Theft and abduction strike the brothel after a display of force;
Dinner and apologies are offered by way of mediation.
Hearing the uproar in the room opposite, Fragrance began to tremble with fear. As soon as Wu Zhen heard the men lighting their torches and leaving, he called Sanzi into the room. “Who were those people just now? And what were they quarreling about?”
“I know only two of them,” said Sanzi. “One is You Deshou, commonly known as You Butou, who used to be in the local militia. The other is Yan Xiang, who was a pastry cook in a teahouse. Together with a few disreputable young low-class types, they came here for an introductory tea party, but once inside the door they were spoiling for a fight. We quickly ushered them into one of the rooms and asked them to sit down, but no sooner had the tea been poured than they began complaining about the tobacco being late in arriving and put on a deliberate show of anger. Then they flung their cups down on the floor and went off ranting and raving.”
“Where is your owner, Qiang Da? Why wasn’t he here to meet them?”
“He’s off at the bathhouse.”
“They may not let this matter rest, you know.”
“What! That useless lot? They’re of no account at all. Let them do whatever they want.”
“Is Miss Fragrance’s chair here yet?”
“Yes.”
“There’s no need to be afraid,” Wu Zhen said to Fragrance. “We’re just sending you home a little earlier than expected.”
Lu Shu produced a silver dollar as a tip for the house staff and also gave notes to Fragrance’s servant and the musician. “I’ll bring your fee tomorrow,” he said to Fragrance.
She nodded. “Please take me back.”
“It’s too late now, but I’ll be there tomorrow,” he said. Fragrance whispered something in his ear and urged him to come early, which he promised to do. She said good-bye to the other guests and also to the courtesans, then went out the main entrance and stepped into her sedan chair outside the gate. Before she left, Sanzi brought out four packages of pastries and lit two benzoin candles1 and gave them to her servant.
Meanwhile the guests, who were now anxious to return home, called a halt to their drinking. Cassia was reluctant to let Wu Zhen go, but he said he had important business to attend to and could not afford to stay the night. He repeated that excuse several times, until she lost patience with him. She grew red in the face and made a number of caustic remarks before she finally let him leave with the others. After arranging to meet the next morning at the Futura teahouse, they went their separate ways.
Let me turn now to You Deshou and his men after they left Qiang Da’s place. They were seething with anger as they compared ideas on what to do next. “A turtle retreats under its shell,” said You Deshou, “but we’ll do no such thing. We’ll get some fellows together, go back to that place, and stir things up by grabbing a couple of their girls. Our friends on gate duty at the yamen will naturally see that a mediator steps forward to settle the matter and clip their wings a bit. That’ll teach them what’s good for them. Then they’ll show us some respect!”
“One of the runners on duty at the Jiangdu yamen used to belong to the same club as I did,” said Yan Xiang. “I’ll take responsibility for whatever you do and see you don’t get into any trouble.”
“Great!” said the others, before going off to Xingjiao Temple Street, where they recruited a dozen would-be toughs, troublemakers all of them. At the general store they asked to buy torches but produced from their purses only twenty or thirty cash, mostly in the smallest denominations, then simply grabbed a dozen torches. After lighting the torches, they also seized a dozen pestles from the rice store before swarming over to Qiang Da’s house.
The main door was open, and they rushed headlong inside. There was a sudden clamor of voices in the house and the glare from numerous torches. Not knowing what was happening, some of the playboys and their courtesans were so terrified that they wet themselves. The shrewder ones quickly hid in the cellar, or behind one of the beds, or in the woodpile. Lucky was the only courtesan who failed to escape in time, and two low-level toughs, Tang Tong and Meathead Shi, seized her by the hair and stripped off all her hairpins. Meanwhile You Deshou calmly and deliberately led his men in smashing up the window latticework and other items. But although they searched high and low for Qiang Da, they could not find him.
There was a man in Paria’s room who was enjoying an introductory tea party. His name was Bai Shixin, and as an eldest son he was known as Bai Da. He made a practice of frequenting introductory tea parties in the various brothels around town, and also of freeloading, conveying orders and invitations for people and then sponging off them at festival time. Whenever there was an altercation in a brothel, he would insist on acting as mediator, and each side would then start bidding against the other for his favor. While at his tea party he had heard the hubbub outside and now rushed from the room. At sight of You Deshou and Yan Xiang and their men, he stopped them and asked, “Brother You, what’s this all about?”
“No need to concern yourself, Brother Bai,” said You Deshou. “They treated us with disrespect and embarrassed us terribly. We’re just smashing up a few things to drive the blasted place out of business.”
Bai Shixin dropped to his knees in front of them, blocking their way and pleading with them: “Brothers, restrain yourselves for a moment. Qiang Da may not know how to treat people properly, but you also have to consider the feelings of Master Yu, who looks after the interests of this place. He’s a great fellow and a good friend to have. Hand Miss Lucky over to me for the present. Master Yu is off just now, so this is not a good time to talk to him, but let me invite you to the Cold Garden on the Parade early tomorrow morning. Master Yu and I will both be there, and we’ll be able to work things out with you.”
You Deshou refused to yield, but just as his men were about to drag Lucky out of the gate, Yu Jiafu, who looked after Qiang Da’s house, came puffing up with two runners. When he entered and saw the crowd of men there, he knelt down in front of them, blocking their way and pleading for leniency. Bai Shixin and the two runners added their voices to his. Finally, after much persuasion, You Deshou’s followers released Lucky and handed her over to Bai, after which, with their torches and pestles in hand, they made a triumphant exit.
Yu Jiafu invited Bai Shixin into Lucky’s room. Now that the servants, who had been in hiding, saw that the intruders had left, they quickly came in and offered tea and tobacco.
“Thank you for all the trouble you took, Brother,” said Yu Jiafu to Bai Shixin. “But for you, goodness knows what damage they might have done.”
“I came here for my own amusement, and also to have a talk with Qiang Da,” said Bai Shixin. “Then I saw the trouble they were causing, and with you not here, I felt I couldn’t just stand by like an idiot and do nothing. By the way, how did you come to hear of it?”
Sanzi, who was standing to one side, volunteered: “When they came in, I could see that they were up to no good, so I slipped out to fetch Master Yu from his house, but I happened to meet him on the way and asked him to come.” Yu Jiafu was a yamen runner whose proper name was Yu Ren, and as a fourth brother, he was known as Fourth Master. For looking after the interests of Qing Da’s house he was paid a monthly retainer and received presents at festival time. On other occasions he might also make requests for things. It was a profitable arrangement, and so when Sanzi asked him, he had come at once.
Sanzi lit the opium lamp and brought it to Yu Jiafu so that he could smoke. Then Lucky rushed in, sobbing bitterly, and thanked Bai Shixin and Yu Jiafu. “Did you come to any harm, Miss Lucky?” asked Yu Jiafu. “Are any of your belongings missing?”
“Thanks to Godfather Bai, who stopped them, I didn’t come to any harm myself, but they took all my hairpins and bracelets, as well as a silver dollar and a two thousand cash note from my purse.”
“Well, don’t cry. I guarantee you’ll get it all back tomorrow.”
“I must thank you both for helping your poor goddaughter. Let me kowtow a few more times.”
Yu Jiafu told Sanzi to call Qiang Da, who came in, knelt down, and kowtowed. “Thank you, gentlemen,” he said. Then he stood up and said to Yu Jiafu: “Fourth Master, this blasted place is impossible to run! They were no sooner in the room than we called for courtesans to keep them company and offer them tea and tobacco. Then for no earthly reason they got mad, smashed their teacups, and went off ranting and raving. I wasn’t in at the time and didn’t find out about it until I came back from my bath. But a little later they rounded up a lot of people and came storming back here. I was smart enough to see what was happening and managed to escape. They smashed the latticework and various other things and went off with a good many of our belongings. If Master Bai hadn’t been here to stop them, Miss Lucky herself would have been dragged off. These last few days we haven’t done any business at all. Last night we cleansed the whole place with vinegar.2 Today we managed to book a banquet, but just when our guests were beginning to loosen up, these people came in and caused an uproar, and everyone dispersed. I don’t know yet whether we’ll even get paid for it. The more I think about this, the madder I get. There’s something I’d like your opinion on. Several aides from the yamen come here all the time. I was thinking of getting them to join me in a lawsuit.”
“If you want to bring a lawsuit, I can’t stop you, but before you do, you’d better hand Miss Lucky over to Master Bai and let him pass her on to them. Otherwise, how is he going to be able to face them? And if you’re planning to rely on the support of those aides, how could they continue to come here all the time? Not in a million years will they ever show their faces again. If you don’t plan to do business in Yangzhou anymore, go right ahead, file your lawsuit and then fold up. But think for a moment first: how much money do you owe your creditors? You surely don’t imagine that after you file your lawsuit they won’t want their money, do you? You’d do far better to swallow your anger. I suggest that Master Bai and I meet those people on the Parade tomorrow and talk to them about returning the things that they took. As the owner, you ought also to get them to look out for your interests in the future.”
“You’re quite right, sir,” put in Sanzi. “Just now his anger is clouding his judgment. Take no notice of him. We should follow your advice.” Yu Jiafu smoked for some time and did not leave until after midnight. The meeting was arranged for early next morning at the Cold Garden. Whoever arrived first would wait there for the others.
Next morning, when Yu Jiafu and the two runners arrived at the Cold Garden teahouse, Bai Shixin was already there. He called them over to join him, and they drank tea and had some breakfast. A little later, You Deshou, Yan Xiang, and the members of the band they had assembled the night before came streaming in one after the other. Yu Jiafu and Bai Shixin rose to their feet and beckoned them over, and together they filled several tables. Ordering noodles, pastries, tripe dumplings, and wheat cakes in onion sauce, they fell upon the food like starving tigers, with constant shouting and bickering. Yu Jiafu waited until everyone had finished his breakfast before getting up and going over to the other tables and pouring tea for them. “Brothers!” he began, “I made a point of coming here today to ask for your kind consideration. Qiang Da doesn’t know how to treat people properly, but I hope that as a favor to me you will overlook that. Let him make up for all his faults by paying for a banquet. You should also be good enough to return the things that you took from his house.”
“I was too young, sir, and I’d spent too little time about town to know that you were looking after the interests of that house,” said You Deshou. “But Qiang Da really did look down on us, and so we fully intended to grab a couple of his girls yesterday and force him out of business. But we were stopped by that redeeming spirit,3 Master Bai, and then by you, when you came rushing up. None of us young fellows could possibly ignore your wishes, my dear sir. We’re only too grateful to you for putting in an appearance at the teahouse today. We’ve long admired you as a great fellow, even though we have never tried to cultivate your acquaintance. By rights we ought to do just as you say, but we have not overdone it so far, and this suggestion of yours is something we simply cannot live with. We certainly don’t want the stigma of taking Qiang’s property, so we’ll return everything that belongs to the house. But get him to put on two plays and provide a banquet with ten tables for us, and we’ll forgive him. Otherwise, tell him to get a warrant for our arrest. We’ll accept it.”
“What are you saying, Brother You?” said Yu Jiafu. “Qiang Da may not know how to treat people properly, but I’m not exactly stupid. With a little education, I might even qualify as a friend. In the past we could have honored your request for plays, but you must bear in mind that Qiang Da’s business really is in a bad way. I’m not just pleading poverty. Ask Master Bai—he’ll tell you the same thing.”
You Deshou was adamant. He was on the point of leaving when Bai Shixin caught his arm and gave it a pinch or two. “Don’t try to drive too hard a bargain with Master Yu,” he said. “As the saying goes, ‘Even the cleverest daughter-in-law can’t make rice gruel without rice.’ With regard to the way Qiang Da’s treated you, I’d be inclined to resent it, too. But in this case, don’t look at the one who’s playing with the dragon lantern, look at the one who sends in his card. Put the responsibility on Master Yu. Since Qiang Da’s business really is in bad shape, and he can’t afford to put on any plays, let him pay for his sins by laying on a four-table banquet at the Beijing restaurant. Come on, take the offer, brothers. Let the man live.”
At a nearby table sat a number of fellows who regularly got free meals at the brothels. They now came over and urged an amicable solution, offering themselves as mediators. Once the matter was settled, they would all go off together to dinner and things would return to normal. Two of the men who had gone to the brothel the previous night with You Deshou now tried their best to persuade him to accept the proposal. “There’s no need to say another word,” they insisted. “Put all the responsibility on Fourth Master.”
A deeply pained You Deshou called the pair of young toughs over and gave them instructions: “See you return all the clothes and jewelry you took last night to Qiang Da’s house. We’ll be waiting for you at the Beijing restaurant.”
One of the pair was a man named Qian Guanzhi. His late father had been a loan shark who built up a considerable fortune, taking particular delight in acts of petty chicanery. Whenever he bought a piece of property, he would delay the closing until a few hours before the New Year,4 when the silver he paid over would be low grade and mixed with lead. Pity the poor seller, with goodness knows how many debts waiting to be settled from the proceeds of the sale! If he objected to the quality of the silver, the loan shark would simply refuse to go through with the closing, and so the seller would have no choice but to swallow his anger and write off the loss. At the time of his death, the property the father left was worth ten thousand taels. Qian Guanzhi was even more crafty and devious than his father, but somehow or other he proved just too crafty and devious, for before the year was out he had craftily managed to lose the entire fortune that his father had worked so hard to amass. Fortunately, his wife was quite good-looking, and she formed secret liaisons with several men. Qian Guanzhi himself joined You Deshou’s group, running about with them and doing the heavy work for them. Because his father had left him a fortune and he had failed to keep it, people called him String of Cash instead of using his proper name.5
The other man was Yu Zhao, whose mother and wife both worked as matchmakers. Yu himself had put in a few days as a runner at the yamen, but he thought of himself as a tough character and took a vicious tone with people, which caused them to call him the Viper. Both men hurried off to carry out You Deshou’s instructions.
Yu Jiafu saw that Sanzi from Qiang Da’s house was sitting nearby drinking tea, and he whispered to him: “Go back to the house and see if there’s anything still missing after they’ve returned the goods. Then hurry back and report to me at the Beijing restaurant.”
After reckoning up the cost of the breakfast at each table, Yu Jiafu told the waiter to go to Qiang Da’s house to collect the money. He then invited You Deshou and his followers as well as Bai Shixin and the would-be swindlers to move to the Beijing restaurant outside Little East Gate, where they filled four tables. Yu Jiafu told the waiter to serve wine and prepare the dishes. At this point Qian Guanzhi and Yu Zhao came racing in, panting and sweating, and reported to You Deshou, then took their seats at the other end of his table. Next Sanzi came in and quietly drew Yu Jiafu outside. “They’ve brought the things back. There are only some odds and ends still missing, worth no more than one or two thousand cash altogether. However, they’ve returned neither Miss Lucky’s jewelry nor the money and note that they took from her purse.”
“If we bring it up with them now, no one’s going to produce the goods. We’ll just have to take the loss and put it down to bad luck.”
“The boss wants you to go over to the house. He has something important he wants to talk to you about.”
“I’ll go over as soon as I leave here.”
Returning to the restaurant, Yu Jiafu picked up the wine jug and was about to go around the tables toasting the guests, when You Deshou and his men leapt to their feet and protested, “No, no! Let us!” Bai Shixin snatched the jug away from him and said, “Do sit down. Let me pour the wine for you.”
Yu Jiafu gave a sweeping bow to his guests. “Brothers,” he began, “in all matters from now on please keep an eye out for Qiang Da’s interests, for my sake.” Now that they had been mollified, You Deshou and his men had no further use for the proprieties. They took Yu Jiafu by the hand and pulled him down to join them. Then they played guess-fingers and indulged themselves until they were gorged and drunk before they finally left the restaurant.
After seeing them out the door, Yu Jiafu expressed his gratitude to Bai Shixin. “Yesterday I was in a fix,” said Bai, “and I went to visit Qiang Da to see if he could help me out. I just happened to be there when they caused all that trouble. I hope I can count on you for help, Brother.”
“Give me a day or two.”
“I’d be ever so grateful,” said Bai as he took his leave.
Yu Jiafu reckoned up the cost of the meal, tips, and tobacco, and told the restaurant to collect the money from Qiang Da, then left the restaurant with the two runners and headed for his own place.
If you are wondering what Qiang Da wanted to tell Yu Jiafu, you must turn to the next chapter.
