Read Online The Forbidden Kingdom by Jan Jacob Slauerhoff - Free Book Online
Authors: Jan Jacob Slauerhoff
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with an angry laugh.
“A failure, the bird has flown, and I was almost caught in the cage.”
“Run away? But why didn’t you wait for me to return home, and then we could have given chase at once?”
“Bear in mind that it’s only a five-minute walk from your house to the Dominican monastery.”
“The monastery? Do you think she’s there?”
“Have you forgotten that masquerade then? Believe me, at the moment Pilar is playing Veronica or Egyptian Mary. Who knows?”
“Then they must surrender her! Paternal authority is higher than the church’s.”
“That would be asking for trouble. The monastery is a recognized place of sanctuary. And hasn’t the father transferred his authority prematurely? Wouldn’t the authority of a father and lieutenant receive a blow harder than that branch received from my boot, from the revelation of this story? No, let’s clear out the whole nest at once, and raze it to the ground. Think of the benefits! We’ll be rid of that brood of Dominicans at last, we’ll embarrass the merchants and we ourselves will bask in the favour of the Chinese.”
“Why?”
“By finding a pretext for the destruction of the monastery.”
“What riddles are these?”
“Listen. The merchant Lou Yat has a son and a daughter who have become devout converts through the Dominicans. They confess, go to church and can already cross themselves, much to the fury of the honourable Lou Yat, who I believe is the deacon of the temple of A Mao. The whole Chinese district is abuzz with the apostasy of his children. Well, today is Tuesday. On Thursday morning he will be found at his counter with his throat cut, and the son and daughter will have disappeared. What will the Chinese authorities think,what will they demand? What will the merchants’ guild not agree to? What will we not do only too gladly to satisfy the mandarins?”
“But won’t we actually find Lou Yat’s children in the monastery?” objected Campos.
“They will never be found. But there will be ex cavations in a monastery garden and children’s bodies will be discovered in an unrecognizable state of decom position and with their eyes gouged out.”
“But that’s going too far!” cried Campos. “That will deal a blow to everyone who calls himself Portuguese.”
“Not to us. Consider the consequences: the clergy driven out, the power of the merchants, who this time cannot hush up the matter with money, curtailed , and the strictly upright Procurador, the armed forces fighting against their own priests for the sake of justice, feared and honoured in every corner of China.”
“But who will carry out the murder of the Lou Yat family, so that we won’t be unmasked as the orchestrators?”
Ronquilho grinned.
“I have three men in my garrison, about whom I know enough to have them strung from the yardarms of all the seafaring powers. They’ll hold their tongues.”
“Won’t they betray us?”
“Never. I myself will run them through in the confusion of the assault on the monastery. The dead tell no tales.”
Campos gave in. He surveyed Ronquilho with respect and remembered in astonishment that only that morning he had called him brave but stupid.
IV
I T WAS THE NIGHT of the Senate session at which Pedro Velho was to be installed. In his suddenly lonely house Campos prepared himself for the onerous task. He had to dress by sparse candlelight.
The fleet from Malacca had still not arrived, so that there was still a shortage of lamp oil. So the vision of Pilar appeared after all to have been a reflection of reality. The house of the Procurador was better lit than any other; many burnt no more than a single candle, but he must not seem to be extravagant. In his mind it was darker still. Still no sign of his daughter, and Lou Yat and his children were still alive. When asked about it, Ronquilho smiled craftily and gave evasive answers. He himself had made a few attempts to unearth some blot or dubious transaction, but Velho
“A failure, the bird has flown, and I was almost caught in the cage.”
“Run away? But why didn’t you wait for me to return home, and then we could have given chase at once?”
“Bear in mind that it’s only a five-minute walk from your house to the Dominican monastery.”
“The monastery? Do you think she’s there?”
“Have you forgotten that masquerade then? Believe me, at the moment Pilar is playing Veronica or Egyptian Mary. Who knows?”
“Then they must surrender her! Paternal authority is higher than the church’s.”
“That would be asking for trouble. The monastery is a recognized place of sanctuary. And hasn’t the father transferred his authority prematurely? Wouldn’t the authority of a father and lieutenant receive a blow harder than that branch received from my boot, from the revelation of this story? No, let’s clear out the whole nest at once, and raze it to the ground. Think of the benefits! We’ll be rid of that brood of Dominicans at last, we’ll embarrass the merchants and we ourselves will bask in the favour of the Chinese.”
“Why?”
“By finding a pretext for the destruction of the monastery.”
“What riddles are these?”
“Listen. The merchant Lou Yat has a son and a daughter who have become devout converts through the Dominicans. They confess, go to church and can already cross themselves, much to the fury of the honourable Lou Yat, who I believe is the deacon of the temple of A Mao. The whole Chinese district is abuzz with the apostasy of his children. Well, today is Tuesday. On Thursday morning he will be found at his counter with his throat cut, and the son and daughter will have disappeared. What will the Chinese authorities think,what will they demand? What will the merchants’ guild not agree to? What will we not do only too gladly to satisfy the mandarins?”
“But won’t we actually find Lou Yat’s children in the monastery?” objected Campos.
“They will never be found. But there will be ex cavations in a monastery garden and children’s bodies will be discovered in an unrecognizable state of decom position and with their eyes gouged out.”
“But that’s going too far!” cried Campos. “That will deal a blow to everyone who calls himself Portuguese.”
“Not to us. Consider the consequences: the clergy driven out, the power of the merchants, who this time cannot hush up the matter with money, curtailed , and the strictly upright Procurador, the armed forces fighting against their own priests for the sake of justice, feared and honoured in every corner of China.”
“But who will carry out the murder of the Lou Yat family, so that we won’t be unmasked as the orchestrators?”
Ronquilho grinned.
“I have three men in my garrison, about whom I know enough to have them strung from the yardarms of all the seafaring powers. They’ll hold their tongues.”
“Won’t they betray us?”
“Never. I myself will run them through in the confusion of the assault on the monastery. The dead tell no tales.”
Campos gave in. He surveyed Ronquilho with respect and remembered in astonishment that only that morning he had called him brave but stupid.
IV
I T WAS THE NIGHT of the Senate session at which Pedro Velho was to be installed. In his suddenly lonely house Campos prepared himself for the onerous task. He had to dress by sparse candlelight.
The fleet from Malacca had still not arrived, so that there was still a shortage of lamp oil. So the vision of Pilar appeared after all to have been a reflection of reality. The house of the Procurador was better lit than any other; many burnt no more than a single candle, but he must not seem to be extravagant. In his mind it was darker still. Still no sign of his daughter, and Lou Yat and his children were still alive. When asked about it, Ronquilho smiled craftily and gave evasive answers. He himself had made a few attempts to unearth some blot or dubious transaction, but Velho
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