Free The Dragon and the Needle by Hugh Franks Page A

had gone as well as he couldhave wished, he had strong doubts about her. But for the moment, that was another matter.
    His manner worried the two men and they looked nervous. One was thin and as cheerless as Ah-Ming the other was heavy-set and gloomy.
    Ah-Ming addressed the latter first, leaning forward slightly in his chair. ‘I’ve been told that you ordered the mission against Selwyn?’ his voice sounded accusing as though the large man had been responsible.
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘Why did you do that?’
    With a shrug of his shoulders, as though protesting that he had done nothing wrong, the reply came quickly. ‘Because it was a name on the list.’
    Ah-Ming’s voice was controlled still holding his wrath. ‘But you know that any such mission requires my consent!’
    ‘Yes, but he had been recommended for a consultation with me months ago – it seemed a golden opportunity.’
    Ah-Ming picked up a file which lay on his desk and slowly flicked through its pages. ‘This file shows that Lord Helman’s son was a good friend of China,’ he paused and added, ‘and Japan. And therefore …’
    ‘But his name was on the list!’
    There was silence in the office for a few moments, then Ah-Ming’s anger surfaced. ‘As you know our saying, “Even a good rider will fall one day!”’ he shouted. ‘You are a good doctor but you have fallen! You know full well that I have to vet all missions in this country!’ Turning quickly to the other doctor, he went on unmercifully, ‘Did you know about all this?’
    ‘I knew the treatment course.’
    ‘Which was?’
    ‘Fei Ching.’
    ‘The meridian of the lungs?’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘You agreed because he was on the list?’
    ‘I was told he was.’
    ‘Who told you?’
    The thin doctor turned towards his colleague then quickly turned back towards Ah-Ming, saying nothing.
    Ah-Ming gazed down at the file on his desk. He knew that there were always replacements, he could pick and choose freely. He suddenly looked up. The two men had made a grave error. They now knew their futures were at stake, but they both stared back at him, nervously, knowing that there was no place for mistakes. Ah-Ming looked at the two men. They were Chinese. Carry Tiger to Mountain was for China. Not the China of War Lords, ineffectual Boxer rebellions and decadent Taiwan and Hong Kong capitalists. The rich Chinese were a good cover for the New China. While they were of use they would remain. But one day…
    His thoughts had calmed him. He suddenly smiled, though his eyes were expressionless. ‘As long as no other mistakes are made, I can probably cover for you this time.’
    The two men shifted in their chairs simultaneously, relief showing on their faces as Ah-Ming continued speaking in a calm voice. ‘Remember three vital things for the future: always check out names with me, follow the course of the Tao, and conform to the natural processes of Heaven and Earth.’ He paused and went on with emphasis and emotion. ‘It moves. It moves not. It is far and it is near. It is within all this. And it is outside of all this. In that way, gentlemen, it is easy to manage the whole world!’

    As Mike began to explain to Eleanor, as she had put it, ‘what was going on’, she outwardly relaxed as much as she could but inwardly her mind was in turmoil. She was gnawed by thoughts about her dilemmas: her patients, for she had told Julie to cancel her morning appointments, not giving her secretary any explanations; her attempts to telephone China, for she hadspent the past few hours telephoning Beijing in the hopes of contacting Chen’s father, only to be told that the old man had died. He would have told her the truth about Chen, whether he was alive or dead. And now the pressure from Ah-Ming! The flat became chilly. She got up and switched on the gas log fire. As she did so, Mike went on talking.
    As he spoke, she began to realise how deeply involved he was in the drama. He spoke of how, in the past two years, the