The Prisoner's Gold

46

The monk introduced himself as Thubten before leading them through a series of winding, twisting rooms and passageways, deep into the palace’s interior. Most of the rooms were decorated with multi-colored carpets, white and gold tapestries with blue and red accents, and furniture made from dark wood. In most of the small chambers through which they passed, the scent of incense hung thick in the air, the smell deep and rich.

Eventually Thubten brought them to a small, sparse room. There were only four chairs and a wobbly tea table between them.

‘Please wait here,’ he said before scurrying behind the lone tapestry.

A hidden doorway, Cobb realized. He immediately closed his eyes and tried to remember how many tapestries he had passed along the way. There had been dozens of them. If only a quarter of them concealed doors, there was no telling how many people had seen them on their way to this room. For a man like Cobb, the thought was very unsettling.

‘Well, things are going well so far,’ Maggie whispered, partly as commentary for Cobb and Sarah, and partly to inform Garcia and the others who were undoubtedly listening in.

‘As long as he doesn’t come back with armed soldiers,’ Cobb replied.

Sarah glanced at Maggie. ‘Do you think he will?’

‘No.’

‘We’ll find out soon enough,’ Cobb said.

A few minutes later, a small fat monk in a red robe came into the room with a tray. On it was an antique tea set and an electric kettle. He set the tray down on the table and exited the room immediately.

Sarah looked to Maggie for guidance. ‘Do you think we should have some or are we supposed to wait? I get the feeling that this is a test.’

‘It probably is,’ Maggie said. ‘Truth be told, I didn’t have tea at all the last time I was here, but we can assume it would be bad form to begin without our host.’

A minute later they heard Garcia’s voice in their ears. ‘I can’t find anything specific on Tibetan tea etiquette, but I found a Buddhist proverb. It says—’

Maggie cut him off. ‘We will wait.’

‘Okay, okay.’

Several minutes later, a new monk entered the room. He moved in slow motion, as if his leg troubled him. He was visibly older than Thubten, with far more creases on his face.

‘Tashi delek,’ he said in greeting. ‘My name is Kunchen.’ As he studied the visitors, his face suddenly lit up in recognition. ‘Miss Liu!’

Maggie stood. ‘Tashi delek, Kunchen. It has been a very long time.’

Kunchen turned to the others. ‘Miss Liu has been here before, with guests who were very compassionate and understanding.’

Maggie smiled and nodded at the praise.

Cobb extended the traditional greeting before introducing himself and Sarah, using their first names only. Kunchen smiled and bowed.

‘Are you the — I’m not sure of the correct word — the abbot of Potala?’ Sarah asked.

Kunchen chuckled. ‘No. I am merely a scholar and a historian. The highest ranking lamas in Lhasa are all lackeys to the Chinese government. I suspect you might already know some of this if Miss Liu is your guide.’

The monk showed none of Thubten’s unease at discussing things in the open. Either the room was fantastically secure, or Kunchen just didn’t care about possible reprisals.

‘We know some,’ Cobb said. ‘Thank you for seeing us today.’ He removed one of the white silk khata from his neck and held it out horizontally to Kunchen. ‘Please accept this with good wishes and our thanks.’

The twinkle in Kunchen’s eyes revealed his true happiness. He accepted the scarf that Cobb had offered and then the one Sarah held out in the same fashion, nodding his deep brown forehead at each of them in turn. Maggie presented hers last.

‘They are lovely,’ he gushed. ‘Thank you. Shall we have some tea?’

‘That would be great,’ Cobb said. Normally he was in a hurry to get things done when he was in the field, but not today. As counterintuitive as it might seem, he sensed the quickest way to accomplish their goal at the palace was with patience.

Kunchen placed teabags in their cups and poured hot water on them.

‘Is it green tea?’ Sarah asked.

‘Black, actually. From Assam, in India. I hope that is all right?’ Kunchen looked worried, as if he might have offended his guests.

‘It sounds delicious,’ Sarah assured him, setting his mind at ease. ‘It must be difficult for you to get. Thank you for sharing it with us.’

The monk’s broad smile returned. ‘It is quite difficult to get, as a matter of fact. But I have had a fondness for it since I was a child, which is when I first came to Lhasa.’

‘When was that?’ Cobb wondered.

‘Let’s just say that the Chinese were not yet here, and Tibet was a very different place.’

He handed them each a cup of tea, then stood slowly. The others did as well.

‘Toasting is a Western custom, but I have always liked it since I first saw it in a motion picture. I think we should toast old friends, new ones, and lost times.’

Cobb grinned. ‘Very appropriate.’

They sat and drank tea for a few moments. The monk continued smiling at them. Just as Cobb was about to break the silence, Maggie gently tapped him on his leg. He interpreted that to mean that it would be impolite to bring up business while sipping tea.

Sarah shifted in her seat, and Cobb could feel her impatience with the need for ceremony. She started looking around the room at the décor, and Cobb watched the monk watch her do it. Then, before her eyes were done scanning the small space, the monk’s eyes met Cobb’s again. The corner of the man’s mouth twitched as if he was holding back a broader smile.

‘You have a great stillness in you, Jack, like Miss Liu,’ he said at last. ‘But perhaps we should discuss the matter that brought you here today. I suspect you did not come solely to admire the architecture.’

Cobb nodded. ‘I am afraid not. Nor did we come to discuss the tragic days of your youth when the Chinese came and Tenzin Gyatso fled.’

Cobb used the Fourteenth Dalai Lama’s name as Maggie had told him to do. She knew it would elicit sympathy while also showing that he had taken the time to learn something of the plight of Tibet and the religious leader who had been living in exile since 1959.

‘Instead,’ Cobb continued, ‘we came to speak with you about a much older time.’

The monk was intrigued. He clapped his hands and sat forward, like a giddy school boy. ‘I have not spoken with a Westerner who was interested in more than a cursory glance at Tibet in many long years. In what era are you interested?’

Maggie answered for him ‘We would be honored and privileged to have the opportunity to examine any books the Potala might have dating from the thirteenth century.’

‘Do you have a specific book in mind? We have many different libraries in this building, with hundreds of thousands of works. Many date from even earlier than the thirteenth century.’

‘Do we trust this guy?’ Garcia asked in Cobb’s ear.

Cobb answered Garcia’s question by providing the monk with additional information. ‘We are interested in a story of a Westerner and a Chinese girl named Yangchen.’

Maggie picked up from there. ‘We are particularly interested in any books you might possess that were stored here on the Red Hill, prior to the construction of the Potala Palace. Naturally, we only want to examine these documents and, with your kind permission, take some photos of them as well.’

Kunchen nodded his approval. ‘You are correct: I could not allow you to take any books from the palace, but I can certainly arrange for you to see them.’

‘Is this a common request?’ Sarah wondered.

Kunchen laughed. ‘Goodness, no. I’ve never heard of a Westerner coming here and asking to see any of our old books, as you have done. But you each have good hearts, and I believe you when you say you wish only to look. Plus, it has been many years since I have had this much fun practicing my English. Normally Americans want a photo and nothing more.’

He stood and walked toward the door, but before they had a chance to follow he stopped and turned back. ‘Please understand our need for secrecy.’

Cobb nodded sharply. ‘Yes. Of course.’

‘Also, you should know that we have thousands of volumes from the era that you wish to study. It might take a long time to find what you seek.’