was due to illness.
Finally Vice Minister Liu looked up. “I have been wondering about your progress with the case of the death of the son of the American ambassador. No one has been arrested.”
“This is correct, Vice Minister Liu,” Hulan said.
Section Chief Zai cleared his throat. “We understood that the ministry did not want our department to pursue this matter.”
The vice minister waved his hand, as if dispersing a bad smell. “I am waiting for Inspector Liu to explain herself.”
Zai sank deeper into his chair.
“What we know is this,” Hulan began, “Billy Watson was found in Bei Hai Lake. Pathologist Fong and I did not believe that it was an accident. I requested that he perform a full autopsy. The boy’s parents did not want us to go ahead with this.”
“And yet,” Vice Minister Liu observed, “I see from the file that you disregarded their wish in this instance.”
“Yes, I did,” Hulan admitted. “I took it upon myself to authorize the autopsy. I did not plan to attend, but after Pathologist Fong opened the body, he asked me to come to his laboratory. The boy showed no outward signs of physical deterioration. Pathologist Fong expected this, as the body had been frozen and therefore preserved. However, what he found
inside
the boy gave us considerable cause for concern. The postmortem showed damage to all of his major organs. They had begun to liquefy. Clusters of capillaries had burst in several of his organs. The worst damage was in his lungs, which showed hemorrhaging and a buildup of other fluids in addition to general deterioration. Pathologist Fong concluded that the immediate cause of death was that the boy had drowned in his own blood.”
“What would cause that?”
“We have no idea. Pathologist Fong found a strange residue on the lung and esophageal linings. As the vice minister knows, Pathologist Fong was unable to complete his investigation.”
“But what does he suspect?”
“He doesn’t like to speculate, but it must have been a very strong poison. There’s no doubt that the boy’s death was not an accident, but the American ambassador was not interested in these facts.” Hulan hesitated, then added, “But you know all of this, Vice Minister. You spoke with Ambassador Watson yourself. The order to release the body to the Americans came from you.”
Vice Minister Liu changed the subject. “A delicate situation has arisen. I’m sure that you have heard about the death of the son of Guang Mingyun. Officially, the boy’s body was found in U.S. territory, but those foreign devils, they believe that the boy died here, in China. None of this would be our concern, except that there are some similarities between the two deaths.”
Hulan sneaked a glance at Mr. Zai, who remained silent. Again Hulan spoke. “What similarities?”
“Apparently the foreign devils have also discovered—what did you call it?—a strange residue in the boy’s lungs.” Vice Minister Liu held up a hand to keep Hulan and Zai from interrupting him. “I won’t explain the rest now. What matters is that Guang Mingyun is as important a man to us as Ambassador Watson is to the Americans. Because of who these boys were, our two governments have agreed to ally themselves to each other so we might look for the person who committed these crimes. The ministry has decided that Inspector Liu—because of her experience with foreigners and her facility with their language—should work with them.”
Hulan and Zai took this news in stunned silence. Neither could remember a single instance when law enforcement agencies from the two countries had worked together successfully. The only previous joint effort—the infamous “Goldfish” case—had ended in disaster. The Chinese had arrested, convicted, and sentenced a man, Ding Yao, for his involvement in the drug trade. The DEA had asked that he be sent to the United States to testify against the people implicated on that side of the Pacific. The
Finally Vice Minister Liu looked up. “I have been wondering about your progress with the case of the death of the son of the American ambassador. No one has been arrested.”
“This is correct, Vice Minister Liu,” Hulan said.
Section Chief Zai cleared his throat. “We understood that the ministry did not want our department to pursue this matter.”
The vice minister waved his hand, as if dispersing a bad smell. “I am waiting for Inspector Liu to explain herself.”
Zai sank deeper into his chair.
“What we know is this,” Hulan began, “Billy Watson was found in Bei Hai Lake. Pathologist Fong and I did not believe that it was an accident. I requested that he perform a full autopsy. The boy’s parents did not want us to go ahead with this.”
“And yet,” Vice Minister Liu observed, “I see from the file that you disregarded their wish in this instance.”
“Yes, I did,” Hulan admitted. “I took it upon myself to authorize the autopsy. I did not plan to attend, but after Pathologist Fong opened the body, he asked me to come to his laboratory. The boy showed no outward signs of physical deterioration. Pathologist Fong expected this, as the body had been frozen and therefore preserved. However, what he found
inside
the boy gave us considerable cause for concern. The postmortem showed damage to all of his major organs. They had begun to liquefy. Clusters of capillaries had burst in several of his organs. The worst damage was in his lungs, which showed hemorrhaging and a buildup of other fluids in addition to general deterioration. Pathologist Fong concluded that the immediate cause of death was that the boy had drowned in his own blood.”
“What would cause that?”
“We have no idea. Pathologist Fong found a strange residue on the lung and esophageal linings. As the vice minister knows, Pathologist Fong was unable to complete his investigation.”
“But what does he suspect?”
“He doesn’t like to speculate, but it must have been a very strong poison. There’s no doubt that the boy’s death was not an accident, but the American ambassador was not interested in these facts.” Hulan hesitated, then added, “But you know all of this, Vice Minister. You spoke with Ambassador Watson yourself. The order to release the body to the Americans came from you.”
Vice Minister Liu changed the subject. “A delicate situation has arisen. I’m sure that you have heard about the death of the son of Guang Mingyun. Officially, the boy’s body was found in U.S. territory, but those foreign devils, they believe that the boy died here, in China. None of this would be our concern, except that there are some similarities between the two deaths.”
Hulan sneaked a glance at Mr. Zai, who remained silent. Again Hulan spoke. “What similarities?”
“Apparently the foreign devils have also discovered—what did you call it?—a strange residue in the boy’s lungs.” Vice Minister Liu held up a hand to keep Hulan and Zai from interrupting him. “I won’t explain the rest now. What matters is that Guang Mingyun is as important a man to us as Ambassador Watson is to the Americans. Because of who these boys were, our two governments have agreed to ally themselves to each other so we might look for the person who committed these crimes. The ministry has decided that Inspector Liu—because of her experience with foreigners and her facility with their language—should work with them.”
Hulan and Zai took this news in stunned silence. Neither could remember a single instance when law enforcement agencies from the two countries had worked together successfully. The only previous joint effort—the infamous “Goldfish” case—had ended in disaster. The Chinese had arrested, convicted, and sentenced a man, Ding Yao, for his involvement in the drug trade. The DEA had asked that he be sent to the United States to testify against the people implicated on that side of the Pacific. The
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