Dear Comrade the Leader Episode 203
“Che cazzo vuoi? Figlio di puttana!!! (What the fuck is this? x shit!!!)”
The Italian players turned their eyes around the red card declaration like a clear blow, and the road ran wild, but referee Moreno did not intend to issue a red card raised without any change in expression.
The radical reaction of the Italian players is understandable, and Paolo Maldini, who just received a red card, was an important player that could be called the ace of the Italian defense.
In the second half, I was getting tired of the unfamiliar climate, but it was a plate that had a big hole in the defense.
“Minchione!!! Fai schifo!!”
“Yeah, that doesn’t change the verdict! Go ahead and get back to your place!”
After a brief quarrel, the game continued with the Italian players anger and the North Korean players with a spark of hope.
And then, a certain change took place in the stands.
“Hey! cheer up! Show the spiciness to the Italians!”
That change was the change of cheers from the audience.
In fact, as the stadium is located in Rason, the home ground of North Korea, and as proof of the people’s interest in this match and the World Cup in the Republic, the North Korean players were already receiving the support of the people like a fever.
(made by demonstrating the skills of mass games of the past) ‘Go forward proudly and come back as a sports hero!’ The same card section covered the spectators, and the less organized cheering even mobilized kwaenggwari and janggu to ensure that he was the 12th player, but now a third force has joined the cheering.
The third force was the South Korean and South Korean spectators who came up to Raseon on temporary generous entry visas to watch the World Cup.
“Don’t lose to dirty play! Or you, too, peel off your legs!”
“Let’s go to the final with us and try a Korean match!”
“One more time in 1966! Let’s watch the finals in Seoul and Pyongyang!”
“… … !!!”
There is a saying that ‘green is the same color’ and ‘crayfish are the best’.
It is said that sports promote nationalism, but if only a sense of purpose is shared, it is also sports that remove boundaries in an instant in such a way that ‘my enemy is on my side’.
In addition to being geographically close, it was already well known that North Korea was playing against Italy in Rason through broadcasting in Seoul.
And no matter how different the situation of inter-Korean relations between the original history and the present, even if they don’t have to talk about Underdog, it’s still for the Korean audience (who came without a word and sat in the stadium audience after the visa was relaxed). North Korea felt closer than Italy.
All of a sudden, the South and North Korean spectators united and supported the North Korean players while condemning the Italian players for their rough play.
“Win! Let’s go to the round of 16!”
“Korea! Korea fighting! Either South or North, the Korea Team Fighting!”
In the midst of the cheers of the cheering squads of both South and North Korea, who had suddenly become one, the second half was halfway through and approaching 30 minutes, but the tense situation of 1:1 did not know whether to lean to either side.
The Italian squad, which had suddenly become 10 players, started to attack with substitutes, and the spectators watching it and, of course, Jeong Hwan and party officials began to burn with speed.
‘You can put in any number of substitutes over there, but our Republic team still lacks a player pool, so there are only very poor substitutes among the substitutes. However, if there is a draw, we have to count the number of cases again… … .’
Moreover, the referee Moreno, who was recruited with difficulty (?), was not moving little by little.
Jeong-hwan was the person who moved FIFA, just in case, but he didn’t buy it in the first place, he just changed the match, so there was no way he could make a favorable decision only for North Korea.
The Italian players, who are leading in physicality, use their elbows and knees to attack the North Korean players with half a physical fight and half a foul.
As the North Korean players began to roll on the floor more and more, complaints about the referee were coming from the stands.
“That… … ! You obviously just hit it, that one! Isn’t that lord that guy’s eyes pricked up?”
“offside! It’s offside and you have to blow the whistle!”
“hey! Get it! How much did you get from the referee Italians!”
Finally 40 minutes in the second half.
When both teams and even the spectators showed signs of exhaustion, a strange thing happened once again.
“Foul! Francesco Totti Foul!”
“Cosa? (What?) What nonsense!”
“Foul! You just hit the North Korea defender’s belly with your elbow! I will declare a free kick!”
The referee Moreno awarded a free kick to the North Korean side after Francesco Totti, the ace of the Italian team, committed a foul.
The screams of the exhausted spectators doubled in an instant as the second hand seemed to go faster and faster, and then fell silent again the moment the free kick was announced.
It was already 43 minutes in the second half, because everyone knew.
This free kick was actually North Korea’s last chance.
“Nonsense! That player is a Hollywood action!”
“Even if it’s a foul, a free kick is too bad!”
“Again, the verdict does not change! Come on, set up a scrum and keep the free kick!”
‘right! After all, it wasn’t a mistake to bring that yangban!’
Despite the protests from the Italian players, seeing referee Moreno not giving up his stubbornness, Jeonghwan exclaimed inwardly.
Just in case, the name Beiron Moreno became a god of good fortune to South or North Korea.
“Cho, Comrade General Secretary. Will Hong Young-jo’s comrade succeed in that penalty kick? … .”
“I don’t even know, so don’t touch me. Do you expect me to use any jigsaw technique to reduce the gap between the ball and the post? Please just keep your mouth shut!”
As Hong Young-jo, a young ace of the North Korean national team, approached the wall of the Italian players, an indifferent party official from the box seat trembled and asked such a question, but Jeong-hwan did not take his eyes off the stadium.
Jeonghwan, who had been dazed for a while, was also concentrating on the game.
Read at noblemtl.com
No, not only General Secretary Kim Jeong-hwan, but all the party executives in Box-seok, Jang Seong-taek, Baek Seung-cheol, Hyun Young-sook, Kim Yong-geon, Yoo Hye-rim, etc. Everyone was like the spectators, so they were blind to the stadium.Even the North Korean people, who do not allow religion, seemed to be able to understand how they prayed for this moment.
And finally the ball left the lawn.
Paang!!
“… … !”
“Uh huh… … !”
“I, that, that… … !”
“goal! Goal!!!! goal!!! Hong Young-jo scored a miraculous goal in Italy! All the people of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea! Please rejoice! With this, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has advanced to the round of 16! Advance to the round of 16 for the second time in history! You beat Italy once again! Hong Young-jo has accomplished a feat that will remain in history since the founding of the Republic!”
The North Korean announcer, who was so moved by tears, shouted into the microphone as if he had already advanced to the round of 16 even though the match was not over yet, but soon became true.
The match-ending whistle was blown just 20 seconds after the goal that virtually decided the game was scored, and the match between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Italy for a place in the round of 16 ended with an unbelievable result that North Korea won 2:1.
The stadium seemed to leave with cheers from both North and South Korea, even the Korean-Chinese spectators who came to China to watch from afar, hugging each other and screaming as one.
“It’s hard work! Comrade general secretary! You have accomplished a revolutionary feat that will go down in history!”
“Comrade General Secretary! Congratulations! Congratulations! This is all thanks to the leadership and resourcefulness of our comrades… … .”
“… … What can I celebrate? Comrade Moon-Young Jung, Chairman, should be congratulated. Congratulations, and thank you, Comrade President. Not only about soccer, but about all the work that has been done for the north and the south so far. As the supreme leader of the People’s Republic of Korea, a bio that expresses my gratitude once again.”
“no. I am very grateful to Comrade General Secretary. Thank you for letting me see this scene today. It seems that this Jeong Mun-young has continued this tough life just to see this scene today.”
Jeonghwan, one of the two only sitting in the box seat cheering as the party executives forgot their body pain and cheered each other on three chants, thanked him, and Jung Moon-young just shrugged and stole the corners of his eyes.
His eyes were not focused on the stadium, but on the spectators’ seats where the North and South spectators unite and sing the song of victory.
Suddenly, the old man’s wrinkled eyes were wet with moisture.
Just as Jeonghwan was about to open his mouth again, one of the party officials picked up a cell phone and quickly received a call and raised his voice to announce the news.
“The match between Deutscheland (Germany) and Cameroon just ended with a 2-1 victory for Deutsche! With this, Deutscheland and the Republic of Korea have been confirmed to advance to the round of 16 with 1st and 2nd place in Group H, respectively!”
“Huh, it’s really scary to think of the number of cases in South and North Korea. Still, don’t be vigilant. Now round 16. Because it’s a really important fight. I’ll have to go downstairs. I have to meet the players and shake hands. what are you doing Come on, get ready. Contact Pyongyang and prepare medals in advance.”
All the players of the North Korean national soccer team who played at the stadium that day were able to take a picture of the soccer field with the supreme leader, which will be a lifetime honor.
In particular, Hong Young-jo, a young ace with a golden ball at the last moment, even had the honor of taking a two-shot photo shaking hands with Jeong-hwan alone.
Read at noblemtl.com
Now, with half the strategic goal of the 3S policy, and half of his sincerity, Jung-hwan declared that day a temporary public holiday for North Korea and made such a promise (?) to the players.“If I succeed in advancing to the quarterfinals again after 40 years, then I take a picture shaking hands with all the players, regardless of whether they are in the first or second team. And I will put all those photos on the front page of the Rodong Sinmun.”
In the past, in the Republic of Korea, handshakes with leaders and even joint filming were in themselves a means of identification, a kind of decoration, and old-age pension certificate.
Even though it may not be worth that much now, the photo of Kim Jeong-hwan, who is the reincarnation of President Kim Il-sung, and who made them eat meat soup with rice (which Kim Il-sung couldn’t even achieve), and even a solo photo, in a sense, jumped out of it. It had more intangible value.
That day, the day that we won the match against Italy and advanced to the round of 16 was clearly etched in our minds as an unforgettable day not only for the players and Jeong-hwan, but also for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea.
* * *
Unfortunately, this photo never appeared on the front page of the Rodong Sinmun.
The North Korean national team, which poured all their strength into the fight against Italy, suffered a devastating defeat in the first match against Spain, the first opponent in the round of 16 that followed.
In the match against Italy, the main players were injured and received a doctor stop, and it was a natural result of consuming as much physical and mental energy as possible.
On the other hand, Korea, which was fortunate in many ways, such as Italy, which was one of the big difficulties, fell out of the group stage, succeeded in advancing to the final with better results than the original history, but was frustrated by meeting Brazil.
In a way, it could be said that South Korea only did good things in the end, but after the World Cup closing ceremony, the heat of soccer did not cool down for a while in Pyongyang and in North Korea as a whole.
Read at noblemtl.com
Naturally, the number of spectators in professional soccer leagues has grown rapidly, and more North Korean children have set soccer players as their future goals.“In the end, the North and South will not meet each other in the finals, no matter what. Is it good or bad… … .”
“Well, that’s my opinion, but even if we had met, I don’t think there would have been any conflicts or outbursts of resentment that the General Secretary was concerned about. We respected each other’s skills and played beautiful football where the better team wins. At least from this World Cup onwards, even if the representatives of the North and South Korea play soccer, it will definitely be the case.”
“… … Why are you so sure, Comrade Chung?”
While watching the World Cup Closing Ceremony in Pyongyang, Jung-hwan asked Jung Moon-young who was sitting next to him, and Jung Moon-young only put a smile on his wrinkled lips.
“Heh heh, it’s just an old man’s intuition. If I had to tell you the reason, I would only say that it was because I saw a scene during the World Cup match, a scene I wanted to see so much but never seen before.”
“… … .”
“It really makes me feel at ease. Now I’ve accomplished everything I want to accomplish. The second life that I came up from and started here in my hometown has also been so successful, there is no more free time. As I said before, it seems that I have lived for a day like this, a moment like this. Now, no matter when I leave, I think I can leave everything behind and leave with gratitude.”
As he said that, Jung Moon-young, who smiled comfortably, showed the expression of a person who had accomplished everything and was liberated.
And just one month after the closing ceremony of the joint inter-Korean World Cup, as if he had predicted his own death in this way, the founder of Hyundai Group, Chung Moon-young, passed away peacefully while sleeping.
The mortuary was jointly prepared in Seoul and Pyongyang, South Korea.
For the first time in history, Jeong Hwan declared to the party a period of mourning for South Korean figures, and conferred the first-class medal of the Republic of Korea Industrial Hero to the deceased Chairman Mun-young Jung.