Chao again looked back toward his bedroom, “Make it 11:30; we have lots of time.”
***
The trip through the Western Harbor tunnel to Kowloon was not crowded at mid-day. Jun was feeling prosperous and he hired a car for the day rather than take a taxi. The car dropped them off in the courtyard of the International Commerce Centre and they walked to the lifts to take them to the hotel on the upper floors. They went to the initial check-in desk on the ninth floor and then boarded the upper lift to the reception lobby on the 103rd floor.
When they arrived, the lobby was not crowded and they had about an hour to kill.
“I told you we had time,” said Chao. “I could have spent another half-hour with my dear friend.”
“Didn’t you surrender enough of your ‘essence’ to her already?” asked Jun.
“It’s sad. You are only a few years older than me and your horizon of expectations is drastically different from mine.”
“I think you flatter yourself.”
“In truth, it’s Daiyu who flatters me, but I doubt you want to hear about that.”
“No, not a word,” Jun said. “Let’s go into the café for tea.”
“No,” said Chao. “I need a Bloody Mary. We have an hour. Let’s go to the bar.”
They went down one level to the bar and Chao ordered a Bloody Mary while his brother drank tea. Jun told his brother again what he knew from Zhang Wei and asked about the Boston software company.
“I think this will be a terrific deal for us,” Chao said. “We have plenty of contacts that could use the technology. He’s Chinese and he would like to develop a market for his company over here. Most importantly, this could be an evergreen deal since most of our new high tech manufacturing companies could use it. We could make a ton of money brokering this and...” Chao lowered his voice to a whisper. “It would all be perfectly legal.”
“It’s a happy day all around,” said Jun. “When do you see him again?”
“He’s going up to Shanghai for a few days, then we’re having dinner again on Saturday. I’d invite you along except that he said we should go out clubbing afterwards since this time he’ll be rested and not have to leave early.”
“Then why don’t you invite him to come by the office? We can talk business terms at that meeting.”
“That’s exactly how I saw it, big brother.”
“Good, you’re learning. Now let’s go to the lobby and look for Zhang Wei.”
In the lobby, they were almost alone, sitting in a central place so they would not be missed.
At 1:40, Zhang came off the lift and greeted them warmly. “I am delighted you were both able to come. I am sorry we are running late. The Minister is looking forward to meeting you. Let us go.”
He led them to the lift. When they reached the conference room, the Minister was standing with another ministry staffer on the far side next to the window with a magnificent view. Beyond the Minister, the panoramic view of the Kowloon skyline, with the mountains behind and the east bay in the foreground, was spectacular. On this crystalline day, the shipping movement in Victoria Harbor was almost more interesting than the high government official in front of them.
The Minister noticed them as they walked in, while continuing to listen to his colleague finish speaking before he turned to them. “Liu Jun and Liu Chao, I presume?”
“Yes, Minister,” said Jun.
“Thank you so much for meeting me here on such short notice,” said the Minister. “I am grateful to our friend Zhang Wei for arranging it” He looked at Zhang who seemed more than pleased. “Let us sit. Would you like any tea or water before we start?”
“No, thank you, Minister,” said Jun.
He and Chao were directed to seats opposite the Minister around the long table. When they were all seated, the Minister cleared his throat. “I first want to share with you all a bit of irony. Over the last hour and a half, I have been sitting with my Ministry of Agriculture counterparts from Thailand, Vietnam, and Myanmar. We have been discussing rice production and specifically, their countries’ projections of surpluses for export and our country’s projection of deficits for import. As you know, sadly, we have had to buy a large amount of rice from these countries over the last several years.”
The Minister spoke directly to the two brothers.
“Now because of your Thailand rice, we believe we may dramatically reduce our imports from Thailand and the other countries as well. We will still need to import, but we project steady reductions of this need over the next several years. This is a most hopeful projection and it is directly related to your understanding of the domestic food needs of Chinese people. Your importation of this new special rice will help our country at this very critical time in our agricultural modernization.”
Jun began to speak, but was interrupted as the Minister turned to Zhang and said, “Please show them the images that I shared with you earlier today.”
“Yes, Minister,” said Zhang, and he walked over to the table projector and computer in front of Jun and Chao while he explained. “These are pictures of the Thailand rice now growing in the Yangtze valley. Our inspectors tell us the rice is growing rapidly in three provinces. The plants are thriving there. The farmers responsible for these crops estimate that a thirty percent greater yield in rice will be produced from this strain. The inspectors also said that the Thailand strain will require fewer farmers to plant and fertilize it. They expect that because of the speed of growth of this rice, they may be able to generate an additional crop this year in certain growing areas. This would be amazing.”
Jun stood and addressed the Minister. “We are humbled by this display of thanks and we have been honored to serve our country in this small way. We are most excited that the Ministry has taken it upon itself to plant this rice on its most productive farms. We could not be happier knowing that we might have played a small part in helping to secure food for the future of China.”
The Minister said to them. “You have done a great thing. I would like to invite you both to Beijing in two weeks when the Prime Minister and other high Party members can thank you personally. We will arrange all the transportation for you. It will be a great privilege for me to be able to show you this honor.”
Jun looked at Chao briefly and exclaimed, “Minister, we are overwhelmed. Thank you very much.”
“No Mr. Liu, thank you.”
The Minister motioned to the door and waiters came in with full champagne flutes and distributed them around the table. When everyone had a charged glass, the Minister stood. “I propose a toast to Jun, Chao, and the People of China; may they never see hunger again.”
“To China,” they all said. The Minister added, “She will never be hungry again.”
CHAPTER 22
The large sedan arrived exactly at the agreed time. Rorke was standing in the hotel lobby and promptly walked to the portico to meet the car when it pulled in. The hotel doorman opened the car door and she slid into the back seat with Jun. She placed the large bag she carried on the floor in front of her. It was just she and Jun with the driver.
“It’s a welcome change of character for you to be punctual,” he said as she entered the car.
“It’s the least I can do for you for showing me a part of China I have wondered about for a long time.”
“And for taking you to a wonderful lunch in Guangdong as well.”
“Yes, of course, and for the wonderful lunch you have planned,” she said. “Remember, I have to be back by 3:00 pm for a conference call.”
“Where’s the call to?”
“Perth. It’s another client—big money in mining and shipping.”
“I’m jealous,” said Jun, only half in jest.
“Don’t be. He’s got a wife he loves, six kids, and he’s kind of a bore.”
With that the car drove off into Ho
ng Kong traffic and toward the tunnels. They were quiet and watched the city pass by the windows for a while until Jun asked, “What did you bring in the bag? You don’t need a snack. I’m taking you to lunch.”
“I didn’t forget about lunch. Let me show you what I have,” she said. “I was excited to find these. I bought them yesterday, specifically for your farm.” With that she opened the bag and pulled out a new pair of flower patterned rubber boots.
She turned to him. “Aren’t they lovely?”
“Yes, Sam, they’re lovely. It’s nice to see you embracing the spirit of the day. My employees at the farm will be very impressed.”
“What do you wear when you inspect your farm?”
“Oh, that’s easy. This is what I wear,” he gestured to himself and his dark suit. “I inspect the farm from the back of the car. I can see all I need to see from back here.”
“Well, that’s no fun. If I’m going to a farm, I want to see the farm.”
“I appreciate that you are as diligent in investigating my farm as you are in studying all your investments.”
“From what you say, the farm business is an investment, and a good one right now.”
“Yes, and it continues to improve.”
“Oh? How is that?”
“Can I tell you over lunch?”
“If you’d like, certainly.”
“Yes, it’s news best shared in a lovely restaurant over a bottle of fine wine.”
“Well, you’ve piqued my curiosity, but I can wait if that’s what you’d prefer.”
While they drove, Jun told her about his purchase of the farm, with government connections, and that it was specifically bought to test the Thailand rice after he and Chao closed the deal in Bangkok.
“I’ve never driven to the mainland,” said Sam. “I’ve flown to Beijing, and to Shanghai many times, but I’ve never driven over.”
“Then I’m delighted to be able to share this new experience with you,” said Jun. “We have a special permit, again with good government connections, and we can drive in a private car rather than take a bus. You’ll see how convenient it is when we go over the long bridge to the border crossing.”
When they left the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region for the Shenzhen Bay Bridge, theirs was the only car, although there was heavy bus traffic. On the mainland side, the driver met the border police with the documents Jun had obtained from his government connection the day earlier. After a brief look by the boundary policeman, they exited their right drive island car and moved to the left drive car waiting for them.
“Did you see how smoothly that went?” asked Jun, proudly.
“Yes, very impressive,” said Rorke.
“That’s the beauty of having solid government connections.”
“You continue to be a superb example of a man of the people.”
“Government works for the people as well as the other way around. You just want to ensure the right balance,” said Jun.
They avoided the bulk of the traffic of metropolitan Shenzhen, and drove along the countryside, passing through smaller villages for most of the time.
“This is beautiful,” said Sam, as the scenery they passed was dominated by lowland farms in the foreground and camel-backed, rocky cliffs creeping out from the emerald green fields beyond.
They drove for about fifteen minutes when the car pulled off to a side path—no more than an ox path—and slowly moved on the path for a few hundred meters. Cultivated rice paddies lined both sides of the path, and farmers worked in the fields on the rice crop. Without an obvious landmark, the car stopped abruptly in the path.
“Welcome to my farm,” said Jun.
Sam looked around from the back seat. Three men stood in front of their car. They were surrounded by rice paddies.
“Jun,” she asked, smiling, “Where is the manor house? Where are your stables?”
“We can talk about that over lunch,” he said.
“Well, that should be interesting. Now are we going to inspect the farm?”
“This is where we part company for a while. You are going to hear about the Thailand rice and I am going to have a cigarette—possibly two, right here, depending on your interest in my crop.”
“Okay, I will carry on without you.” She dropped her heels and slipped into her floral rubber Wellingtons. “I’ll miss you.”
“I’m sure you will,” he said, as he removed a pack of cigarettes. “Mr. Wu will answer all of your questions. Let him speak to you in English. He’s been practicing, and he doesn’t know you are fluent in both Mandarin and, if I may say, Cantonese as well.”
“Fine, I will be happy to be a simple Anglo. Be a love and please open the window before I come back,” she pointed to his cigarette.
She exited the car and walked to the three men, bowing slightly to them before speaking in English, ”Mr. Wu, I am Samantha Rorke.”
The oldest of the three men bowed back and said, “We are happy to show you Mr. Liu’s farm.” He waved his hand toward her boots. “I see you are prepared. Please follow me.”
Wu led her away from the car to a path leading onto the paddy. The rice plants were tall and full and blanketed the fields on all sides. After walking to the rim of the paddy, Mr. Wu stopped.
“Ms. Rorke,” he said, in heavily accented English, “Mr. Liu owns all of this property on this side of the road. The boundaries of his land are the road behind us, the road you can see off to your right, a stream that you can’t see ahead of us, and the line running from the stream to the shed.”
He looked to see that she understood and continued speaking. “We have rice growing on most of the land. The rice on that side of the road,” he pointed with his hand, “belongs to another farmer. That is our usual Chinese rice.”
The he turned slightly. “The taller rice on this side is Mr. Liu’s Thailand rice. It was planted at the same time as our neighbor’s rice. You can see that compared to our usual rice, the Thailand rice grows much more quickly.”
Rorke caught the eye of one of the other two men and exchanged a knowing nod.
“May I take a picture of the two rice fields?” she asked.
“Yes, of course,” said Mr. Wu.
She took out her cell phone and captured several images, including pictures of the three men.
“Other than how quickly it grows, is the Thailand rice any different?”
“Oh yes, very different,” said Wu. “The Thailand rice does not seem to need as much water to start, and its roots go deeper. It also produces more rice than normal plants.”
“Can you tell the difference between the two rice strains just by looking at them?”
“Yes, and no,” said Wu. “You see, when we have two fields side by side, the difference now is obvious and we know they are different because each field was planted at almost the same time. One field grows much faster. After the plants mature, the Thailand rice is a little taller but it is not that different. We think the Thailand rice mixes in with the normal rice and makes the comparisons difficult. Also, the rice yield is higher with the Thailand rice. You can’t appreciate that by just seeing the plants in the field.”
“Is anything else different about them?”
“The rice does seem to plant itself, or at least spreads on its own.”
“Can you show me what you mean when you say the ‘rice plants itself?’” asked Rorke.
“Come, I’ll show you,” Wu said, and led her back to the road. Sam caught the eye of the other workers and discreetly pointed to the field of the Thailand rice. She followed Wu up to the road and beyond the car. Liu was talking on his cell phone and smoking a cigarette in the car. He waved to her as they walked by.
“See the small plants growing just outside of the paddy across the road?” gestured Wu. “Those are Mr. Liu’s rice plants that planted themselves on our
neighbor’s land. I’m sure our neighbor will be happy that we are growing rice for him. I think it will be hard for Mr. Liu to keep his Thailand rice on his own land if he is trying to sell it.”
“That is very interesting, Mr. Wu. Is there anything else you would like to show me?”
“I think that is the end of the show,” said Wu. “Unless you want to see our fertilizer and tool shed.”
“I think I can miss the tool shed,” she said. “Thank you for the tour.”
She followed Wu back to the car. Before leaving, she gestured with her head to the other two men in the direction of the rogue rice plants.
A light rain began to fall as they walked back to the car.
“Perfect timing, Mr. Wu. Thank you again for the tour.”
The driver left his seat and walked back to open the door for Rorke. She entered the car and sat next to Jun.
Liu put up his finger as he was still on the phone, and she heard him beg off the call to whomever he was speaking with. He switched off the phone and asked, “How did you enjoy the tour of my estate?”
“It was interesting—modest, of course, but interesting.”
“We do what we can do. Unless you have additional questions for Mr. Wu, let’s go to lunch and we can talk about additional farms in my future.”
“Mr. Wu was quite helpful. Please tell him he gave me a wonderful tour and that his English was more than acceptable.”
“Thank you. He’ll be pleased when he hears that.” The car backed down the small path and merged onto the dirt road. There were few automobiles on the lightly traveled country roads and they reached the restaurant in about fifteen minutes.
Jun left the car before the driver could open his door and he walked around to open Sam’s door. He said to the driver, “Just bring in the wine, please.”
They walked to the door of the small inn and Jun allowed Sam to enter first. The entrance room was dark, which did little to hide the very welcoming expression of the innkeeper who greeted Jun in Cantonese when he arrived.
Even though there were few other patrons in the dining area, the innkeeper showed them to a private room with a small round table and two chairs that had obviously been arranged for them. The driver walked in with four bottles of wine.
The Rice Thieves Page 17
