CHAPTER XLIV.
A SEA VOYAGE--THE COLAO RELATES THE ADVENTURES OF THE PRINCESS.
Once on board, they were safe, for although the junk had been painted toresemble a trading ship, she was equipped with arms of every kind, and,moreover, with men, who had been hidden below; and it was fortunate thatshe was so well prepared, for when a Tartar junk put off after them, thecrew of the latter no sooner perceived the deck crowded with armed men,and a flag hoisted at the masthead, displaying the terrible name ofKoshinga, than they relinquished the chase.
Once out at sea, the vessel was as quiet and happy as a holiday junk,and Chow sought permission to enter the state cabin of the princess.
"Truly, my brave Chow, we have had a narrow escape from thesebarbarians," said the princess; adding, "The words of the noble Ki werewise, the secret must have been known, and sold to the usurper."
"Truly thy servant would willingly sacrifice his mean life, could he seethe great Yong-Li ascend the throne of his magnificent ancestors,"exclaimed Chow; but, to his surprise, the beautiful eyes of the princessbecame suffused with tears.
"It is not under heaven, O princess, that thy slave can have given theepain?" said Chow.
"Surely this is weak, for no tears should be found in the eyes of thedaughter of the Mings, but those caused by the suffering of the people,"said the princess; adding, "Alas! my poor brother, with him has departedthe last hope of his race."
"What are these sad words, O my princess? Is it possible that theEmperor Yong-Li can have left the earth?"
Then, with an effort to subdue her sorrow, she said, "Even so, my braveChow;" but, her grief overcoming her resolution, she could utter nomore, and Chow respectfully left the cabin, followed by the colao, whothus related the adventures of the princess, and his mother, from thetime of their abduction by the strange soldiers:--
"When, O brave Chow, the robbers found they had obtained the great prizethey had so long been in search of, they hastened with all speed to thesea-coast, where they hoped to find a ship that would take them to thecoast of Pe-tche-Lee, where the army of Li was reported to be encamped;when, however, they reached the port, they heard that the Prince Yong Lihad quarrelled with Woo-san-Kwei, and having got together a great army,had marched to the city of Chao-Hing, which, after a few days, he hadretaken from the Tartars, and caused himself to be proclaimed Emperor.Then, when the cunning thieves heard this news, and also that Yong-Liwas reconquering the country all around, they bethought themselves thatYong-Li would give them a much higher price for a sister that he lovedso dearly, than would Li-Kong for a princess whom he only hoped to makehis wife; so, making a virtue of a necessity, the rogues threwthemselves at the feet of the royal lady, implored pardon for theirroughness, and making a merit of their great crime, declared they werethe faithful servants of her house, and intended to take her to herroyal brother's court. Too glad to hear such news, she readily bestowedupon them a pardon; and, moreover, promised them great rewards if theywould only conduct her in safety to her brother's presence.
"After some months' tedious and difficult traveling, they arrived atChao-Hing, where they found that the report was truthful, and that theprince had really made a very great stride toward his throne. Well, therogues were rewarded, and the princess delighted at being not onlyrestored to her brother, but to the good and great Candida Hiu, who hadescaped to Chao-Hing some time previously, with myself, the ancientservant of the imperial Mings; but, alas! fortune is capricious. A greatarmy of barbarians so encompassed the city, that we were unable toprocure food; still we held out, and the soldiers fought bravely, withthe hope of being soon relieved. Then some foul demon put it into thehead of the Tartar general, that the place might be taken withoutfighting. So, seeing that the waters of the river were at a greaterheight than had ever before been known, he first made a breach in thewalls, and then caused his army to cut away the dikes and embankments,so that the waters rushed in such terrible force that the houses werebeaten down, and the city made one vast pool, in which three millions ofpeople were drowned, the Lady Candida among them. Fortunately, however,the Emperor, the princess, and their servant, escaped the flood, and,after many trials and difficulties, reached the court of the King ofPegu, who, seeing the heir to so great a throne in such misfortune,readily offered him one of his palaces for his residence; and there weremained happily for some time, and might have continued till morefortunate days, but that its coming to the ears of the Tartars, that thePrince Yong-Li was under the protection of the King of Pegu, the latter,for fear of being dethroned by his terrible neighbor, was compelled togive the prince into the hands of the Tartar, who, taking him to Pekin,there had him destroyed in a cruel and ignominious manner. Fortunately,however, the Tartar did not know that the imperial La-Loo, was with herbrother, and so, aided by the King of Pegu, I traveled into my ownprovince of Fokien, taking the princess as my daughter, and thy motheras her attendant; and no plan could be so safe, for the Tartar barbarianhad proclaimed that all those Chinese nobles who had suffered by thetyranny of Wey-t-song, or Li-Kong, should be reinstalled in their formerrank and possessions, conferring upon me alone, for my long and faithfulservices to my late master, the high and honorable title of 'Faithful tothe Emperor.'"
"Truly this is a sad and marvelous history," said Chow, taking arespectful leave of the venerable noble, and proceeding to the duties ofthe ship.
CHAPTER XLV.
THEY REACH THE PALACE OF THE SEA CHIEF KOSHINGA.
Oh! how the heart of the princess bled for the poor people, as sailingalong that coast she saw with what terrible haste the Emperor's commandhad been obeyed. There, as far as the vision could pierce, ran, blazed,crackled one cordon of fire; miles in thickness, this fearful beltseemed as if it were to ward off the attack of worlds of savage beasts,instead of one mortal man. Yet such was the shocking policy of theTartar despot, that to starve the great sea warrior from the coast, helaid waste hundreds of miles, ruined millions of his new subjects, andturned a fertile and populous land into a dreary wilderness.
For some days the little ship ploughed those waters, which, thoughfamous for their tempests, were, as if in augury of better fortunes, nowas placid as a lake, till at length they came in sight of thePescadores, from almost every point of which they could see the colorsof the victorious Koshinga. Then they reached the point of Formosa, uponwhich the Hollanders had erected their fort, but from which now floatedthe flag of the sea chief; then Chow sent up a signal, and in reply theDutch guns bellowed forth a salute. Shortly afterward some large bargesput off from the shore to the ship, the princess and her party tooktheir seats, and were speedily rowed to the shore, upon which she had nosooner put her foot, than Nicholas fell upon his knees before her,saying, "Welcome, illustrious daughter of the Mings, to the kingdom ofKoshinga."
"Surely, my brave and noble brother, this is but mockery; for thedaughter of the Mings is now but an outcast orphan," said the princess,taking Nicholas by the hands and assisting him to rise.
"Not so, O illustrious, princess! for, like a brand from the flames,this great and fertile island hath been plucked from the thievingTartars and Hollanders by Koshinga, that it may be restored to theprincess of China, as a resting-place, till the whole of her empire berecovered."
"Who, O my brother, is this bold, brave man that thus shakes the worldby his power?"
"A patriot, and a true Chinese, whose only ambition is to root out themiserable Tartars from the land, and restore its throne to its ancientEmperors," replied Nicholas; adding, "But the princess would see thisterrible sea chief." Then he led her through the double rows of troops,which were drawn up the whole length between the castle and the shore,and all of whom bent low with respectful loyalty as the daughter oftheir late Emperor passed. When within the castle, he led her to a doorwhere a number of ladies in rich dresses stood ready to receive her."Now, O illustrious princess, will thy servant prepare the noble chieffor the great honor of thy visit," said Nicholas, leaving her to thecare of the ladies.
CHAPTER XLVI.
THE KING AND QUEEN OF FORMOSA.--HAPPY TERMINATION OF THE STORY.
The pleasure of the princess had changed to grief; she felt disappointedand desolate, for once fallen from her high rank, and having been thrownby misfortune beneath the care of Nicholas, she had learned to regardhim as a brother; therefore, after the death of the Prince Yong-Li,great had been her delight, by anticipation, of again meeting him--butnow, alas! the brave youth seemed changed. Was he not, indeed, one ofthe officers of the great Koshinga, by whose command he had receivedher, not as a dear friend, but with the cold and formal respect due tothat exalted rank, which, as it seemed about to rob her of her adoptedbrother, was hateful to her?
Thus, in a very melancholy mood, she followed the ladies through thecorridor into a suite of rooms, magnificently furnished with the spoilsfrom the well-laden ships of Li-Kong. She, who, more fortunate than mostprincesses, had had the painful mantle of royalty torn from hershoulders and been permitted for a season to taste the troubles ofordinary mortals, which, compared to her former state, seemed luxuryitself, was again about to be petrified by state garments, and, like theidols, her Christian teaching caught her to despise, placed upon athrone high up out of the way of common humanity, and as her experiencehad taught her, mocked with a false adoration.
The morning came, however, and still she as much feared to meet thechief as if he had been her greatest enemy. At last the terrible momentof meeting came, and she was conducted by her ladies to the great hallof the castle, which was hung with yellow cloth of gold. Not noticingthe crowd of officers around, who were bowing to the ground, she benther head downward, and as the ladies led her forward to the chair ofstate, she heard, "Welcome to the Queen of Tai-ouan." The welcome wasechoed by a hundred voices; the princess looked up, the throne wasvacant, but by her side, and holding her hand, stood the terribleKoshinga, at the sight of whom she trembled, but it was with joy, forthe great sea chief after all was neither more nor less than Nicholas,the son of the merchant of the south, who, by his great abilities,valor, and energy, had conquered a kingdom and crowned himself.
Thus ends the troubles of the princess, Chow, Nicholas, and my story. Iwill, however, add, that although by some unaccountable neglect thehistorians of China have omitted to say one word about the queen, theyall state that not only was Koshinga, the great son of Chin-Chi-Loong,crowned first King of Formosa, but in that capacity received ambassadorsfrom several of the monarchs of Europe.
THE END.
The War Tiger Page 46