The Bund Chronicles, Chapter 28: Meeting Hesketh Again, Discussing the Book Alliance

The next morning, as soon as Chen Lin rose and stepped outside, he saw a burly man standing there.

And “burly” was no exaggeration. The man was truly massive, standing like an iron tower. Yet the fine down above his lips showed that he was still quite young.

“You’re Chen Lin?” the big man asked, his face full of disdain.

“That’s right. And you are?” Chen Lin looked up into his eyes.

“I’m Pan Qiliang. The guild leader sent me to protect you.”

“Oh, so you’re the gallant Pan.” Chen Lin suddenly remembered that Liu Lichuan had said the previous night that he would send someone to protect him. He had not expected that person to be this towering giant.

“Let’s be clear. I’m here to protect you, not serve as your servant,” Pan Qiliang said stiffly.

Clearly, he had no desire to follow Chen Lin around.

“Of course. You’re protecting me, and I’ll pay you for it.” Chen Lin had no wish to owe anyone a favor.

“Oh, Little Mirror, you’re here too.” At that moment, Liu Lihua emerged from the kitchen.

“Lihua, this fellow looks terribly weak. What does the guild leader see in him?” The moment Pan Qiliang saw Liu Lihua, the hardness in his expression melted away.

Chen Lin, meanwhile, said awkwardly, “Let’s have breakfast together. I still need to hurry back to the trading house.”

They ate breakfast together. It was the foreigners’ Sunday, and he needed to return early.

Before leaving, he arranged with Liu Lichuan a time to pay his respects at the guild hall, then instructed Wang Libin to await his news.

Pan Qiliang had brought three of his brothers with him, all skilled fighters from the guild. Each carried a short saber and would shadow Chen Lin, protecting him from the surrounding darkness.

Hu San, meanwhile, stayed at Chen Lin’s side and carried his belongings.

Fortunately, they encountered no danger on the way back.

Once they reached the foreign settlement, Chen Lin settled Pan Qiliang and the others at the construction site, then quickened his pace toward the temporary offices of Dent and Company.

…

It was Sunday. As the Anglican Church’s appointed pastor, Benjamin Hobson was responsible for organizing worship among the believers in the foreign settlement.

Chen Lin was only a nominal Christian and had never attended a service.

Today, however, he went with Mr. Dent’s family to the consulate.

Since the settlement did not yet have a church, Hobson had temporarily arranged for services to be held in the consulate’s great hall.

The place of worship was not merely where they prayed. It was also a meeting ground for the merchants.

Chen Lin followed Mr. Dent into the chapel.

Quite a few people had already arrived, including Mr. Jardine and Mr. Matheson of Jardine, Matheson & Company, as well as Mr. Gibb of Gibb & Company.

Yet when these men saw Mr. Dent, they merely offered him a brief greeting before returning to their conversations.

It was obvious that Mr. Dent had been ostracized.

When Chen Lin returned to the trading house, James told him that the firm’s route for purchasing raw silk had been cut off.

It seemed this was only one of the problems facing Dent and Company.

Mr. Dent’s expression was grim. Chen Lin kept an appropriate distance, unwilling to invite the master’s displeasure.

He had no intention of stirring up trouble, but trouble came looking for him.

Jenny slowed her steps and moved closer to Chen Lin. She was wearing a white dress that day and looked as beautiful as an angel.

With her foreign blood, she was entering the most beautiful years of a girl’s life.

In Chinese, and so quietly that only the two of them could hear, Jenny asked, “Can you solve the raw-silk problem?”

Chen Lin feigned confusion. “Miss, what raw silk? I know nothing about it.”

The corners of Jenny’s lips curled upward. You’re still pretending, are you?

“I saw you talking with James. From the look in your eyes, it was obvious you could solve it.”

Chen Lin was speechless. The girl had actually been keeping an eye on him.

“I truly have no way to help. You know I only recently joined the trading house. Before that, I had never dealt with business.” He spread his hands. Say whatever you like—I simply know nothing.

“I don’t care. I’ve already taken this project over from Father. I’ll go to him later and have him transfer you to me.”

If there had not been so many people around, Chen Lin would have cursed aloud.

At that moment, a man in clerical robes stepped before the cross and greeted the congregation.

“Good morning, my dear brothers and sisters.”

Hobson swept his gaze across those below, then opened a Bible and placed it on the table before him.

“Almighty God, today we stand in awe of Your goodness and loving-kindness…”

The congregation followed, reciting each line aloud.

Chen Lin blended into the crowd and made a show of taking part. Only his lips moved; not a sound escaped him. He was afraid of mispronouncing something and having everyone hear.

Before long, the service was over, and the people began talking over one another again.

Several men approached Hobson, hoping to ingratiate themselves with him, but he merely answered them politely. He had nothing in common with these merchants and could not carry on a genuine conversation with them.

Then Hobson caught sight of a familiar figure in the crowd.

Chen Lin had hidden behind the others throughout the service and had never shown his face. Now that it was over, he slipped away from the crowd, hoping to leave first. Instead, he drew Hobson’s attention.

“Chen—is that you?” Hobson called suddenly, drawing everyone’s gaze.

All eyes turned toward Mr. Dent. The man who had just been isolated now found himself the focus of every person in the room, and he looked somewhat embarrassed.

Chen Lin had been standing behind Mr. Dent. He had taken only a few steps after turning away when he heard someone call his name and stopped at once.

Hobson strode toward him, ignoring the others, and came directly to Chen Lin.

“Chen, we meet again.” He extended his hand warmly.

“Good morning, Mr. Hobson.” Chen Lin reached out and shook it.

Hobson’s gesture aroused everyone’s curiosity. Not all of them knew Chen Lin, and they wondered how a Chinese man had found his way into the congregation.

Chen Lin went to Mr. Dent’s side and said to Hobson, “I’m currently working for Mr. Dent.”

Only then did Hobson turn to Mr. Dent. His face filled with gratitude.

“Thank you for taking this boy in, Mr. Dent. The Lord will bless you.”

The blessing from Pastor Hobson eased Mr. Dent’s dark mood considerably.

“It was only right,” Mr. Dent replied. “The Lord loves us, and we love all mankind.” He made the sign of the cross over his chest, his face devout.

Any one of the things these merchants did would have been enough to send them to hell. No amount of piety could cleanse the sins clinging to them.

Even Mr. Hobson agreed on that point.

The others gradually departed, while Hobson asked Chen Lin to remain.

He led Chen Lin into a study in the consulate and poured him a cup of black tea.

“Mr. Hobson, why don’t you build a church? As far as I know, the settlement should permit one to be built.”

Chen Lin took the initiative in raising the subject.

Even if Hobson had not sought him out, Chen Lin would have come to him. He had already promised Libin that he would introduce him to someone.

That someone was Hobson. From what Chen Lin had learned recently, Hobson was deeply devoted to cultural exchange between China and Britain.

Back in Panyu, he had already translated several English books. At the same time, he was collecting books written in Chinese.

Hobson’s expression grew slightly awkward. The main reason he had no church of his own was that he had no money, and he was not skilled at soliciting donations.

“The most important thing in faith is the spirit behind it. As for a church, in the words of your Chinese people, it is merely an external possession.” Hobson appeared indifferent to fame and wealth.

Yet Chen Lin could see a trace of longing in his eyes.

“You helped me save my family last time. In return, I can make an attempt to see whether I can persuade Mr. Dent to donate a piece of land. As it happens, I also know several local construction crews who could build it.”

“That would be wonderful.” Hobson made the sign of the cross over his chest in gratitude.

Still, he did not truly take Chen Lin’s promise seriously.

“By the way, Mr. Hobson, I have a friend who wants to open a bookshop in the settlement and translate books. I know you are a great translator. I wonder whether you might be willing to help him.”

Chen Lin took the opportunity to make a small request.

As a Chinese man, Libin could not open a bookshop in the settlement. But if Mr. Hobson joined the venture, many difficulties would become much easier to overcome.

“Is your friend Chinese?” Hobson immediately became interested.

“Yes, Mr. Hobson. My friend speaks excellent English, and his knowledge of Chinese learning is profound. Though still young, he has already passed the provincial examination.”

Men learned in both Eastern and Western traditions were exceedingly rare at present.

Hobson had long wished to find someone like that with whom he could collaborate on translations. He did not merely want to translate Western books for China; he also wanted to translate Chinese works for the outside world.

At first, he had hoped to enlist Chen Lin’s help. But the young man had gone to work at a trading house and was making quite a bit of money. Clearly, Chen Lin could no longer devote himself to translating books for him.

“I have been staying here at the consulate. Bring him to me whenever you can, and I will speak with him.”

That amounted to an agreement.

“Very well, Mr. Hobson. I’ll bring him over within the next few days.”