The Steel Heart: The Shifting Sands, #2

By Grey Wolf

The second novel in The Shifting Sands series picks up the story as Lord Wolfe and Carlotta leave Tsingtao, having concluded a treaty with the Japanese, and head for Seoul in the Kingdom of Korea.
Travelling across the Pacific, they enter the vast British North American colonies and traverse the expanse by train, to the East coast where interesting news awaits. An Atlantic liner awaits, and they make a welcome return to Harcourt Hall after so many months away.
As Carlotta begins to assert her independence, and receives a gift of alpacas from the former governor of the Argentine, Lord Woife takes decisions on how to invest a proportion of their fortune, including in the rising automobile industry. The publication of Carlotta's diary of the Tsingtao negotiations is a sensation that brings unwelcome attention, and not long after an unexpected confrontation that shatters the usual peace of Monksbury.
At the same time, the machinery of foreign diplomacy, occurring behind the scenes, and behind the backs of the politicians, increasingly draws Lord Wolfe into Russian affairs. Do they really have to travel to Saint Petersburg? What of the lives they are making back home?
 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Scimitar Edge
• Release date: Dec 25, 2023
• ISBN: 9781915692702

Grey Wolf

Grey Wolf began writing as a teenager, and has remained consistent ever since in the genres he writes in - Alternate History, Science Fiction, and Fantasy. A poet since his later teens, he now has several published collections and his work has appeared in a number of magazines.  Living now in the South Wales valleys, Grey Wolf is a keen photographer and makes use of the wonderful scenery and explosion of nature that is the Welsh countryside. 

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

Chemulpo

Kingdom of Korea

21st August 1920

Lord Wolfe and Carlotta stood at the prow of the transport Kyle of Lochalsh as it navigated its way between the outer islands, Richy to the north and Yung-hung-do to the south. The weather was overcast, and few others had braved it to stand toe-to-toe with the wind. Behind the transport, the small cruiser Black Cat kept station a couple of cables to the rear. The Ajax and the two armoured cruisers had been left behind at Tsingtao, and to Wolfe it was as if the whole adventure from Madras onwards had taken on a peculiar second act where it was once again the transport and the Black Cat against the world.

After the handover ceremony, they had tarried a couple of days in Tsingtao, bidding farewell to Sir James Carrington, Brigadier General Trent, and Commodore Morgan who had taken ship to Shanghai, and then to Lars and Jenny, with the latter handing over several parcels of baby clothes, knitted during the mission with instructions to gift them to Giselle, or if they no longer fitted her child by the time they got back, to gift them to any local girl who needed them for her baby. With Ronald Hart having gone ahead to Korea before the ceremony, the party that had boarded the Kyle of Lochalsh after breakfast on the 19th had consisted of Lord Wolfe and Carlotta, Lionel, Michael Harrison, Prince Hussain and Ali, as well as Dicks and his men. The Eagle Force was going with them to Korea in its full complement.

Will Mr Hart be waiting for us? Carlotta asked, as the transport entered the ten-mile channel leading to the anchorage.

The last telegram we got before leaving Tsingtao said that he was going up to the Yalu River., Wolfe told her, I am not sure who will be greeting us.

She considered this a moment, then asked,

What happens if nobody comes to meet us?

Wolfe laughed,

In that case I should whip the behind of both the King of Korea and the British ambassador!

But what if it happens? Carlotta pressed.

Wolfe looked at her and shrugged,

Well, if that does happen I am sure either Harrison or Dicks can rustle up a vehicle or two to take us to the capital.

His daughter nodded, apparently satisfied, and resumed watching as the transport headed towards Chemulpo.

The anchorage was far from empty. As they approached, they immediately made out the massive forms of the Agamemnon and the Achilles, as well as a British armoured cruiser anchored nearby to them. Two Japanese armoured cruisers with their rising sun flags could be made out beyond them, and as the transport came to a stop, the passengers could make out ships flying the ensigns of France, the Spanish Empire, Denmark, Sweden, and Naples, as well as a small sailing brig that Harrison eventually identified as belonging to the Empire of Vietnam.

Vice Admiral Reginald Parr was waiting for them on shore, along with an entire squadron of Guard Cavalry, drawn up in their splendid uniforms, on top of almost stationary black horses.

Welcome to Korea, my lord Parr spoke for the group, My lady, he nodded at Carlotta, Your highness, he included Prince Hussain, If I may attach Lieutenant Giles Foot to your party, he speaks excellent Korean.

Thank you, admiral, Wolfe looked to the lieutenant, a man appearing to be in his early twenties, with an earnest face, Lieutenant?

My lord, the man bowed, This is Baron Gim Sajun, the commander of King Sunjong's personal guard. He is here to provide an escort for you to Seoul.

Baron Gim, Wolfe inclined his head towards the man who was standing beside his horse, his helmet under his arm.

None of the cavalry detachment speak English, Lieutenant Foot explained, Or Spanish, or French... Baron Gim Sajun speaks Russian, and his second in command Japanese...

Wolfe looked to Harrison who shrugged then to Prince Hussain who frowned,

I do have some Russian,, the son of the Aga Khan said, We learned it in the field in the war. He looked to Ali who spoke quickly back to him, and then turned back to Wolfe, Ali's Russian is more fluent.

If one of you could please ask Baron Gim how we are to journey to the capital? Wolfe looked from the navy lieutenant to Prince Hussain and to Ali.

Lieutenant Foot fired off the question in Korean, receiving a fast burst in reply, replete with hand gestures and much pointing from the Baron.

Um... My lord, they have brought horses for you. Foot said hesitantly.

Horses! Carlotta grinned, Are we to ride to the capital?

It is thirty miles! Harrison protested, I don't mind a horse, but it has been a while, and it will take hours.

The er, horses, have been specially chosen by King Sunjong from the royal stables., Foot finished passing on what the Baron had said, It would be seen as a great insult to refuse them.

Wolfe looked around him. Carlotta seemed excited at the prospect, Harrison accepting, whilst Prince Hussain and Ali who had probably spent most of the world war on horseback seemed to think it perfectly natural. Only Lionel of his immediate party looked uncertain. Wolfe made a decision,

There are certainly not enough mounts for the entirety of the Eagle Force. Harrison, if you and Lionel could wait here, and arrange some transport of the motorised kind to come up to Seoul in and join us there? Dicks, Potter and Hanson could ride with us.

Dicks, who was standing by the quayside came over upon hearing his name,

Snow will lead the liaison here with Harrison and your secretary., he agreed with Wolfe's suggestion, It has been some time since I rode a horse, but once a cavalry officer, always a cavalry officer, and I dare say the roads here are better than those in Tibet or Kashgaria!

Having arrived in Chemulpo in the early afternoon, it was evening by the time they arrived in the capital. To Wolfe's relief, Dicks had been right and the main road between Seoul's principal harbour and the capital itself had been a smooth, and generally straight highway, clear of any major obstructions, and lined with watering spots and abandoned Russian guard posts.

Baron Gim Sajun took them to a large inn, adjacent to the sprawling royal palace behind its walls. They were to meet the king tomorrow, but until that occurred they were not permitted inside the boundary of the Gyeongbok Palace. Instead, the Sunrise Inn was available as lodgings.

Lieutenant Foot went on inside to talk to the owners, and came back out with a wide smile,

My lord! he laughed, After your and Prince Iruto signed the first articles of the treaty, the Japanese government sold this inn to Thomas Leakey - he is a British merchant who came up from Shanghai after the Treaty of Arnhem and opened an import agency some streets away.

That sounds perfect., Lord Wolfe rubbed his aching backside, and watched his daughter rub hers. They definitely needed to ride out more! Back in Saff, they could have taken an afternoon's ride like this in their stride, but they were too much out of practice.

The Koreans watched them head inside, then took their mounts in hand, and rode off towards the royal palace.

CHAPTER TWO

Seoul

Kingdom of Korea

25th August 1920

Herbert Dicks walked through the door carrying a yoke over his shoulders from which dangled two large pots full almost to the brim with pale yellow paint. Hanson and Potter came across to help him offload them onto the scaffold, and Dicks stood back, stretching his back and rubbing at his shoulders,

That's all added onto the account at Leakeys. he said.

Lionel, sitting at a small table with his ledgers before him dipped his pen into the ink jar and added a note to that effect.

I expect it will be quite a large account. Wolfe commented.

He was sat before the fire with Carlotta, reading the Imperial Clarion whilst she made notes in her new diary.

It's all on the government! Harrison called down from the top of the scaffold, Our government that is, even though it is a wing of the Korean palace we are painting!

We did not have to paint it., Lionel pointed out, They have not asked us to.

Yeah, Dicks pulled himself up a level, If you like living in a decaying Russian pigsty!

After their audience with King Sunjong on Sunday, the Korean monarch had insisted, through Lieutenant Foot interpreting, that Wolfe's party be lodged within the Gyeongbok Palace, as befitted an Ambassador Plenipotentiary and his staff. They had happily agreed, despite having enjoyed their overnight stay in the Sunrise Inn, but their happiness had soon turned to dismay when they saw the quarters that the Korean Majordomo had assigned them. Apparently, their status meant that they were taking over that part of the palace previously used by the Russian Security Minister and the Okhrana, from when Korea had been a Russian protectorate before the war, but whatever status this wing of the palace might have been accorded had not come with sealed windows or rooves, and the paint was peeling, the walls mouldy, and the carpets threadbare. Britain had yet to assign an ambassador, since the country had remained under Japanese occupation, but Major Elias Blunt, who had been the liaison officer with the Japanese ever since they wrested the country from the Russians, had arranged a line of credit for them with the British Resident in Shanghai.

Carlotta looked across at her father and wrinkled her nose,

"Why are you reading the Clarion? she asked, Do they not have the Imperial Herald here?"

"I read the Herald yesterday, he told her, But Major Blunt told me that Lord Nathaniel Hoare's column had disappeared from the Clarion and I wanted to see for myself."

Is he being punished because he was nasty to us, but we made the agreement with the Japanese in the end? she asked.

I think so! Wolfe laughed, One Perseus Whittle has a column in his place, and is very much of the view that we have avoided war with Japan, and that the acquisition of Shantung outshines most of the other gains from the war.

Does it? the eleven year old asked, her pen hovering over her diary.

Wolfe sat back and took a drink from the glass of fruit juice beside him,

In terms of territory, Tanganyika is the largest gain., he knew she knew that, for all the days and nights they had discussed that German colony back in Saff, Many including the Earl of Thorpe would see the gains in German India and the East Indies as being the most valuable. Lord Herbert Clarke no doubt thinks that our much enhanced position in Persia is the most important.

Gurrr, she made a sucking noise on the end of her pen, So it is just everybody's own opinion again?! How can I write about that?

Wolfe laughed, and went back to the newspaper.

Major Elias Blunt entered the room that they had set up as their dining room as they were eating lunch. The Koreans were happy to ship food over from their kitchens, but Dicks had resurrected the Russian's range to add a selection of his own recipes to enhance the meals that they brought. The dining room had not been the Russians' mess, that was seen as being too large a room for less than a dozen people, so one of the other rooms, which had probably been an office under the protectorate, had now been done out as the dining room.

Ah Blunt, sit down? Harrison rose and offered him the spare chair beside him. Prince Hussain and Ali were out exploring the city, and the table had spare capacity.

Thank you, Blunt sat down, and accepted a bowl of meat and rice that Dicks slid across to him, Lord Wolfe, the French representative to the Guarantor Council wishes to meet with you.

The Guarantor Council had been decreed by the Treaty of Arnhem, but had never met as yet due to the Japanese occupation. With the Japanese agreeing to withdraw, in exchange for a seat upon it, that was set to change in the next few days. Britain was sending someone up from Shanghai, whilst France, Spain and other powers already had someone in Seoul waiting for the matter to be resolved.

Am I likely to enjoy this meeting? Wolfe asked the British liaison officer.

Probably not, my lord, Blunt shrugged, You will have read what the Dauphin said in a speech in Paris after the handover ceremony?

France over-reaches itself., Dicks commented, She may rise again, but on a practical scale she no longer outranks Denmark.

I will be sure not to mention that to the French Representative! Wolfe laughed.

Lord Wolfe, the Comte d'Urbane was a small man in his sixties, but possessed of a powerful energy that manifested itself in little shifts and jiggles as he stood.

Please have a seat, Wolfe waved him to the sofa, and the Frenchman after staring at it with disdain slowly lowered himself to sit upon it.

"Everything has been cleaned.", Wolfe felt obliged to comment.

The count ignored him,

I demand an immediate session of the Guarantor Council! the Frenchman said.

Wolfe blinked,

"Who are you demanding it of?" he asked.

The Comte d'Urbane had clearly being going to say something else, but this question caught him unawares and he spluttered to a halt,

The Treaty of Arnhem said that its first session should happen as soon as possible, he said, With the Treaty of Tsingtao, there is now no impediment upon its meeting.

Only two slight technical matters, Wolfe said, The British representative has not yet arrived, and the Japanese Empire has not yet named their man.

It cannot be helped if other countries are less prepared than we are! the count snapped, I have been here since November!

Then I am sure that a delay of another week or so would not cause you too much distress., Wolfe told him.

My government is not happy! the count snapped, one hand waving ferociously in the air, I am passing on Paris's official demand that the Guarantor Council be called into session.

"You are demanding this of me? Wolfe queried, Do I control the Guarantor Council?"

Then what are you saying? the count demanded.

The Guarantor Council can only meet when all delegates are here. Once it is in session it is a permanent body. It cannot be placed into session until the full membership is present.

And when will that be? the count stood up, How do we even know that the Japanese are going to name anybody?

Because their withdrawing from Korea without doing so would be illogical, Wolfe rose to his feet also, It has been nice meeting you, Msr le comte.

Yes, the Frenchman turned on his heels and strode out of the room.

CHAPTER THREE

Seoul

Kingdom of Korea

27th August 1920

The Sunrise Inn was full of multi-national bustle. The Japanese occupation government had allowed third party citizens to open businesses, just like they had in Tsingtao, but with the signing of the articles committing themselves to withdraw the influx of foreigners had become a flood.

I have arranged a table for us in a private room., Ronald Hart told them as they weaved their way through the crowd.

That is just as well! Harrison laughed, I don't think we would have heard each other out here!

Today is a momentous day., Major Elias Blunt commented, People are flocking to the capital so as to be part of it.

Mr Hart!, the woman was in her mid-twenties and well-rounded, a greasy apron testament to her culinary skills, Mr Leakey cannot be here right now, but I have made all of the arrangements.

Thank you, Melissa!

She beamed to be addressed by her name, and led them through a back corridor and into a panelled room, where a fire was already blazing in the hearth,

Just pull the bell cord when you are ready to order food., she said, I will get Maisie to bring you an assortment of drinks now.

A large wooden table dominated the room, with plain wooden chairs set around it on all four sides. Lord Wolfe and Carlotta took their place at the head of it, whilst Hart, Harrison, Lionel, and Major Blunt took the other chairs. Dicks and Snow remained standing by the door.

I have a lot to report back., Ronald Hart said as a teenage girl entered pushing a trolley and began to place carafes, jugs, and glasses onto the table.

What is it like up at the Yalu? Harrison asked him, I remember studying all the figures before the conference. The Japanese seemed to have outdone the Russians in efficiency.

Yes, they did, Hart said, But now, he shook his head and poured himself a glass of fruit juice, adding a dash of vodka from a sturdy bottle that clearly dated back to the Russian protectorate.

Now? pressed Lord Wolfe.

Where there are Japanese corporations now running the enterprises, things progress much as before.

I am sensing a but. Harrison commented.

Where the Japanese occupation government still controlled the enterprises they have passed into the control of the Korean authorities., Hart sighed and took a hefty swig of his drink, They are in no way up to the challenge.

What is happening? asked Major Blunt, furrowing his brow.

The reaction to the chaos is threefold., Hart explained, In some places, the Japanese have simply stepped back in and are calling themselves agents for King Sunjong, even though no such agreement exists, but where this is happening the enterprises are back in hand, and running properly.

Has the Gyeongbok Palace commented on this? Wolfe asked. As well as being the royal residence, the sprawling structure was also the centre of the Korean government, or whatever early vestiges constituted such a government.

The Crown Prince has let it be known unofficially that Korea is content with the arrangement as a stop-gap. Hart said, But in the other two types of instances, things are a lot worse up there.

One of those would be where the Koreans attempt to run things for themselves? Blunt hazarded a guess.

Yes, Hart replied, It is not a lack of will, or even skill, just simply inexperience. During the protectorate what government there was mainly concerned itself with Seoul and its immediate surroundings, the Russians controlled everything else. King Sunjong's father would hold court and nobles from a fifty mile radius, if that, would attend the annual affair. There is nobody with the experience of running vast business enterprises - they were built by the Russians and run by the Russians during the protectorate.

So... Wolfe mused sipping at a glass of ale, It is chaos?

Many sorts of chaos in those cases, yes my lord., Hart replied, In some places all work has ceased, the workforce dispersed, the river almost choked with abandoned barges. In others, there is an attempt to run the business, but there is no credit, no money, and the legal status of things like mortgages, loans and even the ownership of machinery is in doubt.

Is the Palace doing anything about that? Wolfe asked.

They have sent a general up there, and he's raised levies across the Northern province, but Hart shrugged, he cannot shoot a failing business back into action. And that leads on to the third type of outcome he said.

"Where there is shooting?" Carlotta guessed, betting on the juxtaposition of his words.

Yes my lady, Hart sighed, In some places the workers have seized the industries and have thrown out the managers, locked out the government, and are attempting to run them as communes. There have already been some clashes with the military.

This does not bode well., Wolfe sighed, Is there a solution?

There is a very simple one., Harrison interjected, The Korean government must sell the enterprises that it has taken over as soon as possible.

But preferably not to the Japanese... Wolfe mused.

The ceremony was to be a largely symbolic one. The real business would begin in a few days’ time, after the weekend. Nevertheless, the symbolism was a powerful draw, and crowds of Koreans and foreigners alike had flocked to the Gyeongbok Palace.

The ceremony began at 3p.m. and dragged on until 6p.m., the Koreans having resurrected a multitude of ancient rituals, or borrowed them wholesale from the Chinese, to create an impressive sequence of events.

King Sunjong strode through the centre of it, his figure made up in gold and red, colours chosen to represent Korea's equality with the empires around it, and to flaunt its right to be considered an independent nation in the counsels of the world.

Around 5p.m. the members of the Guarantor Council stepped up to a rostrum and took their seats. The Japanese had nominated an elderly count, who had previously worked in the finance section of the occupation government, whilst Britain had sent up Lieutenant General George Allen, previously commander of the British garrison in Shanghai, which position he had relinquished to a new man arrived from London aboard the liner Princess Josephine.

Lord Wolfe and Carlotta watched from a shaded vantage point as each member of the Guarantor Council swore an oath to uphold Korean independence. The fidgety Comte d'Urbane was followed by the obviously drunk Hidalgo Quiroga for the Spanish Empire, a man whom Hart informed him had spent the several months of his waiting moving from tavern to tavern and sinking further into his cups.

At last the ceremony ended, with a show of horsemanship by Baron Gim Sajun and the king's personal guard. A herald then announced in Korean, Japanese and Spanish that the Guarantor Council would meet in full session on Monday, and everyone dispersed.

The Dolphin was a quieter public house than the Sunrise Inn, which was to say that it was busy in the evening, but not overcrowded and heaving with humanity. Ronald Hart had become familiar with it in the period he had spent in the Korean capital before heading up to the Yalu River, and led them there that evening after the ceremony.

Welcome again, Mr Hart!, the owner of the inn was Sarah Packard, a war widow who had moved in after the Treaty of Arnhem in partnership with a Dane, Magnus Anderson.

Sarah, Hart smiled, May I present Lord Jairus Wolfe and his daughter the Lady Carlotta.

My lord, my lady, Sarah smiled, My youngest is not much older than yourself.

Also, Michael Harrison and Herbert Dicks

Gentlemen, Sarah waved them to a table in a well-lit corner, Olivia will be out in a moment to take your orders.

It looks like you made an impression! Harrison told the British Intelligence man as he settled himself in next to Carlotta, watching with an amused eye as she opened her diary and began to write.

There has been much uncertainty here, Hart told him, My arrival as the vanguard for Lord Wolfe's party helped to settle many nerves about the future.

A girl of about sixteen sidled up to them, wiping her hands on an apron and holding a pencil and a notebook,

My mother says that you are ready to order? she asked.

Hart looked around at the others, and took it upon himself to do so, ordering food that he knew the establishment did well.

She is not my age., Carlotta said, looking at the back of the retreating girl.

I do not think that Sapphire is either., Hart replied, I think that Sarah mistakes you for someone a couple of years older than you are.

Oh? Carlotta preened, then looked around, Where is Sapphire then?

Probably in the kitchen washing dishes., Hart laughed, I am sure Sarah will bring her out to meet you later.

Oh good, Carlotta returned to her writing.

Do you know Sarah well? Dicks asked him. For the night he was included as one of the main party, whilst Potter and another of the Eagle Force kept guard outside.

Not that in the way that you mean, perhaps., Hart told him, "She was resident in Shanghai before the war. Her husband was a Lieutenant aboard the cruiser Ardent..."

I remember that was sunk off Shanghai, Dicks said, A Russian submarine?

"Yes, it was lost with all hands. The Russians later decorated the crew of the Som in a ceremony in Lushun for their action."

And she has been here for a year? Wolfe asked.

She brought her daughters up sometime last Autumn., Hart agreed, Sold up what they had in Shanghai to add to the war pension from the loss of her husband. Together with the Dane it was enough to buy this place.

I imagine it was a lot cheaper then? Harrison looked around, And probably in a lot worse condition?

Definitely. The Japanese had taken it from its Russian owners but had done nothing with it. The occupation government was happy to sell it for cash. Hart explained.

They looked up as Major Elias Blunt and Lieutenant Giles Foot came through the door and headed for their table.

If this is a social call, you have missed ordering. Hart said, rising to his feet.

A drink will be fine., Blunt said, motioning him to sit again, I have just been meeting with General Allen. He says that he has disturbing news that the French and Spanish aim to wreck the Guarantor Council on its first session.

To what end? Wolfe asked him.

The inclusion of a Japanese representative has not gone down well in European capitals., Blunt told him, It is believed that the Comte d'Urbane has secret instructions from Paris.

And Quiroga? Wolfe asked.

Well Hart sighed, You saw him today. If he is made to feel important, then I imagine that the French can manipulate him well enough.

Hmmm Wolfe said slowly, What if we were to make him feel important?

How, my lord? Blunt was baffled.

There are only two days... Hart reminded them.

Well, Wolfe looked around, I had no particular plans for this weekend. Did anybody else?

CHAPTER FOUR

Seoul

Kingdom of Korea

29th August 1920

Lord Wolfe and Lionel walked into the room they were using as a common room within their wing of the Gyeongbok Palace. Gone were the scaffolds and tins of paint; instead the walls had a cool. fresh pale yellow colour. Gone too were the threadbare carpets, replaced by oriental rugs they had sourced, also, through Thomas Leakey.

It was a Sunday, and though Wolfe had expressed a hope of attending church, it turned out that there was no Anglican church within Seoul, the nearest being a chapel in the harbour at Chemulpo, too far to travel on a day where so much important work remained to be done. Hart had explained the reason for the unlooked for lack of a suitable place of worship the previous night - under the Russian protectorate Seoul had been closed to anyone not bearing authority from the Russian crown. Only a few ports - Chemulpo, Pusan etc - had been opened to international commerce, visits, and habitation. No doubt, the Anglican Church was now in talks to erect a building in the capital as soon as possible, but until the Treaty of Tsingtao no constructive moves were able to be made.

Wolfe had instead spent the first couple of hours in his sitting room, going over telegrams from Harcourt Hall with Lionel, as well as checking over the accounts on the line of credit with the Resident in Shanghai. After writing a number of new telegrams, they had come down to join the others. Except that the others seemed to be rather at a premium.

Wolfe looked around,

Where is my daughter? he asked.

Potter by the door could only shrug. He had only just come on duty and she had not been here when he arrived. It was Harrison, sitting by the fire, who looked up to reply,

She went out., he said, then seeing the look of confusion on Wolfe's face added, Prince Hussain had an invitation from the Crown Prince to tour the Eight Gates of Seoul. Carlotta wanted to go along, so I sent Snow with her. I think they are also picking up Sapphire from the Dolphin.

Oh, Wolfe came over and sat himself down, opposite his old friend, Sapphire looks small for her age, and Carlotta is tall for her age. Anyone seeing them together would think they were the same.

She is growing up., Harrison laughed, She will increasingly want to be with friends of her own age.

Yes, I had noticed that she was growing up., Wolfe sighed, then added with a grin, She is even a published author!

By Christmas anyway Harrison said, Markhams will work as quickly as possible when they get the document. It might even be out before.

She is writing a new diary., Wolfe said as an observation, If it is about Seoul, I cannot see how there can be enough to get published?

Yes - it is 'A Sojourn in Seoul', but she is writing it this time with the aim of publication. Harrison replied, We are making sure that all of the instances where we had to remove things from the Tsingtao diary are already omitted, and at the same time I am encouraging her to write in much greater detail about those aspects that she can describe fully - such as Friday's ceremony.

And today's visit to the Eight Gates? Wolfe asked.

She thought it would add a lot of local colour., Harrison confirmed.

Post-Arnhem pre-Tsingtao Korea had been a kingdom in limbo. Under the Russian protectorate, there had been no foreign consulates, certainly no presence at all within Seoul, and only in the ports were there offices of the other powers, usually combining commercial functions with some of the lesser roles of a consulate. Under Japanese occupation, the interior had slowly been opened up, but both before the end of the war and in the continuing occupation after the Treaty of Arnhem there had been no realistic change in the legal position on the ground. Britain had assigned Major Blunt as a liaison officer to the Japanese, but made no moves at that time to send a representative to the as yet stillborn Guarantor Council. Other powers had acted similarly, or in an opposite manner, the legal status of their missions confused by what the real status of the kingdom was.

Since the signing of the first articles of the Treaty of Tsingtao, those dealing with Manchuria, Korea and Shanghai, Britain had bought a building to use as an embassy, but other than hire some workers and buy some supplies from Thomas Leakey, they had done nothing towards occupying the building, only repainting it, and fashioning a new perimeter fence. Major Blunt continued to use the house that the Japanese had assigned to him, whilst General Allen coming up to be the British delegate to the Guarantor Council was lodged in a Swedish-owned hotel on the Eastern outskirts of the city.

France's delegate to the Guarantor Council, the Comte d'Urbane, went around the capital calling himself the Ambassador, but he had no official standing in that role, Paris had not conferred it upon him, and he had no embassy to operate out of. He did have his own sense of importance, and a series of orders from Paris, and those combined to allow him to present a much greater figure than he might otherwise have seemed.

For Hidalgo Quiroga, things were even worse. The Spanish Empire had sent him out in the expectation that the Guarantor Council would come into session very soon after his arrival. The Spanish embassy in Edo had extended him a line of government credit, with which he had bought himself a small house, and an office. But nothing had happened, and weeks turned into months. The Spanish representatives in Chemulpo or Pusan acted as unofficial consuls, and Madrid had given Quiroga no duties to perform, and no official role other than that which he had been sent out for. In the absence of action, but the presence of an unending supply of money, he had fallen into bad habits, and a dark place.

Lord Wolfe, Michael Harrison, and Ronald Hart discussed this as they sat in the back of an antique Rossiya II, an immense staff car that a Russian general had abandoned when fleeing Seoul before the Japanese. It was now rented out by the Sumitomo Corporation of Japan on a daily basis, and Dicks and Hanson had picked it up that morning.

There are a number of Spanish taverns along the river. Hart informed them as Dicks swung the vehicle in a lazy arc, bumping down towards the road along the northern shore.

Are we sure he is there? Dicks asked from the front.

It is his habit., Hart said, He rarely rises before Midday, so we should be in a good position to find him this afternoon.

You mean he will be sober? Wolfe asked.

Hart laughed,

Hungover, perhaps, but not yet so deep in his cups as he will be later.

Even tonight? Wolfe asked, The Council sits for the first time tomorrow.

A habit is a habit., Hart shrugged, Besides, unless the count forcibly kidnaps him, what alternative does Quiroga have? He would feel worse sitting in his own house all day.

"Are we sure that the Comte d'Urbane has not kidnapped him?" Wolfe asked.

Major Blunt is watching the French, just in case. But it would be a big risk to do that, and a big scandal if it was revealed. Hart told them.

Well, Wolfe looked out of the window at the row of buildings they were approaching, Let us see if we can find him.

Ten yang, ten yang! A woman said in Spanish, pushing her breasts out at them as they entered the El Huerto Secreto, or 'Secret Garden', a Spanish-owned tavern whose gardens went down to the River Han.

Deal with her., Wolfe told Dicks, and left him to the woman, as the three of them moved on inside the building. Other women were sitting on men’s' laps, and a scantily-clad dancer in a corner was gyrating to the music of a pair of maracas that the general hub-bub drowned out.

Is this a tavern or a brothel? Harrison asked, looking around.

It is registered as a tavern., Hart confirmed.

How will we know if he was here but paid his ten yang and went upstairs? Wolfe asked.

I do not believe Senor Quiroga is currently functional in that area, Hart said quietly, Though that is perhaps something not to mention to him.

Unless I have to Wolfe replied.

Not finding him at El Huerto Secreto they drove on to the next tavern on Hart's list, the Casa Sebastiano. Set directly on the river bank, it had no garden, and towered four storeys in a stark high rectangle. Nobody accosted them on the door as they entered, Hanson remaining again with the vehicle, and Dicks this time going in with them.

The place was less busy than the Secret Garden and seemed full of professional types, many of them sitting with a drink and a newspaper, or a notebook and ink, working while they ate and drank.

A lot of business is done here,, Hart told them, there is even a marriage broker.

What is a marriage broker? Wolfe asked.

Which one is he? Harrison looked around.

The gentleman in the corner with the tricorn hat, Hart nodded in his direction, and turned to Wolfe, If you are a single man resident here with a good job, then the broker can match you up with a young Korean bride of good family, for a mutually beneficial payment.

I see, Wolfe blinked.

Dicks had detached himself and conducted a tour of the building, and came back to them shaking his head,

He is not here, and I asked at the bar, he has not been here all week. They suggest El Toro.

That is fifth on my list, Hart replied.

Let us jump to fifth then, Wolfe decided, "If it has better odds today than three