CHAPTER XIV
Tsu-Hi is Astonished
For perhaps one whole minute David Harbor stood perfectly still, once he had slid down the rope from the window above and had gained the floor of the room in which he had seen the Tartar under-officer. He leaned forward, still gripping the cord, listening intently for any sounds there might be, and fancied as he did so that he could hear the soft-footed slither of some one in the passage.
'That fellow going along to interview Chang and the deputy-governor. Going to put in a word for himself,' muttered David. 'In that case he should be absent sufficiently long to let me take a look round. Let me see. Dick was in the next cell. Right! I'll make straight away for him.'
He crept across the stone-flagged floor, making direct for the doorway, and thrust his head round the edge so as to obtain a good view of the passage. It was empty as far as he could see. Almost directly overhead a huge paper lantern swung in the breeze, emitting a soft light, and casting its rays on either side. It was possible, in fact, to see as far as the end of the passage in one direction, where it evidently turned abruptly to the left and swept round the other side of the building. In the opposite direction shadow and gloom obscured the passage, but it made little difference to our hero.
'Runs along past all the cells into which I have already looked,' he told himself. 'I don't need to take any notice of it. Now for the one in which Dick is imprisoned. It ought to be just here on my right. No harm in searching for him at once. There doesn't seem to be a soul about this part of the building.'
He stepped into the passage promptly, and crept cautiously towards the bend where it turned along the other face of the prison. At the very corner there was a door, and the sight set his heart fluttering. But he did not venture to touch the bolts before taking the precaution to look along the gallery after it had turned. He craned his head round the corner, caught a view of a second elaborately painted lantern swaying like the first, for if this building lacked many comforts it was at least well-ventilated. The winds of heaven had free access to the interior by way of the unglazed windows, and gusts came sweeping down the gallery, beautifully cooling gusts which set the lanterns swinging slowly, twisting them upon the plaited ropes by which they were suspended, till they twirled this way and that, presenting a most picturesque appearance. But there were other things to remark on. This second lamp was hung some twenty paces along the gallery, at the foot of a flight of stone steps, by which, no doubt, the gaoler and the Tartar soldier had disappeared. David even noticed that the centre of each step was badly worn, probably with the coming and going of many people, proving either that the prison was of ancient construction, as was extremely probable, or that the stone was of a soft nature and readily worn. But here again was food only for passing interest. A man situated as he was does not find time for delaying, when his life and that of his friend are in the balance. The door just behind him had far more attractions for David, and at once he turned to it, casting his eye over the strong bolts with which it was secured.
'Done!' he groaned. 'The gaoler has the keys. How on earth am I to effect an entry?'
Then he suddenly bethought him of the window by which he had made good his own escape. Why should he not climb outside again, and creeping along the roof gain entrance to Dick's cell by way of the window? He turned to retrace his steps, and then stepping swiftly to the door he examined the lock. A second's inspection proved to him that the bolt was not shot. It was easy to make sure of that matter, for the huge, clumsy affair, the work of centuries before perhaps, was placed so far from the catch into which it should glide that one could see at once that it was not in order.
'Good! Then there are only the bolts shot by hand. This lock seems to be out of order.'
Up went his hand to the topmost bolt, and very slowly he drew it out of its socket, shivering lest the grating which was inevitable with such a rusty affair should be heard along the passage. Then he suddenly leaped round the corner of the gallery, for his ears had detected a sound. It was the slip, slip, slip of a native footstep, the slither of a cotton-padded sole coming down the flight of stone steps. The perspiration started to David's forehead, his heart beat against his ribs as if it were a sledge hammer, while the blows dinned into his ears till he felt deafened. And his eyes almost bulged from their sockets as he stared in the direction from which the sounds were coming. For though only the legs of the oncomer were as yet visible, they were sufficiently distinctive. The high boots, with their thick, white soles, could belong only to the Tartar under-officer. The colour of the garment coming into view was the same as that worn by the soldier, while, as the man's girdle came within David's vision, he saw the hilt of his sabre, heard the rattle of the scabbard as it dragged on the steps, and then caught a glimpse of the revolver which the ruffian carried. Yes, of the revolver, for if China to-day still lags behind western nations in much which appertains to learning and commerce and a host of other matters, there have been outside influences at work giving her subtle advice, and urging her to arm her soldiery not as before, with swords and lances and useless bows and arrows, but with modern rifles, with revolvers, and with the latest cannon. In that particular at least the efforts of some western nation have been successful. Careless of those of her own colour who in days to come, days perhaps very close at hand, may find themselves arrayed against the celestial nation, they have forced a market here for the surplus output of their arsenals, and have gathered Chinese gold for modern weapons which may well be employed to slay their own people. But here was only a single illustration. David had remarked when entering this walled city of Hatsu upon the modern rifles of the Tartar-guard. His sharp eyes had detected the weapon carried by their under-officer. And here it was again, proof positive that the man who was descending the last few steps was this very individual, than whom he would have rather encountered any one. What was he to do? Rush back into the cell and clamber up the dangling rope?
'No,' he told himself promptly, though he retraced his steps at once and darted into the cell. 'There's no time for that. He'd catch me half-way up, and besides, even if he didn't I couldn't get the rope hauled out of sight before he entered. I might slip along the passage, but I should be no better off, for still he would see the rope. I'll chance a meeting.'
As if it were the old days at school, and he were about to engage in a tussle with the gloves on, he gripped at the baggy sleeves which were such a constant nuisance to him, and folded them up near his shoulders, leaving his arms exposed. Then he stood stiffly upright behind the half-closed door to listen, holding his breath, trying vainly to still the beating of his heart. Suddenly as the Tartar's steps were heard outside the cell, David became as calm as he had ever been in his life before; for after all, he was by no means different from many men of the same temperament as himself. To worry before trouble came along, as Dick was so fond of saying, was only natural to our hero. He was by instinct cautious and careful, and as is the case with many of similar disposition, there was always a tendency to fluster and unusual excitement prior to a struggle. David had been all of a tremble before now, although he had acquitted himself right well when blows were actually falling. And the same thing had happened here. Like the man who enters an action with his knees knocking, and who readily admits that he is nervous, David had prepared for this inevitable meeting with a fast-beating heart, with trembling limbs, and with a forehead from which the moisture was dripping. One who did not know him might almost have accused him of cowardice. But now that the struggle was about to begin he was a different individual. His eyes were bright, his mouth fast closed, and his muscles braced and ready. Not the smallest sound escaped his attention. He heard the Tartar enter the cell, then saw his fingers close on the door and caught the creak of the rusting hinges. Then he stepped forward.
'Silence!' he commanded sternly, placing his back against the door and pushing it to with a bang. 'Not a word, or I will kill you.'
Utter astonishment was written on the man's face; the soft rays of the swaying lantern falling on his features showed that he was entirely taken aback. The corners of his mouth drooped suddenly, his eyes started forward, while his fingers clutched at his clothing. But it was only for a moment. An apparently unarmed man stood before him, the youth whom he had so lately helped to capture. Promptly his hand sought his revolver.
'Dog! It is you, then? You are my prisoner.'
The revolver was more than half out of the girdle by now, and in another second would be at David's head; but the latter was watching the Tartar like a cat. His sharp eyes caught every movement, and at once, with a swift movement, he was on the man. His right arm went back quickly, and then jerked out like a flash, the fist striking the Tartar hard and full between the eyes. The result of this telling blow, so far as the Chinese rascal was concerned, was disastrous. He was knocked clear from his feet, for the youth who had struck was no chicken. David had weight and strength behind his arm, and, moreover, a desperate man finds added strength on such occasions. The blow, in fact, tossed the Tartar backward, causing him to perform a half sommersault, and to come to the ground with an alarming crash, his head being the first portion of his anatomy to come in contact with the stone flagging. And in a second David was on him, gripping him by the neck.
'Silence! Not a word,' he repeated, while his hand went to the man's revolver and drew it from his girdle. But the Tartar did not wince when the cold muzzle was thrust in his ear. He lay inert, his eyes closed, as listless as a sleeping baby.
'Stunned! Knocked out of time. Not used to an Englishman's fist,' gasped David. 'Let's make quite sure that he isn't foxing.'
He leaned over the man, and placed his ear close to his mouth. Yes, he was breathing – breathing loudly. In fact there was considerable stertor. David lifted a limp arm, and when he released it it fell back with a hollow thud to the ground. He tilted back the eyelids, and though he had but little knowledge of such matters, he could not help but remark that the pupils were equally dilated. There was little doubt, in fact, that the unfortunate but scheming and pugnacious Tartar was stunned by the terrific blow which he had received. It was altogether a revelation to the young fellow crouching beside him. He kneeled close by the man, staring into his face and wondering. He could hardly believe that a moment before he had been face to face with extreme danger and difficulty, and that one sudden movement on his part, one strong blow, had set aside the trouble.
'But has it? There are other people in the prison who will have to be dealt with. There is Chang; there is Tsu-Hi, the dishonest deputy-governor who has so far forgotten himself, and the honour to which all decent-minded Chinamen cling in their belief that, come what may, hospitality to a guest should never be abused. Yes, there is Tsu-Hi, who has shown the utmost treachery.'
David told himself sternly that they must be dealt with. He stood up, still with his eyes on the fallen Tartar. But he was not thinking of his late enemy; he was thinking of the arch-schemer hired by the man in England who should have been as a father to our hero. He was thinking also of the difficulties still before him, of the opposition still to be set aside before he and Dick and Jong could set foot outside the city. Then his face became sterner than ever; the eyes were half-closed as he stared at the Tartar. The scheme which he had first happened on when clambering along the ledge of the windows came back to his mind with redoubled force.
'Yes,' he said, 'they must be dealt with, those two men. First to release Dick, and then we'll talk to them.'
But even now he did not venture out of the cell. He pulled the door open quietly and peeped round into the passage, to find it deserted. There was not so much as a sound, save the gentle rattle of the stiffened paper streamers attached to the lantern swaying overhead.
'No one about. Goaler gone to bed, and the rest of them upstairs where I saw them with the Tartar fellow who is lying stunned in here. But supposing some one were to come along, I should be spotted in a minute. I must have some disguise, I – '
His eyes swung round to the figure stretched on the floor, and for a little while he stared at the fallen under-officer. A keen light came into his eyes, and once more he closed the door of the compartment. Then, swiftly and full of his purpose, he stripped the man of his clothing.
'Just about my size,' he told himself. 'Anyway, I've got to get into his things, whatever happens. Wish there was a glass here; but, as there isn't, I must make the most of it. Ah, boots fit to a T. Cap ditto. This big cloak fits only where it touches, so that don't matter. Now for the gentleman himself. Won't he have a headache in the morning!'
Quickly he pulled off his own garments, coiled his pigtail up on top of his head, and jammed the Tartar's cap on top of it. Then, having donned all his garments, which were voluminous, to say the least of them, he tied the frayed, silken girdle round his middle, attached the clanking sabre, and pushed the revolver home. When he stood up he was by no means a bad copy of the truculent individual who had first greeted him at the entrance of the city.
'And now to get rid of him and my own clothes. Ah! I know. Into the bed with him. Shy the clothing out of the window.'
He was not the one to waste time when the minutes were flying swiftly, and when there might be an interruption at any moment. David bundled the unconscious Tartar on to the kang, covered him with a faded quilt, and tied his own discarded clothing into a bundle. A dexterous heave sent it through the window, and if only he had known it, caused the faithful Jong the greatest consternation.
'What dat?' he asked, standing back in the dense shadow which hid him. 'Something come plump from de window. Not likee de look of him at allee, not at allee. Heart go plippee-plappee when ting like dat happen. Suppose I go over and have a look.'
He was in the very act of stepping out on to the white highway, which gleamed in the pure rays of the moon, when his sharp ears caught a sound. Some one was treading the narrow path which ran beside the road; some one was approaching. Jong lay flat in the shadow, hugging the wall, and stared out into the open. Presently a man's figure hove in sight – a man dressed in elaborate military costume, his flowing robes blowing about his feet, the flat cap on his head surmounted by a wide button. Nor did it want two glances at the stranger to disclose the fact that this was Tsu-Hi, the deputy-governor of the walled city of Hatsu, an official with absolute powers for the moment of life and death; one who, discovering Jong where he lay, could, with one single nod, condemn him to instant execution. No wonder, therefore, that the Chinaman shivered, and squeezed his body still further into the shadow, wishing that the ground might rise in a friendly manner and cover him. He scarcely dared to breathe, while, so terrified was he, that his teeth almost chattered together. Then, quite by accident, his hand touched the hilt of the knife he carried in his belt. The sudden contact seemed to bring him courage. Jong gripped the weapon and drew it, his eyes fixed all the while on the figure of Tsu-Hi.
'He is alone; he is the cause of all this trouble,' he whispered. 'Let him show that he has seen me and I will send him to join his ancestors; yes, to join them with treachery in his heart.'
But the official made no sign. He came stepping down the path slowly, as if deeply engaged with his thoughts. His hands were tucked into the baggy sleeves he wore, while his eyes were dropped on to the roadway. He passed the spot where Jong was secreted, advanced slowly to the steps which led to the door of the prison, and lifted a hand to summon those within. Jong heard the clang of a gong somewhere in the distance. And David heard it. He was at that very moment about to slide back the last of the two bolts that secured the door of the cell in which he imagined Dick to be when the deep, musical note of the gong sounded down the passage, coming from a spot somewhere above, at the top of the flight of steps down which he had watched the Tartar descending. And then he heard a sharp rapping in the opposite direction.
'A visitor; perhaps Tsu-Hi,' he thought. 'What's to be done now? Who'll admit him?'
For one instant the mad idea occurred to him that he himself would go to the door and let the deputy-governor in.
'I could overawe him at once, and bring him in here,' he told himself. Then he shook his head emphatically. 'Might spoil everything. I want help before I move any further; I must have Dick beside me.'
Clang! The gong sounded again, the note ringing down the passage, and then there was silence. No one answered the summons; there was not so much as a step to be heard. David reflected that the gaoler was in bed, and fast asleep in all probability.
'While the fellow outside will be getting impatient, he'll make more and more noise, and we shall be having some of the Tartar soldiers. That won't suit my plans. There! he's hammering. I'll do it; I'll chance the whole thing. In for a penny in for a pound, isn't a bad motto on some occasions.'
He made up his mind in an instant, and pulled the door open. Listening for a few seconds, and hearing no sound from the interior of the prison, he hurried along to the left, where he guessed the door must be. And at the far end of the gallery, where the shadows lurked, he came upon it, and stood for a while listening to the rat-a-tat-tat of the impatient official outside.
'Open!' he heard the man call, angrily. 'Open for Tsu-Hi. Do not keep me waiting out here where folks may see me.'
David pulled the bolts back swiftly, and tugging at the door dragged it open, keeping himself well within the passage.
'Dog! Why do you keep me so? Sleeping, eh? Sleeping when you should be on duty? Have a care. Though the governor is away from the city on important business, there are yet powers in the hands of his deputy which may make a servant sorrow. A head has been chopped for an offence even less than this.'
If he had expected an answer Tsu-Hi was disappointed, for David still held himself in the background, kow-towing as he judged the gaoler would do, and saying not a word.
'Mustn't open my mouth or he'll see that I'm not a Chinaman, nor even the Tartar officer. If he don't move in precious quick I'll take him by the neck and drag him into the passage.'
Our hero's teeth were set fast together, while he was fully ready for any emergency. Now that matters had gone so far favourably for him, he was determined that this treacherous deputy-governor should not overthrow all his plans. That it was Tsu-Hi a swift glance had told him without error. His hands itched to get a grip of the ruffian, and silence him, but still he bent low, kow-towing humbly; and perhaps it was his silence and his apparent humility which appeased the governor. He stepped into the passage and waited there, his hands tucked out of sight again, while David pushed the door, and shot the bolts home.
'Now lead me to the room occupied by this Chang, who came so unexpectedly to the city.'
To say that David was in a serious dilemma was hardly to describe the situation correctly. He was desperate, for he judged that Tsu-Hi must have some knowledge of the prison, and was it likely that he would expect to discover Chang, a man considered already to be of some importance, in a cell abutting on this dreary passage? Surely there must be guest chambers, guest apartments for the few who came to such a place as a prison for any other reason than to fill the cells?
'Can't help it if there are,' muttered David. 'He's got to come with me, and if he thinks that the place in which I found the Tartar fellow is not good enough, well I can't help it. I'll give him a crack that'll knock the wind out of his body.'
He lifted the scabbard of his sabre, fearful that its clanking might arouse the suspicion of his visitor, and then stepped in front of him down the passage. At the open door of the room he had just vacated he came to a halt, kow-towing in that direction.
'In here! Why, fool, this is not a guest chamber.'
'In here, Excellency,' David murmured. 'He wished to be near his prisoners.'
Would the governor detect the broken accent? Did he already suspect that his companion was other than he imagined? For Tsu-Hi stood still regarding the man who had admitted him. Something about the accent undoubtedly attracted his attention. But he was thinking more of Chang than of anything or any one else, Chang and the foreign devils whom they, between them, had so cleverly captured. Then he put back his head and laughed, an almost silent laugh, in which there was a ring of triumph.
'He, he, he! So as to be near his prisoners,' he gurgled, opening a wide mouth between the thin lips of which an uneven and irregular row of yellow fangs were displayed. 'To be near his prisoners, as if he would take a tender farewell of them and see as much of their faces as possible before their hour comes. He, he, he! This Chang is a witty fellow.'
'What an old ruffian!' thought David, still, however, kow-towing. 'Little tenderness we may expect from him, or from Chang either. In a moment I'll make him laugh on the other side of his ugly mouth. Here, Excellency,' he murmured once more, pushing the door a little wider open. 'Enter.'
The gorgeously dressed official was still shaking with suppressed amusement as he passed under the doorway. His hands were buried in his sleeves, and he was actually hugging himself.
'A right merry fellow, this Chang! Who is he? Whence does he come with such a timely warning? He will be an excellent fellow with whom to chat and pass a few hours while others are sleeping. And then, when this thing is finished, he will go. The Government will send urgent orders for his arrest, while I shall have already despatched men to search for him, men who are led by a blind officer unable to find the right track.'
It made him hug himself the harder when he considered how cunning he was, and how he would hoodwink every one; for the deputy-governor was a cunning rascal. Still smarting under the severe reproof he had had administered on a former occasion when Europeans were molested in this walled city of Hatsu, and by the loss of dignity which had resulted, the man, like thousands more of his countrymen, bore a lasting grudge against foreign devils. He was one of the many jacks-in-office who still help to sway the affairs of the celestial empire, clinging tenaciously and with great stubbornness to old methods, for a Chinaman is nothing if not conservative. The views his ancestors held are good enough for him, their education fills his needs, while the ancient system whereby a few live in luxury, and the vast majority in grinding poverty is a model of all that is required. Some there are, and their numbers are steadily increasing, who have gained much by contact with the outside world, for whom travel has relieved them of much arrogance. But the knowledge they possess of the superiority of western nations in many things is lost in the sea of ignorance, of bigotry, which is prevalent throughout the kingdom. One swallow does not make a summer. One enlightened mandarin does not result in the rising of a mighty nation, in the break-up of all its cherished customs, in its advancement in the paths followed by others privileged to live under wiser government.
'To-morrow this Chang shall go. I myself will direct him, and also those who shall set out in pursuit in the opposite direction. Greeting, my friend.'
Tsu-Hi stalked majestically into the room and stood beneath the swaying lantern, his eyes blinking in the light as he searched for the man he had come to visit. He had half-expected him to be there before him, kow-towing to the ground, for this jack-in-office loved humility in those who served him. Then he caught sight of the figure huddled beneath the patched and stained quilt spread over the kang, and chuckled loudly.
'He sleeps, worn out with his efforts to warn us, but he will welcome the deputy-governor. I will rouse him.'
He stepped across to the kang, and touched the figure lying there. He pulled the quilt back with a sharp jerk, disclosing the face of the Tartar under-officer. But even then he did not realise that this was not Chang, the man whom the Tartar had brought so secretly to him that evening. It was only when, hearing the door bang, and turning slowly he discovered the figure of the Tartar who had admitted him advancing swiftly that Tsu-Hi became alarmed.
'Insolence!' he cried. 'What is this? Who bade you follow in here? Begone at once, else – 'Even then he had not penetrated the disguise of the youth before him, though his alarm increased seeing that David did not halt, but came on towards him. But, of a sudden, he grasped the real truth, for a revolver already grinned within two feet of him. He started backward against the kang and fell upon it A second later he was up again, and running towards the door like a startled rabbit, but David stopped him in a manner to which this very important official must have been a stranger since his earliest boyhood. He gripped Tsu-Hi by the shoulder, and with a heave tossed him heavily into the corner. Then he dragged him to his feet again, and pressed the muzzle of his weapon hard against his head.
'Silence! Make a sound and you are a dead man. Strip off your garments.'
How Jong would have giggled had he been able to see what was passing, for he would have enjoyed to the full the terror of this mandarin. Tsu-Hi's eyes indeed threatened to start from his head, while he shook so violently that his limbs would hardly support him. But the revolver gave him some sort of strength, that and the threatening looks of this hated foreign devil. Rapidly, as if he longed to be rid of them, he dragged off his gorgeous garment.
'Boots, too,' commanded David fiercely. 'Now lie down on that kang. You can push the man farther over. Not a sound, mind, or I'll rid this city of a deputy-governor.'
Little more than ten minutes later David emerged from the cell, leaving Tsu-Hi trussed like a fowl, bound hand and foot with strips torn from the quilt, and nicely muzzled with a ball of the same wedged between his teeth and secured in position. He pulled the door to, shot the bolts home, and strode along the passage.