Qiu Xiaolong - Shanghai Redemption

All of this chatter didn’t amount to much. If anything, it spoke to the increasingly widespread corruption in society. Several of the ernai’s men were officials, so a recurring topic was “naked officials”-officials whose families had emigrated, taking huge bank accounts along with them, while the officials themselves remained behind, in that sense “naked.” The rationale behind shipping one’s family abroad was simple. The officials were worried. They didn’t know what would happen to them in the near future. For today, they would just use their positions to embezzle and steal as much as possible. The ernai, however, complained that their men gave “so much” to their families, leaving only little crumbs for them. Some of them actually hoped that their men would take them abroad too.

According to the ernai, about ninety percent of the officials were “naked.” Chen did a quick calculation. That was probably about right, despite those red songs extolling the virtues of the great and glorious Party. Some Party officials might not have sent their entire families abroad, but at least their children were there, studying or working.

Then Chen heard something, one sentence that had almost slipped his attention. He pressed the stop button and rewound the tape.

“Lai’s son studies at an Ivy League college, with several luxury condos purchased in his name in Boston and New York.”

It wasn’t entirely news. In a meeting, Lai had declared that his son was studying abroad because he’d won a scholarship. But what about the condos? For the moment, Chen decided not to give too much credence to the gossip of the ernai.

Sima was just such a “naked official.” With his son studying at a private school in the States, and his wife staying there to keep her son company, Sima was free to find one woman after another for himself. He was also quite cautious, placing Qian in Suzhou and keeping Jin busy with her café.

Chen smiled at the part of Old Hunter approaching Jin. It was so funny, he couldn’t help listening to it again.

OLD HUNTER: I used to be tea drinker. My nephew wants me to drink coffee, saying it’s good for preventing Alzheimer’s. I don’t know if that’s true, but I don’t want to disappoint him. Still, I know far more about tea. In some fancy cafés in Western countries, they also serve excellent tea. It speaks for the sophistication of the establishment.

JIN: Yes, that’s interesting. I’ve heard about that.

OLD HUNTER: I can have my nephew e-mail some pictures to you. He travels a lot.

JIN: That would be great. Here is my card, and I’ll put my e-mail address as well as my cell phone number on the back of it.

Chen wasn’t sure whether there was a real nephew at all, one who might feel avuncular toward the ex-inspector.

He was having his third cup of coffee when his cell phone rang again. It was Peiqin.

“I went to visit your mother during my lunch break. She had a bad scare this morning, I’m sorry to say.”

“What!”

“She left to do her routine shopping at the food market this morning-you know, buying fresh vegetables for the day. When she got back home, she found that her room had been broken into and was completely ransacked. She collapsed in fright. When I got there, she was still sitting on the floor. I went with her to East China Hospital. You know a doctor there, Yu had said. Dr. Hou examined her thoroughly, saying there was nothing wrong, but for a woman of her age, it would be advisable for her to stay overnight at the hospital.”

“You should have called me earlier, Peiqin.”

“She didn’t want me to call at all. I’ve just managed to step outside for a moment.”

“I’m sorry, Peiqin. I really should be thanking you for your help.”

“The doctor said there’s nothing to worry about. He promised me she’ll have a nurse in her room overnight. And I’ll keep you posted.”

Fury gripped him. After saying farewell to Peiqin, he closed the phone forcefully. What could a burglar have tried to steal from an old woman like her? It was hard to imagine why anyone would break in during the morning, not to mention into an old shikumen house with all the neighbors moving about. Unless it had been done by professionals, and for something not related to her at all, but to her son.

If that was the case, then someone seemed to be desperate, for reasons not yet known to Chen.

Or it could have been meant as a warning to him.

For years, he’d been telling himself that, although he wasn’t a good son, he could see to it that his mother enjoyed a comfortable old age. Ironically, the very thing that made the plan feasible-his position in the Party system-was now threatening it. He would never forgive himself if she was hurt because of his problems with the system.

He had to do something-anything-to make sure that it wouldn’t happen again.

But what?

His cell phone rang again with the sound of a wounded bird, startling him. This time it was Old Hunter.

“How did you like the noodles?”

“They were really delicious. Oh, I got the tape, and I’ve been listening to it for the last several hours. Is there anything new?”

“Well, the identity of the car owner was established.”

“Who?”

“Sima.”

That wasn’t news. Qian had already confirmed that Sima was the official in question.

“I have something else for you. But it’ll be at least an hour before I can leave Zhangjiang. And then I’d face all the traffic coming back from Pudong. How about we meet tomorrow morning?”

“Tomorrow morning?”

“You’re still in Shanghai, aren’t you?”

“Yes-” Chen hesitated, thought about his plan to return to Suzhou, and then decided against it. It wouldn’t be a good idea for him to go back to his apartment under the circumstances. Because of his earlier subterfuge about being in Suzhou, if his enemies learned that he was in Shanghai, it would only add to their suspicions.

“Yes, let’s meet tomorrow morning. At the People’s Park as soon as the gate opens. The bird corner.”

“I’ll see you then, at the bird corner.”

AROUND SIX THIRTY THAT night, Chen stood in a crowded subway train to Pudong. With people pushing in and out at every stop, he had a hard time holding on to the overhead handrails.

After the call from Old Hunter, Chen had mulled over his decision to spend the night in Shanghai. It was possible to travel to Suzhou and back again, getting in to Shanghai tomorrow morning. But an unexpected delay would wreck the plan, and he couldn’t afford to be late for tomorrow morning’s meeting in the park. The retired cop might be dramatic, but he knew what was at stake.

If Old Hunter had something new, Chen would be able to show Qian that progress was being made. Perhaps in return, she would try to find out more for him.

But that wasn’t the only reason for staying in Shanghai. He was concerned about his mother, and it was reassuring to be in the city, somewhat nearby, in case he was needed.

But it wasn’t advisable to stay at his own apartment, and he couldn’t stay at Yu’s place, for the same reason. A hotel wasn’t an option, given that all hotel registrations were monitored. So he was going to see Overseas Chinese Lu. An old schoolmate and friend, Lu owned a large luxury apartment near Century Park and had invited Chen over several times. Even showing up unannounced, Chen would be a welcome guest at the Lus, who would most likely urge him to spend the night. Also, since Lu knew nothing about Chen’s troubles, there wouldn’t be many questions for him to answer.

He was reminded of an old Chinese simile used to describe a hopeless situation in which one has nowhere to go- like a homeless dog . The Party system, on which he’d once thought he could fall back, now seemed more like an omnipresent, omnipotent surveillance camera, following his every move.