Читать книгу Shanghai - Christopher New - Страница 16

Dear Sir,

I am honoured to accept to teach you the Chinese language, mandarin

or Shangahi dialect according to you choosing. My fees are $5 per

hour, for which you receive compensation from imperial customs service

on receipt. I will call at you in your rooms on Tuesday 9th August

at the 4 o'clock and esteem your honoured favour.

Wei Lam-tung.

Denton drew his watch out and held it away from him, letting it hang and slowly spin upon its chain. Five to four. He read the letter through again and replaced it on his desk. One of the little green lizards that had so disquieted him on his first day rippled along the wall above his head. He watched it pause in stone-like immobility then dart forward to take a little fly with a flick of its whiplash tongue, gulping it down before returning at once to that watchful immobility.

One minute before four there was a shuffling outside the door and a knock. The boy entered and wordlessly gestured a spare little Chinese with glinting, metal-rimmed spectacles towards Denton.

Denton stood up as the Chinese, dressed in a grey silk tunic and trousers, offered him a small, limp hand. 'Mr Denton?'

'Yes. Mr Wei?' Denton noticed the long, curling nail on the little finger of the man's other hand - a polished claw two inches long, just like the agent's on the Alexander the First. The hands were pale and hairless, paler than his own sunburned, reddish ones, which seemed, with their dark hairs, to be suddenly crude and coarse beside them. The long fingernail and anaemic pallor of Mr Wei's hands made him wonder a moment whether he could be related to the agent - Ching, wasn't that his name? But Ching was tall and uncomfortably mocking, whereas Wei was short and seemed to be open and eager.

'How do you doing?' Mr Wei smiled with a bird-like jerk of his neck. A gold tooth winked moistly in his lower jaw. 'Please' to meet you.' He was holding a leather satchel. He opened it deliberately and took out two books, placed them carefully on the arm of the chair Denton offered him, then perched himself on the edge of the seat as if ready to take flight. 'Mr Denton,' he asked, his gold tooth gleaming as he smiled again, 'how are you like Shanghai?'

'Very nice,' Denton murmured. 'It's very hot, of course.'

'Very ho',' Mr Wei nodded emphatically. 'Perhaps a typhoon will come. Many rains.'

'Oh they bring many - a lot of rain, do they?'

'Quite a lo'. In winter it is col'.'

'Ah.'

'Very col'. But blue sky.'

'Not like England?'

Mr Wei shook his head, his glasses glinting flatly in the light from the veranda. 'Very col',' he repeated emphatically.

They paused. Denton, glancing stealthily at Mr Wei's unlined, taut-skinned face, was unable to put an age to it, Thirty? Fifty? It could be either.

Mr Wei's glance met his inquiringly and he looked away, clearing his throat. Yet he had nothing to say, so he waited awkwardly. Outside, a man's voice chanted a hawker's call and he imagined the heat and glare of the street, which the heavy wooden shutters dimmed.

'Mr Denton, for Chinese lesson, what are you want?'

'I beg your pardon?'

'Chinese language many form, Mr Denton.' He held up his hands, pale fingers outspread, to indicate its variety. 'Mandarin, Shanghai, Canton, Fukien....'

'Oh, I see.'

'All same writing.' His gold tooth gleamed. 'Speaking all differen'.'

'Yes, well, I think Shanghainese, as that's where I'll be working.'

'Shanghai, good.' He nodded his head several times as though in approval, then took the lower book from the arm of the chair, holding it out to Denton with both hands and giving a little bow.

Denton half-rose to take the book, and some obscure intuition led him to take it with both hands too. Mr Wei's gold tooth gleamed as he smiled approvingly again. 'Mr Denton, you will be goo' pupil. Already you take thing Chinese way. One hand give or take is very ru'. Only for coolie,' his hand waved scornfully. 'For equal and superior must give and take with both hand. In China, teacher is superior,' Mr Wei went on, smiling widely. 'So you must take from me with both han'. Number one lesson, very goo'.'

Denton looked down at the book uncertainly. Was Mr Wei getting above himself? That suggestion of superiority - how would Mason have taken it? But Wei was speaking again in his precise yet stilted manner, unlike the toneless chanting of all the other Chinese he'd heard speaking English.

'You are official of Chinese Imperial Governmen',' Wei was saying with his gold-winking smile, his bright brown eyes watching Denton alertly behind the magnifying discs of his glasses. 'Not like business man, speak pidgin. You must learn proper Chinese, learn character! Three thousan' character enough for newspaper,' Wei continued, holding up his hand for attention, three fingers flung out rigidly. 'Only for news-paper, nor ver' goo'. How many alphabe' in English?'

'Alphabets?'

'Twenty-six alphabe',' Wei gave him no chance to answer. 'Twenty-six alphabe' in English, then all finish. No more to learn. But Chinese three thousan' character, only beginning. Five thousan', ten thousan', still not finish. I think three thousan' much more number than twenty-six? So, you see, to learn Chinese, you mus' work ver' har'.' He reached into his satchel. 'Here brush, and ink, and paper.' He drew them out one by one. 'To write Chinese character. Chinese character very difficul', Mr Denton. You must work ver' har'.'

'Yes I will,' Denton promised, infected by Wei's enthusiasm despite himself. 'I do want to learn to write well.'

'To write an' read well, goo'.' Mr Wei nodded encouragingly. 'Now we star' lesson.' He perched further forward, his hands on his spread knees, and gazed unblinkingly at Denton. 'Chinese language not like English language.'

'No....'

Wei held up his hand for stricter attention. 'If same sound have differen' tone, make differen' word. Listen.' He moistened his lips and spoke a few words slowly and distinctly, his voice rising and falling in that strange sing-song that Denton heard all round him in the streets. 'Now I say again.' He repeated the sounds, slowly and distinctly again. 'You hear the same or differen'?'

'The same,' Denton said promptly.

He shook his head, smiling his gold-winking smile again. 'The tone is differen', so they make differen' word'. One mean I know Chinese people, the other mean I eat Chinese people . Therefore tone in Chinese language ver' importan'. Now we begin to learn tone.'