张爱玲色·戒英文原稿.doc

1Eileen Changc/o R.M. McCarthyUnited States Information ServiceHongkongTHE SPYRINGorCH’ING K’Ê! CH’ING K’Ê!Though it was daytime, they had turned on a strong light directly over the taut white tablecloth tied on to the four legs of the mahjong table. Crimson finger-nails, dark against the flat glaring whiteness, scurried among the bamboo tiles as all four pairs of hands stirred the tiles up for the next game. Diamond rings flashed in their wake.Two of the ladies sat facing each other in identical black velvet cloaks held together by a heavy gold chain under the collar. The insularity of war-time Shanghai encouraged it to develop its own fashions, especially among the official circles. Gold being very expensive, a chain as thick as this cost a small fortune. No wife of an official above a certain rank would ever go out without her cloak and chain.It has been said in the ancient classics that a woman’s ideal posture is “Like a bell when seated; like a pine tree when standing; like a wind when walking; like a bow when sleeping.” Mrs. Tai, the hostess, was as firmly set on her chair as a bell even if she didn’t have her cloak on. But Shahlu Li looked a bit out of place amidst these bell-like shapes at the table. She was petite with deep curves, wearing a brief dark gown covered with big pink peonies. She had disdainful eyes heavily fringed and lifted smokily at the corners. Her face was a pale gold heart. She was very pretty.Mrs. Tai had met her in Hongkong two years ago. The Tais had followed Wang Ching-Wei in his flight from Chungking to Hongkong and from there to the Japanese-occupied area to form the puppet government in Nanking. But their futures had seemed uncertain when they left Hongkong. The Japanese could still have ditched them at the last moment. Among Wang’s entourage Tzeng Chung-Ming had already been assassinated by Chungking agents. So Tai had scrupulously avoided people, but Mrs. Tai had gone out a lot. She had been very grateful to young Mrs. Li who had entertained her lavishly, doing everything she could to make her brief stay enjoyable.Shahlu Li’s husband had been a flourishing import-exporter. But of course business was dead now that the Japanese had taken Hongkong. Like many other society ladies Shahlu had resorted to inter-port peddling, coming to Shanghai with wristwatches, jewels, nylons and perfumes. When she called at the Tais, Mrs. Tai had insisted that she should stay with them. It gave Mrs. Tai great pleasure to be able to repay her hospitality as well as show off the wealth and position they had achieved in the space of two years. “It’s my duty to see that you have a good time now that you’ve come into my territory,” she had said half-jokingly.“We tried out that new restaurant,” Mrs. Tai was telling one of the black cloaked ladies about last night’s party. “Why didn’t you come, Mrs. Ma?”Mrs. Ma said something about a relative’s birthday, but Shahlu knew that she did not turn up 2because she was jealous. Mrs. Tai was surrounded by a coterie of lesser officials’ wives and they took turns being the favorite.“You’re getting stuck-up these days,” teased Mrs. Tai. “Turning down invitations. Ought to be punished. Ch’ing k’ê, ch’ing k’ê! Stand us dinner, stand us dinner!”“Ch’ing k’ê, ch’ing k’ê!” echoed Mrs. Sun, the other cloaked lady. It was a game that they never tired of playing, demanding to be stood dinner all round at the least excuse. Mrs. Ma smiled, pretending to be cagey.“Ch’ing k’ê, ch’ing k’ê!” Mrs. Tai shouted. Then she swore at the tile she had just drawn. She felt like having a cigarette and it happened that no amah was at hand to light it for her. She picked up the matchbox and it was empty, a sure sign that she would lose money. “Dead pigs!” she yelled at the absent servants, “All dead pigs!”Her husband strolled in, exchanging nods with his guests. The dazzling light over the mahjong-table forced the other parts of the large room into an unnatural greyish gloom. One wall was entirely covered from floor to ceiling by a fluted curtain of sand-colored wool with a rust-red palm leaf pattern, priceless because it was now unobtainable on the market with the war on.Tai stepped into the glare. He was a small man in a grey suit with thin hair receding from a delicate mousy face. “You people are starting early today,” he observed. He stood at his wife’s back looking at Shahlu, giving his mouth an infinisimal jerk sideways towards the door.Mrs. Tai turned round and started screaming when she saw that he was carrying a book in his hand. A book is shu and “to lose” is also pronounced shu. “No wonder I’m losing, with people standing behind me with shu in their hands!”Everybody laughed and Tai tossed his book on a sofa. He stood around watching the game.Mrs. Ma reached for her tea. There were cups of tea and plates of candies and pared fruits on the small table at her elbow. “Now which is my cup?” she said.“Mine has a candy-wrapper in the saucer,” Shahlu said. She turned her head and was。