Chapter 4, Family Heritage (Part 2)

"You should go ask them," Wu Chaoyue pointed at the girl and said with a cold smile, "Ask them, and also ask others, whether they just used a boat pole to hit this foreign priest? I explained the misunderstanding to them and the foreign priest, yet you want to arrest me instead. The foreign priest is very angry and demands that you go to the concession to explain clearly in front of Consul Jin Nengheng! Otherwise, he will personally go to the yamen and seek justice from your clan uncle, County Magistrate Yuan!" I explained the misunderstanding to them and the foreign priest, yet you want to arrest me instead. The foreign priest is very angry and demands that you go to the concession to explain clearly in front of Consul Jin Nengheng! Otherwise, he will personally go to the yamen and seek justice from your clan uncle, County Magistrate Yuan!

Yuan Wubai nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, and quickly took out ten taels of silver, presenting it with both hands in front of Wu Chaoyue. Wu Chaoyue snatched the silver and then turned to Father Martin, saying: "Respected Father, this gentleman, in gratitude for your forgiveness, wishes to kiss your cross and Bible. May I ask if you would be willing to accept this?"

I am also very pleased to meet you, esteemed Mr. Martin. Wu Chaoyue nodded and smiled, introducing himself: "My name is Chaoyue Wu, and I am the grandson of Wu Jianzhang, who supervises the customs in Shanghai, China. If I am not mistaken, the consul of your country in Shanghai is Mr. Qi Liyun, correct?"

With a loud "bang," Wu Chaoyue suddenly slapped Yuan Wuba's chubby face, leaving it swollen and greasy. Then, Wu Chaoyue pointed at Yuan Wuba and shouted in English: "What did you say? That Catholic priests are all liars? That the Pope is an even bigger liar? Bastard! How dare you insult the Holy Lord, insult this saint from America? Get out of here immediately, go to the concession, I want you to see with your own eyes whether this Mr. Martin is truly a servant of God? How dare you insult the Holy Lord, insult this saint from America? Get out of here immediately, go to the concession, I want you to see with your own eyes whether this Mr. Martin is truly a servant of God?"

Enough with the nonsense! In order to avenge the former owner of his body, Wu Chaoyue showed no mercy, grabbing Yuan Wuba and shouting: "Today, whether you want to go or not, you must go! Come with me! We are going to the concession!"

As Yuan Wubai desperately nodded in thanks, Wu Chaoyue turned to the beautiful girl who was already dumbfounded. He first smiled, then casually handed over the ten taels of silver he had extorted from Yuan Wubai to the girl, saying: "Little girl, I misspoke earlier; it was my fault. This ten taels of silver is my compensation to you. Let's consider our matter settled."

"Alright." Wu Chaoyue nodded and said, "Father Martin, since this official does not trust you or the Lord, we have no choice but to forcibly take him to the concession for a visit."

"However, esteemed Father, he simply does not believe it." Wu Chaoyue shrugged helplessly and kindly suggested, "Father, how about this? While I am here to translate for you, let us take this gentleman to the concession, so he can see the church where you reside with his own eyes, and also have your American friend verify your identity, allowing him to apologize to you in person."

Wu Chaoyue nodded slightly, and after a moment of consideration, he said to Yuan Wuba: "Head Yuan, I have just interceded for you with the priest, and he has agreed to forgive you, but there are two conditions. The first condition is that you must compensate him with ten taels of silver. The second condition is that you must kneel and kiss his cross and his Bible. Can you agree to this?"

"The United States of America." The foreign priest answered truthfully and introduced himself: "My name is Martin White, it is a pleasure to meet you, dear Chinese friend."

I am a minister of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, and all the Americans in the concession can testify for me! Upon hearing this, Father Martin became furious and immediately displayed the cross and the Bible

Since he is already aware of the truth and has expressed remorse, I can certainly forgive him said Father Martin generously

At this moment, a constable who had inquired about the situation approached and quickly explained the facts to Yuan Wubai, confirming that the young girl and others had indeed attacked the foreign priest earlier. Upon hearing this, Yuan Wubai lamented even more, crying out: "Young Master Wu, if you had said earlier that you were here to save the foreigner, I would not have dared to invite you to the county office even if I had a hundred times more courage. Young Master Wu, I beg you, I beg you, please ask this foreign priest to let me go, I will do whatever you say."

After receiving a slap from Wu Chaoyue, and seeing Wu Chaoyue angrily shouting incomprehensible gibberish at him, Yuan Wuba felt dizzy and even more anxious and fearful, not understanding what had happened. Meanwhile, the only one present who could understand Wu Chaoyue's language, Father Martin, was even more enraged. While making the sign of the cross with his right hand on his chest, he said to Wu Chaoyue: "Dear Chinese friend, you need not resort to violence. Let us take him to the concession, where he can see the church where I am staying, and he will understand everything."

After grumbling, Yuan Wuba spat out a thick phlegm and cursed, "The thieves are killing! The grandfather is a fake foreign devil, and the grandson is an even more fake foreign devil. This is truly a family tradition!"

Having said that, Wu Chaoyue went to forcibly pull Yuan Wuba, while Father Martin was also gripping Yuan Wuba's other arm, chattering away about wanting Yuan Wuba to see the church where he was staying. The local officials from Shanghai exchanged glances, none daring to intervene—all were afraid of the foreign priest whose words they could not understand. Yuan Wuba was so frightened that he was almost in tears, repeatedly pleading with Wu Chaoyue, saying: "Young Master Wu, please spare me. I am blind to my own faults and have wronged you in the past. I deserve to die, I deserve to be beaten. You are magnanimous; treat me as nothing and let me go."

"OK! I am more than willing!" Father Martin readily agreed, and without further ado, he pulled Yuan Wuba up and said in very stiff Chinese: "You don't believe? The concession, we are going to the concession."

If there is a next time, Mr. Yang will bring a foreign army to the county office to settle accounts with your uncle

"OK! OK!" Upon hearing this, Father Martin was amused and immediately took off the cross he was wearing, holding it up in front of Yuan Wubai. Yuan Wubai did not hesitate and promptly kissed the cross devoutly in front of thousands of citizens, and then he kissed the Bible with even greater reverence

It was only after Wu Chaoyue and his group had walked far away that Yuan Wuba, with the assistance of his subordinates, managed to stand up. First, he wiped the sweat, mucus, and tears from his plump face, then patted his chest and said, "Damn it, that scared me to death. If I really went to the concession, my clan uncle would definitely not let me off the hook. By the way, when did that little scoundrel named Wu start speaking such fluent foreign language? I had never heard of it before"

"Of course, you should go to the concession for a visit," Wu Chaoyue said with a helpless shrug. He then stepped forward to assist Father Martin in holding onto Yuan Wuba's other arm, saying, "Captain Yuan, there really is no other way. You should accompany this foreign priest to the concession. It’s not a big deal; just quickly send someone back to inform your clan uncle, Yuan Xianzun, to personally visit the concession as well and explain the situation for you.

Where do I have that? As soon as Yuan Wubai heard this, he was taken aback and quickly asked, "Where do I have anyone who favors hitting him? When have I ever favored anyone?"

Why? Yuan Wubai was taken aback and exclaimed, "Why should I go to the concession?"

I promise, I promise

Wu Chaoyue smiled and nodded again, then turned to Yuan Wuba, who was already feeling dizzy from the conversation, and said in a displeased tone: "Yuan Ban Tou, I apologize, but it seems I cannot accompany you to the county office. Not only can I not go with you to the county office, but I must also ask you to take a trip to the concession. Please."

I won't go! Yuan Wuba's face turned pale, and he cried out, "I won't go to the concession! My uncle will know that I've offended the foreigners, and if I ask him to go to the concession to save me, he will surely skin me alive! Young Master Wu, I beg you, please tell this foreign priest that I won't go to the concession, I won't go to the concession!"

Then, something happened that even Wu Chaoyue did not expect. Yuan Wuba, in a desperate struggle, suddenly knelt down before Wu Chaoyue with a thud, his voice trembling as he said: "Young Master Wu, I beg you, please intercede for me with the foreigners. I really cannot go to the concession! Last time during the Qingpu Incident, the Qingpu people only injured two foreign priests, and the foreign warships directly sailed to the foot of Jiangning City. The head of the Qingpu County magistrate, Lord Zhou, was taken off. If I go to the concession with you, my uncle's head will also be lost. I cannot implicate him! I have offended you before, and I apologize to you. I bow my head to you, please forgive me, I will never dare again! Last time during the Qingpu Incident, the Qingpu people only injured two foreign priests, and the foreign warships directly sailed to the foot of Jiangning City. The head of the Qingpu County magistrate, Lord Zhou, was taken off. If I go to the concession with you, my uncle's head will also be lost. I cannot implicate him! I have offended you before, and I apologize to you. I bow my head to you, please forgive me, I will never dare again! I will never dare again!"

The young girl refused to accept the silver, gazing at Wu Chaoyue for a while before suddenly snorting coldly and turning to leave. Wu Chaoyue shrugged helplessly, thinking to himself that she was indeed a little firecracker, and that it was best to avoid such a woman, no matter how beautiful she was. Then, in order to prevent Yuan Wuba from realizing and causing trouble, and also to avoid being punished when he got home, Wu Chaoyue said to Father Martin: "Respected Father, I live in the city of Shanghai. I wonder if you would be interested in visiting my home? My grandfather also speaks English and can communicate with us, you would surely have a delightful time." Wu Chaoyue said to Father Martin again: "Respected Father, I live in the city of Shanghai. I wonder if you would be interested in visiting my home? My grandfather also speaks English and can communicate with us, you would surely have a delightful time."

In a moment of urgency, the foreign priest spoke in his native English, and among those present, only Wu Chaoyue could understand him. When Yuan Wubai saw a blond-haired, blue-eyed foreigner chattering away at him with what seemed to be great anger, he naturally felt quite intimidated and hurriedly asked Wu Chaoyue, "Young Master Wu, what is this foreigner saying?"

As Father Martin, covered in golden fur, pulled him, Yuan Wuba's three souls instantly fled, leaving behind six spirits. Struggling, he shouted to Wu Chaoyue, "Young Master Wu, what does this foreign gentleman want? Why is he pulling me?"

Wu Chaoyue ignored Yuan Wuba and simply asked the foreign priest: "Respected priest, a saint from the West, may I ask which country you are from?"

Why? Wu Chaoyue's tone became even more unfriendly, "You are deliberately favoring the criminals who assaulted the foreign missionary. This American priest is very angry and wants to invite you to the concession for a visit. He wants Mr. Qi Liyun, the American consul, to seek justice for him"

"Poor lamb, the Lord will forgive you," said Father Martin, drawing a cross as he spoke

In this era, the only person in the Qing court who does not seem to fear foreigners is probably Wu Chaoyue's comprador grandfather, Wu Jianzhang—only because he can communicate normally. Therefore, after hearing Wu Chaoyue's words, Yuan Wubai, in a state of shock, could only hastily send his subordinates to investigate the true cause of the matter. Wu Chaoyue then turned to the foreign priest Martin and said very seriously: "Respected Father, it seems we are going to have trouble. This official suspects that you are not a genuine missionary, but rather a fraud from America posing as a priest to preach. Therefore, he not only wants to arrest me but also intends to capture you as well."

"Yes, yes," Father Martin from the West said joyfully, nodding his head and stating, "The consul representing our country in Shanghai is Mr. Qi Liyun, and I am quite familiar with him."

Crying out, Yuan Wuba knelt repeatedly before Wu Chaoyue, weeping bitterly and desperately pleading for mercy. While Wu Chaoyue felt a sense of joy in his heart, Father Martin over there asked in confusion: "Dear Chinese friend, what has happened? Why is this officer kneeling before you and crying so sorrowfully?"

Wu Chaoyue did not respond immediately; instead, he first glanced at the surrounding situation. Seeing the people nearby pointing and whispering about Yuan Wuba, and noticing how heartbroken and frightened Yuan Wuba was, his resentment greatly diminished. He then addressed Father Martin in English, saying: "Respected Father, just now, this gentleman's subordinate has already inquired about your identity and confirmed that you are a true missionary, a devout believer in the Lord. Feeling ashamed in his heart, he knelt down to seek our forgiveness. Do you wish to forgive him?"

"That's great, I am very willing." Father Martin was overjoyed and immediately agreed. Wu Chaoyue was also very happy to hear this—having an outsider like Father Martin, who was also a foreigner, meant that Wu Jianzhang would no longer dare to use the ruler on him. Therefore, Wu Chaoyue personally went forward to lead Father Martin, and several sycophants led by Wu Dasa seized the opportunity to shake off the entanglement of the Shanghai county officials, swaggering into the city alongside Wu Chaoyue and Father Martin. The county officials of Shanghai not only did not dare to obstruct them, but even held their breath, watching Wu Chaoyue and the others leave with wide eyes.