by Bangqing Han
After all the dishes had been served, Crane Li made an excuse and rose to take his leave. Harmony Qi smiled cynically and said, “Don’t you try to deceive me! I know what important business you have. Your timing is perfect.”
Crane Li was too abashed to say anything else. Soon the banquet was over, and the guests left the table to sit around. Only then did Crane Li and Grace Yang thank the host and take their leave. They got into their sedan chairs in front of Crisp Air Abode, and when they reached the garden gatehouse, they parted company. Grace Yang headed back to Generosity Alley while Crane Li turned north and after a couple of yards stopped by a gate. Second Kuang pushed open a side door, and somebody came out with a lamp to greet them, saying, “Eldest Young Mr. Li, you’re a bit late today, aren’t you?”
Crane Li saw that it was Verdure Xu. He nodded at him and then followed him into the house. When they reached the inner door, where there was a brass lamp set in the wall, Verdure Xu stopped there and let Crane Li and his servant go in by themselves. They passed through a maze of brightly lit corridors to the main hall. There, some sixty or seventy people were crowded together in the middle of the room. Peddlers of snacks and fruit threaded among them, but everyone was quiet. The only sound came from the dealer, who occasionally called out “blue dragon” or “white tiger.” This was the “cash only” table.
Crane Li stood on tiptoe and saw that the banker was Muddy Dragon. He walked away from the crowd toward the back of the main hall. Seeing him, the doorkeeper hastily let him and his servant through. It was the way to the parlor, and the attendants came running out to welcome them. One man took Second Kuang somewhere else to entertain him while another asked Crane Li into the parlor. At one end of the room was a tall counter, and behind it stood Clement Zhou, the bookkeeper. This was where chips were bought. Crane Li produced a money order for two thousand dollars and handed it over.
“Best of luck! Best of luck!” Zhou said repeatedly as he issued Crane Li with the chips.
Crane Li smiled in acknowledgment. Then he was ushered upstairs. There, three rooms were opened up to make one airy space that was as brightly lit as day. At the center of the room was a large table with a fitted cover of baize cloth. Some dozen people were seated around it. All was quiet.
Third Shu, the banker, was on a winning streak, which, naturally, made Crane Li envious. When Third Shu stepped down, Fourth Qiao succeeded him. Crane Li looked around and then asked, “Why isn’t Lai the Turtle here?”
“He’s gone home,” Third Shu replied. “We were just saying that with the Turtle gone, there’s one less person who’ll be banker.”
Crane Li said, “That’s a pity.”
Fourth Qiao displayed his dice, and the game commenced. Crane Li took a pencil and a piece of foreign paper to draw a chart of the numbers that had come out and then placed his bets accordingly, but he failed to get a winning string, so he stopped betting and went to the opium divan to smoke. A while later, Fourth Qiao lost heavily to Willow Yang and Eminence Lü, who had bet on the same numbers several times in a row. Qiao had no choice but to pick up his dice and leave.
The thought that no one but Lai the Turtle would place a big bet made Crane Li rise swiftly from the opium divan. Confident and emboldened, he sat down at the head of the table, fetched his dice out of his pocket, and shook the bowl as banker. He started off winning more than he paid out and managed a profit of about two thousand. Suddenly, several punters won on the same number, and his takings were not enough to pay the bets. Full of regret, he thought about stopping right there, but he wanted to break even. Unfortunately, his luck had turned, and he threw two losing combinations in succession. All the punters won while he had lost as much as five or six thousand.
In his hurry to recoup his loss, he threw caution to the wind, with disastrous consequences. Fourth Qiao led the way by placing a thousand on ascending numbers. Third Shu followed suit with a thousand plus another five hundred on a line sequence. Then others followed with three to four hundred or seven to eight hundred, all betting on ascending numbers. Crane Li, unaware of the danger, thought gleefully: how can they be sure the numbers will be ascending? As he lifted the lid, all eyes were on the bowl. There neatly sat the four dice: 1, 2, 4, 6. Crane Li just stared in anger, too upset even to speak. The others worked out for him that he needed to pay out some sixteen thousand. The money order he had brought along, together with a dozen or so gold ingots, only amounted to a little over ten thousand. He was frantic, not knowing what to do.
“What’s the worry?” Fourth Qiao said with a smile. “Borrow some money for now to pay the bets. You can pay it back tomorrow.”
Thus reminded, Crane Li asked Willow Yang and Eminence Lü to be his guarantors for a loan of five thousand from Third Shu. He wrote out an IOU then and there specifying the loan was to be repaid in three days. That enabled him to settle all the winning bets, after which he went back to lie down on the opium divan. But the more he thought about his loss, the angrier he felt. Before dawn broke, he called for Second Kuang to light the lamp and walked out along the original route, got into his sedan chair, and headed back to the Long Peace Inn on Pebble Road. Once there, he hammered on the door until it was opened and went into his room to sleep without even enquiring about his uncle Pragmatic Li. Not until the next day after lunch did he ask Second Kuang, “Where’s Fourth Master?”
“Where else but Great Prosperity Alley?” Second Kuang answered, smiling.
It occurred to Crane Li that a few days before he had bought a thousand baskets of Niu Village cooking oil together with Pragmatic, who held the sales receipts that could serve as a guarantee in lieu of cash to tide him over the emergency. He told Second Kuang to keep watch while he walked over to Perfection Chu’s in Great Prosperity Alley. There, he saw an empty sedan chair at the door, and three sedan-chair bearers standing in the courtyard. He was a little puzzled and apprehensive.
Third Sister Chu recognized Crane Li and came out from the parlor to welcome him, calling out, “Do come in, Eldest Young Master. Fourth Master is here.”
Crane Li went in and asked, “Is that Fourth Master’s sedan chair?”
“No, it’s the doctor Fourth Master sent for, called Hill Dou. He’s upstairs. Please come and sit upstairs, Eldest Young Master.”
Crane Li went upstairs. Pragmatic Li, who was stretched out on the opium divan, sat up to greet him. Perfection greeted him bashfully. Dr. Hill Dou, however, just sat with his head bowed, writing out his prescription, and did not even acknowledge Crane Li’s presence.
Crane Li sat down casually. He saw that Pragmatic still had several scars from eruptions on his cheeks and temples. A stack of bamboo paper stood ready in the opium tray to be used for wiping away the pus. Perfection Chu, though her face was still flushed and her eyes had dark circles around them, was not the least bit scarred.
In a minute, Hill Dou finished his prescription and took his leave. Only then did Crane Li ask Pragmatic for the receipts.
“What do you want them for?” Pragmatic asked, astonished.
“Yesterday, Old Zhai mentioned that the cotton crop this year is interesting. I want to buy some,” Crane Li answered with a lie.
At this, Pragmatic smiled derisively. He was about to question him when he heard Third Sister Chu coming slowly up the stairs. She came into the room with a tray heaped full of snacks. She first took a lidded cup of tea from the tray and brought it to Crane Li and then placed four plates on the table. The plates held sweet buns, savory buns, steamed cakes, and watermelon seeds. She then put two pairs of chopsticks on the table.
Pragmatic asked, “Why did you buy all this without telling us?”
Grinning, Third Sister Chu made no reply; instead, she pushed Perfection Chu forward. Perfection Chu took an unwilling step toward Crane Li and said, “Please have some tea, Eldest Young Master.”
Her voice being a bit faint, Crane Li did not take notice, so Third Sister Chu went up to him, saying, “Do have some, Eldest Young Master.” As s
he spoke, she took a pair of ivory chopsticks and picked up one of each of the snacks for Crane Li. Before he could stop her, she had put every variety, including melon seeds, on his plate.
“Just eat whatever you like,” Pragmatic said to him with a smile.
To show appreciation for her hospitality, Crane Li broke off a piece of a cake and washed it down with a sip of tea. Third Sister Chu, who was standing by his side, suddenly thought of cigarettes. She hurriedly took a packet from a drawer, drew one out, and offered it together with a lighted spill to Crane Li, saying, “Eldest Young Master, please have a smoke.”
Crane Li, with a teacup in his hand and cake in his mouth, couldn’t take the cigarette or smoke it; he started to laugh. Embarrassed, Perfection Chu tugged at the hem of Third Sister’s jacket, which finally made her step back.
Now Pragmatic handed the prescription to Third Sister Chu. She asked, “Did the doctor say anything?”
“All he said was now that I’m improving, I should be careful,” Pragmatic replied.
“Buddha be thanked! Now you’re getting well. When you came down with it, we were worried to death.” Then she turned to say to Crane Li, “Eldest Young Master, Fourth Master got into the habit of smoking a little opium. Now, in the country, it’s not like in Shanghai; the small opium dens there are all filthy places. I suppose Fourth Master got contaminated by the poisonous air there without being aware of it. When Fourth Master had just arrived, it looked so horrible; it was all over his face. We wondered, ‘Where on earth did Fourth Master catch it from?’ And Fourth Master neglected himself so; even he had no idea where he got it from. Perfection and I, the two of us, attended him day and night, not getting any sleep. Fortunately, with this doctor, he got better after several doses of medicine. Otherwise, Perfection and I could have caught it from Fourth Master. Now, if we both broke out with those eruptions, that would’ve been the death of us! Don’t you think so, Eldest Young Master?”
Crane Li marveled at the fact that she had the audacity to say something like that. He eyed Perfection Chu appraisingly.
Third Sister Chu continued, “D’you know, Eldest Young Master, there’re people who don’t know the truth, and they spread wicked rumors about us; it’s maddening! They say Fourth Master caught the disease at our place. Now, there’re just the two of us here, Perfection and me, both neat and clean. We don’t have eruptions, do we? If Perfection has them, is Fourth Master blind, can’t he see?” So saying, she pulled Perfection toward Crane Li and pointed to her face, “Do look, Eldest Young Master, does our Perfection have anything on her face like Fourth Master’s?” Then she showed him Perfection’s arms, turning them this way and that. “Look, not a trace!” Perfection was so embarrassed, she wrenched herself free and stood to one side.
Crane Li did not say a word. He thought to himself: this Third Sister Chu is truly an old fox. If Pragmatic fell for this, he would be in great trouble.
A little annoyed, Pragmatic told Third Sister off. “What d’you care about rumors? I never said this of you; that’s all that counts.”
She responded with a smile. “Of course you didn’t, Fourth Master. If you had blamed us, then we’d …” She stopped in midsentence and went downstairs, smiling all the way.
Only then did Pragmatic turn to Crane Li. “As for you, stop playing your tricks. If you gamble your own money away, it’s none of my business. But if I let you take the receipts from my hands and you lose them in gambling, what am I to say when I get home?”
Crane Li, though silent, was much displeased.
“The receipts are in the small leather suitcase at the inn. If you want them, go get them yourself. I can’t very well hand them over to you,” Pragmatic continued.
After the briefest moment of pondering Crane Li got up to go.
“D’you want the key?” Pragmatic asked.
Crane Li was in too much of a huff to ask for it. Downstairs, Third Sister Chu tried to detain him. “Eldest Young Master, do stay a little longer.” He ignored her, too, and walked out of Great Prosperity Alley to make his way back to Long Peace Inn. He thought: Pragmatic didn’t want to be held responsible, and yet he told me to get the receipts myself. Does that mean he’ll accuse me of stealing? Such a mean and stingy man! No wonder Third Sister tricks and manipulates him! I don’t want anything to do with him now, but what about my debt to Third Shu? After thinking hard about it, he decided that all he could do was to take the deeds of the two houses he owned and ask Whistler Tang to use them as collateral for borrowing ten thousand dollars. He took the sedan chair to the Zhu residence in Middle Peace Alley in search of Whistler. The latter promised to help and told him to get an answer that evening at Grace Yang’s. Crane Li was to go there early and wait for Whistler.
Having seen Crane Li out, Whistler calculated that they did not have enough cash at Amity Zhu’s, so he needed to confer with Prosperity Luo. He went to Green Phoenix’s in Prosperity Alley right away, where he found Luo in her room. He was invited in and greetings were exchanged. Second Sister happened to be there and also greeted him, saying, “Mr. Tang.”
Whistler nodded in acknowledgment. “Haven’t seen you for a long time. How’s business?”.
“Oh, business is impossible. It’s fallen off very badly.”
Green Phoenix snorted and cut in, “You just aren’t interested in doing business. What’s so impossible about it?”
As Whistler Tang had no idea what she meant, he brushed the remark aside and took the deeds out of his sleeve to show Prosperity Luo, explaining to him Crane Li’s request for a loan. Prosperity knew Whistler was a reliable man, so he agreed immediately and left with him to get a money order at a Chinese bank.
Now that Prosperity Luo and Whistler Tang had gone and they were alone in the room, Second Sister said to Green Phoenix, “I looked over a respectable woman the other day. She’s not bad, so I thought I’d just buy her. The only thing is, she’s new and doesn’t know how to do business. Just for the year-end season, we’ll be three to four hundred dollars short. I’m so worried!”
Green Phoenix bent her head and said nothing.
“Could you think of a way out for me?” Second Sister asked. “Should I get a partner? Or maybe rent out the upstairs rooms?”
Green Phoenix still kept her head down and looked as if she were thinking. Her expression made Second Sister hopeful, so she continued to plead her case rather shamelessly, “I’m much obliged to you! All the things you told me, I’ll do as you said. If business gets a bit better, I’ll never forget you. I’d be much obliged if you could think of something for me.”
Green Phoenix finally spoke. “The trouble with you is greed. I can’t think of anything now, but even if I can show you the way to make three or four hundred dollars, you’ll just complain that it’s too little.”
Second Sister could not protest fast enough. “That’s not true! I’ll be delighted to make whatever I can. I’d never dare complain it’s too little!”
Green Phoenix resumed her silent contemplation for close to half an hour, during which time Second Sister wisely waited on one side, keeping very quiet. Then Green Phoenix opened her eyes and looked at her appraisingly before signaling for her to come close. As Green Phoenix whispered into her ear, Second Sister listened intently, bending low. Green Phoenix talked for close to half an hour, and Second Sister picked up many useful tips.
Just when their discussion came to an end, Prosperity Luo came back. He handed Green Phoenix the collateral documents, telling her to put them in a safe place. Second Sister, who followed Green Phoenix to the area behind the bed to hold up the lid of the trunk for her, asked in astonishment, “How come there’re two of Mr. Luo’s document boxes?”
“Well, one of these is mine. It holds my ransom papers,” Green Phoenix replied.
Prosperity heard her lock everything up securely, and then Second Sister took her leave. “Humph! I guessed right, didn’t I? She wanted to borrow money from me.”
“Again?” Prosperity asked, s
urprised.
“D’you think she’d ever learn to be sensible? It’s not even been two months, but the thousand dollars are all gone.”
He didn’t pay this much attention. It was in one ear and out the other for him.
Two days later, Second Sister again came to plead with Green Phoenix, but the latter was determined not to part with even one cent. For five days running, Second Sister kept pestering Green Phoenix, who just ignored her. This angered Second Sister, and she turned nasty. It was all too much for Prosperity, so he tried to make peace between them. But he had not expected Second Sister to ask for as much as five hundred dollars. When he tried to persuade her to settle for less, she went on and on about how good to Green Phoenix she had been. “Now that she’s good at business, she’s forgotten what she owes me. I definitely won’t have that. Ransomed or not, she’s still my daughter. Can she run away to a foreign country?”
Finding it impossible to talk to her, Prosperity repeated her remarks to Green Phoenix.
“I have the ransom papers, so why should I be afraid of her? She’s welcome to try whatever tricks she likes,” Green Phoenix responded with a smile.
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1. [One of the major seasonal events, the viewing of chrysanthemums in autumn involved major planning and preparation. Numerous potted plants were used to create hill-shaped formations called “chrysanthemum hills,” and to afford a better view of the flowers, raised structures were put up for the viewers.
Viewing chrysanthemums was also a major event in the calendar of second-class brothels. The “chrysanthemum hills” in the brothels were just small-scale formations and figurines placed on a table. Wealthy patrons who normally did not frequent second-class houses would host banquets there for the viewing. It was therefore an opportunity for the second-class brothels to attract new clients. E.H.]
