From Wonso Pond Read Online Free PDF

legs were trembling. Then he pictured the furious expression he was likely to see on Tokho’s face, and shuddered. He pulled himself away from the poor man, who had by now grabbed hold of him, and made his way out.
    The snow had swirled into drifts on either side of him, becoming mountains of snow in some places. Minsu walked briskly along, his shoes crunching softly. He saw bird footprints here and there on the surface of the white snow, which to him looked like flower petals.
    But Minsu felt sick to his stomach. He had no idea what he would tell Tokho. Considering all his options, should he just lie and say he’d only collected two won from the other debtors? That way he could repay it later without anyone finding out . . . But then again, it was better tell the truth than a lie. The master of the household was a human being, after all, and if he knew the whole story, could he actually blame him? Certainly not . . .
    After struggling for some time, Minsu found neither of the two options reassuring. He regretted that there was no one around he could ask for advice. In the end, he decided that he would tell a lie, if only to put his nerves to rest. But this had little of the intended effect. Why, he reproached himself, should a grown man worry about a single won?
    Having wracked his brain with these foolish thoughts, Minsu arrived at the outskirts of his village. He should have been delighted to be home, but he couldn’t bring himself to go straight in. Only after standing for a while, staring distractedly at the entrance to the village, did he finally enter.
    Having made it to Tokho’s house, Minsu brushed off his shoes in front of the men’s quarters and hoping the master wasn’t at home, quietly pushed open the door. When he caught a whiff of Tokho’s favorite cigarettes in the cloud of smoke that swept out the door, he hesitated.
    â€œYou must be cold. Come on in and warm up by the fire.”
    Tokho had craned his head around to look at Minsu. Each of the old men, sitting in a circle, offered him a short greeting. Minsu had no choice but to go inside. Sidestepping the charcoal brazier, he came in and took a seat.

10
    Tokho pulled out the abacus from the top of his stationary chest.
    â€œSo did he cough up anything this time? That idiot in Pangch’ukkol?”
    Tokho hated the man so much that he refused to call him by name. Minsu’s face colored, and he hesitated for a second before speaking.
    â€œNo, he didn’t.”
    â€œWhat? Well, don’t tell me you just let him off, did you? Without twisting his arm or anything?”
    â€œHe didn’t have the means to . . .”
    Minsu couldn’t finish his sentence, and simply hung his head. What came to his mind was an image of that little child sucking gruel from the dinner tray as though he were suckling at his mother’s breast. The sight of that dark room now flashed in front of his eyes. When Minsu hesitated to speak, however, Tokho lost his temper.
    â€œHow dare someone without the means to pay borrow someone else’s money!” he suddenly screamed.
    Minsu started and moved back slightly in his seat. He was afraid that Tokho’s hand was about to lash out at him.
    â€œWhat about the others?”
    â€œI . . . I got something from them.”
    The tight lines in Tokho’s brow loosened a little.
    â€œOkay, how much did you get out of them?”
    â€œAbout three won . . .”
    Minsu was shocked by his own words. ‘I collected two won’ was what he had planned to say—what had brought him to say three? Minsu right then and there decided he would tell Tokho the truth. The ringing in his ears was frightening.
    â€œSo you only got interest out of them . . . Well, that idiot in Pangch’ukkol is going to be a headache! He’s trying to get by without paying his debts, is he? Just give me what you have.”
    Minsu took the money from his wallet and pushed it over to