Robert Gulik - The Chinese Maze Murders

"How then do you explain that Mrs. Yoo is so eager that the riddle of this scroll is solved?"

"Women", Tao Gan replied, "are liable to overrate the influence they have on the man who loves them. I am convinced that Mrs. Yoo hopes that the old Governor in his benevolence has concealed in the scroll some money draft or a direction how to find a hidden sum of money, to compensate her for losing part of the property."

The judge shook his head.

"What you say", he remarked, "is quite logical, but it does not accord with the old Governor's character. I am convinced that this document here is a forgery produced by Yoo Kee. It is my theory that the Governor hid some unimportant document in this scroll in order to lead Yoo Kee on to a false trail. As I said before, this is too crude a device for Governor Yoo to have used for concealing something of real importance. Next to this false clue, the picture must contain a real message concealed in a much more ingenious manner.

Since the Governor feared that Yoo Kee would suspect that this scroll contained something valuable and would have it destroyed, he inserted some document in the lining for Yoo Kee to find. Thus he made sure that Yoo Kee, having found that, would not search further for the real clue.

Mrs. Yoo told me that Yoo Kee kept the scroll for over a week. That would have given him sufficient time for discovering the document. Whatever it was, he replaced it by this spurious testament, so that he would be safe no matter what Mrs. Yoo would do with the scroll."

Tao Gan nodded. He said:

"I admit, Your Honour, that that is also a very attractive theory. But I still think that mine is the simpler one."

"It should not be too difficult", Sergeant Hoong remarked, "to find a specimen of Governor Yoo's handwriting. Unfortunately he used archaic script for his inscription on this landscape painting."

Judge Dee said pensively:

"I had planned to visit Yoo Kee in any case. I shall go there this afternoon and try to secure a good specimen of the Governor's regular handwriting and of his signature. You will go there now with my namecard, Sergeant, and announce my visit."

The sergeant and his colleagues rose and took their leave.

As they were crossing the courtyard the sergeant said:

"Ma Joong, what you need is a large pot of hot, bitter tea. Let us sit down in the guard house for a while. I would not like to leave the tribunal before we had cheered you up a bit!"

Ma Joong agreed.

In the guard house they found Headman Fang sitting at the square table talking earnestly with his son. The latter rose hastily when he saw the three men enter and offered them seats.

They all sat down and the sergeant ordered the constable on duty to bring a pot of bitter tea.

After some desultory talk Headman Fang said:

"When you people came in I was just discussing with my son where we should search for my eldest daughter."

Sergeant Hoong sipped his tea. Then he said slowly:

"I don't wish to mention a subject that must be painful to you, Headman. Yet I feel that we should not ignore the possibility that White Orchid had a secret lover and eloped with him."

Fang shook his head emphatically.

"That girl", he said, "is quite different from my youngest daughter. Dark Orchid is headstrong, she has a very independent character. She knew exactly what she wanted ever since she was but as high as my knee, and usually knew how to get it too. Dark Orchid should have been born a boy. My eldest, on the contrary, was always quiet and obedient. She has a soft, pliable character. I can assure you that she never even thought of having a lover, let alone eloping with one!"

"That being so", Tao Gan remarked, "I fear that we must be prepared for the worst. Could not some low ruffian have kidnapped her and sold her to a brothel?"

Fang sadly nodded his head.

"Yes", he said with a sigh, "you are quite right. I too think that we should check the licensed quarters. You know that there are two of that kind in this town. One, called the Northern Row, is located in the northwest corner of the city wall. The girls there are mostly from over the border, that quarter prospered greatly during the time when the route to the west still led through Lan-fang. Now that Northern Row has fallen on bad times, it is a favourite haunt for the scum of this city.

"The other one, known as Southern Row, consists of high-class establishments only. The girls there are all Chinese, and some are quite educated. They are not unlike the courtesans and singing girls of the larger cities."

Tao Gan pulled at the three hairs on his left cheek.

"I would say", he observed, "that we should start with the Northern Row. I gather from what you say that the houses of the Southern Row would not dare to kidnap girls. High class establishments like those are always careful not to offend against the law; they buy their girls in the regular way."

Ma Joong laid his big hand on the headman's shoulder:

"As soon as our judge has cleared up the murder of General Ding", he said, "I shall request that the job of locating your eldest daughter is entrusted to Tao Gan and me. If there is any man who can find her, it is this wily old trickster, especially when I am at hand to do the rough work for him!"

Fang thanked Ma Joong with tears in his eyes.

At that moment Dark Orchid entered the gate, demurely dressed as a housemaid.

"How do you like the work, my girl?", Ma Joong called out.

Dark Orchid ignored him completely. She bowed deeply to her father and said:

"I would like to report to His Excellency, father. Would you kindly take me there?"

Fang rose and excused himself. Sergeant Hoong went out to transmit Judge Dee's message to Yoo Kee, and the headman crossed the courtyard followed by his daughter.

They found Judge Dee sitting alone in his office, his chin cupped in his hands. He was deep in thought.

As he looked up and saw Fang and his daughter his face brightened. He acknowledged their bows with a friendly nod and then said eagerly:

"Take your time, my child, and tell me all about your experiences in the Ding household!"

"There can be no doubt, Your Honour", Dark Orchid began, "that the old General was in great fear for his life. The maids in the Ding mansion told me that all the food had first to be fed to a dog in order to prove that it had not been poisoned. The front and side gates had to be kept locked day and night, which is a great nuisance for the servants as they have to unlock the door for every visitor or tradesman who comes to the house. The servants don't like working there, everyone in his turn is the object of the old General's suspicion, and closely questioned by the young master. They don't stay longer there than a few months on end."

"Describe the members of the household!", the judge ordered.

"The General's First Lady died some years ago and now the Second Lady directs the household. She is in continual fear lest the others shouldn't treat her with sufficient respect and she is not an easy mistress to work for. The Third Lady is quite an uneducated person, fat and lazy, but not hard to please. The Fourth Lady is very young; the General acquired her here in Lan-fang. I suppose that she is of the kind that men find attractive. But while she was dressing this morning I noticed that she has an ugly mole on her left breast. She spends the greater part of the day in front of her mirror, if she is not trying to wangle some money from the Second Lady.

Young Master Ding lives with his wife in a small, separate courtyard. They have no children. She is not very good-looking and a few years older than her husband. But they say that she is quite accomplished and has read many books. The young master has occasionally brought up the question of taking a second wife, but she would never allow it. He now tries to make up to the young maidservants but without much success. Nobody likes to work in that household and the maids don't care whether they offend the young master or not.