A Courtyard Romance

"She had arrived, in the rain, in a yellow rickshaw. The puller had slipped on a slick cobblestone and had torn the straps on his sandal; the Peony Princess had seen Bun-Chao’s stall and had insisted on buying the rickshaw-man a new set of footwear. Li-Hsien, for whom rain was a threat to business, had been telling tales to the street urchins under the gateway eaves, his books safely stashed there in temporary storage from the wet; he grabbed his bamboo parasol and helped the Peony Princess alight from her conveyance, offering her a perusal of his wares while the rickshaw-man obtained more shoes from Bun-Chao.

They fell into the easy patter that was a daily routine for Li-Hsien: she asked if he had a copy of The Journey Into the West; of course, he replied, for hire or for sale – it was very popular. What about The Tale of Genji? Indeed, said Li-Hsien, complimenting her on her familiarity with the classics. Then she seemed to hesitate, idly flicking through a sentimental romance of low quality but not seeming to focus on it: did he have The Story of the Stone she asked cautiously? He was not sure: who had written it? She could not recall but – and she had coloured prettily, bowing her head and replacing the volume she held – it was sometimes known as A Dream of Red Mansions. Li-Hsien had widened his eyes, but reached immediately for the stack which held the first chapter.

‘Is it good?’ she had asked intently, with the rain whispering in the background.

‘It’s somewhat – provocative,’ Li-Hsien had responded. ‘The first chapter is innocuous, but it becomes more – intricate – later on.’

‘I will hire it from you then,’ she had said decisively. ‘If I find it dull I will return it and go no further.’ She had untied several cash from the string hanging about her wrist and clutched the chapter possessively..."