Paek Nam-nyong - Friend - A Novel from North Korea

Seok Chun humbly offered the old equipment manager a cigarette.

Jeong Jin Wu put the wooden stick into the furnace, just as Seok Chun had done before. But when he pulled it out, the tip was burned even without a flame.

The old equipment manager laughed and told Jeong Jin Wu the technique, “Comrade Judge, you have to put it in and pull it out in a flash.”

Jeong Jin Wu did as he was told. The tip of the wooden stick lit up like a matchstick.

After a couple of days, Sun Hee came by the court. Judge Song noticed that she was lingering in front of Jeong Jin Wu’s office, hesitating to knock, so he opened the door for her.

Jeong Jin Wu set aside the legal documents he was perusing.

Sun Hee paused uncertainly at the threshold. Jeong Jin Wu warmly invited her in. She had her hands in front of her as if they were powerless, and her body curled in on itself as if she was cold. She quietly pulled up a chair and sat before Jeong Jin Wu.

Jeong Jin Wu pulled out the file that had “Divorce File of Chae Sun Hee” written across the top and waited for her to speak. From the expression on her face, he did not think she was going to talk about her husband’s backwardness and refusal to change along with society. However, Jeong Jin Wu felt uneasy about the hopelessness and defeat he saw in Sun Hee’s face. Her eyes revealed her brokenness and many sleepless nights, very much as on the day she first entered his office.

Jeong Jin Wu regretted not calling Sun Hee into his office yesterday after his visit with Seok Chun the day before. He thought she would come to him with the cheerful news that the divorce was off, everything was back to normal, and things were fine. He was wrong.

There was no doubt that her colleagues and her husband had caused her much pain all these years. It was evident that she had many things on her mind, many complicated issues as convoluted and complex as a spiderweb with which she had been struggling, causing her to become emaciated and pallid. Jeong Jin Wu looked at Sun Hee with sympathy and tried to guess her thoughts.

Sun Hee regained her composure and spoke respectfully. “Comrade Judge, I am really grateful that you are spending your time and energy trying to keep my family united. But I still can’t live with my husband. It’s my fault. That’s why, after the divorce—”

Jeong Jin Wu lowered his eyes to the documents and said, “Comrade Sun Hee, it doesn’t seem that you’ve learned anything from your deputy director.”

“I acknowledge my faults at my company. But that’s an entirely different matter from my problems with my husband.”

Tears stifled Sun Hee’s voice.

“Is Seok Chun behaving the way he used to again?” Jeong Jin Wu asked.

“What’s the point of his changing now? A leopard can’t change his spots. I’m tired of living like this.”

The tears that had welled up in her eyes streamed down her cheeks.

Jeong Jin Wu closed her divorce file and stood up. He began to pace back and forth in the office.

He stopped next to Sun Hee and said in a low, reproachful voice, “Your family discord will not be resolved with a divorce. I’m telling you this honestly. If you proceed with the divorce case, all you’ll do is lose money from paying the legal fees. There is not enough evidence for a divorce, you see.”

“Comrade Judge, why can’t you help me?” asked Sun Hee, choking up with frustration.

“Please, calm down, Comrade Sun Hee. While I was objectively investigating your family problems, I realized that you have the ability to lead your family toward harmony. However, somewhere along the line, you lost faith in yourself. Your fanciful idealistic ideas about your husband and family life are lingering somewhere, but you were unable to anchor those thoughts to reality.”

Sun Hee lowered her eyes.

“You cannot place those kinds of unrealistic expectations on your husband. Such fantasies create deep ethical problems in a family, wouldn’t you agree? Even though Seok Chun is behind the times and tactless in expressing his love for you, he is still your husband and the father of your child. That is why you cannot disregard the time when you guys first expressed your innocent love for each other. You have to consider that moment to be precious and build from there, renewing your love for each other and for your son. However, you, Comrade Sun Hee, keep looking down on your husband. You have left him standing by the riverbank in your home village.”

Tears rolled down Sun Hee’s face.

Jeong Jin Wu stood next to his desk. Even though he saw that the poor woman was heartbroken, he proceeded in the name of justice.

“Comrade Sun Hee, you learned the trade of operating the lathe from your husband. The other workers recognized your singing talents and adored you. With the blessing of the grease-stained workers, you two got married and even found a nice place to live. The sincere emotions in your singing derived from your days working the lathe. Then, the factory recommended that you become a professional singer. But now, you have forgotten your roots. You have forgotten the very people who first loved you and supported you. Thereafter, you began to isolate yourself from the other singers at your company.

Sun Hee dabbed the corners of her eyes with her trembling hands.

“I hate to say this, but you’ve been looking down on your husband, to the extent that you’ve become arrogant and pompous. You must realize this. If you quit your singing career, then what’s left for you? You have abandoned the one person in society who’s closest to you—your husband. So what if he goes to the Engineering College and becomes a technical expert? So what if he one day becomes a foreman at a factory? Will it bring harmony to your family? Will it bring rhythm back to your family? Character does not derive from social position, occupation, or physical appearance. He who diligently carries out the Party’s directives is the true bearer of noble consciousness and character. Look in the mirror. You say that you are an artist. But you know very well that you don’t automatically become an elegant, sophisticated person just because you are a singer. In order for you to move the audience with the ideological lyrics of your music, you have to make the music yours. If you reprioritize and live the correct lifestyle, and if you have an affectionate relationship with your husband, then your goals will become a beautiful reality and your family will live in harmony.”

Sun Hee could neither muster the courage nor find the words to counter the judge’s logic.

Jeong Jin Wu sat down and pushed aside Sun Hee’s divorce file as if to dismiss it. He did not think it was necessary to pursue the case when it was clear to him that she was shedding tears of self-reproach.

Sun Hee stopped crying, but she did not lift her head. She pulled an elegant silk handkerchief from her purse and dabbed the tears from her eyes. She took a deep breath and let out a sigh of despair. She pushed back her chair and stood up. With her eyes still lowered, she turned to leave the office.

“You’re leaving without saying good-bye?” Jeong Jin Wu asked softly.

It was not a question that indicated her lack of etiquette but a question that anticipated Sun Hee’s new beginning—bidding farewell to the past and welcoming a new day.

Sun Hee hesitated momentarily and then realized that she had broken the code of etiquette. She bowed to Jeong Jin Wu. Her eyes were swollen from crying, and her face was pale.

“Comrade Sun Hee, what are you going to do this Sunday?”

“I’ll probably do whatever I feel like doing that day. Actually, I’ll be leaving for Seong Gan District tomorrow for our tour.”