pointing to his arthritis and reminding him that no profit was guaranteed. And, the rains were coming. On the day he set out, he gruffly reminded his critics that this was a very taxing trip. They had laughed in his face. âIf it was easy, why, then everyone would do it!â
I asked Soohoo who might help me.
âLew Bing Sam, the mix-blood, he tracks down lost kin for people. He speaks all dialects, knows how to lead the way. People from China come to us first. But when a man truly goes missing, heâs a runaway monkey that canât be found.â
âPeople trust Sam?â
âHe drinks a bit, but what can you do?â
The brat was feeding the dog. I rapped his skull. âIâm still eating!â
Soohoo later insisted on carrying my bag to Clouds Clear Tower.
âNo need,â I said. âYour place is thriving.â
âPeople are leaving Gold Mountain.â
âYouâll go home a rich man. No dogs will bully you.â
âI sweep floors and empty shit buckets, same as my workers.â
The door of his shop swung open and out stepped the mix-blood.
âSam!â cried the boy.
I jerked him back. A father spawned him but no mother taught him .
âSam, your name just arose,â said Soohoo.
âI told Goddess to keep quiet!â He grinned. âThat woman, she pants and scratches like an animal. She says thereâs no other man as straight and strong as me.â
âThis man needs a guide.â The brothel keeper pushed me forward.
Sam frowned, as if recalling our scuffle on the beach and my insult.
âI look for this boyâs mother,â I said. âShe lives near Lytton.â
âWhy not take him to China?â
âHe belongs with his mother.â
âWhoâs that?â
âMary.â
âMary who?â
âDonât know.â
âThatâs how you treat the mother?â
Soohoo steered us inside, away from another fight. âSam, your woman is about to give birth. Save some money here; use this one to porter.â
âWhat? Did I ask you for advice?â he demanded.
Meanwhile, the door guard led a dazed, dreamy-eyed client to the exit and greeted his boss. The lamps threw round shadows and yellow light onto wall scrolls containing single words, seven-term quatrains, and long couplets. I hadnât noticed them the first time I was here.
âPretty, eh?â Soohoo strutted before them. âMy handwork! Iâm a read-books man!â
âI sell goods along the railway,â Sam said to me. âYou carry my goods; Iâll find your woman. We donât pay each other.â
âGo hire a hungry China man,â I replied.
âChina men donât want the job,â said Soohoo. âThey fear graveyards.â
âMe too.â
âNot so!â exclaimed Soohoo. âWe saw you bury that thing. Our Council pays Sam to stop at those places and pay respect.â
âHe shouldnât take the job if heâs scared.â
âHe needs a helper.â
âLet him hire one of his own.â
âTheyâre busy fishing. He needs a man to talk pretty with customers. Isnât that so, Sam?â
âAll China men call us stupid pigs,â he said. âYou say we mix-bloods have no brains. The railway snot worms are beggars yet they look down on me. âThose arenât clear beans,â they say, âthose are green beans. Thatâs not pickled turnip, thatâs cabbage.â They sneer and call me a dirty mongrel, half a loaf of bread. But if a China man brings them supplies, they smile and buy large amounts.â
âA man with self-respect doesnât porter for a mix-blood,â I told Soohoo.
âYou want to find the mother? Then you need Sam.â
âI have money; I know how to do things.â
âIâm a superior man too,â Soohoo said. âSo I help you.â
The guard opened the door too quickly,