Breaking Bamboo Read Online Free Page B

stiffly.
    ‘Perhaps I had too little faith in you. In my position one is confronted by so many incompetent and self-seeking men. . .
    You will receive an auspicious reward.’
    ‘When your son wakes and eats an appropriate meal, I shall feel myself rewarded,’ said Shih. ‘It is crucial the boy is not stuffed with too much rich food.’ He added hastily: ‘Your Excellency.’
    The Pacification Commissioner chuckled.
    ‘What is your name again, doctor?’
    ‘Yun Shih, sir.’
    ‘Good. Carry on.’
    As they left he noticed the Pacification Commissioner’s wife whispering urgently to her husband, who silenced her with a curt gesture. Wang Bai was the last of the great people to leave.
    He stepped to the bedside and examined Little Tortoise coldly for a moment. The boy murmured anxiously in his sleep.
    ‘Ah,’ he said, looking over at Dr Shih. ‘Do not forget our little conversation.’
    Then he strolled out after his noble uncle.
    While Shih waited for Little Tortoise to awake, Third Tutor Hu slipped from the room. An hour later he was back, looking troubled.
    ‘Dr Shih,’ he said. ‘May I speak with you alone?’
    Tutor Hu led him to the garden and they sat on a long bench.
    The sun was beyond its zenith. Shih was glad of the warmth on his face.
    ‘I must tell you,’ said Hu. ‘That an embassy from the Physician’s Guild has begged yet another audience with His Excellency. Dr Du Mau, in particular, is most vexed. He claims that under his instructions magicians were busy all night and that their spells are the only reason for the boy’s recovery.
    He is concerned your meddling will undo his good work.’
    ‘Dr Du Mau is claiming to have cured Little Tortoise?’
    ‘His Excellency sent him away curtly. Indeed I do not think Dr Du Mau will be returning to Peacock Hill. All his fees here are at an end. I wish you to know this, so you might be prepared.’
    Shih sighed.
    ‘His anger will pass. He has many other patients.’
    ‘Perhaps,’ replied Tutor Hu. ‘I must also tell you that others are displeased by the boy’s recovery. You know Little Tortoise is His Excellency’s heir?’
    ‘I do.’
    ‘If he had died, the new heir would have been Wang Bai, as His Excellency’s nephew. You should know this as well. Wang Bai’s wife is distantly connected to Dr Du Mau by marriage and the Du clan own much property in Fouzhou. So you see, there is more to this than meets the eye. If Wang Bai had become heir, it would have enhanced the Du clan’s position inestimably.’
    Dr Shih concealed his hands in his sleeves.
    ‘I am a simple man. What has any of this to do with me?’
    ‘Surely that is obvious,’ said Tutor Hu, severely.
    Weariness crept through Shih. His deepest longing was to be back home, away from Peacock Hill.
    ‘Since we speak in confidence,’ he said. ‘This morning I overheard the Pacification Commissioner and his wife arguing.’
    Third Tutor Hu regarded him shrewdly.
    ‘When a man like His Excellency reaches the end of middle age, he becomes susceptible to influences . You see, good doctor, our household is not a happy one. And all for the sake of a mere woman!’
    He nodded significantly and leaned a little closer, so that Dr Shih smelt onion on his breath.
    ‘The Pacification Commissioner has grown too fond of his concubine, Lu Ying, and surely she is a remarkable girl. But she is foolish. Not only has Lu Ying offended His Excellency’s wife, but she argued against some advice of Wang Bai, who is not a man to forgive opposition. I fear our household will never be at peace while Lu Ying holds her current station.’
    ‘If Little Tortoise had died,’ said Shih. ‘This concubine might have provided the Pacification Commissioner with another heir. After all, his official wife is almost past child-bearing age.’
    ‘I see you understand politics,’ observed Third Tutor Hu. ‘I have told you these things as a warning. The rest is up to you.’
    It was late afternoon. Shih stood beside