"But now we do not go home at all!"
"But if we can manage to escape and avoid recapture, then we have saved face in both the eyes of Caesar and Emperor Ming. However, we need help. Where are Primo and Bold Dragon?"
Because they knew they were being watched, Sebastianus and Timonides strolled through the marketplace, idly inspecting novelty items unknown in Rome, which needed to be demonstrated in order to understand their function: small, handheld sticks for eating; a device made of bamboo and oiled cloth, held over the head against rain and the hot sun; fans made of feathers and silk, for wafting the face in heat; a board fixed with a metal spoon that, when spun, always returned to pointing north. They saw such wonders as lanterns made of paper, glowing in the night breeze; alchemists experimenting with a black powder that exploded; bamboo frameworks covered with silk, flying in the wind at the end of a long string.
Mostly they seemed like toys and gadgets to Sebastianus, but there were truly ingenious inventions as well, such as the small hand-propelled vehicle with one wheel in the front and two handles in the rear by which a man pushed and guided it—an ingenious device that allowed a worker to transport material too heavy to carry on his own. No such tool existed in Rome.
Sebastianus wished Ulrika could see these inventions for herself. Each time Sebastianus came upon something new, he thought of her, imagining her reaction. Ulrika loved to read. What would she make of Chinese literature printed on silk scrolls or painted in books made of peach wood? How would she discuss The Book of Changes by Confucius; The Art of War by Sun Tzu; a book of divination called I Ching by Fei Zhi; histories, biographies, volumes of poetry, myths, and fables?
He would love to discuss China's unique philosophies and beliefs with her. What would Ulrika make of the Great Sage, whose name was taboo to utter, a philosopher who lived five centuries ago? His name, Sebastianus had finally discovered, was K'ung-fu-tzu which meant "Master Kong," and which Sebastianus and Timonides rendered as Confucius, in order to avoid breaking the law of name-taboo. The Great Sage lived long ago and introduced a code of living that stressed morality, ethics, justice, and compassion, with principles of good conduct, practical wisdom, and proper social relationships.
There was also a local folk belief called Taoism, founded two hundred years prior by a man named Lao-Tzu. Tao was considered to be the Cosmic Intelligence, inaccessible to human understanding, that governed the natural course of all things. The practice encompassed black magic, alchemy, elixirs of life, and hundreds of gods. Taoists revered ancestor spirits and beings they called the Immortals, and were known for their devotion to the quest for immortality, as evidenced in their search for magic herbs and minerals that would promote eternal earthly life.
So many wonders in this exotic land! Sebastianus wished he could take Ulrika to the emperor's private zoo so that she could marvel at the black-eyed pandas, pacing white tigers, and orangutans that looked like old men. He wished she could feast her eyes on other fabulous offerings in the marketplace: towering statues of pink jade, carved into the likeness of Kwan-Yin, goddess of mercy; mountains of colorful silks and satins that blinded the eye; vast amphorae filled with delectable rice wine; urns beyond counting, groaning with aromatic spices; a confection made of almonds, called marzipan, molded into the shapes of animals and flowers; and bundles of a rare medicinal plant, called rhubarb, highly prized and very costly and found only on the banks of the Chang Jiang River.
He could not wait to share with her Chinese customs and traditions: the belief in and respect for dragons; the custom of both men and women to wear their hair long in the belief that since one got one's hair from one's parents it was disrespectful to cut it; the practice of dressing little boys as girls in the hope of fooling mischievous spirit-thieves into thinking he was a mere girl and not worth stealing; the ritual of placing dried peonies beneath a bed to keep evil spirits away.
He would explain to Ulrika that preserving family honor, saving face, and paying respects to the ancestors were prized above one's life, and that a man would prefer death to failing to observe these virtues. The Chinese also had a passion for harmony, long life, and good luck, all of which were pursued through the use of incense, amulets, charms, lucky numbers, and an almost fanatical devotion to keeping evil spirits out of the house by use of deceptive screens, waterfalls, and broomsticks.
Ulrika was in Sebastianus's thoughts day and night. Every single new thing he met and marveled at made him wish to share it with her. His love for her had grown over the miles and the months. He thought of the Social Flowers who greeted him and his companions in the evenings, after a day spent with the emperor or with astrologers and philosophers and other learned men. Beautiful young women, slim and delicate, like lilies indeed, demure and compliant, sweetly scented and softly spoken. They gave pleasure, as their name promised, but Sebastianus found it to be an empty pleasure, as there was only one woman whose embrace he truly desired.
Sebastianus had achieved his goal of reaching the throne of China. He knew that honors awaited him in Rome, that his name would be spoken far and wide for his achievement. But, in the end, what he had learned from Chinese philosophers and astrologers, from the emperor and his mandarins, from people in the streets and merchants' stalls, from the Social Flowers even, was that love was more important than honors and fame and knowledge. After nearly a year of drinking in this exotic culture and soaking up China's wisdom, Sebastianus knew that it was all empty if he had no one with whom to share it.
And what of Ulrika's life? What was she doing at that moment? Where was she? Was she happy or sad? Did she find her mother in Jerusalem? Did she find an explanation for her visions? Does she now know the meaning of the Divining and the location of Shalamandar? Sebastianus did not want to miss out on the milestones of Ulrika's life. Just as he wished she could share in his adventure, he wanted to share in hers.
"Primo said they would be here by noon," Sebastianus murmured as they neared the Gate of Heavenly Harmony, which led to the crowded southern quarter of the city. He looked up at the sun. It was now midday.
Timonides sensed his master's growing anxiousness and wished there was something he could do to alleviate it. He cast Sebastianus's horoscope twice a day, but nowhere could he read when their day of departure would be, or the manner of that departure. Wondering if perhaps, because they were in China, they should employ the methods of Chinese astrology, Timonides had studied the heavens with palace astrologers, but had ultimately not been able to master the science as it was so different from that of Greece and Rome.
In Chinese astrology, there were twelve star signs, each a different animal that ruled its own year and that supposedly demonstrated the characteristics of the person born in that year. There were also animal signs assigned to each month (called inner animals) and then to hours of the day (called secret animals). And so while a person might appear to be an Ox because he was born in the year of the Ox, he might also be a Bear internally and a Dragon secretively. This made for over eight thousand combinations, each a different personality with a different horoscope.
It made Timonides's head spin. He went back to his twelve zodiacal signs, his charts, and his protractor. But no predictions were forthcoming and he was beginning to wonder if possibly the power of the gods of Greece and Rome did not reach this far.