CHAPTER XVII--HOW LING WAS TOO LATE
It was, with Ling, something in the nature of a pose to speak after thefashion of the scholars, using the flowery language of the writers ofpoesy, or quoting the philosophical maxims of the sages. None the less,the moment he entered the opium den, though he spoke of other things, itwas apparent both to Frank Armitage and Yung How that Ling had detectedthe fact that they were about to make their escape.
In his customary boisterous manner, the great Honanese ushered them intothe room. Ascending the stairs, he sprawled at full length upon thecouch upon which Frank had been seated but a few moments before, whenYung How made his confession.
"At last," said Ling, "Cheong-Chau and myself are to meet. He knows meof old. This will not be the first time that I have snatched the ripefruit from his mouth. Cheong-Chau has no cause to love me. I haveheard it said that he regards me as his deadly enemy, the only man whoever foiled him."
He puffed at the opium pipe which Ah Wu had brought him. The amount ofthe drug that the man consumed was extraordinary, and moreover, itseemed to have very little effect upon either his physical or mentalconstitution. As he sent thin clouds of blue smoke upward to theceiling, in the close, stifling atmosphere of the room, he half closedhis eyes, and appeared to be lost in his thoughts.
"Well," said he, "I have no fear of Cheong-Chau and all his rascals. Ishall win. There is little doubt as to that. The wolf cannot standbefore the tiger. Therefore you would be wise to side with me. If thewolf shows his teeth, he goes the way of Men-Ching. And thither go allwho oppose me. For your own guidance, I advise you to remember this."
He opened his eyes and fixed them upon Yung How, who stood at hand. YungHow did not flinch. He was as calm and dignified as usual. Indeed, fora few moments only had Frank seen him otherwise, and then he hadappeared absolutely carried away by anguish and remorse. It occurred toFrank how strange it was that a man who, as a general rule, wasoutwardly so calm and collected should be capable of such deep-seatedand demonstrative emotion. However, the Chinese are an inexplicablerace, as Frank knew well enough. He regarded Yung How, and wasdelighted to observe that the man never faltered in his honestresolution before the steady, piercing gaze of the implacable Honanese.
"I desire to know," said Ling, "where you two were going as I chanced toenter."
Yung How did not answer a word. He continued to look Ling straight inthe face.
"Very well," said Ling, "you need not tell me. I have a shrewdsuspicion that you were up to no good. I shall take the necessaryprecautions and ask you, for the sake of your own welfare, to remembermy warning."
He disposed himself as if for sleep, throwing back his head upon thepillow. Ah Wu busied himself about the establishment, entertaining hisguests, of whom there were now many, and seeing that his assistants wentabout their duties. As for Frank and Yung How, they lay down uponcouches on the balcony, the former because he was thoroughly tired, andfelt that he required a rest.
Suddenly Ling sat up, and cried out that he was hungry. Shouting downinto the room below, he ordered one of Ah Wu's men to bring him food,and then turned to Yung How.
"And you shall wait on me," he declared. "I have heard it said that youhave a great reputation in Hong-Kong, that you squeeze even rickshacoolies for copper cash and make more money than a comprador. You shallattend to my wants; and when I have eaten all that I desire, youshall--as I promised you--wash up the bowls and plates."
Presently one of Ah Wu's assistants mounted the staircase, carrying inhis hands a large tray upon which was a number of Chinese dishes. Thetray was set down upon a small table at which Yung How was ordered topreside, handing the mighty Ling whatever dish he might call for.
Now Yung How had made up his mind to escape, and even as he waited uponLing he took careful stock of his surroundings. He knew that he couldnot rely upon any help from Ah Wu, who was now hand and glove with theHonanese. He had noticed that Ah Wu had locked the back door, puttingthe key in one of his pockets. There was a clock in the room, towardswhich Yung How repeatedly carried his eyes. It was twenty minutes toeight. Yung How had, indeed, very little time if he was to make goodhis escape and catch the Hong-Kong boat. He could not very well crossthe room, and go out by the main entrance, because Ling would certainlysee him and follow in pursuit. The man was beginning to despair when heobserved a window at the farther end of the balcony.
This window was closed, but it might be possible to open it. Also,since the floor of the lower room was somewhat below the level of thestreet, the window could not be far from the ground. The difficultythat confronted Yung How was how to reach the window without arousingthe suspicions of Ling.
Now Yung How, like the majority of his countrymen, was by no meansdevoid of inventive powers. The Chinaman is an adept at finding anexcuse, and it must be confessed that the device of Yung How wasingenious.
In handing a small bowl of rice to Ling, the man purposely knocked overthe small opium spirit-lamp which stood burning upon the table by theside of the couch upon which Ling was lying. This nearly resulted in ageneral conflagration that might have destroyed the whole establishment.The oil ran out, and set fire to the dry matting with which the floorswere carpeted; and this burned like tinder-wood, the fire running withrapidity along the balcony and filling the whole place with smoke.
Ling, springing to his feet, utilised one of the cushions of the couchto smother the fire. Frank was not slow to follow his example, and AhWu and several men from the lower room, hastening up the steps, resortedto various means to quench the fire, or at least to hold it in check.
For the best part of a minute the whole place was uproar and confusion.Those who were already asleep from the effects of opium were awakened bycries of "Fire!" One or two in alarm left the establishment by the mainentrance, spreading the report in the city that Ah Wu's opium den hadactually been burned to the ground.
Long before that Yung How had made the most of his opportunity. At themoment when the danger was most imminent, when the attention of bothLing and Ah Wu was fully engaged, the man passed unseen to the window,which he opened. Leaning over the sill and looking down, he satisfiedhimself that it was not more than twelve feet to the ground. As quickas thought he crawled through, hung for a moment at the full extent ofhis arms, and then dropped to the street. Instantly he set off runningas fast as he could in the direction of Shamien.
When the fire was extinguished, Ling gave vent to his feelings, cursingYung How for his carelessness and folly. However, he had not unburdenedhimself of more than a few sentences when, to his astonishment andindescribable wrath, he discovered that Yung How was gone. Seeing theopened window, he rushed to it, and looked out. Beyond there was nothingbut darkness, an unlighted by-street, not more than two or three yardsin width.
Ling descended the stairs like an infuriated tiger. Quite suddenly hecame to a halt in the middle of the room. Thence he returned up thestaircase, four steps at a time, at the top of which he encounteredFrank. He seized the boy by the throat, and then, lifting him off hisfeet, tucked him under an arm, as a man might carry a hen.
He again descended the stairs, unlocked the door of the little room,threw the boy inside, and locked the door upon him. A moment later, hewas in the street, rushing forward at such a tempestuous rate that hecleared all obstructions from his path. He thrust an empty rickshaaside with such violence that he broke the shafts. He knocked overthree men: a fat old merchant, a beggar, and a blind man. He killed aduck by crushing it underfoot, and finding his way barred by a pig, hepicked it up and threw it over a wall, the animal squealing in terror.
Gaining the narrow creek that separates Shamien from the main part ofthe city, Ling dashed across the bridge of boats. That night the fewEuropeans who were walking along the _bund_ in front of the hotel andthe club beheld the remarkable apparition of a Chinese giant who chargedforward like a madman, his long pigtail flying out behind him, making inthe direction of the harbour.
On a sudden, Ling stopped dead. His headlong course had been arrestedby a peculiar sound, or rather combination of sounds, the explanation ofwhich was not difficult to seek. There was the shrill whistle of asiren and the sound of large paddles violently thrashing the water.
Almost at once, the Hong-Kong boat hove in sight. The decks were ablazewith light. Upon the bridge, Ling could distinguish both the Chinesepilot and the English captain.
"Hi!" he shouted. "I have missed the ship. If you slow down and lowera rope I can come on board from a _sampan_."
He spoke in excellent English. There is no doubt that the captain bothheard and understood him, for Ling received his answer.
"Too late, my friend!" shouted the captain. "We sail to time, and ifyou're not here it's your own fault. You'll have to wait tillto-morrow--eight o'clock in the morning."
Ling's answer was neither in the English language nor at the top of hisvoice. It was in Cantonese, and as a matter of fact it cannot betranslated. And if it could be translated, no one would print it. ForLing had not failed to observe Yung How, standing alone upon the upperdeck.