Chapter 4.2

The guards were soon racing away on their horses in the direction of the villa. Yi Lian Kai noticed that the guards had finished treating Pan Jian Chi’s injuries and said, “Your skills saved the day today. May I ask whom you learned riding from?”

Pan Jian Chi said, “I graduated from the Imperial j.a.panese Army Academy and although I learned some riding tricks there, I never thought they would become as useful as they did today.”

Gao Shao Xuan made a sound of surprise and said, “I’ve heard of this academy. It’s very famous in j.a.pan and is known as the cradle of j.a.panese generals. But last year its top student turned out to be an exchange student from China, which the j.a.panese resented as a huge loss of face. My father was full of praise for this student whom he said really made all Chinese proud.”

Pan Jian Chi replied lightly, “Master Gao is too generous. That Chinese student merely did what he was supposed to. We Chinese aren’t inferior to the j.a.panese anyways, so topping his cohort was nothing exceptional.”

Gao Shao Xuan was a little displeased by this remark and said, “Mr. Pan seems to have taken an exception to this top student. One wonders what your own results were like and how did you place?

His tone was lightly mocking and he never expected that after a glance at him, Pan Jian Chi would answer coolly, “I placed first.”

This remark startled not just Yi Lian Kai, but also Qin Sang and Gao Shao Xuan. Qin Sang was shocked that all these years he had been away in j.a.pan of all places and had even graduated with honours from a military academy. Gao Shao Xuan, on the other hand, was shocked that Pan Jian Chi was the very same Chinese student he had been praising.

Yi Lian Kai, both shocked and pleased, exclaimed, “To think you are the student whom Governor Gao spoke so highly of! Why didn’t you say so earlier? Come! We must drink to our heart’s content tonight, firstly to help calm your nerves and secondly, as thanks for saving me today! We shall not return sober!”

Everyone was feeling down from the earlier incident but now Yi Lian Kai was in high spirits and began to question Pan Jian Chi about his time at the academy. The latter answered him readily and began recounting some anecdotes. Yi Lian Kai was still listening raptly when the car came for them so he told Pan Jian Chi to ride with him. Then, as though realising it might appear that he was neglecting Gao Shao Xuan, he added, “ Qin Sang, look after Master Gao for me.”

Since Qin Sang didn’t want to go back with Pan Jian Chi, she merely nodded her a.s.sent. To Gao Shao Xuan, this pleasant surprise proved short-lived for he soon realised that they could not talk openly in the car. As a result, he sat in bashful silence. As Qin Sang was also lost in her own thoughts, she had very little to say and so they sat together in silence. Gao Shao Xuan was aware of a sweet scent faintly emanating from her. But he was at a loss for anything to say. He recalled how she had looked pleadingly at him earlier, that soft helpless expression that had tugged at his heartstrings. If she were to ask it of him, he could see himself doing anything for her. Except that such an exquisite flower already had an owner. He could only look on and observe Yi Lian Kai’s treatment of her which was neither kind nor gentle – one could even call it ill-treatment. He could not help sighing often and feared he might soon blurt out something inappropriate. Fortunately the car sped along and they were soon at the Yi villa.

Although Yi Lian Kai had invited Gao Shao Xuan to be his companion, he now treated Pan Jian Chi as the honoured guest and ordered the kitchen to prepare a feast for dinner. Qin Sang had

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retired upstairs upon returning and when Yi Lian Kai sent for her at night, it was Han Ma who came down to report, “Young Mistress has a headache and doesn’t feel like dinner tonight.”

As Yi Lian Kai was used to Qin Sang’s petty ailments, he thought nothing of it. Only Gao Shao Xuan was disappointed. At dinner, Yi Lian Kai had a jar of excellent wine from Qianping brought out. He was a good drinker and, on finding Pan Jian Chi to be the same, was delighted to order that the winecups be changed for bigger ones. And whilst Gao Shao Xuan ordinarily had no head for drinking, he was feeling low enough to want to drown his sorrows. During the dinner, Yi Lian Kai kept asking about life at the academy. Pan Jian Chi was lucid and voluble, recounting how he had come first in the written and practical parts of the exams, how he had handled the provocations from his instructors, had done battle with j.a.panese students in the drill ground, at last beating them soundly… As Gao Shao Xuan listened, he kept lifting his gla.s.s to say, “I’ll drink to that!” The three of them drank and talked with gusto. However, after imbibing a few big cups of wine, Gao Shao Xuan was soon pa.s.sed out on the table.

Yi Lian Kai saw that he was clearly drunk and ordered that he be helped to the car and escorted home.

There was still a lot of wine left and as the two of them chatted, they finished half the jar. Yi Lian Kai was about to open another jar when Pan Jian Chi said earnestly, “To be frank, Master, I’ve already done my best to keep pace with you. If we keep drinking, I’m afraid I’ll end up like Master Gao and have to trouble you to have your men carry me out.”

Yi Lian Kai burst out laughing and said, “All right, since your hand is injured, I won’t insist that you drink.” He ordered that the remains of the feast be cleared away and a bubbling hotpot be brought out, together with some light side dishes. It was cold up in the mountains and only the autumnal chirping of insects could be heard outside. At times, lured by the bright lights inside the hall, moths fluttered vainly against the windows, paused before flitting up and then fluttered against the gla.s.s again.

Pan Jian Chi, watching the moths thres.h.i.+ng against the windows, began tentatively, “There’s something I want to say. My excuse is that I’m drunk, but I’m not sure if it’s a proper thing to say.” Yi Lian Kai, who was already feeling somewhat tipsy, said laughingly, “You saved my life today so why worry over whether you should speak or not?”

Pan Jian Chi lifted his head and looked at him. Yi Lian Kai saw that Pan’s eyes were glittering and heard him say slowly, “Pardon my boldness but here is my advice. Get rid of Adjutant Song tonight, tomorrow just announce that he committed suicide to escape punishment and then pay off his family to keep them quiet.”

Yi Lian Kai seemed to be wholly taken aback. He came to his feet slowly, gripping the table for support, his eyes never leaving Pan Jian Chi. After a while, he smiled and said, “Are you drunk?”

Pan Jian Chi was unperturbed and met his eyes squarely. “Master’s plan is watertight. Even if Yi Lian Shen hears about what happened today, there’s nothing he can do. No less than the son of the provincial military governor was with you, an unimpeachable witness who can testify that Adjutant Song was discontented and plotted against you. But if you relent and let Adjutant Song live, given Yi Lian Shen’s smarts, you may well be giving him a chance to turn the tables on you someday.”

Yi Lian Kai sat down slowly, reaching for the teapot and pouring himself a cup of tea as he did so before saying deliberately, “I don’t understand a single word of what you just said. Second Brother and I may have our petty differences, but we are brothers after all. So you can stop trying to sow discord between us. I’ll take it that you’re drunk. You had better not repeat such rubbish next time.”

Pan Jian Chi laughed. “I’m just an outsider so you’re right not to trust me. If I may say so, Young Madam is kind-hearted and if she does not succeed today, she will very likely try again to get Adjutant Song freed. You’ve survived against all odds to get to where you are today… moreover the world is your oyster…” He laughed softly, “Don’t let a mere woman set you back.”

Yi Lian Kai sipped his tea slowly and in silence. Pan Jian Chi tossed his chopsticks on to the table and said, “For better or worse, I’ve said my piece. If Master wants to silence me, then give me a gun now.”

Yi Lian Kai lowered his teacup, measuring Pan Jian Chi up, but the latter seemed completely at ease, seemingly unconcerned about whether he lived or died. For a moment, Yi Lian Kai had indeed felt a murderous urge, but after seeing Pan Jian Chi’s att.i.tude, he couldn’t help but admire the other man and could not forbear sighing, saying, “You saved my life today. Why would I want to kill you?”

Pan Jian Chi actually laughed aloud. “Master is a man of ambition who is going to achieve great things. Why would you worry about such trifling details? Besides, even if I didn’t save Master today, all that would have happened to you would be a bad fall, but nothing life-threatening. In fact, the harder your fall, the more your old gentleman’s* heart will ache. I only fear that by stopping your runaway horse today, I’ve set back your foolproof “self-injury” ruse. If Master wants to kill me, it would be without any guilt.”

Yi Lian Kai smiled slightly and said, “You’re wrong. I really don’t want to kill you.” He studied Pan Jian Chi with interest and said, “I just want to know what flaw it was that made you realise it was all a ruse.”

Pan Jian Chi said, “There was no flaw. Should you decide to kill Adjutant Song tonight, even if Yi Lian Shen has his suspicions, this ‘self-injury’ ruse can still work as planned. You might as well let your second brother take the credit for this in the old gentleman’s eyes… let the Marshal think that Adjutant Song was silenced by your brother after failing in his mission.”

Yi Lian Kai burst out laughing uproariously. The dining hall was lined with gla.s.s and enclosed so his laughter reverberated around the room for a long time. After a good while, he said, “might as well let Lao Er* take credit for it…. This suggestion is really…. funny…. funny.”

“Isn’t that what Master was planning? To kill two birds with one stone. Get rid of the spy he planted on you, and at the same time give the Marshal cause to feel displeased with your brother’s actions.”

The Yi family had very strict rules, especially against womanizing and gambling and particularly, against taking concubines. Yi Ji Pei had himself taken a few concubines but had permitted none of his sons the same licence. Yi Lian Kai may have fooled around outside but had never dared to cross the line under his father’s unbending rule. Now when he saw Qin Sang gazing at him, he was even angrier and told her, “Go back up first.”

Qin Sang could not quarrel with him in front of strangers so she merely looked coldly at him before going upstairs. Used to being quiet in her room, she picked up a Western magazine to flip through. Shortly after, she heard the sound of a car outside. Han Ma came in to report in a whisper, “Master went out with that woman.”

This was not unexpected but Han Ma’s next words were: “Even the new Adjutant Pan wasn’t allowed to follow them. Master is really… and that woman too – she actually came all the way here, shameless hussy that she is.”

Qin Sang guessed that as Pan Jian Chi had just arrived and moreover was supposedly a distant cousin of hers, Yi Lian Kai might have found it awkward to bring him along. But here was a good chance so she said to Han Ma, “Where is Adjutant Pan now? I want to go into town to do some shopping so ask him to accompany me.”

Han Ma thought she was still angry with Yi Lian Kai and said with a smile, “Going out for a while is good for you, Young Mistress. It’s better than brooding at home.” Soon she had changed to go out and went downstairs to ask for the car to be prepared.

Since Yi Lian Kai did not hold any military posts, his so-called adjutant was really more of an attendant and dogsbody, who did not wear a military uniform and whose job was to accompany Yi Lian Kai whenever he went out carousing. Pan Jian Chi, still in a Western-style suit and leather shoes, politely handed her into the car before taking his seat next to the driver. Her heart was full of questions but since the driver’s presence made conversation inconvenient, she merely sat quietly watching the scenery outside the car window.

The car whizzed down the mountain road and they were soon in the garrison town. Although a small town, it was popular as a summer getaway with the rich and distinguished and so had prospered. Two intersecting streets paved with bluestones were lined with shops supplying every need. The goods they sold were of a quality as good as any found in Chengye and so were naturally more expensive.

Pan Jian Chi was certainly not backward in any attention- upon alighting, he held up an umbrella to s.h.i.+eld Qin Sang from the sun. She gave the driver ten yuan, saying “Adjutant Pan will accompany me to the shops or to eat. Leave the car here and go have lunch yourself.”

The driver obeyed with alacrity. Pan Jian Chi followed behind Qin Sang to some shops where they bought a few things. He carried the umbrella with one hand and held her wrapped packages with another. Although Qin Sang had a lot to say to him, she held her tongue. Finally when the blazing sun was high above in the sky and it was gradually getting hotter in the streets, she noticed a Western-style restaurant across the road and proceeded to enter.

The proprietors of the Western-style restaurants were a shrewd bunch, especially those of this town. One glance at Qin Sang’s dress established her as someone of unusual status, and that there was someone to fetch and carry for her could only mean that she was from one of the great families – either a daughter or wife. With a face wreathed in smiles he came forward to welcome her and, with a deep bow, showed them up to the second floor where it was quieter.

Business was slow that afternoon and they were the only two customers on that floor. A vase of golden h.e.l.l’s bells sat gleaming on the pristine white tablecloth. The suns.h.i.+ne streaming in through the windows glimmered on the golden folds, each ripple of sunlight bright enough to hurt the eyes.

Qin Sang held a cup of iced water but did not drink. She studied the beads of water condensing on the cup, which suddenly trickled down and cooled her palms slightly. Putting down the cup, she looked up at Pan Jian Chi and asked softly, “What are you up to exactly?”

Pan Jian Chi smiled but didn’t answer. Disconcerted, she went on, “Now that you’ve returned from studying in j.a.pan, shouldn’t you be making something of yourself, instead of being at someone’s beck and call?”

Pan Jian Chi smiled slightly. “We all have our own paths to walk. Even if I have ambition to spare, with no background or backing, who would bother with a mere scholar? Master Yi chooses to look upon me with favour. As the saying goes, ‘A true gentleman will sacrifice his life for a friend who understands him’. I feel it’s well worth my while.

Qin Sang could scarcely believe her ears. Unspeakable anger and disappointment welled up in her heart. Pan Jian Chi continued, “Back when you first wanted to be with me, I had neither a father with power and influence, nor a family with high social standing. Naturally your father looked down on me. Later on, my mother sold off the family land just so I could study in j.a.pan. Of course I was determined to succeed and I topped my cohort, but so what? All my j.a.panese cla.s.smates were the sons of wealthy and notable families. Once in the field, they were automatically commanding officers, even generals, but me? I returned home only to myself rebuffed at every turn. I was envied, set up and thrown into jail. Ambition? Career?” He smiled almost mockingly. “Without backing or money, I’m little better than an ant and about as easily done away with.”

Qin Sang was silent for a good while before asking, “Are you really going to work for Yi Lian Kai?”

Pan Jian Chi smiled. “As long as he treats me well, I have every reason to reciprocate.”

At this, Qin Sang burst out, “I had thought you a true revolutionary, but it turns out you’re so ready to desert the cause…” Here she broke off, unwilling to offend him. Moreover he had once been dear to her so she swallowed the rest of her words. She turned her gaze out the window. There were no pedestrians. Only s.h.i.+mmering heat filled the streets. It was just after the start of autumn, with its spell of tigerish hot weather and it was also the hottest time of the day. As a result, the shops were deserted, their signboards hanging silently in the suns.h.i.+ne. As it was not market day, the streets were deserted save for a barber’s pole which had been set up in the shade of a fence. Even the barber was listless and struck his sc.r.a.p of iron in a desultory way.

On such a quiet afternoon, the occasional sound of the iron sc.r.a.p being struck seemed to magnify the silence.

She had thought that he had run the great risk of staying, perhaps because he had wanted to tell her something. Never had she imagined she could be so disappointed by their conversation. At first, she had harbored a faint hope, fearing that he might have taken employment with the Yi family for her sake or because he really was a revolutionary – even that could have been supportable. But out of so many reasons, he had chosen the basest of motives.

Pan Jian Chi seemed to sigh slightly as he said, “I hope you can understand that we all have our own paths to walk.”

Qin Sang said, “No, I don’t and I don’t want you to work for this family either.”

Pan Jian Chi did not say anything and merely smiled again.

The conversation ended on this unhappy note. On the way back, Qin Sang recalled that she and Deng Yu Lin had once watched a movie together and sighed over the fickleness of men. Never did she dream that she would experience it personally. Although Yi Lian Kai never allowed her to interfere with his affairs, he could be receptive at times and she might be able to persuade him then. This Pan Jian Chi was no longer the Li w.a.n.g Ping she had known. She could not afford to have him around. It was too dangerous.

Her wish was not granted however. Yi Lian Kai was nowhere to be seen for the next few days, going out early in the mornings and returning late, taking Pan Jian Chi along with him. As Yi Lian Kai was in the habit of staying out overnight, no one in the household was much concerned. Only Han Ma was afraid she might be angry and took care not to bring up his name to her. This state of affairs persisted for three or four days until he finally returned to the villa.

Qin Sang was sitting in the back pa.s.sageway reading. A huge apricot tree in the courtyard had cast half the pa.s.sageway in its shade. A rattan chair had been placed in the shady area, next to it a rattan high table held some tea, pastries and fruit. The sunlight that filtered between the leaves fell across the pages of the book, flitting like golden b.u.t.terflies. She had just begun on Faust when there was a sudden honking of a car horn from the front of the house. No one other than Yi Lian Kai would arrive in such a fas.h.i.+on. Sure enough, his laughter could soon be heard, over that of a woman’s. Qin Sang could not but find their laughter grating on the ear.

She was about to get to her feet when she saw him. Far from being alone, he had his arm around Min Hong Yu as they both swaggered in. Qin Sang frowned slightly and moved to leave but Yi Lian Kai chose that moment to hail her laughingly: “Come come, Hong Yu, come and meet our Young Mistress!” Min Hong Yu narrowed her eyes, smiled ingratiatingly, and said in a voice as soft and smooth as satin: “How do you do?” She added with a t.i.tter, “You must excuse my not calling on you when I trespa.s.sed here the other day.” She then curtseyed. Her carriage was graceful, her curtsey natural and spontaneous.

Qin Sang, unwilling to figure as a joke among the servants, controlled her temper and – ignoring Min Hong Yu – got up to leave.

Unexpectedly, Yi Lian Kai’s expression turned dark. He let go of Min Hong Yu and strode forward to grab Qin Sang saying, “I’m talking to you!”

Qin Sang didn’t want to talk to him. He reeked of alcohol and cigarettes. She held her nose and said, “Let go!”

He demanded, “How can you be so rude when she came to greet you?”