Julian Stockwin - THE SILK TREE

‘Characters? Well, it’s not quite like that…’

She was alert and intelligent but there was so much that was different in concept between the languages. The appearance of words in Greek were never the same from one sentence to another as Chinese characters always were – they altered with whether things had happened in the past or present, were single or many, even the sex of the thing talked about. Instead of a holistic meaning from the character cluster as a whole, Greek had to be analysed word by word and presented in a logical structure as a sentence.

It was a long and difficult exercise but as the days rolled on she proved herself equal to it.

For his part, Nicander began instruction in writing. He learnt that any character could be made with just eight strokes of the brush and that all these could be exercised in one: the character for ‘eternity’. Then there was the comforting discovery that every character could be found in the dictionary by recognising its pu shou or central essence, and these were limited to just a few hundred to learn.

But after that came the realisation that writing was more than a mechanical means for rendering meaning as it was in Greek. Instead the Chinese revered it as a form of art – calligraphy, and a gentleman could be judged by his mastery and skill of it. Strength, personality, individuality – all could be deduced from the execution of a single stroke.

The writing brush had to be held just so, perfectly vertical and all the concentration and power of thought directed down into one bold action, one culmination of intent to produce a thing of beauty – or childish squiggle.

Nicander was entranced: this was much more than elementary literacy – it was a way of life that seamlessly intersected with what Dao Pa had been saying about the Tao and he felt his mind yearning for more.

The days passed while the caravan slowly made its way westward. Through the Iron Gate Pass to Korla, then along the flank of the mountains to Kucha, the sand-girt walled oasis standing like a rampart against the encroaching sea of sand.

Guarded by a pair of stone Buddhas more than a hundred feet high it was a prime stopping place for the caravans, as well as a trading post for the pack animals coming through the passes from the Turkic peoples beyond.

The bazaars were a place of magic and allure. Nicander and Ying Mei explored them together and she found him the latest Yu p’ien dictionary. Later, they visited the gardens of the old city and tasted peaches and almonds. The caravan did not stop for long; soon it was stretching out over the desert and the rhythms of the trail took over once more.

Under the watchful eye of Tai Yi they continued their lessons as they walked on, Nicander spelling a Greek word in the sand with his staff and Ying Mei having to speak it in a sentence before it disappeared behind them. In turn she would form a character and he would have to do the same. It lent itself to all kinds of frivolity and they laughed together in delight.

At night she guided him while he painfully found his way about the vocabulary and applauded loudly when he managed his first lines of Hsun Tzu.

It was a breakthrough: soon he would know the masters at first hand.

After the camel train had been secured for the evening Su Li came up to Nicander. Behind him, Taw Vandak and the other monks clearly meant business.

‘I’m sorry to disturb, but these gentlemen have made an accusation against you as I’m bound to investigate.’

‘Which is?’ Nicander asked stiffly.

‘They say that you’re not holy men and not entitled to consideration as such.’

‘A scandalous accusation!’

‘If this is right, at the very least the authorities in oasis kingdoms will demand I pay full coin for you, as well as stand surety.’

‘This is a nonsense! We come from a country far from here they’ve never visited – how can they know what our holy men look like?’

Taw drew himself up. ‘You insult us with all these lies!’ he snarled. ‘You’re no holy man. I don’t know who you are but I’m going to find out!’

‘How dare you!’ Nicander came back. ‘Our beliefs are our own concern. We’ve been sent by our king-’

‘To seek out truths? What truths have you found so far, Ni? Any at all?’ he sneered.

‘These!’ roared Marius, bringing out the chest. He thumped it on the ground in front of the lama, opening it so he could see the scrolls and stitched sheets.

The man raised an eyebrow and took one out. ‘Lao Tzu? Confucius?’ he said mockingly. ‘Your common Chinese word grinders? Where is your dharma, your Sutta Pitaka ?’

He took up another and thrust it at Marius. ‘Read what it says there,’ he said, stabbing an accusing finger at an embellished line of characters.

The legionary’s face set.

‘You!’ he demanded of Nicander. It was not one he’d been working on.

A cynical smile spread. ‘You can’t read – you’re both illiterates! You’re expecting us to believe you’re taking these to your king and you can’t read a word of them.’

Taw glanced back at his acolytes in triumph then snapped, ‘You’re a pair of criminals on the run from China disguised as holy men and-’

‘Falsehoods and lies!’ Nicander replied hotly.

‘Then you’re spies from a foreign kingdom with secret orders to steal from a land superior to your own. You’ll find we have a short way with such vermin in these parts, those who bring dishonour on the calling of the Buddha!’

With a venomous look he swept away.

Su hesitated. ‘Doesn’t do to get on the wrong side of ’em. Can’t you do some miracle or something? A bit of magic, some healing, a bit of chanting? You’ve been no trouble to me on this trip and I’d like to help you, but…’

‘Be buggered to it – those yellow rats can’t prove anything!’ Marius exploded.

‘And we can’t prove we’re not as they say.’

The caravan moved out and Nicander hurried to be with Ying Mei. ‘Those monks – they’re determined on trouble. It looks like Taw can’t make us out and wants to be rid of us.’

She didn’t reply.

‘Are you not well, Ying Mei?’ he asked with a sudden stab of alarm.

She moved to one side until she was out of hearing from Tai Yi.

Biting her lip she said in a low voice, ‘Last night I had a dream. I won’t vex you with details but I know what it means. In a few days we arrive in Aksu. Su says it’s the last oasis of size before the end of the desert and the mountains begin and it’s there we must leave this caravan if we are true to our purpose.’

‘Yes, this is right. This caravan moves on around the desert to the other kingdoms.’

‘Ni K’an Ta, I’m frightened.’

‘Why so?’ he said. It was the first time she had used his name and it brought a guilty thrill.

‘When we started out, we planned on going to this Aksu, the furthest kingdom on the caravan route. Now, all of a sudden it comes out that we’ll soon reach it – and we’ve no idea what to do once we’re there. No plan or anything.’

‘We’ll think of something, never fear.’

She glanced at him with a wistful sadness. ‘Ah Yung, I’ve spoken to everyone I can find and there’s no one can say how to get over the mountains. Or even if that is the right direction to go. They all say it’s a terrible place and have never heard of any who have done it.’

‘Surely not.’

‘So in a very short while we have to say goodbye to our friends – and the safety of this great caravan, and it… I have a dread…’

There was not much he could say: he’d assumed they would just look around and decide on the spot what to do. It had seemed so far in the future when they had made their plans in Chang An, but now it was all too much a reality. What would it be to go on without the comfort and security of a full-scale caravan? And if it turned out camel trains could not go up into the mountains, was there any way of crossing such a fearsome barrier?