The Sword Dancer

Li Feng had spoken of the world of rivers and lakes. It was a phrase common among outlaws that referred to the forests and open land outside the government-controlled cities as well as the unspoken code this community of dissidents abided by. The rivers-and-lakes world was a place of disorder and a dangerous world for a woman. It was a dangerous world for anyone.

As a thief-catcher, Han existed at the border between civility and lawlessness. It could even be said that he had thrived in it. To track down the most notorious of criminals, he needed to venture into their domain. Yet for this case, even his underworld confidants knew nothing.

According to the official account, the heist had been carefully organised and it was suspected that there were many hands involved. Han had assumed that he would find Li Feng and, through her, he’d track down the rest of them. But Li Feng had escaped and there was no sign of any accomplices.

The odd collection of musicians and dancers that had been imprisoned along with Li Feng proved to be harmless, just as he’d originally suspected. They had told him that she was a new addition to their troupe. She was a drifter and seemed to have moved among several different sets of performers. But she was trustworthy, they insisted. When their wagon had needed repairs, Li Feng had volunteered the funds without hesitation. She had paid in silver from her own stash.

Silver. If that sort of money wasn’t suspect enough, her pointed remarks about General Wang couldn’t be ignored.

Han had no choice but to return to the place where the theft had occurred and renew his investigation there.

When he reached the capital city of Taining, his search for the jade thieves proved much easier than anticipated.

One was being readied for execution in the public square.

The prisoner was kneeling, head bowed. His face had all but disappeared beneath a dark mask of bruised flesh. What was left was swollen beyond recognition. He wore a torn, stained tunic and leggings. A sizeable crowd had gathered around him. Depending on the nature of the crime, one could expect to hear taunts or insults from the onlookers, but in this case, the crowd remained quiet with no more sound than a tense murmur.

Han was surprised to see a broadsword in the executioner’s hands. Beheading was a particularly cruel punishment. It not only took the life of the accused, but defiled his body for the afterlife.

The executioner went to stand behind the condemned man and Han moved away, leaving the crowd behind to gawk as they would. He had witnessed one execution in his life and felt little need to witness another. He was far enough to avoid the thud of the blade, but not far enough to miss the collective gasp of the crowd, their voices united to expel the single breath they’d held since the executioner had raised his weapon.

It wasn’t the violence of death that disturbed him as much as the severity of the sentence given the crime. The code of law outlined specific punishments depending on the crime as well as the circumstances surrounding it, but sentencing was left to the discretion of the magistrate. Perhaps it was necessary to be harsh in these remote parts where lawlessness was more rampant.

Han sought out the magistrate’s yamen, hoping to gain access to the case report, but he wasn’t admitted much further than the front gates. He wasn’t all that surprised. A thief-catcher was slightly above a peasant or a day labourer in society and his presence was tolerated by the bureaucracy as an unpleasant necessity. He did manage to locate the constable who was on duty.

‘Zheng Hao Han?’ the constable echoed upon introductions.

The stout, middle-aged man looked over Han’s plain robe and the dao at his side, but gave no indication that he recognised the name.

‘I am looking into the matter regarding the jade thieves,’ Han began.

‘Ah! One of those scoundrels was executed just today.’

‘None of the others have been caught?’

‘Not one. They’ve probably run far away by now, if they have any sense.’

‘Then it was fortunate you were able to catch this one.’

The constable shook his head. ‘Not I. I have enough responsibility watching over the streets of this city.’

Surprisingly, the man seemed unconcerned about what was likely the most serious crime in his jurisdiction. The constable had a duty to pursue the culprits in a timely manner. Han stepped carefully as he tried to glean more information.

The crime had actually occurred one town over, a day’s travel from here. The shipment was accompanied by an armed security escort, which meant the thieves were bold enough to face trained fighters to get to the riches.

‘But no sword was ever drawn,’ the constable recounted. ‘They crept in, overpowered the night watch, and carried away enough jade to buy a palace. No one saw anything.’

‘No one was harmed? There were no injuries?’ Han questioned.

‘None.’

That was fortunate, for the sword dancer’s sake. ‘I had heard that the main suspects were a group of performers.’

‘Dancers and musicians!’ The constable sniffed sceptically. ‘They were drifters who were passing through. Easy to lay the blame on them.’

‘You had mentioned that you were not involved in the arrest.’

‘It was General Wang’s men that caught him.’ The constable shook his head. ‘Unfortunate fellow.’

Han bowed and thanked the constable. He was a stranger to this city, with no prior established contacts. So his next step was to visit the local tavern to make a few friends. There he learned a few details not in the report. Wang had a bounty for any man who recovered the jade or reported the thieves. The general had also sent several squadrons through the city as well as to adjacent towns to search for the stolen goods.

On the third cup of wine, two soldiers entered the tavern and came directly to his table. ‘General Wang looks forward to meeting the famous thief-catcher in person.’

Apparently the constable had recognised him. Han glanced up at the soldiers, who stood grim-faced and fully equipped with armour and weapons.

‘When?’ he asked.

‘Now.’

Han downed his drink in one swallow and stood.

He was brought to a pleasure house, a two-storey establishment lit with red lanterns and filled with music. The sound of female laughter rang from inside, like the chiming of bells. There were soldiers at the front entrance and more flanking the door to the banquet room. The entire building appeared to have been cleared out except for the general’s men.

Wang Shizhen was seated at a low table speaking with a handful of his lieutenants. He was dressed in a sumptuously embroidered robe. His shoulders were as broad as an ox’s and the lower half of his face was covered with a thick beard. He looked up and grinned as Han entered.

‘The famous thief-catcher!’

Wang was, on first glance, a much livelier and cheerful man than Han had expected. It immediately put him on guard.

‘General Wang.’ Han set palm to fist and bowed in proper deference.

‘Sit.’ The warlord spoke louder than he needed to be heard. He was a large man with gestures equally large. He rapped the spot at the table beside him and his lieutenants immediately shifted aside and took their leave.

A courtesan with painted lips bent to pour Han a cup of wine. Another moved to refill the general’s cup. Then they similarly receded to the edge of the room. Everything and everyone seemed to recede in the general’s presence.

‘I hear you’ve been trying to catch these jade thieves,’ Wang said.

‘I haven’t met any success, unfortunately. Not as successful as the general.’

He laughed at that. ‘You are one person. I have all the men under my command to seek out these scoundrels.’

‘It seems such a trivial task for a man of your stature.’ It took some effort for Han to navigate the web of flattery and humility that defined official discourse. If things had been different, he would have been educated in poetry and rhetoric and become versed in such slippery conversation. As it was, he knew enough to keep from being immediately dismissed by his betters.

‘It’s my responsibility to maintain order in the province. Otherwise such outlaws would run rampant.’

‘The accused didn’t reveal any of his accomplices?’

‘Not a one. Surprisingly strong-willed, for a common criminal.’ He drank, obviously displeased to have to report failure.

Han recalled the bruises on the face of the accused. The man had been beaten and broken before he was executed. The thought of Li Feng ending up in the general’s custody left Han cold.

‘If I may be so bold—’ Han had to be careful here. Men like Wang Shizhen didn’t tolerate their authority being questioned. ‘I was surprised that the magistrate would decide on a sentence of death for theft.’

‘Well, it was an extraordinary amount of treasure that was stolen. And there was no need for a tribunal when the outcome was obvious. The thief had the stolen jade on him.’

Han nodded slowly. He even lifted his cup to mirror Wang’s gesture and drank in accordance.

‘If you ever need a position, you come to me,’ Wang offered, happy with drink. ‘I can use a warrior like you. These bandits are getting out of control, attacking boats and raiding our supplies.’

‘That is very generous of the general,’ Han replied, keeping his tone neutral.

He waited with fists clenched until he could finally disengage himself. Han exited the drinking house into the cool evening. The streets were quiet with Wang’s men scattered here and there as they patrolled the corners. As far as he’d seen, the soldiers far outnumbered the civilians in the city.

Justice was meant to be dispensed with a balance of forcefulness and restraint. The proper procedure required careful inquiry and evidence. Han knew that there were repercussions for officials who neglected their duties just as there were punishments prescribed for criminals who disobeyed the laws. It was clear that the local magistrate had lost control of the district—or had had control wrested from him.

The conversation with Li Feng came back to him. Was there any difference between Two Dragon Lo and a man like Wang Shizhen?

There was no denying that Wang was a power-hungry warlord. He ruled over the county without any adherence to the codes of government. His garrison, who was supposed to protect the citizens, was instead used to intimidate them. And General Wang continued to recruit more men to its ranks. His power had grown to the point that the civil government had no control over him.

Han might be a thief-catcher by profession, but his father had held an appointed office at one time. There was no crime worse than the abuse of power. A common bandit might steal a sack of grain or a string of coins from an individual, but a dishonest bureaucrat stole from the entire population.

The authorities here would be no further help. If Han wanted the truth, he would have to seek it elsewhere and he had the urge to leave this place before the taint of corruption reached its infected and withered hand out to him.

It was impossible for Han to gain access to the official report, if any report was ever taken. Instead he relied on the unofficial account from the locals. The man that Wang Shizhen had executed had been a labourer who had been found with a jade bracelet hidden in his room. Despite rigorous interrogation, he had neither revealed the location of the other missing pieces, nor the names of his accomplices. The other labourers in the man’s tenement said he kept to himself.

Han recalled that the constable had mentioned that a biaoju, an armed-escort service, had been hired to guard the shipment. Apparently, the outfit had been hired out of Nanping. He joined up with a merchant who was headed there and arrived at the headquarters three days later.

The signboard over the doorway read ‘Zhao Yen Security’ and the walls in the main room were conspicuously decorated with an array of swords, crossbows and other weapons.

‘Thief-catcher Han,’ the head man acknowledged after introductions.

‘Sharpshooter Zhao.’

Zhao laughed. They fell into the easy camaraderie of weaponkind, but Zhao’s expression darkened when the jade heist was mentioned.

‘We were en route. The shipment was secured in one of our storehouses—we use them for very important cargo. The thieves bypassed the outer guard patrol and broke in.’

‘They took the shipment without a fight?’

Zhao took some offence at that. ‘We had two guards stationed inside. Wu and Lin are strong fellows. Both trained fighters. They claimed the thieves materialised like ghosts, black as night as they dropped from the rafters. Now my fellows wouldn’t admit this easily, but they were disarmed and overpowered before they could sound any alert.’

The thieves would have had the element of surprise as well as the advantage of launching an attack from higher ground.

‘This was why acrobats were suspected,’ Han remarked.

‘There was a troupe passing through town. The authorities figured with their skills, they might have been able to scale the walls and enter through the roof.’ Zhao rubbed at his neck, embarrassed. ‘I told the constable he was mistaken. No bunch of performers could defeat my men. These thieves were highly skilled and quite deadly.’

Han excused the man’s flair for the dramatic. Of course Zhao would have to insist that the band of thieves that overpowered his security force possessed extraordinary powers. He was at risk of losing face.

‘Do you have a record of everything in the shipment?’ Han asked.

‘It’s in the manifest.’ Zhao went behind the counter and rifled through a drawer, finally producing a scroll which he handed over.

Han scanned the list of valuables. Jade and gold, assessed at a value equalling a hundred bolts of silk. Among the items was a set of three carved pendants. Three was an odd number for such a set. The classic grouping was usually four. Han read through the descriptions: dragon, tiger, tortoise.

Also notable was the lack of any jade bracelets.

‘Your record keeper does good work,’ Han commented.

Zhao nodded with a grunt. ‘This is a serious business. We’re more than just another band of rabble carrying clubs.’

With the rise of bandits and outlaws, the armed-escort business was flourishing along with the thief-catching business. Too many undisciplined warriors about with no wars to fight.

The scroll contained additional information. The names of the sender and the recipient. Both go-betweens.

‘I suspect the final recipient was likely Wang Shizhen,’ Zhao said.

Han concurred. The general certainly had a great interest in recovering the stolen goods. The person who had enlisted Zhao’s services was a man by the name of Cai Yun. Why would an individual from another prefecture send so much wealth to General Wang?

There was definitely something more than a simple theft at work here and somehow Li Feng was entangled in it. He sincerely wished that she wasn’t. Han had come across some of the worst outlaws and Li Feng didn’t belong among them. Despite her talk of rebellion, she was motivated by honour and self-sacrifice. Why else would she give up her own silver to assist others? Or reach out to rescue a thief-catcher who would turn around and make life difficult for her?

‘Do you know anything more about this Cai Yun?’ Han asked.

‘He paid in advance and appeared well off. He’s petitioning for us to forfeit our fee as well as incur an additional dishonour penalty for failure to deliver.’

Zhao cursed a little. Han gave his sympathies.

‘It’s unusual to see a thief-catcher so dedicated,’ Zhao said. ‘They say you’ve never let a criminal get away.’

That was a new addition to his ever-growing story. ‘I do what I can,’ he replied humbly.

‘Hmmph. Find these thieves and I’ll add to your capture money. The penalty on such a shipment would bleed us dry.’

Han left the headquarters with the name of the man who had hired the security escort, but few answers otherwise. Li Feng was more than capable of the feat Zhao had described. He’d seen her leaping on to rooftops and if she could deftly slip out of locked buildings, she could just as easily sneak into them. That information by itself wasn’t enough to condemn her.

There was only one piece of evidence that connected her to the crime—though it appeared she had been telling the truth about it. The four celestial animals were a popular motif in artwork: the Green Dragon, the White Tiger, and the Black Tortoise. The final animal in the quartet was the Vermilion Bird. It looked very much like a phoenix.

Chapter Five

The lanterns of the Pavilion of the Singing Nightingale were always lit, night or day. The doors were always open and no matter when a visitor walked through, they were always greeted by the most elegantly dressed and graceful of ladies. The Singing Nightingale was located in a busy river port located along the Min and served as a crossroads for merchants and travelling officials.

The journey from Taining had taken a week, during which he pondered the possibilities. The thieves could have masqueraded as a dance troupe to get close to the warehouse without raising suspicion. Li Feng was certainly connected to the shipment in some way, but her pendant wasn’t stolen. Han was all the more determined to pursue her just to unravel the mystery she presented.

Finally, the shipment itself was suspicious. It certainly appeared to be a bribe or payment, but for what? Hopefully his contacts in town would be able to provide more insight. Han was nearly out of leads.

According to Zhao, the head of the security escort, the jade shipment had been transported by riverboat from its origin and had changed hands at this port from the mysterious Cai Yun over to the armed guards. Fortunately, Han was familiar with the area and immediately identified the Singing Nightingale as the sort of establishment a wealthy man would visit while in town. It was a brothel with aspirations and attempted to recreate the atmosphere of refinement found in the pleasure houses of the larger cities.

Han had the honour of being greeted by the lovely and talented Lotus. In age, she was perhaps just past the height of spring, but not yet in her autumn years. She would never admit to a number in regard to her age and Han had politely never asked.

Lotus still remained one of the leading beauties of the pavilion and served as hostess for the wealthiest and most distinguished of patrons. In Han’s case, neither applied. Lotus liked hearing dramatic tales of adventures and villains and heroes. Han always thought she enjoyed his company for that reason—though Lotus had made a lifelong profession out of convincing men she sincerely enjoyed their company.

‘Zheng Hao Han.’ Her fine silk robe brushed against him as she took his arm. A light cloud of perfume encircled him. She was all that was soft and feminine and elegant as she led him into a sitting area. ‘It’s been so long, I was certain you had forgotten about me.’

Her tone was mildly reproachful, but it was all part of the game. He apologised and professed that he could never forget her while the attendants brought wine and small dishes of boiled peanuts, scallion cakes and other refreshments.

‘What can you tell me about a man named Cai Yun? I already know he’s been here,’ he prompted as he detected the slight flicker in her expression as she considered his request.

Lotus pursed her lips prettily. ‘Will you say nice things about me?’ she bargained.

‘Of course.’

‘A man by that name has visited on occasion. Well dressed, well mannered. He seems to have money, but doesn’t brag too much about it.’ The courtesan paused and shot him a sly look. ‘Very nice things?’ she insisted.

Newfound fame had its benefits. ‘You’ll be notorious.’

She leaned in close, most likely so he could be ensnared by the sight of her graceful neck and the low cut of her bodice. ‘He seems to always be meeting with rather important-looking men. Merchants and the local official of this or that.’

‘Is this Cai Yun an aristocrat of some sort?’ That would explain the wealth and Lotus had an instinct for pouncing on such patrons.

She shook her head. A pearl ornament in her hair danced as she did so. ‘He has no name that I know of,’ she said coyly. ‘But one of his guests last month was someone noteworthy.’

He gave her an equally coy look. ‘Who could that be?’

‘The agent overseeing the district branch of the Salt Commission.’

That bit of information sparked his thief-catcher instinct immediately. The Salt Commission controlled the buying and selling of salt throughout the empire, managing the prices and taxes on it through countless offices. Agents travelled into even the most remote locations of the empire to enforce the commission’s policies. The salt trade and its taxes were a significant source of revenue for the government, and consequently spawned an entire underworld of illegal activity. Han had apprehended his share of salt smugglers.

Lotus draped an arm casually around his neck. ‘Now tell me what evil deed he committed to warrant your attention.’

She was so close that she was nearly in his lap, all because she genuinely liked him, of course. Despite the flirtation, Han knew he was unlikely to be invited into Lotus’s bedchamber. She was very selective about her lovers, enjoying the attentions of notable scholars and officials. They were friendly enough, however, that he was able to take hold of her chin to direct her eyes to his. He wanted a clear view of her expression for his next enquiry.

‘When I first mentioned Cai Yun, you looked surprised. As if you’d encountered some coincidence.’

She tried to look innocent now. ‘What do you mean?’

A silhouette passed by the outside of the curtain that divided the sitting room from the main hall. He wasn’t able to discern much more than a shadow. Definitely not a face or distinct form. But the quality of the movement sparked something in him.

‘Who was that?’ he asked.

Lotus laughed lightly. ‘You’re trying to make me jealous, Han.’

‘Lotus.’ The one word served as admonishment and enquiry.

‘The new girl.’ She shrugged, handing him a cup of wine. ‘There’s not much to say about her.’

Lotus wasn’t jealous. Han would have to be an imperial minister of the first rank to make it worthwhile for Lotus to be jealous.

‘Does she dance?’ he asked, his tone casual.

The courtesan smiled at him slyly. ‘You are single-minded when something catches your eye, aren’t you?’

‘I’d like to talk to her.’

At that, Lotus tilted her head obligingly and stood. She glided from the room without any further attempt to deflect. She was as smooth as silk and cunningly accommodating. Han took his time finishing the wine before setting his cup down and following her through the curtain.

Lotus was already coming back down the main staircase. ‘She isn’t feeling well—’

‘How caring of you.’

Heedlessly, Han moved past the courtesan and continued up towards the private chambers on the second floor. He had a certain instinct when it came to this sort of thing. The first door he opened revealed a group of scholars listening to a pipa player. He opened the second door to the sight of the ‘new girl’ trying to climb out the window.

Han grabbed hold of an ankle and she fell back on to the bed in a tangle of blue silk and gauze. She squirmed and struggled as he brushed aside the sleeve that had fallen over her face. He only caught a flash of dark, glittering eyes before Li Feng twisted beneath him.

She rolled on to her side and the unexpected shift in momentum threw him off of her. He’d forgotten how agile she was. With a rustle of silk, Li Feng was on top of him, her forearm shoved against his chest.

‘Always you!’ she seethed.