Judge Dee at Work

'Don't worry,' Chiao Tai comforted his friend. 'Our magistrate'll straighten it all out!’

'It was like this, sir,' Ma Joong began eagerly. 'Day before yesterday the Vice-Commander ...'

Judge Dee stopped him by raising his hand. 'In the first place,' he said dryly, 'I can't meddle with the affairs of the fort. Second, even if I could, I wouldn't be interested in hearsay of the murder. However, since you know the accused, you may as well tell me something more about him, for my orientation.'

'Colonel Meng is an upright, straightforward fellow!’ Ma Joong burst out. 'We have boxed with him, got drunk with him and gone wenching with him. Let me tell you, Magistrate, that that's the way to get to know a man inside out! Now Vice-Commander Soo was a martinet and a bully, and Meng got his share of his foul mouth. I can imagine that some day Meng might fly into a rage and strike Soo down. But Meng would give himself up at once, and face the consequences. To shoot a man in his sleep, then deny he did it ... No, sir, Meng wouldn't do that. Never!'

'Do you happen to know how Commander Fang feels about it?' the judge asked. 'He presided at the court martial, I presume.'

'He did,' Chiao Tai replied. 'And he confirmed the verdict of premeditated murder. Fang is a haughty, taciturn fellow. But rumour has it that he isn't too happy about the verdict — despite the fact that all the evidence points straight to Meng. Goes to show how popular the man is, even with his commanding officer!'

'When did you two last see Meng?' Judge Dee asked.

'The very night before Soo was murdered,' Ma Joong said. 'We had our supper together in the crab restaurant on the quay. Later that night two Korean merchants joined us, and the five of us had a real good drinking bout. It was long past midnight when Brother Chiao dropped Meng at the military barge that was to take him back to the fort.'

Judge Dee sat back in his chair and slowly tugged at his long sidewhiskers. Ma Joong quickly rose and poured him a cup of tea. The judge took a few sips, then he set his cup down and said briskly:

'I haven't yet returned Commander Fang's courtesy call. It's still early in the morning; if we leave now we'll be at the fort well before the noon rice. Tell the headman to have my official palankeen ready in the courtyard to carry us to the quay. In the meantime I'll change into ceremonial dress.' He got up from his chair. Seeing the satisfied looks of his two lieutenants, he added, 'I must warn you that I can't force my assistance on the Com­mander. If he doesn't ask for my advice, then that's the end of it. In any case I'll take the opportunity to ask him for an extra copy of that missing document.'

The sturdy rowers drove the heavy military barge to the north of the river in less than an hour. On the low bank to the left rose the forbidding walls of the fortress; ahead was the muddy water of the estuary, broadening out into the wide expanse of sunlit sea beyond.

Ma Joong and Chiao Tai jumped onto the quay under the towering front gate. When the captain of the guard discovered Judge Dee's identity, he at once took him across the paved court­yard to the main building. Ma Joong and Chiao Tai stayed behind in the gatehouse, for the judge had instructed them to pick up any gossip about the sensational murder.

Before stepping inside, Judge Dee cast an admiring glance at the thick, solid walls. The fort had been built only a few years before, when Korea had revolted against the T'ang Empire, and her fleet was preparing to invade China's north-east coast. The revolt had been crushed in two difficult campaigns by a Chinese expeditionary force, but the Koreans were still smarting from their defeat, and the possibility of a surprise attack had to be reckoned with. The river-mouth, and the fort guarding it, had been declared an emergency zone, and although it was located inside Peng-lai, Judge Dee had no authority in this particular area.

Commander Fang came to meet him at the bottom of the stairs, and took him up to his private office. He made the judge sit down by his side on the large couch against the back wall.

Fang was just as formal and sparing of words as when he had come to call on Judge Dee in the tribunal of Peng-lai. He sat stiffly erect, encased in his heavy coat of mail with the iron breast- and shoulder-pieces. Looking morosely at the judge from under his grey, tufted eyebrows, he brought out haltingly a few words of thanks for the visit.

Judge Dee made the usual polite inquiries. The Commander replied gruffly that he still thought his present post unsuitable for an old combat soldier. He didn't think the Koreans would start making trouble again; it would take them years to recoup their losses. And in the meantime he, Fang, had to keep order among more than a thousand officers and men cooped up idle in the fort.

The judge expressed his sympathy, then added, 'I hear that a murder occurred here recently. The criminal has been found and convicted, but I am eager to hear more about the case. As you know, Peng-lai is my first post, and I would welcome an oppor­tunity to enlarge my experience.'

The Commander gave him a sharp look. He fingered his short grey moustache for a moment, then he got up abruptly and said curtly: