The Emperor's Pearl

After he had laid down his chopsticks he remained sitting there, so deep in thought that he did not notice the stifling heat any more.

The clerk came back, carrying a large brass basin with towels soaked in cold, scented water. As the judge was wip­ing his face, the headman entered. Seeing his dejected face, Judge Dee asked anxiously:

'What happened?'

'We found the house without difficulty, sir. It's the former gardener's lodge of a large old mansion, deserted many years ago. The main building is only a ruin, but the gardener's house, located in the back of the terrain, is in a good state of repair. The old woman Meng was the only occupant. A charwoman came in the mornings, for the rough work. The people living in that neighbourhood suspected that the house was used for immoral purposes, they often saw men and women going in and out there late at night. But, since the house is standing apart on that deserted property, they couldn't see or hear properly what went on. Therefore nobody has the slightest idea who murdered her.'

'Murdered? Why didn't you say so at once, you fool? How was it done?'

'The old woman was strangled, Your Honour,' the head­man replied unhappily. 'She must have had a visitor, and shortly before our arrival too, for the tea in the two cups we found standing on the table was still warm. Mrs Meng was lying dead on the floor, by her overturned chair. A silk scarf was wound tight round her neck. I loosened it at once, but she was dead and gone. I had the body conveyed here. The coroner is conducting the autopsy now.'

Judge Dee bit his lips. This was the fourth murder! Then he mastered himself and said in a flat voice:

'All right, headman. You did very well. You may go.'

In the door the headman nearly collided with Sergeant Hoong. The guards at the gate of the tribunal had told the sergeant about the new murder, and he was anxious to hear what had happened. He quickly sat down and asked:

'What does this mean, sir?'

'It means that we are dealing with an uncommonly clever and resolute opponent, Hoong. I'll tell you what happened in the tribunal after you had left.' After he had given the sergeant a detailed account of the exploits of Miss Violet Liang, he said: 'The criminal must have seen Miss Liang leading the three ruffians and the prostitute to the tribunal. The three men he didn't know, of course, for he had left the negotiations concerning the kidnapping to his henchman Sia. But he did recognize Miss Lee, whom he had earmarked as a future victim when he met her at some party or other. He concluded that Miss Liang had surprised the kidnappers, and they would mention in their confession the address they were to take their victim to. He went there at once and killed the old procuress.' The judge angrily tugged at his beard. Then he heaved a sigh and asked: 'Well, what did your enquiries bring to light?'

'Not very much, sir. I had a long talk with Sheng Pa. The man did his best, but he discovered only that the person who had been behind the cornering of the bets was somehow or other connected with the antique trade.'

'Again the antique trade! Holy Heaven, every single per­son connected with this case seems to dabble in curios!'

'As to Kwang Min, Your Honour, the innkeeper described him as a quiet man who never gave any trouble and who paid his bills on the dot. He checked his register together with me, and we found that Kwang had stayed there eight times during the past year. He always turned up unexpect­edly, and never stayed longer than two or three days. He used to go out directly after breakfast and to come in again only late at night. He never received any visitors.'

'When did he stay there last ? '

'About three weeks ago. Kwang occasionally told the innkeeper to get a woman for him, always specifying that he wanted an ordinary prostitute and not an expensive courtesan; that she needn't be especially good-looking, as long as she was clean and healthy, and moderately priced.' The sergeant made a face and went on resignedly: 'I went to the brothel near by, where the innkeeper used to order the women for Kwang from. I spoke with the girls who at one time or another had slept with Kwang. They hadn't much to say. They described Kwang as no better and no worse than most customers. He never asked for anything special, and it wasn't necessary to make any efforts to please him, because he never gave large tips anyway. That was all.' He paused, then asked curiously: 'Why did you want all those particulars about Kwang, sir? I would have thought that . . .'

He was interrupted by a knock on the door. The coroner came in. After he had greeted the judge he handed him a sheet of paper, saying:

'As Your Honour will perceive from this autopsy report, the woman called Meng was about fifty years old. Except for the weal round her throat, I didn't find any marks of violence on the body. I presume that the murderer, when he had tea with her, left his chair on some pretext or other and, as he was passing behind her, suddenly wound the scarf round her neck. The scarf had been drawn tight with such savage force that the silk went deeply into the flesh, nearly cutting through her windpipe.'