‘May God preserve this young lady’s life.’
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Ch. 10.2
Xu Jianzhang was in the reception room feeling terribly worried when he saw the servant who had come in earlier, Zhou Ma, walking in and saying, ‘Our Madam is most pleased to hear that Miss Yin’s cousin is also here. They’re about to start the banquet out front and she invites you to take your place.’
Xu Jianzhang glanced at the guard with him and asked, ‘The residence is so lively, is there some major occasion being celebrated?’
Zhou Ma laughed and replied, ‘Why, Biǎo Shàoye (Lit. Mr Cousin), it’s to celebrate Miss Yin’s birthday.’
Xu Jianzhang was taken aback and repeated, ‘Celebrate Miss Yin’s birthday?’
Zhou Ma said with a smile, ‘Our Madam said that since you’re Miss Yin’s relative, it makes you family so there’s no need for you to stand on ceremony.’
A notion darted into Xu Jianzhang’s head and he asked suddenly, ‘This is the Tao mansion — as in Commander Tao’s residence?’
Zhou Ma confirmed that it was. Having heard what she had said earlier about his being family, Xu Jianzhang felt as though a fish bone were lodged in his throat¹, not to mention his heart. After a moment’s thought, he asked, ‘Is Miss Yin back already?’
Zhou Ma answered pleasantly, ‘Miss Yin will be back soon.’
¹ 如鯁在喉 rúgěngzàihóu. If you’re not reading this chapter at hiding in plain sight, it has been stolen and reproduced by novelscraping sites.
Xu Jianzhang then asked, ‘What about Old Master Yin? Is he in the front house too?’
This puzzled Zhou Ma who answered, ‘Miss Yin has been staying here alone. Which Old Master Yin are you referring to?’
Xu Jianzhang’s heart was in turmoil and it was some time before he shook his head and said, ‘Please thank your mistress for me. It’s not convenient for me to attend. I hope Madam Tao will excuse me.’
Zhou Ma returned an affirmative answer and left but returned a while later with a manservant who was carrying a basket. She was still very polite as she explained, ‘Our Madam says that since you’re not willing to go to the front house, she’s asked the kitchen to prepare some dishes that she hopes you’ll make do with for now.’
The manservant opened the basket. Inside were dishes consisting of baby corn fried with dried shrimps, steamed hilsa herring, fried pea shoots, and a bowl of piping hot duck soup with cherry tomatoes. Xu Jianzhang had no appetite and as the manservant dished out a big bowl of rice for him, he told the guard who was accompanying him, ‘You can eat first.’
Murong Feng ran a tight ship so the guard replied, ‘Please make yourself at home, Mr Xu,’ and remained standing to one side.
Xu Jianzhang received the bowl and forced himself to take two mouthfuls before putting it down. The only things that he could hear were the distant hubbub of voices and laughter, interspersed with the merry twangs and pipings of stringed and woodwind instruments. Even though there were several buildings and courtyards between him and the festivities, it was not hard to picture the grandeur and luxury of the whole scene.
It was not until quite some time later that the kitchen sent two manservants over to clear away the dishes. A preoccupied Xu Jianzhang paced absently over to an open window where he overheard one of the manservants grumbling, ‘Making more work for us. We’re already so busy today but they still make us wait on this person and that person.’
The other manservant laughed and told him, ‘If Miss Yin really gets married to Sixth Marshal one of these days, you might not even be selected to wait on her cousin even if you wanted to.’ They disappeared into the distance while chatting.
Xu Jianzhang stood there thunderstruck². His first thought was that if even the servants were talking like this, then it showed just what intimate terms Jingwan and Murong Feng were on — it was an open secret. His heart felt as if it were being roiled in boiling oil and he did not even notice that the cigarette that he had been holding in one hand was now crushed, the fine tobacco ash scattering all over the carpet.
² 五雷轟頂 wǔléi-hōngdǐng. Translation belongs to theresanother(DOT)wordpress(DOT)com.
Hé(/həʳ/) Xu’an had not stirred from his post in the telegraph room and it was not until a coded telegram came in that he felt a sense of relief. Taking the telegram with him, he went to report to Murong Feng who was in the house at the back. The latter was still sitting on the balcony. There was a small rattan table beside him on which several dishes and rice were placed. Hé(/həʳ/) Xu’an noted that all the dishes looked untouched. He coughed softly and said, ‘Sixth Marshal, the telegram from Zhang Qiyun has come in.’
Murong Feng lightly flicked his cigarette and asked, ‘What does it say?’
Hé(/həʳ/) Xu’an answered, ‘He’s already assumed command of Xu’s troops without any problems. Commissioned officers from the 4th Division have also finished all the handovers.’
Murong Feng began issuing instructions. ‘Then wait a few more hours before announcing it in a circular telegram to the nation. Also, draft a personal letter to the President for me and send it by cipher telegram. Explain the particulars of this affair: how Xu and Chang were plotting mutiny and conspired to assassinate me after their plot was exposed. Although this is a family scandal, the more we try to bury it, the more tongues will wag.’
Hé(/həʳ/) Xu’an returned an affirmative answer and Murong Feng asked another question, ‘How’s the situation at the Tao mansion?’
The aide replied, ‘Everything is fine at the moment.’
Murong Feng said, ‘The news will be out in a few hours. There must not be any trouble.’
Hé(/həʳ/) Xu’an reassured him, ‘Please don’t worry, Sixth Marshal. Commander Tao is personally in charge of the arrangements outside and Fourth Madam is also at the residence.’
They suddenly heard a soft click which sounded like a room door being opened. Murong Feng jumped to his feet, turned and walked into the room. Sure enough, Dr Müller had already emerged, followed by the nurse who was holding a small enamel plate. Murong Feng saw the blood-covered bullet lying on the plate and only then did he feel like a weight was off his mind.
Dr Müller said, ‘This week is a critical period. There’s a high risk of infection because the bullet wound is so deep. May God preserve this young lady’s life.’
Murong Feng went straight in and saw that the nurses had already cleaned the traces of blood off Jingwan. She was still unconscious and although there were many matters that needed his attention, he could not bring himself to leave just like that. It was not until Shen Jiaping came over and informed him softly, ‘Sixth Marshal, they’re all here already’ that he finally went downstairs to chair a meeting.
This meeting of his went on late into the night as a succession of coded telegrams was sent and received. The senior officers of the Cheng army were profoundly shaken by the earlier incident and their faces and tones were markedly different than usual. When they received the final reply by telegram from the south, it was nearly three in the morning and a stillness lay over everything. Only then did Murong Feng feel that the situation had been brought under control and he said with a yawn, ‘It’s going to be light soon. Go and get some sleep, all of you.’
All the senior officers rose to their feet with alacrity and saluted smartly. One veteran was especially respectful and said, ‘Please take care, Sixth Marshal. You’ll be shouldering heavy responsibilities from now on.’
Murong Feng nodded and responded, ‘I’ll be relying on all of you for support henceforth.’ He was about to get to his feet and see them out but his subordinates all chorused ‘we wouldn’t dare’ and filed out of the room.
Only now did Shen Jiaping take a step forward and ask in a low voice, ‘You haven’t had lunch or dinner yet, Sixth Marshal. Shall I get the cooks to prepare some supper?’
Murong Feng then realised that there was a slight burning sensation in his stomach but he had no appetite so he shook his head and said, ‘I’m going to take a nap. Wake me at nine.’
Shen Jiaping saw that he was heading straight to the back and knew that he was going to see Jingwan. He hurried after him, saying, ‘Miss Yin cannot be moved now. I’ll get them to prepare another room for you to rest in.’
Murong Feng instructed, ‘I’ll sleep in the study. Tell them to bring some bedding over.’
Shen Jiaping went off to do so while Murong Feng made his way down a long corridor to the building at the back. It was extremely quiet upstairs where Dr Müller and two nurses were on duty. They all rose to their feet when they saw him enter.
He padded quietly over to see how Jingwan was. She was still unconscious. Her jet-black long curls lay spread out on the pillow, framing her chalk white face.
Dr Müller told him in a low voice, ‘She won’t wake up until the effects of the anaesthesia have worn off.’
Jingwan was lying under a Western-style light duvet that made her appear even smaller. Lying in the middle of the big bed, she looked like a delicate infant. There was a window seat directly facing the bed so Murong Feng sat down on it and took out his cigarette case out of habit.
Dr Müller stopped him hastily. ‘My apologies, Sixth Marshal, but because of the injury to her lungs, we must not do anything that may cause her to cough.’
Murong Feng said ‘oh’ and put the cigarette case down. He remained sitting there, saying he would rest there for a few minutes before going to sleep in the study, but the day’s exertions took their toll at last³ and he dozed off where he was without realising it.
³ 身心俱疲 shēnxīnjùpí. Please consider reading from hiding in plain sight rather than from novelscraping sites.
A born soldier, he only took a nap for about an hour before waking up again. It was pleasantly warm as a fleece blanket had been placed over him. He could make out a bluish-white line of light through the window lattice — it was going to be daybreak soon. The sound of a faint moan suddenly came from Jingwan’s bed. As the nurse hurried over to take a look, he flung the blanket aside and got down from the divan.
Jingwan had not actually regained consciousness. The nurse dabbed her lips with a wet cotton swab and took her temperature. Seeing that she was not as deathly pale as before, Murong Feng placed a hand on her forehead to see how warm she felt.
She murmured very faintly, ‘Mama…’
He found himself responding in a low voice, ‘It’s me. Does it hurt a lot?’
She was not fully conscious and the nurse whispered, ‘She hasn’t come to yet, so let her sleep.’
He tucked a corner of the blanket in then suddenly heard her murmur, ‘Jianzhang.’ He had actually been bending down so he heard these two words clearly which upset him for some reason. After a while, he straightened up slowly and walked outside to the sitting room.
Shen Jiaping was in the sitting room and stood up immediately upon seeing Murong Feng come out who proceeded to give an order, ‘Find Xu Jianzhang and fetch him here.’
Shen Jiaping hesitated and asked, ‘This isn’t a convenient time, surely? Should we wait until later and send someone over when it’s light?’
Murong Feng snapped, ‘What’s so inconvenient? Get him to come over now.’
(Approx. 1939 words)
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Histories: The Tiger Hall Incident
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