The Sing-song Girls of Shanghai

by Bangqing Han

  Prosperity could not push her further and had to go along with her. “Then I’ll put the bracelets in the box for now and give them to you again in a couple of days. But I’ve got several warehouse receipts and bank drafts in the box; what if I should need to take them out sometime?”

  “When you need them, you just take them out. Warehouse receipts, or bank drafts, or whatever, you can come for them whenever you need them. They’re yours after all. Are you afraid I’ll embezzle them?”

  He again reflected for a moment and then said, “I want to know why you won’t accept the bracelets.”

  She smiled. “It’s hard for you to figure out how I think. You should know that if we’re together, you mustn’t set too much store by money. When I have need for money, I may ask you for a thousand or eight hundred, and you shouldn’t think of it as too much. But when I don’t need it, I won’t even ask you for a cent. If you want to give me presents, say, give me bracelets, I’d accept them as a token of your feelings. But even if you go and get me a brick, I’d appreciate it just as much. Once you’ve figured me out, everything will be fine.”

  Prosperity could not help being visibly shocked by these words. He stood up and said, “You’re a rare one indeed!” and then bowed deeply to her with the greatest respect. “I’ve really come to admire you today.”

  She hastened to tell him to stop bowing and then said with a smile, “What if they should see you like this? Won’t you be embarrassed?” She then held him by his hand again and said, “Let’s go next door.” Hand in hand, they walked to the room across the way. At the door, she steered him to go in before her, and they joined those at the table. By then, the girls called to the party from other houses had all gone, and Second Sister was helping Gold Phoenix and the others entertain the guests. When she saw Prosperity came in, she announced immediately, “Mr. Luo is here.”

  Amity Zhu said, “We’re already going to have our congee, and you’ve only just come.”

  “Let’s have a couple more rounds of the finger game,” said Prosperity.

  “While you were having fun, Amity and I were having too much to drink,” said Cloud Tao.

  Prosperity, all smiles, apologized for his absence and called for congee to be served. In fact, everyone at the table was already full; they just ate a little of it as a matter of habit. The party then broke up, and everybody took his leave. Prosperity saw them off at the stairway. Whistler Tang was the last to go, and Prosperity said to him, “I have a small matter to ask you to see to. I’ll tell you about it when we get together tomorrow.”

  Whistler assented to that arrangement. He waited till the sedan chairs bearing Cloud Tao and Amity Zhu had gone out the door before he went home on foot.

  When Prosperity Luo came back to the room, the menservants had taken off the tabletop. Mama Zhao swept the floor cursorily with a broom and together with Little Treasure cleared away the teacups and left. Prosperity sat around and watched as Green Phoenix removed her jewelry.

  Before long, Second Sister came in again to chat with him. Green Phoenix then told her to get the box out and give it to Prosperity, who took off the bracelets and put them in the box. Not knowing what this meant, Second Sister stared first at Prosperity, then at Green Phoenix, her eyes like a hawk’s, but Green Phoenix ignored her. Prosperity locked the box up again, and Green Phoenix told Second Sister to put it in the trunk at the back of the room. Only then did she understand. As she took the box, she turned around to ask Prosperity, “Shall I tell them to send your sedan chair home?”

  “Go and fetch Promotion,” he said.

  Second Sister went and summoned Promotion upstairs. Prosperity gave some orders and told him to go home with the sedan chair. A while later, Little Treasure came in to ask Green Phoenix to go over to the room opposite.1 Green Phoenix was about to leave the room when she saw Prosperity would be left alone. She asked, “Where’s Pearl Phoenix?”

  Little Treasure answered, “Mama Zhao told her to go to bed.” Green Phoenix looked at the wall clock; it had struck four, so she couldn’t very well fault anyone. Instead, she just called out the window, “Hey, where has everyone gone?”

  Mama Zhao answered the call at once and came up to see to Prosperity. She asked, “Retiring for the night, Mr. Luo?”

  He nodded his assent, so Mama Zhao made the bed, blew out the lamp, and closed the door as she left the room. But Prosperity had to wait until Green Phoenix returned before going to bed with her.

  The next morning, Prosperity woke up to see the red glow of the sun shining at the window. It was still early. Little Treasure was dusting the furniture with a cloth. He had no idea where Green Phoenix had gone.2 He heard some noise in the middle room and figured that she was probably at her morning toilet by the window. He tried to sleep again but could not.

  After a time, Green Phoenix, her hair done, came into the room to get some clothes out of the wardrobe and change. Prosperity sat up, put on his clothes, and got off the bed.

  “Get a little more sleep,” said Green Phoenix. “It’s not yet ten o’clock.”

  “When did you get up?” he asked.

  “I couldn’t sleep anymore,” she replied with a smile, “so I got up shortly after seven. You were sleeping so soundly just then.”

  Mama Zhao, having learned that Prosperity was up, came to wait on him as he washed his face and cleaned his teeth. Then she asked him about breakfast.

  “Don’t feel like any,” he said.

  “Then we’ll just wait for lunch,” said Green Phoenix.

  “Lunch will be a while yet,” said Mama Zhao.

  “That suits me fine,” said Prosperity.

  “You can tell them to hurry up a bit,” said Green Phoenix.

  Mama Zhao went to pass the word on, but Prosperity called her back to ask, “Is Promotion here?”

  “He’s been here a while now. I’ll go get him,” said Mama Zhao.

  Hearing the summons, Promotion presented himself. He handed Prosperity a note and a roll of foreign banknotes and then asked, “Shall I get the sedan chair ready, sir?”

  “No, it’s Sunday, and there’s not much for me to attend to. I don’t need the sedan chair.” Prosperity then turned to Green Phoenix. “Shall we go for a drive?”

  “All right. We’ll have two carriages,” she said.

  Prosperity did not comment on that but turned his attention to the note. It was an invitation from Benevolence Hong for a dinner party at Twin Pearl’s that evening. He tossed it aside. Promotion, seeing that there weren’t any more instructions, went on his way.

  Prosperity suddenly remembered something and said to Green Phoenix, “I saw you one night last summer in a carriage with a tall thin client at Luna Park.3 I didn’t know your name, or else I’d have called you last year.”

  For a brief moment, she looked a bit dazed, and then she replied, “Of course it doesn’t matter much for us to ride with a client in the same carriage. It’s just that shortly after Chinese New Year a Cantonese client asked me to go for a drive, and I didn’t feel like sharing a carriage with him, so I said, ‘Let’s have two carriages.’ Those were my exact words, I didn’t say anything else. And you know how he responded? He said, ‘That’ll be all right as long as you never share a carriage with a client, but if I ever see you do that, I’ll come and ask you about it to your face, and it’s not going to be pleasant.’”

  “And what did you say to him?”

  “Me? I said, ‘I seldom go for carriage rides, not even once a month. I only agreed to go today because it was the first time you asked me, and yet you say such unpleasant things! I’m not going, and I won’t keep you.’”

  “That must have put him in a pickle.”

  “Well, there was nothing he could do about it.”

  “No wonder even your mother says you have a temper.”

  “Cantonese clients are so uncouth. Frankly, I didn’t feel like seeing him, so why should I have played up to him?”

  While they were still talking, noontime
came round. Mama Zhao came in with a big tray, and Little Treasure followed with a wine pot. They put them down on the square marble table by the window with wine cups and chopsticks for two and invited Prosperity to have some wine. Green Phoenix filled a huge porcelain wine cup and offered it to him, while she took a small silver cup and sat down facing him to keep him company. Second Sister also came in to help serve him.

  “This is our own cooking. Do try some and see what you think of it,” she said.

  “Home cooking is always better than restaurant food.”

  “We have our own chef here,” said Second Sister. She then pointed out that the small bowl of ham and a bowl of steamed duck’s feet were from last night’s dinner party.

  “Come and have some yourself,” Green Phoenix said to her.

  “No, thanks, I’ll eat downstairs. I’ll go get Gold Phoenix to come and keep you company.”

  “Just a minute.” Prosperity took out the roll of banknotes and handed it to Second Sister for expenses and tips to the maids and servants.

  “Thank you,” she said as she took the money.

  “No need.”

  “I thanked you on their behalf. There’s nothing wrong with that.” All smiles, she went off to distribute the money.

  Now that there was no one else in the room, Prosperity pretended to be a little tipsy and walked over to Green Phoenix’s side to fondle her. She pushed him away, saying, “Don’t! Mama Zhao is coming!”

  He looked around and saw no one, so he climbed all over her, protesting, “You little liar! Mama Zhao is also having fun with her husband. How would she have time to look in on us?”

  Green Phoenix ground her teeth in exasperation. Fortunately, Gold Phoenix came in at this moment. Seeing her, Prosperity loosened his grip slightly. Green Phoenix took advantage of it to give him a push with all her strength, and he almost fell down.

  Gold Phoenix clapped her hands laughing. “Why does Brother-in-law kowtow to me?”

  He turned around to embrace Gold Phoenix and tried to kiss her.

  “Stop horsing around!” Gold Phoenix cried out desperately.

  Green Phoenix stamped her feet. “Is there no end to your horseplay?”

  Prosperity let go hastily. “No more horseplay, no more horseplay. Don’t be angry, my maestro.” He made a great show of respectfully saluting her. At this even Green Phoenix let out a giggle.

  Gold Phoenix pushed Prosperity into his seat. “Please have some wine.” She took the wine pot to pour for him, but nothing came out. When she looked into the pot, she smiled, “The wine’s all gone.” She then called out for Little Treasure to bring some more.

  “Don’t give him any more,” said Green Phoenix. “If he gets drunk, he’ll be acting silly again.”

  He pleaded, “Just three more cups, and I promise I won’t horse around.”

  When Little Treasure brought another pot of wine, he reached out for it, but Green Phoenix grabbed it first, saying, “No more for you.”

  Prosperity kept begging. Little Treasure, who watched from the side, laughed and said, “No more wine for you. Come on, have a good cry!” At this, Prosperity actually made the sound of mournful weeping.

  “Oh, do let him have some,” said Gold Phoenix, “I’ll pour.” Taking the wine pot from Green Phoenix, she filled a cup to three-quarters full.

  Prosperity bowed to her with his hands joined together. “Thank you. Please fill it right up for me, if you don’t mind.”

  Green Phoenix could not suppress her laughter. “How is it you’re so thick-skinned?”

  “I said I’d just have three more cups. If I ask for more, I’m an animal. Don’t you believe me?”

  She looked away, ignoring him. Both Little Treasure and Gold Phoenix were rolling about with laughter.

  When Prosperity was drinking his third cup of wine, Second Sister came in with the rice in a covered dish. She told Little Treasure, “Go and have lunch downstairs. I’ll take your place.”

  Knowing that Second Sister had had her lunch, Prosperity said, “Let’s have some rice now.”

  “Have another cup of wine,” Second Sister said.

  At this, Prosperity jumped up, pointed a finger at Green Phoenix, and yelled, “Did you hear your mother tell me to drink? Do you dare tell me not to?”

  Green Phoenix glared at him. “It seems that being told off only makes you all the chirpier.” She handed the wine pot to Little Treasure and told her to take it downstairs; she then called for rice to be served.

  Second Sister brought three bowls of rice to the table. Gold Phoenix took a pair of ivory chopsticks for herself and sat down to keep Prosperity and Green Phoenix company.

  Presently, Mama Zhao and Little Treasure both came in to wait on them. After they had finished, the table was cleared, and everybody sat around to drink tea. Even Pearl Phoenix came mincing in and offered to fill the water pipe for Prosperity. He took it from her and helped himself.

  It was almost three in the afternoon when Prosperity instructed Little Treasure to tell the menservants to summon two carriages. Mama Zhao poured hot water in a basin for Green Phoenix to wash her face, while Green Phoenix told Gold Phoenix to dress up and go out with them. Gold Phoenix said yes and went with Little Treasure to another room, where she also washed her face and put on makeup. Green Phoenix just powdered and rouged herself very lightly, giving full play to her natural beauty and air of elegance. When she had finished, she went behind the bed curtains for a pee. Mama Zhao, having put away the toiletries, took a change of clothes from the wardrobe and laid it on the bed for Green Phoenix. She also took out her silver water pipe and then hurried off herself to get changed.

  Gold Phoenix, the first to be ready, came over to wait. Prosperity saw that she had changed into a pale pink jacket with narrow sleeves and loose green trousers, topped by an embroidered sapphire-blue sleeveless jacket trimmed with dark blue satin. Her hair was tied up in a double chignon on either side of her head, each with a tassel trailing down, in the style of the Tartar Princess Yelu in the opera General Yang Visits His Mother. He smiled and said to her, “Forget about binding your feet. You can pass yourself off as a Manchu—could do worse.”

  “That’d be wonderful! With a pair of big feet, I’d have to be given away as a servant girl,” said Gold Phoenix.

  “If you were given away, it’d be as a wife, the lady of the house. Where d’you get that about a servant girl?” he said.

  “If we pay you any attention, you just talk drivel, don’t you?” said Gold Phoenix.

  Hearing the exchange, Green Phoenix came out, still doing up her trousers. As she washed her hands, she asked Prosperity, “How would you like it if she were given to you as a concubine?”

  “Let alone a concubine, she’d do very well for a wife.” Then he turned to Gold Phoenix with a smile, “What d’you say?”

  Gold Phoenix was so embarrassed, she covered her face and bent over the table, ignoring Prosperity’s repeated questions. Yet Prosperity persisted, set on getting some answer.

  She finally waved her hand and said, “I don’t know, I don’t know.”

  “That means you’re willing,” he said.

  Green Phoenix brushed her own cheek with a finger to shame her. Pearl Phoenix, who was observing them from a high-back chair against the wall, let out a chuckle. Prosperity pointed to her, “There’s another wife, and she’s so tickled, she laughs to herself.”

  Green Phoenix was annoyed at the sight of Pearl Phoenix. “Look at her; isn’t she a pain!”

  Pearl Phoenix was so alarmed, she immediately sat up straight and assumed a serious expression.

  This only enraged Green Phoenix all the more. “Are you angry because I put you in your place?” She walked over to pull Pearl Phoenix down by her ear. Pearl Phoenix fell facedown from the chair, quickly scrambled to her feet, and stood to one side. She pressed her lips together and swallowed hard but dared not cry.

  Fortunately, Mama Zhao came to hurry them up, announcing, “The carriages are
here.”

  Only then did Green Phoenix leave Pearl Phoenix alone. She picked up the clothes on the bed and said with a frown, “I’m not wearing this.” She told Mama Zhao to open the wardrobe and picked for herself a padded silk jacket of pale bamboo green woven with golden peonies and matched it with a pair of lined trousers of pale pink crepe with wide satin pipings and lace trimming. The combination was eye-catching yet in good taste. Prosperity stared at her, bewitched.

  After Mama Zhao had folded away the other suit of clothes, she turned to him, “Would you like to put your jacket on?”

  Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Prosperity took his jacket, draped it over his shoulders, and said, “I’m going down first.” He slipped downstairs right away, telling Promotion to come along.

  Two carriages with leather tops stood at the entrance to the alley. He got into the one in front. Then Mama Zhao came out carrying the silver water pipe, followed by Green Phoenix and Gold Phoenix, who sauntered hand in hand to the second carriage. Promotion also got on the footboard at the back of Prosperity’s carriage. The wheels started rolling, and the carriages dashed off at great speed.

  ::

  1. [Obviously Green Phoenix’s favorite client, Vigor Qian, has come to spend the night as well. She is entertaining two men in the same night, one in her own room and one in the spare room. E.H.]

  2. [She sneaked off early in the morning to be with Qian and to see him off. E.H.]

  3. [The client would have been Vigor Qian. Now Green Phoenix has to find an excuse for asking for a separate carriage where Prosperity is concerned. E.H.]

  CHAPTER 9 :: Little Rouge fells Constance with her fist, and Green Phoenix engages Prosperity in a battle of words

  As the two horse carriages came to the turning at First Avenue, they saw an old-fashioned hard-top carriage dashing westward in their direction. It happened to fall in alongside Prosperity’s carriage. He turned to look and saw through the window Lotuson Wang and Constance sitting together. Seeing each other, the two men nodded and smiled. When they drew near Mud Town Bridge, the driver of the hard-top applied the whip and charged ahead to cross the bridge. The other horse, seeing there was a carriage in front leading the way, followed in like fashion and raced forward, gaining momentum from the downhill slope of the bridge to gallop toward Bubbling Well Temple. In no time at all, they had arrived at Luna Park, where the carriages filed in and stopped by the steps in the outer courtyard.