kajang-roofed boats lying below. A young native boy looked up at him curiously. Adam smiled and waved but the little boy remained expressionless.
He looked up at his mother and she shrugged. He was little and loving and wanted everyone to be his friend, even the little boy on the boat, so far removed from him in everything. His babu trailed behind them, and when she saw Adam pout a little she came up quickly and took him into her arms, hugging him. Charlotte shook her headâsuch a spoilt child he would be if she let him. But she let it go, and they continued over the bridge and down onto the quayside.
Alexander was in school. She had arranged to lunch with Teresa on Commercial Square and to view the extraordinary new invention from America, the Howeâs Automatic Sewing Machine, which was being demonstrated at Little, Cursetjee & Company.
She deliberately chose to direct her steps in front of Baba Tanâs godown. She would greet him if he was there. Why not? She knew him well. And if Zhen happened to be there too, well ⦠The little rush of blood to her face she brought under control immediately and fanned herself.
Whampoa greeted her. He was outside his vast godown, which serviced the British Navy. They knew each other well. Whampoaâs English was formidable. He spoke it as well as any Englishman and better sometimes. Charlotte knew now, that his real name was Hoo Ah Kay, Whampoa being the island of his birth and the name taken by his father for his business. They chatted a little while, Adam, shy, hiding his face in the babuâs sarong.
Whampoa whispered a word to a boy and he ran off, returning within a few minutes with the old sweet maker, his daughter and his cart. Charlotte smiled. She had seen the sweet maker at work before but Adam had not.
He was making dragonâs beard, a Chinese sweet. The man took a pliable yellow disc of palm sugar. He began to knead and stretch the disc until it had a large hole in the middle. He wrapped the disc around his hands, dipped it quickly in rice flour to prevent sticking and began to pass it through his fingers, like a skein of wool, stretching and folding. As if by magic the one strand became two, then four. He dipped again, the rice flour flying and floating as the strands doubled and redoubled. Again and again, thatâs eighty, now two hundred and twenty, more rice flour, now six hundred and forty. Whampoa smiled at Adamâs face, watching entranced as the sugar became more and more strands, finer and finer, the rice powder filling the air like snow. Finally the man stopped; the yellow orb was transformed into the finest silk-like threads, ten thousand of them, shimmering like a snow maidenâs hair, as the powder drifted down to the ground, surrounding the sweet maker in a field of white.
The man laid the delicate bundle of threads on a tray. He cut them quickly into short lengths. His young daughter sprinkled roasted peanuts, sesame seeds and shredded coconut into each of the beards and folded them into a cocoon. The whole entertainment had taken no more than a few minutes. Adamâs mouth was standing open.
Whampoa took one of the sweets and offered it to him. All shyness fled. He took the dragonâs beard candy and put it into his mouth, then smiled. Whampoa gave some coins to the sweet maker, who quickly wrapped the remaining sweets in a banana leaf cone, handed the cone to Adamâs babu and with a toothless grin, moved off.
Charlotte turned then to see what Whampoa was looking at. It was the top-hatted figure of Baba Tan, who had come up to her. She curtsied very deeply to him and made Adam bow. She knew very well Baba Tan was utterly charmed by these English gestures.
âMrs Mah Nuk, how sad to see you in this way, but how nice you have returned to Singapore.â
She nodded at Baba Tan and introduced him to Adam. As he shook hands cheerfully with the little boy, he took her in. She was even more beautiful than
He looked up at his mother and she shrugged. He was little and loving and wanted everyone to be his friend, even the little boy on the boat, so far removed from him in everything. His babu trailed behind them, and when she saw Adam pout a little she came up quickly and took him into her arms, hugging him. Charlotte shook her headâsuch a spoilt child he would be if she let him. But she let it go, and they continued over the bridge and down onto the quayside.
Alexander was in school. She had arranged to lunch with Teresa on Commercial Square and to view the extraordinary new invention from America, the Howeâs Automatic Sewing Machine, which was being demonstrated at Little, Cursetjee & Company.
She deliberately chose to direct her steps in front of Baba Tanâs godown. She would greet him if he was there. Why not? She knew him well. And if Zhen happened to be there too, well ⦠The little rush of blood to her face she brought under control immediately and fanned herself.
Whampoa greeted her. He was outside his vast godown, which serviced the British Navy. They knew each other well. Whampoaâs English was formidable. He spoke it as well as any Englishman and better sometimes. Charlotte knew now, that his real name was Hoo Ah Kay, Whampoa being the island of his birth and the name taken by his father for his business. They chatted a little while, Adam, shy, hiding his face in the babuâs sarong.
Whampoa whispered a word to a boy and he ran off, returning within a few minutes with the old sweet maker, his daughter and his cart. Charlotte smiled. She had seen the sweet maker at work before but Adam had not.
He was making dragonâs beard, a Chinese sweet. The man took a pliable yellow disc of palm sugar. He began to knead and stretch the disc until it had a large hole in the middle. He wrapped the disc around his hands, dipped it quickly in rice flour to prevent sticking and began to pass it through his fingers, like a skein of wool, stretching and folding. As if by magic the one strand became two, then four. He dipped again, the rice flour flying and floating as the strands doubled and redoubled. Again and again, thatâs eighty, now two hundred and twenty, more rice flour, now six hundred and forty. Whampoa smiled at Adamâs face, watching entranced as the sugar became more and more strands, finer and finer, the rice powder filling the air like snow. Finally the man stopped; the yellow orb was transformed into the finest silk-like threads, ten thousand of them, shimmering like a snow maidenâs hair, as the powder drifted down to the ground, surrounding the sweet maker in a field of white.
The man laid the delicate bundle of threads on a tray. He cut them quickly into short lengths. His young daughter sprinkled roasted peanuts, sesame seeds and shredded coconut into each of the beards and folded them into a cocoon. The whole entertainment had taken no more than a few minutes. Adamâs mouth was standing open.
Whampoa took one of the sweets and offered it to him. All shyness fled. He took the dragonâs beard candy and put it into his mouth, then smiled. Whampoa gave some coins to the sweet maker, who quickly wrapped the remaining sweets in a banana leaf cone, handed the cone to Adamâs babu and with a toothless grin, moved off.
Charlotte turned then to see what Whampoa was looking at. It was the top-hatted figure of Baba Tan, who had come up to her. She curtsied very deeply to him and made Adam bow. She knew very well Baba Tan was utterly charmed by these English gestures.
âMrs Mah Nuk, how sad to see you in this way, but how nice you have returned to Singapore.â
She nodded at Baba Tan and introduced him to Adam. As he shook hands cheerfully with the little boy, he took her in. She was even more beautiful than
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