The Blue Dress Girl

by E. V. Thompson

  Esme was not at all overawed in the presence of the Heavenly King. Furthermore, she was considerably disgruntled at being dragged through the streets of Nanking weighed down with shackles.

  Her anger showed clearly on her face and Hung said quickly, ‘We will pray together. May I ask you to kneel while we seek His blessing on our talk together?’

  Esme realised it was a clever face-saving ruse on the part of the man who sat on the throne before her, but she was also aware that prevarication on her part might throw away the opportunity for which she had waited so long: the chance to talk face-to-face with the man who could introduce true Christianity to millions, who would otherwise die faithless.

  When she dropped to her knees and clasped her hands before her a sigh of satisfaction went up from the palace officials. They had been apprehensive about this large woman. She had managed to cow those who had taken her into custody. Now honour and protocol had been satisfied. All would be well.

  Hung murmured a brief prayer, in which he called upon God to give His blessings to their talk together. It was a prayer with which no churchman could have found fault. Then the Taiping leader called for Esme to be seated in a chair that was brought and placed on a wide step, two treads below the level of the throne.

  ‘You have come from Shanghai, travelling with my earthly cousin, the Prince Chang? I trust you had a comfortable voyage?’

  ‘I would have endured any discomfort rather than miss an opportunity to come to Nanking and preach to the Taiping people.’

  ‘Ah yes, your preaching. This is why you were arrested. You will understand it is necessary for me to make orders restricting such activities? There are few in the Taiping ranks who understand Christianity but many who would influence others for their own mischievous ends. We must not have them preaching falsehoods to the people.’

  A more critical missionary might have taken the opportunity of such an opening to comment upon Hung’s own interpretation of the Christian religion. It did not even occur to Esme. She could think only that the man who sat on the throne was like no man she had met before. Something about him suggested to her that he had been touched by an experience such as few men – perhaps no man – had known.

  ‘I teach only what is written in the Bible. If that influences people it is God’s doing, not mine.’

  ‘Your motives are admirable, Miss Pilkington, as are those of your colleagues. I am always delighted to welcome missionaries to my city, but the Taipings are simple people. They can put a wrong interpretation on the simplest statement of fact. You are not Chinese, Miss Pilkington, and although your knowledge of our language is excellent, it is not perfect. One wrong word is capable of causing a great deal of misunderstanding.’

  ‘Yes. Yes, I can see that. I’m sorry …’

  ‘Please, you must not apologise for serving God, my father. It pleases me, as it pleases Him. It pleases me so much that I wish you to stay here, in my palace, as a member of my household. Your main duty will be to teach the Bible to my wives, to my concubines and to those who serve me. All are women. I allow no man to enter my palace. It has been difficult until now to find someone to take on such a delicate task. You will, of course, submit to me all you intend saying to them and, should there be differences of opinion, you will bow to my wishes. Is this understood?’

  Had any other man told Esme Pilkington she must bow to his wishes, whatever the subject, she would have turned the full force of her considerable wrath upon him. But she had already concluded that Hung Hsiu-ch’uan, the Tien Wang and leader of the Taiping rebellion, was no ordinary man. Like many men and women before her, Esme had fallen completely under his spell.

  ‘I understand. It will be a great honour to be a part of your household.’

  ‘Good! I will send for someone to show you to your new quarters. We must find servants for you too – and you will need a title. Something to command respect from those you teach. From my ministers too. What shall it be? I know, you will be Commandant Messenger of the Heavenly Word. You will rank with my generals and have equal authority. You will, of course, be required to kneel when you enter my presence, but you will be kneeling not to me but to God, my Heavenly Father. I welcome you to my household, Miss Pilkington. We will speak again soon.’

  Chapter 6

  SHE-SHE AND Kau-lin greeted the news of Esme’s appointment to the household of the Tien Wang with incredulity. It was brought to them by Su-san to whom had gone the task of packing Esme’s few belongings and conveying them to the palace.

  ‘They’ll not get along.’ Kau-lin shook her head incredulously. ‘Esme is such a positive woman. She will never agree with the Tien Wang’s views.’

  ‘My sister is a captain of the palace guard. She told me the Tien Wang and Esme spoke together for a long time. She said Esme seems so besotted with him, she would probably have accepted had he suggested she become one of his concubines.’

  The thought of Esme becoming a concubine set all three girls giggling. They had not lost their smiles when Prince Chang came to the house a few hours later. He arrived riding a small Tartar pony, direct from his visit to the generals. As befitted his new exalted status, he was escorted to the house by a company of Taiping soldiers.

  Su-san bowed low when he walked into the house, but Kau-lin walked around him, admiring his fine yellow and red silk clothes. ‘My, you have done well for yourself, Cousin Chang. What would the missionaries in Hong Kong think if they could see you now?’

  ‘It might be better if you called me “Prince” Chang when speaking to me in the company of others.’ He frowned at Kau-lin in annoyance. She should know better.

  ‘Has the Tien Wang sent you to tell me he wishes to make me the Princess Kau-lin? Is this why you have come to visit us? But I doubt if he even knows the sister of Commandant Peng Yu-cheng is here in Nanking.’

  ‘He knows. I myself have told him.’

  ‘Then why doesn’t he send me to my brother? Does he wish him to forget he has a sister? Or perhaps my brother Peng will soon be returning to Nanking?’

  ‘I cannot look into the mind of the Tien Wang, but it is well known he fears all generals who are popular with their soldiers. Peng is one of the best liked, and most successful. It is better for him to remain in Wuhu for a while, keeping the Imperial army busy.’

  ‘Then I will go to Wuhu to find him. Will you arrange a permit for me?’

  ‘I may be able to do better than that. If I am to conduct a successful war against the armies of the Manchu emperor, I must speak with all the Tien Wang’s commanders. Since most are reluctant to come to Nanking, I must go to them. You can come to Wuhu with me.’

  ‘That will be difficult, Your Excellency.’

  Custom decreed that Su-san should bow her head when she spoke to a prince of the Heavenly Kingdom, but her voice carried authority. ‘The Tien Wang has set out the strictest rules for women. They are not permitted to accompany men on the march, whatever the rank of the men.’

  For a few moments it seemed Chang might be angry, then he said, ‘That is so. I have read the Tien Wang’s order myself. However, it is permitted for women to go with the army if they travel as a women’s regiment and maintain the strictest discipline. Is your regiment capable of sharing escort duties with a regiment of men?’

  Su-san had difficulty keeping her enthusiasm in check. ‘I commanded an active duty regiment before women were assigned to other work. Most of the officers and many of the women who were with me then are still serving with my regiment.’

  ‘Then you will become an active service regiment once more. I will call in another women’s regiment to perform your duties in Nanking. Have a list made of the older women. They can transfer to the replacement regiment and explain their duties to the new women. You had better take on Kau-lin as a lieutenant – no, a captain. It will be a temporary rank only, to satisfy the decrees of the Tien Wang.’

  ‘What of me? I have no intention of staying behind in Nanking.’ She-she was alarmed at the thought of be
ing left behind, deserted by everyone she knew.

  ‘I will take you into my regiment too. You can be a lieutenant in Kau-lin’s company.

  ‘No!’ Chang’s voice carried the weight of his recently acquired authority, but he had not yet grown accustomed to his status. When he saw the startled expressions on the faces of Kau-lin and She-she, he shrugged apologetically. ‘I wish to speak to She-she alone, if you please.’

  Now it was Su-san’s turn to appear startled. For a moment it seemed she was about to recall some edict of the Tien Wang forbidding such a discussion between a man and a woman. Before she could speak, Kau-lin took Susan by the arm.

  ‘Come.’ Giving She-she a warm smile, she led Su-san from the room.

  Left alone with Chang, She-she had an uncomfortable feeling that she knew the subject Chang was about to broach. She wished it could be avoided … but he had already begun speaking.

  ‘It is a long time since we first met in Hong Kong, She-she. Much has happened since then. Indeed, we have travelled far from the Hakka villages of our childhood. We have seen strange things and learned much about Christianity and many other matters. Now another new page is about to be written. The Tien Wang has honoured me beyond my wildest expectations. He has conferred the title of “Prince” upon me. You heard Su-san. When she spoke she addressed me as “Your Excellency”. It will not end here. Next to the Tien Wang’s two brothers I am his closest relative. There will be more honours for me.’

  ‘You have done very well indeed, Chang … Your Excellency.’

  He waved away her words. ‘There is no need for you to address me in such a fashion. Not when we are alone. Indeed, if you agree to what I have to say, it will never be necessary again.’

  She-she lowered her gaze to the ground. This was the moment she had been dreading. It was as she had feared.

  ‘I wish you to become my wife, She-she. It will bring honour upon you and your family. You will be my foremost wife, accorded the full honours of a princess. You will live in a palace that is to be built for me beside the palaces of the two brothers.’

  ‘Foremost wife? You have others?’

  ‘Not yet, but the Tien Wang has decreed that a man of my rank should have six wives.’

  ‘He tells you how many wives you must have!’ She-she found his words difficult to believe. ‘Does he also tell you how many children each wife must bear for you?’

  ‘If the Tien Wang considered it to be of importance he would issue an edict on the subject. But you have not answered my question. I am offering to make you my number one wife.’

  Chang was making She-she an offer such as few girls would ever know. True, the Taiping movement was a rebel one. Yet it was the most successful rebellion China had experienced for hundreds of years. It was not incapable of overthrowing the Manchu dynasty and taking over the government of the country.

  If this happened, the wife of Chang would become one of the most important women in the land. She-she, daughter of a Hakka fisherman, was being offered the opportunity to become that woman. It was a breathtaking prospect – but She-she did not like Chang. She did not trust him. Nor could she forgive him for keeping news of Kernow’s safe return a secret from her – and she realised that the Englishman would always stand between them.

  ‘I … I don’t know what to say. Your offer comes as a great surprise to me.’

  ‘Why? I have never tried to hide my admiration for you.’ Chang looked at her suspiciously. ‘Does your uncertainty have anything to do with the Fan Qui officer?’

  ‘I have told you your proposal has taken me by surprise. That is the truth. I had no idea you were considering taking me for a wife.’

  ‘When we first met I had no thought of taking anyone for a wife. Things have changed very much since then. But you still have not given me an answer.’

  ‘You do me a great honour, Chang, yet I must think about this. I am not certain I will be able to cope with the responsibility of being married to such an important man. Becoming a princess.’

  ‘When will you give me an answer?’

  ‘Allow me to go to Wuhu with Kau-lin. I will think along the way and give you my reply when we return to Nanking.’

  Chang was annoyed. ‘It should not be a difficult decision to take. Nevertheless I will wait for a month. I can give you no longer. The Tien Wang has ordered me to choose my six wives before his birthday. That is less than three months away. If you delay too long I will need to take someone else for number one wife.’

  Chapter 7

  KAU-LIN AND SU-SAN thought She-she crazy not to have accepted Chang’s offer of marriage immediately.

  ‘He is handsome, clever, young – and will make you a princess!’ pointed out Su-san. ‘You will never receive such an offer again. Never.’

  ‘Probably not,’ agreed She-she. ‘But I don’t like Chang very much. What does it matter whether I’m called princess, empress – or frog or toad for that matter – if I am unhappy?’

  ‘A frog or a toad will spend its life in the mud of a pond with others who will never be anything but frogs or toads. You have been given the chance to make something of yourself. You will soon be beyond marriageable age. Which is better, to be alone and unhappy in a hut, or in a palace, surrounded by servants and with fine clothes to wear? I wish Prince Chang had asked me. But I cannot stay here trying to change the mind of someone who has apparently lost her reason. I have work to do. A regiment to prepare. Why I should agree to take a lieutenant who can’t see the opportunity of a lifetime when it’s thrust at her, I don’t know!’

  When Su-san had left the house, still shaking her head, Kau-lin said to She-she, ‘What’s your real reason for not accepting Cousin Chang? Has it anything to do with your Lieutenant Kernow?’

  When She-she made no reply, Kau-lin said sharply, ‘You must put Hong Kong and all that happened there behind you, She-she. It is gone. Part of the past.’

  ‘Kernow is alive. Your Fan Qui said so and Chang admits he has spoken of me to him.’

  ‘So? Kernow is in Hong Kong. Chang is here. Face reality, She-she. You will never see Kernow again. I am not telling you to forget him. I would never say such a thing. Remember the times you and Kernow spent together as happy times. Something to dream about when you are old and surrounded by grandchildren. But don’t throw your life away waiting for a dream to return. Your life is here with the Taipings. Take all you can, while you can. That is how I look upon the time I have spent with the American Fan Qui. I like him, I like being with him, I like what we do together. But if I never see him again I will be content with my memories. Be sensible, She-she, I beg you. I only wish someone would give me an opportunity to become the number one wife of a prince – any prince!’

  While all was being made ready for Prince Chang’s journey to Wuhu, an event occurred which caused great excitement in Nanking. In late November word went about the city that five Fan Qui warships were on their way upriver. They were expected to pass by the Taiping-held city sometime that day.

  Kau-lin and She-she were among those who rushed to the high city walls overlooking the river. The warships were a splendid sight. Three were large vessels, bristling with guns. The other two were smaller, but these were also very well armed.

  Seeing the flag they flew made She-she think of Hong Kong and of Kernow. She would have liked to wave, purely as a symbolic gesture. In view of the events that followed, it was as well she did not.

  It was as well, too, that she did not know Kernow was on board one of the vessels.

  He was accompanying Admiral Sir Michael Seymour and Lord Elgin. The British minister had just concluded a treaty with the Imperial Chinese authorities at Tientsin. It had yet to be ratified by Peking, but this was believed to be no more than a formality.

  Under the terms of the treaty, Britain, together with other European nations, would be granted much wider freedom of trade, including access to the Yangtze River. One of the Chinese negotiators, more crafty than his fellows, had suggested that while a reply w
as awaited from Peking, the British peer might care to take a cruise up the great Chinese river. It would be an opportunity to view the prospects for trade for himself.

  Much of the middle reaches of the river was in Taiping hands. The sudden appearance of heavily armed warships was likely to lead to trouble between the rebels and the British. It was a prospect that greatly appealed to the Imperial Chinese authorities. When Lord Elgin accepted the invitation they were delighted.

  Lord Elgin was used to negotiating with the Chinese. He was under no illusions about the dangers of undertaking such a voyage. Nevertheless, it was an opportunity too good to be missed. He would take along a naval surveyor to map the great river. A full report would also be made to the British government on the strength and disposition of the Taiping rebels. In an attempt to safeguard the expedition, Elgin had sent a note to the rebel authorities in Nanking, informing them that he would be passing along the river with his small but deadly fleet.

  One of the British gunboats headed the convoy of British warships. Flying a white flag of truce it passed through the blockading fleet of Imperial junks, sailing well within range of the Taiping shore batteries.

  One by one the batteries fell behind until there was only one remaining. As the gunboat came level with this final defence, the Taiping gunners inexplicably opened fire, scoring a number of hits upon the vessel.

  The British ships retaliated promptly. One by one, as they passed the battery, the men-o’-war returned the fire and She-she saw more than one hit strike home in the fort containing the Taiping guns.

  Finally all the British warships passed out of range of the battered fort. However, instead of continuing upriver they dropped anchor.

  She-she did not share the exaltation of the Taiping residents of Nanking who had little love for the Fan Qui. She felt a strong sense of disquiet. It was her strong belief that the British would not allow the matter to end in such an indecisive fashion, especially when it might be construed by some as a Taiping victory.