My Splendid Concubine

by Lofthouse, Lloyd

  Burgevine was alone when Robert entered the cabin. The man’s big form was crammed into a small bunk. He was picking at his bare feet. The room smelled of sour, spoiled milk. With this stink and the reek of hundreds of unwashed bodies, Robert’s skin was crawling as if he were covered with flies, fleas and lice.

  “What are you doing here, Hart?” Burgevine said. He didn’t look at Robert when he passed a loud fart.

  The stench was worse than the flatulence from a full-grown swine. Robert had to step back so he wouldn’t gag. “Good god, Burgevine,” Robert said. “Did you have to do that?”

  Burgevine let out a belly laugh, and said, “State your business or get out.”

  “I’m looking for Ward, so I can pay him for Ayaou,” Robert said, struggling to ignore the man’s repugnant, rough manner.

  “You won’t find him here,” Burgevine replied. “He’s out in the countryside with his favorite concubine and a Chinese doctor to help with the healing. Give me the money. I’ll see Ward gets it.” He pulled one of his filthy feet closer to his eyes, tore off part of a toenail, and tossed it on the floor. “Damn things won’t stop growing,” he said.

  Robert was disgusted at the sight of the accumulated black grime beneath the man’s toenails. “May I ask how you intend getting the money to him if you’re going to California?”

  “I’m making this one voyage to deliver these coolies for the railroad. It’s good money. Once that’s done, I will be back. By then, Ward will be ready to build another army. Trust me. I’ll get the money to him.” Burgevine sat up and held out a hand.

  “I won’t leave the money with you. I must put it in Ward’s hands myself.”

  Burgevine’s face turned scarlet. He stood fast and banged his head hard on the low ceiling timbers then dropped to his bunk with a stunned look on his face.

  Robert was tempted to use the Colt revolver to pry Ward’s location out of this louse that called himself a man. Instead, he backed from the cabin. In the hall, he looked both ways to make sure no one was sneaking up on him. Robert left feeling frustrated, angry and relieved at the same time. Once off the ship, he took William’s advice and booked passage to Ningpo, where he planned to find a house and fetch Ayaou and Shao-mei from Patridge.

  Leaving Shanghai without completing his purchase of Ayaou left him feeling empty and threatened. His goal was to build a safe nest with Ayaou and Shao-mei in it. However, with Ward out there like a vulture waiting to swoop and eat them, how could he relax? Life was turning into a nightmare—one Robert couldn’t escape.

  Robert arrived at Ningpo late in the evening. He went straight to Guan-jiah’s house. Until he had his two girls with him, Robert wanted to avoid the consulate. If he went there, the missionaries and the European merchants would know he had returned. There would be questions. He didn’t want anyone prying into his private life. Since there were no hotels in Ningpo for foreign devils, he’d ask Guan-jiah to put him up for the night. The only places available for a night’s rent were for Chinese. It was stupid to attempt to stay in a place like that. Someone would slit his throat while he was sleeping. His body would end in the river as fish food.

  The house Guan-jiah and his family lived in was a two-room space shared by a crowd of people, which included his grandparents, parents, sisters, brothers, and their wives, husbands and children.

  Robert arrived in the middle of dinner. When he knocked, Guan-jiah was the one who answered. His eyes expanded. “Master, what are you doing here?”

  “I came from Shanghai. I’m exhausted, and I want a safe place to sleep, Guan-jiah. Put me in a corner, and I won’t be a bother. I’ll pay. I couldn’t think of any other place to go.”

  “But you have a room at the consulate. Are you in trouble, Master?” He was genuinely concerned.

  “I’ll explain later, Guan-jiah. Right now, I’m tired. How much for me to rent a space to sleep?”

  Guan-jiah said, “No, Master. You will not pay to sleep here. You will sleep on my mat. I know it is clean. Right now you must join us and have something to eat.”

  “I don’t want to be a bother,” Robert replied.

  “Master, I wouldn’t be a good host if I let you sleep on an empty stomach. You must be hungry.”

  When Robert hesitated, Guan-jiah took him by the hand. Before he led Robert into the house, he had him take his shoes off and put them beside all the other shoes just inside the door. He then led Robert to where the family sat on the floor in a large circle eating. He went to a clay ceramic stove in a corner and filled a soup bowl for Robert from a large pot. Robert reluctantly sat on the floor with the rest of the family.

  “I’m embarrassed, Master,” Guan-jiah said. “If I had known you were coming, we would have added meat and an egg.”

  “Don’t bother on my account,” Robert replied. “I’m not that hungry. What you have is sufficient.” Guan-jiah looked uncomfortable, but Robert had nowhere else to go. Besides, if he left now, he was sure that Guan-jiah would be doubly embarrassed.

  The adults avoided staring at him. One little girl, looking like a doll to Robert, kept stealing looks and giggling. “Stop staring at my master, Sparrow,” Guan-jiah said in a scolding tone.

  Sparrow’s face fell. She stared at the floor with her lower lip sticking out in a pouting gesture.

  “It’s all right, Guan-jiah,” Robert said. “She’s only fascinated with my strangeness.”

  Guan-jiah deftly used his chopsticks to snare a ball of sticky rice and dropped it into Robert’s soup. A large porcelain bowl in the center of the mat had plenty of rice balls in it. Everyone was using chopsticks to pick up the rice balls and stuff them into their mouths.

  Each family member held a small bowl in one hand and the chopsticks in the other. The bowl stayed close to the mouth the entire time they ate. The chopsticks moved in a blur carrying food from bowl to mouth. Robert had no idea how such a feat could be achieved with just two sticks.

  Rice was the only food in abundance. There was no meat and few vegetables to feed at least two dozen people. Robert resolved to raise Guan-jiah’s meager pay. Since Robert had received a rank advancement and his pay had increased, it was fitting that he pass on some to his faithful servant.

  Sparrow handed Robert a set of chopsticks. He stared at what was in his bowl. It smelled wonderful. Saliva filled his mouth. He’d lied. He was hungry, but he’d never used chopsticks before. Robert took them and attempted to pick up a ball of rice to put in his mouth. The chopsticks kept popping out of his hand and crossing each other.

  Sparrow tapped his arm and held up her chopsticks to show him how she braced one on her thumb where it stayed put. The second chopstick rested between the index and middle finger, so she could move it and catch the food between the stationary stick and the movable one. After several tries, Robert was successful and started eating. The soup was spicy. The peppers caused him to sweat and his nose to run. It was mostly water, but there were a few pieces of tofu and yam floating around.

  Since his bowl was empty, Sparrow poured hers into his. Then she hopped up and ran to the clay stove to fill her bowl again.

  “Thank you,” Robert said to Sparrow in her language. She rewarded him with a large, toothy grin and scooted over to sit against him. She was so close he felt the heat radiating from her small body.

  Robert had gained another friend. It felt good to be accepted—even by this little girl. At the same time, he was glad she wasn’t a woman. He already had two. Three would have been too much. He wanted to laugh at his worries but restrained himself lest he somehow offend the others. They might think he was laughing at them.

  After the bowls were cleared away, the family unrolled their woven reed mats and spread them out to sleep on. The family was getting ready to go to bed. What had been their kitchen and dining room now became a bedroom where the entire family was going to sleep side-by-side on the floor. Although the two-room house was crowded, it was spotless. There was no dust on the tile floor.

  “Since eve
ryone is going to bed, I don’t want to bother anyone, Guan-jiah. Let’s step outside for a moment. I want to talk to you.”

  “It is okay to talk here, Master. No one knows English but me.”

  “I’m not alone any longer,” Robert said. “I have two concubines and plan to move out of the consulate and find a house.” He stopped and stared at Guan-jiah thinking of Shao-mei. “Have you a woman, Guan-jiah?”

  Guan-jiah looked startled by the question, and Robert cursed himself. He’d forgotten that his servant was a eunuch. On the other hand, if he found Shao-mei a good husband, it would solve one of his problems. Then it would just be Ayaou and him. Guan-jiah would make a good husband. He was considerate. He worked hard. He was thoughtful. He was courageous. Sure, he was a eunuch, but Robert would talk to Shao-mei and make her accept him. What choice did she have? After all, he was her master. She was his property.

  Guan-jiah looked away from Robert, who took this gesture to mean no. He wasn’t giving up that easily. He wanted to find a way to put Shao-mei and Guan-jiah together. If Shao-mei had a man to care for, even a eunuch, Robert wouldn’t feel tempted. “What are your roots, Guan-jiah? Are you Han Chinese or are you Manchu?” If they were of the same ethnic group, it would be an easier match. Shao-mei could be his companion. He wouldn’t have to be alone.

  “My great-grandmother was from the boat people. Great-grandfather was Han Chinese. He was a village farmer far from here. He owned an acre and couldn’t afford a better woman.”

  “Did you know your great-grandmother? She must have been a wonderful woman to leave behind such a large and happy family.”

  “She was trouble like all boat people,” Guan-jiah said with bitterness. “My great-grandfather was fortunate when she died in childbirth without giving him the curse of a daughter. She left him four sons. That was good. He raised them as respectable Han Chinese. They went into the silk business and became wealthy.”

  “Is your family still in the silk business?” Robert asked.

  Guan-jiah’s eyes darted away. He looked uncomfortable. Robert returned to his original intent. One thing he had learned was the Chinese didn’t like to talk about anything embarrassing. Something unfortunate must have taken the family fortune away.

  To put it simply, a Chinese family didn’t like to share problems with others. They preferred to keep all the bad history and news locked up even from one another. Robert admired Guan-jiah’s honesty. His servant could have lied to him. Most Chinese always wanted to put a sunny face on for the world to see no matter what the truth was. This was one way they avoided losing face, which could bring dishonor to the family.

  He was learning.

  “My purpose for coming here was to ask you to find a house for me to rent,” he said. “You are the only person I can rely on. Can you do this?”

  “Yes, Master.”

  “That’s good. I don’t want a house near any major streets. Pick one of those narrow back alleys that twists about. Make sure the house is suitable to provide room and comfort for three people, and I don’t want any missionaries or foreigners living nearby.”

  “Tonight is late. Not good. Not safe to be walking in the dark in Ningpo,” Guan-jiah replied. “Tomorrow I look.”

  “I’ve heard about Imperial Commissioner Yeh’s proclamation offering thirty yuan for the head of a dead Englishman,” Robert said. “Is that true?”

  “Very true,” Guan-jiah replied. “That’s exactly my worry.”

  Robert nodded and patted the revolver to check that it was still in the largest jacket pocket. Knowing it was there calmed him.

  “You must stay in my house tonight,” Guan-jiah said. “You will not have to go back to the British consulate. It is safer that you stay here anyway. Being a foreigner and walking the Ningpo streets in the dark is not good right now.”

  “I feel guilty for disturbing your family,” Robert said.

  “Stay, Master. I insist.”

  Robert was touched by Guan-jiah’s loyalty. His life was in his servant’s hands. Thirty yuan for his head might not sound like much to an Englishman but to a Chinese it was. Thinking of the reward for his head, Robert had doubts. He’d known Guan-jiah for a little over a year. Was that enough time to trust the servant with his life? Possibly the eunuch’s motive was to keep him in the house and wait until he fell asleep.

  Then the knives would come out. He imagined Sparrow waiting her turn to carve on him. Then he was angry with himself for thinking such horrible thoughts. She was an innocent child and incapable of such guile. If there was anyone he could trust not to be tempted to collect that thirty yuan, it was her.

  He was making himself sick with worry. There wasn’t much Robert could do but put his life in Guan-jiah’s hands. He did have his pistol to defend himself, but if he fell into a deep sleep, that weapon was useless. He would have to struggle not to sleep deeply that night. He didn’t know whether he could succeed, because he was so tired that his bones wanted to take a break from holding his body together. It was going to be a difficult night.

  “I would like to go house hunting with you tomorrow,” Robert said.

  “No, Master. If you come with me before I bargain for the price, it will cost you more. It is because you are a foreigner. Foreigners never pay the Chinese price. I’ll get you a good house with a good price.” He smiled.

  “Guan-jiah,” Robert said, “I want you to translate something into English for me. What does Wu Hei Nee mean?” He made sure to pronounce the phase exactly like Shao-mei had done with the same tones.

  “It means, I hate you,” he said.

  Robert jerked. “But that wasn’t what was in her eyes,” he said. “There was nothing but love in her eyes.”

  “Master, that’s how a woman tells you she loves you. She says, Wu Hei Nee.”

  “She tells me she loves me by saying she hates me?” Robert said.

  “It depends on the moment, Master. You said she was looking at you with love in her eyes.”

  “At least that’s what I thought the look was,” Robert said. “Maybe I’m wrong. This makes no sense. I’m confused. I’ve only known her for a short time. I haven’t even been intimate with her, and she isn’t the one I’m in love with.”

  How could he live in the same house with her knowing she loved him? He would have trouble sleeping. He had not bargained for two women loving him at the same time. He had no idea what he was going to do to make this work.

  “Master, women in China have a surer instinct about life than men, and the Chinese have that instinct more than others in the world. We depend largely on our intuition for solving all nature’s mysteries, and the same intuition makes many women believe a thing is so, because it is so. If she told you Wu Hei Nee, she believes that you love her too. This means you did something that caused her to think that way.”

  “Thank you, Guan-jiah,” Robert said, feeling more confused. He understood what Guan-jiah had told him, but how could Shao-mei believe he loved her? He hadn’t done anything to earn it.

  Guan-jiah gave up his sleeping mat for Robert. After turning and tossing all night, Robert didn’t see much difference between the mat and the floor. Besides, the slightest noise, a snort or a settling sound from the house, brought him to full alert. He was tempted to keep a hand on the pistol but was afraid he might accidentally shoot a member of the family. This situation was making him a nervous wreck. About five in the morning his resistance collapsed, and he fell into a deep sleep.

  The next day Guan-jiah found a two-story house with access to the roof. After he closed the deal, he took Robert to see. The rooms were small and the stairs steep with narrow, slippery steps from being worn down for probably centuries until the surfaces were canted and the outside edges rounded. On the bottom floor was a kitchen and a sitting room. On the second floor were two small rooms with a narrow hallway. A door at the end of the hallway opened on a balcony where there was bamboo poles attached from wall to wall to hang wet clothes to dry. A metal ladder fastened to the w
all went up to the steep tiled roof. The place was stuffy and smelled stale.

  Guan-jiah had negotiated a great price and appeared pleased with himself. After they arrived at the house, the landlord became upset when he saw that his tenant was a foreigner. He turned to Guan-jiah and though Robert couldn’t tell much of what he was saying in his rapid fire Chinese, he did know the man was demanding more money.

  Guan-jiah stood firm. “You are a thief,” he said. “Who else but a foreigner would consider renting this horrible house? It is old, cold and damp. It smells. Besides, everyone knows it is full of evil spirits and only a foreigner could live here. The evil spirits will fear him. In his country, my master lives in a house the size of Ningpo. Imagine how he will feel if you demanded that he pay more than we agreed on. No, if you do not stick to our deal, I will find another house for him. As it is, he is paying twice what he should pay. Maybe the price should be lower.”

  This went on for several minutes. Robert had to admit he was glad to have Guan-jiah on his side. His servant was tough. Guan-jiah prevailed, and the landlord agreed.

  The price was three yuan a month. Robert signed the lease. He wasn’t happy with the house. It wasn’t what he had imagined, but when he compared it to where Guan-jiah lived with his large family, it was a mansion. Robert resolved to never let his servant know how he felt about the house. If the Chinese could put on a sunny face, so could he. Maybe Robert could get Guan-jiah to live with them. He dismissed that idea immediately. He didn’t want the eunuch lurking in the hallway upstairs watching him and Ayaou make love.

  “See that the house is thoroughly cleaned, Guan-jiah, and purchase a few pieces of furniture—a table, chairs, beds and three chamber pots. No, make that four. There will be times I’ll want you to sleep over when we’ve work to do from the consulate.”

  Again, Robert thought of Shao-mei and how he could put them together. Possibly, he could produce a dowry for Shao-mei to make her more attractive as a potential wife. There had to be a way to overcome Guan-jiah’s evident dislike of boat people. Another thought occurred to him. How would Shao-mei react when she discovered that he had married her off to a eunuch? Maybe it was a bad idea.