The Red Pavilion

Silver Fairy went quickly to her, followed by the judge and his two companions. Bending over the grey head she said softly:

'The magistrate has arrived, Miss Ling!'

She wanted to get up but Judge Dee quickly put his hand on her thin shoulder and said gently:

'Remain seated, please. You shouldn't have gone to all the trouble to come here, Miss Ling!'

'This person is completely at Your Honour's disposal,' the blind woman said.

Involuntarily the judge shrank back in incredulous horror. Never had he heard such a rich and warm, utterly lovely voice. Coming from that disfigured old woman, the voice seemed a cruel, outrageous mockery. He had to swallow a few times before he resumed:

'What was your professional name, Miss Ling?'

'I was called Gold Jasper, sir. People admired my singing and my . . . beauty. I was nineteen years old when I fell ill and . . .' Her voice trailed off.

'At that time,' Judge Dee continued, 'a courtesan called Green Jade was chosen Queen Flower. Did you know her well?'

'I did. But she died. Thirty years ago, during the epidemic. I was one of the first who caught the disease. I heard about Green Jade's death only several weeks afterwards, when I was . . . cured. She got the disease a few days after me. She died.'

'I suppose Green Jade had many admirers?'

'Yes, there were many. Most of them I didn't know. I knew only two well, both of this island, Feng Dai and Tao Kwang. When I had got better, Tao had died, and Green Jade had died.'

'Didn't Wen Yuan, the curio-dealer, also try to win her favour?'

'Wen Yuan? Yes, I knew him too. We avoided him; he liked to hurt women. I remember he gave Green Jade many costly presents, but she wouldn't even look at them. Is Wen still alive? If he is, he must be over sixty now. It's all so long ago.'

A group of courtesans passed by the window, talking excitedly. A peal of gay laughter rang out.

'Do you think,' Judge Dee asked again, 'that there was some truth in the rumour that Feng Dai was Green Jade's lover?'

'Feng was a handsome man, as I remember him. Straightforward and dependable. There wasn't much to choose between him and Tao Kwang, I think. Tao Kwang was also handsome, also a good, honest man. And also very much in love with her.'

'There were also rumours that Tao Kwang killed himself because she had preferred Feng. You knew him, Miss Ling. Do you think it likely that Tao Kwang would have done that?'

She didn't reply at once. She raised her blind face and listened to the guitar music that had started in a room upstairs. It was the same theme, repeated again and again. She said:

'She ought to tune her instrument better. Yes, Tao Kwang loved Green Jade deeply. Perhaps he did kill himself because of her.' Hearing Tao Pan-te's quick intake of breath, she asked:

'Who is that with you, sir?'

'One of my assistants.'

'It isn't true,' she said quietly. 'I heard him, he too must have known Tao Kwang well. He can tell you more about him than I, sir.'

Suddenly a violent attack of coughing racked her frame. She took a crumpled handkerchief from her sleeve and wiped her lips. When she put it back it showed red stains.

Judge Dee realized that the woman was mortally ill. He waited till she had recovered, then resumed quickly:

'It was also said that Tao Kwang didn't commit suicide, but was killed by Feng Dai.'

She slowly shook her head.

'That's certainly slander, sir. Tao Kwang was Feng's best friend. I have heard them talk together — about Green Jade. I know that if Green Jade chose one of them, the other would have abided by her decision. But she didn't choose, I think.'

Judge Dee gave Tao Pan-te a questioning look. He shook his head. There seemed no point in asking more questions. Then the beautiful voice resumed:

'I think Green Jade wanted a man who was not only good-looking, and of a staunch character, and wealthy. She wanted more. A man who had all that, but also a wild, reckless strain. A man who would carelessly spend all he had, property, position, reputation—everything. Throw it away, casually, without even thinking about it. Because of the woman he loved.'

The voice ceased. Judge Dee stared fixedly at the window. The guitar theme, repeated with irritating insistence, was jarring on his nerves. With an effort he took hold of himself.

'I am most grateful, Miss Ling. You must be tired, I'll have a sedan chair called for you.'

'I appreciate your consideration. Thank you, sir.'

The words were obsequious, but the tone was that of a great courtesan, graciously dismissing an admirer. They gave the judge a sharp pang. He gave a sign to the others. They left the hall together.

Outside Tao Pan-te muttered:

'Only her voice is left. Strange . . . these shadows from the past. I'll have to think this over, sir. I beg to be excused.'

Judge Dee nodded, then said to Ma Joong:

'You get a sedan chair for Miss Ling, Ma Joong. Let it come to the back door here, and help Silver Fairy to get Miss Ling inside without attracting attention. I'll go and make one more call, then I shall return to the Red Pavilion. You'll find me there in an hour or so.'

XIII

Ma Joong went to the shopping centre and rented one of the small sedan chairs waiting there, with four bearers. He paid them in advance and added a generous tip. They trotted cheerfully behind him as he walked to the back door of the dormitory. Silver Fairy stood waiting with Miss Ling in the yard.

The girl helped Miss Ling inside, then stared disconsolately after the sedan chair till it had disappeared round the corner. Seeing her sad look, Ma Joong said with an awkward grin:

'Cheer up, dear! You needn't worry about anything, you can leave all your problems safely to my boss. That's what I always do!'

'You would!' she snapped. She went inside, slamming the door shut in his face.

Ma Joong scratched his head. Perhaps she had a point there. He strolled to the main street, in a pensive mood.

When he saw over the heads of the crowd the impressive gatehouse of the brothel guild's office, he halted in his steps. For a while he watched the stream of busy people going in and out there, then sauntered on again. He was deep in thought, trying to reach a weighty decision. Suddenly he went back on his tracks, walked to the office and elbowed his way inside.

Scores of sweating men were crowding in front of the long counter, waving slips of red paper at the row of clerks, and shouting at the top of their voices. Those men were the touts and runners of the restaurants and tea houses, the red slips bore the names of the courtesans or prostitutes wanted by the guests in their respective establishments. As soon as one of them had succeeded in handing his slip to a clerk, the latter would thumb one of the ledgers in front of him. If the woman was free, he would enter the time and the name of the house in his ledger, then stamp the slip and hand it to one of the errand boys loitering by the door. The boy would deliver the slip to the dormitory where the woman lived, and in due time she would proceed to where she was wanted.

Ma Joong pushed the watchman guarding the wicket at the end of the counter unceremoniously aside. He went straight on to the back of the office, where the head clerk sat throned behind his large desk. He was an enormously fat man, with a round, smooth face. He looked haughtily at Ma Joong with lazy, heavy-lidded eyes.

Ma Joong pulled his official pass from his boot and threw it on the desk. After the fat man had studied the document carefully, he looked up with a smile and asked politely: 'What can I do for you, Mr Ma?'

'Help me with a simple business transaction, that's what you can do. I want to redeem a courtesan of the second rank, called Silver Fairy.'

The fat man pursed his lips. He gave Ma Joong an appraising look, then took a bulky ledger from his drawer. He leafed it through till he found the entry he wanted, and slowly read it. He cleared his throat importantly and said: