The Sword Dancer

‘This will be the last time,’ she declared.

With the jade back in her possession, Li Feng had the link she needed to search for her past. This time she wouldn’t let anyone deter her, not a smooth-tongued rebel nor a relentless thief-catcher. She grabbed his clothes and threw them out the window before turning to leave.

The sword dancer disappeared after the incident at the bath house. None of his informants could locate her. A young woman travelling alone would have been easily noticed, but Li Feng didn’t appear at any more jade shops or inns or any of the common hideouts for those who made their home on the road. The worst of it was she could be anywhere. The rugged terrain of the province provided a landscape of mountains and valleys where outlaws could hide away from civil authorities. It was one of the reasons his profession was so lucrative in this region.

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.

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