My Splendid Concubine (11 page)

For a moment, he thought of leaving without attempting to talk to her. Then he remembered Ayaou’s defiance in the face of death. Her contrasting smile full of life and energy kept sneaking back into his head. So he stayed and continued to watch. He wanted to meet the girl that fought beside him. He was afraid it might not happen.

About a third of the men had already left the room with some of the painted whores. R
obert looked around at those that remained and saw Ward, Patridge and Boss Takee. They were all looking at the same girl, Ayaou. Robert wondered what price her father was asking. The greed in Chou Luk’s eyes warned Robert that the old man was going to squeeze every yuan he could out of the winner. This wasn’t going to be easy, and that frightened Robert. He had to have her. It didn’t matter what he had to do.

When Ayaou starte
d to leave, Robert stepped into the shadows. The soft scent of exotic spices signaled her passing. He followed. When she went through the door and entered the garden, he made his presence known by clearing his throat.

She reacted as if she
’d been expecting him. They stared into each other’s eyes—both nervous. Robert touched her arm with his fingertips. When his fingers made contact, she looked away and examined the garden as if seeing it for the first time.

Was she here to meet her lover?
Robert thought. After all, she was every man’s dream.

W
ithout warning, she led the way deeper into the garden. He followed. Soon they were lost in the darkness.

“
What are you doing here?” she asked.

“
I wanted to see you.” He stammered and was relieved that the words found their way out of the prison that his mouth had become. She made him feel so alive that he wanted to climb the nearest building and fly off the roof. Thank heaven the moon was full and bright so he could see her clearly. Her dark eyes with their long lashes studied him. He could not fill his lungs. It was as if someone had tied a rope around his chest constricting his ability to breathe. He found it difficult to believe this girl had stood without fear by his side in battle.

“
How old are you?” he asked, wanting to start a conversation.

“
How old are you?” She shot back.

“
Twenty,” he said, and waited for her answer.

“
Old enough,” she said.

“
By the way, I haven’t told you my last name. It is Hart—Robert Hart. I’m Irish.”

“
That still makes you a foreign devil!”

“
Sure, you’re right,” he said, gathering his courage to continue. “But does that mean I can’t talk to you?”

“
Meet me in the root cellar,” she said quickly.

His
insides fluttered and jumped.

“
You haven’t had much to drink,” she said, as if she had to let Robert know her feelings. “I also saw that you were staying away from the others. Don’t you like them?”

“
No,” he replied, and was glad she had noticed.

“
That’s good,” she said. “Wait a moment after I leave, and then go through the kitchen. You will find a wood hatch that blends with the floor beside the back door. It is dark there. You will have to feel for the recessed iron ring that will allow you to pull it open. The stairs are narrow and steep so be careful. Make sure no one sees you.”

When she pulled away, their arms touched. A sweet electric shock raced throughout his body. She hesitated like a startled doe and glanced back at him, which told him she too had felt the electricity pass between them. She disappeared.

It took an effort to walk back inside the house and glance into the main room. Ward, Patridge, Takee and two others were standing close to Chou Luk. Ward said something to Chou Luk. Takee scowled, shook his head, reached behind him, grabbed the hand of one of the painted whores, and dragged her from the room.

They had to be ta
lking about Ayaou’s price. This alarmed Robert. He moved closer to eavesdrop.

Chou Luk said,
“I am open to offers until noon tomorrow. The man that offers the most will have Ayaou for his concubine.”

“
And she is a virgin?” Ward said.

“
Yes,” Chou Luk replied.

“
She better be.” Ward left with his woman.

Robert was glad that he still had time to find enough money to win
. If he entered the bidding now, he would not beat the others. These men did not like to lose. Robert decided to wait until noon the next day to top the highest bidder. If he did that, he felt he had a chance. To get Ayaou he had to be tricky. Robert turned and walked through the kitchen thinking that if he’d never met Patridge, he wouldn’t have seen Ayaou dance or hear her sing.

Once Robert was by the back door, he searched the floor for the wooden hatch, but the light was too gloomy. He had to get down on his hands and knees and feel for the iron pull ring
with trembling hands. When he couldn’t find it, he worried that it wasn’t there—that she had lied to him and wasn’t waiting. Then his fingers touched the ring. He pulled.

Chapter 5

How well did he know this girl he’d exchanged a few words with in a foreign tongue? Since he did not understand much Mandarin, he didn’t know exactly what she had said to him. Was he a fool? What was waiting for him down there?

Robert
’s imagination conjured up her smile, the shape of her lips and the look in her eyes. She was an angel. Ayaou wouldn’t hurt him. No woman with her eyes could do injury to another person. After all, she stood beside him and killed Taipings. She was loyal and had courage.

He lowered the hatch into the open position and stared at the na
rrow steps leading into what looked like a black, sinister abyss. With both hands on the walls on either side of him, he descended.

Once his head dropped below the level of the floor, he closed the hatch behind him. All light vanished. He was blind. The air was cool and dry. He smelled ripe peaches and pears and the musty sweet smell of grain. He fumbled in his pocket for a match but couldn
’t find one.

After his eyes adjusted, the room wasn
’t as dark. There were baskets of yams and bags of rice. Manure clung to the produce. The low ceiling sloped down toward the far end of the cellar where a dim light leaked around a stack of burlap bags filled with rice. Robert gasped and jumped when a rat the size of a small cat ran across his boots. While he waited for the shocked pounding of his heart to subside, he questioned his reasons for coming down here.

With reluctant legs that grew heavier with each step, he walked the length of that narrow root cellar and had to get down on all fours to squeeze around the fifty-pound bags of rice and into the narrow space beyond. He stopped. What if she wasn
’t there? What if this was a trap? What if there was someone else waiting on the other side to chop his head off?

One of his younger sisters had crawled into a hollow tree once when she was four. That dead space in the tree had extended into one of the larger branch
es. She jammed herself in there. Robert and his father heard her screams and used saws to cut away the end of that dead branch, so they could pluck her like a tooth from a jaw. He now knew what she must have felt, but unlike her, he still had time to escape. Shaking off his doubts, Robert moved forward.

Once he
crawled beyond the bags of rice, light brushed away the gloom. He saw Ayaou sitting against a wall with her knees pulled to her chest. He breathed with relief. The top of her head was inches from the close ceiling. She turned the lantern at her feet to its softest illumination and put the light on top of a small barrel of wine nestled in the corner behind her.

“
Robert Hart,” she said, chewing the syllables, “I know why you’re here.”

Guilt burned h
is face. He didn’t know what to say. If she were reading his mind, she knew how much he wanted her. He shifted uncomfortably in the tight space until he faced her.

“
I believe you are here to make me your concubine,” she said.

“
Are you playing games?” Robert asked. He had no idea what she was up to. “I’m not here to cause you unhappiness.” Defensiveness crept into his voice.

“
My father is up there negotiating my price and the price of my two sisters,” she said. “I will be seventeen soon. My sisters are fourteen and thirteen. How do you think this makes me feel?” She looked sad.

“
I’d hate it if I were you.” He reached for her hand, and there was no resistance.

“
I do not hate those men,” she said, shaking her head. “My father hates what he does to feed his family. He has to sell us. He is not the only man in the village who does that. He has to treat us like hens and fish in the market. He cannot afford to be soft hearted.” Tears glittered in her eyes.

“
But he’s selling you to a stranger.” Robert stammered.

“
That is my fate.” She lowered her head to stare at the ground.

“
No, it’s not!” He burned with anger.

She looked up.
“I do not know what it is like where you come from, but in China a girl is born to be a foot warmer for a man.”

“
Any man?”

“
It makes no difference. You cannot understand. After all, you are not Chinese.” Her chin came up as if challenging him.

“
I’d like to try,” he said. “How much will your price be?” Her hand felt lifeless like cold, dead rubber.

“
I do not know. My father said I am no beauty. My skin is too dark. I am too thin. My chest is a washboard.” She lifted a foot. “My feet were never bound. I do not have a pale moon face, and that is the requirement for selling at a high price to a Chinese man.” She extracted her hand from his grasp. “My father has done what he can. My sisters and I are healthy as sows. My family needs the money, so he can see a doctor for his intestine problem. If he has any money left, he will provide educations for my brothers and buy them wives. That way they can carry on the family name.”

A rice bag t
ouched Robert’s left knee. The stone wall touched his right. She changed position, folded her legs under her and their knees kissed.

“
There is an empty rice bag in the corner behind you,” she said. “Hang it in the opening so no light leaks out.”

He twisted around to do it.

“Do you think,” as if having difficulty expressing her thoughts, she paused and bit her lower lip, “that you would like to be my master? I mean, would you buy me?”

Robert reached for her hand again and held it between both
of his. Her flesh was alive now, because she was trembling. “I want to talk about this another time?” Getting to know her was more important.

“
I do not have time,” she replied, and a tear escaped onto her cheek. “My father will decide soon to which man I will be sold. Do you work for Patridge?”

Robert shook his head.
“No, I’m an interpreter, a provisional assistant at the British Consulate in Ningpo. Captain Patridge invited me to his home during the summer.”

“
You do not sell opium,” Ayaou said. “I like that. My father says opium is not good for people but times are bad. We have to survive. My father says Captain Patridge is interested in nothing but money.” She took her hand back and crossed her arms over her chest. “Did you know that he keeps eight concubines in Shanghai and another four at the Lookong receiving station? I heard that when foreigners leave China, they sell their concubines to be whores.”

“
I’ll never abandon you,” he said.

Her tears started to flow, and Robert
’s heart went out to her. It took an effort for him not to make more promises he might not be able to keep.

“
You are a good man,” she said. “You risked your life to save us. No Chinese man or any other foreign devil would have done that. Boat people are unworthy. I want you to be my master. Have you got money?”

“
Not enough to compete with men like Ward and Patridge.” He sounded frustrated.

“
That is too bad.” She started to cry in earnest now, and she sobbed.

He felt desire spreading through him. He pulled her closer.
“But I want you to be mine. I’ll do anything.”

“
Then you must hurry,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck. Robert felt her hot tears against his face. The floor creaked above them and dust drifted down. Startled, they looked up and listened to the heavy footsteps.

Once it was quiet again, he turned back to her.
“You must forgive me, because I’m going to kiss you,” he replied. They talked in whispers afraid someone might hear them.

She leaned
away from him. “I am not sure I will like that.” She pouted, and her lips looked inviting. “My father had me practice kissing by sucking a carrot.”