Heian Romance: 4. Oxen Street

4. Oxen Street

The Oxen Street is the lowliest part of the Heian capital located just before the Rashomon Gate. People who live here are either beggars or slaves of the local “God Father” Masatoshi. Masatoshi earns his living by trading oxen and slaves with the courtiers. However, he does not take care of his slaves properly, which end up causes high illness and mortality rate among them. If there happens to be an epidemic in the capital, Oxen Street surely will be the source of the sickness, and so it is a God forsaken place where ordinary people wouldn’t want to go.

Yuiko although being courtier, secretly she’s also a practicing physician. She bought a quarter at Oxen Street under the name of Koremitsu and uses as a clinic for the residents around the area. She would come to Oxen Street twice a month to examine and treat the patients without any charges. The locals are very grateful to her and volunteer to take care of the clinic when she’s gone. Therefore, the clinic had becomes the hang up place for them, they would sing song, dance and play games when there’s an occasion.

***

As usual, Yuiko reaches her clinic and was welcomed by the folks as if she was the Savior Himself. Part of her enjoys this moment, as though she was an important person. Despite that fact that she is a princess, she seldom earns respect and appreciation from the court.

 When Yuiko is about to enter the clinic, someone shouted “Scoundrel!!” loudly at the back. She looked back and saw a young man riding a horse approaching her. The man is wearing kariginu (Heian costume) made of high quality silk, and at far Yuiko already knows who that person is. That is Fujiwara no Yorinaga, the son of the Regent.

Yorinaga got down from the horse, past the crowd and walk directly towards Yuiko. Yorinaga is 2 years senior than Yuiko and is famous for his tenacious attitude towards the law. His lifelong aspiration is to bring back the previous glory of the Fujiwara Regent house; with this he will do ANYTHING to achieve his target.

 A closer look at Yorinaga, Yuiko realize that he has fair complexion, a pair of round eyes, straight nose and a delicate mouth. He also dyes his teeth and paints his eyebrow in the courtiers’ fashion, making himself a good looking aristocrat.  

“Scoundrel! Do you know what you did just now at the Gojo Bridge?” shouted Yorinaga angrily.

“I’m sorry sir; I don’t understand what you mean. However instead of hearing you explain the situation, I prefer to get back to my work. There’re many patients waiting to be treated and attended to.”

“This is intolerable!”

Yorinaga continues to mumble around even when Yuiko starts her work. He would follow her here and there complaining, but Yuiko decided to ignore him and let it be. As time goes by the annoying grumbling noise cease, this is due to the fact that involuntarily Yorinaga started to help by distributing medicines to the sick.

At the end of the day, both of them are too tired to move that they slept in the clinic over the night.

Yorinaga wake up the next morning and found that Yuiko is gone. Other than Yuiko, he realizes that his horse is gone too, leaving him alone in this unfavorable place of doom.

“Oh you scoundrel physician! I for sure will revenge on what you had done to me!!”

And so this marks the start of an interesting relationship between Yuiko and Yorinaga.