Dragon Land

by Maureen Reynolds

  Elsie was mortified. ‘He’s old enough to be my father, and he’s just being polite.’

  Mrs Burton wasn’t going to be told otherwise. ‘I know Lizzie eggs him on, so maybe he thinks he can charm any young woman.’

  When I heard this, I was furious at this stupid woman and, like the major, I wished they hadn’t foisted themselves on us at Port Said. I turned to go and find a quiet deckchair but almost knocked Elsie over as she hurried around the corner away from her mother.

  She saw me and she sat down beside me. ‘I wish my mother hadn’t come with me, Lizzie. She gets quite obnoxious at times and she’s just had a go at Major Watters. Thankfully he wasn’t there to hear her.’

  I didn’t mention I had overheard her. ‘Never mind, Elsie. When you’re reunited with your husband, you’ll be much happier, especially when your mother travels back to Edinburgh.’

  Elsie sat in silence for a few moments, twisting her wedding ring. ‘Lizzie, can I tell you something in confidence?’

  ‘Of course you can.’

  ‘I’m not sure how things will work out with me and Ronnie. I haven’t seen him for months. What if he’s changed?’

  I wasn’t sure how to answer this question, as I didn’t know the man, but they had obviously been in love with one another when they got married and surely nothing had changed apart from moving to another country.

  I took her hand in mine. ‘I’m sure everything will work out for you and Ronnie. It’s just a matter of getting used to living together again and getting to know your new surroundings.’

  She nodded, but she still looked worried.

  That evening at dinner, the major complimented me and Elsie on our dresses. ‘You both look lovely.’

  Mrs Burton glared at him and in a loud voice announced that he should keep his compliments for someone his own age. ‘You’re a bit of a gigolo, Major, trying to seduce two innocent young girls.’

  The Major looked at her in shock, especially as the people on the surrounding tables stopped eating and glanced at him. Then, to my dismay, he stood up and walked out of the room.

  Mrs Burton gave Elsie a gloating glance. ‘That’s sorted him out,’ she said as she cut up her fish, putting a large forkful in her mouth while her daughter looked embarrassed.

  I later found him in the lounge with his brandy.

  ‘I apologise for that awful woman, Major Watters. Please don’t let her annoy you.’

  He smiled. ‘No, I won’t let her do that, Lizzie.’

  The next morning he was sitting at another table, with the deaf couple, and he remained there for the rest of his journey. I felt like joining him, and I would have done so if it hadn’t been for Elsie. That was one of the drawbacks of a ship. There wasn’t anywhere you could go to avoid someone, and I knew I would be glad when we reached Bombay, where the major was disembarking. Then it was on to Hong Kong.

  Later, looking back on that long sea voyage, it still rankled that it was spoiled by Elsie’s mother. What should have been a wonderful, relaxing trip was suddenly full of annoyance at having to bite my tongue and not let my feelings show when Mrs Burton launched into some tirade.

  Thankfully, and I’m sure the major felt the same, we soon reached Bombay, and quite a few of the passengers were disembarking. The major was standing on the deck with his luggage when I went up to say goodbye to him.

  ‘It’s been lovely knowing you, Major Watters, and I hope you and your brother have a more pleasant journey back.’ I gave him a kiss on his cheek

  ‘It’s been such a pleasure to meet you, Lizzie, and I hope you find your heart’s desire in Hong Kong.’

  I stood at the rail as he went down the gangplank, but at the bottom he turned and waved. I hadn’t noticed that Elsie had come to stand beside me. She waved back and called out, ‘Goodbye, Major Watters.’

  We both turned to find that Mrs Burton was standing behind us. She looked livid, but Elsie walked past her with a small smile on her face. It was afterwards that she told me she had had enough of her mother’s bossiness.

  ‘I told her I was a married woman and I could speak to anyone I wanted without her commenting on it. I also told her to keep her opinions to herself in future.’ She laughed. ‘She hasn’t spoken to me since, but that is a bonus. She’s going around with an injured expression, as if she’s looking for sympathy from anyone who’ll tell her what a horrible daughter she has. Funnily enough, no one has.’

  I had to laugh as well, and from then on the voyage became more congenial, as I was now sitting with a family who had embarked at Bombay and were bound for Singapore.

  32

  HONG KONG

  Hong Kong. I couldn’t believe that I was here at last after my long sea journey. The dockside was abuzz with what seemed to be hundreds of people who were pushing barrows, lifting crates and generally making a lot of noise.

  I used to think the Wellgate in Dundee on a Saturday was busy with pedestrians, but I thought it was possible to multiply the scene below by a hundred or more. Elsie had come to see me off, and as I scanned the horde of humanity bustling around on the jetty I had a moment of doubt. How would I ever find the address of the school amongst this crowd? It was Elsie who spotted the man and woman standing and scanning the passengers who were leaving the ship.

  ‘I think they look like your new employers, Lizzie.’

  I glanced over and the man caught my eye. He waved and said something to the woman, who also lifted her arm in a welcoming gesture. My luggage was being uplifted by one of the seamen and I was now on the brink of stepping ashore in this strange foreign land.

  Elsie began to cry. ‘I’m going to miss you, and I wish you were also going to Shanghai. I don’t think I’m going to cope on my own, especially if Ronnie is at work all the time.’

  ‘You’ll be fine, Elsie,’ I said, giving her a hug. ‘Everything will look much better when you see your husband again.’

  ‘I probably won’t see you again, Lizzie, but I hope everything goes well for you.’

  I gave her hand a squeeze. ‘Say goodbye to your mother.’

  She laughed. ‘Yes, I will.’

  As I stepped onto the dock I turned and waved at her, but her face was just a white blur. Although it wasn’t raining, it was very humid and so unlike the weather back home. I could feel sweat on the back of my neck and I just knew my hair would be a mass of frizzy curls.

  The man and woman approached.

  ‘Miss Flint? I’m Sandy McFarlane and this is Marie Macbeth.’

  Marie was dressed in a beige-coloured raincoat. She had a very plain, weather-beaten face and her short grey hair was cut in an unfashionable style, while Sandy was slimmer and taller. He was wearing a rumpled-looking cream-coloured suit, a white shirt and a cream hat with a red band.

  ‘We’ve got a taxi waiting,’ he said, taking charge of my trunk. We managed to weave our way through the crowds and into the waiting car, which looked a bit bashed, but the Chinese driver flashed a wide smile at me and helped me into the back seat.

  I was fascinated by all the activity on the streets. Small shops with apartments above were thronged by people, and the taxi had to weave its way through carts, bicycles and rickshaws, and pedestrians who wandered in front of the car. Some were loaded down with baskets and boxes, one of the boxes being full of squawking chickens.

  Sandy saw that I was looking at the rickshaws and said, ‘I wanted to pick you up in one of those, but Marie was dead set against it, weren’t you, Marie?’

  Marie didn’t answer but merely scowled at him before turning her attention to me. ‘I hope you’ve had a pleasant journey, Miss Flint, and I also hope you’ll be happy working in the school.’

  ‘Oh, I’m sure I shall, Miss Macbeth.’

  Sandy took his hat off and used it to fan his face. ‘It’s damn hot today, but rain is forecast for later, so that should cool it down. Aren’t you too hot in that raincoat, Marie?’ he asked.

  She replied that there was going to be heavy rain later
and it was best to be prepared for it.

  Sandy turned his attention back to me. ‘Now tell me, how is your dear Aunt Margaret? It’s been a few years since we last saw her.’

  ‘She’s doing well and is busy getting her new house ready for Gerald coming home from Lisbon. She sends her love to you both.’

  Marie looked out of the window. ‘Ah, here we are at the school.’

  I followed her gaze. The school was a large building set on a busy street. The school wasn’t what I expected – I thought it would have been a stand-alone building with an open space for a playground, but instead it was a large building that looked like any other on the busy street. Sandy saw my surprise.

  ‘It’s not what you were expecting?’

  I smiled. ‘No, it isn’t. It’s just so different from the school I was teaching in, in Dundee.’

  Sandy said, ‘It’s miles away from the school Marie and I were teaching in, in Edinburgh. We had a large imposing building there, with acres of green playing fields, but space is at a premium here in Hong Kong, as you’ll find out.’

  Marie paid the taxi driver, who gave me another wide smile, and Sandy carried my trunk through the wooden door. Once inside I was pleasantly surprised by the interior, as it was larger than it looked from outside. We moved through the three roomy classrooms, with their desks, chairs and big blackboards, into a kitchen and bathroom before climbing a wooden stair to the rooms above.

  Marie opened the door to one of them. ‘This is your room, Miss Flint, and there is another bathroom along the corridor that is beside our bedrooms. The children are all day pupils and you will be teaching the two youngest classes. We have sixty pupils at the moment and most of them are British, although we do have quite a few Chinese children who speak very good English.’

  I didn’t say anything but was secretly relieved that the children spoke English, as I didn’t understand Chinese.

  She took her coat off and I was surprised to see she was dressed in a woollen jumper, thick tweed skirt, beige-coloured lisle stockings and brown lace-up shoes, which was in sharp contrast to Sandy, who had bare feet thrust into leather sandals.

  ‘This isn’t a boarding school, but we have pupils from a lot of the families who live near us.’ Marie explained. ‘Tomorrow is Sunday, which means there is no school, so you’ll have a day to get to know your way around. I go to the church in the morning and if you would like to come with me then let me know.’

  Sandy jumped in. ‘I’ll show Miss Flint around the place, Marie. I’m sure she would like to see the local scenes.’ He gave me a huge smile and I’m sure he winked at me, but maybe it was something in his eye.

  Marie gave him a baleful glance. ‘Now don’t be going into any shady-looking places, Sandy, and don’t let Miss Flint eat any of the food prepared on the street. You never know where it’s been cooked or even what it is you’re eating.’

  Sandy grinned. ‘Scout’s honour, Marie.’

  ‘I have a policy here, Miss Flint, of trying to keep our Scottish habits alive and well. We eat sensible food. We have a good cook called Mrs Kydd who comes in every day who’s the wife of a Scottish grocer who manages to get some of our provisions shipped in from Scotland.’

  Later, I was able to confirm this diet, as we had in the evening a meal of mince and dumplings with tinned peas. Breakfast in the morning was porridge with powdered milk, Keiller’s marmalade on toast, and tea with sugar and more powdered milk.

  After Marie, dressed in her jumper, skirt, raincoat and rain hat, left for the church, Sandy said it was time for some sightseeing. ‘It might be better to take a coat in case it rains, as we get heavy showers some days,’ he said.

  I noticed with amusement that he was still dressed in his crumpled suit and hat but had changed into a clean blue shirt.

  The first thing he did was hire a rickshaw. To start with, I was a bit appalled that a little old Chinese man was pulling us along, but Sandy said he had been doing this for years and it was a good source of income to him and his family. Mollified, I sat back and enjoyed the trip. When we reached the harbour, I was amazed to see that it was packed tightly with sampans. It was difficult to see any water between these boats, and the entire area was a hive of activity. Men, women and children were busy doing their chores on board the boats.

  Sandy said, ‘It’s quite a sight, isn’t it?’

  I nodded. I had never seen anything like it before.

  ‘These families are born and live and die on board these sampans,’ he said. ‘A complete circle of life on the water.’

  I couldn’t imagine living like that, but for the people themselves it was their way of life.

  Sandy rubbed his hands. ‘Right then, let’s go and get something to eat. I’ll take you to my favourite vendor, Mr Song, who has a cart on the street.’

  ‘But Marie said …’

  He snorted. ‘Never mind what Marie said. She likes to have her little paradise around her, a slice of Skye as recalled by her. She won’t wear anything but woollens and tweeds and sensible shoes. It’s as if she is still tramping the hills of the Western Isles, and as for the food … I only manage to exist here because of my love of Chinese cuisine.’ He winked again and this time there was no doubt about it. ‘So let’s go and sample the delights of Hong Kong, but don’t tell her. Don’t get me wrong, I am fond of her and respect her as a good teacher, it’s just her taste in food I dislike.’

  We soon found Mr Song’s cart and Sandy ordered prawns on slender bamboo sticks, which came with a thick glutinous sauce. It was delicious.

  Sandy smiled. ‘Didn’t I tell you it beats that awful porridge and powdered milk into a cocked hat?’

  I had to agree.

  Sandy was a great guide, and as we toured the streets and small shops I was enjoying myself so much. Before going back to the school, he took me into a dark cave of a restaurant, where we ate dim sum and more prawns served with bowls of fragrant rice.

  Back at the school, we found Marie had returned from the church. ‘Did you have a good time, Miss Flint?’

  ‘Please call me Lizzie. Yes, we had a wonderful time, thank you.’

  She looked me straight in the eye. ‘I hope you didn’t eat anything, as you won’t be able to eat your dinner.’

  I hated lying to her, but Sandy was making signs behind her back, so I prevaricated.

  ‘What are we having for our dinner?’

  ‘Mrs Kydd has made a lovely steak pie with carrots, and for pudding there’s semolina and jam.’

  Sandy looked appalled, and I had to laugh. Marie gave me a suspicious look, but I said, ‘That’s my favourite meal.’ It was a pity, as I had to eat everything on my plate and I felt quite nauseous afterwards.

  The next day was my first day teaching, and I faced the rows of small children, who were all wearing white shirts and short trousers, with the girls in white blouses and grey skirts. There were ten Chinese children and I was pleased that they were also in the same uniform. Obviously Marie was a stickler for conformity, and I agreed with her.

  ‘Good morning, boys and girls. My name is Miss Flint and I’m your new teacher.’

  ‘Good morning, Miss Flint,’ they said in unison.

  ‘Now, I will get to know all your names as the day goes on, but if you open your reading books we will begin with that.’

  For a brief moment, I had a sudden longing for Dundee and Ann Street School, and I wondered how Charlie was getting on and if he was still keeping up with his reading.

  As I got to know them better, I soon found the children were so well behaved. I was glad I had made the decision to come here, as my time at the school was turning out to be a happy experience.

  I wrote to Margaret every week and I sent her photos that I had taken with my new camera, which I had bought in a small photographic shop run by a Chinese family that appeared to have ten children, who all worked in the business.

  Margaret replied that she was well and that Gerald was on the point of reuniting with her. I was
pleased when I read this, as I still harboured a worry that I had abandoned her. I mentioned this to Sandy one evening and he laughed.

  ‘Nobody can abandon Margaret, Lizzie. She’s a self-made woman and quite capable of living by and looking after herself.’

  I agreed but added, ‘Still, I’ll be glad when Gerald finally retires and they can settle down in their house by the sea.’

  He nodded. ‘Well, I hope Gerald does retire. What do you think?’

  I had to confess I had never met him. ‘Have you met him?’

  ‘Oh yes, we know him. Margaret was the headmistress of the school we taught in and we all got on well. One night she went to a dinner party given by a mutual friend and she met Gerald. Then, to our amazement, she married him. As I said to Marie, “Marry in haste, repent at leisure,” but she seems to be happy with him.’

  ‘Don’t you like him, Sandy?’

  ‘Yes, I like him, but he’s such a dry old stick. He’s a good few years older than Margaret and he’s a proper diplomat. I bet he asked her permission to kiss her on their wedding night and that Margaret just told him to get on with it.’

  I felt myself go red and he laughed again.

  ‘You’re just joking, Sandy,’ I said.

  He gave me one of his looks that said ‘would I lie to you’ and held up his hand. ‘I tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth,’ he said solemnly.

  I had to laugh at him, because he was such a witty man and very good company.

  It was a month later that I was to recall that flippant conversation when I received a letter from my aunt.

  I’ve just returned from Lisbon, where Gerald has been buried after suffering a heart attack. It was all so sudden that I really can’t take it all in yet. He left instructions in his will that he was to be buried in the country he was currently living in. The graveyard in Lisbon is a very peaceful and beautiful place and the service was as dignified as he would have wished it. It is just so sad for this to happen on the eve of his retirement, but when I think about it perhaps this is what he wanted, as I always knew in my mind that he would never settle down to a normal retirement. Travelling the world was in his blood.