by Tom Aston
Chapter 30–12:04pm 2 April — Shanghai, China
‘Strip!’ he barked. ‘I say all the clothes off!’
The Chinese guy in the black T-shirt had exchanged the small handgun he used to capture Stone in the crowd of peasants. He was now holding an AK47, as were the other two Chinese in the back of the van. It seemed like overkill at a range of two and a half metres.
The van had pulled away from the ShinComm Tower and driven for five minutes. Now it had stopped and Stone was being made to strip.
‘I say all the clothes!’ he shouted again. ‘And stand up!’
There are ways of doing these things. This was the wrong way. OK — they were checking for RFID chips, which could be tracked. fair enough, but one of the Chinese lads was filming it on his phone, his tongue sticking gleefully in his cheek. Stone kicked his clothes across the van. Accidentally smashing the phone against the side of the van in the process.
‘Sorry.’
As Stone expected, the boss-man of the three scanned the pile of clothes with the RFID detector, rummaging through a couple of times. Nothing. The boss-man shrugged. He banged a couple of times on the side of the van, and they moved off again, Stone sitting unclothed on the floor of the van.
‘Is this what they mean by “coming naked to the conference table”?’ said Stone to the boss-man. Smart words, but he felt pretty stupid.
An hour and twenty minutes later he was at a large villa, by the look of it well outside the city of Shanghai. The boss-man threw him something to wear. Swim shorts. The shorts were the right size. Oyang had done his homework on Stone.
The sky was clear and hot. Stone was led through two sets of gates and around the back of the house, where there was a large swimming pool, two tennis courts and huge garden secluded by high stands of trees and bamboo. There were changing rooms and what looked like an outdoor kitchen. Just your regular Chinese family home then.
A Chinese man lay on a lounger reading the Wall Street Journal in English. There was a young woman by him in the tiniest of bikinis.
‘Oyang,’ said Stone, strolling up to him. ‘So kind of your men to collect me. As you can see, I found the time to change en route.’
‘After what has happened to my good friend Semyonov, Mr Stone, I have to take precautions,’ said Oyang, putting down his Wall Street Journal. ‘It is so easy to plant tracking or bugging devices and,’ said Oyang with a sickly smile, ‘My men wanted to body search you also, but…’
‘But they valued their front teeth,’ said Stone, staring Oyang in the eye. Stone had thought Oyang would be charming but steely, making veiled threats in order to keep the upper hand in the conversation. Instead, on first impressions, he was simply a creep. He kept glancing at that tiny bikini, though the girl didn’t seem to mind.
Oyang asked a flunkey for drinks, and made small talk until they arrived. At one point he turned to the shapely girl beside him, and muttered, ‘Daijobu?’
Stone’s swiveled towards the girl — it couldn’t be, could it? Oyang had just spoken Japanese to her. Stone thought of Junko at the press conference, and in Ekstrom’s sick video.
It wasn’t Junko, of course it wasn’t, but it was creepy nonetheless. After what had happened Oyang had a half-naked Japanese girl with him. She didn’t look up — seemed unaware of it. And as Oyang chatted in fluent English, and occasionally Japanese, it was clear he had the natural manners of a diplomat. He looked a little older than thirty-four, tall and thin, with sparse hair that had been dyed a greasy black. One of those men who looks elegant in a suit, but scrawny and out of shape in a bathing suit. At the moment he had on tennis gear. Shorts, shirt, tennis shoes — all the best brands, the highest quality, but the clothes hung off him untidily.
Oyang had a definite sparkle of intelligence though, and the self-confidence that flows from a first class brain, skill with languages and the knowledge that he’d clawed his way to the top in the most populous country on earth. He was no faker, Robert Oyang.
Stone could see why Junko had liked Oyang — believed every word he said. And the fact that he was credible was no reason to assume he was phony, as Ying Ning had done.
Oyang explained that the Chinese government had tasked him, as a bright young diplomat in California, to make friends with influential young figures in Silicon Valley and make assessments of them and their technology. At that time, though barely in his twenties, Semyonov was already one of the most influential figures in Silicon Valley, rising to pretty much the top of the tree.
‘And what was your assessment of Semyonov?’ asked Stone. ‘You must have got close to him?’
‘As close as anyone, yes. But it is not possible to fly too close to the sun,’ said Oyang wistfully. ‘Semyonov was not like the others. The others were very intelligent people who were driven, worked hard and had some luck. Semyonov was different. A quite extraordinary man.’
‘In what way extraordinary? More intelligent?’
‘Certainly he was more intelligent. And the others had luck, sometimes a lot of luck. It would surprise a lot of people to learn that Semyonov had no luck at all, but he couldn’t fail. You see there was a depth to his intelligence, he was not like other men,’ said Oyang. ‘Firstly, it was like talking to a man of great age, who had learned so many things. But not only facts and languages and technology. It was understanding. To be with Semyonov was to see only the surface of a deep ocean of understanding. How far can a man see into the ocean? Five or six metres, even in the clearest water. Yet when he looked at other people, Semyonov was able to divine everything in their minds. Our motivations, our worries, what made us happy.’
Oyang kept glancing at the Japanese girl’s almost naked body. She hadn’t said much, but she was charmed by Oyang for sure. Not just by his money, by his confidence, relaxed demeanour, and his florid but fabulous command of English. Oh yes, Junko would have believed this guy.
‘That could be intimidating,’ said Stone. It would have made Stone clam right up, for a start. But it kind of explained the feeling Stone had had at the party in Hong Kong that Semyonov was one step ahead of him. ‘Did that make you keep a distance from Semyonov?’ asked Stone. ‘Were you worried he would see your motives? What your government had asked you to do?’
‘Perhaps,’ Oyang replied. ‘But Semyonov saw everything in any case, from the very first time I met him. One did not analyse Semyonov. One stood before him as if naked, and divined the truth from what he said.’
Oyang’s English had a slight accent, but otherwise was better than perfect. It was easy to forget that he was Chinese at all.
‘Nonetheless you got him interested him in China,’ asked Stone. ‘In working and investing in China?’
‘You could say so, Mr Stone, but I never persuaded Semyonov of anything. It was his idea to work in China, and I followed him like a disciple,’ explained Oyang. ‘In Beijing, I took the credit of course. I told them that I had Semyonov interested in China, and as you know, things worked out that way. It was a great success for me. I was richly rewarded, let me tell you. I asked to leave the Chinese Foreign Service and take a job with ShinComm. I helped Semyonov set up New Machine Technology as a subsidiary of ShinComm. The money… well. The money with ShinComm is beyond my wildest dreams.’
‘And I’m guessing your dreams were fairly ambitious.’
‘Naturally. And the power, Mr Stone. Until you have power over hundreds of thousands of people, you cannot know… But I digress. None of this was my doing. I have done no more than follow Steven Semyonov. I would have done the same, even had the pay been modest.’
‘Hold on,’ said Stone, fighting through Oyang’s elaborate words. ‘You’re saying it was Semyonov’s idea to come to China? Not yours? He was never persuaded, still less blackmailed or brainwashed?’
‘Of course not.’ Oyang looked surprised that Stone had even asked. ‘From the very beginning, it was his idea. In fact, it seemed to me that Semyonov had chosen me, and not the other way around. He wanted to come to China
, and he was using me to communicate.’
‘He trusted you?’
‘Yes. He had every reason to.’
‘And now what? What do you think happened to Steven Semyonov?’ asked Stone. There had to be a reason why Oyang had contacted Stone now.
Oyang paused while a servant served a Bellini cocktail. The girl sipped it wrapped in a peach-coloured towel.
‘Who knows?’ said Oyang holding his hands out wide. ‘He was killed by the truck, and all the evidence — his body and the car — was shipped off to Beijing.’
‘He was murdered?’
‘Of course. Steven was killed for a reason. And since I was closer to Steven than anyone else in China, the dark forces that killed him think I know too much. They want me dead too. I am sure of it.’
Here was the whole point of the meeting.
‘And do you know “too much”?’ asked Stone. ‘You said you didn’t know Semyonov well, but do you know why they killed him? What could be the reason? He could hardly have been better friends with China.’
‘I don’t know the reason,’ said Oyang. ‘I wish I did.’ Stone saw there was a “but” coming here. Oyang got up and strolled distractedly around the side of the pool in his tennis whites. Stone observed. Not a drop of sweat on him. He hadn’t played a single point in those pristine clothes. Pure show for Stone’s benefit. ‘But I will say this,’ said Oyang, finally. ‘Steven Semyonov was not forced, or persuaded, or even asked to come to China. He requested it himself.’
‘So you said.’ Stone tried to coax Oyang along. He sensed the man was stalling, but wanted to talk. ‘So when he gave them his fortune — the twenty-five billion dollars — that was all genuine?’ asked Stone. ‘Did he discuss it with you before hand?’
‘Yes, we discussed it, and yes, it was genuine. They took his money, and he was happy with that. A “gesture of good will”, that’s what he told me it was,’ said Oyang. ‘He said it was a small price to pay. You see, Steven had discovered something in China, and it was something he wanted. He wanted to be part of it.’
‘The Machine?’ asked Stone.
Oyang nodded. ‘Yes. That is what he called it.’
‘And what is the Machine? Where is it?’
Oyang shrugged and looked over at the girl’s brown legs again, as if reflexively. ‘I don’t know. And if I make too many enquiries, I’m afraid I will be killed just as Steven was killed. I’m afraid I know too much already.’
‘But you must have asked him about the Machine — privately.’
‘Surely. But Steven was cagey. He said he couldn’t say anything, because the Machine was too dangerous to talk about. It could make people powerful. Whoever could use it — the Americans, the Russians, the Chinese — would dominate.’
This was the point where Stone was supposed to jump in and offer to help Oyang discover the Machine. That was where Oyang had steered the conversation. Stone decided to keep him guessing. He made sure there was there was silence for a minute, while Oyang glanced furtively at him a couple of times over the top of his Ray Bans. Then Stone changed the subject. ‘Do you think he was a good man — Semyonov? You must have heard the rumours about weapons manufacturing. ShinComm is making very nasty weapons. Why would Semyonov do such a thing?’
‘Do you think he would tell a man like me?’ asked Oyang, placing a hand on his chest.
‘You suspected then?’ asked Stone. You’d better believe Oyang suspected. That theatrical hand on the chest as good as confirmed it. ‘Why would Semyonov do that?’
‘I don’t know. As I said, Stone. You can’t analyse Semyonov. You can only listen and learn,’ said Oyang. Again, he definitely had an opinion than this. And here it came. ‘All I can say, Stone, is that once I read a story. Science fiction. The people built a giant computer, a thinking machine, and asked it to rule over them. The computer’s intelligence was so deep, so subtle, that it solved all their problems within a few years. No more war, no more famine. The economy was fixed, the people were happier than they had ever been,’ said Oyang. ‘It was an idea which appealed to Chinese people. All our problems can be solved by intelligence and logic. No needed for contending visions or ideas, or checks and balances. No need for democracy, Stone. Like the rule of the Mandarins in old China. Only the people with the highest degrees and intelligence were allowed in government.’
‘Is that the Machine? A computer that mends everything, that solves all the problems?’
‘I told you,’ said Oyang, with a glance at the girl both wistful and vulpine. ‘I don’t know what the Machine is.’
Stone could see where Oyang was going with this. ‘That’s not much of a story is it, if the Machine makes everything all right? Something went wrong with the computer, didn’t it? It got bored and turned bad. It destroyed the people, who’d lost the capacity to think for themselves.’
‘Very good, Mr Stone. Do you know the story?’
Stone didn’t know that story, but stories are like that. Because Life is like that. ‘Somewhere in the deep ocean of Semyonov’s soul,’ said Stone, ‘Something turned wicked. He turned his intelligence to projects that would create misery and destruction.’
‘Perhaps,’ replied Oyang. ‘But I have no evidence. It’s just an idea.’
That was a lie. That was exactly what Oyang thought.
‘Come on, Oyang. That’s what happened, isn’t it? The Chinese discovered what Semyonov was doing and lost their nerve,’ said Stone. ‘They waited till Semyonov transferred the money to China, and crossed the border, then the authorities got rid of him.’
Oyang gave Stone a meaningful look.
Stone sat back and made a show of enjoying his drink. He made a show of looking satisfied, but he was unconvinced. It was too neat by half, and Oyang had given it up too easily. He knew much more. The girl had escaped by swimming in the pool. Oyang pretended to be distracted by her, and clammed up for a while.
Perhaps Oyang had said obliquely what he wanted to say to Stone, and he’d stopped talking. Perhaps he was nervous he’d said too much already. Lunch was served, with the woman sitting with Oyang, touching his arm, smiling at his jokes. Oyang was back in his element, entrancing, holding forth in English and Japanese, calling for cocktails, and talking his guests through the fine cuisine.
After lunch, however, Oyang got back to business. He beckoned to Stone to follow him, and walked out past the pool and away from the servants. Oyang had something he wanted to say to Stone.
Chapter 31 — 3:14pm 2 April — Shanghai, China
Stone and Oyang stood at the end of the long garden, by a thick stand of green bamboo. It was hot in the sun, and the cicadas sang loudly in the bamboo. There were tiny green snakes the size of pencils wrapped round the bamboo stems — dozens of them.
The time had come for Oyang to say his piece.
‘My little green sentinels,’ said Oyang. ‘If anyone tries to climb in over the fence, these snakes are poisonous. A fine deterrent, I think. I am a careful man, and you should be too.’
Stone turned to Oyang. ‘You didn’t bring me here just to look at the bamboo and the snakes.’
Oyang didn’t miss a beat. ‘I want you to find the Machine, Stone. Find the Machine and tell the world all about it. Where is Miss Ying Ning?’
‘Forget Ying Ning,’ said Stone. He knew Oyang had only asked about Ying Ning because he wanted her kept out of the picture. ‘No one listens to her and China21. Communists like Ying Ning have about as much credibility as the Easter Bunny these days. If you know something, you need to tell me. What did Semyonov discover in China that brought him here?’
‘I have been through Semyonov’s papers,’ said Oyang. ‘Of the Machine, all I can give you is this. I think it refers to the location.’ Oyang passed over a single sheet of paper. ‘There’s nothing I can do with this information myself. They’re watching me, and if I get too close, there will be another “accident” with another coal truck. Don’t let anyone see this, Stone. And don’t make any Internet searches
, at least until you are outside of China. They are watching you. You can be sure of it.’
Stone glanced at the slip of paper.
Stone Forest 328 19.2 9.8179
Field Well 15 8.3 9.8827
Silvermine Mountain 169 15.9 9.8457
2 Trees 3 Trees 97 6.7 9.8837
Sitong 44 0.7 9.8249
It made no sense. Perhaps it wasn’t meant to. But Stone recognised the distinctive writing, and the fountain pen. It was written by Semyonov all right.
‘Why should I do it, Oyang?’ asked Stone. ‘If it’s too dangerous for you, with all your connections, your protection, your money. Why should I decipher it and go looking for the Machine?
Oyang paused, giving Stone another of his meaningful looks. ‘Let me show you something,’ he said eventually. He look a small device from his pocket, the kind of device he might use to open the doors of his car. He pointed the little grey fob at the stand of bamboo and pressed it with his thumb.
‘What are you doing?’ asked Stone.
‘Be patient,’ said Oyang. ‘You’ll find it interesting. It will explain a lot.’
Oyang stood for a few seconds looking at the bamboo, while one by one, the tiny green snakes began to uncoil from the bamboo and fall lifeless to the ground. Stone had already guessed what was happening. He stepped over and picked up one of the snakes, his thumb and forefinger behind its head for safety — but he needn't have bothered. It wasn't a real snake at all.
‘What is it?’ said Stone. ‘Metal and plastic?’
‘Yes, but the teeth are stainless steel,’ said Oyang.
Stone lay the snake along his palm and forearm. It was no more than twenty centimeters long, and barely thicker than a pencil. Another remarkable manufacture, with a slight iridescence in the green of its scales — light, and very life-like.
‘More amazing technology, Oyang,’ said Stone. ‘But you said it would explain something. About the Machine.’