Seopyeonje
Producer: Lee Tae-won
Cast: Kim Myung-kon Oh Jeong-hae, Kim Kyu-chul
Original novel: Yi Chong-jun Adaptation: Kim Myung-kon
Cinematography: Jung Il-sung
Music: Kim Soo-chul Edit: Park Soon-duk
Art Director: Kim Yu-jun Property: Kim Ho-kill
Record: Gang Dae-seong & Kim Bum-soo
Director: Im Kwon-taek
Thank you.
Can I stay the night?
You can, but you won't be comfortable.
It doesn't matter as long as I can get some shut-eye.
Would you like dinner?
No, but I'd like some drinks.
I heard that this hill's called Sorijae,
and this place is called Sorijae Tavern.
Did it get that name because of your reputation as a singer?
Then, was there someone who was here before you?
Yes, it got its name because of the one who was here before me.
Then, was the person your teacher?
I didn't learn from him but from his daughter.
Can you sing a piece that you learned from her? I'm not good, but I'll play the drum.
I want to go with him. The winds rest, the clouds rest,
and even the flock of geese flying in the sky rest
when they pass over the snow-covered ridge.
But I won't rest until I am with my love.
The Herding Boy and the Weaving Maiden in the sky can see each other
once a year by crossing the Milky Way.
Where does my husband have to cross so that he can't come to me?
When I die, I'll become a swallow and visit where my love is.
I'll build a nest in the eaves of the roof,
and at night, I'll see him and tell him all that happened.
Did someone seduce him?
Will we never see each other again?
How can I live in this world without him?
Alone I weep.
He sings great. Who is he?
Someone they invited for Mr. Yun's birthday.
Mr. Yun's not able to hire a master singer anymore,
so they call some traveling singer.
I'm going to head out to Gangjin tomorrow.
Choseon is going to sing at the rice mill for its opening day.
Are you going to stay here for a couple more days?
Yes.
It's not like I have places to go to.
Seeing the magistrate, they all come out at once.
With a cudgel in their hand,
and the royal seal that is as bright as the sun.
With the royal seal that is as bright as the moon,
they come from four different gates!
The royal inspector is here! The royal inspector has come!
As if the sky were falling and the earth sinking
the people disperse like the waves.
The voice of Hsiang Yu or Zhang Fei couldn't have been louder than theirs.
Everyone trembles under the fury of the royal inspector.
The magistrates from different town are busy hiding themselves.
Stamped and shattered under their feet are food and dishes.
The drums are thrown and kicked about.
A gayageum's strings are snapped and a lute is broken in half.
A gisaeng who lost her hairpin has her hair all loose.
A pipe player who lost his pipe plays with his fist.
A rifleman who lost his gun shoots with his mouth.
They bang one another's heads and bleed from their noses.
Some are writhing on the ground, some crying,
and some running away screaming they're in trouble.
The people in the village have been talking about us.
So what? You're a widow, and I'm a widower.
I'm afraid they might come after us.
Who?
My parents and in-laws have been watching me.
Why?
They think I disgraced the family.
Because you're having an affair with a lowlife singer?
Is that what you think too?
If I did, would I be here with you?
Let's leave this village.
I'm a poor traveling singer, but I'll make sure you won't go hungry.
Do you think your daughter will like me? Songhwa, I mean.
She's not my real daughter.
What?
She's an orphan, but I've been taking care of her to make a singer out of her.
That's right! You're doing great.
Push! Push!
Push! Good!
Push! That's good!
Oh, no... Try pushing.
Oh, no...
Was his name Yubong?
Yes. He stayed in this abandoned house
until he passed away.
And I learned how to sing from Ms. Songhwa, his daughter.
What happened to his daughter?
After tending to her father's grave for three years, she just left.
And you don't know where she went?
No. I wonder where she could've gone, blind as she was.
What? She's blind?
Yes.
How did she become blind?
A rumor had it that her father made her blind
to make her a better singer,
or to make sure she'd stay by his side.
But what kind of parent would make his child blind
just because he's lonely and wants to keep his child with him?
Some said that to make her into a good singer,
he decided to inflict sorrow on her heart.
But how can you believe that?
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang.
Arariga natne, he-e-he.
Arariga natne, e-e-e.
Dongho, you try singing it alone.
Arariga natne, he-e-he.
Not like that, but arariga natne, he-e-he.
Arariga natne, e-e-e.
Not e-e-e, but he-e-he.
He-he-he.
You go and sit over there.
Songhwa, you try it.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne, he-e-he.
Hold it with your toes, put your hand on it, and straighten your back.
Hold the drum stick, and now try the jungmori rhythm.
Yes!
Sing louder.
I miss him... I miss him...
Why are you looking at the ground? And twisting your body?
I miss him... I miss him... I miss my husband in Hanyang.
Since we parted, I haven't received a single letter.
Is he too busy studying and taking care of his parents?
So your last name is Lee written with characters "tree" and "son."
It means even when you become sixty years old,
your parents will be there to love you.
You're a great calligrapher. Great at drawing, too.
A wonderful calligrapher. Draw one for me, too.
Your name "min" means people. It's about time people demand more respect.
So I drew a phoenix.
That's right.
Can you be quiet, please?
The character "ju" means pillar.
Humans or animals need strong pillars in their hearts,
so I drew a pine as a pillar with cranes on the tree.
Lee Min-ju is a great name. Minju as in democracy.
I would like one, too.
I'm sorry. I have to go and have a drink with an old friend of mine.
Hello, sir.
Songhwa, you're all grown-up.
When are you going to be my daughter-in-law?
Don't you dare think about taking my girl away!
Aren't you going to say hi to your uncle?
- Hello. - Drinks with some tofu, please.
All right.
So what brings you here?
I heard that Dongseong will sing in a changgeuk performance.
I wanted the kids to hear what good singing sounds like.
I went to hear him yesterday, but he didn't sing.
They said he was sick.
So someone else sang the part.
Really?
How about letting me take care of your kids?
What do you mean?
During the Japanese occupation, people listened to Japanese songs.
Now that we're liberated, they listen to western songs.
You won't be able to make a living by singing.
But not if they learn how to draw from me.
Cut it out. You think Japanese or western songs will ever be as good as our pansori?
Soon, everyone will be listening to pansori. You wait and see.
Dear Moon, do not rise tomorrow.
Stay in the night sky as you are.
We'll spend the next hundred years like tonight.
My love... my love... you are my love...
Flog her for disobeying the magistrate's order!
The first stroke!
With the first stroke, I'll tell you the first reason.
Will single-hearted devotion change one day?
I cannot do what you wish me to do.
Let's go.
Yubong?
Are you running away?
- Welcome! - Do you have a room?
Girls, Young Master is here. Help him to a room.
Why is your nose so large?
Is it because your thing is also so large?
If you keep that up, it'll get big enough to surprise you.
We'll have to see about that.
She's just all over him.
Women always go for the one playing the leading role.
Not always. I like this quiet man.
But is he mute?
Yubong, aren't you going to come back to Seoul?
Our teacher told us before he passed away that
five years after Chuwol's death,
we should welcome you back.
He ruined your career, and that was all he said
before he passed away.
Let's drop it.
Who was Chuwol?
Our teacher's mistress.
Did he have an affair with her?
But she died?
She killed herself. That was more than five years ago.
That's terrible!
She went after you, not that you went after her.
I told you to drop it.
I don't want to see you wasting your talent.
You didn't get to finish learning, and now you've become a traveling singer.
I can take care of myself, so just shut up!
You've still got that temper of yours.
Why are you getting mad when I'm only saying it for your sake?
Who asked you?
And you call yourself a singer, singing the way you do?
What did you say?
You think you're so great just because you've been on stage?
Everyone just calm down.
He's drunk.
He's drunk like a dog.
Look what he's doing to his old friends.
Friends? When were we ever friends?
You're having fun taunting me, pretending to give a shit about me.
Drunk like a dog?
You're right. I wander around like a dog,
but I'm better than all of you! You wait and see!
I've never been afraid of anyone who says wait and see!
What?
Let's just all calm down.
You should all calm down.
It's late, and you should get going.
I'll stay with him and have one more drink.
- Just look at what you did. - Let's go.
Have a seat.
Come again!
You and your pride...
Without it, I'd have been dead a long time ago.
Let's have a drink.
Should he stop drinking?
Who asked you?
I'll drink when I want to, so just shut your mouth.
Now that you started talking, you sure are feisty!
Cut the crap and pour me a drink.
Yes, sir.
Why don't you go with us to Seoul?
If I do, you'll all be out of work.
Go ahead. I'd like to see you do it.
You've become quite conceited.
I'm not the person you used to know back then.
Back then, you were the most talented one, but not anymore.
Is that right? I apologize for not recognizing your great talent.
Pour a drink for the master singer here.
Let me pour it for you.
Please?
That's enough.
If you have time to be so conceited, spend it to sing better.
What did you say?
You want to go? Go then!
Let's go to my inn and drink some more!
Come again!
My love... my love... You missed a beat.
Come here. Let's play piggyback ride.
My love... You are my love.
Let's do it again. And add some chorus, would you?
My love... my love... you are my love...
My love... you are my love... that's my love...
What would you like to eat? A sour apricot?
How about Mr. Lee Junior? He's standing tall.
Sister, what's Mr. Lee Junior?
It means he wants her to have his baby.
What would you like to eat? A sour apricot?
How about Mr. Lee Junior? He's standing tall.
No, I don't want that.
Then, what would you like to eat?
How about a short but sweet melon?
No, I don't want that.
You are my love.
Would you like grapes or cherries?
Or a lemon candy?
You are my love.
Walk in front of me. Let me see your back.
Come this way. Let me see your face.
Try walking so that I can see you gait.
Smile big for me so that I can see inside your mouth.
You are my love.
That's some singing!
You really know how to sing.
She's got a good voice and also a pretty face.
How about spending the night with me?
If you do, I'll sell a patch of field
or a piece of Maebong Mountain.
Come here and pour me a drink.
Go and pour him a drink.
She is too young to know how to do it.
Quiet! He told her to do it!
Why don't you do what he says?
Go ahead. Pour him a drink.
So careless of you!
For that, I'll pour you a drink.
I can't drink.
If you don't, I won't send you home.
Hold your cup so that he can pour you a drink.
And at least pretend to drink it.
Go ahead.
Good!
That a girl!
Sir, what are you doing? She's still a child!
What did you say?
You should've taught her properly.
I taught her to sing, not to pour drinks.
How dare a lowlife singer like you talk back to us!
Even in this day and age you talk of singers being lowlifes and you being noble?
You dare to raise your voice to me?
Yubong, apologize to them now!
I did nothing wrong.
How dare you! Times may have changed,
but a lowlife is always a lowlife!
You'll never be able to make a living by singing your damn songs!
You should've been flogged!
Who called that bastard to sing here?
Damn bastard!
So you pour drinks because they tell you to?
How could she not do what those bastards forced her to do?
Did I ask you?
You fool!
He's no father.
What do you mean?
A father cannot hit you like that.
It's my fault. You know he's upset.
What is your fault?
How much longer are you going to live like this?
Everyone looks down on us singers, and it'll be the same in the future.
How long are you going to stay with him?
But I like singing.
When I'm singing, I forget everything and feel happy.
Even when he drinks away all the money you've earned?
It's because he's so unhappy. I feel sorry for our dad.
He's not our dad. He's nobody.
Don't say things like that.
He took us in and raised us.
Husband, will you leave me so?
How could you leave me so?
Before you leave, please tell me when you'll return.
Will you return when the mountains become plains?
Or when the flowers bloom in spring?
Or when a small pebble
becomes as big as a boulder...
Does he think that's playing the drum?
As the clouds follow a dragon,
and the wind follows a tiger,
I'll follow wherever my love is headed.
Saddened by her cries, Mongryong says...
Get out of my way!
Chunhyang, don't cry.
You idiot! Is that how you play a drum?
Because of what I told you,
you might think that I'm here to sell you
a drug that's a cure-all.
But that's not what I have for you here.
This drug here is good for only one thing.
And what that is...
These are for you.
Now you listen!
You have to play the drum to sound in harmony with the song.
If you keep on hitting it, that's not playing.
That's just beating on the cowhide.
For a car to run well on the road,
the road should be paved nicely.
Like that, your drum and chorus have to pave the road for her singing.
I told you again and again,
that like the four seasons of the year,
there are four different beats.
When you're playing jungmori,
your drumming has to push, add, end, and relax. Got it?
Be quiet so we can get some sleep!
And when you're adding the chorus...
When she becomes out of breath, and the singing slows down,
you use the chorus to help her out.
When she's singing the sad part, slow down the beat,
and you add some sad chorus.
When she's singing the loud part, you should also play it loud.
We're trying to sleep here!
That's how you should play the drum!
You just get worse every night!
If there're one thousand beats in Chunhyangga, you have to
practice it a million times so that they become a part of you.
You got that?
Don't you sleep? I'm so sick and tired of your drunken bickering
I'm sick and tired of singing for you to sell your damn drug.
Think you're so great just because you can sing?
- What? - Lf you're sick and tired, just quit!
I quit! I don't want your stupid money!
That's great! I was going to hire a fiddler anyway!
Pack your bags now!
And pay back the money you owe us!
We don't live hundreds of years, so let's not take things to heart as we live in this world.
Climbing the steep, meandering Mungyeongsaejae brings tears to my eyes.
As we drift through life singing our songs, let's empty our hearts of sorrow.
The clear sky is full of countless stars.
And my heart is full of worries.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
Gone is my love, my beloved one.
She followed the wild geese, and is gone forever.
Wild goose, let me ask you a question. Which is the road we should take?
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
My daughter, precious as gold and jade.
Work hard and become a great singer.
To the beat of the drum played by my brother,
I'll follow your footsteps to become a singer.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
Let's stop and have fun. We'll have fun until the moon rises and sets.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
Are you cold or hot? Come into my arms. Let my arm be your pillow.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
The sun is setting not because it wants to.
My beloved is leaving not because she wants to.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
A boat on the endless sea of water.
Row and be on your way.
Ari-arirang, seuri-seurirang. Arariga natne.
Arirang. Arariga natne.
Husband, I didn't know you were home.
It was my fault. Come here. Come.
Wife, do you know where this money came from?
Money that has the power of life or death. Money that brings honor and wealth.
Money in the shape of the round wheels of Maengsangun.
Money that comes and goes. Money that's from here and there.
Where has it been? Here is money. Isn't it great?
Where? Let me see it? It is money? Where did you get it?
Did you borrow it after promising to pay daily interest?
The life of a singer is worse than the life of a whore.
Pack your things!
Dongho, get your drum. Dongho, get your drum! Good!
Shut up!
Even if I could live only thirty more years for smoking this,
I'll still smoke it.
What kind of bastard would say no to something this good?
I heard your daughter is a great singer!
She has potential. I ran out of things to teach her.
So I came to learn from your husband.
Please have the tea before it gets cold.
Thank you.
I heard you came home. I'm sorry to pay you a visit so late.
Here.
You didn't have to.
It's not a lot, but use it for your medicine.
Thank you. This medicine is so damn expensive.
They say you'll be left penniless after a life of selling drinks.
And I'm left only with this after a life of singing.
I must say I'm no better.
So which part would you like to sing?
I never learned the prison song.
I'm not good at that myself.
Just teach me what you learned from our master.
Our master's prison song sent chills down your spine.
But I can't sing like he did.
Half asleep and half awake, Chunhyang...
she hears sounds of ghosts everywhere.
Master said that you should tighten your voice on the word "hears"
in order to make the word "ghosts" heard clearly.
She hears...
she hears sounds of ghosts everywhere.
Birds cry, buk... buk... Goblins fly, whit... whit...
Baby ghosts, man ghosts, woman ghosts...
they come out in twos and threes.
For this part, don't sing from your stomach. Sing falsetto through your nose and head.
Do it again and lower your chin.
Good!
There was a singer called Song Heungrok.
He was so good at singing this part of ghost wailing
that when he sang, the wind blew
and put out the candles.
Another ghost is crying.
With her hair down and blood all over her,
she comes with a sword in one hand.
She walks to Chunhyang
and says to her not to be afraid.
I am none other than
the ghost called Cheongdo who used to live in Namwon.
When you reach the high tones, sing strong like your voice were a spear.
You call that singing? It sounds more like grumbling and crying.
And why do you twist your body?
It's because she has nothing in her, and she's squeezing the song out of her.
What?
All we eat is gruel! Where would she get the energy to sing?
What do you know! Just shut your mouth!
Do it again from "I am none other than"!
I am none other than
the ghost called...
You can't make a living by singing.
Call it quits before it makes you sick.
Would singing get you food or rice?
What?
A singer doesn't sing for food! You bastard!
You sing because you just have to sing, and when you finally
get that singing voice, nothing can be better than that.
Just because you've become old enough, you think you can run your mouth like that?
Tell me if what I said wasn't true!
Are you going to talk back to your father?
Shit! Stop hitting me!
You ingrate!
Damn bastard!
I quit! I've had enough of playing the fool!
Dongho!
Why are you doing this?
Don't stay here. Leave! That's the only way.
Dongho!
Nice to see you again.
Did you get the order ready?
Not all of it. We are short of fu ling.
- Can I use your phone? - Sure.
How short are you?
About six kilograms.
Operator? Yes, Seoul number-22 and 0236, please.
So did you go to Sorijae? How did it go?
I did.
Sir, it's me.
I've got everything except for six kilograms of fu ling.
Yes, sir.
Is there a bus that goes to Osu instead of the train?
Excuse me.
I heard about a blind singer called Songhwa who lived here.
She did. About three years ago.
Do you know where she is now?
No.
Is there anyone else who might know?
No, I've been here the longest.
You there.
How do you know her?
She did say she had a brother.
She used to sit there and wait for him.
Yes, she stayed with us for a couple of months.
Do you know where she might be now?
No. She was a drifter.
Was she with anyone like a man?
Who would want to live with a blind woman?
She was pretty and sang well,
so some men would play around with her and then leave her.
Ma'am, can I ask you something?
Where is a bar called Cheonilok? It was here ten years ago.
It used to be there, but it closed some time ago.
It's me, sir.
Your kid came down with pneumonia, and your wife's been calling here.
Your kid is in the hospital now.
She didn't have enough money, so I advanced her some.
Thank you. When I get all the orders, I'll go back.
Finish things as soon as you can and come back.
Didn't you waste enough time looking for your sister?
You should put her behind you now.
I understand. I'll talk to you again.
Uncle!
Who could you be?
I'm Dongho, the one who used to play the drum with my father.
You must be Yubong's son.
I ran away because I was so sick of being poor.
And I hated my father.
But after years passed, I missed them so much.
I see...
I looked for them for years. I heard my father had passed away.
But I couldn't find my sister.
After you left, your sister stopped eating and singing.
She made your father so worried.
He's not going to come back. Let's go back in.
When we cut this gourd in half,
I hope there will be rice inside.
I am sorry, but my voice's gotten too hoarse.
I'll have my daughter sing for you instead.
Songhwa, come here.
Now!
Sing the prison song.
What are you doing?
What is she doing?
Is she mute?
Songhwa!
Who called them?
Where is the owner?
Yubong! My old friend!
I heard about how you were humiliated by the ladies.
Don't even mention it. I've never been so embarrassed in my life.
Didn't I tell you a long time ago to put your kids in my care
so that they could learn to draw?
Fan the house on fire, why don't you?
I'll do anything so that she'll sing again.
You're as stubborn as ever.
That's right. I'm nothing but stubborn.
- One more glass here please. - Yes.
You've gotten old.
Look at yourself. You even smell like an old man.
But I still feel like a young man around women.
You're still full of hot air.
No, I mean it. I know this quack who deals in herbal medicine.
He gave me a drug mixed with the penis of a seal,
and ever since then, I feel like doing it every night and morning.
Would you like to try it?
What would I do with it?
Is it true that if you put too much aconite in medicine,
it can make you go blind?
I have heard that too.
Why do you ask? Do you want to go blind?
Do I still have to drink it? I feel better now.
It's to make you stronger, so drink up.
What's wrong?
I can't see well.
You can't see well?
I haven't been able see well for several days.
Maybe it's because you've been ill. Take my arm.
Is there a temple nearby?
There is. One called Baekryeonsa.
Did the sun rise?
It's very foggy this morning.
Has the sun gone down?
No, not yet.
Can you see the sunset?
The sky is glowing red.
I feel the wind blowing.
Yes, the cold wind is blowing.
The moon will rise soon.
I think so.
And there will be stars too.
But I'll never see the sun, the moon, or the stars again?
Have I gone blind?
I feel cold.
I'll make your bed.
Father!
I want to sing. I want to learn Simcheongga.
Behold Sim Cheong!
She goes out to beg wearing old trousers tied with bands by her ankles,
a blue hood around her neck, a ragged skirt, an old jacket without a collar,
and socks whose bottoms are worn. With a rice bowl at her waist,
she walks like a fool swept away in the wind.
This is the part where Sim Cheong goes out begging for food for her blind father.
But you're singing it without any feeling.
Sing it like you're Sim Cheong, feeling sad and desperate. Again!
Flowers have bloomed in the mountains.
It must be spring.
Spring has come, but life is lonesome.
Yesterday I was a young man, but today I'm an old man.
My youth has left me so hopelessly.
Spring comes every year, but what good will it do me to welcome it?
Spring, come and go when you wish.
When you leave, summer will come, turning everything green as always.
When summer leaves, fall comes without fail.
The cold dew settles in, and the wind becomes louder.
But red leaves in the mountain are ever so steadfast.
When autumn leaves, winter comes. The chilly wind blows
across bare trees and the land covered with white snow.
All that's white is a companion to this old man with white hair.
Spring comes every year, but my youth has left me
and will not return.
My friends... even if we live a hundred years,
when you take away the days spent sleeping, worrying, and being sick,
we are left with less than forty years.
They say the owner of the house died during the war.
But there are blankets and some kitchen things in the house.
This is just the place to practice singing.
But what should we live on?
There are some twenty houses down in the village.
I'm sure we won't starve to death.
It's gruel made with vegetables.
To sing the song of Seopyeon, you need to bring out
the grief that can cut through the heart.
Your voice is pretty, but it is not sorrowful.
A person has sorrow deep in the heart,
as sadness piles on throughout a lifetime.
To live life is to experience sorrow, and to experience sorrow is to live life.
You lost your parents as a child and became blind.
You must have a sadness that is ten, twenty times deeper than others.
But it's not there when you sing.
A good king offered himself as a sacrifice and prayed to God for rain.
Rain fell, and they had a good harvest.
Like him, I will offer myself as a human sacrifice instead of my daughter.
And like a shrimp out of water and on dry land...
Crying won't make you sing better.
Your voice gets hoarse, and that's how you get your singing voice.
Don't sing high tones tomorrow.
Use low to medium tones and give your voice some rest.
And like a shrimp out of water and on dry land...
How many times did I tell you that
you won't get your singing voice by screaming?
Exerting yourself like that will only damage your voice.
Here is some chicken.
I sang for it.
Here! Have some. You'll sing better.
That bastard... I knew it.
Aren't they chicken feathers?
You son of a bitch!
You dare steal my brood hen and eat her up!
Sir, I'm so sorry. I ate that chicken.
You bastard! Scoundrel!
If you ever show up again, I'll break your legs.
Lowlife son of a bitch!
What a voice he has! Did you hear him?
The part where Sim Cheong's father gets furious with sailors
should be sung with a voice like his. You got that?
A good king offered himself as a sacrifice and prayed to God for rain.
Rain fell, and they had a good harvest.
Like him, I will offer myself as a human sacrifice instead of my daughter.
And like a shrimp out of water and on dry land...
He beats his chest and stamps in anger.
You can sing with sorrow in your voice now.
Songhwa...
Yes...
I am the one
who made you blind.
You knew, didn't you?
Have you forgiven me for it?
If you hadn't, your voice would have been filled with hatred.
But there is no trace of it in your voice.
From now on, don't live your life buried in sadness.
But sing beyond the sadness.
They say Dongpyeongje sounds heavy and clear
while Seopyeonje sounds mournful and sad.
But when you sing beyond the sadness, there is no difference.
There is only the voice that transcends it all.
About five years ago, I heard that
Yubong was living at Sorijae with Songhwa.
So I went to see them.
But there was a strange woman who lived there.
She told me that Yubong had passed away,
and Songhwa had left the place two years ago
without a word.
I had no news of her,
but a couple of years ago,
I was passing by an inn at Boseong
when I heard a voice I recognized.
Let's see...
I already ate, so soju and some boiled pork please.
Is the woman who is singing blind by any chance?
The seagulls from three famous rivers in China fly back.
My name is Songhwa.
Is your father's name Yubong?
How do you know my father?
Are you the friend of my father who used to draw?
So you remember me... It's been more than ten years.
Your voice has matured.
I still have a long way to go to sing the way my father wanted.
How did he want you to sing?
He told me not to be buried in sadness
but to sing beyond it.
He was too demanding of you.
I'm sure he took that greedy side of him even to the other world.
You haven't changed.
I'm an old man now.
Do your drawings sell well?
People don't buy them, and I barely make a living.
Can you draw me one?
But you can't see... what would you do with it?
I can see it with my heart.
The character "song" means pine tree. On the pine tree, I drew two cranes.
Cranes live for a thousand years.
I wish you longevity like the crane's.
I also drew a sun so that you'll have a bright future.
The character "hwa" for flower. Where flowers are, there are butterflies.
Everything in this world has its mate.
So I drew butterflies,
wishing you'll meet a good husband and have children.
When are you going to pay me back?
It's been more than ten days.
I borrowed that money from my in-laws.
You're going to make me lose credit here.
I'm going to stay here until you pay me back.
I'd like a drink, please.
The makgeolli is a couple days old, so it won't taste good.
So how about soju?
Soju is fine.
Can I have something to eat, too?
Is it your first visit to this town?
Yes, and I'd like to stay for the night.
I haven't had people stay the night for some time, so you won't find the room comfortable.
You don't have to worry about that.
I heard there is a woman here who sings.
Yes.
Can I hear her sing?
Did you hear about her?
Yes.
She doesn't sing these days, but I'll ask her.
What do you say? Someone here wants to hear you sing.
I've traveled everywhere to hear great singers sing.
If you're willing to sing I can stay up and listen all night.
My singing is not worth listening to.
I came all the way to hear you sing, so don't turn me down.
I haven't played the drum for a long time. I won't be very good.
To make her blind father see again,
Simcheong sold herself to the sailors for three hundred sacks of rice.
When the ship is about to set out to sea,
they sound the drums.
Young lady, it's time for you to jump into the water.
Hearing that, Simcheong falls prostrate on the ship.
Father, I'm about to die.
Please regain your sight and see the bright world.
And forget about this undutiful daughter.
I do not want to die.
Being all alone, whom can I depend on?
The sea is so deep and boundless.
It reaches up to the sky.
The mountain-like waves hit the ship.
The sea rolls and laps rocking the ship.
Look at Simcheong as she staggers to the bow of the ship.
There she thinks about it one more time.
I hesitate because I lack filial piety.
She covers her face with her skirt.
With her eyes closed, she runs to the bow.
And like a wild goose, she throws herself into the water.
The flower is lost in the sea of waves.
The full moon also disappears into the water.
After hearing her father tell his story, Queen Simcheong pulls aside
the door blind made of coral and runs to him barefooted.
She cries, "Father!" and hearing that, Mr. Sim says,
who's calling me father?
I have no son or daughter.
The only daughter I had drowned and died.
That was three years ago. Who are you to call me father?
Father, are you still not able to see?
Please open your eyes and see me.
Is he your brother that you've always waited for?
Yes. When I sang to his drum,
I knew right away that he was my brother.
He played just like our father used to play.
I knew there was something about him.
But why did you say goodbye to each other
as if you were strangers?
We didn't want to reopen our wounds.
How painful are your wounds that
you would let him leave like that without a word to each other?
Last night we were able to put our wounds and sorrow to rest.
How?
With my songs and his drum.
You did sound different from usual.
I stayed up all night and listened.
When you sang to his drum, it was like two people
teasing or embracing each other.
At times, it sounded like two people making love.
How long have I been here?
About three years.
It's been too long a time for me to spend in comfort.
It's about time for me to leave.
I've been expecting this for some time.
I guess I have to go back to being alone again.
Do you know where you'll go?
When you do, let me know.
I'll send you your things.