Small Shen

by Kylie Chan

  Cynic shrugged. ‘Can go in living room, plenty of room.’

  Daniel went and looked at the bathroom, which was the same size as the kitchen. Once again the tiles were covered with a thick layer of slimy mould. The bathroom sink had a large black crack running through it, and a single cold water tap. A filthy flow-through water heater hung on the wall above the small toilet, a hand-held pink plastic showerhead hanging between the cold and hot water taps. A rusty steel towel rail was attached to the wall, and some transparent plastic shelves, grown opaque with age, next to the tiny window.

  Daniel went out and into one of the bedrooms. A double bed-sized mattress, ten centimetres thick, was leaning against the wall. The hardwood parquet floor had a thick layer of dust in the gaps between the slats. The room was a metre and a half to a side, only just enough room to fit the double mattress with twenty centimetres to spare to clamber past it when it was placed on the floor.

  ‘Where do you hang your clothes?’ Daniel said.

  ‘You can put nails in the wall and hang your clothes on them,’ Gold said. ‘You can fit four or five items of clothing on each nail that way. And you can put them in boxes under the bed, if you decide to go with a bed frame.’

  Cynic touched the mattress as they went back out. ‘Good mattress. New. Thick.’

  ‘Ten centimetres is thick?’ Daniel said.

  ‘Most mattresses are only three or four centimetres thick,’ Gold said. ‘We like our beds hard, good for the back.’

  The other bedroom had a single bed mattress, two centimetres thick, leaning against the wall as well. When the mattress was placed on the floor, it would go from one end of the room to the other, and leave ten centimetres of space on one side to walk around it.

  Cynic walked them back out to the living room. ‘This one has furniture, but not new decoration, so not as good as last one.’ She glanced down at her folder, then up at Daniel. ‘You sure you don’t want to look at stuff in mid-levels? I have apartments that are more than a thousand square feet, very luxurious, clubhouse, room for maid, only fifty-sixty thousand dollars a month.’

  ‘Seven thousand…’ Gold trailed off, then rallied. ‘That’s about seven thousand nine hundred to nine thousand five hundred a month Canadian, which works out to about eighteen hundred to twenty-two hundred a week.’

  ‘I think I need to think about this,’ Daniel said wanly.

  ‘No problem,’ Leo said. ‘Go downstairs, and I’ll bring the Merc around.’

  ‘So how much does an apartment in our building cost to rent?’ Daniel asked as they returned to the Peak.

  ‘Our building?’ Leo said.

  ‘He means Lo Wu’s building,’ Michelle said.

  ‘The apartment three floors down, half the floor, is three hundred and eighty thousand a month,’ Gold said. ‘About sixty thousand Canadian a month. A villa up on the Peak, one of the top-end ones with a pool and clubhouse, at least five thousand square feet, will go for about half a million dollars a month — that’s about eighty thousand Canadian a month, or twenty thousand a week.’

  ‘People can afford that?’ Daniel said.

  Gold shrugged. ‘Obviously. Top-end residences in other cities, like Paris, can cost similar amounts.’

  ‘I didn’t know,’ Daniel said. ‘They were going to provide me with an apartment, so I never checked prices in Paris.’

  ‘Free accommodation included in the job? Sounds like a sweet deal to me,’ Leo said. ‘I save a fortune by being a live-in bodyguard.’

  ‘What if I stayed with you?’ Daniel said.

  ‘My husband does not want you around,’ Michelle said stiffly. ‘For some reason he has taken an extreme dislike to you.’ She turned in the seat of the car to glare at him. ‘He did not want to tell me exactly what it was that you did to annoy him so much.’

  ‘Oh,’ Daniel said, and remained silent the rest of the way to the Peak apartment.

  Later that evening, Michelle tapped on Leo’s door.

  ‘Come on in,’ Leo said.

  Michelle looked around the door and smiled when she saw that Leo and Gold were playing on the Playstation again. She sat on the couch, still smiling. ‘He is going to Paris after all. He’s out having one last fling now, and he’ll be leaving tomorrow. We did it.’

  Leo put down his controller, reached over, and gave Michelle a quick hug. ‘That’s great.’

  Michelle patted Leo on the arm and released him. She sat on the couch, hesitating.

  Gold held his controller out to Michelle. ‘Play if you want, ma’am.’

  Michelle didn’t take it. ‘I don’t want to impose on your private time, gentlemen. I have bought one for myself, and I need you to attach it to the large screen TV in the television room for me, if you would.’

  Gold and Leo shared a look, then turned to Michelle.

  ‘Three way knockout on Speed Drift 2?’ Leo said.

  ‘I can beat you!’ Michelle said.

  Gold whooped with delight, and Simone started crying in Michelle’s room. ‘Whoops, sorry, ma’am.’

  Michelle opened the door and called out. ‘Monica, please take Simone, I am going to be busy for the next hour or so beating these neebies.’

  ‘Noobies,’ Leo said, correcting her.

  ‘Neebies, noobies, prepare to be beaten!’ Michelle exclaimed, excited.

  Monica came down the hallway, her smile wide. ‘Yes, ma’am. Mind if me and the little one watch?’

  ‘Of course, I love an audience when I am outstanding,’ Michelle said, cheeky.

  ‘You still can’t beat me,’ Leo said.

  ‘That’s only a matter of time, neeb.’

  FORTUNE KNOCKS

  1851

  Gold sat back down, took the paper, and scanned it.

  Jade.

  Gold snorted with amusement. After all this time, she was looking for him. He glanced up at the demon servant. ‘Show them up to the house, and tell the maids to prepare guest rooms. How big is their entourage?’

  ‘The Dragon Princess, the European, and three servants,’ the demon said.

  ‘The Princess is acting as interpreter?’ Gold said, surprised.

  ‘This European does not require an interpreter,’ the demon said. ‘He speaks High Beijing dialect like a native.’

  ‘Interesting.’

  A flash of light erupted from the hillside below them; the sun reflecting off steel. Gold scanned the paths leading to his manor, and saw them. Two sedan chairs, and three walking servants.

  ‘I wonder what she really wants,’ Gold said. He smiled slightly. ‘Maybe her memory of me is one of the best she has.’

  ‘I believe it is something to do with the tea,’ the servant said. He bowed slightly. ‘By your leave.’

  ‘Go.’

  Robert Fortune leaned forward over the table to speak earnestly to Gold. ‘Tea is the root of all the problems in China. The opium to tea trade is killing your people. If we can take the tea trade out, then the British won’t bring the opium into China.’

  ‘If I let you have the tea seeds, I am giving you the seeds to my own downfall,’ Gold said. ‘You won’t need to buy my tea any more.’

  ‘We’ve been planting the tea in India,’ Fortune said, ‘and the results are unsatisfactory. The plantations in Ceylon are performing slightly better, but we will never have the same quality as you, the climate just isn’t suitable.’

  ‘So?’ Gold said.

  ‘So, your tea will always be superior,’ Fortune said. ‘You can provide the finest China tea to the gourmet market, at a higher price. Our tea will be the low grade drink for the poor of England.’

  ‘The China tea trade will continue,’ Gold said. ‘They will still bring the opium in.’

  ‘Not if they are dealing in smaller quantities,’ Fortune said. ‘They will be able to find enough silver to pay for the tea if they deal in premium quantities.’

  Gold considered the proposition. Fortune was offering him a great deal of money for the tea seeds. He already had
seeds from a number of different plantations; he was offering Gold even more money for Drum Mountain’s famed silver-tipped tea, only produced in this part of northern Fujian province. Gold glanced up at Fortune’s earnest face. The European really did have the best interests of China at heart; a refreshing change after so much of what had happened during the wars. The Europeans had bludgeoned the Dowager Empress into granting more and more concessions; half of Shanghai was now European concessions. The entire island of Hong Kong had been ceded to Britain, and Macau to Portugal.

  The Empress was weak and the foreigners were strong. If they wished, they could take over China as easily as they had gained control of India. But if they could grow their own tea, then it would not be worth the effort. China had nothing else the Westerners wanted.

  ‘I’ll do it,’ Gold said. ‘I’ll provide you with all the seeds and seedlings you need.’

  ‘I also need trained staff to tend the plants,’ Fortune said. ‘You know that what I am doing is highly illegal, and any workers found leaving the country to assist me would be sentenced to death if discovered.’

  Please provide him with some demons, Gold, Jade said.

  ‘Very well,’ Gold said. ‘For the lady.’ He smiled at Jade, but her expression was remote. ‘I will provide you with three of my staff to help tend the plants.’

  Fortune jumped up and grabbed Gold’s hand, shaking it vigorously.

  Fortune continued to shake Gold’s hand until Gold felt he would shake it off. ‘Thank you. You have saved your country. You will be a national hero.’

  I’m a hero, Gold said to Jade.

  She gazed directly into his eyes, her pale serene face expressionless. Don’t even think about it.

  Fortune turned to Jade and took both her hands in his, then kissed her on the cheek. ‘Thank you so much, Lady Jade.’

  Jade was obviously desperately embarrassed and blushed furiously.

  ‘Oh, sorry,’ Fortune said. He released Jade and returned to his chair. ‘I forgot.’

  ‘That’s quite all right, Robert,’ Jade said, still blushing. ‘I know that Europeans do things differently.’

  ‘I cannot thank you enough,’ Fortune said to Jade.

  Oh, I see, Gold said, making no attempt to hide his amusement.

  Nothing happening, Jade said, her lie obvious to Gold. Europeans are just more…demonstrative.

  Fortune raised his teacup. ‘Here’s to a prosperous future for the people of China.’

  Jade and Gold raised their cups as well.

  HONG KONG

  1997

  GOLD AND JADE stood at the entrance to the hotel ballroom greeting guests as they arrived. Every Celestial who could get their hands on an invitation to Simone’s one-month party was there; some had even tried to bribe members of the household to be permitted to attend. The hall was full.

  The guests sat around large round tables, each set for twelve people with silver plates beneath their bone-china rice bowls. Waiters ran between the tables holding trays carrying cans of soft drink, filling everybody’s glass. Michelle and some of the more modern Shen drank red wine from enormous balloon glasses; Xuan Wu and the more old-fashioned guests drank black tea out of tumblers.

  Gold and Jade showed the guests to their tables. Jade seemed full of satisfaction as the hall filled; she had done well organising the party. A raised platform held the table of honour, its red tablecloth making it stand out from the rest. At this table sat Xuan Wu, Michelle, Leo, the other three Winds, Er Lang representing the Celestial, two of the Dark Lord’s most senior Generals, and two of the most senior Celestial Masters from the Mountain.

  When all of the guests had arrived, Gold and Jade closed the hall doors and took their seats at the head table between Michelle and Leo.

  Gold tried to keep his head down and not attract any attention, and Jade seemed to be doing the same. Lowly retainers such as them should not have been sitting at the head table, but Michelle had insisted upon it. Er Lang sat, scowling, in his chair, occasionally shooting disgruntled looks at them. Qing Long, the Blue Dragon, had noted their existence and acknowledged their salutes with the slightest of nods, then pointedly ignored them. The White Tiger was too busy leering at all the female Shen in the hall and working to quickly empty his bottle of rice wine; the Red Phoenix, Zhu Que, seemed oblivious to all but baby Simone, who she cradled and cooed at. The Generals and Celestial Masters were deep in a quiet discussion with Xuan Wu and thankfully seemed unaware of their existence.

  The wait staff had finished serving the drinks, and began to serve the large platters of the first course. Each platter contained a whole roast suckling pig with large maraschino cherries stuck into its eye sockets with toothpicks. The pigs were cut into bite-size pieces, the skin of the animal mouth-meltingly crispy over a fine layer of tender meat. Next to each platter of suckling pig was a platter of vegetarian entrees, small pieces of mushroom and shredded fungus, with bean curd sheet wrapped around bamboo shoot and lotus root.

  The wait staff placed the platters on the tables, then proceeded to use serving spoons and forks as tongs to lift a small amount of each dish into a serving bowl for the dinner guests.

  ‘How many courses?’ Gold asked Jade softly.

  ‘Twelve, standard banquet, whole coral trout for fifth, “Buddha Jumps Over the Wall” for seventh, vegetarian options all the way through,’ Jade replied.

  ‘Good job.’

  The hall doors flew open, and the Dark Lord and his lieutenants shot to their feet. A few guests shrieked with surprise and ran from their tables to hide behind the dais.

  ‘Guard Michelle and Simone,’ Xuan Wu said, and moved to the front of the dais, his lieutenants flanking him. All except the Dark Lord changed to Celestial Form. The White Tiger became seven feet tall wearing white and gold scaled armour, with a long flurry of white hair down to his waist. The Red Phoenix grew into a tall, willowy woman in a red Tang robe, holding a pair of red swords. Er Lang changed so that he was taller, wearing green scaled armour and a war helmet. They moved into position at the front of the dais, a protective shield in front of Michelle and Simone.

  The Demon King strolled into the hall in human form. He appeared to be a Chinese in his mid-twenties, wearing a blood-coloured polo shirt and a pair of black designer slacks. His long hair was also the colour of dried blood, and swept unbound down his back.

  He was attended by four Snake Mothers, all of them in human form — appearing as tall, gorgeous young Chinese women wearing blood-red cheongsams. They moved with graceful menace through the hall towards Xuan Wu.

  The Demon King stopped at the base of the dais, then elegantly fell to one knee and saluted Xuan Wu. ‘Xuan Tian Shang Di, Demon-conquering Celestial Worthy, Celestial Minister of Jade Emptiness, Master of the Glorious Teachings of the Primeval Chaos and the Nine Heavens.’

  Xuan Wu nodded to the Demon King. ‘Loathsome Majesty Wong Mo, King of all the Demons and the Humanity-crushing Horde of Hell, Drinker of the Blood of Innocents, Slaughterer of the Unworthy, Torturer of the Unbeliever.’

  The Demon King rose and grinned at the White Tiger. ‘Your seals fail, my friend.’

  ‘Whoever raised them will feel my claws,’ the Tiger growled.

  ‘Pass the failure over when you’re done, the ladies haven’t eaten Shen in a while,’ the Demon King said, and the Snake Mothers grinned with malice. He beamed around at everybody. ‘So what’s the occasion? I heard there was a party, is it someone’s birthday?’

  He doesn’t know, don’t tell him! Xuan Wu warned everyone. Keep the child out of sight!

  Michelle pushed her way through the Shen and stood glaring at the Demon King. ‘Why have you interrupted my comeback celebration? All of these people were here to hear me sing, and now they cannot because you have ruined it!’ She waved one hand at him. ‘Go away, you horrible little man!’

  The Demon King bowed slightly to Michelle. ‘I would love to hear you sing, Lady. The Dark Lord has given up his duty and dominion for you, it
had better be worth it.’ His grin grew vicious. ‘With him on the Earthly here all the time, Heaven is like an orchard full of Celestial peaches, ripe for us to pluck.’

  Er Lang stepped forward slightly. ‘The Thirty-Six and the Celestial Vanguard protect our subjects, Wong Mo. You are no more able to threaten us than you ever have.’ He summoned his halberd, and tapped the end on the floor. ‘Return to Hell.’

  ‘Tell you what,’ the Demon King said casually. ‘Michelle can sing a song for us, and then we’ll go.’ He shrugged. ‘No trouble, no conflict, one song and we’re gone.’

  ‘One second,’ Michelle said, before anyone could reply. She returned to the table, sipped a glass of water, and glanced at Leo, who was holding tiny Simone, silent and wide-eyed, in his arms.

  She is bound, Lady, Jade said to Michelle. Do not be concerned, she cannot make a sound. The Shen are all blocking his view of her. He will not be able to see past them.

  Michelle nodded to Jade, and returned to the front of the dais. She coughed slightly, then visibly relaxed and sang for the Demon King.

  Her voice was loud enough to make Gold’s ears protest at her proximity; some of the higher notes sounded muffled as his ears could not handle the volume. Her voice was piercingly sweet, filling the hall to all corners. She sang a medieval French love song, warm and lilting. She did not hesitate as she struck the difficult scales in the middle of the song, and faultlessly skipped over them, even though she hadn’t warmed up. She concluded with a slower passage, full of longing and love, and the final note faded through the hall.

  There was complete silence, all attention focused on the Demon King. He stood, staring at her, for a moment, then smiled gently.

  ‘Lady, the Dark Lord was right to leave his dominion for that, your voice is exquisite,’ he said. He glanced at his glowering Snake Mothers. ‘I can understand now why there is such a large attendance to welcome you back to the concert circuit. Watch for us in the audience.’ He saluted Xuan Wu. ‘Xuan Tian. See ya.’ He and the Snake Mothers disappeared.