The Wallet of Kai Lung Read online

  VI

  When these matters were arranged, Ling returned to his tent, a victimto feelings of a deep and confused doubt, for all courses seemed tobe surrounded by extreme danger, with the strong possibility of finaldisaster. While he was considering these things attentively, the spy whohad brought word of the presence of the enemy again sought him. As heentered, Ling perceived that his face was the colour of a bleached linengarment, while there came with him the odour of sickness.

  "There are certain matters which this person has not made known," hesaid, having first expressed a request that he might not be compelled tostand while he conversed. "The bowmen are as an inferior kind of jackal,and they who lead them are pigs, but this person has observed that theHeaven-sent Commander has internal organs like steel hardened in a whitefire and polished by running water. For this reason he will narrateto him the things he has seen--things at which the lesser ones wouldundoubtedly perish in terror without offering to strike a blow."

  "Speak," said Ling, "without fear and without concealment."

  "In numbers the rebels are as three to one with the bowmen, and are,in addition, armed with matchlocks and other weapons; this much I havealready told," said the spy. "Yesterday they entered the village of Kiwithout resistance, as the dwellers there were all peaceable persons,who gain a living from the fields, and who neither understood nortroubled about the matters between the rebels and the army. Relying onthe promises made by the rebel chiefs, the villagers even welcomed them,as they had been assured that they came as buyers of their corn andrice. To-day not a house stands in the street of Ki, not a person lives.The men they slew quickly, or held for torture, as they desired at themoment; the boys they hung from the trees as marks for their arrows.Of the women and children this person, who has since been subject toseveral attacks of fainting and vomiting, desires not to speak. Thewells of Ki are filled with the bodies of such as had the good fortuneto be warned in time to slay themselves. The cattle drag themselves fromplace to place on their forefeet; the fish in the Heng-Kiang are dying,for they cannot live on water thickened into blood. All these thingsthis person has seen."

  When he had finished speaking, Ling remained in deep and funerealthought for some time. In spite of his mild nature, the words whichhe had heard filled him with an inextinguishable desire to slay inhand-to-hand fighting. He regretted that he had placed the decision ofthe matter before Li Keen.

  "If only this person had a mere handful of brave and expert warriors, hewould not hesitate to fall upon those savage and barbarous characters,and either destroy them to the last one, or let his band suffer a likefate," he murmured to himself.

  The return of the messenger found him engaged in reviewing the bowmen,and still in this mood, so that it was with a commendable feeling ofsatisfaction, no less than virtuous contempt, that he learned of theMandarin's journey to Peking as soon as he understood that the rebelswere certainly in the neighbourhood.

  "The wise and ornamental Li Keen is undoubtedly consistent in allmatters," said Ling, with some refined bitterness. "The only informationregarding his duties to which this person obtained from him chancedto be a likening of war to skilful chess-play, and to this end theaccomplished person in question has merely availed himself of a commonexpedient which places him at the remote side of the divine Emperor.Yet this act is not unwelcome, for the responsibility of deciding whatcourse is to be adopted now clearly rests with this person. He is, asthose who are standing by may perceive, of under the usual height, andof no particular mental or bodily attainments. But he has eaten the riceof the Emperor, and wears the Imperial sign embroidered upon his arm.Before him are encamped the enemies of his master and of his land, andin no way will he turn his back upon them. Against brave and skilfulmen, such as those whom this person commands, rebels of a low anddegraded order are powerless, and are, moreover, openly forbidden tosucceed by the Forty-second Mandate in the Sacred Book of Arguments.Should it have happened that into this assembly any person of aperfidious or uncourageous nature has gained entrance by guile, and hasnot been detected and driven forth by his outraged companions (as wouldcertainly occur if such a person were discovered), I, Ling, Commanderof Bowmen, make an especial and well-considered request that he shall bestruck by a molten thunderbolt if he turns to flight or holds thoughtsof treachery."

  Having thus addressed and encouraged the soldiers, Ling instructed themthat each one should cut and fashion for himself a graceful but weightyclub from among the branches of the trees around, and then return to thetents for the purpose of receiving food and rice spirit.

  When noon was passed, allowing such time as would enable him to reachthe camp of the enemy an hour before darkness, Ling arranged the bowmenin companies of convenient numbers, and commenced the march, sendingforward spies, who were to work silently and bring back tidings fromevery point. In this way he penetrated to within a single li of theruins of Ki, being informed by the spies that no outposts of the enemywere between him and that place. Here the first rest was made toenable the more accurate and bold spies to reach them with trustworthyinformation regarding the position and movements of the camp. Withlittle delay there returned the one who had brought the earliesttidings, bruised and torn with his successful haste through the forest,but wearing a complacent and well-satisfied expression of countenance.Without hesitation or waiting to demand money before he would reveal hisknowledge, he at once disclosed that the greater part of the enemy wererejoicing among the ruins of Ki, they having discovered there a quantityof opium and a variety of liquids, while only a small guard remained inthe camp with their weapons ready. At these words Ling sprang fromthe ground in gladness, so great was his certainty of destroying theinvaders utterly. It was, however, with less pleasurable emotions thathe considered how he should effect the matter, for it was in no wayadvisable to divide his numbers into two bands. Without any feeling ofunendurable conceit, he understood that no one but himself could holdthe bowmen before an assault, however weak. In a similar manner, hedetermined that it would be more advisable to attack those in thevillage first. These he might have reasonable hopes of cutting downwithout warning the camp, or, in any event, before those from the camparrived. To assail the camp first would assuredly, by the firing, drawupon them those from the village, and in whatever evil state these mightarrive, they would, by their numbers, terrify the bowmen, who withoutdoubt would have suffered some loss from the matchlocks.

  Waiting for the last light of day, Ling led on the men again, andsending forward some of the most reliable, surrounded the place of thevillage silently and without detection. In the open space, among brokencasks and other inconsiderable matters, plainly shown by the large firesat which burned the last remains of the houses of Ki, many men movedor lay, some already dull or in heavy sleep. As the darkness droppedsuddenly, the signal of a peacock's shriek, three times uttered, rangforth, and immediately a cloud of arrows, directed from all sides,poured in among those who feasted. Seeing their foemen defencelessbefore them, the archers neglected the orders they had received, andthrowing away their bows they rushed in with uplifted clubs, utteringloud shouts of triumph. The next moment a shot was fired in the wood,drums beat, and in an unbelievably short space of time a small butwell-armed band of the enemy was among them. Now that all need ofcaution was at an end, Ling rushed forward with raised sword, callingto his men that victory was certainly theirs, and dealing discriminatingand inspiriting blows whenever he met a foeman. Three times he formedthe bowmen into a figure emblematic of triumph, and led them against theline of matchlocks. Twice they fell back, leaving mingled dead underthe feet of the enemy. The third time they stood firm, and Ling threwhimself against the waving rank in a noble and inspired endeavour tolead the way through. At that moment, when a very distinguished victoryseemed within his hand, his elegant and well-constructed sword brokeupon an iron shield, leaving him defenceless and surrounded by theenemy.

  "Chief among the sublime virtues enjoined by the divine Confucius,"began Ling, folding his arms and speaking
in an unmoved voice, "is anintelligent submission--" but at that word he fell beneath a rain ofheavy and unquestionably well-aimed blows.