Page 322 - Thorn In The Heart

Thorn In The Heart

The transition period afternoon between the late winter and
beginning of spring of 29-1-1968. After Nguyen read the
hostilities news that came from the American military news
agency. On the newspaper of Song-Than, Tin-Dien that placed
at the Information and Youth Office. It was nearby Rong-Vang
golden store, on the corner of Amatranglong Long and Nguyen-
Thai-Hoc streets in Ban-Me-Thuot city.

He knew three divisions of 325-C, 304, 324-B and another
division that American military news agency was unknown its
symbol number. Those troops came from North Vietnam and
were the concentration at the First Corps tactical zone of Khe-
Sanh, Quang-Tri. Therefore he broke off action will not apply at
the Military Region 1 and First Corps tactical zone for Tet Mau-
Than greeting.

Every day, after Nguyen, left the Information and Youth
Office. He had habit stepping around the central downtown.
Nguyen walked on the sidewalk of AmatrangLong, crossed Y-
Jut, Ly-Thuong-Kiet, Hai-Ba-Trung Phan-chu-Trinh streets,
then he turned right at Thong-Nhat boulevard to going home. On
the sidewalk of the Thong-Nhat boulevard had the large student
trees on both sidewalks, and its branches were touching each
other in the air. He always walks on the sidewalk where had the
Old Bao-Dai imperial area. It had the high wall of green moss
along with Thong-Nhat Boulevard to separate its private.
Another side was the Sub-Sector, City hall, and Treasury
officials. Those buildings had Regional force soldiers guarding
at the front gates and around those areas.

Nguyen always looked up to see the naked branches of the
student trees dancing in the air, appeared in the high blue sky.
They do not have the red flowers at this season, but they were in
budding of their life, and the birds were singing, flitting from
branch to an another.

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