JUDGE DEB DISCUSSES A CASE WITH SERGEANT HOONG
strip of white cloth dangle from her window, its other end being fastened to the leg of her bedstead. When I gave the strip a pull from below she would open her window and assist my ascent by hauling in the cloth. A casual observer would think this cloth a piece of laundry that people had forgotten to take inside for the night.'
Here Judge Dee interrupted the sergeant's reading by hitting his fist on the desk.
'The crafty rascal!' he exclaimed angrily. 'A fine thing indeed, a Candidate of Literature stooping to the tricks of thieves and burglars!'
'As I remarked before, Your Honour,' Sergeant Hoong said, 'that Wang is a base criminal! But I continue his statement:
'One day, however, Tailor Loong discovered my secret and he, honest man, threatened to tell Butcher Hsiao. But I, blind fool, disregarded this warning doubtless arranged by Merciful Heaven, and pleaded with him. Finally he consented to keep his silence.
'Thus the affair went on for nearly half a year. Then August Heaven on high could no longer countenance this violation of its Sacred Commands, and in one terrible blow it has smitten both innocent, poor Pure Jade and myself, miserable sinner. We had agreed that I should go to her again on the night of the sixteenth. That afternoon, however, my friend and fellow-student Yang Poo came to see me and told me that his father in the capital had sent him five silver pieces for his birthday. He invited me to join him in a small celebration at the Five Tastes Inn in the northern quarter of this city. During the meal I drank more wine than I could stand. When I left Yang Poo and walked out in the cool night air I realised that I was completely drunk. I intended to return home and He down for an hour or so to sleep off the effects of intoxication before visiting Pure Jade, but I lost my way. Early this morning, just before dawn, I regained my senses and found myself lying in the midst of thorny brushwood among the ruins of an old mansion. I struggled up, my head was still heavy, I stumbled along without noticing much of my surroundings until somehow or other I reached the main street. I walked home and went straight up to my room. I lay down on my bed and fell asleep again straight away. It was only when Your Honour's constables came to fetch me that I learned about the terrible fate that had overtaken my poor bride-to-be.
' Sergeant Hoong stopped his reading and looked at the judge. With a sneer he said:
'Now comes the peroration of that sanctimonious hypocrite!'
'If Your Honour should decide that I must suffer the extreme penalty because of my unforgivable conduct towards this unfortunate girl or for having brought about indirectly her death, I shall welcome the verdict. It will deliver me from an intolerable existence which must for ever be clouded in darkness now that I have lost my beloved. But in order that her death be avenged, and for the sake of the honour of my family, I am compelled to deny most emphatically the crime of rape and murder of which I stand accused.'
The sergeant put the paper down. Tapping it with his forefinger he said:
'Wang's plan for escaping the just punishment for his foul crime is obvious. He emphasised his guilt in seducing the girl, but steadfastly denied that he murdered her. He is perfectly aware of the fact that the punishment for seducing an unmarried girl, with her consent to the act so plainly established, is fifty blows with the bamboo, while the punishment for murder is an ignominious death on the execution ground!'
Sergeant Hoong looked expectantly at his master, but Judge Dee made no comment He slowly drank another cup of tea. Then he asked:
"What did Judge Feng say to Wang's statement?'
The sergeant consulted a document roll. After a while he said:
'During that session Judge Feng did not press Candidate Wang further. He immediately started on the routine investigation.'
'A wise procedure!' Judge Dee said approvingly. 'Can you find for me the report on his visit to the scene of the crime, and the findings of the coroner?'
Sergeant Hoong unrolled the document further.
'Yes, Your Honour, it is all set down here in detail. Judge Feng set out for Half Moon Street accompanied by his assistants. In the garret they found the naked body of a strongly-built and well-developed girl of about nineteen stretched out on the couch. Her face was distorted and her hair dishevelled. The mattress was awry and the pillow had fallen on the floor. A long strip of white cloth, one end tied to the leg of the bed, was lying crumpled on the floor. The chest wherein Pure Jade kept her scanty wardrobe was open. Against the wall opposite the bed there stood a large laundry tub, and in a corner a dilapidated small table with a cracked mirror. The only other.furniture was a wooden footstool that lay overturned in front of the bed.'
'Was there no clue to the murderer's identity?' Judge Dee interrupted him.
'None, Your Honour,' Sergeant Hoong answered, 'a most diligent search failed to produce the slightest clue. The only discovery was a package of love poems addressed to Pure Jade which she had kept carefully wrapped-up in a drawer of the toilet table, although of course she could not read them. Those poems were signed by Candidate Wang.
'As to the autopsy, the coroner stated that death had ensued as a result of strangulation. The victim's throat showed two large bruises where the murderer's hands had choked her. He further listed numerous blue and swollen spots on her breast and arms, proving that the girl had fought back as well as she could. Finally, the coroner noted that certain signs proved that the girl had been raped before or during strangulation.'
The sergeant quickly glanced through the remaining part of the roll. Then he continued:
'During the ensuing days Judge Feng verified all the evidence brought forward in a most painstaking way. He sent____________________'
'You can skip the details,' Judge Dee interposed, 'I am convinced that Judge Feng performed that task in a thorough manner. Tell me the main points only. I would like to know, for instance, what Yang Poo had to say about the celebration in that inn.'
'Wang's friend Yang Poo,' the sergeant answered, 'confirmed his story in every detail, except that he did not think that Wang had been very drunk when he left him. Yang Poo used the words "slightly intoxicated." I may add that Wang could not identify the place where he allegedly awoke from his drunken sleep. Judge Feng did what he could, he had his constables take Wang to probable sites of ruined mansions all over the city and tried to make Wang identify one of those by mentioning some detail; but all in vain. Wang's body showed some deep scratches and his robe had some recent tears. Wang explained those as resulting from his stumbling among the thorny brushwood.