The Blue Dress Girl

by E. V. Thompson

  Kernow nodded.

  ‘I didn’t like this Chang even then.’

  Erin Veasey took a sip from his glass and looked over the rim at Kernow. ‘You serious about trying to make a go of things with She-she?’

  ‘I am.’

  ‘Does Sally Merrill or anyone else at the consulate know about this?’

  ‘Not in any detail, but what have they got to do with anything? Will you sign me on as a crew member for your next trip to Nanking?’

  Erin Veasey did not reply to Kernow’s first question. Instead he said, ‘How soon can you be ready.’

  “Tonight if necessary. How soon do you sail?’

  ‘You’ll just about make it. I intend leaving on the tide before dawn. My ship’s at the foreign anchorage. I’ll have a boat waiting to take you out there three hours from now. I’d better rustle up a sedan-chair for you, you’ve some packing to do – and not a word of what you’re doing to Merrill or his daughter. If you must tell them something, say you’re taking a sea voyage by way of convalescence. They may not believe you, but these are unusual times. They won’t question you too hard.’

  Chapter 16

  JEN-LIN, CAPTAIN of the palace guard and sister of the wounded Su-san, took She-she into the royal palace of the Heavenly King through the impressive main entrance.

  There was another gate to which she had a key and where they would have attracted less attention, but Jen-lin was displaying a degree of cunning. More than a thousand women lived and worked within the palace walls. Jealousies and feuds were rife. If word reached the Tien Wang that his guard captain was taking girls in or out of the palace by the back door he would think the worst and Jen-lin would forfeit her head.

  All the wives of the Taiping leader were virgins when they came to him. The security that surrounded them while they were in the palace ensured they would know no other man for as long as he lived. There had been doubts about the chastity of only three of his one hundred and eight wives and hundreds of concubines. All three had suffered decapitation. So too had their fathers and the men who had brought them to the attention of their Heavenly ruler.

  The main gate of the palace was heavily gilded and hung on carved pillars of red and gold. Once through the gate the two women walked beneath a covered way which was supported by gilded columns. On the roof of the covered way were numerous carved dragons, each differing from the other in some small detail.

  In sharp contrast to the magnificence of the Taiping leader’s palace were the soldiers who guarded the building. Unkempt and dirty, they lounged in a room alongside the entrance, their uniforms worn and ragged. They sprang to their feet at the arrival of the two women. Jostling and elbowing each other for space at the door, they leered at She-she as Jen-lin took her inside the palace.

  Once inside the main door She-she found herself in the audience chamber. Jen-lin told her that this was the only room in the palace to which men were admitted. It was designed to impress visitors. Gilded lanterns were hung from the ceiling by silken cords. The walls were decorated with embroidered silk panels and painted birds. Fearsome animals and exotic flowers coiled about pillars and reached out across the ceiling.

  As the two women were passing through the room there came the sudden sound of drums, cymbals and gongs. Rising to a deafening crescendo, the noise went on and on, showing no sign of ceasing.

  ‘What’s that?’ She-she spoke fearfully. She believed the noise to be some form of alarm, sounded because she had no right to be inside the palace.

  Jen-lin smiled. ‘You’ll soon become used to that. It’s the signal to inform the household staff that the Tien Wang is about to take his meal. It gives no one any excuse for not being where they should be during meal times. Come, this way.’

  Jen-lin led She-she through a door, across an enclosed courtyard and through a maze of passages that ended in a small suite of rooms. The door was open. Esme Pilkington could be seen inside, hunched over a low desk, writing.

  When she looked up and saw She-she her face lit up in a delighted smile. Rising to her feet, she held out her arms and wrapped She-she in a warm embrace.

  ‘She-she! You’re a delight for sore eyes, my girl. I was beginning to give up all hope of having you here in the palace with me. I sometimes wondered whether I would even see you again! Every time I’ve seen Hung I’ve asked him to arrange for you to join me here, to help me with the translations he wants from me. I’ve been able to get no sensible reply from him.’

  Esme had seen the disapproving tightening of Jen-lin’s lips when she failed to accord the Taiping ruler his self-styled title.

  ‘The Tien Wang has to deal with many problems on behalf of his people,’ said Jen-lin. ‘Too many of the less senior generals are afraid of making decisions. They fear to offend either of the brothers of the Tien Wang, or Chang, or the more senior generals. Because of this they refer even the most petty decision to the Tien Wang, knowing his word is beyond question. It was my decision to bring She-she to you, to avoid more unnecessary problems for the Tien Wang.’

  Jen-lin remained with the other two women for almost an hour. When she had gone, Esme said, ‘Jen-lin is very helpful and has a great deal of authority within the palace. But you must never forget she is fiercely loyal to Hung. Her first duty will always be to him.’

  Chang worked hard at his task of co-ordinating the Taiping armies. He began by visiting the many generals appointed by the Tien Wang. A number of the army-leaders accepted his leadership. Others had held independent commands for too long. They would take orders from no one.

  When Chang returned to Nanking some weeks later he was very angry to learn that She-she had moved into the palace. Although there were many pressing matters of far more importance to the Taiping movement, he raised the subject with the Tien Wang at their first meeting after his return from speaking with the generals.

  Chang might as well have saved his breath. The Taiping leader’s mind was filled with a scheme for having Esme translate the New Testament of the Bible. He wished her to add details of himself and the place he held in the Heavenly family. The Taiping leader remembered Esme asking for She-she’s assistance and assumed he must have agreed to allow her to take up residence in the palace.

  Telling Chang that one woman was of little consequence to the Taiping cause, he explained how he proposed to have the modified Bible translated into both Chinese and English. This would surely impress even the most doubting of European missionaries….

  Unaware of Chang’s frustration, She-she quickly settled down to life in the palace of the Tien Wang. It was an unnatural environment. Life in the palace centred around the Tien Wang and his celestial pretensions. His trances, visitations, proclamations and interminable edicts and poems were all received with an awed respect by palace wives, concubines, servants and officials. All hung on the Tien Wang’s every written and spoken word with a reverence that astonished She-she and angered Esme.

  ‘Hung is a mighty leader to his people,’ Esme told She-she one day. ‘I am also willing to believe his genius must be heavenly-inspired, but if he doesn’t stick to Christian principles he’ll forfeit the Lord’s protection. Hung has been given an opportunity to influence the world for good such as no man has known since our Lord Jesus Christ himself. It is within his power to bring millions of men and women to the true God. If he throws his chance away he’ll not only lose the support of Our Lord, but will be punished for sending the souls of generations of Chinese to purgatory. The numbers will be counted in tens of millions. It will be a monstrous sin. One beyond the comprehension of mere mortals like you and I.’

  Chapter 17

  SHE-SHE NEVER DOUBTED the heavy responsibility shouldered by Hung Hsiu-ch’uan. The self-proclaimed deity possessed the power of life and death over millions of his Taiping followers. Nevertheless, it did not take her long to learn that the Tien Wang was subject to more venal passions within the high walls of his palace, safe from public view.

  The maidservant who cleaned the suite of
rooms occupied by She-she and Esme was a talkative young girl. She was one of many young women who had been taken captive by the Taipings during their sweep through China. She told She-she that not a woman in the palace was safe from the amorous ‘Heavenly King’s’ attentions. It mattered not whether she was wife, concubine or lowly servant-girl. When the mood came upon him, Hung would prowl the corridors and pavilions of the palace, making love to his women whenever and wherever he found them and the urge manifested itself with an astonishing frequency.

  The Taiping leader was also subject to passion of a more violent kind.

  One day She-she was working in one of the many small gardens of the palace. It was hot inside the quarters she shared with Esme and she had brought writing paper and the Bible outside to continue her work of translating sections of the New Testament on Hung’s behalf.

  She heard a commotion in one of the pavilions near at hand but took little notice at first. Quarrels were often breaking out among the palace women. They had little else to occupy them during the daylight hours.

  Suddenly, she was astonished to see the Tien Wang come from the direction of the disturbance, followed by many of the women of his entourage. He did not observe She-she and crossed a corner of the garden farthest away from her. There was an angry expression on his face and consternation among his immediate followers.

  Behind the Tien Wang a single voice was raised in agonised weeping. After doing her best to ignore the sound for some minutes, She-she could eventually bear it no longer. Abandoning her work, she went in search of the wailing woman.

  Inside the nearest pavilion, occupied by some of the Tien Wang’s concubines, she found a pretty young girl seated on the floor of the corridor, clutching her stomach. She was obviously in great pain.

  Between noisy and prolonged bouts of sobbing and wailing, the girl told She-she she was one of the Tien Wang’s concubines and had long regarded herself as one of his favourites. He had come to her quarters today with the intention of making love to her.

  When she broke the news to the ‘Heavenly King’ that she was pregnant, the Taiping ruler had flown into a rage and beaten and kicked her in a frenzied attack. The object of his fury was the child inside her and most of his kicks were aimed at her stomach.

  None of the other concubines dared go to the aid of the girl who had provoked the Tien Wang to such fury. After pleading unsuccessfully with them for help, She-she helped the girl to the quarters she shared with Esme.

  The concubine had a miscarriage during the evening but, despite Esme’s and She-she’s pleas, insisted on being taken back to her own quarters that same night.

  When She-she was summoned to the audience room at the Tien Wang’s command a few days later she immediately thought it had something to do with the assistance she had given to the unfortunate concubine. Frightened of what the Taiping leader might have in store for her, She-she asked Esme to accompany her.

  ‘Of course.’ Esme had been deeply angered by the Tien Wang’s treatment of the Chinese concubine. ‘If he has anything to say about what you did for that unfortunate young girl, I’ll tell him a thing or two about the way he treats his women. If he doesn’t like it he can send me back to Shanghai. I’m beginning to think my being here has less to do with serving God than building up Hung’s image.’

  ‘Don’t anger him,’ She-she pleaded. ‘You are a European. He might think twice about doing anything to you; I am Chinese. No one will go to war if my head is placed on a pole outside the city gate.’

  The imagery conjured up by She-she’s words took Esme aback. ‘I … of course I won’t, She-she. But you needn’t worry. I will treat any threat to you as though it were intended for me. He’ll not harm a hair of your head, I promise you that.’

  When the two women were escorted into the audience chamber they realised immediately that the summons had nothing to do with the unhappy concubine. There were a number of men prostrate on the floor in front of the platform on which the Tien Wang sat on his golden throne. Kneeling on the top step was Chang.

  ‘Kow-tow!’ The order was given by one of the women who had brought them to the room. She-she and the escort flung themselves full-length on the floor while the Tien Wang and Esme played out their charade of praying to God with Esme on her knees.

  ‘Is this the woman?’

  Hung Hsiu-ch’uan put the question to Chang after he had signalled for She-she to rise to her knees.

  ‘She is the one. We travelled to Nanking from Shanghai together.’

  The Heavenly ruler nodded to Chang and then addressed She-she. ‘My royal cousin, Chang, commander of all my armies and most trusted of my people, wishes to take you for a wife. As you are within my household he needs to ask my permission. What do you say?’

  Wishing it were possible for the floor of the audience room to open and swallow her, She-she said, ‘I don’t want to marry him.’

  ‘Why not? Tell me, girl – and I hope for your sake it is a good reason.’ The Tien Wang displayed something of the anger she had witnessed a few days before and She-she trembled.

  ‘The girl has become a dedicated Christian. She wishes to continue to serve God and yourself by helping me to translate the Gospels, as instructed by you. She is indispensable to me. Without her I could not complete my work.’

  Esme came to She-she’s rescue with an impassioned plea, the words accompanied by one of her ‘What’s all this nonsense about?’ looks.

  Although neither woman could possibly be aware of the fact, Hung Hsiu-ch’uan was delighted to be able to thwart Chang, even in such a minor matter. The Tien Wang and his earthly cousin had just had a serious disagreement over the role of the Taiping armies during the next few months.

  The Tien Wang believed the armies should combine and go on the offensive against the Imperial forces. They had reached the gates of Peking once before. He argued that if they struck boldly and determinedly the Taipings could repeat their past glories and this time occupy the Imperial capital.

  He was convinced there would soon be another war between the Fan Qui and the Manchu rulers of China over the issue of Fan Qui representation in Peking. If the issue was brought to a head it would be a great coup if he were waiting at Peking to welcome the Western ambassadors to the capital. It would force the European nations to recognise the Taipings.

  There was much sense in his argument. A carefully timed campaign by the Taiping armies would split the Imperial Chinese army and force it to fight on two fronts, weakening its capabilities considerably.

  Chang disagreed with the reasoning of his Heavenly cousin. He had just returned to Nanking after visiting the areas occupied by the Taiping armies. The generals and their men were not equipped to mount an all-out offensive. His plan was to use what resources they possessed to break the Imperial army’s stranglehold on the Yangtze river, especially in the vicinity of Nanking.

  If the Taipings were to win the battle for China they needed to obtain modern weapons with which to replace the ancient muskets, swords and even spears with which most of their soldiers were equipped. For this they needed to command trade on the Yangtze river.

  Chang did not have the confidence of the army’s commanders yet, but if he obtained modern weapons for their men he knew they would give him the backing for his own plans.

  Hung Hsiu-ch’uan had strong reservations about allowing his cousin to become too popular with the generals. Such power outside his own royal hands might prove exceedingly dangerous to the Taiping throne. The Tien Wang did not want to be forced to carry out another purge similar to that of a few years before.

  The Tien Wang was well aware of the dangers that quickly arose when a strong man was promoted to a senior position within a revolutionary movement. He had only recently elevated Chang to his present high position, but his cousin had already gathered a following from those who attached themselves to ascending stars.

  After weighing up all the issues involved, the Taiping leader had been forced for the moment to agree with Chang over
the policy issue of procuring arms. However, he could afford to allow his pique to surface in other, less dangerous ways.

  ‘I am sorry, noble cousin. She-she is too important to leave my palace at this time. She is engaged in Heavenly pursuits. A wife or concubine is a mere woman. She-she is the interpreter of God’s word. That must take precedence over all else. You will find other girls – in fact, I insist you do so. My birthday is one month away. By then you will have taken the number of wives I have declared to be in keeping with your high office.’

  Chapter 18

  SHE-SHE’S RELIEF at not being forced to marry Chang did not last very long. A few days later the Tien Wang sent for her and Esme to come to his quarters. It was an unprecedented honour. All the way from their own quarters the two women wondered what had prompted such an invitation.

  The manner in which they were received by the Taiping leader was equally puzzling. After She-she had kow-towed and Esme had shared a prayer with him, both women were ordered to sit at his feet while he spoke to them informally.

  Hung’s first question concerned the progress of their translation of the Gospels. When they informed him that the translation was well underway, the Taiping trader expressed his satisfaction.

  ‘This is good. You are working well. Soon I intend giving you many of my Heavenly decrees and proclamations to translate into English. I wish to send them to missions in Shanghai and Hong Kong.’

  ‘Is this wise?’ asked Esme doubtfully. ‘You have said many times that you are not understood by churchmen in these two places.’

  She had read some of the Tien Wang’s proclamations. Filled with confused thoughts, they were hardly likely to impress any of the European missionaries.

  ‘Do they not send the translations of their thoughts to the Chinese peoples? Are not the thoughts of the Tien Wang equally important? I have been to heaven and spoken with God the father and Jesus the elder brother. I will tell them of the mission that has been given to me. I will do more. When you have translated my proclamations and decrees we will work together translating the New Testament. I will tell you where it is wrong. Your people as well as mine have a great deal to learn about my Heavenly Family.’