After
Ponnan left, Valli got busy with the domestic chores. She mopped the floor and
milked the water buffalo. Then she went to Kaveri and bathed in an area
with leaf cover provided by the low branches. She changed her clothes, lit fire
and started cooking again. But her mind was restless. She came out, and looked
all around, as if she expected something big to happen. Her intuition had been right. After a while, about fifteen horsemen arrived from the direction of
Uraiyur, along with two well-groomed white horses and an ivory palanquin. There
was no one riding either the horses, or the palanquin. Eight well-built
men were carrying the palanquin. They all arrived at the pier. The men put
the palanquin down. The horsemen dismounted and tied their horses to the
trees. Valli was watching all this with rapt interest.
One of them said, “Let’s go get a drink of water from Valli.”
The other asked “Velappa, why do you need to ask Valli for water? The river is full.”
Velappan said, “Drinking from river is not the same as drinking the water Valli serves!”
They both walked to the hut. Velappan asked Valli for water.
Valli went inside and got them two mud pots full of buttermilk. While they were drinking, she asked “I heard the king is returning to Uraiyur today. Why is he in a rush? He usually stays in the spring palace these months, doesn’t he?”
Velappan said, “Why are you asking us Valli? Ask your husband. There is no royal secret that the royal oarsman does not know!”
Valli said, “Ponnan sat down to eat. The royal messenger brought a message for the king. He went away with the messenger. He did not even finish his breakfast”
“Look at that concern. Befits a devoted wife!”, remarked Velappan.
“Enough! Stop teasing”. Valli blushed.
“Not sure how long we will get to tease you like this Valli”, said Velappan.
“Why do you all talk like this?”
“Did you not hear that there is going to be a war?”
“I heard that, but I’m not sure what the war is for”
“Our king has not paid tributes to the Kanchi emperor, Narasimha Varman. The emperor has returned from the north after his campaign. He has sent messengers asking our king for reasons for defaulting on the tribute. I heard that the messengers will arrive today”
“Why fight a war over this? Why can’t we pay the overdue tributes?”
“Our king does not want to do that. He says he does not want to take a backward step on this matter”
While they were talking, they could see a boat approaching the shore. Velappan and the other man went to join the other soldiers. The boat reached the shore. This was not the ordinary boat that Ponnan rowed across. It was a beautifully crafted royal boat with a towered roof. There were three people on board. They were king Parthiba Chozhan, queen Arulmozhi and prince Vikraman.
They were flanked by two bodyguards who were wearing long swords and were carrying spears. Ponnan and the other men were rowing the boat. The bodyguards got off the boat first and announced,
“The King of Kings, ruler of the Chozha Realm, King Parthibhan is here!”
All the soldiers put their palms together in respect and responded with “Victory to the king!”
The king got to the shore and looked towards the hut. His sight fell on Valli. He signaled to her to come closer. She hurried closer and prostrated in front of him as a gesture of respect. The king gestured to her to stand up. Valli respectfully took a spot behind Ponnan.
“Valli, does Ponnan take good care of you?”, asked the king.
Valli was too shy to respond.
The queen said, “Wrong question! She would have responded if you asked her if she takes good care of Ponnan!”
The king laughed and said, “Did you hear that Valli? Take good care of Ponnan. Don’t let him go far. He may rescue someone else, just like he rescued you from the river!”
Valli squirmed with a mixture of pleasure and shyness. Ponnan did not seem to have paid attention to this banter. He put his palms together and said, “Your majesty, please grant me a boon. When you go for war, please take me along.”
The king paused a bit and responded, “Ponna, I know what your wishes are, but I can’t grant them. Your place is here. I’m entrusting you with the job of teaching the prince to swim, in case I don’t return from the war. Do you understand?”
Ponnan and Valli were both in tears. The queen sighed. Who knows what was passing through her mind!
Valli was back to her usual self after the king and his entourage went a fair distance. “Ponna, did you hear the king? You can’t stir from this place without getting my permission.”
“In that case, I will ask you right now. I need to go to Uraiyur this afternoon”.
“What is happening there?”
“Significant things. The messengers from Kanchi are going to be in Uraiyur, asking our king to pay tribute. And the king is going to decline to pay. I have to be there to witness”
Valli imitated Ponnan. She put her palms together and said, “Your majesty, please grant me a boon. When you go to war, please take me along!”
“If you are going to tease me like this, let's forget the whole thing.”
Ponnan really seemed to forget. He was frolicking in the water for a while. However, when he heard the hoof-beats, he got very agitated and got ashore to look. Valli came out to look as well. They saw a horseman carrying a flag with a lion symbol. There were four more horsemen behind him. The horses were galloping towards Uraiyur.
“Who are these people carrying the lion flag?” asked Valli.
Ponnan, who had stood frozen, started, and said “Valli, these people are Pallava messengers. I really need to be in Uraiyur. If you want, come along. You can see your grandfather.”
Click here for the audiobook versionParthban Kanavu: The Tamil version of the novel is in the public domain. Copyright for the translation is reserved by the translator..
Such clear and precise translation. Nice job !
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