"Do you hear? We want to go!"

"Ti--ope--I--ow!" howled Ching, beginning again.

"Yes, we want to go," I said anxiously.

"Ti--ope--I--ow!" he howled again, but as he gave forth his peculiar sounds he suddenly struck--purposely--a false, jarring note, lowered the instrument, seized one of the pegs as if in a pa.s.sion, and began talking to me in a low, earnest voice, to the accompaniment of the string he tuned.

"Ching see now,"--_peng_, _peng_, _peng_--"bad men with swords,"--_pang_, _peng_--"look velly closs,"--_pang_, _pong_--"wantee fightee,"--_pang_, _pang_--"you no wantee fightee,"--_pung_, _pung_.

"No," I whispered anxiously; "let's go at once."

"No takee notice,"--_pang_, _peng_, _peng_. "All flee, walkee walkee round one sidee house,"--_pang_, _pong_--"Ching go long other sidee,"--_peng_, _peng_. "No make, hully--walkee velly slow over lit'

blidge,"--_ping_, _ping_, _ping_, _ping_, _pang_, _pang_.

The little bridge was just behind us, and I grasped all he said--that we were to go slowly over the bridge and walk round the back of the house, while he would go round the front and meet us on the other side.

_Bang_, _jangle_, _pang_, _pang_, _ping_, _ping_, _peng_, _peng_, went the instrument, as Ching strummed away with all his might.

"Wait, Ching come show way," he whispered. And as I saw that the mandarin's men were coming nearer and evidently meant mischief, Ching raised his instrument again, and, after a preliminary flourish, began once more, to the delight of the crowd. My messmates and I slowly left our places and walked round the summer-house towards the little bridge over one of the gold-fish tanks, moving as deliberately as we could, while Ching's voice rang out, "Ti--ope--I--ow!" as if nothing were the matter.

The little crowd was between us and the mandarin's retainers, but it was hard work to appear cool and unconcerned. Above all, it took almost a superhuman effort to keep from looking back.

Smith could not resist the desire, and gave a sharp glance round.

"They're coming after us," he whispered. "We shall have to cut and run."

"No, no," said Barkins hoa.r.s.ely. "They'd overtake us directly. They'd come down like a pack of wolves. We must be cool, lads, and be ready to turn and draw at the last. The beggars are awful cowards after all."

We went on over the bridge, and, in spite of my dread, I made believe to look down at the gold-fish, pointing below at them, but seizing the opportunity to look out for danger.

It was a quick glance, and it showed me that the crowd from the eating-house were taking no notice of us, but listening to Ching, who had left his seat, and, singing with all his might, was walking along one of the paths towards the front of the low building, while we were slowly making for the back, with the result of crowding the mandarin's men back a little, for the whole of the company moved with our guide, carefully making room for him to play, and thus unconsciously they hampered the movements of our enemies.

The distance was not great, of course--fifty yards altogether, perhaps, along winding and doubling walks, for the Chinese are ingenious over making the most of a small garden, but it was long enough to keep us in an intense state of excitement, as from time to time we caught sight of the men following us.

Then we saw that they had stopped to watch which way we went, and directly after we knew that they were only waiting for us to be behind the house to go back and hurry round and meet us.

At last we had pa.s.sed to the end of the maze-like walk, and were sheltered by the house from the little crowd and our enemies, with the result that all felt relieved.

"I say," said Smith, "isn't this only a scare?"

"Don't know," said Barkins. "P'raps so; but I shan't be sorry to get on board again. They think nothing of cutting a fellow to pieces."

"Let's make haste, then," I said; and, nothing loth, the others hurried on past the back of the house, where the kitchen seemed to be, and plenty of servants were hurrying to and fro, too busy to take any heed of us. Then we turned the corner, and found that we were opposite to a gateway opening upon a very narrow lane, which evidently went along by the backs of the neighbouring houses, parallel with the main street, which was, however, not such a great deal wider than this.

"Here's a way for us to go down, at all events," said Barkins, after we had listened for a few moments for Ching's song, and the wiry notes of his instrument.

"Yes, let's cut down at once," said Smith.

"Where to?" I said excitedly. "We can't find our way without Ching."

"No; and those beggars would hunt us down there at once," said Barkins.

"Won't do. I say, though, why don't they give us better tools than these to wear?"

"Hark!" I said; "listen!"

We listened, but there was nothing but the murmur of voices in the house, and not a soul to be seen on our side, till all at once I caught sight of something moving among the shrubs, and made out that it was the gay coat of one of the men from whom we sought to escape.

"Come on!" said Smith excitedly, and he threw open the gate leading into the narrow lane, so that in another moment we should have been in full retreat, had not a door behind us in the side of the house been opened, and Ching appeared.

He did not speak, but made a sign for us to enter, and we were hardly inside and the door thrust to--all but a c.h.i.n.k big enough for our guide to use for reconnoitring--when we heard the soft pat-pat of the men's boots, then the rustle of their garments, and the tap given by one of their swords as they pa.s.sed through the gateway and ran down the narrow lane.

"All gone along, catchee you," whispered Ching. "Come 'long other way."

He stepped out, made us follow, and then carefully closed the door.

"Now, come 'long this way," he said, with his eyes twinkling. "No walkee fast. Allee boy lun after."

We saw the wisdom of his proceedings, and followed him, as he took us by the way our enemies had come, straight out into the main street, down it a little way, and then up a turning, which he followed till we came to another important street parallel to the one by which we had come, and began to follow it downward toward the waterside.

"Muchee flighten?" he said.

"Oh, I don't know," growled Barkins, who had the deepest voice of the three. "It was startling. Did they mean mischief?"

"Mean chop chop. Allee bad wick' men. No catchee now. Ching velly much flighten."

He did not look so, but chatted away with open, smiling face, as he pointed first on one side then on the other to some striking-looking shop or building, though he never paused for a moment, but kept on at a good rate without showing a sign of hurry or excitement.

"How are we to get on board when we get to the river?" I said, as we went on. "There'll be no boat till sundown."

"Ching get one piecee boat low all aboard ship."

"Can't you keep us in your place till our boat comes?"

The man shook his head. "Mandalin boy come burn um down, makee all lun out. So velly hot. No stay. Get boat, low away."

"How far is it, do you think?" asked Smith.

"I don't know," said Barkins. "We seemed to be walking for hours in the hot sun coming up. How far is it, Ching?"

"Velly long way. No look at garden now."

He pointed to one of the handsome gateways about which a party of armed retainers were hanging, and, whispering to us not to take any notice, he walked us steadily along.

But we were not to get by the place without notice, for the loungers saw us coming, and strode out in a swaggering way--three big st.u.r.dy fellows in blue and scarlet, and pretty well blocked the way as they stood scowling at us.

"Look out," whispered Barkins, "ready with your toasting-forks, and then if it comes to it we must run."

"You'll stick by us, Gnat," whispered Smith in a hasty whisper.