SHAO PENG HAD GONE back to her family home to speak to Rohani. She wanted to ask her to help Li Ling. She had discussed at length with Jack the various possibilities of rescuing Li Ling. None seemed viable. The biggest problem, explained Jack, was that in matters of civil law regarding the local and immigrant population, the British administration had adopted a principle of non-interference.
“My hands, even those of the Resident, are tied. In family matters we leave it to each ethnic group to administer the customary justice they feel most appropriate. In all my years here we have never intervened. The Sultan or his chiefs resolve any dispute amongst Malays in accordance with Muslim law. Similarly, the Indian community follow Indian rules and customs as practised in India. In the case of the Chinese community in Kuala Lumpur we leave it to their leader, the Kapitan China. Your brother is in a better position to talk to Kapitan Yap. Isn’t he his personal friend?
“I can’t believe you cannot use your office to intervene.”
“I am sorry. We are not in the Straits Settlements. The British Resident in Selangor has only an advisory role, even though in most situations our advice is followed and implemented. We must not be blatant about it. Our position is delicate. We reserve our intervention and advice for matters of state and economy, and never for personal matters. In personal matters, the leaders of the various ethnic groups have full power. Face is very important in this part of the world. We cannot take on family matters without causing a major outcry.”
“Is there no other way? Surely if there is abuse within the family, something could be done by your administration.” “Only the local leaders can intervene in family matters. It would be unfair for us to meddle in such matters. Let me give you an example. Polygamy is widely practised here. It is not allowed under English law. Even though we are against polygamy and it is illegal under British law, we would not make families with such arrangements cast away the secondary wives. That would be cruel. It wouldn’t be accepted. And as for wife battering, the issues involved are even more complex.”
“So what can we do? We cannot leave Li Ling with her husband. She will not survive. She will be giving birth in a few months. How could we leave her to be kicked and abused?”
“See your brother. Ask him to get help from the Kapitan. See him at his office. Don’t go to his house. There are too many distractions there.”
But Shao Peng couldn’t approach her brother on a matter relating to Li Ling without first consulting her stepmother. Rohani would consider such a step as treacherous. So Shao Peng had gone to see Rohani only to discover that she was harbouring Aishah. Shao Peng felt betrayed.
During her journey home she mulled over her discovery. How could Rohani do that to her? Did her brother know? she wondered. He must know. He lived in the same house. Yet she could not believe that her brother would do such a thing. The arguments in her mind went back and forth and she went from anger to recrimination to disappointment and sadness. Finally, Shao Peng took a deep breath. She had to rise above her own personal grievances and to focus on ways to rescue Li Ling. She could not allow herself to be distracted. Every minute wasted was a minute more that Li Ling had to endure abuse. She could not allow time to slip away. Yet how could she trust Rohani to help her? Rohani had chosen to give a home to Aishah when she had turned Li Ling out.
***
It was evening when Jack came home. Shao Peng heard his footsteps and went out to greet him. She held a lantern up high and light spilled over the path. She watched him hurry forward to the porch taking the steps two at a time.
“What is the matter?” Jack asked when he saw her face.
“I went to see my stepmother. I couldn’t bring myself to speak to her.”
Jack ushered her into the house, handing the lantern to Ah Kew. It was warm in the house despite the windows thrown wide open. He took off his jacket. “Come, sit down,” he said guiding her to a seat. He was troubled. He suspected that Shao Peng had seen Aishah. He had specifically suggested that she should not go to her brother’s house. He wanted to tell Shao Peng about Aishah first. He could not do so without consulting with Rohani and Siew Loong. They had specifically told him not to tell Shao Peng. His first response then was that the whole idea was ridiculous and the idea of keeping Aishah’s whereabouts from Shao Peng even more so. He had warned them that the servants would talk. They had disagreed with him. They were confident that it could be done. They were keen that Shao Peng should not be troubled until after the birth. For a while he believed them for Ah Kew showed no signs that she knew. Then work came in the way and days passed without him realising until the fateful day when Shao Peng came home with news of Li Ling. Events spiralled quickly then.
“Why couldn’t you speak to Rohani?” he asked.
“I saw Aishah. I told my stepmother the trouble that I had with her. Yet she took her in. I see it as a betrayal. What troubled me more is that my brother must be in it as well.”
“They did it for a reason.”
“You knew!” She snatched her hand away. For her this was the ultimate treachery.
“Let me explain.” He tried to place his arms around her.
“No!” She thrust his hands away.
He caught her in his arms and kept her there. She wouldn’t look at him.
“Please let me explain. They were trying to protect you.”
“Protect me?”
He told her. He explained how Aishah was chained by her guardian. While they agreed that Aishah had to be watched to prevent her from trying to harm Shao Peng again, they did not have the heart to see her so treated.
“Harm me?” Shao Peng asked in surprise. “How could she harm me?”
Jack told her. “She was practising black magic on you...”
By the end of the evening, Shao Peng was calmer. She sat with her head resting on Jack’s shoulder. She was appalled by Aishah’s story. She regretted sending her away so precipitously. “Poor Aishah, poor Li Ling. At least Aishah is safe now.”
“Yes, and I think we will not have any trouble from her on account of me. I have spoken to Aishah. She understands that I love only you and that she had mistaken my kindness for love. Rohani is hoping to channel her need for love to a more suitable young man when the time is right and an opportunity arises.”
“Which brings us back to Li Ling. What can we do?”