Once upon a time, a carpenter and a blacksmith lived in a small village. While the carpenter sawed wood, the blacksmith struck iron. As the hardworking men worked day and night, their places were full of all kinds of loud noises. But the guys didn’t really find the noises a nuisance because they had already grown accustomed to them. So they never complained to each other.

One day, a nobleman visited the village to look for an ideal site for his home. He was living in Seoul but he was about to move to the countryside after retirement. He happened to find a bamboo grove situated between the carpenter’s house and the blacksmith’s. The spot immediately caught the attention of the nobleman, who believed that this was the perfect place for his new home. Before long, laborers cut off the bamboo trees and leveled the ground for a house. Soon, a nice house roofed with tiles was built there and the nobleman and his family moved to the new house. He was very happy at the thought of leading a peaceful and tranquil life in his new, cozy house for the rest of his days.

Unfortunately, his happiness didn’t last long. He couldn’t fall asleep late into the night because of the noises from his neighbors, namely, the carpenter and the blacksmith. Around dawn, he was finally about to sleep. But as soon as a cock crowned to announce the break of day, the carpenter and the blacksmith began to work again. The nobleman went outside and found that the carpenter lived on the left side of his house and the blacksmith, on the right side. That’s how the nobleman’s miserable life started. Day and night, the diligent workers made all types of noises as though they were trying to compete.

The nobleman couldn’t stand it any longer. So he came up with an idea to drive out the annoying neighbors. First, he advised the carpenter to move out because his house is situated on the spot representing “fire,” which, of course, is not very good for the carpenter. Surprised, the carpenter said he would leave the place immediately. Similarly, the nobleman visited the blacksmith and told him that his house is on the spot representing “water,” and this is certainly an ominous sign for the blacksmith. The poor blacksmith was startled, and he also promised to move out.

The nobleman was delighted that not one, but both neighbors would move out at the same time. But of course, he pretended to feel sorry about their departures. He even gave them some money to help them move out and threw a farewell party for them. The nobleman became happy again as he believed he would live a quiet and normal life now.

That night, however, after the neighbors moved out, the nobleman heard the same familiar noises. The man couldn’t understand what was wrong. The carpenter and the blacksmith undoubtedly moved out, but the noise continued just as before. Stunned and frustrated, the nobleman ordered his servant to figure out what was happening outside. After a short time, the servant returned and told the nobleman that the carpenter and the blacksmith only exchanged their houses.

Did you enjoy the amusing story? The nobleman should have noticed that the neighbors were making noises before he made a decision to move there.