The Chinese Lake Murders

by Robert Van Gulik

  The orchestra started a seductive melody punctuated by drumbeats. Two courtesans advanced to the center of the room and began to execute a sword dance. Each of them carrying a long sword, they swiftly wove in and out of various fencing positions, clanging the swords together to the accompaniment of the martial tune.

  The finale of the drums was drowned in the enthusiastic applause. Judge Dee complimented Han on the performance, but he said disparagingly:

  “That was nothing but an exhibition of skill, Your Honor; it has nothing to do with art! Wait till you have seen Almond Blossome dance. Look, here she comes!”

  Almond Blossom went to stand in the center of the carpet. She wore only a single robe of thin white silk on her bare body, with wide, trailing sleeves, and round her waist a green sash. Round her shoulders she had a long scarf of green gauze, the ends of which hung down to the floor. Her hair was done up in a high chignon, with a white water lily as unique decoration. She shook her sleeves and gave a sign to the orchestra. The flutes began an eerie, unworldly melody.

  She slowly raised her arms above her head; her feet did not move but her hips started to sway to the measure of the music. The thin robe accentuated her youthful figure; the judge thought he had seldom seen such a perfectly molded womanly shape.

  “That is the dance of the Cloud Fairy!” Han whispered hoarsely at his ear.

  As the castanets began to click, the dancer lowered her arms to the level of her shoulders, took the tips of the scarf between her tapering fingers and, waving her arms, made the thin gauze billow around her, the upper part of her body swaying to and fro. Then zitherns and violins took the melody over in a pulsating rhythm. Now she started to move her knees; the rippling movement spread over her entire body, but she still did not move one inch from her place.

  Judge Dee had never seen such a fascinating dance. Her impassive, slightly haughty face with the downcast eyes stressed by contrast the voluptuous writhing of her lithe body that appeared to personify the flame of burning passion. The robe fell away, exposing her perfectly rounded naked breasts.

  The judge perceived the intense, sensuous attraction that emanated from this woman. He turned his gaze to the guests. Old Kang Po did not look at the dancer at all; he stared in his wine cup, his thoughts elsewhere. But the eyes of his younger brother were glued to her every movement; without averting his gaze, he whispered a remark to Guildmaster Wang by his side. Both laughed surreptitiously.

  THE DANCE OF THE CLOUD FAIRY

  “I don’t think those two are talking about dancing!” Han Yung-han remarked dryly. Evidently his intoxication did not mar his powers of observation.

  The guildmasters Peng and Soo were looking ecstatically at the dancer. Judge Dee was struck by the curious, tense attitude of Liu Fei-po. He sat perfectly still, his imperious face set, his thin lips compressed under his jet-black mustache. But the judge saw in his burning eyes a strange expression. He thought he could detect a violent hatred in it, but also something of deep despair.

  The music grew softer; it changed into a tender, nearly whispering melody. Almond Blossom now walked on tiptoe in a wide circle, whirling round and round all the time so that the long sleeves and the ends of the gauze scarf flew round her. The rhythm accelerated, and quicker she turned round, quicker and quicker till her swift feet did not seem to touch the floor any more; it seemed as if she were floating among the billowing clouds of the green scarf and her fluttering white sleeves.

  Suddenly there was a deafening clash of the gong and the music ceased abruptly. The dancer stood still, high on her toes, her arms raised above her head, still as a stone statue. One only saw the heaving of her naked breasts. It was absolutely quiet in the room. Then she lowered her arms, pulled the scarf round her shoulders, and made a bow toward Judge Dee’s table. While a thunderous applause burst loose she went quickly to the door and disappeared through the crystal curtain.

  “That was indeed a superb performance!” the judge remarked to Han. “That girl could well perform before His Majesty!”

  “Exactly what that friend of Liu’s said the other day!” Han said. “He was a high official from the capital, and saw her dance at a banquet in the Willow Quarter. He immediately offered her owner to introduce him to the duenna of the Imperial seraglio. But Almond Blossom refuses absolutely to leave Han-yuan, and we of this city are grateful to her for that!”

  Judge Dee rose and stood himself in front of his table. Raising his cup, he proposed a toast to the charming courtesans of Han-yuan, which was received with great enthusiasm. Then he went over to Kang Po’s table, and began a polite conversation. Han Yung-han had also risen, and had gone to the musicians to compliment their leader.

  Old Mr. Kang Po had evidently drunk too much; red spots had appeared on his lean face, and his brow was covered with perspiration. But he managed to give coherent answers to Judge Dee’s questions about business conditions in Han-yuan. After a while his younger brother said with a smile:

  “Fortunately, my brother has now cheered up a bit! The last days he has been worrying all the time over a perfectly safe business transaction!”

  “Safe?” the elder Kang said angrily. “You call a loan to that person Wan I-fan a safe transaction?”

  “They say that in order to make good profits you must be prepared to take risks!” Judge Dee said soothingly.

  “Wan I-fan is a scoundrel!” Kang Po muttered.

  “Only fools believe the gossip of the street!” Kang Choong said sharply.

  “I … I refuse to be called names by my own brother!” old Kang Po stuttered furiously.

  “Your brother has the duty to tell you the truth!” Kang Choong retorted.

  “Ho, ho!” a deep voice spoke up by Judge Dee’s side. “Enough of your wrangling! What will His Excellency think of us!”

  It was Liu Fei-po. He carried a wine jar in his hand, and quickly filled the cups of the two brothers. They meekly drank a toast to each other. Judge Dee asked Liu Fei-po the last news about the illness of Councilor Liang. “Mr. Han told me,” he added, “that you live next door to the Councilor, and that you see him often.”

  “Not lately,” Liu replied. “Half a year ago, yes; then His Excellency would often ask me to join him when he was walking in his garden, as our grounds are connected by a small gate. But he has grown very absentminded; his conversation became more and more confused; often he didn’t even seem to recognize me. I haven’t seen him for several months now. It’s a sad case, Your Honor! The decline of a great mind.”

  The guildmasters Peng and Wang now joined the group. Han Yung-han brought a wine jar and insisted on pouring out a cup for each of them himself. Judge Dee had a talk with the guild-masters, then returned to his table. Han was sitting there already, making jokes with Anemone. As the judge sat down he asked:

  “Where is Almond Blossom?”

  “Oh, she’ll be here presently!” Han replied indifferently. “Those girls always take an awful time over their powder and rouge!”

  Judge Dee quickly surveyed the room. All the guests had resumed their places, and were starting on the intermediary course, a dish of stuffed fish. The four courtesans were pouring out new wine, but Almond Blossom was nowhere to be seen. Judge Dee said curtly to Anemone:

  “Go to the dressing room and tell Almond Blossom that we are waiting.”

  “Ha!” Han exclaimed. “It is a great honor for Han-yuan that the rustic charms of our girls should captivate Your Honor’s favor!”

  Judge Dee politely joined the general laughter.

  Anemone came back and said:

  “It’s very strange; our mother says that Almond Blossom left the dressing room quite a while ago. I have looked into all the rooms, but I can’t find her!”

  The judge muttered an excuse to Han, rose and left the room by the door on his right. He walked aft on the starboard side.

  In the stern a gay party was in progress. Sergeant Hoong, Ma Joong and Chiao Tai were sitting on a bench against the cabin, each with a wi
ne jug between his knees and a cup in his hand. Half a dozen servants were sitting in a half-circle opposite them, listening intently to Ma Joong. The burly fellow hit his fist on his knee, and concluded: “And just at that moment the bedstead collapsed!”

  They burst out in uproarious laughter. Judge Dee tapped Hoong on his shoulder. He looked up, and quickly nudged his two friends. They jumped up and followed the judge to the starboard deck.

  There Judge Dee told them that a dancer had disappeared and that he feared she might have met with an accident. “Did any of you see a girl pass?” he asked.

  Sergeant Hoong shook his head.

  “No, Your Honor,” he answered. “The three of us sat facing the stern, in front of the trap door that leads down into the kitchen and the hold. We only saw the waiters coming and going; there was no woman.”

  Two waiters carrying soup bowls came down the deck on their way to the dining room. They said they hadn’t seen the dancer after she had left the room to change. “And we hadn’t much chance to either,” the elder one added, “for the rule is that we use starboard only. The ladies have their dressing room on the port side, and that’s also where the main cabin is. We aren’t supposed to go to that side unless we are called.”

  Judge Dee nodded. He went back aft, followed by his three assistants. The servants were talking with the helmsman; they knew that something was afoot.

  The judge crossed the stern to the port side. The door of the main cabin was ajar. He looked inside. Against the side wall stood a broad couch of carved rosewood, covered with a brocade quilt. Against the back wall he saw a high table, with two burning candles, in stands of worked silver. There was an elegant toilet table of rosewood on the left, and two tabourets. But no one was there.

  Judge Dee hurriedly went on, and looked through the gauze curtain that covered the window of the adjoining cabin. This evidently was the dressing room of the courtesans. A portly lady clad in black silk was dozing in an armchair and a maidservant was folding up colored robes.

  The last window, that of the sitting room, was open. There was no one there.

  “Did Your Honor look on the upper deck?” Chiao Tai asked.

  The judge shook his head. He quickly went to the companion-way and ascended the steep ladder. Probably Almond Blossom had gone up there for a breath of fresh air. But one glance sufficed to show that the upper deck was completely deserted. He went down again and remained standing in the companionway, pensively stroking his beard. Anemone had already looked in the cabins on starboard. The dancer had disappeared.

  “Go and have a look in all the other cabins,” he ordered his three lieutenants, “and also in the bathroom!”

  He walked back to the portside deck and went to stand by the railing, next to the gangway. Folding his arms in his wide sleeves, he looked out over the dark water. There was not a breath of air stirring; it was hot and oppressive. The feast in the dining room was still in full swing; he could hear the murmur of voices and a few bars of music.

  He looked down over the railing at the reflection of the colored lamps. Suddenly he stiffened. Just under the surface of the water below a pale face was looking up at him with still, wide eyes.

  Third Chapter

  THE TRIBUNAL IS SET UP IN UNUSUAL SURROUNDINGS; A MAIDSERVANT DESCRIBES A LOATHSOME APPARITION

  ONE GLANCE SUFFICED. He had found the dancer.

  The judge was about to step down the gangway when Ma Joong appeared round the corner. Judge Dee silently pointed at his find.

  Ma Joong cursed. He quickly went down the gangway till he stood up to his knees in the water. He lifted the dead body in his arms and brought it on deck. The judge led him to the main cabin; there the body was laid on the couch.

  “The poor wench is heavier than I thought!” Ma Joong remarked while wringing out his sleeves. “I suppose something heavy was put in her jacket.”

  Judge Dee had not heard him. He stood there looking down at the dead face. The still eyes stared up at him. She was wearing her dance costume of white silk, but over it she had put on a jacket of green brocade. The clinging wet robe revealed her beautiful body in a manner that was nearly obscene. Judge Dee shivered. A few moments before she had been whirling round in her enchanting dance. And this was the sudden end.

  He roused himself from these morbid thoughts. Stooping over the body, he examined the dark-blue bruise on the right temple. Then he tried to close the eyes, but the lids would not move and the dead woman’s stare remained fixed on him. He took his handkerchief from his sleeve and spread it over the still face.

  Sergeant Hoong and Chiao Tai entered the cabin. Turning to them, the judge said:

  “This is the courtesan Almond Blossom. She was murdered, practically under my eyes. Ma Joong, you stand guard outside on deck and let nobody pass. I don’t want to be disturbed. Don’t say anything about this matter.”

  Judge Dee raised the limp right arm and felt in the sleeve. With some difficulty he extricated from it a round incense burner of bronze. The ashes had turned into gray mud. He handed the burner to Hoong and went to the wall table. In between the two candlesticks he saw three small depressions in the red brocade of the tablecloth. He beckoned Hoong and let him place the incense burner on the table. The three legs fitted exactly into the depressions. Judge Dee sat down on the tabouret in front of the dressing table.

  “Simple and effective!” he said bitterly to Hoong and Chiao Tai. “She was lured to this cabin; the murderer knocked her unconscious from behind. He put the heavy bronze incense burner in her sleeve, carried her outside and let her down into the water. Thus there was no splash, and she would sink straight to the bottom of the lake. But in his hurry he didn’t notice that the sleeve of her jacket caught on a nail in the gangway. She still was drowned, because the weighted sleeve kept her face several inches under water.” He rubbed his hand over his face in a tired gesture. Then he ordered: “See what she has in her other sleeve, Hoong!”

  The sergeant turned the sleeve inside out. It contained only a wet package of Almond Blossom’s small red visiting cards, and a folded sheet of paper, which he handed to the judge.

  Judge Dee carefully unfolded it.

  “That is a chess problem!” Hoong and Chiao Tai exclaimed at the same time.

  The judge nodded. He remembered the last words of the courtesan. “Give me your handkerchief, Sergeant!” he said. He wrapped the wet sheet of paper in it, and put it in his sleeve. He rose and went out.

  “You stay here and guard the cabin!” he ordered Chiao Tai. “Hoong and Ma Joong shall go back with me to the dining room. I shall there institute a preliminary investigation.”

  While they were walking forward Ma Joong remarked:

  “At any rate we shan’t need to look far, Your Honor! The murderer must be on board this ship!”

  Judge Dee made no comment. He entered the dining room through the crystal curtain, followed by his two assistants.

  The dinner was nearing its end and the guests were eating the traditional last bowl of rice. An animated conversation was going on. When Han saw the judge he exclaimed:

  “Good! We were just planning to go up on the roof and enjoy the moon!”

  Judge Dee did not answer. He rapped the table sharply with his knuckles and called out: “Silence, please!”

  All looked at him in astonishment.

  “In the first place,” Judge Dee said in a clear voice, “I wish, as your guest, to thank all of you sincerely for this lavish entertainment. Unfortunately, this pleasant gathering must now be broken up. You will understand that if from now on I speak to you as your magistrate and not as your guest, I do so because it is my duty to the State and to the people of this district, including yourselves.” Turning to Han he added: “I must request you to leave this table, sir!”

  Han rose with a dazed look. Anemone carried his chair over to Liu Fei-po’s table. He sat down, rubbing his eyes.

  Judge Dee shifted to the middle of the table. Ma Joong and Sergeant Hoong came to sta
nd by his side. Then the judge said, speaking slowly:

  “I, the magistrate, open the temporary tribunal convened to investigate the willful murder of the courtesan called Almond Blossom.”

  The judge quickly surveyed his audience. Most of them did not seem to take in the full meaning of his words but looked at him in blank astonishment. Judge Dee ordered Sergeant Hoong to fetch the master of the boat, and a set of writing implements.

  Han Yung-han now took a hold of himself. He had a whispered consultation with Liu Fei-po. When the latter nodded Han rose and said:

  “Your Honor, this is a most arbitrary proceeding. We, the leading citizens of Han-yuan, wish to-”

  “The witness Han Yuan-han,” Judge Dee interrupted him coldly, “will resume his seat and be silent until he is ordered to speak!” Han sank back in his chair with a flushed face. Sergeant Hoong brought a man with a pock-marked face before the table. The judge ordered the master of the boat to kneel and draw a plan of the ship. As the master set to work with trembling hands, Judge Dee looked the company over with a bleak stare. The sudden transition from a happy drinking party to a criminal investigation had sobered them completely and left them in a miserable state. When the master had his sketch ready he laid it respectfully on the table. Judge Dee pushed the sheet over to Hoong and ordered him to add the position of the tables and write in the names of the guests. The sergeant beckoned to a waiter, who whispered the name of each guest as Hoong pointed at him. Then the judge addressed the company in a firm voice:

  “After the courtesan Almond Blossom had finished her dance and left this room there was considerable confusion. All of you were moving about. I shall now ask each of you to describe exactly what you were doing at that particular time.”

  Guildmaster Wang rose. He waddled to the table and knelt down.

  “This person,” he said formally, “respectfully begs Your Honor to be allowed to deliver a statement.”