Three weeks after my father died, Brother Cao received a letter from Brother Luo. He had settled in the town of Kwangtung which was 15 days away and was staying at the Lok Tian Inn. Most of the money he left with on that fateful night was gone and he would need some soon. Mr. Hu was given the task of dispatching money monthly to Brother Luo.

 

When the 3 month mourning period came to an end, I was going to give Monkey and Tiger their letters from my father, but I heard an argument coming from the study. Monkey and Tiger were having a disagreement over the continued operation of the brothel and gambling house.

 

“We should have closed the brothel and gambling house by now,” Yuan Lang was saying indignantly. “We took over Eagle Hall to rid the town of immoral businesses.”

 

“You can’t close them down,” I heard an unfamiliar voice reply. “My men and the workers have to eat. People like Managers Liang and Zheng have families to support. You can’t just take their jobs away.”

 

“Gao Deng has a valid point,” Cao Feng stated. “We must think of the others involved. First we have to decide if they can or can’t be turned into new businesses. We also have to help the others find work.”

 

“It’s not our responsibility to find them work,” Monkey continued in his indignant tone. “They shouldn’t have been working in those places to begin with.”

 

I knocked on the door so the gentlemen knew I was outside.

 

“Who’s there?” Tiger asked.

 

“It’s me, Lily,” I responded in almost a whisper. “I have something important to give you. But I need to give it to you privately.”

 

Monkey opened the door and waved for Gao Deng to leave and for me to come inside. All three men were tight lipped and glaring at one another as I crossed the threshold of the room. Gao growled and stormed out of the study.

 

Not sure if I should say anything about the conversation I just overheard, I quickly handed Tiger the letter. He looked at me questioningly.  

 

“The morning of the night my father died he came to my room and gave me a letter,” I began. “I was only to open it upon his death. Inside my letter were more letters. One for each of you. I never gave Leopard his letter and Monkey I’ll give you yours later.”

 

“Why did you wait so long?” Monkey asked.

 

“Dad gave me very specific directions on when to hand them to you. He said I needed to wait until the mourning period was over.”

 

“You two can leave,” Tiger dismissed us with a wave of his hand.

 

Monkey and I didn’t speak until we were in the courtyard. We asked a servant to bring us tea and fruit so we could talk in the pavilion without being overheard by anyone.

 

“Why was everyone so angry?” I asked before we sat down. “Why is Gao Deng even allowed in the house? Can’t they discuss business elsewhere?”

 

“I don’t think Tiger has any plans to close the brothel and the gambling house! They bring in too much money. His excuse is that there are too many people who need to make a living to close it right now.”

 

“I agree with Tiger. We can’t just put them out of work. Most of the men have families to feed. Could you call yourself a hero if you let women and children starve?”

 

Monkey’s anger subsided and his tone became more friendly. I could see he was weighing my statements carefully before speaking. “If your father were alive…” he began but I cut him off.

 

“He’s not alive,” I retorted. “We were in a mourning period and out of respect nothing could be done. Now we can come up with and execute a plan to close the brothel and the gambling house.”

 

“Sometimes I think your love for Tiger clouds your judgement,” Monkey said. “Where is the letter from Uncle?”

 

My mouth dropped open upon hearing this from Monkey. I bit my lower lip to prevent harsh, unretrievable words from escaping and I threw the letter at him. I rose quickly from my seat and ran to my room, allowing him to read his letter in private.

 

I collided with Tiger as I was leaving the courtyard with tears streaming down my face. He knew the conversation I had with Monkey had upset me without even asking. I excused myself and as I turned the corner, I could hear my brothers arguing about the brothel and gambling house again. I didn’t stay to hear what was being said. I needed to put distance between the 3 of us as soon as possible. I am certain the argument isn’t going to end well.

 

Before  I reached my bedroom, I overheard a few of the servants gossiping about my father’s death. They were pointing the finger at the Rambler. After all, it was his weapon that pierced my father’s torso. Since Monkey and Leopard had only met Yan Xiu the day before, they did not have the opportunity to learn how his spear could shoot the tip out and rip flesh apart. Tiger was the only other suspect. He had met the the Rambler days before anyone else and developed the fatal plan. How much time had they spent together and where? Yan Xiu was known to have a special lady friend in the brothel, but Tiger would never be caught in the place or his reputation would be ruined.

 

My head began to swim as I contemplated the man I loved could have anything to do with the death of my beloved father. Why would Tiger kill dad now? He was going to take over the clan when my father retired or died. Father always said one day when he was too old to fight, he would hand over the clan to his successor and spend his remaining days doting on his grandchildren and cultivating the garden. Marrying me almost guaranteed Tiger’s place as the future chief.  

 

Instead of going to my room, I decided to take a detour and head for the study to look for the letter I gave Tiger earlier in the day. The letter could hold clues to why my father was dead and the immoral businesses were not closed. When I arrived at my destination, I knocked quietly on the door and held my breath. No one answered so I quickly entered and closed the door. I lit a candle to see in the windowless room and searched the desk. Nothing! Where did he put that letter? I rummaged through all the drawers in the room and still found nothing. There were too many books on the shelves to search every one and none looked like they had been moved since my father died. Tiger must have the letter on him or? I then became aware of a faint smell of burning cedar wood. It was coming from the fireplace. It had been lit earlier in the day due to the chill in the air. My heart sank with the realization Tiger had burned the letter my father had written!

“Lily, Lily?” I  heard several worried voices wandering the corridors calling my name. I quickly exited the study and tiptoed toward the dining hall. When I thought no one would be suspicious of where I was I called out “I am here in the dining hall.”

 

Mr. Hu came to the hall first. His worried expression turned to relief as soon as he saw me. Ping-Ping was not far behind him. She stopped wringing her hands and let out a sigh of relief. Finally, Tiger came from a different direction with an irritated look on his face.

 

“I am sorry,” I began apologetically. “ I didn’t mean to worry anyone. I just wanted time alone and time to think.”

 

“Where were you?” Tiger questioned. “We have been looking for you for about half an hour. We thought something might have happened to you!” His face demanded an answer.

 

I crossed the room and placed my hand in his and leaned my head against  his shoulder. “I went to my father’s study,“ I answered honestly. “I knew I couldn’t leave the house without an , so the study is where I went to feel close to him. The arguing you and Monkey have been doing is very upsetting.”

 

He tilted my head up toward his face. The expression in his eyes told me there was more bad news on the horizon. He gently guided me over to the dinner table and motioned for me to sit down. One of the servants brought out tea and dinner for two. I figured Monkey was still angry and would not be joining us for dinner. The argument must have gone terribly wrong and Monkey went to his favorite restaurant to drink without his partner Leopard.

 

“Did Monkey go out for dinner?” I asked even though I thought I knew the answer.

 

Tiger placed his chopsticks on his bowl of rice and took a deep breath before speaking. “Monkey has left the clan. He doesn’t agree with how I am running certain businesses so he decided to leave.”

 

“How could you let him leave?” I asked bewildered. First Leopard and now Monkey. The death of my father caused my family to shatter into pieces like a delicate piece of dinnerware that had been dropped. “Where do you think he might have gone?” I asked, certain Tiger would not answer this question like the previous one.

 

“My instincts tell me he is headed to Kwangtung to find Leopard. Maybe Leopard can talk some sense into him and insist they return to the clan.”

 

I suddenly lost my appetite for dinner and began to cry silent tears. Tiger motioned with a wave of his hand for the others to leave the room. Mr. Hu, Ping-Ping and the servants filed out quickly and quietly as Tiger pulled me over to his bench and wrapped his arms around me. I rested my head against his chest and listened to the steady beat of his heart.

 

“Our family is falling apart,” I whispered as Tiger my waist length hair gently which helped me to calm down quickly. “Father is dead and Monkey and Leopard are no longer in the house. What is happening to us? Will they return so our family can be restored?” I was searching for answers to questions I hoped Tiger could answer.

 

“Leopard and Tiger will return,” Tiger reiterated as he gently took my face in his hands and turned me to face him. “But it will take time. The matter of your father’s death has almost died down and the police wouldn’t arrest Leopard if he returned since Eagle Hall no longer exists. We just have to wait a little longer for things to settle down and the family will be restored. You just need to focus on our wedding and leave everything else to me.”

 

“What did your letter from my father say?” I asked this question sure that I wouldn’t get a response I would like or a response at all.

 

“Your father asked for me to make sure all the workers at the brothel and gambling house had jobs before I shut them down. The brothel should be turned into a hotel and the gambling house he did not leave orders for what to do with after it closed. Maybe we can sell it. There are no plans for the gambling house yet.”

 

“There is no need for you to worry,” he continued as he saw the expression on my face change. “Your focus should be our wedding and us. I will worry about everything else.”

I nodded and smiled to reassure him that I wouldn’t dwell on the matters of the brothel and the gambling house any longer. My appetite slowly came back and I began to eat even though the food had grown cold. I knew the days ahead would be busy with sewing and planning for my 20th birthday and wedding are mere weeks away. There was so much to do and so little time to do them. Another wave of sadness touched my heart with the thought that Monkey and Leopard would not be home in time to celebrate our special day.