--Once while being escorted on a shopping trip by her father and his brother, she was seen by a wide-eyed young man named Cheng Te De, (meaning crafty like a dragon). He immediately fell in love with her and had to have the pleasure of her company. He was so enamoured of the girl he could only sigh and pound his forehead until arrangements were made for their first meeting. That was when he learned of what it would take to suitably impress her so that she might look favorably upon his attentions.
--A feisty grandmother of the young man had a rare coin dating back to the Shan Dynasty that was priceless. This was mentioned to the young girl sometime before her introduction to the lad. She could not keep her eagerness to meet him a secret. In her heart she knew she must have that rare Shan coin and put together a well laid plan to get it.
--The young man knew that in the end he must have this beautiful Chinese flower. He would do anything to get her; evil or good, it would not matter. Whatever the cost, he must have this rare specimen of female pulchritude and enchantment. If it would take a priceless treasure to get the love of this young maiden, he was willing to do whatever it took. His passion knew no bounds and his eagerness to get things under way was pulling him in several directions. How could this be? Only a few days ago his mind was clear and future was assured. With his exams passed, he would be accepted into the advanced training for his doctorate. Now this! What was he to do? Whatever it took must be done.
--His friends noticed the difference in the young man's behavior and grew concerned. Finally, Lin Ken , his best friend could not ignore such moodiness on the young student's part and straight out asked what the problem was that so bedeviled him. When he learned there was an upper-class Chinese girl involved, he assured his friend that between the two of them they could work out a plan to bring them together if this is what Te De really desired.
--"What it will take is a grandiose gift. I do not have the means to provide such a thing," stated the university student quite simply.
--"I remember once you mentioned that your grandmother had an old family heirloom of exactly what the young girl most passionately collects?" noted the young man's friend.
--"How would that benefit me? You can't expect my grandmother would look favorably upon her grandson giving away such a family treasure! Not while she still lives. Perhaps she will leave it to me in her will, since I am the oldest son in the family. Lin Ken, what good does that do me now?"
--"See, it is practically yours already, Te De. Couldn't you borrow it and return it after you have made some progress with the young Shu Sheng. She would be most impressed to be able to inspect it, maybe fondle it,, marvel some over its shape and size. Make your charm irresistible, and perhaps she will need nothing more than that. The coin could be a 'foot in the door' so to speak," counseled the friend.
--"You have given me an idea, good friend. The father of Chen Li in our class is a foundry worker who knows the secrets of working metal. Perhaps there is a backdoor I can take into Shu Sheng's garden of delights."
--And so a plan was born and launched by Te De. He would borrow his grandmother's coin and make a copy. Would such an enterprise work with the clever young maiden? The first step was getting the coin. A visit to grandmother's house must be made. With little encouragement the old lady was delighted to open the cabinet containing her precious possessions and show them off. Te De actually palmed the coin when the unsuspecting elder wasn't looking and made off with it for a few hours. During that time a casting of a wax image was made of the original. Then it was simply a matter of returning to the old lady's quarters and dropping the original back into its customary place within the cabinet. The first stage of the plan was finished without any trouble.
--Within a short time Chen Li gave Te De a message that his father had used centrifugal-force to pour molten lead into the spinning mold. When the wax was burned away by the liquid lead, a duplicate coin had been struck. Using a gilding method of gold plating painted over the lead, the duplicate coin was now ready to buy the heart of Shu Sheng. Would she see through Te De and Lin Ken's duplicitous ploy?
--Lin Ken was instrumental in carrying out the second part of the plan. The very next day they both were crossing the fruit-market square and saw Shu Sheng and her maid doing the daily shopping. Te De whispered instructions to his friend and disappeared down the street. While the maid was arguing the price down on a dozen fresh peaches, Lin Ken drew Shu Sheng aside and told her that his friend simply must meet her for tea across the way in a small restaurant.
--Instead of Shu Sheng appearing, the young attractive maid appeared with a message from her mistress. "She will receive you and your present later this evening after all have retired. You must enter the courtyard when the moon is directly overhead. Stay in the shadows and enter the door that will be left open for you. All other doors will be closed and locked, so you can not make a mistake. You are not to light any lights and there will be no talking. The family are all light-sleepers.
--"I'll make no sound."
--"Leave your present on the table by the door leading to the inside hallway. Only then may you approach her …." Blushing red, the young maid paused and forced herself to say… "bed." She then lowered her head and announced, "Madam says that if you please her there will be many dinners in the future. However, if she is disappointed, there will be no more open doors for you. She understands that you are only a student and students must be treated differently than serious suitors."
--The young girl studied the boy's sad face. She had seen his disappointment when she approached rather than her mistress. She wanted to cheer up this brash fellow and gave him her best smile. He was actually quite handsome. and her heart fluttered as she bent close to his ear with her very secret message. She continued, "What may I tell her? Will you be there?"
--"I will be there," he said, hesitantly. What else could he say. It did sound inviting yet rather mysterious.
--"Your answer will be delivered to her," she finished, then turned on her heel, and made her exit as fast as she could walk. It had not been an assignment she enjoyed.
--That night Te De followed his instructions to the letter. The moon was high and shadows were short. The courtyard proved to be deserted and quiet. He spotted the open door immediately and knew it was Shu Sheng's bedroom quarters. Drapes kept out all light, and when the door was closed, it was pitch-dark in the room. He felt the table by the hall door and left his gift. Then crouched and feeling his way he found the bed and felt the form under the covers move. This was to be a night long remembered. He would carry such an exhilarating experience into his old age and talk about it many times over to his cronies. Forever this evening would be engraved upon his heart.
--Going home in the early morning hours before the sun's rays thought about touching that part of the world, Te De knew the joys of being young and in love. Shu Sheng had been all that he thought she would be and more. If only he were older and had his student days behind, then there would be no need to duck around corners and steal into rooms in the darkness of night. His heart sang and his exuberance welled over until he was skipping and whistling a tune as though it weren't 4 A.M. with even the roosters still hiding their heads under their wing.
--The next day both Lin Ken and Te De posted themselves in the market place hoping for a glimpse of Shu Sheng. Both were in a giggling mood as young playful boys are apt to be when unexpected things happen. One would whisper something into the other's ear and the other would give him an elbow in the ribs or stomach. Both hit their shoulders together while going off into peels of laughter. Then Shu Sheng appeared across the street. Both were suddenly struck speechless and felt shy. Te De found himself having a sudden attack of weak-knees. What do you say to an upper-class sophisticated lady that you had just spent an other-worldly four hours with in the privacy of her own bedroom?
--"Thank you for your lovely little gift," began Shu Sheng walking up to the two boys. Today she was by herself. Smiling broadly, the self-satisfied female continued,"About last night... sorry about that, but sad to say you didn't get the genuine article, only an imitation, a counterfeit Shu Sheng. I hope you enjoyed yourself with my maid." --"But last night you seemed so….. responsive and interested," he blurted out without thinking. Suddenly processing her words, he muttered, "Your maid!" and then gulped finding it hard to swollow.
--Does your grandmother know what happened to her precious rare coin? The joke is on you, silly lad."
--"Actually, what happened in that room last night was not only exciting but very genuine for me. What about your promise of a dinner date with me?"
--"My grandmother?" replied Te De sort of repeating her words without really thinking of anything except what took place the night before.
--"Are you so shocked, little boy?"
--"But I thought……."
--"Obviously you thought wrong, you little twit. You didn't think for a moment I would be seen with you in public did you? Ha! Little do you know what goes on in the real world outside your little classroom. Please don't bother me anymore. Even talking to you now is rather embarrassing."
--The cold-hearted Shu Sheng raised her chin as though to make it easier looking down it at the boys. "That was not me with you, and don't think for a minute there will be any evening dinners at lovely restaurants."
--"You mean that was your maid last night?" --"So you did think that was me? No, you wandered into my maid's bedroom, and if you try it again, my family will have the law on you so fast you'll be saying, 'What happened to my course of study!' No, I would say you are suffering from a case of mistaken-identity. You thought you had the real thing, but what you got was a counterfeit."
--Young men recover rapidly from little setbacks. A slow smile came across Te De's face as he finally said, "...and speaking of counterfeit, Shu Sheng, you will find all that glitters is not gold. Just bite it, you miserable excuse for a lady."
--The two boys then turned their backs on the startled Shu Sheng, and as they walked down the street, she could hear one of them repeat over and over, "Counterfeit lover!" and then pound each other on the back and double over in laughter.
--Her face bore a puzzled expression for only a moment or two and then a horrible thought occurred to the woman, and the expression changed to a scowl. "So we were a pair…" she muttered as she walked hurriedly in the other direction.
©1997 Geo. Beimers
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