“When we had crossed the boundary into the neighbouring district, we found the highway blocked by a number of local farmers, who were crowded around a cart that had gone off the road, and were shouting and cursing at the top of their voices. We joined a group of spectators standing a little apart and saw the following. On the cart stood a tall young fellow, who was not at all afraid of the threatening crowd, but lustily reviled them for a bunch of clayhoppers. He shouted that he had traversed the Empire from north to south, had had any number of adventures and feared nobody under heaven. 'If I have done damage to your field,' he wound up, 'at best this miserable land is not worth more than a few coppers. But if you had let me pass, and talked over the matter nicely with me, I would have given you some raw silk, to make up for the damage. But since you are out for a fight, allright, you shall have it!' Then he sprang from the cart right among them, and with his bare fists started a real onslaught. Then a group of farmers, armed with hoes and sickles, came to help their friends. But the tall fellow rushed to meet them, wrenched a hoe out of the hands of one of the attackers, and let them have it.
“When he had dispersed them, with one powerful push he brought his cart on the road again and went on. We followed him at some distance, till he had reached a fairly large trade centre, called Divine Village. There he rented a room in one of the local hostels. We found out from the waiter that he planned to stay there at least for one week, to dispose of his wares. Since we were outside our district, we thought that if we tried to arrest him there, we might get into trouble with the local authorities, especially since we were lacking direct proof that that fellow was indeed the criminal we were looking for. As he was going to stay there for at least a week, we hurried back here to report to Your Honour, and receive further instructions”.
Thirteenth Chapter
JUDGE DEE HIMSELF SETS OUT FOR DIVINE VILLAGE; THE SILK MERCHANT STARTS PRELIMINARY NEGOTIATIONS.
Judge Dee was very pleased to hear this report. After having thought a few moments he said:
“In my mind there is little doubt that the fellow you traced is our elusive friend Shao, the young silk merchant who stayed at Koong’s hostel. His strange behavior when he met with the leather merchants near the scene of the crime, the fact that he was carrying bales of raw silk, and that he was a man from Kiangsu Province, all these facts tally. His violent behavior with the farmers shows moreover that he is a dangerous ruffian, who might well have murdered his fellow traveller, and the unfortunate villager Wang, who happened to witness the crime”.
Ma Joong, however, was not so sure that they had at last located the murderer. He observed that after all most silk merchants were from Kiangsu, and that a number of them were continually travelling along the highroads of the district. It might well be a coincidence, and the fellow might turn out to be a honourable merchant, though a bit short tempered.But Judge Dee shook his head, and said:
“I have proof that this is no mere coincidence”. Then he told Ma Joong and Chiao Tai about his dream in the temple. He quoted the verse he had seen in the tea pavilion of his dream, and pointed out to them that the name “Divine Village”, next to the obvious meaning of “Godly Village”, could also be connected with “divination”. “This” he said, “clearly implies that we shall find our criminal in Divine Village.”
Ma Joong and Chiao Tai were overjoyed on hearing this, and asked the judge how they should proceed further."The problem is”, Judge Dee said, “how to arrest this man outside my own district. I can, of course, apply to my colleague of the neighbouring district for help, but I greatly fear that before all formalities are concluded, either that fellow will have left the village on his own accord, or that the affair will have leaked out and made him flee to some outlying district where we shall never find him again.”
Knitting his eyebrows, Judge Dee remained for some time in deep thought. Then he said:
“The only solution I can see is the following. Tomorrow morning we shall set out together for Divine Village. There we will rent a room in the largest hostel and find out who is the most important silk merchant in that locality. You then go to visit him and tell him that I am the representative of a wealthy silk firm in Peking who is on his way to Kiangsu Province to buy a large quantity of raw silk, to be used by my firm for producing Peking brocade. You tell him that unfortunately I fell ill underway and had to break my journey for a couple of weeks. You add that now I am in great fear that I will not be able to reach Kiangsu in time before the silk season is over, and that I would prefer to call off the journey out there, provided that I can here purchase the silk at a reasonable price. That will be an attractive proposition for him and he will certainly start to collect all the raw silk he can lay hands on locally. The rest you leave to me”.
After he had thus outlined his plan, Judge Dee returned to his official work. Since he knew that he would probably be absent for a number of days, he disposed of all pending business and moreover drew up a detailed report to the higher authorities. Then he summoned, the warden of the jail and placed the seals of his office in his hands, charging him to deal on his behalf with all routine matters during his absence, and apprising him in a few words of the planned journey to Divine Village. He added that he expected to be back in two weeks at most, and finally enjoined him not to breathe a word to anybody. With all this it had become very late, so Judge Dee went to sleep on the couch in his private office.
Next morning he rose before daybreak and put on ordinary clothes. He sat down at his desk and drew up a document addressed to the magistrate of the neighbouring district. This he concealed on his body together with a sum of silver. When he left the tribunal with Ma Joong and Chiao Tai it was still dark and nobody saw them.
There is no need to describe their journey which was uneventful. After three days they reached Divine Village in hired sedan chairs and halted at the outskirts of the village.
During his previous visit to this village, Ma Joong had learned that the largest hostel there belonged to a certain Mr. Djang. Thus Judge Dee first sent Ma Joong and Chiao Tai ahead to see whether they could rent a room there.
When he arrived at the gate of Djang’s hostel, Ma Joong called out:
“Is there anybody inside? We are travellers from Peking, where my master is a great silk merchant. Have you room for us?”
The waiter, hearing that important guests had arrived, hastened to open the gate and bade them enter. He assured them that they themselves could choose the room they liked. When he asked about their luggage, Ma Joong told him that their sedan-chairs and their luggage were waiting outside the village. He told Chiao Tai to go out there with the waiter and conduct Judge Dee to the hostel, while he himself went inside. The manager of the hostel came out into the courtyard to greet Ma Joong and personally showed him the guestrooms. Ma Joong selected two clean rooms and supervised the waiters in putting everything in order. Then he went out again to the front gate where Judge Dee had just arrived in his sedan chair. While Chiao Tai and the waiter unloaded the luggage, Ma Joong paid the chair bearers off, and then conducted Judge Dee to his room. He ordered hot tea for the judge. When they had refreshed themselves, the manager came in to pay a courtesy call. He said politely:
“I come to inquire the honourable guest’s name. I hear that the gentleman is from Peking and intends to do some business here. I act as a broker for all kinds of business and am always honoured with the patronage of the merchants who pass through here. Moreover the kitchen here can supply any kind of food or wine you might desire!”
“My surname”, Judge Dee answered, “is Liang and my personal name Dee-goong. I am the representative of a large silk firm in Peking. We left there about one month ago, intending to proceed via this place to Kiangsu Province where we were to purchase a large quantity of raw silk for our firm. But unfortunately I fell ill en route and we arrived here only today. Now I fear that I won’t be able to reach Kiangsu before the silk season is over. Since the great silk routes from North and South meet here,
I hoped to be able to purchase the silk here. How is the market for raw silk at present?”
“This place”, the manager said, “is quite some distance from Kiangsu but still we are kept informed regularly about market conditions there. People say that the spring was unusually mild, so that there is an abundance of raw silk. One hundred catties sell there for only 35 silver pieces. The local market price is about 39 silver pieces for a hundred catties. When you consider that it takes several weeks to travel here from Kiangsu and you reckon the transportation costs, then, as I see it, the local price of 39 silver pieces is really cheaper than in Kiangsu”.
Judge Dee pretended to hesitate and began asking all kinds of questions about the quality of the raw silk sold locally. When Manager Djang had answered these, Judge Dee added that this was the first time that he was acting as a travelling representative for his firm. “The old representative”, he said, “died recently, and the boss chose me to succeed him. It is very awkward that I fell ill. I am still eager to do some good business for my firm. Since the silk price here seems not to be excessive I might as well ask you to introduce me to some one who is willing to sell, and then see whether we can do business. If I can purchase all I need here, it will save me the journey to Kiangsu”.
Manager Djang was overjoyed on hearing this, for not only could he make a good commission by acting as broker in this transaction, but he would also have this wealthy merchant and his servants as guests for a couple of days, thus making a tidy bit of profit on the rooms and the food. He gladly promised to do all he could to bring “Mr. Liang” into contact with a dependable silk dealer. He took his leave after ordering the waiter to bring some refreshments and to tell the cooks to prepare a good repast.
When they had finished their meal, Judge Dee told Chiao Tai to stay in the room to guard their luggage. He went with Ma Joong to the manager’s office and asked him whether it would be convenient for him to go out with them.
Manager Djang came hastily out from behind his counter, saying that he would be glad to act as guide. He took them through some winding streets to a busy shopping centre. Large shops occupied both sides of the street. The place had a very prosperous look.
While he stood still in front of an impressive establishment the clerk came out to greet him, saying:
“Mr. Djang, please enter with your friends. My master is out just now but he will be back soon”.
Judge Dee thought that it was fortunate that the superior was out, for now he could try to get some information out of the clerk. Thus he said to Manager Djang:
“We have no other pressing business, so let us sit down here a while and wait for the manager’s return”.
Upon entering, Judge Dee saw a spacious room, without a counter or the other usual appointments of a shop. At one side all kinds of merchandise were piled up high against the wall. On the other side there was a beautiful tea table of carved wood and a set of chairs. The white-washed wall bore the name of the firm in large red characters, while the additional information imparted that transit business was done here in all goods from north and south.
They sat down. The clerk served them tea. During the exchange of the usual amenities, it transpired that the name of the manager was Loo Chang-po, and that his family had lived there for generations. The clerk asked more closely about Judge Dee’s business and what firm in Peking he represented. Fortunately Judge Dee remembered that when he was in Peking in his student days, he used to pass through the Yao-djia Street, where there was a large silk firm called Wayflee or something like that. Thus he told the clerk that his firm was called Wayflee. The clerk immediately smiled broadly and said:
“That is a famous firm! Excuse me. I should have treated you with more respect! When our former manager was still alive he did much business with your firm. Thereafter, when business in Peking flourished more and more, your firm sent its representatives directly to Kiangsu and did not come here any more. Why is it that you are now coming here again to buy raw silk?”
Judge Dee recited the same tale he had foisted on Manager Djang. He was still at it when a man about forty entered the room. Manager Djang hastily rose from his chair, saying: “Manager Loo has returned.”
After the introductions were over and Manager Loo had heard about Judge Dee’s plan, he said:
“You have timed your visit here nicely. Only a few days ago a silk merchant by the name of Djao arrived from Kiangsu. He is an old client of my firm and gave me his bales of raw silk to sell for him. If you like you can have a look at them”.
He took Judge Dee to the other side of the room, and showed him a large pile of bales of raw silk.
Judge Dee looked them over. He saw that most bore the name of a well known Kiangsu firm stamped in large letters. But there were two that were so covered with dry mud that the name of the firm could not be deciphered. Seeing these two bales was enough. He called out to Ma Joong:
“You have long experience in appraising raw silk. Come over here and have a look. It seems to me that the gloss is not all it should be”.
Ma Joong knew that the judge had discovered something. He walked over to the bales, but he first opened a few others and then turned to the two muddy ones.
“The silk”, he said, “is all right. But it has been exposed to moisture on the road. That is why the gloss has gone. Now the contents of these two bales, although they are a bit dirty, still have the right kind of gloss. If the owner is still here, we might try to make a deal with him”.
Judge Dee expressed his approval, and added that if the price was reasonable he might buy the entire lot. Then he inquired whether the merchant Djao was still in town. Manager Loo, eager to do business, said to the clerk:
“Mr. Djao is gambling in the warden’s house now. You go over there and tell him to come here immediately, since there is a party who wants to buy the entire lot of raw silk”.
The clerk went out, and Manager Djang took his leave shortly after, remarking that night was falling and that his presence was required at the hostel to receive new guests.
They all had some more tea. Then the clerk came back with a tall fellow. Ma Joong immediately recognised him as the ruffian he had followed the other day.
Fourteenth Chapter
MA JOONG AND DJAO ENGAGE IN A BOUT OF WRESTLING; A MEETING OF TWO BROTHERS OF THE GREEN WOODS.
Ma Joong gave a secret sign to Judge Dee indicating that this indeed was their man.
Judge Dee eyed him carefully. He was over six feet tall. His face had a dark colour, with small, glittering eyes under bushy eyebrows. He was clad in a short jacket with narrow sleeves, and wore his blue robe tucked up between his legs, so that his trousers were visible. Furthermore he wore thin-soled sandals on his feet, altogether presenting the appearance of a "brother of the green woods” rather than of an honest merchant.
As soon as Manager Loo had seen the new arrival, he stood up to greet him and said with a smile:
“It is said that if you are eager to sell a chicken, it is hard to find a man who wants one. But you are lucky. Only a few days ago you commissioned me to sell your silk, and here I have a buyer for you already”. Then he told merchant Djao Judge Dee’s story.
Merchant Djao had seated himself in the mean time. While Manager Loo was talking he had given Judge Dee a good look. Then he said with a wry smile:
“It is quite true that I want to sell my goods. But I fear that this gentleman here has no real intention of buying”.
Judge Dee’s first meeting with Djao Wan-chuan. Manager Loo bids Djao welcome to his shop. Judge Dee, disguised as a silk merchant, is standing on right, behind the manager. The vertical signboard hanging from the eaves bears the name of Loo’s shop.
Manager Loo was quite taken aback by this unexpected answer, and said hurriedly:
“Mr. Djao, you are joking; you should know better than to say that I would deceive you. This gentleman is a representative of the Wayflee firm of Peking, a house of excellent standing, as everyone in our trade knows."The
tall fellow’s remark, however, had startled Judge Dee even more. He thought that this man, who had at a first meeting found out that he was not the merchant he pretended to be, must be an uncommonly shrewd observer. The only thing he could do was to try to convince merchant Djao that he was wrong. So he rose from his chair and said with a deep bow: “Greetings to you, Mr. Djao”.
The tall fellow immediately answered him with a still deeper bow and said respectfully:
“Your Excellency, please remain seated. This insignificant person has delayed too long in paying you a courtesy visit, for which I implore your pardon”.
This speech amazed the judge still more, for apparently this man Djao knew exactly who he was.
“Elder brother”, Judge Dee said, “what makes you address me like this? Are we not all businessmen who are wont to talk as equals? What is your honourable name?”
“My surname”, the other answered, “is Djao, and my name Wan-chuan. I am a much-travelled man. I have traversed the Empire from north to south and moreover am conversant with the art of physiognomy. Now what might be Your Excellency’s business here? May I respectfully ask your honourable name and inquire what your official position is at present? Would I be far wrong if I took it that you are now the magistrate of some district or other?”
On hearing this Judge Dee felt greatly ashamed, for evidently he had played his role as merchant very badly. However it was too late to go on pretending, so he said sharply:
“If you know exactly who I am, you cannot be ignorant of the case that brought me here!” Then he gave Ma Joong a secret sign. Ma Joong jumped forward shouting:
“You dog of a robber, did you think you could escape by fleeing to this place? Now our judge has come here himself to arrest you. We shall drag you to the tribunal in chains!”
The Poisoned Bride and Other Judge Dee Stories Page 12