A Neverending Search

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It was a sweltering afternoon, and hawkers were peddling ices and other wares in the street. A string of chuckling children ducked between the pedestrians, ignoring the grumblings of the butcher and smith. Occasionally, if one were lucky, one would spot a particularly ravishing beauty strolling down the pavement, stopping to assess the quality of colourful hairpins and brooches on display. Such a sight was not to be missed, and indeed, now was such a fortunate moment. A group of lads were crouching together by a wall, eyeing a young maiden and whispering.

 

“She seems a fairy sent down from heaven…”

“I wonder if she would respond if I said hello to her…”

“Whose daughter is she, anyway?”

“What shining eyes and lovely lips she has!”

 

The disapproving cough behind jolted them out of their idle talk and they turned to face a stern-looking priest. “What a disgrace you are! Get back to your work and stop goggling at pure young ladies!” His tone brook no opposition and they lowered their heads shamefacedly. Tsking, the priest shook his head as he turned around and made his way into the nearest inn.

 

Alas, here too was a scene for his disappointment. Every table was occupied, and the waiter could only, bowing repeatedly in the process, beg for his understanding to wait just a little longer, for the skinny youth swore that one of the patrons would be leaving in about five minutes.

 

“It’s quite alright, my boy, quite alright.” The priest sighed, stroking his beard and venturing out of the establishment.

 

“Waiter! Kindly invite the gentleman over here!” The young voice that spoke conveyed such self-assurance and polish that the priest paused in his departure. Tilting his head slightly, he replied, “That is most generous of you, young man. But I ought not to impose on your own privacy.”

 

“No, it is no trouble at all. Please, it would be an honour to me if you would join me at my table, sir.”

 

“Very well, then. I gladly oblige.” The priest smiled to himself and, turning, followed the waiter to his mysterious host.

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The young man rose as the priest approached the table, and gave a respectful salute. “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jiang De, and I am, but a brash youth who can only benefit from any wise words that my elders would care to impart.”

 

To this, the priest burst out laughing heartily but when he had stopped, returned the salute solemnly. “You over-estimate me terribly, Brother Jiang. I am, but a humble priest. Ma Chu Jie at your service, and in your debt, for your kind hospitality.” Saying, he gestured for them to sit, “Now, with all these formalities out of the way, perhaps you’d care to share with me on what brings you here to this area? You don’t look like you’re from these parts, I’ll venture to say that.”

 

Jiang De’s cheeks seemed to turn a shade darker as he paused a moment, considering his choice of words in his reply. He stared at his half-filled cup, flicking it between his thumb and forefinger. “My tale is rather odd, and not without its share of embarrassment, Priest Ma. But, I think I can trust you to keep my story to yourself until I think it time for the world to know.” There was a raw tone to his voice; gone was the youthful exuberance in his greeting.

 

“I have been brought up in relative comfort.” Here, he smiled self-deprecatingly at his rich attire, “My parents have treated me well, granted my every wish and whim and given me the best of education that money can buy.” He raised the wine flask, helping himself and the priest to some more. “But because of a foolish remark I made, I have made everyone in the family unhappy, even myself.” Shaking his head, he waved his cup in mid-air, only to be stopped by Ma Chu Jie.

 

“Brother Jiang, you’d better stop drinking; you’re drunk.” Inwardly, the priest bemoaned the wastefulness and extravagance of this new acquaintance; why, he seemed just like any rich young man who simply squandered away the family wealth, threw a few careless comments here and there, and now here he was, feeling sorry for himself! Ma Chu Jie felt the temptation to leave, but decided against it for the time being. Why not give the boy a chance? He could not be older than seventeen, surely, and could perhaps be made to see the error of his philandering ways.

 

“I’m not drunk.” Jiang De slammed the cup onto the table, “I wish I were.” He raised his glazed eyes to stare at the grimacing priest. “Priest Ma, I don’t know what to do.” Sighing, he continued, “Or rather, I know what I ought to do for now. But I don’t know if I’ll succeed and what to do, after that.”

 

“Get a grip on yourself, if you’re not drunk.” Ma Chu Jie finally retorted, “Here you are, at an age when you should be doing yourself, your family and your country proud. But you sit here, mumbling and whining about something which you will not elaborate upon! How is anyone to help you, if they do not know what aid you need? Speak up, man, and be done with all this yammering!”

 

Again, Jiang De’s cheeks flushed – and if truth be told, he had such a handsome face that the rosiness actually became him. He clenched his shaking fist before he faced his table mate. “You are so right, Priest Ma.” There was a cool tone in his voice, though there were hintings of humiliation, “Why should I beat about the bush? I should just tell you the whole story, since I have decided to share with you my plight.”

 

“As I had mentioned earlier, I have lived seventeen years of a comfortable life in the family of Jiang.” In the brief pause that ensued, Ma Chu Jie began to have a whiff of suspicion as to what was to come, “About a week ago, I had returned home from hunting, upset with myself for not having caught any game and being a pain to everyone in the family. I even chided my mother for fussing over my perspiration and my father, for hiring such useless helpers.” He paused, inhaling deeply before he went on with his tale. “At last, my elder sister, who is about ten years older than myself, could bear it no longer and gave me a fierce scolding. None of my parents’ threats would stop her; she yelled about me being a bought child and having no right to give myself such airs, even as my father ordered the servants to grab her and beat her with a large wooden pole.”

 

Ma Chu Jie simply nodded silently, signaling for the young man to go on.

 

“Of course, I pleaded mercy for her. But I insisted on knowing the truth, as my sister had never told a lie for as long as I had been aware, and it was simply out of her character to come up with such a ludicrous story.” The waiter appeared, refilled the wine flask and walked off discreetly. “Initially, my parents vehemently denied it. My mother wept and begged me not to upset her with such accusations; my father threatened to throw me out of the house if I persisted in my questioning. Yet, I replied, ‘If the story were true, Father, you would not need to throw me out for I would not be your real son and have no right to dwell here in luxury. So either way, Father, I would be leaving this house, wouldn’t I?’”

 

“That was not exactly a filial and polite statement to make, Jiang De.” Ma Chu Jie remarked finally, “But you did right. A man must know his origin before he can decide on his purpose in life. I suppose the truth then came out?”

 

Jiang De bowed his head. “Yes, it appears that I was bought by the Jiangs a few days after I was born. This secret has been kept from me for seventeen years.” He let out his breath deeply, unable to speak anymore.

 

“So you intend to find your real parents?”

 

“Yes. Although I do not know where they are. My parents…” his words trailed off with a touch of irony, “… would not tell me. I have left them, one weeping, another fuming and the third regretting. My future is uncertain.”