"We'll learn all that when we have caught Mao Loo," the judge said. "But we know already where Mao Loo concealed that unfortunate woman these last days, namely in the brothel behind the fish market! 'Mao Loo's wench,' as the one-eyed man referred to her, is nobody else but Mrs. Djang!"

A clerk came in carrying a tray with Judge Dee's noon meal. While he was placing the bowls on the table, the judge resumed:

"We can easily verify our theory about Mrs. Djang. You three can have your noon meal now too; then Chiao Tai goes to the brothel and brings the owner here. He'll give us a description of the woman Mao Loo brought there."

He took up his chopsticks, and his three lieutenants left.

Judge Dee ate without really tasting his food. He was trying to digest the new facts that had come to light. There could hardly be any doubt that the case Liu versus Djang was now solved; only some details remained to be filled in. The real problem was to find the link between this case and the murder of the courtesan. One could now safely assume that the professor was innocent, but the whole affair threw a curious light on Liu Fei-po.

When the clerk had cleared the table and poured out a cup of tea, the judge took the documents relating to the murder on the flower boat from the drawer, and started rereading them, slowly caressing his side whiskers.

Thus his four lieutenants found him when they entered the private office. Ma Joong said:

"Well, I now have seen the professor show some real emotion! Wasn't he glad to see his son!"

"The others will have told you already," Judge Dee said to him, "that we have strong reasons to assume that Candidate Djang's bride is alive too. Did you bring the brothel owner here, Chiao Tai?"

"He did!" Ma Joong replied for him. "I saw that beauty waiting in the corridor outside!"

"Bring her in!" Judge Dee ordered.

Chiao Tai came back with a tall, rawboned woman with a coarse, flat face. She bowed deeply, then at once began in a whining voice:

"He didn't even give me time for changing my robe, Your Excellency! How can I appear before Your Excellency in this terrible attire! I said to him-"

"Be quiet and listen to your magistrate!" the judge cut her short. "You know I can close your establishment any time I choose, so you'd better be careful and tell the complete truth. Who was the woman brought to your place by Mao Loo?"

The woman fell on her knees.

"I knew the rascal would land me into trouble!" she wailed. "But what can a weak woman do, Your Excellency! He would have cut my throat, Excellency! Forgive me, Excellency!"

Crying loudly, she knocked her forehead on the floor. "Stop all that noise!" Judge Dee commanded angrily. "Speak up; who was that woman!"

"How could I know the wench!" the woman cried out. "Mao Loo brings her to my house in the middle o£ the night; I swear I had never seen her before! She wears a queer, single robe, and looks rather frightened. Brother Mao says: 'The chicken doesn't know what's good for her. Can you imagine her refusing a fine husband like me? But I'll teach her a lesson!' I see the poor girl is really ill, so I tell Mao Loo to leave her alone for the night. That's how I am, Excellency. I always believe in treating them kindly. I put her in a nice room; I give her some good rice gruel and a pot of tea. I remember exactly what I said to her, Excellency. 'Go to sleep, my chicken,' I say, 'and don't worry! Tomorrow you'll see that everything is all right!'" The woman heaved a deep sigh.

"Oh, you don't know those girls, Excellency! One would have thought that the next morning she'd at least say thank you to me. But no! She woke up the whole house, kicking against the door and shouting at the top of her voice. And when I went up to her she cursed me and Brother Mao and said all kinds of foolish things about her being kidnaped and belonging to a good family-the kind of story they'll always tell. Well, there's one way to make them see reason, and that is to give them a taste of a piece of rope. That shut her up, and when Brother Mao came she went quietly away with him. I swear that's all, Excellency!"

Judge Dee looked at her with contempt. He thought a moment of arresting her for having maltreated a girl, then reflected that she had only acted according to her lights. Those low-class brothels were a necessary evil; the authorities could control them so as to prevent excesses, but they could never eliminate entirely cruelty to the unfortunate inmates. He said sternly:

"You know very well that you are not allowed to give lodging to stray girls. For the time being, however, I'll let you go. But I'll check your story, and if you didn't tell the truth you are done for!" The woman again began knocking her head on the floor, protesting her gratitude. On a sign of the judge, Tao Gan led her away. Judge Dee said gravely:

"Yes, our theory is correct. Candidate Djang's wife is alive, but perhaps it would have been better for her to die than to fall into Mao Loo's hands! We must arrest Mao Loo as quickly as possible and deliver her from that ruffian. They are in a place called Three Oaks Island, in the district Chiang-pei. Does anybody know where that is?"

Tao Gan said:

"I have never been there, Your Honor, but I have heard plenty about it! It's a cluster of islands, or rather a swamp, in the middle of the Great River. The swamp is covered by close-growing bush, half-submerged the greater part of the year. The higher places consist of a dense forest of old trees. Only the outlaws who have gathered there know the creeks and waterways that lead to and through the swamp. They levy a toll on all passing ships and often make raids on the villages along the riverbank. They say that robber band counts more than four hundred men."

"Why hasn't the government cleaned up that robber's nest?" the judge asked, astonished.

Pursing his lips, Tao Gan replied:

"That's not an easy undertaking, Your Honor! It would necessitate a naval operation that would cost many lives. The swamp would have to be approached in small craft, for war junks could not be used in those shallow waters. And the soldiers in those boats would be an easy target for the arrows of the outlaws. I have heard that the army has stationed a chain of military posts along the riverbank, and soldiers patrol the entire region. The idea is to blockade the swamp and thus force the outlaws to surrender. But they have been there for so many years now that they have many secret contacts among the population which are very difficult to trace. Up to now there are no signs that the robbers are short of food or anything else they need."

"That sounds bad indeed!" Judge Dee said. Looking at Ma Joong and Chiao Tai, he asked: "Do you think you could get Mao Loo and the woman out of there?"

"Brother Chiao and me will manage somehow, Your Honor!" Ma Joong answered cheerfully. "It's exactly the kind of job for us! We'd better go out there right now, to take stock of the situation!"

"Good!" said Judge Dee. "I'll write a letter introducing you to my colleague the magistrate of Chiang-pei, and asking him to give you all assistance."

He took up his writing brush and quickly jotted down a few lines on a sheet of official paper. He impressed the large square seal of the tribunal on it, then gave it to Ma Joong saying:

"Good luck!"