The Lacquer Screen

by Robert Van Gulik

  ‘We didn’t miss much’ Judge Dee whispered to Chiao Tai. ‘The scribe is reading out the new constitution of some guild or trade organization, I think he is coming to the concluding paragraphs.’

  When, a little later, the scribe fell silent, the magistrate raised his head and spoke:

  ‘You have all heard now the new text of the constitution of the Guild of Metal Workers, as submitted by the said guild and amended by this court. Is there any objection?’ He waited a moment, surveying the audience. Judge Dee quickly ducked. When no one spoke up, Teng resumed: ‘This court then declares that the new constitution is approved, and shall stand as such.’

  He rapped the bench sharply with the gavel, an oblong block of hardwood significantly known as the ‘Wood that frightens the hall’.

  A rotund, middle-aged man with a large paunch stepped forward and knelt in front of the bench. He was clad in white mourning dress.

  ‘Nearer!’ the headman growled at him.

  As the man in white obediently crawled closer to the dais, Judge Dee nudged his neighbour and asked:

  ‘Who is that?’

  ‘Don’t you know? That’s the banker Leng Chien. He is the associate of Ko Chin yuan, the old silk merchant who committed suicide last night.’

  ‘I see’ Judge Dee said. ‘Who is he in mourning for?’

  ‘Heaven, you don’t know a thing, do you? He is in mourning for his younger brother, of course. The famous painter Leng Te, who died two weeks ago. It was that lingering lung disease of his that did it.’

  Judge Dee nodded and concentrated his attention on what Leng Chien was saying.

  ‘In accordance with Your Honour’s instructions of this morning, we continued dragging the river for the deceased’s body, as far as half a mile downstream. But we only retrieved his velvet cap. Since I am most anxious to begin winding up the affairs of the deceased on behalf of the Ko family, I take the liberty of reiterating my request made during the morning session of this court, namely that Your Honour have his demise officially registered, thus empowering me to act and sign documents on the deceased’s behalf. There are a number of important deals pending which, if not immediately attended to, may cause serious financial loss to the estate.’

  Magistrate Teng frowned. He said:

  ‘The formalities must be complied with. The law states that a suicide cannot be registered unless the body has been brought forward for examination by a duly accredited coroner.’ He thought for a while, then pursued: ‘This morning you gave only a concise account of the occurrence. You shall now report what happened in detail. It is not impossible that this court may find circumstances which might motivate special consideration of the case. I am not oblivious of the fact that the late Mr Ko did have widespread financial interests, and I am willing to speed up the formalities as much as is possible within the limits of the law.’

  ‘This person’ Leng said respectfully, ‘is deeply grateful for Your Honour’s kind consideration. Last night’s dinner, during which the tragedy happened, was organized on the spur of the moment. One month ago Mr Ko consulted the famous soothsayer Pien Hoong about an auspicious date for beginning work on the summer villa Ko was planning to build in the southern suburb. When Mr Pien had drawn Ko’s horoscope, he warned him that the fifteenth of this month, that is yesterday, would be a very dangerous date for him. Greatly perturbed, Mr Ko pressed him for more details. But Pien could only add that the danger would originate in Ko’s direct surroundings, and that it would be greatest at noon.

  ‘Mr Ko who was by nature a nervous man, started to brood over this prediction, and suffered a renewal of an old stomach ailment of his. As the fateful date drew nearer he lost his appetite, and had to take medicine regularly for relieving his internal pains. I was greatly worried about him, and all through yesterday morning kept in touch with his steward. He said that Mr Ko had been very irritable all morning, and had refused to stir from the house, even for a walk in the garden. However, in the afternoon the steward sent me a message saying that his master’s temper had considerably improved. He was happy that noon, the most dangerous hour, had passed without something untoward happening to him. Mrs Ko succeeded in persuading her husband to invite a few friends for dinner that night, to distract him and cheer him up. Ko invited, besides me, Mr Pan Yoo-te, Your Honour’s counsellor, and the master of the guild of silk dealers.

  ‘The dinner had been prepared in the garden pavilion of Mr Ko’s residence. The pavilion stands at the farther end of the garden, on a slight elevation overlooking the river. At first Ko was in high spirits. He said jokingly that apparently even the famous soothsayer Pien Hoong sometimes made a mistake. When we were half through, however, he suddenly grew pale. He announced that he felt a severe stomach attack coming on. I said in jest that his nerves must be playing him false. He grew very angry and said that we were heartless fellows. He rose abruptly, muttering something about going over to the house to take his medicine.’

  ‘How far is the pavilion from the house? ‘Magistrate Teng interrupted.

  ‘The garden is quite large, Your Honour, but since it is planted only with shrubs, from the pavilion one can see clearly the marble terrace that runs along that side of the entire residence. It was on this moonlit terrace that, after a brief interval, we saw Ko reappear. His face was covered with blood, streaming from a wound on his forehead. Screaming and gesticulating wildly he ran down into the garden, and along the path towards the pavilion. The three of us sat there, looking at the approaching figure, speechless with consternation. Halfway down he suddenly changed his course. He left the path and ran across the grass to the marble balustrade. He stepped over it and threw himself into the river.’

  The banker paused, overcome with emotion.

  ‘What happened to the deceased while he was inside the house? ‘the magistrate asked.

  ‘Precisely!’ Judge Dee remarked to Chiao Tai. ‘That’s of course the crux of the matter!’

  ‘Mrs Ko has stated,’ Leng replied, ‘that her husband came running inside their bedroom in great agitation. The bedroom is joined to the terrace by a narrow passage about ten feet long. He started upon a long tirade about die awful pain he was in, and the cruelty of his friends, who didn’t show the slightest sympathy with his suffering. His wife tried to console him, then went to her own room to fetch his medicine. When she came back her husband had worked himself up into a kind of frenzy. Stamping his feet on the floor he refused to take the medicine. Suddenly he turned and rushed out to the terrace. That was the last his wife saw of him. I assume that, while running through the passage that leads to the terrace, he bumped his head against the upper part of the door. The passage is rather low. It was built after the rest of the house because Mr Ko wished to have direct access from his bedroom to the terrace. In the state of mind he was in, that unexpected shock completely unnerved him, and he decided to end his life.’

  Magistrate Teng, who thus far had been listening with an indifferent air, now sat up in his chair. Turning round he asked his counsellor:

  ‘Since you were there I assume that you examined the passage?’

  ‘I did indeed, Your Honour,’ Pan replied respectfully. ‘I didn’t find any bloodstains there, either on the floor or on the beam over the terrace door.’

  ‘How high is the balustrade that runs along the river bank? ‘Teng asked the banker.

  ‘Only three feet, Your Honour,’ Leng Chien answered. ‘I often advised Mr Ko to have it made higher, because there was the danger that some day a guest who had partaken too freely of the amber liquid might fall over. On the other side of the balustrade there’s a sheer drop to the river, of more than ten feet, I’d say. But the deceased said he had made it low expressly in order to be able to enjoy the view while sitting in the garden.’

  ‘How many steps lead up to the pavilion, and what kind are they? ‘Teng asked again.

  ‘Three, Your Honour, and they are made of carved marble.’

  ‘Did you see the deceased clearly when he wen
t over into the river?’

  Leng hesitated. He replied slowly:

  ‘There are some shrubs there, and, since he had disappeared before we really knew what was happening, I…’

  Magistrate Teng leaned forward and interrupted:

  ‘What made you think that Mr Ko committed suicide?’

  ‘Good!’ Judge Dee whispered to Chiao Tai. ‘My colleague has put his finger on the sore spot!’

  ‘The old fellow jumped into the river, didn’t he?’ Chiao Tai muttered. ‘And evidently not to enjoy a swim I’

  ‘Hush! Listen!’ the judge hissed.

  The banker seemed to be quite taken aback by Magistrate Teng’s sudden question. He stammered:

  ‘I…that is to say, all of us…since we saw it happen before our eyes…’

  ‘You saw with your own eyes’ Magistrate Teng cut him short, ‘that Mr Ko’s face was covered with blood. That he first made straight for the pavilion, then changed direction and ran towards the balustrade. Didn’t it occur to you that the blood from his head wound might have got into his eyes, and that he mistook the white balustrade for the white steps of the pavilion? And that he did not step over the balustrade, but stumbled over it?’As Leng did not reply, the magistrate continued: ‘It has now become evident that the manner of Mr Ko’s death has by no means been clearly established; this court provisionally opines that it was death by accident rather than suicide. Neither is this court satisfied with Mr Leng*s theory about how the deceased received the head wound. Pending clarification of those issues, the death of Mr Ko Chih-yuan cannot be registered.’

  He rapped his gavel and closed the session. When he had got up from his chair, Pan pulled the unicorn screen aside. Magistrate Teng passed through, going to the judge’s private office, which is always located directly behind the court hall.

  ‘Clear the hall!’ the headman of the constables shouted at the spectators.

  Judge Dee and Chiao Tai trooped towards the entrance with the crowd. The judge said:

  ‘Teng is perfectly right, the evidence available so far could be interpreted as pointing to accident as well as to suicide. I wonder why that banker assumed straightaway that Ko committed suicide. I wonder also what actually happened to Ko when he was inside the house.’

  ‘Nice riddles for Magistrate Teng to rack his brains on!’ Chiao Tai said cheerfully. ‘Now, what about sampling the local dishes?’

  Chapter 3

  In the market place, teeming with a noisy crowd, they halted in front of a small eating-house that looked rather inviting. The row of large coloured lanterns hanging from the eaves was inscribed with the grandiloquent name of the restaurant: ‘Roost of all Gourmets within the Four Seas’.

  ‘Here we can hardly go wrong!’ Judge Dee remarked smiling. He pulled aside the door curtain of clean blue cotton and was greeted by an appetizing smell of frying onions.

  They had an excellent meal of rice, roast pork and pickled vegetables. Tasting the heady local wine, they talked about their adventures in the prefectural city, and then exchanged reminiscences about the past year at home, in Penglai. When they left the restaurant Judge Dee had lost his preoccupied air, and they strolled back to the hostel in the best of moods. Now and then they halted in a gaily lit shopping street, looking at the local products which were praised by vociferous street vendors, or listening in to a particularly acrimonious bout of bargaining.

  While they were walking the judge noticed that Chiao Tai had grown rather quiet. ‘What is wrong with you?’ he asked. ‘Doesn’t the meal agree with you?’

  ‘We are being followed!’ Chiao Tai replied in a low voice.

  ‘Who would follow us?’ Judge Dee asked incredulously. ‘Did you see them?’

  ‘No, but I have a feeling for these things, and so far it has never failed me. Let’s walk on, I’ll try a few tricks to find out who is keeping an eye on us.’

  He quickened his pace and turned into a less crowded side street As soon as he was around the corner he abruptly halted, pulling the judge with him into a dark porch. They scrutinized the passers-by. But they saw no face they knew, and no one seemed to take the slightest interest in them. They resumed their walk, now choosing dark back streets where only few people were about.

  ‘It’s no use,’ Chiao Tai said when they were in a narrow alley. ‘Whoever is spying on us is an old hand at the game. You’d better return to the hostel, Magistrate. Do you see the group of beggars blocking up the road ahead there, in front of that street stall? When we pass there I’ll join them. You just turn that corner quickly. I’ll see you in the hostel, and bring those dirty spies along for you!’

  Judge Dee nodded. While he was elbowing his way through the group of ragged vagrants in front of the stall, Chiao Tai suddenly vanished from his sight. The judge slipped round the corner and ran through a few winding alleys, in the direction of the street noise ahead. Once in a crowded street again he asked the way to the hostel, and found it without difficulty.

  The waiter brought tea and two candles. Judge Dee sat down at the small table. Sipping the hot tea he reflected that it seemed incredible that anyone would take a special interest in their doings. Yet Chiao Tai was rarely wrong in such matters. In his own district of Penglai there were of course a few scoundrels who were not very kindly disposed towards him, but even if some of them had the temerity to make an attempt on his life, how could they possibly know that he would break his journey here in Wei-ping? That idea had been formed only during his last day in the Prefecture. Or did a gang in Penglai perhaps have an accomplice there? He began to stroke his long beard pensively.

  There was a knock on the door and Chiao Tai came in. Wiping the sweat from his brow he said dejectedly:

  ‘Again he slipped through my fingers! You know who it is? None other than that ugly one-eyed bastard who came to see us this afternoon! I saw him slink past, looking left and right as if searching for someone. I was in the front row of those beggars, drinking a cup of the dregs that street stall sells, and while I was pushing the fellows aside to get at him, he spotted me and off he went like a hare! I ran after him, but he was nowhere to be seen!’

  ‘He’s a slippery customer,’ the judge said. ‘I wonder what he is up to. Have you by any chance seen the fellow before, either in Penglai or in the Prefecture?’

  Chiao Tai shook his head. As the judge motioned him to be seated also he replied:

  ‘If I had ever seen that ugly snout I would certainly remember it! But don’t worry, now I know whom to look for. He’ll certainly try to follow us again when we go out, and then I’ll get him. By the way, your colleague Teng here has another worry coming, Magistrate! A murdered woman!’

  ‘What is that?’ the judge asked astonished. ‘Did you see it happen?’

  ‘No,’ Chiao Tai said, ‘but it’s murder all right! As yet known only to an old beggar and me!’

  ‘Out with it!’ Judge Dee ordered curtly. ‘What happened? We’ll have to report immediately to Teng.’

  ‘We might be doing him a good turn,’ Chiao Tai agreed. He poured himself a cup of tea, then began: ‘It was like this. After that thin scoundrel had disappeared, I went back to the street stall to pay my coppers. As I turn to go, a dirty old beggar sidles up to me and asks whether he’s right in assuming that I am a stranger in town. When I say yes and what is it to you, he pulls me aside and asks whether I’d be interested in buying some fine jewellery extra cheap. I think I may as well see what it’s all about, so I let him take me to the porch of a quack doctor round the corner. Under the door-lampion he shows me a pair of beautiful earrings and two golden bracelets, and says I can have them then and there for one silver piece. I know of course that the old geezer has filched the trinkets, and I am debating with myself whether I’ll take him here first, or straight to the tribunal. He thinks I am hesitating because I am afraid to buy the stuff, and he says, “Don’t worry, there won’t be any trouble. I took them from a dead woman lying in the marsh near the north gate. I am the only one who knows about
it.” I tell him to come across with the whole story, and he says he has a lair in the shrubs on the edge of the marsh, where he sleeps sometimes. He went there tonight and came upon the dead body of a youngish woman, dressed in a fine brocade coat, half-hidden under the shrubbery. The hilt of a dagger was sticking from her breast, and she was quite dead. He felt in the sleeves but there was no money, so he tore off her earrings, took the bracelets, and ran off. That place is quite deserted at night, there was nobody about. Now, as a regular member of the beggars’ guild, he’s supposed to give everything he finds or steals to the boss of the underworld here, a ruffian called The Corporal, who then gives him a share. The old rascal says he thought it a pity to let go of such nice loot, therefore he was looking for a stranger who’d buy it, without the risk of him being betrayed to The Corporal—for whom he has an unholy fear.’

  ‘Where is this beggar?’ Judge Dee asked. ‘Don’t tell me that he slipped through your fingers too!’

  Chiao Tai scratched his head. ‘No,’ he replied with an embarrassed air, ‘he didn’t. But the fact is that the fellow looked half-starved. He really was a rather pathetic old wreck. I questioned him up and down, and I am absolutely certain that he has nothing to do with that murder. I examined the earrings, and found some dried blood on them, so he didn’t lie about taking them from a corpse. I know what’ll happen to him if we take the poor wretch to the tribunal! The constables’ll beat him up, and if and when they let him go that Corporal’ll cut him to ribbons for not having brought the loot to him. I know the gentle manners of his sort! So I dig out a string of coppers, give them to him and tell him to run along. I thought that when we go to report this to your colleague in the tribunal, you might say that the beggar we got the baubles from ran away.’