He stopped outside his house and tidied himself. He dusted his clothes and smoothed his hair. His father would be home for dinner. He must be careful not to let the old man have any inkling of his secret activities. He had nearly been caught out twice before. His mother had bailed him out. On each of those occasions, she had threatened never to rescue him again unless he changed his ways. “You will be caught one day. You cannot...” she had stopped short of using the word rape. “You cannot hurt young girls like that. I had to draw on all my savings to pay the girl’s father to shut him up. I don’t have any more money to do it again.” He recalled pleading with her. He attributed his behaviour to a devil in him that made him lose control and behave in a bizarre way. He claimed he remembered nothing of what he did. He cried and repented. He swore that he would change. And, as he expected, she helped him out again. He made sure that he made up to her by being attentive and loving. He knew she would always relent; she would never let him suffer. He was certain of that.
He went quickly to his room to wash and check his appearance. He must cover up the scratches Li Ling had inflicted on him. He would explain that he had walked into an over hanging branch. He was glad that the scratches were on his neck. The mandarin collar would probably cover them up adequately. He pulled the collar up and buttoned it up more securely. He looked this way and that, admiring himself. “Not bad,” he said to his image in the mirror. The adrenalin was still pumping strongly in him. He felt powerful and invincible.
He had really wanted to play along with Li Ling for longer. She was the youngest of his victims so far. But something in him snapped when he felt her go rigid under his touch. How dare she! He threw all caution to the wind. She was asking for it.
He made his way to the dining room, humming under his breath. His spirit was still high when he saw his mother. She, however, was agitated. He could see it from the way her eyebrows were knitted together and the jerky rapid steps she took towards him, arms outstretched and a finger wagging in the air.
“Where were you? Do you know what time it is? Ah Sun said you left the store ages ago. I hope you are not up to something stupid.”
“Mother, how could you say such a thing?” He opened wide his eyes with astonishment and feigned hurt. “I was searching for a present for you and now you have spoilt my surprise.”
Taken back she smiled sheepishly, gratified by his reply. “All right, all right, ignore what I had just said. Come, your father wants to speak to you.”
She led the way. Da Wei followed, wondering what was in store. He was wary. While he could always talk round his mother, he was never sure of himself with his father. He was the youngest in the family and had only been given a lowly job in his father’s store. His father did not trust him to do much. Instead, his father had concentrated on teaching his elder brother the business. Da Wei resented it.
“When I was your age, I worked day and night, selling noodles from house to house. I carried a pole on my shoulders, balancing pots and baskets hanging on both ends. I never shirked. Look at my hands,” his father would say, pushing his calloused square hands to Da Wei’s face. “Your mother has spoilt you. You do nothing but play and spend money like water. You are useless!”
Da Wei was sick and tired of hearing about his father’s rise from poverty to fortune. He would have to switch off if he was subjected to it again this evening. Thank heavens that he had friends outside the family who did not think like his father. They knew how to enjoy life. He made sure that he too would enjoy life. Women, young women, the younger the better, were very much part of his enjoyment. After all he was only young himself. A smile flashed across his face. He recalled Li Ling’s terror. It added such piquancy to an otherwise mundane act.
“What is making you so happy, son?” his mother asked. She had turned round to speak to him when she saw the smile.
“Nothing. I just thought how beautiful you are today. All my friends tell me how gracious you look, how you seem to blossom with age rather then wither like other women.”
She rapped her fan at him. “Flatterer!” She was, nevertheless, pleased.
They went into the dining room. His father was already seated. He frowned when he saw them.
“Father,” Da Wei bowed.
“Mmmm!” his father grunted. “Late again!”
“I am sorry. I was waylaid. I had some work to attend to and...” he saw his mother’s eyebrow shot up in surprise, “...and I was searching for a present for mother. I forgot the time.”
“No point telling you not to do that again, is there?” His father’s question was rhetorical and his eyes cutting. “We should think of marrying you to some decent girl who could reform you. But who would want a rascal?”
“Hong,” Da Wei’s mother interjected. “Don’t say such harsh words to your son. You said you had some thing important to say to him. Surely this is not it?”
“Yes it is. I think we should arrange to get him married. That boy of yours is a wastrel. Start making enquiries. Employ a matchmaker. I think that the woman you choose should be someone mature, five years older than Da Wei. He needs someone to guide him.”
Hong glared at his son. “I am hearing things about you that I do not like. Don’t think you can fool me like you do your mother.”
“Father...”
“There is nothing more to be said.”
Da Wei fumed but held his tongue.
***
The following morning Li Ling rose before the sun was up. She had hardly slept. She crept out of bed and went in search of a mirror. She found one in the laundry room, hidden in a basket she had piled high with towels. She had hidden it there to look at herself from time to time. She closed the door gently and locked herself in. She looked at herself. This time it was not to admire or consider what she could do to make herself prettier, it was to see how she could hide her bruises. She knew they were there even without looking. They hurt. Taking a long strand of hair, she looped it to cover part of her cheeks, allowing the remainder to fall loose around her neck.
Da Wei had held her neck in a stranglehold. However, she could not disguise the cut on her lips or the swelling around it. From one basket she found a long loose tunic. She pulled it on and buttoned it up to her neck. She tugged the sleeves down until all but her fingers were visible for her arms too were bruised and scratched. Once dressed, she unlocked the door and went into the classroom. It was still very early. The school bell had not rung. It was likely that people were only just beginning to rise. The kitchen would be busy preparing breakfast. She went quickly to a seat at the back of the classroom. She did not want to meet anyone. She kept her head bowed low over an open book. She did not look up when finally other students began to arrive with much jostling and noise. She didn’t look up even when Shao Peng came into the classroom. She remained seated when the others stood to attention.
Shao Peng noticed. She made no comment. Li Ling had been difficult the past few months. Any overtures would be interpreted wrongly. She understood that it was difficult for Li Ling. They did not have enough resources to stream the children by age. The class consisted of children ranging from as young as ten. Li Ling was by far the oldest; compared to the others she was a young adult. The class was further sub-divided into groups on the basis of abilities. The children were recruited from all sorts of background and were of different ethnicity. A significant proportion of them were from Ceylon and India. Some already had a smattering of English. Li Ling could neither read nor speak English. She spoke Cantonese; she did not, however, read or write Chinese. Inevitably she fell into the bottom group, amongst the youngest.
Shao Peng walked between the rows of desks. She stopped when she reached Li Ling. Squatting down she asked Li Ling if she was all right. Li Ling did not reply.
“Can you see me afterwards? I could help you with your work. If we make progress, then we can move you up to a group nearer your age. It would make such a difference.”
“Leave me alone! Haven’t you done enoug
h? I want to go home; I want to return to my family.” She placed her forehead on the table and refused to look up.
Shao Peng sighed. At such times it was impossible to make any headway with Li Ling. She would gladly send Li Ling back home if it were possible. It was not. A letter had arrived from China. The letter, written on behalf of Li Ling’s parents, had stressed in no uncertain terms that it would be dangerous for Li Ling to return. The warlord had seized her parent’s farm and they were now homeless, joining the thousands of other homeless people living on the streets. China was in chaos. She had tried to read the letter to the girl to no avail; she had shut her ears and walked away.
***
“You should have seen the feast served up for the engagement. Suet Ping, young Master’s fiancée, was dressed in a beautiful hand-embroidered chiffon top. The embroidery went from the neck down in the middle and all round the hemline.” Here Lai Ma stopped and illustrated running her fingers from the neck down the centre of the bodice. “Mistress Rohani had it especially commissioned. To go with the kebaya top, Miss Suet Ping wore a hand painted sarong.”
“What colour was it?” asked Sister Magdalene who had just entered the kitchen and had been listening in. She loved hearing about local customs.
“The top was a pale peach, set off by a sarong with hues of brown and lemon,” replied Lai Ma. “The most wonderful of all was the set of keronsang Big Mistress gave Miss Suet Ping; three jade brooches, each in the shape of a phoenix, and linked together with a gold chain! The extravagance! She wore it to pin the top together.”
They were in the school kitchen. Lai Ma was giving a running commentary of the engagement party while she washed up. Jing-jing, charged with drying the dishes said little. She was subdued, a totally different person from the enthusiastic and confident young woman on the ship.
Li Ling too said little. Nothing escaped her though. She listened intently. Her face grew more bitter with each of Lai Ma’s pronouncements. She winced each time Lai Ma described the presents or when she said how happy the young couple were. The words hurt her more than the scratches and bruises on her body. Finally, unable to stand it any more, she threw down the dishcloth and walked out of the kitchen into the backyard.
“Heh! You haven’t finished,” shouted Lai Ma.
“I’ll do the rest,” volunteered Jing-jing. “She is probably not well. She has looked out of sorts the whole day.”
***
Li Ling closed the back gate and leaned on it. She was breathing hard as though she had run. She clenched her fist and bit down hard on her lower lip until the scab, grown out of the cut inflicted on her the previous evening, broke and she bled once more. She needed to feel the pain. It was nothing compared to the pain in her heart. Life was so unfair! Why does Suet Ping be deserving of so much while she had nothing?
“Curse them!” she yelled, stamping her feet. “I curse Miss Suet Ping. May she have only girl offspring! See then how she will be treated. I will wait. I will bide my time and take revenge. As for Miss Shao Peng, the shuang mian! I hate her for her double face. She said that she cared for me. Yet, she let me go. I am a kitchen maid here. I don’t care for the learning they force on me. It is only an excuse. She helped cement this engagement of her brother! I hold her responsible. I curse her too!”
She looked towards the path that led to the river. She had nowhere to go. The river was the only place of solace that had provided some sort of haven for her in the past months. Now even that was spoilt. Da Wei’s threats boomed in her head. Should she go? Would he cut up her face if she didn’t? If she didn’t, where else could she go? No one wanted her.
She sat down on the dirt ground and buried her face in the palms of her hand. Da Wei did want her, at least until last evening. Even then, she convinced herself, it might be a wanting of some sort. No one would have her now; she was not a virgin. Her mother had warned her over and over again of the importance of virginity. She would go to him and plead. Maybe he would be kind again, like he had been in the past. She would let him do anything. Anything was better than being discarded again.
She rose slowly and walked towards the river. She blotted dry the blood from her lips and cleaned her face. He wouldn’t want to see her in this state. He had slapped her hard for crying. She could still feel the sting of his hand as he whacked her, first from the left and then the right. Perhaps I deserved it. He had cried that she was a c... teaser. She didn’t understand what it meant or that she was one. She must have been for him to get so angry. He had been so good to her until then.
So she walked like a zombie with all these thoughts muddling through her mind. With every step, her resentment of Shao Peng and Suet Ping grew.
By the time she reached the spot of their rendezvous, she had persuaded herself that Da Wei was her only way out of her terrible situation. She sat on the rock and waited. Time passed. She waited. The sun dipped below the horizon. Darkness fell. He did not come.
Chapter 21
SHAO PENG WENT STRAIGHT home after school. She hoped she would be there before Jack. Rohani had called upon her help every day in the weeks leading up to Siew Loong’s engagement. Unable to refuse, she found herself returning home, later and later and, on many occasions, not at all. Today was the first day that she was free from such demands.
She ran up the flight of steps that led up to the verandah of her house. She was excited to be back so early. A smile broke out on her face in anticipation of seeing Jack. She relished the idea of spending a whole evening with him. She took off her shoes and pushed open the front door. The house was quiet and dark. Someone had pulled the shutters down. Good, she thought. It keeps the house cool. Sounds of laughter rang from within followed by a male voice. Jack! He was home! Her heart sang.
She hastened towards the sound of laughter. It came from her bedroom. The realisation stopped her in her track. She licked her lips; her tongue was dry, parched like sand baked in the sun. She hurried towards the bedroom. Her bare feet scarcely made a noise. The door was open. Jack was seated at the edge of the bed. Aishah was standing facing him. They were oblivious to her presence. While Aishah twirled a lock of hair with one finger and swayed her body while speaking, Jack had a lopsided grin on his face. His eyes did not stray from the girl’s.
Shao Peng felt a rush of anger. “What are you...?” She broke off mid sentence, choked by her own rage.
They jumped and turned to look at her guiltily. They saw the wide-eyed horror on her face. Aishah hurtled out of the room, catching Shao Peng’s shoulder as she did so.
Jack got up and went to Shao Peng with two strides. “You are back! You are early!” He took her by the shoulders and made to gather her into his arms.
She resisted, turning her face deliberately to avoid his lips.
“Obviously not a convenient time. Why are you back home at this hour?”
“I might ask you the same,” he replied, dropping his hands. He moved away stunned by her frosty tone.
“Do you have Aishah in our bedroom often?” She had meant to be calm. She couldn’t. Her voice rose. Even to her own ears, it sounded abrasive and harsh. “Do you have so much to talk about? It was obviously something that amuses both of you very much. What else do you do in our bedroom?”
She felt herself lose control, hurling words and accusations at him as he looked on in shock.
“You can’t be serious asking those questions. I resent that tone of voice. You leave me alone in this house for long stretches while you attend to your brother and stepmother and dare accuse me of enjoying a talk with Aishah! She was merely telling me a comical situation that had arisen in her village. What evil thoughts do you harbour to come up with such suggestions?”
Jack was livid with anger.
“Does she have to come into our bedroom to tell you a tale? Have you thought how it would look? Would you like me to chat with the gardener in our bedroom?
“That is a totally unacceptable comparison!” Jack gave an exasperated snort and stalked out of th
e room.
Shao Peng heard the front door slam shut. The force of it reverberated through the walls and flooring. She sat heavily on the bed clasping her face in her hands. She got up. She had to do something. She could not have Aishah in the house. She was wrong in having her there. The girl was clearly infatuated with Jack. It had to be nipped in the bud. She was sorry it had come to this. My fault, she thought.
She went out of the bedroom and stalked into the kitchen holding herself straight and her shoulders squared. She was determined to resolve the problem. Aishah was seated at the kitchen table, a long wooden trestle stained dark with age. She turned at the sound of Shao Peng’s entry. Her eyes, long like a cat’s, flicked over Shao Peng. They were filled with insolence; then she tilted her head away. She said nothing.
“I am giving you notice. I don’t need your service any more. I want you to leave now!”
The girl didn’t move. Nor did she answer. She sat still.
Unnerved, Shao Peng took out some money from her pocket. It was intended for groceries for the school kitchen. She counted some out and handed it to Aishah. Her hand shook. “This is more than your month’s wages and should see you through for at least a month if not more.”
The girl stood up and snatched away the money. Then she spat. The glob of spittle landed in front of Shao Peng’s feet making her jump. Aghast, she could only look in astonishment at Aishah. The girl laughed. There was no merriment in her face; her eyes were coal black with venom.
Shao Peng shuddered. She stood and watched Aishah leave. She stayed in the kitchen until she could not hear her any more. Then she went to the back of the house and bolted the door.
***
The sun disappeared into the horizon and still Jack did not return. Shao Peng began to fret. She lit up the oil lamps in the house, moving from one to the other. As each light spluttered to life, she felt calmer. She crossed her arms and hugged herself tight. How, she asked herself, did she manage to make enemies of those that she tried to help? And Jack! Where was he? What if she had been wrong? What if all the overtures came from Aishah and he was just guileless? Would he forgive her for the harsh words she said to him?
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