The Emperor's Pearl: A Judge Dee Mystery (Judge Dee Mystery Series)

by Robert Van Gulik

  ‘What do you want, stranger? ‘

  Taking hold of himself, the judge spoke gruffly:

  ‘My name is Jen, I am a boxing-master from the capital. I have to stay here for a few weeks, and Mr Sheng Pa directed me here, for advice about getting a few pupils. To keep my rice-bowl filled, you see?’

  Miss Liang did not reply at once. She raised her heavy right arm and patted her hair, combed straight back over her bullet-like head and gathered in a small bun in her neck. She was looking steadily at the judge all the while. Suddenly she said:

  ‘Let me feel your hand!’

  His hand was buried in her ham-like, calloused fist. He was a strong man, but he winced involuntarily. He had to summon all his strength to counter the pressure of the vicelike grip. Suddenly she let go.

  ‘All right,’ she said. ‘So you are a boxing-master. They come with beard and whiskers nowadays, it seems.’ She rose with surprising agility, strode round the counter and filled two rice-bowls from a stone wine-jar. ‘Have a drink, colleague!’ she said casually.

  He saw that she was as tall as himself. Her head seemed to grow directly from her broad, round shoulders. While sipping the rather good wine he asked curiously:

  ‘Where did you learn the trade? ’

  ‘Far up north. I led a troupe of Mongolian women wrestlers, you know. A few years ago, when we came to the capital for a demonstration, the Third Prince engaged us for the Palace. The whole Court, gentlemen and ladies, used to turn out to see our naked wrestling bouts. I say naked, but we did wear a small brocade apron in front, mind you! We are modest girls.’ She emptied her bowl in one draught, spat on the floor and went on: ‘Last year the Minister of Rites reported to the Throne that our wrestling was indecent. Indecent my foot! You know who was behind it? It was those Court ladies! They were jealous, couldn’t bear that their men saw what it takes to make a real woman, for once! Those skinny, measly bits of skirt! Bah, if Merciful Heaven hadn’t given them a nose, you couldn’t tell their front from their behind. Anyway, the Throne ordered the Prince to dismiss us.’

  ‘Where are the other women of your troupe? ’

  ‘Went back to our country. I stayed. I like China. The Third Prince gave me a whole gold bar when I left. “ When you get married, Violet, don’t forget to let me know! ” His Highness said. “I’ll present the groom with a step-ladder, all of silver, for he’ll be needing that for ascending you! ” He was fond of his little jokes, His Highness was!’ She shook her large head with a reminiscent smile.

  Judge Dee knew that she was not boasting. Ministers of State could approach the Princes only on their bended knees, but those exalted persons were wont to treat the acrobats and jugglers they patronized as their equals.

  ‘Sport is the only thing I am interested in,’ Miss Liang resumed, ‘so I started this training-hall. I charge the men only for what they drink, the instruction is free. Some of those fellows show promise.’

  ‘I heard that two are especially good. Couple of vagrant students by the name of Tong and Sia, I think.’

  ‘You are behind the time, my friend! Tong is dead. Good riddance to bad rubbish.’

  ‘Why? I was told that Tong was an able boxer and a likeable fellow.’

  ‘He wasn’t too bad, as a boxer, that is. As to likeable…’ She turned round and bellowed: ‘Rose!’

  A thin girl of about sixteen appeared from behind the door curtain in the back wall. She was drying a saucer with a rag.

  ‘Leave that dish alone, put your nose to the wall and show your backside!’ Miss Liang ordered.

  The girl obediently turned her back to them. She loosened the upper part of her robe and let her arms slip out of the sleeves. Her skinny back was covered with white scars. As she was about to loosen her sash, Miss Liang growled: ‘That’ll do! Dress up and go on with the dishes.’

  ‘Did Tong Mai do that?’ Judge Dee asked.

  ‘Not exactly. But Tong was around here a lot, till a few weeks ago. The foolish wench took a liking to him and let him take her out one night. He brings her to a place somewhere in the north quarter. In the dark the only thing she can see is that it’s rather a big house. He takes her to a dark room. She can’t see who is there, but before she knows what is happening she is stripped, fixed face down to a couch and beaten up. As you saw. Later Tong comes back, unties her, and brings her back to this street. Gives her a silver piece, tells her to keep her mouth shut and disappears. Stupid wench tells me only a couple of days ago, when I happen to walk in on her when she is bathing and see the welts. Pity Tong is dead, I had planned to do the same to him, only more thoroughly. Well, the gallivanting jade got a good lesson, anyway.’

  ‘Was she raped too?’

  ‘No, she’s still a virgin—for the time being. Else I would have reported the affair to the tribunal, of course. I know my duties. But the wench went of her own free will, and accepted payment for it. So what could I do?’

  ‘Did Tong often procure girls for degenerate lechers? ’

  ‘Apparently. But only for one. Same fellow as he hunted out curios for, I believe. Tong got into trouble with that kind patron, recently. Tong was an ambitious scoundrel, wanted too much money, perhaps. But I think that his friend Sia, that stupid bastard, took over the good work.’

  ‘Sia did you say? Why do you think that?’

  ‘Sia is not as clever as Tong, not by a long way. Yesterday morning he comes in here, he’s had a few drinks, which isn’t anything unusual. What is unusual is that he pays his drinking debt to me. I ask: “Have you bumped into the Money Tree? ” “ Not yet,” he says, “ but tonight I am going to get a lot of money. I promised to put a chicken in a coop for a fellow.” “ Better be careful that you don’t land up in a coop yourself! ” I say. “ Don’t worry! ” he says with his toothy grin. “ It’s a lonely place, no one will hear the cackling! And Tong says that the fellow always pays on the dot! ” I lay my hand on his shoulder, friendly-like, and I say: “ Out you go, Sia my boy, and let me never see your ugly scarred mug again! ” He sails across the hall against the doorpost over there. When he has come to, he scrambles up and from the door shouts rude things at me. Then I nail his sleeve to the post, like this.’

  While she was speaking a long knife had suddenly appeared in her hand. Now it flew across the hall and landed in the doorpost with a dull thud. There was a hush in the hall. The two fencers went to the door. With difficulty they pulled the quivering knife from the wood and brought it back to Miss Liang with respectful bows. She remarked with a complacent grin:

  ‘If I get nervous, I am liable to start throwing things about!’

  ‘If you aren’t careful, you might get into trouble some day!’ Judge Dee warned her.

  ‘Me? I am afraid of nobody! Not even of the authorities. When I left the Palace, His Highness gave me a paper with a seal on it as large as your head. It says that I still belong to the Imperial Household, and that I can be judged by the Palace Tribunal only. Well, you asked about Tong and Sia. Now you know. Anything else I can do for you, Mister Magistrate? ’ Seeing Judge Dee’s startled look, she scoffed: ‘You didn’t think you could fool a woman who has been rubbing shoulders with high officials for years, did you now? I know one when I see him! Else I wouldn’t have been blabbing to you as I did, would I? Mark my words, Magistrate, Tong was no good and Sia is no good.’

  ‘For Sia you can use the past tense too, Miss Liang. This morning he was killed, most probably by the same scoundrel who used to employ him. Do you know who he is? ’

  ‘No sir, I don’t. I asked Rose, but the wench hasn’t got the faintest idea. She was fixed to that couch face-down, remember, and he never said a word. Only laughed. If I had known who he was, you could have sent your constables to gather up what I had left of him. I object to those kind of people.’

  ‘Well, you gave me most useful information. By the way, Sheng Pa asked me to put in a good word for him with you.’

  Suddenly her broad face lit up.

  ‘He did, did he?
’ she said coyly. Then she frowned and asked sternly: ‘Does he intend to send me a middleman, charged with offering a formal proposal? ’

  ‘Well, not exactly. He only asked-’

  ‘To put in a word for him, eh? The stubborn bastard! He has been sending all kinds of fellows over here of late, to put in a word for him! Well, I won’t say yes or no, he’ll have to take his chance. He’s a fine, upstanding man, Sheng Pa is, I’ll admit that. But I have my principles.’

  ‘The trouble is that he seems to have his principles too,’ Judge Dee observed. ‘But I can tell you that he has a steady income, and that I find him a useful and dependable fellow—in his own peculiar way.’ Thinking that he had done enough for redeeming Sergeant Hoong’s promise, he set down his bowl and said: ‘Thanks very much. I’ll be on my way now.’

  She saw him to the door. In passing she said to a squat fellow who was sitting on the bench against the side wall:

  ‘We’ll now go through those strangleholds once more, Mister Ko, if you please.’

  The man went pale under his tan, but he rose obediently.

  The street outside was as hot as an oven. Judge Dee quickly mounted his horse, nodded at Miss Liang, who was standing at the door, and rode off.

  XII

  The judge guided his horse in a western direction. Miss Liang’s information had introduced an entirely new element into the murder cases. He had therefore decided to make one more call before going back to the tribunal.

  Arrived at the Temple of Confucius, he halted in front of a neatly plastered, two-storied building across the street. The windows of the ground floor were provided with iron bars, those of the second floor had a row of long spikes all along the sill to prevent thieves from climbing up there. A discreet small signboard over the door bore the name of the shop: ‘Treasurehouse of Antiquity’. The judge dismounted and fastened the reins to a stone post, where an awning provided shade for his horse.

  The young shop-assistant came to meet him with a broad smile.

  ‘Mr Yang has just come back, sir! He rode out to a farm where they had dug up an old inscribed stone. He is now in his study upstairs.’

  He led Judge Dee along the cupboards crammed with smaller and larger antiques to the staircase at the back.

  The spacious room upstairs was artificially cooled by two copper basins on the floor, piled with iceblocks. A diffuse light filtered through the two high windows, covered by paper screens. Faded scroll paintings hung on the wall space in between, and against the side wall stood a rack piled with dog-eared books.

  The huge curio-dealer was sitting at a table of polished ebony. Leaning back in his armchair, he was examining a slender vase of red porcelain which he held in his large hands. When his assistant announced the arrival of the magistrate, Yang carefully set the vase down on the table, then quickly got up. He made a low bow, pulled up another armchair to the table and said in his booming voice:

  ‘Your Honour doubtless wants to see that fine painting I mentioned last night! It’ll be found worth an inspection, I trust! But let me first offer you a cup of tea, sir!’

  Judge Dee sat down and accepted a round silk fan from the assistant.

  ‘I shall be grateful for a cup of tea, Mr Yang,’ he said, fanning himself, ‘but the painting will have to wait till some other time. I dropped in here in order to obtain some information. Confidentially.’

  The curio-dealer motioned his assistant to leave them alone. He himself poured out the tea, then he sat back in his chair, looking expectantly at his visitor with his shrewd eyes.

  ‘I am faced with no less than three murders, Mr Yang,’ the judge began. ‘You know about Tong Mai and the Amber Lady, and you will probably have heard already that this morning Sia Kwang was found murdered too.’

  ‘Sia Kwang? No, I hadn’t heard. Just came in, as a matter of fact. Now, I remember that name! Someone told me that a peddler of curios called Sia Kwang associated with all kind of riff-raff, and warned me against having dealings with him. So one of his disreputable friends knifed him, eh?’

  ‘His murder must be connected with the two other crimes. I don’t mind telling you that I find myself up against a blank wall. It would greatly help me if I knew a little more about the persons who had relations with the victims, so as to give me at least an idea of the background of those appalling crimes.’ He took a sip from his tea, and continued with a smile: ‘I have a high opinion, not only of your knowledge of antiques, Mr Yang, but also of your knowledge of your fellow men. Hence I came to you.’

  Yang made a bow.

  ‘I feel most flattered, Your Honour! I must stress, however, that, apart from my customers, I don’t see much of the townspeople, and hear little of the local gossip. Since my wife died six years ago, and my two sons established their own business down south, I have lived only for my business and for my antiquarian studies. I lead a monk’s life more or less, you know! I look after my simple needs myself, don’t want clumsy maids around the house who break my best vases! At night no one disturbs me, for my assistant comes in for the day only. This is the kind of life I had always been looking forward to, sir. But it implies that I have lost touch with what is going on in this town!’

  ‘The persons I am interested in are your customers, Mr Yang. What about Dr Pien, for instance?’

  Yang emptied his cup, folded his arms and replied:

  ‘Dr Pien collects jade. It stands to reason; old jade is supposed to possess medicinal qualities, hence most physicians and pharmacists develop an interest in it. The doctor has a small but fairly representative collection. He uses the pieces for study, he isn’t interested in their commercial value at all. In this respect he is quite the opposite of his colleague in the drug business, Mr Kwang Min. Mr Kwang often has very valuable pieces, but he buys those purely as an investment, to be re-sold at the first opportunity. Mr Kwang is a keen businessman, first and foremost! Mr Kou Yuan-liang buys from him occasionally. Not me, his prices are too high.’

  ‘I have met Mr Kwang. I thought he lived in the capital,’ judge Dee remarked.

  ‘He does indeed. But he travels a great deal, and he visits Poo-yang at least every two months or so. But that’s confidential, sir!’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Because,’ Yang replied with a sly smile,‘Mr Kwang also supplies Dr Pien’s competitors here with drugs. Besides, Mr Kwang asked me to keep his visits to Poo-yang secret because of another reason too. He explained to me that he bought very cheaply a piece of land adjoining the Mandrake Grove some years ago—through the intermediary of Dr Pien. Mr Kwang made Dr Pien believe that he bought it just as an investment. In fact, however, Kwang has been sending his men there to gather the plant, on the edge of the grove. If Dr Pien knew that, he would of course ask Kwang to pay him a commission. As I said before, Mr Kwang is a very shrewd businessman indeed!’

  ‘Quite,’ judge Dee said. He reflected that Kwang, without actually telling lies, had yet succeeded in giving him an entirely wrong impression of his activities. And, since that blandly courteous gentleman collected curios for gain, he might well have employed Tong or Sia to locate bargains for him—and for other purposes too, perhaps. He asked:

  ‘Do you happen to know where Mr Kwang usually stays when he is here in Poo-yang? ’

  ‘If he doesn’t stay on his junk, he rents a room in the Hostel of the Eight Immortals, sir. A very small, cheap inn,’ he added with a deprecating smile.

  ‘I know the place. Mr Kwang is certainly a parsimonious man!’

  ‘Money means everything to him, Your Honour. He doesn’t care a fig for antiques, for him it’s just a side-line to make money. Mr Kou Yuan-liang—now there’s a real collector for you! Doesn’t mind what he pays as long as he gets the best! Can afford it too, the lucky fellow!’ He pensively rubbed his chin, then resumed, somewhat diffidently: ‘As to me, I am a mixture of both, more or less. My business is buying and selling, of course, but I fall in love with a piece now and then, and keep it for myself. Wouldn’t part with it a
t any price. And, as I grow older, this weakness gets worse. Formerly I enjoyed inspecting all those superb things in Mr Kou’s collection, used to go there at least once a week! But the last four five years or so I go there only when Mr Kou invites me, and then I never go farther than his reception room, I refuse to see his collection. Jealousy, pure and simple!’ He shook his head with a wan smile. Suddenly he asked: ‘By the way, sir, have you discovered a clue to the murder of the drummer of Dr Pien’s boat, that fellow Tong Mai?’

  ‘Not yet. As I told you just now, it’s a baffling case. To return to Mr Kou, I have always heard that he has indeed a choice collection. The man has the eye of the connoisseur. That is proved also by the women he chose for himself. Although his First Lady has been ill for a long time, she still is a very handsome woman—I happened to meet her, last night. And I must say that his Second Wife, the Amber Lady, was also an outstanding beauty.’

  Yang shifted uneasily in his chair. After a while he said, as if he were speaking to himself:

  ‘Kou’s eyes never fail him. I remember Miss Amber when she was still a small ungainly slave-girl in old Tong’s household. But Kou bought her, taught her what clothes to wear, how to make herself up, how to do her hair, what perfume to use, and himself selected her earrings, necklaces and other finery. After one year she had developed into a perfect beauty. But Heaven decided that he didn’t deserve to possess those two exquisite women. Now Mrs Kou is incurably ill, and the Amber Lady is dead.’

  He stared straight ahead, pensively plucking at his short beard. ‘It is not without reason,’ the Judge spoke,’ that the Ancients said that he who strives after possessing perfect beauty thereby excites the ire of the gods.’

  Yang did not seem to have heard the remark. Suddenly he looked the judge full in the face and said sharply:

  ‘No sir, Kou didn’t deserve it! Since we are talking confidentially, I may as well tell you that there’s a queer streak in his character. Let me give you an example. Once he was showing me one of his best pieces of foreign glass, a priceless Persian bowl. While turning it round in my hands admiringly, I pointed out to him a small discoloration near the bottom and remarked with a smile: “It’s the small flaw that gives beauty its finishing touch! ” Kou took the bowl out of my hands, looked at the flaw, then smashed it to pieces on the floor. A crime, sir!’