A Case of Two Cities

end?”
     
    “It is a priority in our effort, to control the damage, as we have discussed. Bringing Xing back to China will make a huge difference. For someone like Xing, long years in a dark cell could be a more severe punishment than a death sentence.”
     
    “Comrade Zhao, you must have heard of the death of our interpreter in St. Louis, Little Huang.”
     
    “Yes, I have heard of it. But what can you do in another country? You are not there as a police officer. Anything you try to do outside of your delegation status may cause diplomatic troubles. So that’s the other reason I have to make this call to you. We believe that the delegation has completed its mission. No need for you and your delegation to stay there any longer. It is the Americans’ responsibility to solve the homicide case. They will do their best.”
     
    He wondered where Zhao had learned about his other activities here. That, too, could have been a reason for this phone call. Chen decided not to bring up his theory about Huang being a victim of mistaken identity. Things were happening too fast, and were more complicated than he had grasped. Besides, Zhao could easily brush his theory aside for lack of evidence. Those phone records hardly proved anything.
     
    “Anticorruption is a long-term battle, Chen,” Zhao went on, “not a matter of an isolated case or two. The Party Discipline Committee is very pleased with your work. Once again, you have proven to be a loyal, resourceful Party cadre in a difficult situation. Indeed, we need young, reliable comrades like you to continue the anticorruption effort in the future.”
     
    “Thank you, Comrade Zhao, but—”
     
    “It’s a long phone call. We’ll talk more upon your return. What about a celebration dinner in my hotel? I know you like good food—the chef here has won the gold award for Sichuan cuisine. The carp in hot broad-bean sauce is a must. I have a bottle of Maotai for you. Remember the two lines by Liu Guo— Had General Li met with the First Emperor of Han, / he could have easily been a duke?”
     
    “Yes, I do,” he said.
     
    General Li, a legendary figure of the mid-Han dynasty, might have achieved more under another emperor. Liu Guo, a down-and-out Song dynasty poet, spoke about his own frustration through the tragedy of that unlucky general. What the equivalent to a duke in today’s official world would be, Chief Inspector Chen had no idea, but he was far from reaching that level yet.
     
    “At your age, I liked the two lines very much. But what happened during those years, you know. Now the time is totally different. A young man like you can and should do something,” Zhao concluded. “You will not let me down, I believe.”
     
    Closing the phone, Chen remained in confusion, his thoughts muddled and muddy like the waves rolling under his gaze. He had never imagined such a conclusion for China’s number-one corruption case.
     
    Perhaps Comrade Zhao had said what could be said, and the rest was unspeakable, or unknown even to the old man.
     
    The Party authorities had planned to punish Xing and all the associated officials, Chen did not doubt that. But the situation had developed out of control, with too many—and at too high positions—involved in the case. So that might have been one of the reasons that the Party Discipline Committee had initially enlisted Chief Inspector Chen, as Yu had guessed. He was part of the show for the Chinese people, while at the same time secret negotiations had been under way with Xing in the States.
     
    Would Xing cooperate by revealing all the secrets? No one could tell. Nor was it that important. After all, the Beijing authorities could have pushed to the end, as declared in the People’s Daily, with or without Xing’s cooperation. Rather, Xing’s return was significant more as a sort of successful hushing-over, so the sordid details of the government corruption would never come to be known. So that was it. Some of the red rats might be punished, but selectively, not at the expense of the political legitimacy of the Party. It would be just enough to show people the Beijing government’s determination to fight the evil.
     
    And the message for Chief Inspector Chen was unmistakable: the investigation was at an end. He should be satisfied with the conclusion, and with the acknowledgment made by the Party authorities of his work.
     
    But what work? The chief inspector wondered.
     
    What about An?
     
    And for that