Page:Mr. Wu (IA mrwumilnlouisejo00milniala).pdf/162

 there undiscovered at the same time. He had had Bradley denied entrance at his gate because his home was the home of mourning, and in it there was no room or welcome for any Englishman, except the one grimly guarded guest in the pagoda by the lake.

"Well," Bradley said, rising again, "I can only repeat, as you value Basil's life, let Mr. Gregory do nothing to rasp Wu Li Chang. See him, I must and will. But it will have to be at his convenience and consent, not at mine. I don't know why I should hope to influence him. But I can only try." He picked up his hat, and continued looking at the girl in the frame. "Wu may be coaxed; he cannot be coerced. There is no force to which we could appeal, even if we had anything to go upon, and we have nothing. The Tsungli yamên itself, at Pekin, could neither coerce nor punish Wu Li Chang if it were minded to"

"You know that Mr. Basil was seen here on the island after they had all returned from their visit to Wu's daughter?"

John Bradley waved that aside contemptuously. "Rubbish!"

"Precisely what I think," Holman acquiesced tersely.

At the door the priest turned to say earnestly, "Remember, Mr. Gregory must do nothing to annoy Wu now—absolutely nothing. Basil's very life may depend on that."

"I'll do my best," Holman said, none too confidently, rising wearily and taking a step towards the other.

"And, Holman, not one word about Ah Wong—that you think she has been to me. It would serve no purpose, and it might cause her trouble—so—I expressly ask you, not one word."