Qiu Xiaolong - A Loyal Character Dancer

He was pulling out the chair for her when his phone started to ring. He turned it on, and his face became serious as he listened. At the end of the call, he said, “I’ll be there.”

“What’s up?”

“We have a change in plans,” he said. “The call was from Qian Jun at the bureau. We’ve had a response to the missing person notice. A pregnant provincial woman has been reported working in a restaurant in Qingpu County, Shanghai. Apparently she’s from the south, speaking with a strong southern accent. “

“Could it be Wen?”

“If Wen boarded a train for Shanghai, it’s possible she changed her mind and got off there, one or two stops before Shanghai. Perhaps she did not want to bring trouble down on her people. So she found a job there instead of moving into a local hotel.”

“That makes sense to me.”

“I’m going to Qingpu,” Chen said. “It’s a long shot. Many people are pouring into Shanghai for jobs-even into the counties. So quite possibly it’s a false lead. There may be a lot of things that would be more interesting for you to do here, Inspector Rohn.”

“I wish I had something more interesting to do.” She put down her chopsticks. “Let’s go.”

“I’ll get a car at the bureau. Do you mind waiting for me here?”

“Not at all.” Still, she wondered: was he trying to keep her away from his office for some reason? She wished she could trust him, but knew she’d be a fool to do so.

She was surprised when Chen pulled up in a medium-size Shanghai. “So you’re driving today?”

“Little Zhou was not on the bureau car service rota. The other drivers were busy.”

“A high-ranking cadre like you,” she said, stepping into the car, “I thought you would always have a chauffeur at your service.”

“I’m not a high-ranking cadre. But thanks for the compliment.”

Chen had not told Catherine Rohn the real reason why he had chosen to drive. He trusted Little Zhou but others could easily learn his movements through the bureau car service. So he had taken the car without telling anybody.

It was a long drive to Qingpu County. A pleasant breeze came through the windows. As if by a tacit understanding, they did not talk about their work. Looking at the varying countryside, she started questioning him about language exchange programs at Chinese universities.

“Universities such as Fudan, East China Normal, and Shanghai Foreign Language may offer some teaching positions to native English speakers in exchange for their tuition in Chinese studies,” Chen said. “Preferably to those with English degrees.”

“I have a double major. One’s in English.”

“The exchange programs do not pay much. Not bad according to the Chinese standards, but you would not be able to afford to stay at the Peace Hotel.”

“I don’t have to stay at a luxurious hotel.” She pushed a strand of hair off her forehead. “Don’t worry, Chief Inspector Chen. I’m just curious.”

Soon the scene changed to a more rural one: rice paddies, vegetable plots, with some new, colorful houses here and there. Under Deng Xiaoping’s policy of “Letting some people get rich first,” prosperous peasant entrepreneurs were springing up like mushrooms. As they drove past a small lush green field, he exclaimed, “Qicai. Spring has made a late start here!”

“What?”

“Qicai. Called shepherd’s purse in English. I don’t know why it was given such a name. It is delicious.”

“Interesting. You’re a botanist too.”

“No, I am not. But once I tried to translate a Song dynasty poem, in which the poet finds himself gathered, deliriously, together with this greenish blossom on his lover’s tongue, and then on his tongue.”

“What a pity! You don’t have the time to gather any today.”

It was about two o’clock when they reached the site in Qingpu County where their quarry had been reported. It was a shabby restaurant in a village market. The door was ajar, and a wooden bench stood in the doorway. There were no customers at this time of the day.

Chen raised his voice. “Anybody here?”

A woman came out of the kitchen in the rear, wiping her hands on an oily apron. She had a thin face with deep-set eyes, high cheekbones, and wore her gray-streaked hair in a bun at the nape of her neck. She appeared to be in her late thirties, The roundness of her belly was slightly visible.

She looked very different from the woman in the passport picture. The disappointment in Catherine’s eyes mirrored his.

He handed his card to the woman mechanically. “We need to ask you a few questions.”

“Me?” She looked frightened. “I’ve done nothing wrong.”

“If you’ve done nothing wrong, you don’t have to worry. What’s your name?”

“Qiao Guozhen.”

“Do you have your I.D.?”

“Yes, here it is.”

Chen examined it closely. It had been issued in Guangxi Province. The picture on the I.D. card was of this woman. “So your family is still there?”

“Yes, my husband and my daughters are there.”

“Why are you here by yourself-in your pregnancy? They must be worried about you.”

“No, they are not worried. They know I’m here.”

“Do you have some family problem?”

“No, no problem at all.”

“You’d better tell me the truth,” he bluffed. It was not really his business, but he felt the need to do something in front of Inspector Rohn. “Or you will get into serious trouble.”

“Don’t send me back home, Comrade Chief Inspector. They will force me to have an abortion!”

Catherine cut in for the first time. “What? Who will do that to you?”

“The village cadres. They have birth control quotas to meet.”

“Tell us everything,” Catherine said. “We won’t get you into any trouble.”

Chief Inspector Chen looked at the two women, Qiao sobbing, Catherine fuming, himself standing by helplessly like an idiot. “What is the story, Comrade Qiao?”

“We have two daughters. My husband wanted to have a son. Now I’m pregnant again. We were fined heavily for the birth of our second daughter. The village committee said a heavy fine would not be enough this time, I would have to have an abortion. So I ran away.”

“You’re from Guangxi,” Chen said, aware of Catherine’s close attention. “Why have you come all the way here?”

“My husband wanted me to stay here with his cousin, but she had moved away. Fortunately, I met Mrs. Yang, the owner of the restaurant. She hired me.”

“So you work for your room and board?”

“Yang also gives me two hundred Yuan a month, in addition to tips,” Qiao said, putting a hand on her belly. “Soon I will not be able to work out front. I have to earn as much as I can.”

“What’s your plan?” Catherine asked.

“I’ll give birth to my baby here. When my son is two or three months old, I’ll go back.”

“What will your village cadres do to you?”

“After a baby has been born, they cannot really do anything. A heavy fine, probably. We’re not worried about that.” She turned to Chen, pleading in a trembling voice. “So you’re not going to send me back home?”

“No. Your problem is with your village cadres, not with me. I just don’t think it’s a good idea for a pregnant woman like you to be so far from home.”

“Do you have a better idea?” Catherine said sarcastically.

A man entered the restaurant, but at the sight of the chief inspector and his American partner, he left immediately without saying a single word.

“You have my card. Take good care of yourself,” Chen said, standing up. “If you need help, let me know.”

They walked out of the restaurant in silence. The tension between them did not improve as they got into the car. He started the engine with a screeching sound.