Murder in Canton

V

The majordomo led the judge and his two assistants ceremoni­ously through a veritable maze of covered corridors. After they had crossed the central courtyard where clerks, messengers and guards were bustling about in the light of the coloured lampions, he took them through an imposing gate and ushered them into the sumptuous Council Hall, brilliantly lit by dozens of man-high candelabras.

The Governor, a tall, bearded man with broad, round shoulders, received the judge with a low bow that made the sleeves of his gorgeous robe of shimmering green brocade sweep the marble floor. The golden insignia attached to the quivering wings of his high cap made a tinkling sound. He acknowledged Judge Dee's introduction of Colonel Chiao and Chief-Secretary Tao with another, now rather perfunctory bow. Then he presented the thin, elderly man who was kneeling by his side as Pao Kwan, Prefect of Canton, in charge of the city administration. The Prefect touched the floor with his forehead.

Judge Dee told the Prefect to rise. After a casual glance at the old man's deeply-lined, worried face, he followed the Governor, who conducted him to a throne-like seat in the rear. Then the Governor stood himself respectfully in front of the dais; for although he was the highest authority in the Southern Region, he was still several ranks below Judge Dee, now President of the Metropolitan Court, and for two years concurrently Counsellor of State.

The judge sat down, and Chiao Tai and Tao Gan went to stand somewhat apart, on either side of the dais. Tao Gan looked quite dignified in his long brown robe and high gauze cap. Chiao Tai had put on his spiked helmet and had taken a sword from the armoury of the palace. The close-fitting coat of mail revealed his wide, bulging shoulders and muscular arms.

The Governor made a bow, then spoke formally: 'In accordance with Your Excellency's instructions, I have sum­moned here Mr Liang Foo and Mr Yau Tai-kai. Mr Liang is one of the wealthiest merchants of this city, he...'

'Is he a member of the clan of Liang that was nearly decimated by that infamous ninefold murder?' the judge interrupted. 'I dealt with that case fourteen years ago, when I was magistrate of Poo-yang.'

'One of Your Excellency's most famous cases!’ the Governor said suavely. 'It is still talked about here in Canton, with gratitude and admiration! No, this Mr Liang belongs to quite a different clan. He is the only son of the late Admiral Liang.'

'An illustrious family,' Judge Dee remarked. Unfolding his fan, he went on, 'The Admiral was a valorous soldier and a great strategist. The "Subduer of the South Seas", he was called. I met him only once, but I well remember his extraordinary appearance. A squat, broad-shouldered man, with a flat, rather ugly face — a low forehead and high cheekbones. But once you had seen those piercing eyes you knew that you were in the presence of a truly great man!’ He tugged at his moustache, then asked, 'Why didn't his son continue the family tradition?'

'Bad health made him unfit for a military career, sir. Which is a pity, for he has inherited his father's strategical talents, as evinced by his acumen in administering his vast commercial interests. And, in a minor manner, by his rare skill in the game of chess! Mr Liang is the chess champion of this province.' The Governor coughed behind his hand and continued, 'Of course a man of Mr Liang's breeding doesn't stoop to direct ah ... association with the barbarian traders. But he keeps himself informed about all the broader issues. Mr Yau Tai-kai, on the other hand, has close con­tacts with the foreign merchants, mainly Arabs and Persians. He doesn't mind; he comes from a rather er ... modest family, and is a broadminded, easy-going fellow. I thought that Mr Liang and Mr Yau would be able to present to Your Excellency a reasonably complete picture of the trade situation in my territory.'

'It's a big city,' the judge remarked casually. 'One would think that it harboured more experts on foreign trade than just these two.'

The Governor darted a quick look at him. He said quietly:

'Foreign trade is highly organized, sir. Has to be, seeing that it is partly state controlled. It's these two gentlemen who pull the strings.'

Chiao Tai came forward and said: 'I heard that a sea captain called Nee also is considered an expert in this field. His ships ply between Canton and Arab ports.'

'Nee?' the Governor asked. He cast a questioning look at the Prefect. Pao slowly pulled at his wispy goatee, then said vaguely:

'Oh yes! The captain is well known in shipping circles. But it seems that he has been staying ashore the last three years or so, and is leading a rather er ... dissolute life.'

'I see,' Judge Dee said. And to the Governor, 'Well, let the two gentlemen you mentioned come in.'

The Governor gave an order to the Prefect, then ascended the dais and stood at Judge Dee's right hand. Pao came back leading two men across the hall, one of small stature, very thin, the other tall, with a large paunch. When they were kneeling in front of the dais the Prefect introduced the first as the merchant Liang Foo, his portly companion as Mr Yau Tai-kai.

The judge told them to rise. He saw that Liang Foo had a pale, rather cold face with a jet-black, silky moustache and thin goatee. His curved eyebrows and unusually long lashes gave the upper half of his face a nearly feminine air. He wore a long, olive-green robe; on his head a black gauze cap indicated that he possessed a literary degree. Mr Yau evidently was quite a different type; he had a cheerful round face, adorned by a bristling moustache and a neatly trimmed ring-beard. Tiny wrinkles surrounded his large bovine eyes. He was puffing slightly, and perspiration pearled on his florid face. His ceremonial dress of heavy brown brocade was apparently bothering him.

PREFECT PAO PRESENTS YAU AND LIANG TO JUDGE DEE

Judge Dee said a few polite words, then began to question Liang Foo on the trade situation. Liang spoke excellent standard Chinese and his answers were very much to the point. He seemed un­usually clever and displayed the easy poise of a born gentleman. Judge Dee learned to his dismay that the Arab colony in Canton was larger than he had thought; Liang said that there were about ten thousand of them spread over the city and suburbs. He added, however, that their number fluctuated with the season, for both Arab and Chinese captains had to wait in Canton for the winter monsoon before taking their ships to Annam and Malaya. Then they went on to Ceylon, and from there sailed across the Indian Ocean to the Persian Gulf. Mr Liang said that the Arab and Persian junks were capable of carrying five hundred men, the Chinese vessels even more.

Then it was Mr Yau's turn. He seemed overawed by the exalted company, and at first tended to bluster. But when he came to a description of his business, Judge Dee soon understood that he was an uncommonly shrewd man with a good grasp of financial prob­lems. When Yau had completed a list of the products imported by various Arab merchants, the judge remarked:

'I can't understand how you manage to tell all those foreigners apart. To me they all look alike! It must be rather distressing to associate daily with those uncultured barbarians!’

Yau shrugged his round shoulders.

'In business one has to take things as one finds them, Excel­lency! And a few Arabs have acquired a smattering of Chinese cul­ture. Take Mansur, the leader of the Arab community, for instance. He speaks our language fluently, and he entertains well. I have an early dinner appointment at his place tonight, as a matter of fact.'

The judge noticed that he shifted uneasily on his feet, and seemed eager to take his leave. He said:

'Many thanks for your valuable information, Mr Yau. You may go now. Take Colonel Chiao with you to that Arab party; it will be an interesting experience for him.' He beckoned Chiao Tai and told him in an undertone, 'Find out how the Arabs are distributed over the city, and keep your ears and eyes open!’

After an adjutant had conducted Chiao Tai and Mr Yau to the door, Judge Dee talked for a while with Mr Liang about the naval campaigns of his late father, and then dismissed him too. He fanned himself for a while in silence. Suddenly he addressed the Governor:

'We are a long way from the capital here, and the Cantonese are reputedly rather headstrong, and very independent by nature. If one adds thereto the presence of all those foreigners, one would suppose that preserving the peace in this city is not an easy task.'

'I can't complain, sir. Prefect Pao here is a capable administrator and has an experienced staff, and our garrison consists of seasoned soldiers from up north. It is true that the local population is a bit surly at times, but they are a law-abiding lot, on the whole, and with a little tact...'

The Governor shrugged his shoulders. Prefect Pao started to say something, but apparently changed his mind.

Judge Dee closed his fan with a snap and rose. The Governor took the judge and Tao Gan to the door, and the majordomo led them back to Judge Dee's own wing.

The judge made him take them to a pavilion in a small, moonlit back garden. An artificial goldfish pond afforded some coolness there. When they were seated at the small tea-table by the carved marble balustrade, Judge Dee dismissed the majordomo. He said slowly:

'Quite an interesting session. But except for the fact that we now know there are even more Arabs here than we expected, it didn't help us much. Or did I miss something?'

Tao Gan gloomily shook his head. After a while he said:

'You told us that the Censor's public life is impeccable, sir. But what about his private interests? In the case of an unmarried young man...'

'I too thought of that. Since as President of the Court I have all kinds of special facilities, checking on his private life was an easy matter. Although he is a handsome fellow, he never shows the slightest interest in women. Many a prominent family in the capital has tried to make him their son-in-law, but in vain. Neither does he cultivate any of the charming courtesans who assist at the parties a man in his position has to attend nearly every night. This lack of interest is not rooted in an innate aver­sion to women — a trait not uncommon in handsome young men, as you know. The reason for his abstention is simply that he is completely engrossed in his work.'

'Does he have no hobby at all, sir?'

'No, except for a great interest in crickets. Has a fine collection, both singing and fighting ones. The subject came up during the last conversation I had with him. I noticed a chirruping sound coming from his sleeve, and he produced a cricket in a small cage of silver thread. Said he always carried it with him, a rare speci­men called a Golden Bell, if I remember correctly. He...' He broke off and looked at Tao Gan's startled face. 'What is wrong with that?' he asked, astonished.

'Well,' Tao Gan replied slowly, 'it so happened that on my way here I met a blind girl selling crickets who caught a stray Golden Bell last night. It must be a coincidence, of course, but since she told me also that it is of great rarity, especially here in the south, it might...'

'It all depends on how and where she got it,' Judge Dee said curtly. 'Tell me more about this meeting!’

'I ran into her by accident near the market place, sir. She catches them herself, recognizing good specimens by their singing. While passing by the west wall of the Flowery Pagoda, a famous temple in the west city, she heard the peculiar noise produced by the Golden Bell. It must have been hiding in a crack in the wall; its voice sounded frightened, she said. She laid a bait, and coaxed the cricket into a small calabash.'

Judge Dee made no comment. He tugged at his moustache for a while, then said pensively:

'It's a long chance, of course. Yet we may not rule out the possibility that it is indeed the Censor's Golden Bell that escaped from its cage while he was in that neighbourhood. While Chiao Tai is gathering information at Mansur's party, we may as well have a look at the temple and see whether we can't obtain a clue to the Censor's whereabouts there. Anyway, it is one of the his­torical sights of the city, I am told. We can take our evening rice in some small place on the way.'

'You can't do that, sir!' Tao Gan protested, aghast. 'Formerly, when you were still a local magistrate, there was no harm in making the rounds of the city incognito, on occasion. But now, as one of the highest officials in the Empire, you really can't...'

'I can and I will!’ the judge cut him short. 'In the capital I have to adopt all the pomp and circumstance belonging to my office — that can't be helped. But we aren't in the capital now, we are in Canton. I am certainly not going to let slip this welcome oppor­tunity for getting out of myself!’ Forestalling all further protests by rising abruptly, he added, 'I shall meet you in the anteroom, when I have changed.'