My Splendid Concubine (78 page)

He sent Horatio a letter certifying
him as the agent for China then asked Prince Kung and the cabinet to consider whom the Chinese admiral was going to be that would work with Osborn.

Robert described the type of men who should be considered
to crew the new navy in a report he submitted to the Tsungli Yamen. “The age of those young men must be more than eighteen and less than thirty,” he wrote.

“
Their jobs would be heavy in labor. I suggest selecting Hunannese as cannon operators, for they are known for their wits and bravery although they are small men.

“
I also suggest that you pick Shandongnese for sailors, for they are strong in physiques and have a traditional way of sharing brotherhood and loyalty with men who speak their dialect.

“
Last, I suggest that you pick Manchu bannermen for officers and key positions.”

Filled with homesickness and a desperate need to see Ayaou, he returned to Shanghai.
He had been away too long and was questioning what was more important: power and wealth or family and love. He wanted both. There had to be a way.

They were in bed and Ayaou was beside him on her stomach. There were worry lines on her forehead. While he had been gone, she had slimmed down. They had just attempted making love, but he could not perform.

“
What is wrong?” she asked. “You have not had this problem since the fighting in Canton. You are always like a wild stallion. Have you found another woman? Have I lost the beauty you once saw? That would make sense. My family says I am no beauty and you are blind.”

“
There is no other woman, and you are still the one I dream of when I am alone. My mind is distracted by my job.

“
Have you any idea what I have to do in Peking to get anything achieved? It’s like swimming in sand. I have trouble sleeping waiting for the imperial turtles to move. I have urged the Manchu princes and the Dowagers to make faster decisions.

“
Instead, they go hunting or write poetry or make ink paintings. When news arrived that a Chinese army has been slaughtered by the Taipings, the Dowagers hired an opera troop to perform at the Summer Palace and invited the royalty. They don’t understand how important it is to train China’s new navy so they are ready when the ships arrive. They do not even call the Taipings rebels. Instead, they call them Longhaired Bandits as if they are insignificant.”

Ayaou crawled on top of him and started to rub her naked body against his.
“Maybe this will give your thoughts a rest,” she said.

Robert laughed.
“It seems that you have worked your magic again,” he said, and pulled her face to his to smother her with kisses. “I know there was a reason I had to come home.” He kissed her neck and licked an ear.

A few months later, Horatio returned to China, and they met at the Shanghai, Imperial Maritime Customs building that faced the Huangpu River.

“
You will be pleased to learn that I purchased the fleet,” Horatio said. “Eight vessels. The flotilla should be here in a few weeks. I recruited six hundred British navy personnel to be led by Osborn.”

“
That’s not what I directed you to do.”

“
You have forgotten your position, Robert,” Horatio said in a scolding tone. “I am the Inspector General, and you work for me. There will be no need to find a Chinese admiral and illiterate Chinese peasants to fill out the crews. The Chinese are incapable of taking care of themselves, and owing to their childlike nature, they would never take to the discipline needed to create a sound navy.”

“
But, Horatio, this is not what Prince Kung and the Empress Dowagers expected.”

Horatio held up a hand to stop him.
“I also spent more than the budget you sent. I took out a loan for two-hundred-and-seventy-thousand taels in China’s name to purchase the navy I felt China should have. After all, as Inspector General of Customs, I will have control of the navy and the emperor will have to go through me to issue orders to Osborn.”

“
What have you done, Horatio?” Robert mind stopped working. He wanted to scream—to hit the man or break something. He felt hot and suddenly cold. A feeling of helplessness swept over him, and his face went numb. The rage in his chest was like a hurricane ready to wreak havoc. “I gave my word to the Dynasty,” he said, and thought, I trusted the wrong man. I handed China to a jackal.

“
It isn’t that bad,” Horatio replied. “We have faced worse. It will not take the Manchu long to know who rules China. God is on our side and everything will work out.”

“
Let me see that contract you signed with Osborn.” Robert held out a hand.

Horatio rummaged on the desk and found it.
“Here, I’m sure you will be impressed.”

As Robert read the contract, a pain sta
rted to radiate from his chest, his stomach burned and his fingers tingled. The key elements were horrible. The worst parts were four and five.

Robert
’s voice trembled. “It says that it is understood that Osborn will have the right to refuse any form of an order, decree or edict that comes without your validation. It is also understood that you have the right to refuse any order, decree or edict from the imperial court that does not make sense to you.”

“
Precisely,” Horatio said. “The Chinese are incapable of ruling themselves, so I have solved that problem.”

Robert
’s vision blurred and he had trouble breathing. He had an urge to kill Horatio. His fingers curled. He imagined grabbing Horatio’s neck and choking him. The Chinese imperial government had paid for the fleet, but this contract made Horatio the owner. The man was worse than a pirate was.

With an effort, he gained control over his emotions.
“Horatio, there is no way that Prince Kung or the Dynasty will accept what you have done. Your blind ambition has undone both of us, because it is unrealistic that you can take control of China’s modern navy. I am advising you to reconsider your actions for the sake of our positions in the customs service, and more importantly the future of British influence over China. Cancel the contract with Osborn and return to the original plan that was endorsed by both Dowagers and Prince Kung as regents for the young emperor.”

“
Calm down, Hart. I will not comply with such nonsense. I am the Inspector General of Imperial Chinese Customs. That is not your job. Do not forget that you were acting for me. The purchase contract stays as I wrote it, and Osborn will be the admiral of China’s navy. Be advised, I am also writing a letter telling Prince Kung of this. He must know his place.

“
When I resume my post as Inspector General, my goal is to control China’s national revenue, and with Osborn in command of China’s navy no one will stand in my way. I have seen with clarity what must be done, as God is my witness. With money and weapons at my command, I see myself as a minister for Britain ruling China. In the end, China will be converted to Christianity at my direction. These heathens will have no choice.”

Robert realized that Horatio had no idea what he had done. The Chinese people would not sit still and allow their culture to be taken over by someone like him. There would be more rebellions. China would be torn into a hundred small countries. There would be great suffering and deaths. If the Chinese become Christians, it had to be their decision to convert and that might take centuries.

Horatio smiled. “I will also request a palace from Prince Kung. It must be equal to a cathedral where I will conduct services for the Church of England.”

Robert was sure that someone high in the British gover
nment or someone in the Church of England had fueled this insanity. He had no idea if there was anything he could do to avoid this tragedy. The unexpectedness of it all had left him numb. He had to find time to think, and he couldn’t do it here with this idiot watching him.

Chapter 49

Soon after Horatio arrived in Peking, Robert visited him. Since he had recovered from the shock of what Horatio had done, he was ready to deal with the Osborn issue.

He discovered that Horatio had been assigned a small house in the Chinese City near the Lock Hospital some distance from the Tsungli Yamen. Peki
ng was divided into two cities, the Tartar City where the Forbidden City had been built and the Chinese City. Although one wall surrounded Peking, another wall divided the two sections.

Once inside the house, he saw that the furniture and floors were covered with a film of dust. Obviously, no one had cleaned the house before Lay
’s arrival.

The house had a
small courtyard filled with dead bamboo and the garden walls extended twenty feet toward the sky making the courtyard feel as if it were the bottom of a dry well. It was depressing place.

Robert suspected that having Horatio stay in this house was
meant as a slap in the face, and he wondered if Horatio realized that the Manchu were not pleased with him. Probably not. Just because Horatio spoke Mandarin, didn’t mean he understood the culture.

They were alone in the front chamber, which only had a few chairs and a hardwood table. The wal
ls were empty of art, and the room had a low, oppressive ceiling.

“
Listen,” Robert said. His voice bounced off the walls as if he were inside a metal drum. That stopped him, and he looked around. Odd, he thought. It took an effort to focus. It must have been irritating to live there

“
China is not India,” he said. “The imperial court is upset with your actions. You must reword Osborn’s agreement. You were not a free agent acting on your behalf, but that is exactly what you did.”

Horatio frowned.
“There is no need to get angry. Once I explain, you will understand. I am doing this for God and Britain. God willing, this is the only way the Chinese can be saved. If I control the emperor, I control China. In this way, I will open every corner of China to Christian missionaries and to British influence. Between us, we will civilize these heathens.”

The first thing Robert thought of was the opium that would follow or precede the Christians as they spread through China.
“You are wrong,” he said, keeping his voice under control, although he didn’t feel calm. It would have been easy to yell at and then hit Horatio with a fist.

Instead, he said,
“You will achieve the opposite if you attempt to force our God down the Chinese throat. That is wrong thinking. After China is healthy economically, there will be opportunities to achieve what you want by other means. It will take patience and maybe centuries to accomplish and there is no guarantee of success.”

“
What do you mean by ‘our God’?” Horatio replied. “He is everyone’s God and these heathens must learn that. There is only one true God.”

“
Did you hear what I said?”

Horatio waved a hand in dismissal.
“This is an opportunity that I will not miss. I do not want to discuss anything else. You are a Christian. How can you challenge me? Matthew tells us to ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost’.”

“
Why are you quoting from scripture?” Robert was stunned. Horatio’s knife wounds may have healed, but his mind was damaged.

“
The Lord created this opportunity and sent me to China to serve Him. It was the Lord’s doing that I became the inspector general for the emperor of China.”

Robert watched the blood rush into Horatio
’s face like a bush exploding into flames and thought of Jeremiah’s words in the Bible. ‘Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith.’

He considered using that Bible quote, but realized it might be i
gnored. If anything, Horatio would become more heated in his religious zeal. He would reply with other passages from the Bible to defend himself. No, nothing would move Horatio from his path. He was committed. To fix this problem, Robert had to be cautious in what he quoted from the Bible and how he said it.

“
It is our duty,” Horatio said. “How am I going to do that unless I rule China through the child emperor? If it weren’t for God’s intervention, I would have been murdered when I was stabbed in Shanghai.”

It would have been better if you had died, Robert thought. This f
iasco wouldn’t have happened.

“
God was testing my faith like He tested Abraham by ordering him to sacrifice his son Isaac.” Horatio’s voice sounded as if he were pleading. “I was Isaac, and as my blood soaked into the earth, God spoke to me.” He talked louder, and Robert saw tears running down his face. “I was allowed to live, because I promised to serve Him.” Saliva flew from his mouth, as he shouted. “My purpose is to give China to God!”

Robert lowered his voice to a soothing tone.
“And that is why you want to give China’s navy to British officers?”

He knew that t
he Chinese didn’t need saving—not Horatio’s kind of salvation anyway. When Robert first arrived in China, he held similar opinions like most Christians that the Chinese were heathens.