CHAPTER 28

Malicious talk about the Su family gives rise to a deadly plan; Su Beishan meets old Han in a wine shop

JUST as Su Beishan’s wife, Zhao Shi, was talking in her room with the womenfolk, they heard a cry from outside. Looking out, they saw flames leaping up toward the sky. The fire was in the pile of wooden stands for flowerpots, and its light made all the apricot and quince trees visible. As the women hurriedly assembled outside, they were able to put out the fires on their first attempt.

Now Chen Liang, the White Monkey, had started this fire in order to draw the women out of the house. As soon as he saw everyone come out, he came down from the roof, crept around to the front of the building while keeping out of sight, and entered the house. There, he saw everything was in the best of taste. On the walls were a number of scrolls, some by famous calligraphers, one pair with peach blossoms; other scrolls showed landscapes or figures painted in fine detail with great sensitivity and imagination. Opposite the door there was a large, elaborate bed with posts and canopy fashioned from polished bamboo. It was completely enclosed by curtains. About the room were chairs and tables, upon some of which were arranged antique ornaments and useful objects.

As Chen Liang was taking note of his surroundings, he heard someone say, “No doubt that fire resulted from the mischief of those two children, Little Fu and Little Lu. They were probably playing with fire.”

Realizing that everyone was coming back into the house, Chen Liang thought to himself: “How am I going to get out of sight before they all come in again?” As quick as thought, he pulled the lower curtains apart and wriggled under the bed.

When everyone was back inside, no one had any idea that someone was hiding in the room, and they again sat down. Then they heard footsteps and a voice outside.

Autumn Fragrance immediately asked, “Who is there?”

From outside came the answer, “It is De Fu, one of the household men.”

“On what business?” Autumn Fragrance asked.

“The household yuanwai has returned with a monk,” De Fu replied. “The monk will not be seated in the library, nor in the guest hall. He wants to be seated in our lady’s chamber. Our yuanwai has said that we should at once ask Madame to withdraw.”

As Su Beishan’s wife heard this, she immediately asked the maids to put things in order, thinking as she did so, “This is very wrong of the yuanwai! There is a guest hall outside, as well as the library. Why must he invite the monk to come and sit in a bedchamber?”

Just as she was thinking these thoughts, another serving man, De Lu, came in and said, “Madame, go quickly; the yuanwai is about to come in with the monk!”

Su Beishan’s wife left the room at once. The maids were not yet finished putting things away when they heard the yuanwai speaking outside. “Teacher, please enter my home. Treat it as your own. Do not feel any restrictions—you may come to sit in any room you choose.”

Chen Liang, hidden under the bed, thought to himself, “Any monk that he invites into his home cannot be a good one. This monk must be some sort of procurer.”

Outside Ji Gong laughed and said, “No, I am not a good monk. I am afraid I have kept you waiting a long time. I had promised to see you soon!”

The surprised Su Beishan thought, “Good heavens! The monk simply came here to meet someone in my wife’s room.” But aloud he said, “Teacher, you must have had too much to drink.”

The monk said, “I am not drunk,” and quickly went into the room.

Chen Liang, hearing the monk’s voice, was shocked. “It is none other than Senior Monk Ji Gong from the West Lake Monastery of the Soul’s Retreat! How did he happen to come here?” Chen Liang wondered.

Now, after Ji Gong had said goodbye to Chen Liang near Five Spirits Hill, the Chan master had returned to the home of Liang Yuanwai in the market town of Yunlan.

Upon seeing Ji Gong, the old man said: “Teacher! You have returned! I have been very worried ever since you went off late last night pursuing that robber and we did not see you again. I sent some of my people to look for you. Where did you go, sir?”

Ji Gong replied, “I went to Five Spirits Hill to see the fire at the Fortunate Cloud Shrine. It has collapsed and there is not a single tile left undamaged, nor a piece of wood unburned.”

Liang Yuanwai directed the servants to prepare wine. After it had been served, the yuanwai raised his cup to the monk and then asked, “Teacher, yesterday when you came, who were the people you brought with you?”

Ji Gong explained from start to finish about how the old nun at City God Mountain had asked him to go to Yuhang prefecture to search for Gao Guoqin, and how he had brought Su Lu and Feng Xun with him to help find Gao Guoqin and bring him back to Linan. He also explained all that had happened there at the Yunlan market town and the Fortunate Cloud Shrine.

Liang Yuanwai exclaimed: “So you really came to find Gao Guoqin! I know who he is! He came from a good family. When his father was alive, he used to come to visit me here at Yunlan. I had no idea that they had fallen into poverty!”

Then he had one of the servants call Gao Guoqin and ask him to come in. In a little while, Gao Guoqin appeared. Liang Yuanwai asked him to sit down and said, “Gao Guoqin, you must know something about your family’s past affairs.”

Gao Guoqin said, “I do know a little.”

Liang Yuanwai said, “Your father’s name was Gao Wenhua. He was the most gifted graduate in Yuhang prefecture, and was well known and admired here in Yunlan market town. I was the best graduate in Yunlan. You were very young then—it was more than ten years ago. Afterward, when your father died, you were still very young and I did not hear from you of his death. It was because of these facts that we became separated. I never thought, during all these years in which I did not see you, that you might have become poor. Just now I heard this holy monk say your name, and only then did I know that you were here.”

When Gao Guoqin heard the yuanwai’s words, he remembered his mother speaking of these things when he was a child. Quickly he rose to his feet and raised his hands in a polite greeting, saying, “So this is the one who is like my old uncle. Your young nephew offers his compliments. I have heard my late mother speak your name. Because we became so poor, I have not been able to keep in touch with friends, and I have not been able to pay my respects to my uncle.”

Liang Yuanwai replied, “You have in this house one who will be like a younger brother to you. My son, Liang Shiyuan, is just beginning his studies and needs someone to direct him. You need not return to Yuhang prefecture. I will have your family brought here. You may study with your little brother, and if you both work hard, after the examinations you two may be fellow graduates.”

Ji Gong then spoke. “Liang Yuanwai, as a monk I beg for a donation.”

Liang Yuanwai answered, “Let the saintly monk speak and it will be attended to.”

Ji Gong said, “You should use several hundred ounces of silver to buy Five Spirits Hill, the place where the Fortunate Cloud Shrine burned. You should also bring the Daoist novice, Liu Miaotong, here. Give him five hundred ounces of silver and then send him to the shrine at Fortunate Heaven Mountain. Build a small nunnery on Five Spirits Hill that will be called the Fresh Cloud Nunnery. Ask the old nun who is the aunt of Gao Guoqin’s wife to live in it. Gao Guoqin and his wife may live there with her. This is all I, the monk, will ask of you. If it had not been thus, the Daoist Chang Miaoyu would have made you give him many thousands of ounces of silver.”

Liang Yuan Wai said, “That is so. I will follow my teacher’s commands.”

He then immediately sent some of his people to find Liu Miaotong and bring him to the house. By this time, Liu Miaotong had quite recovered from the pain of the injuries he had received in the fire. When he arrived, Liang Yuanwai gave him the five hundred ounces of silver. Liu Miaotong thanked the yuanwai for his kindness, accepted the silver, and took his leave. From there Liu Miaotong, following the yuanwai’s instructions, went by himself to the Daoist Monastery in the Clouds, on Fortunate Heaven Mountain. Liang Yuanwai urged Gao Guoqin to remain with him, keeping Feng Xun as well, and sent his own people to City God Mountain to invite the old nun and her niece, Gao Guoqin’s wife, to join them.

Ji Gong went on his way with Su Lu, stopping to eat when hungry and drinking when thirsty. They started at dawn each morning and found a place to stay each night until they reached Linan. There, they saw ahead of them the West Lake, and to the east a wine shop.

The monk said, “Su Lu, let us have a cup of wine here before we go on.” Su Lu nodded his head in agreement.

As soon as they went into the wine shop, they saw Su Beishan, accompanied by Su Sheng, just having a drink. Seeing Ji Gong enter, Su Beishan immediately stood up and said, “Teacher, dear sir, you have returned! You must have had many hardships on your way. Were you able to find Gao Guoqin and bring him back? And where did Feng Xun go?”

Ji Gong then told the story of finding Gao Guoqin and about the other events from start to finish.

Su Beishan said, “So that is how it was. Our teacher has been to a great deal of trouble. Please sit with us and have some wine.”

Ji Gong and Su Yuanwai had just sat down when suddenly an old man entered who seemed to be an old retainer. His hair was silvery white. As he walked, he leaned on a tall old-man’s staff. His manner was agitated, and he raised his staff and shook it at Su Yuanwai. Then the old man seized Su Beishan and began to beat him with the staff.

Su Beishan quickly pulled away and stepped aside out of reach. Shaken and pale, he said, “Han, old fellow, you and I have known each other for many years and there has never been anything wrong between us. Why should you beat me with your staff today? You have no grudge against me. What is the reason for this?”

The old man replied, “Su Beishan, from today until my death, I reject you. I myself no longer want to live, and my son has already gone to the Chientang prefecture court to make a complaint against you. I will hang myself in front of your gate so that my ghost will haunt you. This is my dying declaration!”

Su Lu and Su Sheng quickly took hold of the old man, who, as they could see, was beside himself in his agitation. Su Beishan still did not understand the cause. His two household people helped the old man to sit down on a bench. Su Beishan said, “Han, old fellow, whatever the affair is that has made you turn against me, explain it to me and I will listen.”

The old man simply sat there, hesitating, for some time. Then with a long sigh he began to speak: “Su Beishan, just because my son owed you two hundred ounces of silver, he had to shut down his business. He was trying to sell the building to pay you back your money. You were asked to wait until he could sell it. You not only would not wait, but you sent rowdies with clubs. They seized my daughter and took her away. They beat my son. Do you think that because you hold a note for some money that it gives you the right to take a person’s life? My family, the Hans, have been in business for generations. How could you take away my daughter for no reason?”

When Su Beishan heard this he said, “My dear old friend! This is utterly wrong. Truly, I knew nothing about this. Although there must be something behind this, it cannot have been any of my people. You may ask anyone how I could do such a thing that offends heaven and all the rules of proper conduct. Who was it that came to you and asked for money?”

The old man said, “It clearly was one of your household people. At that time when you lent us the money, he was the one who brought the money.” Su Beishan thought for some time, but could not remember who it was.

Ji Gong laughed and said, “Su Beishan, do not let this upset you. I will take you to find this person. First, send someone to call back old Han’s son. It will not be necessary for him to lodge a complaint at Chien-tang prefecture.”

It did not take long for Su Sheng to summon Han Wenzheng. As soon as he saw Su Beishan, the young man’s face flushed as he angrily exclaimed, “It is all over between us! I want nothing more to do with you!”

Su Beishan said, “Dear younger brother, we are friends! I had never intended that you should be asked for the two hundred ounces of silver that I lent you. Whoever did the kidnapping has made it seem that I am to blame.”

Han Wenzheng replied, “It was certainly one of your people who stole my sister away and had me beaten. I will surely make an accusation against you if you do not confess.”

Su Beishan said, “Oh, no, this is not true. Ji Gong is here now, and I beg this honorable monk to manage this affair for us.”

Ji Gong said, “You two must not quarrel. In a little while you will all understand everything clearly. Come with me.”

When the bill for the wine had been paid, Ji Gong led Su Beishan and the two Hans, father and son, out of the wine shop. Going south, they came to a lane, where they entered. Soon they reached the gate of a house where Ji Gong knocked and called out, “We have brought some money for the manager of the Su family finances.”