Judge Dee at Work
- Автор: ван Гулик Роберт Ханс
- Серия: Judge Dee #14
- Язык: английский
- Жанр: Другие детективы
Электронная книга - «Judge Dee at Work». Краткое содержание книги:
The eight short stories in Judge Dee at Work cover a decade during which the judge served in four different provinces of the T’ang Empire. From the suspected treason of a general in the Chinese army to the murder of a lonely poet in his garden pavilion, the cases here are among the most memorable in the Judge Dee series.
'They were worth it,' said Chiao Tai, smacking his lips. He took his wine beaker and emptied it in one draught.
Judge Dee's two burly lieutenants were sitting at a small table near the window, on the second floor of the Kingfisher Restaurant, one of their favourite haunts. Situated on the water-way that crosses the city of Poo-yang from north to south, its second-floor window offered a splendid view of the evening sun, setting beyond the western city wall.
The sounds of boisterous applause came up from the street below. Ma Joong poked his head out of the window and looked down at the crowd that had assembled on the river bank.
'It's that troupe of travelling actors which came here four days ago,' he remarked. 'In the afternoon they perform acrobatics in the street, at night they stage historical plays.'
'I know,' Chiao Tai said. 'The rice-dealer Lau helped them rent the yard of the old Taoist temple for setting up their stage. Lau came to the tribunal the other day for the permit. The leader of the troupe was with him — decent-looking fellow, Bao his name is. The troupe consists of his wife, his daughter and his son.' He refilled his beaker and added: 'I had thought of strolling over to the temple; I like a good play with lots of sword-fencing. But since our judge is away and we're responsible for everything, I don't like to leave the tribunal for long.'
'Well, here we have a grandstand seat for their acrobatic turns at least,' Ma Joong said contentedly. He turned his chair round to the window and put his folded arms on the sill. Chiao Tai followed his example.
In the street below a square reed mat had been spread out, surrounded by a dense crowd of spectators. A small boy of about eight was turning somersaults there with surprising agility. Two other actors, a tall lean man and a sturdy woman stood on the left and right of the mat with folded arms, and a young girl was squatting by the side of a bamboo box, evidently containing their paraphernalia. On top of the box was a low wooden rack; two long, shining swords were laid across it, one above the other. All four actors wore black jackets and wide trousers; red sashes were wound tightly round their waists, and red scarves round their heads. An old man dressed in a shabby blue gown was sitting on a tabouret close by, lustily beating the drum he held between his bony knees.
'Wish I could see that girl's face,' Ma Joong said wistfully. 'Look, Lau is there too; he seems to be in trouble!'
He pointed down at a neatly dressed, middle-aged man wearing a black gauze cap, who was standing behind the bamboo box. He was quarrelling with a huge ruffian whose unruly hair was bound up with a blue rag. He grabbed Lau's sleeve but Lau pushed him away. The two men paid no attention to the boy who was now walking around the reed mat on his hands, balancing a wine jar on the soles of his feet.
'I have never seen that tall rogue before,' Chiao Tai remarked. 'Must be from outside the city.'
'Now we'll get a good view of the wenches!' Ma Joong said with a grin.
The boy had finished. The leader of the troupe stood in the centre of the mat, legs apart and knees slightly bent. The sturdy woman placed her right foot on his knee, then with one lithe movement climbed up onto his shoulders. At a shout from the man, the girl climbed up too, put one foot on the man's left shoulder, grabbed the woman's arm with one hand, and stretched out her other arm and leg. At almost the same time the boy followed her example and balanced himself on the man's right shoulder. As the human pyramid stood there precariously, the greybeard in the faded gown beat a frantic roll on his drum. The crowd burst out in loud shouts of approval.
The faces of the boy, the woman and the girl were only ten feet or so from Ma Joong and Chiao Tai. The latter whispered with enthusiasm: 'Look at the woman's splendid figure! Nice friendly face too!'
'I prefer the girl!' Ma Joong said eagerly.
'Much too young! The woman is about thirty, just right. Knows what's what!’
The drummer stopped; the woman and her two children jumped down from Bao's shoulders. All four actors made a graceful bow, then the girl went round among the spectators collecting coppers in a wooden bowl. Ma Joong pulled a string of cash from his sleeve and threw it down at her. She caught it expertly and rewarded him with a smile.
'That's literally throwing money away!' Chiao Tai remarked dryly.
'Call it an investment in a promising project!' Ma Joong countered with a smug grin. 'What's next?'
The boy was standing in the centre of the reed mat. He put his hands behind his back and lifted his chin. As the greybeard started to beat his drum, Bao bared his right arm, grabbed the sword lying on top of the rack, and with a movement quick as lightning plunged it deep into the boy's breast. Blood spurted out; the boy staggered backwards as his father pulled the sword out again. There were horrified cries from the crowd.
'I have seen that trick before,' Ma Joong said. 'Heaven knows how they do it! The sword looks genuine enough.' He turned away from the window and took his wine beaker.
The agonized cry of a woman rose above the confused murmur of voices. Chiao Tai, who had been looking down intently, suddenly jumped up. He snapped: 'That was no trick, brother! It was plain murder! Come along!'
The two men rushed down the stairs and ran outside. They elbowed their way through the excited crowd to the edge of the reed mat. The boy was lying on his back, his breast a mass of blood. His mother was kneeling by his side, sobbing convulsively as she stroked the small, still face. Bao and his daughter were standing there stock still, staring down with pale faces at the pitiful dead body. Bao still held the bloodstained sword.
Ma Joong wrenched it from his hand and asked angrily: 'Why did you do that?'
The actor woke from his stupor. Giving Ma Joong a dazed look, he stammered: 'It was the wrong sword!'
'I can explain, Mr Ma!' the rice-dealer Lau spoke up. 'It was an accident!'
A squat man came forward; it was the warden of the west quarter. Chiao Tai ordered him to roll the dead body in the reed mat and have it brought to the tribunal for examination by the coroner. As the warden gently made the mother rise, Chiao Tai said to Ma Joong, 'Let's take these people up to the dining-room, and try to get this straight!’
Ma Joong nodded. Taking the sword under his arm, he said to the rice-dealer, 'You come too, Mr Lau. And let the greybeard bring the box and that other sword along.'
He looked for the tall ruffian who had accosted Lau, but the fellow was nowhere to be seen.
Up on the second floor of the Kingfisher Restaurant Ma Joong told Bao, the two crying women and the old drummer to sit down at a corner table. He poured them wine from the jar he and Chiao Tai had been drinking from. He hoped that the strong liquor would help them get over the shock. Then he turned to the rice-dealer and ordered him to explain. He knew that the theatre was Lau's hobby, that he attended all shows given by travelling actors. His regular face with the short black moustache and goatee was pale and drawn. He adjusted his black gauze cap, then began diffidently:
'As you may know, Mr Ma, this man Bao is the leader of the troupe, a fine actor and acrobat.' He paused, passed his hand over his face, then took the second sword which the old drummer had laid on the table. 'You may have seen these trick-swords,' he continued. 'The blade is hollow, and filled with pig's blood. It has a false point a couple of inches long, which slides back into the blade if the sword is pushed against something. Thus it appears as if the point penetrates deeply, the illusion being completed by the pig's blood spurting out. When the sword is pulled out, the point resumes its original position, being pushed out again by a rattan spiral hidden inside. You can see it for yourself!’
Ma Joong took the sword from him. He noticed a thin groove round it, a few inches below the blunt point. He turned round and pressed it against the wooden floor. The point slid into the blade, red blood spurted out. Mrs Bao started to scream. Her husband quickly put his arm round her shoulders. The girl remained sitting, still as a stone figure. The greybeard muttered angrily, pulling at his ragged beard.