My Splendid Concubine (33 page)

What a predicament! On the other hand, he had his pa
ssionate Ayaou back.

He considered praying to God and ask Him to make sure Ayaou was satisfied that Robert had not lost interest in her.
He wanted the sisters to continue to get along. On second thought, a prayer would not be a good idea. God might not approve and make things worse. Instead, Robert could ask a Chinese god for help. He chuckled at his private joke. That was the way the Chinese thought. The idea was to join as many religions as possible. If one god didn’t work, maybe another would. He’d learned that from both Ayaou and Guan-jiah.

Before going to the consulate, he took a walk along the wate
rfront and studied the ships at anchor. One of Patridge’s opium clippers from India sat in the anchorage. Robert had been expecting it for days. Patridge had supplied him with a list of potential arrival dates. Robert hired a sampan and went aboard the clipper.

“
Captain,” he said, once they were alone in his cabin, “do you have the altered manifest.”

The ship
’s captain went to a desk in a corner and found the papers. He handed them to Robert, who gave him the paper that proved his cargo had been cleared by the consulate in Ningpo. The tax paid was less than what it should have been. The Chinese had been cheated again.

“
It says that we are delivering bales of wool and cotton up river,” the captain said.

“
Anyone who is knowledgeable with China would see through that right away,” Robert said. “Next time make sure the manifest shows products the Chinese might want—not cotton and wool. The Chinese wouldn’t buy any. For one thing, it costs too much. Besides, the Chinese have a source. They also have silk.”

“
That’s too bad,” the captain replied. “In India we have been making a large profit since we forced them to stop making cloth and buy what the mills produce in England. It has become a profitable monopoly. Imagine how much we could make in China if we could do the same. However, we’ve already fought two wars with China just to get them to accept the opium trade. More wars might destroy the country and the markets for our goods. By the way, where do I find the boat people to unload my cargo?”

Robert turned to the chart table and leaned over the map.
“Here,” he said, and tapped the spot. “About one hundred miles up the Yangtze.” Robert didn’t approve of what he was doing for Patridge. He’d made a deal, and he was determined to keep his word. He kept reminding himself that his two girls were worth it, but at times he had doubts.

“
I heard one of our ships had trouble with the Taipings near Canton,” the captain said. “Has Captain Patridge found out who is selling information to the Taipings about our opium shipments? Do I have to worry?”

“
It would be wise to play it safe,” Robert replied, “and keep your crew on alert until you sail back into the sea. So far, none of the arrangements I have made with any of the shipments of opium have run into trouble. The reason for that is Patridge makes sure no one else sees those instructions but me before I turn them over to his captains. Patridge is a cautious man, and for the last few months since I have been working with him, we have had few problems along the Yangtze. Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll take my leave.”

On his way to the consulate from the anchorage, Robert ran into William Martin, the American Presbyterian minister
—the only minister living inside Ningpo. The rest lived across the river near the Presbyterian chapel.

“
I haven’t seen you at any sermons for weeks, Robert,” the minister said, as he fell into step beside him.

“
I was away from Ningpo.” How long was this encounter going to last? Since returning to Ningpo, he’d gone out of his way to avoid any of the missionaries and their families.

“
I heard you were spending time with Captain Patridge, but that was several weeks ago. I do not think I need caution you to be careful whom you allow into your life. Captain Patridge has a reputation and has been linked with others who are even more unsavory.” Robert wasn’t comfortable with the way William Martin was looking at him.

A rush of memories inundated Robert
—his drinking and womanizing in Belfast, Me-ta-tae, Willow, the fight against the Taipings to recover the opium, the danger from Ward, buying Shao-mei, and the night he spent in a cellar with Ayaou. He had a strong urge to confess everything to this man of God but rejected the idea as fast as it appeared. If he confided in this American Presbyterian minister, he’d be admitting his sins and have to do something about them. He was unwilling to give up Ayaou. Besides, Martin was a Presbyterian and Robert was a Wesleyan.

Martin
’s voice pulled him out of his musings. Robert focused on the minister’s words.

“
You know I’m the only minister who lives in Ningpo. I have developed close friendships with many Chinese. You were seen attending Chinese operas with two, young Chinese women. Are these young ladies Christians, and when do we meet them? They must be recent acquaintances. We miss you, Robert. Come to church this Sunday and bring them with you. If they are not Christians, help us convert them, so they will have a more rewarding life. As a Christian, it is your duty.”

Had Hollister converted Me-ta-tae before he
’d sold her into a life of prostitution? It would be ironic if he had.

Robert had considered introducing Christianity to his two co
ncubines but that would threaten the life he was living with them. He knew that it was out of selfishness that he didn’t want Christianity near his girls.

Thanks
to his father, Robert believed strongly in Christ. However, this tug of war between the Christian denominations was making a mess of the world. All you had to do was look at the suffering caused by the thirteenth century inquisition and all the Crusades to the Holy Land to fight Islam. Many had suffered and died.

What right did anyone have to
tell Robert how to live? Only God had that right, and God did not meddle—only those who considered themselves devoutly religious did that. He questioned some of the methods used to convert unbelievers. Anger and resentment started to grow as if it were a vengeful beast. He knew that he had to suffocate it less it take control of his mouth. A true Christian never allowed himself to react out of anger or to judge others lest he be judged.

“
How’s your wife?” Robert asked, and forced his voice to remain calm. He refused to allow his turmoil and anger to vent itself.

“
She hasn’t been feeling well. She may be returning to America soon. I worry about her. But there’s nothing more I can do but trust in God.” William Martin sighed.

“
Certainly.” They strode the streets side-by-side in silence for a few blocks before Robert spoke again. “I appreciated your lending me
The Middle Kingdom
and the other books. I find the Chinese mind fascinating. By the way, will you miss your wife?”

“
My wife and I are faithful Christians as you well know, and after ten years of marriage, I still look forward to spending time with her. God gave us a gift in the covenant of marriage.”

“
Did He?” Robert said. Marriage! That idea hadn’t occurred to him. But if he married Ayaou, she would have to convert to Christianity. There would be witnesses. No, he couldn’t allow that. Besides, what about Shao-mei?

Robert stopped walking and faced Martin. He hadn
’t wanted to explain himself to this man but felt the urge to do so now. “Since you value the love of your wife so highly, you’ll understand what I’m going to tell you. I have found a love more valuable than all the wealth one could dream of. It enriches my soul and brings me closer to God. I don’t know how to describe the feeling. It’s beyond—my comprehension.”

William Martin studied Robert
’s face looking for hidden meanings. “You’re a happy man. It’s a true blessing.”

Robert imagined from the way that the minister wa
s stabbing his eyes at him, Martin was trying to see what Robert was thinking behind his mask.

“
Remember that you have the souls of these two women in your hands, Robert. You are a Christian. It is your duty to deliver them to Christ, so he can save them. He died on the cross for our sins. Don’t let that go to waste. May God go with you, but remember that sometimes the paradise you think you’re living in is hell in disguise.”

His words chilled Robert, but he managed to stay calm.
“Thank you for the advice, Martin. I hope you haven’t been spreading gossip about me. I remember how the other ministers talked behind Payne Hollister’s back about Me-ta-tae. Now I must be on my way to the consulate.”

William Martin
’s eyes flashed. “I was never part of that gossip,” he snapped. “I don’t approve of that. I thought you knew me better. Besides, Hollister is no longer with that woman. He has corrected his ways.”

“
Hasn’t he gone back to England?” Robert asked.

Martin looked surprised.
“He hasn’t gone home to England. He’s in Hong Kong.”

The news that Hollister was s
till in China shocked him. Robert didn’t know what to do. He thought of sailing to Hong Kong to have it out with the man, but that was a stupid idea. “What about your wife?” he asked. “Women gossip. It’s in their nature, and husbands confide in their wives.”

“
Well, I—.” Martin sputtered, looking indignant and guilty at the same time.

“
I thought so.” He turned his back on the minister and walked away. Before he entered the consulate, he looked back. “Martin,” he said, “you are a good man. I have always liked you. I’m sorry if I upset you in any way.”

Robert did not wait for a reply. He went to his desk but couldn
’t focus on the work. He no longer cared what the missionaries might say about him living in Godlessness with savages. He cared what God thought. He didn’t want to believe that He would condemn him for loving two women that loved him back.

It wasn
’t like he was a man who was unfaithful to his wife and had a secret lover hidden in another town. He was not one of those men he’d heard about that had secret families such as sailors with wives and children in several ports. And Ayaou and Shao-mei were not savages. They belonged to a complex civilization and culture that had established philosophies and religions more peaceful in nature than Christianity.

Besides, Abraham, the biblical father of the Hebrew people, had more than one woman. So did the Israelite Kings David and Solomon. The Bible said nothing about polygamy being wrong. Robert had made sure of that by studying the Bible before allowing himself to walk across that hall to Sh
ao-mei’s bedroom.

He wondered how things had grown so confusing. At the begi
nning with Adam and Eve there had been one rule—don’t eat the apple from the forbidden tree. Once that had been broken, it took several thousand years for God to give Moses the Ten Commandments. Then hundreds of years after Jesus Christ was crucified, the Roman Emperor Constantine made the Catholic Church the religion of his empire. Since then, Christianity’s rules had turned into an endless, growing field of weeds. Robert found it confusing, and it certainly wasn’t helping his situation with Ayaou and Shao-mei.

Chapter 19

Robert didn’t know that every time Payne Hollister had raped Shao-mei, he smoked one of Patridge’s Egyptian cigarettes and blew smoke in her face. Whenever she smelled tobacco, she wanted to vomit.

It was a blustery, rainy January day, and the s
ky was a solid mass of dark, threatening clouds. When Robert arrived home from the consulate, his concubines undressed him inside the front door to get his wet clothes off. Shao-mei sniffed, wrinkled her nose and held the garments at arm’s length. “These stink like Captain Patridge’s house?” she said. “I do not like that.”

“
I smoke the same cigarettes Patridge smokes,” Robert said. “If that bothers you, take my suit upstairs and hang it in the hall by the open balcony door. That way it will air out and dry. “ She left holding his clothes in front of her as if she were holding a skunk. Her face twisted into an expression of absolute disgust and revulsion.

Ayaou
’s eyes were alive with an energy Robert hadn’t seen before. The house was full of garlic and ginger smells telling him that a special meal was waiting. He detected the subtle scent of lemon grass too.

While Ayaou dressed Robert in the Chinese robe, her hands e
xplored his legs and caressed his genitals until his member started to grow. She smiled and ran her hands across his stomach and around to his backside where she pinched him.

He wiggled.
“Stop that, Ayaou. You’re tickling me.”

She laughed, and said,
“Our father told us not to expect much pleasure from any man. He never described a man like you.”

Shao-mei
must have been more convincing than Robert had instructed her to be. What kind of stories had she told Ayaou? A knock on the door signaled Tee Lee Ping’s arrival. Shao-mei returned from upstairs and ushered him in. The teacher slipped out of his wet shoes and took the slippers Shao-mei offered.