Chapter 4

Wang Qin sat speechless. How could it be that this man was offering him such an opportunity?

"Sir, it's too much. I can't accept such a proposal." Wang Qin exclaimed.

"Nonsense! I'm investing in the future of my daughter and my grandchildren. For them I would spare no expense. If you're to marry Cora you must accept my offer for education." Mr. Marshall told him.

"Understood, Sir. Thank you for believing in me." Wang Qin said earnestly.

"I know you to be a good man but it's Cora who believes in you. May God have mercy on you if you ever cause my daughter to cry." Mr. Marshall warned.

"Understood. I will devote my life to her and the family we build together." Wang Qin said with more confidence than he felt. Mr. Marshall nodded and made his exit, signifying that the meeting was over. Wang Qin rose to leave when Cora ran into the room gleefully.

"I've just heard from father! He told me what you agreed to. Mother says we must set a date for the wedding. Oh, and that you're to join us for dinner tonight!" Cora was so excited she could barely catch her breath.

Wang Qin gently held her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"There is plenty of time to sort everything out, but you must remember to breathe!" He instructed her. Cora giggled.

"I can't help but be excited." She gasped.

"I don't think I'll ever understand why you believe in me, but I am glad that you do." Qin said softly.

——————

Xiao Mi furtively looked both directions before knocking at the door of the elderly Auntie she had heard about.

"Yes, how can I help you, child?" The elder asked as she opened the door.

"I heard that you can help me. With da siu yan?" Xiao Mi whispered her query. The woman wordlessly waved her inside. The auntie gestures towards a table with various paraphernalia on it. Taoism, Buddhism, I Ching divination sticks and more were represented.

"Now why would a young girl like you have need of such services?" The auntie asked.

"She's my love rival. I would do anything to make him love me and forget her." Xiao Mi exclaimed in desperation.

The Autie regarded her silently.

"I can do it. But you must understand that for everything there is a price." The Auntie said.

Xiao Mi gestured to the little bag of coins tied at the waist of her kabaya.

"I can pay." She assured the older woman.

"I don't mean money. Karma will always exact payment from those who would curse others. When you enter the netherworld you will give account of your deeds. Is it worth it to you to risk so much? What if you can't reincarnate peacefully?" The Auntie asked her.

Xiao Mi, who was still young and assumed death to be further away, shrugged.

"Then I will face it when the time comes." She replied resolutely. The Auntie sighed but nonetheless she began the ritual, lighting incense and speaking words. She held out her hand to Xiao Mi.

"The photograph?" The auntie requested.

From her pocket she pulled the sepia image. Her cousin worked in the kitchens at the Marshall family and had taken the photo away for her.

The elderly woman's eyes widened when she saw the identity of the photo but said nothing. More words, then she took of her shoe and hit the photo, tore it in half and tossed it into the flame.

"It's done." The auntie said simply.

—————

Wang Qin felt frustrated. Ever since his parents learned that he planned to marry Cora, his mother had been livid.

"She is the woman you mentioned? An Ang mo? Gweilo? You want your children to grow up not knowing their family, speaking our language, or following in our cultural traditions? I think you're trying to kill me!" His mother had shouted. His father had been more practical but to the point.

"Your mother is worried about having a woman who isn't Chinese as a daughter-in-law. You know it's tradition the daughter-in-law becomes the hostess of the family and your fiancée knows nothing about our traditions. She is concerned that we will lose face or that our grandchildren won't know our culture or be able to speak Chinese. You must be filial." His father had said.

Qin tried to assuage their reservations and suggested that both families sit down together to know one another better.

"Bring her family here? Absolutely not. They would look down on us. You know this." His mother countered.

"Then at least let me bring Cora so that you can meet her." Wang Qin was willing to compromise.

"You want me to die, lah?" His mother yelled.

"No, of course not. But you have to meet your future daughter-in-law eventually." He countered.

She huffed in an irritated sort of resignation.

"Okay, ah! When she sees our home she will end the engagement. The sooner we get this over with, the better!"

———————-

Wang Qin wasn't the only one having trouble with regards to their wedding.

"There must be something you could do Pastor!" Cora's mother gently implored as she, Cora, and the pastor stood near the pulpit.

The elderly Methodist minister squinted at them with disapproval wrinkling his brow.

"I can not marry a Christian to a heathen. It would go against every principle I hold as a pastor." He said in a scolding tone.

"What if he converts to Christianity?" Cora asked innocently.

"Even then, I can not marry a daughter of God to a Chinaman. It goes against the very laws of nature!" He exclaimed.

Anger flushed Cora's cheeks but before she could speak, her mother addressed the minister.

"Reverend, the Chinaman that you refer to is to be the son-in-law of the wealthiest man in the area. You may have your principles to stand on, but we do as well. Our principles lead us to believe that God does not discriminate based on ethnicity. Perhaps it is time that we and our tithe find a church more in-line with our values." She said all of this with the gracious smile that only a socialite could have in the face of such flagrant racism.

"Uh, perhaps I was a bit hasty. I'm sure we can find an adequate solution." The older man said with nervousness.