Six (2/3)

by Natsume Sōseki

Kangetsu-kun said, cutting in a little. "There's no need to worry so much. Kaneda knows well that I am polishing my jewel. In fact, when I met him a couple of days ago, he talked about the situation in detail."

At those words, the lady, who had been listening to the three of them, asked suspiciously, "But Kaneda-san has been in Oiso with his whole family since last month, hasn't he?"

Kangetsu-kun also seemed a bit troubled by this question and feigned ignorance, saying, "That's strange, isn't it? I wonder what happened." At such times, the reliable Mitei-kun would always jump in from the side whenever the conversation paused, when it became awkward, when one felt sleepy, or when one was in trouble, no matter the situation.

"It's mysterious that someone who went to Oiso last month would meet in Tokyo a couple of days ago. It's what you might call an exchange of spirits. Such phenomena often occur when feelings of mutual longing are painful. It sounds a bit like a dream, but even as a dream, it's a more certain dream than reality. For someone like your wife, who especially cannot understand the nature of love, it is not surprising to feel suspicious when things are settled in a place like Kusami-kun's..."

"Oh, what evidence do you have to say such a thing? You seem to look down on it quite a bit," the lady retorted to Mitei from halfway through. "You yourself don't seem to have ever experienced lovesickness," the master also threw a lifeline to the lady.

"No, my romantic rumors, no matter how many there are, are all from more than seventy-five days ago, so they might not remain in your memories, but actually, as a result of unrequited love, I've lived single until this age," he said, looking fairly at everyone’s faces.

"Hohoho, how interesting," said the lady, while the master, turning towards the garden, said, "You're mocking me, aren't you?" Only Kangetsu-kun, still grinning, said, "I would love to hear that nostalgic tale for future reference."

"My story is quite mysterious, and when I told it to the late Koizumi Yakumo-sensei, it was very well received. Unfortunately, the sensei has passed away, so to be honest, I have no one to share it with. However, since I'm here, I'll confide in you. In return, you must listen carefully until the end," he insisted, finally getting to the main topic.

"Looking back, I wonder how many years ago it was... It's a hassle, so let's just say about fifteen or sixteen years ago."

"No joke," the master snorted through his nose. "You have a terrible memory," the wife teased. Only Kangetsu kept his promise, not saying a word, showing a desire to hear more quickly.

"It was during a winter in a certain year when I was passing through Kamihara-gun, Echigo Province, approaching the Takotsubo Pass, and was about to enter the Aizu territory."

"That's a strange place," the master interrupted again.

"Just listen quietly. It's interesting," the wife admonished.

"However, as the sun set, I lost my way, and my stomach was empty. With no other choice, I knocked on a house in the middle of the pass and explained my situation, asking if I could stay the night. The girl who offered me a bare candle looked at me, and I trembled. From that moment, I became acutely aware of the magic of love, that tricky thing."

"Oh, no way. Is there really a beautiful person even in such a mountain?"

"Whether it's the mountains or the sea, my dear, I want to show you that girl at first sight. She had her hair tied up in a bun with a high Takashimada."

"Wow," the wife was taken aback.

"When I entered, there was a large irori in the middle of the eight-tatami room, and around it sat four people: the daughter, her grandfather, her grandmother, and me. 'You must be very hungry,' they said, so I asked them to quickly feed me anything. Then the grandfather said, 'Since we have a guest, let's cook some snake rice.' Now, this is where the story of my heartbreak truly begins, so please listen carefully."

"Teacher, I will listen carefully, but there can't possibly be snakes in winter, even in the land of Echigo."

"Well, that's a reasonable question, I suppose. However, when it comes to such a poetic story, we can't get too caught up in logic. In Kyoka's novels, crabs come out of the snow, don't they?" When I said this, Kanguu-kun simply replied, 'I see,' and returned to his attentive demeanor.

At that time, I was quite the adventurous eater. I had grown tired of locusts, slugs, and red frogs, so snake rice sounded like a fresh delicacy. I promptly responded to the grandfather and decided to enjoy the feast. The grandfather placed a pot over the irori, added rice to it, and began to simmer it.

Strangely, the lid of the pot had about ten holes of various sizes, from which steam was puffing out. I was impressed by such ingenuity for a rural area when the grandfather suddenly stood up and went out somewhere. After a while, he returned, holding a large strainer under his arm. Casually, he placed it next to the irori, and when I peeked inside, I saw long creatures shivering from the cold, coiling around each other in a mass.

"Please stop with that story. It's making me feel sick," my wife frowned. "It's hard to stop when I think about how this will be the main cause of my heartbreak," I replied. The grandfather took the lid of the pot in his left hand, casually grabbed one of the long creatures with his right hand, and suddenly tossed it into the pot. He quickly covered it, but even I couldn't help but gasp at that moment.

"Stop it already. It's creepy," the lady kept saying in fear. "Just a little longer, you'll be heartbroken, so please bear with it for a while," I said. Then, to my surprise, a snake's head popped out of the hole in the lid in less than a minute. "Oh, it's out," I thought, and then another head popped out from the adjacent hole. They were coming out from both sides, and soon the pot was filled with snake heads.

"Why are you sticking your heads out so much?" I asked, and the old man replied, "It's hot inside the pot, so they're trying to crawl out in desperation." Eventually, the old man said, "That's enough, pull them out," and the old woman responded with a "Haah," while the daughter greeted with a "Yes," and everyone pulled on the snake heads together. The meat remained in the pot, but the bones came off cleanly, and as they pulled the heads, long ones amusingly came out.

"It's a snake bone extraction," Kangetsu-kun asked with a laugh, and I said, "It's completely boneless; you're quite skillful." Then I took off the lid, mixed the rice and meat with a ladle, and said, "Now, enjoy your meal."

"Did you eat?" the master asked coldly, and the lady made a bitter face and complained, "Stop it already; my stomach is upset, and I can't eat anything." "You're saying that because you haven't tried the snake rice, but once you do, you'll never forget that taste," I said. "Oh no, who would eat that?" the lady refused.

So, having enjoyed a sufficient feast, forgetting the cold, I could look at the daughter's face without reservation. Thinking there was nothing left to regret, I was told, "Good night," and since I was tired from the journey, I lay down obediently. Then, sorry to say, I forgot everything and fell asleep.

"What happened after that?" this time my wife urged. "Then when I woke up tomorrow morning, it was a heartbreak," I replied. "What happened?" my wife asked. "No, nothing in particular, you see. When I woke up in the morning and was smoking a rolled cigarette while looking out the back window, I saw someone washing their face by the bamboo water spout," I continued.

"Was it an old man or an old woman?" the master asked. "Well, it was hard for me to tell too, so I watched for a while, and when the kettle turned to face me, I was surprised. It was the girl from my first love last night," I said. "But you just said the girl had her hair in a Shimada style," the master countered. "Last night it was Shimada, and a splendid one at that. But the next morning, it was a round kettle," I replied.

"You're making a fool of people," the master looked up at the ceiling as usual. "I was also extremely puzzled and felt a bit scared inside, so I kept watching from a distance, and the kettle finally finished washing its face, casually put on a Takashimada wig that was next to it, and went inside looking composed. I thought it was interesting, but from that moment on, I became someone who had to bear the fate of heartbreak," I continued.

"What a trivial heartbreak it was. Hey, Kangugetsu-kun, that's why even with heartbreak, I'm so cheerful and full of energy," I commented on Mitei-kun's heartbreak to Kangugetsu-kun. Kangugetsu-kun said, "However, if that girl wasn't a round kettle and had happily taken you back to Tokyo, you might still be in good spirits, Sensei. Anyway, it's a pity that such a lovely girl turned out to be bald. Still, how could such a young woman have lost her hair?"

"I also thought about that, but I really believe it's because I've eaten too much snake rice. Snake rice can make you feel dizzy," I replied. "But you seem to be perfectly fine," Kangetsu-kun said. "I managed to avoid going bald, but instead, as you can see, I've become nearsighted since that time," I said, taking off my gold-rimmed glasses and carefully wiping them with a handkerchief.

After a while, the master recalled and asked just to be sure, "Overall, where is the mystery?" "I still can't figure out where that wig was bought or picked up, so that's the mystery," Meitei-kun said, adjusting his glasses on his nose. "It's like listening to a storyteller," his wife commented.

Since Meitei's rambling seemed to have reached a conclusion, I thought it would stop, but the teacher, seemingly unable to remain silent until he was gagged, began to speak again.

"My heartbreak is a bitter experience, but at that time, if I had unknowingly obtained that kettle, it would have been an eyesore for the rest of my life, so I need to think carefully. Marriage can sometimes hide unexpected wounds when the time comes. Kangetsu-kun, don't yearn so much or worry alone; it's better to calm your mind and polish your pearls," he said, expressing a slight disagreement. Kangetsu-kun made a deliberately exasperated face and replied, "Yes, I want to polish my pearls as much as possible, but they won't let me do that, so I'm troubled."

"That's right, while you may think it's just a fuss from the other party, there are some ridiculous stories in there. For instance, Old Ume-kun, who came to urinate in that library, did something quite strange," the master asked with interest. "Well, here's the thing. The teacher once stayed at the Tozai-kan in Shizuoka. Just for one night, but on that night, he immediately proposed to the maid there. I'm quite carefree myself, but I haven't evolved to that extent. Moreover, at that time, there was a famous beauty named Onatsu-san at that inn, and she happened to be the one who attended to Old Ume-kun's room, so it's not surprising," he continued.

"It's not just surprising; it's exactly the same as your something pass," the master said. "It's a bit similar. To be honest, there's not much difference between me and Old Ume. Anyway, after proposing to Onatsu-san, before I could even hear her response, I suddenly wanted to eat watermelons," he said. "What did you say?" the master asked, looking puzzled. Not just the master, but also his wife and Kangetsu tilted their heads in thought.

Meitei continues to talk without concern. "I called Minatsu-san and asked if there are watermelons in Shizuoka, and Minatsu-san said, 'There are at least watermelons in Shizuoka,' and brought a mountain of watermelons on a tray. Then, it seems that Roubaikun ate all of it. After finishing the entire mountain of watermelons and waiting for Minatsu-san's reply, he got a stomachache before the reply came and was groaning in pain, but since it had no effect at all, he called Minatsu-san again and asked if there was a doctor in Shizuoka this time. Minatsu-san again said, 'There are at least doctors in Shizuoka,' and brought a doctor with a name like a thousand-character essay called Tenchi Genko. By the next morning, thanks to that, the stomach pain was cured, and feeling grateful, he called Minatsu-san fifteen minutes before departure to ask about the reply to the marriage proposal he made yesterday. Minatsu-san laughed and said, 'There are watermelons in Shizuoka, and there are doctors, but there is no bride made in one night,' and after that, she never showed her face again. After that, Roubaikun, like me, suffered from unrequited love and only came to the library to urinate. When I think about it, women are a sinful existence," he said, and the master unusually agreed, saying, "That's really true. The other day, when I read a script by Musset, one of the characters quoted a Roman poet and said this: -- Those lighter than feathers are dust. Those lighter than dust are wind. Those lighter than wind are women. Those lighter than women are nothing. -- Isn't that well said? Women are just unavoidable," he emphasized in a strange place.

The wife, upon hearing this, was not convinced. "You say it's wrong for women to be light-hearted, but isn't it also not good for men to be heavy?" "Heavy? What do you mean by that?" "To be heavy means to be heavy, like you are," she replied. "Why am I heavy?" a strange debate began. Meitei listened with interest, but eventually opened his mouth and said, "Isn't it the truth of a couple that they get red-faced and argue like this? It seems that couples from the past must have been completely meaningless," he said, in a tone that was ambiguous as to whether he was teasing or praising. However, he continued in the same manner and elaborated as follows.

"They say that in the past, there wasn't a single woman who would talk back to her husband, but if that's the case, it's the same as having a silent wife, and I find that completely ungrateful. I would rather have someone like your wife, who would say things like, 'Aren't you heavy?' or something like that. If I have to have the same wife, I might as well have a fight or two now and then, otherwise, it would be unbearably boring. My mother used to just say 'yes' and 'yes' in front of my father. And during the twenty years they were together, she says she never went out except for temple visits, which is quite pitiful, isn't it? However, thanks to that, she has memorized all the ancestral posthumous names. It's the same with relationships between men and women; when I was a child, I couldn't even think of playing music with someone I liked like Kangetsu-kun does or meeting in a trance after exchanging spirits." "How unfortunate," Kangetsu-kun bows his head. "It really is unfortunate. Moreover, it doesn't necessarily mean that the women back then were more virtuous than the women now. They say that nowadays female students are becoming depraved, but it was worse back then." "Is that so?" the wife says seriously. "It is, it's not nonsense; there's proper evidence for it. Kurusami-kun, you might remember, but when we were around five or six years old, girls were actually sold in baskets like eggplants, right?" "I don't remember anything like that." "I don't know about your country, but it was certainly the case in Shizuoka." "No way," the wife says in a small voice, and Kangetsu-kun asks with an incredulous expression, "Is that true?"

"It's true. In fact, my father once set a price for a girl. I was about six years old at the time. When I went for a walk with my father from Aburacho to Tomimachi, we ran into a man shouting loudly, 'Girls are good, girls are good.'"

Just as I was approaching the corner of the second district, I encountered that man in front of a kimono shop called Isegen. Isegen is the largest kimono shop in Shizuoka, with a frontage of ten ken and five storehouses lined up. You should definitely check it out next time you go. Its magnificent appearance still remains to this day. The shopkeeper, Jinbei, always has a face as if his mother had just passed away three days ago, waiting at the counter. Next to him sits a young man named Hajime, around twenty-four or twenty-five years old, who also has a pale face, having devoted himself to the monk Unshou and spent thirty-seven days living only on soba broth. Beside Hajime is Nagadon, who looks as if he was burned out by yesterday's fire, leaning sorrowfully on the abacus.

“Are you talking about the kimono shop, or are you talking about human trafficking?” someone said. “Oh right, I was talking about human trafficking. Actually, there is a very strange story about this Isegen too, but let’s skip that for today and just focus on the human trafficking story,” I said, to which the reply was, “You might as well stop talking about human trafficking too.”

“Why? This is a very useful material for comparing the character of women today in the twentieth century with that of the early Meiji period, so I can’t just stop talking about it so easily,” I said.

Then, when we arrived in front of my father and Isegen, the usual human trafficker saw my father and said, “Sir, how about some girls for sale? I can give you a discount, so please buy them,” while lowering his balance pole and wiping his sweat. Looking inside the basket, there were two girls, one in front and one in back, both around two years old.

My father asked the man, “If it’s cheap, I might buy them, but is this the last of them?” The man replied, “Yes, unfortunately, I’ve sold everything else today, and there are only these two left. Please take whichever one you like,” while lifting the girls with both hands and presenting them right in front of my father’s nose. My father patted their heads and said, “Ah, that’s quite a sound.”

Then the serious negotiations began, and after much haggling, when my father asked, "I can buy it, but the quality is assured, right?" the man replied, "Yes, the previous child always watches, so there is no mistake, but the one being carried behind has no eyes, so there might be a crack. In exchange for this one, I will lower the price."

I still remember that exchange, and at that time, in my childish heart, I thought that women were truly an unreliable presence. However, today, in the year 38 of the Meiji era, there is no one who would engage in such foolishness as selling girls, and I don't hear stories about the danger of taking one's eyes off the one being carried behind. Therefore, in my opinion, it can be concluded that, thanks to Western civilization, the conduct of women has considerably progressed. What do you think, Kangetsu-kun?

Before Kangetsu-kun replied, he first cleared his throat loudly and then said in a deliberately calm, low voice, "Recently, women behave as if they are marketing themselves during their commutes to school, at concerts, charity events, and garden parties, so there is no need for girls to engage in crude solicitation by hiring leftover goods from a greengrocer. As human independence develops, it naturally leads to this. Older people worry unnecessarily and say various things, but in reality, this is the flow of civilization, and I secretly think it is a very pleasant phenomenon. On the buying side, there are no boorish people who would ask whether the goods are assured, so that point is reassuring. Moreover, in this complex world, there are limits to the days when one can afford such trouble. Even at fifty or sixty, one cannot have a husband or go to marry."

Hangetsu-kun, like a youth of the twentieth century, spoke greatly of contemporary thoughts and then blew the smoke of Shikishima towards Meitei-sensei. Meitei was not a man to be put off by mere smoke from Shikishima. "As you say, the current female students and young ladies are truly wonderful, filled with self-esteem and confidence, and they are not inferior to men in either body or spirit. The students at the girls' school in my neighborhood are amazing. I am impressed by their appearance hanging from the horizontal bar in their long sleeves. Watching their gymnastics from the second-floor window reminds me of the women of ancient Greece."

“Again with Greece,” the master said with a cold smile, “but it can't be helped since most beautiful things originate from Greece. Aestheticians and Greece can never be separated. Especially when I see that dark-skinned female student exercising with single-minded focus, I always recall the tale of Agnodice,” he continued, speaking with an air of knowledge.

“Another difficult name has come up,” Hangetsu-kun said with a grin. “Agnodice is a wonderful woman, truly impressive. In that era, Athenian law prohibited women from being midwives. It must have been inconvenient. Agnodice must have felt that inconvenience as well.”

“What is that—what was it called?” Hangetsu-kun asked.

"It's a woman's name. This woman thought and thought, believing it was pitiful and extremely inconvenient that women could not become midwives, and pondered for three days and nights about how to become a midwife. Just at dawn on the third day, she heard a baby crying from the neighboring house, and it struck her! She immediately cut her long hair, dressed in men's clothing, and went to attend Hierophilus's lecture. After successfully finishing the lecture, she finally opened her midwifery practice. However, as the wives became pregnant and babies were born everywhere, Agnodice took care of all of them, making a significant profit. Yet, as the saying goes, 'All human affairs are like a horse of Saiō,' 'Fall seven times, stand up eight,' and in the end, her secret was revealed, and for breaking the law of the land, she faced severe punishment."

"It feels just like listening to a lecture," said Kangugetsu-kun.

"Isn't it quite interesting? However, since the women of Athens collectively petitioned, even the magistrate of the time could not muster a proper greeting, and in the end, Agnodice was acquitted. A decree was issued stating that from now on, even women could freely practice midwifery, and thus, the matter was happily settled."

"You certainly know a lot of things, I'm impressed."

"Yes, I know the general things. The only thing I don't know is my own foolishness. However, I have a vague awareness of that too."

"Hohohoho, it's all so amusing..." As the lady broke into a smile, the bell at the lattice door rang, making the same sound as when it first rang. "Oh, another guest," the lady said as she retreated to the tea room. Just as she left, Ochi Tofuu-kun, whom she knew, entered the tatami room.

If Kaze-kun comes here, it would not be an exaggeration to say that almost all the eccentric individuals who frequent the master's house are gathered. It would be a waste to complain about any shortcomings now. If, by bad luck, they were kept in another house, they might die without ever realizing that there were such masters among humans. Fortunately, as a cat under the tutelage of Kusami-sensei, I am able to observe not only the sensei but also the movements and words of great figures like Meitei, Kangu, and even Kaze, who are rarely seen even in the vast Tokyo, while serving before the tiger-striped mat morning and evening. This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime honor for me. Thanks to this, I can forget the suffering of being wrapped in fur even in this heat and spend a pleasant half-day, and I am filled with gratitude. Since so many have gathered, I decided to quietly watch from behind the sliding door, expecting that something interesting would happen.