"What do you see?" Wu called, starting toward the garden corner. "Is it an owl?"

Ji studied the tree thoughtfully, then finally shook his head. "It's too big," he said.

"Well, then," Wu said, stepping across a brook. "It must be a tree troll-"

The pop of a breaking stick came from the willow, then one of its sagging branches rustled.

"It's a man!" Yo screamed, pointing overhead.

Wu broke into a sprint. "Children, get away from there!"

The urgency in her voice stunned the children into inaction. They looked at her with distressed expressions, then both began to cry.

Wu arrived beneath the tree a moment later. Ignoring her children's frightened tears, she shoved them behind her. Automatically, she a.s.sumed the stance of the golden crane, her arms raised over her head in a defensive position.

Wu could see a man's silhouette stretched out on a branch, trying to hide in the shadows. He appeared tall and fairly thin, but she could tell little more.

The figure wore a black samfu, along with a black scarf to camouflage his face.

Wu could think of only one reason he would be in the garden. He was waiting to a.s.sa.s.sinate her or the Virtuous Consort. In either case, she thought it wisest not to let him escape. Besides, if she captured an a.s.sa.s.sin, some of the tongues denigrating her husband might be silenced.

In her most commanding voice, she said, "Ji, stop crying and listen to me!"

As she knew he would, her son obeyed immediately.

"This is very important," she continued, not taking her eyes off the figure in the tree. He would hear her instructions, but that could not be helped, "Take your sister and fetch the guards. Tell them to hurry because your mother is in danger. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Mother," he replied.

"Do it right now!" she said. "Run as fast as the wind!"

Ji took his sister's hand, and they sped off toward the gate. Wu continued to watch the silhouette.

As the children crossed the brook, the shadow glanced in their direction. It crawled along the limb toward the western wall. Wu realized that this was no vagabond, for an a.s.sa.s.sin's first instinct would have been to kill, not to run.

The figure had been using the willow trees to climb over the outer wall in secrecy.

It could only be a Tuigan spy, Wu decided quickly.

Almost instantly, she leaped up and grabbed the willow's lowest branch.After the capture of the first infiltrator, the Minister of State Security had inst.i.tuted stringent security measures to prevent more spies from entering or leaving the summer palace. The guard on the outer wall had been doubled, and even mandarins were thoroughly searched when they entered or left the palace.

Wu suspected that the spy had something important to relay to the barbarians if he was willing to brave the increased security. As far as she was concerned, that information could only decrease Batu's chances of returning alive. She had to capture the infiltrator.

Quickly Wu pulled herself onto the lowest branch, then grabbed the next one and climbed after the spy. As she reached the fifth branch, her hand touched a coil of black rope that the enemy agent had probably intended to use in descending the outer wall. She also discovered a faint, fragrant odor she could not quite identify, but which she had smelled many times before.

The spy had already crawled halfway to the end of the limb, but was moving slowly and carefully. Wu tossed the rope to the ground, then followed the dark figure. She did not bother calling out or ordering her quarry to stop, for he obviously would not obey.

Wu scrambled out on the limb rapidly, relying on her kung fu training for balance and strength. As the spy neared the wall, she caught up to him.

A voice at the gate yelled, "Stop! In the emperor's name, don't go any farther!"

When Wu glanced toward the voice, the spy leveled a vicious kick at her head. She easily ducked away and blocked the foot, then found herself tumbling out of the tree.

Landing head-first, Wu went into a forward roll to absorb the impact.

Nevertheless, the fall was a long one and it hurt. The landing knocked the breath out of her lungs and left Wu flat on her back, gasping for breath, the world a white blur before her eyes.

By the time Wu's vision returned, one of Kwan's blue-armored guards stood over her, the tip of his broad-bladed chiang-chun held to her throat. The man's sergeant approached, the coil of black rope in his hand.

"When did you sneak this in?" he demanded.

Wu uttered an astonished objection, but her breath had not returned and she managed nothing but a feeble gasp.

The sergeant dropped the rope over Wu's body. "What kind of a mother abandons her children to join her traitorous husband?"

Wu finally drew a breath, then hissed, "How dare you!"

She pointed at the west wall. "The spy is escaping. After him!"

The guard did not bother to look up. "The only spy I see is lying here."

The green-armored sergeant arrived, carrying Yo in his arms. Though the girl had clearly been sobbing a moment ago, she was now too frightened to cry.

"You can't be serious!" said the sergeant in green. "This woman is no spy!"

The soldier in blue, one of Kwan's men, met the eyes of his counterpart. "I suppose Minister Kwan will have to decide that." He did not order his subordinate to move the polearm away from Wu's throat. She realized that only the presence of Ting's guards kept the man from executing her on the spot.

8

Jasmine

Wu kneeled in a traditional kowtow, her forehead pressed to the floor and her arms stretched out in front of her torso. A tiny pool of perspiration had formed beneath her brow, making the marble feel cold and clammy. Her knees ached horribly and her shoulders were as stiff as those of a statue. At her side, Ji restlessly mimicked his mother's position, his graceful little form folded into an elegant egg-shape. Yo had long since tumbled into a heap and lay asleep on the cold stone. Mercifully, the guards had taken pity on the child and let her rest.

The mother and her children had been awaiting the emperor for over two hours. After allowing the spy in the Celestial Garden to escape unpursued, the two sets of guards had argued about whether Wu should be taken to Minister Kwan or to Minister Ting. They had finally compromised by bringing her to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, where the emperor himself could determine what was to be done with her.

At night, lit only by flickering torches, the Hall of Supreme Harmony seemed more an immense and ominous grotto than an architectural wonder.

The incessant click-click-click of boots on stone echoed from the murkiness overhead, where unseen guards were making their rounds on dark balconies.

Somewhere in the shadowy perimeter, a lone cricket sang its song. A gentle breeze carried the scent of persimmon blossoms through the room.

Finally, Wu heard the doors open behind her, and someone shuffled across the room. Two more people followed the first, the sounds of their steps echoing off the walls with a purposeful cadence. By tucking her chin against her breastbone and looking beneath her armpits, Wu could increase her field of vision enough to observe the areas to either side of her. She saw Minister Kwan totter into view, followed a short time later by Ting Mei Wan. They both went to take their customary seats, moving out of Wu's narrow range of vision.

The third walker stopped to the kneeling mother's right. Ju-Hai Chou bent down and gently awakened Yo. "Come, my child. You're about to meet the Son of Heaven," he said. "Don't you want to show him your respect?"

At the mention of the emperor, Yo grew alert. "The Divine One?" she asked. "Father's master?"

"Yes," Ju-Hai replied, gently moving her into a kowtow. "Everybody's master."

The minister had barely finished speaking before Wu heard the officious steps of several men directly ahead. It would have been disrespectful to lift her head, but Wu did not need to see the Divine One to know that his entourage had entered the hal l. Ju-Hai returned to his feet and executed a deep bow. The guards snapped to attention with a sharp clatter of equipment.

To Wu's surprise, Ju-Hai remained next to Yo.

The emperor took his seat, then said, "What is this all about, Minister Chou?"

"I'm not sure I know, Divine One," Ju-Hai responded. "Minister Kwan sent a messenger to my house claiming to have captured a spy and asking me to arrange a special audience. Naturally, I sent word to you and suggested we meet in the Hall of Supreme Harmony." Ju-Hai waved a hand at Yo, Ji, and Wu. In a voice of exaggerated puzzlement, he said, "When we arrived, all I saw was this woman and her two children."Wu breathed a silent sigh of relief. At least she had one ally present.

"They are General Batu's wife and children," Ju-Hai continued. "Obviously, there has been some mistake."

"Minister Kwan?" the emperor asked, his silk robe swishing as he shifted in his seat.

"There has been no mistake," the old man replied sharply. "We are all aware of the reports regarding General Batu's desertion-"

"Wild rumors," interrupted Ju-Hai. "Probably started by a jealous rival," he added pointedly.

"We shall see." The emperor's robes hissed as he turned away from Ju-Hai and Kwan. "Minister Ting, can State Security shed any light on this?"

"Perhaps," she replied cautiously. "We have been investigating each rumor, as you instructed."

Wu nearly gasped out loud. The news that the emperor was having her husband's loyalty investigated came as a shock. Until now, she had taken the Divine One's trust in Batu as a given, for the Son of Heaven had extended every courtesy to her and the children. Wu felt angry, dismayed, and betrayed. Only the fact that she was kneeling before the emperor himself prevented her from rising to vent her wrath.

"And what have you found, Minister?" the emperor asked.

"Very little," Ting replied. "Though General Batu's disappearance has made many people suspicious of him, no one can provide the slightest proof of any disloyalty."

"Proof!" Kwan stormed. Though Wu could not see the old minister from her angle, it almost seemed she could feel him pointing an accusing finger at her.

"Batu's wife was abandoning her children to join the traitor. What greater proof do you need?"

Ji jumped to his feet. "Liar!" he screamed.

Behind Wu, the guards gasped, but she smiled at her child's boldness. No one had given her permission to rise, so she made no move to silence him.

"Ji," Ju-Hai said, grasping the boy's shoulder. "This is the Hall of Supreme Harmony. You mustn't say such things here."

The boy jerked free of the minister's grip and ignored the reproach. "He's lying! Mama wouldn't leave us."

"I understand that this is difficult for you, my child," Kwan said, his voice dripping with false sympathy. "You mustn't worry. Shou Lung will always care for you, no matter what your mother has done."

"She hasn't done anything!" Ji insisted.

"That isn't for you to say," Kwan replied, his voice growing angry.

Oblivious to the old man's threatening tone, Ji responded. "You weren't even there!"

"That's enough!" Kwan roared, an angry swish of silk indicating that he was rising to his feet. "Remove the children!"

"No," the emperor countered. "The boy is right. Tell me what happened in the Virtuous Consort's garden."

Being addressed by the Divine One himself doused the fire in Ji's heart. He swallowed, looked to his mother's p.r.o.ne form for rea.s.surance, then finally turned back to the emperor.

"We saw something in the tree," he said, looking at the floor. His voice was now quiet and weak."What?" asked the emperor. "What did you see?"

"A man."

"Are you sure?" the Divine One asked. "Could it have been something else, like an owl or a cat?"

Ji frowned and looked at his sister uncertainly. She shook her head sternly, and Ji turned back to the Son of Heaven. "No," he said. "We're sure. It was a man."

"Perhaps one of General Batu's spies, come to fetch his wife," Kwan said, the fabric of his hai-waitao whispering against the chair arms as the old man finally returned to his seat. "If there was anybody in the tree at all."

"What are you suggesting, Minister?" The emperor asked.

"Nothing that you have not thought of already, Divine One," Kwan replied politely. "Merely that Wu has coached her children in answering our questions."

"That is for me to decide," the Son of Heaven replied. Addressing Ji again, he asked, "And then what happened?"

"We ran to get the guards," the boy replied, pointing a slender finger at the soldiers behind him. "Mother climbed the tree."

"Why do you think she did that?" Minister Kwan asked.

"To catch the man!" Ji replied, frowning at the minister's silly question.

"Wu is not a large woman," Kwan said, addressing the emperor. "Do you really think she would chase a spy alone?"

A long pause followed, and Wu realized Kwan's rhetorical question had made an impression.

Ting Mei Wan came to the kneeling mother's rescue. "In all fairness, Divine One," she said, "General Batu's wife is reputed to have skill in the art of kung fu."

Kwan scoffed, but Wu breathed a sigh of relief. When State Security troops had been a.s.signed to the Batu household, Ju-Hai had made a point of saying that he controlled Ting. Apparently, he had not been lying.

After a moment's pause, the emperor said, "These children must be tired.

Perhaps it would be better if they returned to their home."

Ju-Hai signaled to two State Security guards, but Ji stepped boldly forward.

"I want to stay," he said.

"Of course you do," the Divine One replied patiently. "But I am the emperor, and you must do what I say. Is that not true?"

Ji looked to his mother's kneeling form, then to Ju-Hai. The minister nodded to indicate that what the emperor said was, indeed, correct. Dropping his gaze to the floor, Ji said simply, "Yes."