CHAPTER VI. THE VENGEANCE OF TUNG FEL
For a period not to be measured by days or weeks the air of Ching-fowhad been as unrestful as that of the locust plains beyond the GreatWall, for every speech which passed bore two faces, one fair to hear,as a greeting, but the other insidiously speaking behind a screen, ofrebellion, violence, and the hope of overturning the fixed order ofevents. With those whom they did not mistrust of treachery persons spokein low voices of definite plans, while at all times there might appearin prominent places of the city skilfully composed notices settingforth great wrongs and injustices towards which resignation and a lowlybearing were outwardly counselled, yet with the same words cunninglyinflaming the minds, even of the patient, as no pouring out ofpassionate thoughts and undignified threatenings could have done. Amongthe people, unknown, unseen, and unsuspected, except to the proved onesto whom they desired to reveal themselves, moved the agents of the ThreeSocieties. While to the many of Ching-fow nothing was desired or eventhought of behind the downfall of their own officials, and, chief ofall, the execution of the evil-minded and depraved Mandarin Ping Siang,whose cruelties and extortions had made his name an object of wide anddeserved loathing, the agents only regarded the city as a bright spot inthe line of blood and fire which they were fanning into life from Pekingto Canton, and which would presumably burst forth and involve the entireEmpire.
Although it had of late become a plain fact, by reason of the mannerof behaving of the people, that events of a sudden and turbulent naturecould not long be restrained, yet outwardly there was no exhibition ofviolence, not even to the length of resisting those whom Ping Siang sentto enforce his unjust demands, chiefly because a well-founded whisperhad been sent round that nothing was to be done until Tung Fel shouldarrive, which would not be until the seventh day in the month of WingedDragons. To this all persons agreed, for the more aged among them,who, by virtue of their years, were also the formers of opinion in allmatters, called up within their memories certain events connected withthe two persons in question which appeared to give to Tung Fel theprivilege of expressing himself clearly when the matter of finallydealing with the malicious and self-willed Mandarin should be engagedupon.
Among the mountains which enclose Ching-fow on the southern side dwelta jade-seeker, who also kept goats. Although a young man and entirelywithout relations, he had, by patient industry, contrived to collecttogether a large flock of the best-formed and most prolific goats to befound in the neighbourhood, all the money which he received in exchangefor jade being quickly bartered again for the finest animals which hecould obtain. He was dauntless in penetrating to the most inaccessibleparts of the mountains in search of the stone, unfailing in his skilfulcare of the flock, in which he took much honourable pride, and on alloccasions discreet and unassumingly restrained in his discourse andmanner of life. Knowing this to be his invariable practice, it was withemotions of an agreeable curiosity that on the seventh day of the monthof Winged Dragons those persons who were passing from place to place inthe city beheld this young man, Yang Hu, descending the mountain pathwith unmistakable signs of profound agitation, and an entire absence ofprudent care. Following him closely to the inner square of the city, onthe continually expressed plea that they themselves had business inthat quarter, these persons observed Yang Hu take up a position ofunendurable dejection as he gazed reproachfully at the figure of theall-knowing Buddha which surmounted the Temple where it was his customto sacrifice.
"Alas!" he exclaimed, lifting up his voice, when it became plain thata large number of people was assembled awaiting his words, "to what enddoes a person strive in this excessively evilly-regulated district? Oris it that this obscure and ill-destined one alone is marked out as witha deep white cross for humiliation and ruin? Father, and Sacred Templeof Ancestral Virtues, wherein the meanest can repose their trust, he hasnone; while now, being more destitute than the beggar at the gate, thehope of honourable marriage and a robust family of sons is more remotethan the chance of finding the miracle-working Crystal Image which marksthe last footstep of the Pure One. Yesterday this person possessed nosecret store of silver or gold, nor had he knowledge of any specialamount of jade hidden among the mountains, but to his call thereresponded four score goats, the most select and majestic to be found inall the Province, of which, nevertheless, it was his yearly custom tosacrifice one, as those here can testify, and to offer another as a dutyto the Yamen of Ping Siang, in neither case opening his eyes widely whenthe hour for selecting arrived. Yet in what an unseemly manner is hisrespectful piety and courteous loyalty rewarded! To-day, before thisperson went forth on his usual quest, there came those bearing writtenpapers by which they claimed, on the authority of Ping Siang, thewhole of this person's flock, as a punishment and fine for his notcontributing without warning to the Celebration of Kissing the Emperor'sFace--the very obligation of such a matter being entirely unknown tohim. Nevertheless, those who came drove off this person's entirewealth, the desperately won increase of a life full of great toil anduncomplainingly endured hardship, leaving him only his cave in therocks, which even the most grasping of many-handed Mandarins cannotremove, his cloak of skins, which no beggar would gratefully receive,and a bright and increasing light of deep hate scorching within his mindwhich nothing but the blood of the obdurate extortioner can efficientlyquench. No protection of charms or heavily-mailed bowmen shallavail him, for in his craving for just revenge this person will meetwitchcraft with a Heaven-sent cause and oppose an unsleeping subtletyagainst strength. Therefore let not the innocent suffer through aninsufficient understanding, O Divine One, but direct the hand of yourfaithful worshipper towards the heart that is proud in tyranny, andholds as empty words the clearly defined promise of an all-seeingjustice."
Scarcely had Yang Hu made an end of speaking before there happened anevent which could be regarded in no other light than as a direct answerto his plainly expressed request for a definite sign. Upon the clearair, which had become unnaturally still at Yang Hu's words, as thoughto remove any chance of doubt that this indeed was the requested answer,came the loud beating of many very powerful brass gongs, indicating theapproach of some person of undoubted importance. In a very brief periodthe procession reached the square, the gong-beaters being followedby persons carrying banners, bowmen in armour, others bearing variousweapons and instruments of torture, slaves displaying innumerablechanges of raiment to prove the rank and consequence of their master,umbrella carriers and fan wavers, and finally, preceded by incenseburners and surrounded by servants who cleared away all obstructions bymeans of their formidable and heavily knotted lashes, the unworthy anddeceitful Mandarin Ping Siang, who sat in a silk-hung and elaboratelywrought chair, looking from side to side with gestures and expressionsof contempt and ill-restrained cupidity.
At the sign of this powerful but unscrupulous person all those who werepresent fell upon their faces, leaving a broad space in their midst,except Yang Hu, who stepped back into the shadow of a doorway, beingresolved that he would not prostrate himself before one whom Heaven hadpointed out as the proper object of his just vengeance.
When the chair of Ping Siang could no longer be observed in thedistance, and the sound of his many gongs had died away, all the personswho had knelt at his approach rose to their feet, meeting each other'seyes with glances of assured and profound significance. At length therestepped forth an exceedingly aged man, who was generally believed tohave the power of reading omens and forecasting futures, so that at hisupraised hand all persons became silent.
"Behold!" he exclaimed, "none can turn aside in doubt from thedeliberately pointed finger of Buddha. Henceforth, in spite of thewell-intentioned suggestions of those who would shield him under theplea of exacting orders from high ones at Peking or extortions practisedby slaves under him of which he is ignorant, there can no longer be anytwo voices concerning the guilty one. Yet what does the knowledge ofthe cormorant's cry avail the golden carp in the shallow waters of theYuen-Kiang? A prickly mormosa is an adequate protec
tion against a nakedman armed only with a just cause, and a company of bowmen has been knownto quench an entire city's Heaven-felt desire for retribution. Thisperson, and doubtless others also, would have experienced a moreheartfelt enthusiasm in the matter if the sublime and omnipotentBuddha had gone a step further, and pointed out not only the one tobe punished, but also the instrument by which the destiny could beprudently and effectively accomplished."
From the mountain path which led to Yang Hu's cave came a voice, likean expressly devised reply to this speech. It was that of some personuttering the "Chant of Rewards and Penalties":
"How strong is the mountain sycamore! "Its branches reach the Middle Air, and the eye of none can pierce its foliage; "It draws power and nourishment from all around, so that weeds alone may flourish under its shadow. "Robbers find safety within the hollow of its trunk; its branches hide vampires and all manner of evil things which prey upon the innocent; "The wild boar of the forest sharpen their tusks against the bark, for it is harder than flint, and the axe of the woodsman turns back upon the striker. "Then cries the sycamore, 'Hail and rain have no power against me, nor can the fiercest sun penetrate beyond my outside fringe; "'The man who impiously raises his hand against me falls by his own stroke and weapon. "'Can there be a greater or a more powerful than this one? Assuredly, I am Buddha; let all things obey me.' "Whereupon the weeds bow their heads, whispering among themselves, 'The voice of the Tall One we hear, but not that of Buddha. Indeed, it is doubtless as he says.' "In his musk-scented Heaven Buddha laughs, and not deigning to raise his head from the lap of the Phoenix Goddess, he thrusts forth a stone which lies by his foot. "Saying, 'A god's present for a god. Take it carefully, O presumptuous Little One, for it is hot to the touch.' "The thunderbolt falls and the mighty tree is rent in twain. 'They asked for my messenger,' said the Pure One, turning again to repose. "Lo, _he comes_!"
With the last spoken word there came into the sight of those who werecollected together a person of stern yet engaging appearance. His handsand face were the colour of mulberry stain by long exposure to the sun,while his eyes looked forth like two watch-fires outside a wolf-hauntedcamp. His long pigtail was tangled with the binding tendrils of theforest, and damp with the dew of an open couch. His apparel was in noway striking or brilliant, yet he strode with the dignity and air of ahigh official, pushing before him a covered box upon wheels.
"It is Tung Fel!" cried many who stood there watching his approach,in tones which showed those who spoke to be inspired by a variety ofimpressive emotions. "Undoubtedly this is the seventh day of the monthof Winged Dragons, and, as he specifically stated would be the case, lo!he has come."
Few were the words of greeting which Tung Fel accorded even to the mostvenerable of those who awaited him.
"This person has slept, partaken of fruit and herbs, and devoted anallotted time to inward contemplation," he said briefly. "Other andmore weighty matters than the exchange of dignified compliments and theadmiration of each other's profiles remain to be accomplished. What, forexample, is the significance of the written parchment which is displayedin so obtrusive a manner before our eyes? Bring it to this personwithout delay."
At these words all those present followed Tung Fel's gaze withastonishment, for conspicuously displayed upon the wall of the Templewas a written notice which all joined in asserting had not been therethe moment before, though no man had approached the spot. Neverthelessit was quickly brought to Tung Fel, who took it without any fear orhesitation and read aloud the words which it contained.
"TO THE CUSTOM-RESPECTING PERSONS OF CHING-FOW.
"Truly the span of existence of any upon this earth is brief and not to be considered; therefore, O unfortunate dwellers of Ching-fow, let it not affect your digestion that your bodies are in peril of sudden and most excruciating tortures and your Family Temples in danger of humiliating disregard.
"Why do your thoughts follow the actions of the noble Mandarin Ping Siang so insidiously, and why after each unjust exaction do your eyes look redly towards the Yamen?
"Is he not the little finger of those at Peking, obeying their commands and only carrying out the taxation which others have devised? Indeed, he himself has stated such to be the fact. If, therefore, a terrible and unforeseen fate overtook the usually cautious and well-armed Ping Siang, doubtless--perhaps after the lapse of some considerable time--another would be sent from Peking for a like purpose, and in this way, after a too-brief period of heaven-sent rest and prosperity, affairs would regulate themselves into almost as unendurable a condition as before.
"Therefore ponder these things well, O passer-by. Yesterday the only man-child of Huang the wood-carver was taken away to be sold into slavery by the emissaries of the most just Ping Siang (who would not have acted thus, we are assured, were it not for the insatiable ones at Peking), as it had become plain that the very necessitous Huang had no other possession to contribute to the amount to be expended in coloured lights as a mark of public rejoicing on the occasion of the moonday of the sublime Emperor. The illiterate and prosaic-minded Huang, having in a most unseemly manner reviled and even assailed those who acted in the matter, has been effectively disposed of, and his wife now alternately laughs and shrieks in the Establishment of Irregular Intellects.
"For this reason, gazer, and because the matter touches you more closely than, in your self-imagined security, you are prone to think, deal expediently with the time at your disposal. Look twice and lingeringly to-night upon the face of your first-born, and clasp the form of your favourite one in a closer embrace, for he by whose hand the blow is directed may already have cast devouring eyes upon their fairness, and to-morrow he may say to his armed men: 'The time is come; bring her to me.'"
"From the last sentence of the well-intentioned and undoubtedlymoderately-framed notice this person will take two phrases," remarkedTung Fel, folding the written paper and placing it among hisgarments, "which shall serve him as the title of the lifelike andaccurately-represented play which it is his self-conceited intentionnow to disclose to this select and unprejudiced gathering. The scenerepresents an enlightened and well-merited justice overtaking anarrogant and intolerable being who--need this person add?--existed manydynasties ago, and the title is:
"THE TIME IS COME! BY WHOSE HAND?"
Delivering himself in this manner, Tung Fel drew back the hangingdrapery which concealed the front of his large box, and disclosed tothose who were gathered round, not, as they had expected, a passagefrom the Record of the Three Kingdoms, or some other dramatic work ofundoubted merit, but an ingeniously constructed representation of ascene outside the walls of their own Ching-fow. On one side was a smallbut minutely accurate copy of a wood-burner's hut, which was knownto all present, while behind stood out the distant but neverthelessunmistakable walls of the city. But it was nearest part of the spectaclethat first held the attention of the entranced beholders, for theredisported themselves, in every variety of guileless and attractiveattitude, a number of young and entirely unconcerned doves. Scarcely hadthe delighted onlookers fully observed the pleasing and effective scene,or uttered their expressions of polished satisfaction at the gracefuland unassuming behaviour of the pretty creatures before them, than theview entirely changed, and, as if by magic, the massive and inelegantbuilding of Ping Siang's Yamen was presented before them. As all gazed,astonished, the great door of the Yamen opened stealthily, and withouta moment's pause a lean and ill-conditioned rat, of unnatural size andrapacity, dashed out and seized the most select and engaging of theunsuspecting prey in its hungry jaws. With the expiring cry of theinnocent victim the entire box was immediately, and in the mostunexpected manner, involved in a profound darkness, which cleared awayas suddenly and revealed the forms of the despoiler and the victim lyingdead by each other's side.
Tung Fel came forw
ard to receive the well-selected compliments of allwho had witnessed the entertainment.
"It may be objected," he remarked, "that the play is, in a manner ofexpressing one's self, incomplete; for it is unrevealed by whose handthe act of justice was accomplished. Yet in this detail is the accuracyof the representation justified, for though the time has come, the handby which retribution is accorded shall never be observed."
In such a manner did Tung Fel come to Ching-fow on the seventh day ofthe month of Winged Dragons, throwing aside all restraint, and no longerurging prudence or delay. Of all the throng which stood before himscarcely one was without a deep offence against Ping Siang, while thosewho had not as yet suffered feared what the morrow might display.
A wandering monk from the Island of Irredeemable Plagues was the firstto step forth in response to Tung Fel's plainly understood suggestion.
"There is no necessity for this person to undertake further acts ofbenevolence," he remarked, dropping the cloak from his shoulder anddisplaying the hundred and eight scars of extreme virtue; "nor," hecontinued, holding up his left hand, from which three fingers were burntaway, "have greater endurances been neglected. Yet the matter beforethis distinguished gathering is one which merits the favourableconsideration of all persons, and this one will in no manner turn away,recounting former actions, while he allows others to press forwardtowards the accomplishment of the just and divinely-inspired act."
With these words the devout and unassuming person in question inscribedhis name upon a square piece of rice-paper, attesting his sincerity tothe fixed purpose for which it was designed by dipping his thumb intothe mixed blood of the slain animals and impressing this unalterableseal upon the paper also. He was followed by a seller of drugs andsubtle medicines, whose entire stock had been seized and destroyed byorder of Ping Siang, so that no one in Ching-fow might obtain poisonfor his destruction. Then came an overwhelming stream of persons, all ofwhom had received some severe and well-remembered injury at the handsof the malicious and vindictive Mandarin. All these followed a similarobservance, inscribing their names and binding themselves by the BloodOath. Last of all Yang Hu stepped up, partly from a natural modestywhich restrained him from offering himself when so many more versatilepersons of proved excellence were willing to engage in the matter, andpartly because an ill-advised conflict was taking place within his mindas to whether the extreme course which was contemplated was the mostexpedient to pursue. At last, however, he plainly perceived that hecould not honourably withhold himself from an affair that was in ameasure the direct outcome of his own unendurable loss, so that withoutfurther hesitation he added his obscure name to the many illustriousones already in Tung Fel's keeping.
When at length dark fell upon the city and the cries of the watchmen,warning all prudent ones to bar well their doors against robbers,as they themselves were withdrawing until the morrow, no longer rangthrough the narrow ways of Ching-fow, all those persons who had pledgedthemselves by name and seal went forth silently, and came together atthe place whereof Tung Fel had secretly conveyed them knowledge. ThereTung Fel, standing somewhat apart, placed all the folded papers in theform of a circle, and having performed over them certain observancesdesigned to insure a just decision and to keep away evil influences,submitted the selection to the discriminating choice of the SacredFlat and Round Sticks. Having in this manner secured the name ofthe appointed person who should carry out the act of justice andretribution, Tung Fel unfolded the paper, inscribed certain words uponit, and replaced it among the others.
"The moment before great deeds," began Tung Fel, stepping forward andaddressing himself to the expectant ones who were gathered round, "isnot the time for light speech, nor, indeed, for sentences of dignifiedlength, no matter how pleasantly turned to the ear they may be. Beforethis person stand many who are undoubtedly illustrious in variousarts and virtues, yet one among them is pre-eminently marked out fordistinction in that his name shall be handed down in imperishablehistory as that of a patriot of a pure-minded and uncompromising degree.With him there is no need of further speech, and to this end I haveinscribed certain words upon his namepaper. To everyone this person willnow return the paper which has been entrusted to him, folded so thatthe nature of its contents shall be an unwritten leaf to all others. Norshall the papers be unfolded by any until he is within his own chamber,with barred doors, where all, save the one who shall find the message,shall remain, not venturing forth until daybreak. I, Tung Fel, havespoken, and assuredly I shall not eat my word, which is that a certainand most degrading death awaits any who transgress these commands."
It was with the short and sudden breath of the cowering antelope whenthe stealthy tread of the pitiless tiger approaches its lair, that YangHu opened his paper in the seclusion of his own cave; for his mind wasdarkened with an inspired inside emotion that he, the one doubting amongthe eagerly proffering and destructively inclined multitude, wouldbe chosen to accomplish the high aim for which, indeed, he feltexceptionally unworthy. The written sentence which he perceivedimmediately upon unfolding the paper, instructing him to appear againbefore Tung Fel at the hour of midnight, was, therefore, nothing butthe echo and fulfilment of his own thoughts, and served in reality toimpress his mind with calmer feelings of dignified unconcern than wouldhave been the case had he not been chosen. Having neither possessionsnor relations, the occupation of disposing of his goods and makingceremonious and affectionate leavetakings of his family, against theoccurrence of any unforeseen disaster, engrossed no portion of Yang Hu'stime. Yet there was one matter to which no reference has yet been made,but which now forces itself obtrusively upon the attention, which wasin a large measure responsible for many of the most prominent actionsof Yang Hu's life, and, indeed, in no small degree influenced hishesitation in offering himself before Tung Fel.
Not a bowshot distance from the place where the mountain path enteredthe outskirts of the city lived Hiya-ai-Shao with her parents, whowere persons of assured position, though of no particular wealth. For aperiod not confined to a single year it had been the custom of Yang Huto offer to this elegant and refined maiden all the rarest piecesof jade which he could discover, while the most symmetrical andremunerative she-goat in his flock enjoyed the honourable distinction ofbearing her incomparable name. Towards the almond garden of Hiya's abodeYang Hu turned his footsteps upon leaving his cave, and standing there,concealed from all sides by the white and abundant flower-laden foliage,he uttered a sound which had long been an agreed signal between them.Presently a faint perfume of choo-lan spoke of her near approach, andwithout delay Hiya herself stood by his side.
"Well-endowed one," said Yang Hu, when at length they had gazed uponeach other's features and made renewals of their protestations of mutualregard, "the fixed intentions of a person have often been fitly likenedto the seed of the tree-peony, so ineffectual are their efforts amongthe winds of constantly changing circumstance. The definite hope ofthis person had long pointed towards a small but adequate habitation,surrounded by sweet-smelling olive-trees and not far distant from thejade cliffs and pastures which would afford a sufficient remunerationand a means of living. This entrancing picture has been blotted out forthe time, and in its place this person finds himself face to face withan arduous and dangerous undertaking, followed, perhaps, by hasty andimmediate flight. Yet if the adorable Hiya will prove the unchangingdepths of her constantly expressed intention by accompanying him asfar as the village of Hing where suitable marriage ceremonies can beobserved without delay, the exile will in reality be in the nature ofa triumphal procession, and the emotions with which this person hashitherto regarded the entire circumstance will undergo a complete andhighly accomplished change."
"Oh, Yang!" exclaimed the maiden, whose feelings at hearing these wordswere in no way different from those of her lover when he was on thepoint of opening the folded paper upon which Tung Fel had written; "whatis the nature of the mission upon which you are so impetuously resolved?and why will it be followed by flight?"
; "The nature of the undertaking cannot be revealed by reason of adeliberately taken oath," replied Yang Hu; "and the reason of itspossible consequence is a less important question to the two persons whoare here conversing together than of whether the amiable and gracefulHiya is willing to carry out her often-expressed desire for anopportunity of displaying the true depths of her emotions towards thisone."
"Alas!" said Hiya, "the sentiments which this person expressed withirreproachable honourableness when the sun was high in the heavens andthe probability of secretly leaving an undoubtedly well-appointed homewas engagingly remote, seem to have an entirely different significancewhen recalled by night in a damp orchard, and on the eve of theirfulfilment. To deceive one's parents is an ignoble prospect;furthermore, it is often an exceedingly difficult undertaking. Let thematter be arranged in this way: that Yang leaves the ultimate detailsof the scheme to Hiya's expedient care, he proceeding without delayto Hing, or, even more desirable, to the further town of Liyunnan,and there awaiting her coming. By such means the risk of discovery andpursuit will be lessened, Yang will be able to set forth on his journeywith greater speed, and this one will have an opportunity of gettingtogether certain articles without which, indeed, she would be veryinadequately equipped."
In spite of his conscientious desire that Hiya should be by his sideon the journey, together with an unendurable certainty that evil wouldarise from the course she proposed, Yang was compelled by an innatefeeling of respect to agree to her wishes, and in this manner thearrangement was definitely concluded. Thereupon Hiya, without delay,returned to the dwelling, remarking that otherwise her absence might bedetected and the entire circumstance thereby discovered, leaving Yang Huto continue his journey and again present himself before Tung Fel, as hehad been instructed.
Tung Fel was engaged with brush and ink when Yang Hu entered. Round himwere many written parchments, some venerable with age, and a varietyof other matters, among which might be clearly perceived weapons, anddevices for reading the future. He greeted Yang with many tokens ofdignified respect, and with an evidently restrained emotion led himtowards the light of a hanging lantern, where he gazed into his face fora considerable period with every indication of exceptional concern.
"Yang Hu," he said at length, "at such a moment many dark and searchingthoughts may naturally arise in the mind concerning objects and reasons,omens, and the moving cycle of events. Yet in all these, out of a wisdomgained by deep endurance and a hardly-won experience beyond the commonlot, this person would say, Be content. The hand of destiny, though itmay at times appear to move in a devious manner, is ever approaching itsappointed aim. To this end were you chosen."
"The choice was openly made by wise and proficient omens," replied YangHu, without any display of uncertainty of purpose, "and this person iscontent."
Tung Fel then administered to Yang the Oath of Buddha's Face and the Onecalled the Unutterable (which may not be further described in writtenwords) thereby binding his body and soul, and the souls and repose ofall who had gone before him in direct line and all who should in a likemanner follow after, to the accomplishment of the design. All spokenmatter being thus complete between them, he gave him a mask with whichhe should pass unknown through the streets and into the presence of PingSiang, a variety of weapons to use as the occasion arose, and a signby which the attendants at the Yamen would admit him without furtherquestioning.
As Yang Hu passed through the streets of Ching-fow, which were in agreat measure deserted owing to the command of Tung Fel, he was aware ofmany mournful and foreboding sounds which accompanied him on all sides,while shadowy faces, bearing signs of intolerable anguish and despair,continually formed themselves out of the wind. By the time he reachedthe Yamen a tempest of exceptional violence was in progress, nor wereother omens absent which tended to indicate that matters of a veryunpropitious nature were about to take place.
At each successive door of the Yamen the attendant stepped back andcovered his face, so that he should by no chance perceive who had comeupon so destructive a mission, the instant Yang Hu uttered the sign withwhich Tung Fel had provided him. In this manner Yang quickly reached thedoor of the inner chamber upon which was inscribed: "Let the person whocomes with a doubtful countenance, unbidden, or meditating treachery,remember the curse and manner of death which attended Lai Kuen, whoslew the one over him; so shall he turn and go forth in safety." Thisunworthy safeguard at the hands of a person who passed his entire lifein altering the fixed nature of justice, and who never went beyond hisouter gate without an armed company of bowmen, inspired Yang Hu withso incautious a contempt, that without any hesitation he drew forth hisbrush and ink, and in a spirit of bitter signification added the words,"'Come, let us eat together,' said the wolf to the she-goat."
Being now within a step of Ping Siang and the completion of hisundertaking, Yang Hu drew tighter the cords of his mask, tested andproved his weapons, and then, without further delay, threw open the doorbefore him and stepped into the chamber, barring the door quickly sothat no person might leave or enter without his consent.
At this interruption and manner of behaving, which clearly indicatedthe nature of the errand upon which the person before him had come,Ping Siang rose from his couch and stretched out his hand towards a gongwhich lay beside him.
"All summonses for aid are now unavailing, Ping Siang," exclaimed Yang,without in any measure using delicate or set phrases of speech; "for,as you have doubtless informed yourself, the slaves of tyrants are thefirst to welcome the downfall of their lord."
"The matter of your speech is as emptiness to this person," replied theMandarin, affecting with extreme difficulty an appearance of no-concern."In what manner has he fallen? And how will the depraved and self-willedperson before him avoid the well-deserved tortures which certainly awaithim in the public square on the morrow, as the reward of his intolerablepresumptions?"
"O Mandarin," cried Yang Hu, "the fitness and occasion for such speechesas the one to which you have just given utterance lie as far behind youas the smoke of yesterday's sacrifice. With what manner of eyes have youfrequently journeyed through Ching-fow of late, if the signs andomens there have not already warned you to prepare a coffin adequatelydesigned to receive your well-proportioned body? Has not the pungentvapour of burning houses assailed your senses at every turn, or the salttears from the eyes of forlorn ones dashed your peach-tea and spicedfoods with bitterness?"
"Alas!" exclaimed Ping Siang, "this person now certainly begins toperceive that many things which he has unthinkingly allowed wouldpresent a very unendurable face to others."
"In such a manner has it appeared to all Ching-fow," said Yang Hu; "andthe justice of your death has been universally admitted. Even shouldthis one fail there would be an innumerable company eager to take hisplace. Therefore, O Ping Siang, as the only favour which it is withinthis person's power to accord, select that which in your opinion is themost agreeable manner and weapon for your end."
"It is truly said that at the Final Gate of the Two Ways the necessityfor elegant and well-chosen sentences ends," remarked Ping Siang with asigh, "otherwise the manner of your address would be open to reproach.By your side this person perceives a long and apparently highly-temperedsword, which, in his opinion, will serve the purpose efficiently. Havingno remarks of an improving but nevertheless exceedingly tedious naturewith which to imprint the occasion for the benefit of those who comeafter, his only request is that the blow shall be an unhesitating andsufficiently well-directed one."
At these words Yang Hu threw back his cloak to grasp the sword-handle,when the Mandarin, with his eyes fixed on the naked arm, and evidentlyinspired by every manner of conflicting emotions, uttered a cry ofunspeakable wonder and incomparable surprise.
"The Serpent!" he cried, in a voice from which all evenness and controlwere absent. "The Sacred Serpent of our Race! O mysterious one, who andwhence are you?"
Engulfed in an all-absorbing doubt at the nature of events, Yang couldonly gaze at the form of
the serpent which had been clearly impressedupon his arm from the earliest time of his remembrance, while PingSiang, tearing the silk garment from his own arm and displaying thereona similar form, continued:
"Behold the inevitable and unvarying birthmark of our race! So it waswith this person's father and the ones before him; so it was with histreacherously-stolen son; so it will be to the end of all time."
Trembling beyond all power of restraint, Yang removed the mask which hadhitherto concealed his face.
"Father or race has this person none," he said, looking into PingSiang's features with an all-engaging hope, tempered in a measure by asoul-benumbing dread; "nor memory or tradition of an earlier state thanwhen he herded goats and sought for jade in the southern mountains."
"Nevertheless," exclaimed the Mandarin, whose countenance was lightenedwith an interest and a benevolent emotion which had never been seenthere before, "beyond all possibility of doubting, you are thisperson's lost and greatly-desired son, stolen away many years ago bythe treacherous conduct of an unworthy woman, yet now happily andmiraculously restored to cherish his declining years and perpetuate anhonourable name and race."
"Happily!" exclaimed Yang, with fervent indications of uncontrollablebitterness. "Oh, my illustrious sire, at whose venerated feet thisunworthy person now prostrates himself with well-merited marks ofreverence and self-abasement, has the errand upon which an ignoble sonentered--the every memory of which now causes him the acutest agonyof the lost, but which nevertheless he is pledged to Tung Fel by theUnutterable Oath to perform--has this unnatural and eternally cursedthing escaped your versatile mind?"
"Tung Fel!" cried Ping Siang. "Is, then, this blow also by the hand ofthat malicious and vindictive person? Oh, what a cycle of events andinterchanging lines of destiny do your words disclose!"
"Who, then, is Tung Fel, my revered Father?" demanded Yang.
"It is a matter which must be made clear from the beginning," repliedPing Siang. "At one time this person and Tung Fel were, by natureand endowments, united in the most amiable bonds of an inseparablefriendship. Presently Tung Fel signed the preliminary contract ofa marriage with one who seemed to be endowed with every variety ofenchanting and virtuous grace, but who was, nevertheless, as theunrolling of future events irresistibly discovered, a person ofirregular character and undignified habits. On the eve of the marriageceremony this person was made known to her by the undoubtedly enrapturedTung Fel, whereupon he too fell into the snare of her engagingpersonality, and putting aside all thoughts of prudent restraint, madeher more remunerative offers of marriage than Tung Fel could by anypossible chance overbid. In such a manner--for after the nature ofher kind riches were exceptionally attractive to her degradedimagination--she became this person's wife, and the mother of his onlyson. In spite of these great honours, however, the undoubted perversityof her nature made her an easy accomplice to the duplicity of TungFel, who, by means of various disguises, found frequent opportunity ofuttering in her presence numerous well-thought-out suggestions speciallydesigned to lead her imagination towards an existence in which thisperson had no adequate representation. Becoming at length terrified atthe possibility of these unworthy emotions, obtruding themselves uponthis person's notice, the two in question fled together, taking withthem the one who without any doubt is now before me. Despite the mostassiduous search and very tempting and profitable offers of reward, noinformation of a reliable nature could be obtained, and at lengththis dispirited and completely changed person gave up the pursuit asunavailing. With his son and heir, upon whose future he had greatlyhoped, all emotions of a generous and high-minded nature left him, andin a very short space of time he became the avaricious and deservedlyunpopular individual against whose extortions the amiable andlong-suffering ones of Ching-fow have for so many years protestedmildly. The sudden and not altogether unexpected fate which is nowon the point of reaching him is altogether too lenient to be entirelyadequate."
"Oh, my distinguished and really immaculate sire!" cried Yang Hu, in avoice which expressed the deepest feelings of contrition. "No oaths orvows, however sacred, can induce this person to stretch forth his handagainst the one who stands before him."
"Nevertheless," replied Ping Siang, speaking of the matter as though itwere one which did not closely concern his own existence, "to neglectthe Unutterable Oath would inevitably involve not only the two personswho are now conversing together, but also those before and those who areto come after in direct line, in a much worse condition of affairs. Thatis a fate which this person would by no means permit to exist, for oneof his chief desires has ever been to establish a strong and vigorousline, to which end, indeed, he was even now concluding a marriagearrangement with the beautiful and refined Hiya-ai-Shao, whom he hadat length persuaded into accepting his betrothal tokens withoutreluctance."
"Hiya-ai-Shao!" exclaimed Yang; "she has accepted your silk-boundgifts?"
"The matter need not concern us now," replied the Mandarin, notobserving in his complicated emotions the manner in which the name ofHiya had affected Yang, revealing as it undoubtedly did the treachery ofhis beloved one. "There only appears to be one honourable way in whichthe full circumstances can be arranged, and this person will in nomeasure endeavour to avoid it."
"Such an end is neither ignoble nor painful," he said, in an unchangingvoice; "nor will this one in any way shrink from so easy and honourablea solution."
"The affairs of the future do not exhibit themselves in delicatelycoloured hues to this person," said Yang Hu; "and he would, if the thingcould be so arranged, cheerfully submit to a similar fate in order thata longer period of existence should be assured to one who has everyvariety of claim upon his affection."
"The proposal is a graceful and conscientious one," said Ping Siang,"and is, moreover, a gratifying omen of the future of our race, whichmust of necessity be left in your hands. But, for that reason itself,such a course cannot be pursued. Nevertheless, the events of the pastfew hours have been of so exceedingly prosperous and agreeable a naturethat this short-sighted and frequently desponding person can nowpass beyond with a tranquil countenance and every assurance of divinefavour."
With these words Ping Siang indicated that he was desirous of settingforth the Final Expression, and arranging the necessary matters upon thetable beside him, he stretched forth his hands over Yang Hu, who placedhimself in a suitable attitude of reverence and abasement.
"Yang Hu," began the Mandarin, "undoubted son, and, after theaccomplishment of the intention which it is our fixed purpose to carryout, fitting representative of the person who is here before you,engrave well within your mind the various details upon which he nowgives utterance. Regard the virtues; endeavour to pass an amiable andat the same time not unremunerative existence; and on all occasionssacrifice freely, to the end that the torments of those who have gonebefore may be made lighter, and that others may be induced in turn toperform a like benevolent charity for yourself. Having expressedhimself upon these general subjects, this person now makes a last andrespectfully-considered desire, which it is his deliberate wish shouldbe carried to the proper deities as his final expression of opinion:That Yang Hu may grow as supple as the dried juice of the bending-palm,and as straight as the most vigorous bamboo from the forests of theNorth. That he may increase beyond the prolificness of the white-neckedcrow and cover the ground after the fashion of the binding grass.That in battle his sword may be as a vividly-coloured and many-forkedlightning flash, accompanied by thunderbolts as irresistible as Buddha'sdivine wrath; in peace his voice as resounding as the rolling of manypowerful drums among the Khingan Mountains. That when the kindled fireof his existence returns to the great Mountain of Pure Flame the earthshall accept again its component parts, and in no way restrain thedivine essence from journeying to its destined happiness. These wordsare Ping Siang's last expression of opinion before he passes beyond,given in the unvarying assurance that so sacred and important a petitionwill in no way be neglected."
Having in this
manner completed all the affairs which seemed to be ofa necessary and urgent nature, and fixing his last glance upon Yang Huwith every variety of affectionate and estimable emotion, the Mandarindrank a sufficient quantity of the liquid, and placing himself upon acouch in an attitude of repose, passed in this dignified and unassumingmanner into the Upper Air.
After the space of a few moments spent in arranging certain objects andin inward contemplation, Yang Hu crossed the chamber, still holdingthe half-filled vessel of gold-leaf in his hand, and drawing back thehanging silk, gazed over the silent streets of Ching-fow and towards thegreat sky-lantern above.
"Hiya is faithless," he said at length in an unspeaking voice; "thisperson's mother a bitter-tasting memory, his father a swiftly passingshadow that is now for ever lost." His eyes rested upon the closedvessel in his hand. "Gladly would--" his thoughts began, but withthis unworthy image a new impression formed itself within his mind. "Aclearly-expressed wish was uttered," he concluded, "and Tung Fel stillremains." With this resolution he stepped back into the chamber andstruck the gong loudly.
The Wallet of Kai Lung Page 22
