The Phantom of the Temple

'Well,' the Third told him slowly, 'as you know, the moon-door that separates my bedroom from the sitting-room has a curtain of thin gauze. If I make my guest sit down near the window, and you stood in the bedroom, behind the curtain, then—'

'That'll do fine!’ the judge exclaimed. 'Let's go!'

'If you don't mind,' the Third Lady said, 'I shall take you there by the back door, so that the maids don't see you. They might tell Mrs Woo inadvertently that you are with me.'

'Excellent idea,' the First Lady approved. 'Good luck!’

The Third took the judge outside and along the wind­ing garden path leading to her apartment, situated in a secluded corner at the back of the residence. As she was opening the door of her sitting-room to let him inside he said quickly, 'Try to make her talk a bit about Miss Jade. She's Woo's second wife, you know.'

'All this is very exciting!' she whispered, squeezing his hand. 'Look, I'll make her take that chair, facing the moon-door!’

The judge went on into the bedroom, carefully adjust­ing the gauze curtain behind him. It was half-dark there, for the shutters had been closed to keep the heat out. Sitting down on the edge of the broad bedstead, he heard his wife clap her hands. She told the maid that she could leave as soon as she had ushered the lady guest in, for she would look after the tea herself.

Judge Dee nodded approvingly. She was a clever woman. And of exquisite taste. He looked with apprecia­tion at the graceful flower-arrangement on the tea table. Every time he came, he discovered something new. On the wall a poem she had written, or on the table a new painting done by her, or a piece of delicate embroidery. She was happy pursuing her own artistic interests and she loved teaching the children. Her father, an egotistic wicked man, had repudiated her after the terrible ordeal she had gone through in Peng-lai,* (* See Chapter XV of the novel The Chinese Gold Murders, London 1959.) and the judge knew she felt sheltered now, and considered his First and Second as her elder sisters. Voices in the sitting-room roused him from his thoughts.

The Third Lady was receiving a tall woman, sedately dressed in a grey robe with a long-sleeved jacket on top. It was fastened round the waist by a silk scarf, the ends of which trailed down to the floor. Her head was covered by a black shawl. As soon as the maid had left, the visitor unwound the shawl, tucked it away in her bosom, and made a bow, respectfully raising her hands folded in her sleeves.

'You'll have seen from my card who I am, madam.' She spoke in a clipped voice. 'A thousand thanks for kindly consenting to see me, despite the fact that I have not yet had the honour of being introduced to your lady­ship.'

Her mobile, expressive face was set off by a becoming high hairdress, without any ornaments. The judge thought she was not beautiful by classical standards; her lips were too full, her eyebrows a shade too heavy, and there were slight pouches under her large, vivid eyes. But she was certainly a woman of strong personality. He put her age at about thirty-five.

While guiding her guest to the chair near the window, the Third made the usual polite inquiries. Then she sat down and began to prepare the tea. Mrs Woo should have waited to open the conversation until the tea was ready. Instead, she began at once:

'I oughtn't to take too much of your time, madam, and I myself am in rather a hurry, for my husband mustn't know I am here. So please allow me to skip the formalities and come straight to the point.' As the Third inclined her shapely small head, Mrs Woo resumed quickly, 'My husband has gone to His Excellency this morning, to accuse me of having kidnapped his daughter Jade.'

The Third let a tea-cup drop onto the floor. It shattered on the marble slabs.

'I am so sorry!’ Mrs Woo exclaimed contritely. 'How stupid of me to make such an abrupt statement! I should have told you the background first. Here, let me help you!'

After they had sat down again, Mrs Woo resumed at once. 'Of course I have never even dreamt of harming his daughter. I want to explain the situation to you, for as a young married woman, you'll understand. I hope that afterwards you'll kindly communicate the gist of our talk to your husband, so that he knows what's behind all this fuss.'

'I can't promise you anything before I have heard what it's all about, Mrs Woo,' the Third said in her soft, measured voice.

'Of course you can't!' Mrs Woo said impatiently. The polite veneer was rapidly wearing off. 'Let me begin by assuring you that I love my husband. He's twice my age, of course, but kind and considerate, and he gave me the security I wanted. Before my marriage I was what is called an abandoned woman, you know, and I hadn't a cent to my name. But that's neither here nor there. The main point is that when Woo married me he had been a widower for three years. He had only one child, a daugh­ter called Jade. He thought the world of her, but I can tell you she was nothing special. Just an ordinary chit of eighteen, with men on her mind before she was quite ready for it. I wanted to take her in hand, but Woo said no, he would look after her education. He was fond of her, a bit too fond, if you know what I mean. Probably didn't realize it himself, but I have been around, and I knew. I didn't tell him that, of course, but I did tell him that she was standing between him and me as man and wife, and that he'd better marry her off as quickly as possible. And that was the beginning of endless squabbles.'