over his blanket and share it with him.
And so, the guy was happy.
TN: The childhood tales that I used to enjoy are full of abusive relationships. I am happy Ho-Chi found something he can do around the house. Hopefully, things don’t become too sad for two of them.