The conversation lapsed, leaving a lingering, awkward silence. Just as Hiejima was about to bring the modest farewell feast to a close, the buzzer of the lookout tower’s intercom shrieked. Then came the voice of a boy—hesitant, timid, and devoid of confidence.
“A car… a car is approaching, sir.”
Hiejima responded, “At this hour? Just one?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Which direction?”
“From the east.”
“From Yundong, then. And?”
“It has stopped in front of the gate.”
“Friend or foe? What’s the make? Are they armed?”
Hiejima felt a familiar surge of irritation; this Private Second Class could never give a proper answer without being grilled for every single detail.
“I can’t tell if they’re friend or foe, but it’s a black, domestic car. Doesn’t look like a military vehicle.”
“Black. Hmph. A high-ranking official, then.”
Far beyond Yundong lay the headquarters in the capital, Yingtian, and further still was the General Staff Office in Xiangwu. Bureaucrats often visited for inspections, but a midnight surprise visit was unprecedented. Still, in an army that favored readiness drills, one could never be entirely sure. If the visitor were an official or a courier, Hiejima would have to play the host, but a single civilian car without an escort was suspicious.
“This is a problem. I’ve had no notice. It could be a trap. Fukakusa, wake everyone up. Set a perimeter.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Listen, as usual, no need for full combat readiness. Just make sure everyone is ready to bolt the moment things go south. Follow the drill. And you, sentry—do not sound the siren. Keep them waiting. I’ll go out.”
Hiejima changed into the freshly laundered, though still slightly damp, uniform he had intended to wear tomorrow. He pulled his pistol from the locker, slid it into his belt, and headed for the gate.
Surprisingly, the car held a single young woman. She looked to be around twenty. She wore a bobbed haircut, a white blouse, and monpe trousers with a Kurume kasuri pattern. She looked for all the world like a farmer’s daughter. She carried no weapons, and she was alone.
“Who is in charge here?”
“I am,” Hiejima answered.
“My car has broken down. I want it repaired.”
“I am the mechanic. However, this is a military installation. Repairing civilian vehicles is not within my duties.”
The woman let out a blatant click of her tongue.
“Now, I’m not saying I won’t repair a civilian car, but…” Hiejima found himself growing irritable. There was a certain way to ask for a favor, and she had completely ignored it.
“I am in the service. That is why I came to a military facility. I am military personnel. You—what is your rank?”
“Private First Class. My name is Hiejima.”
“I am a Second Lieutenant. Medical Second Lieutenant.”
“So, you’re a head nurse for the army nurses?”
Hiejima’s cheeky remark made the woman flinch for a second, but she quickly recovered, a cold sneer playing on her lips.
“That is the official story. In reality, I am currently tasked with special duties. The rank of Medical Second Lieutenant is merely a cover. With a Red Cross armband, one is protected by the Geneva and Hague Conventions.”
Special duties? What is that? A spy?
“As far as I know, our army has no such organization or designation as ‘special duties.’ Furthermore, if this is a military order, I must follow the chain of command. Without orders from my superior, I cannot assist you.”
“I don’t need a Private First Class to lecture me on that. Special duties are special. They operate independently of the regular army; it’s only natural you wouldn’t know about them. Who is your superior?”
“Lieutenant Colonel Endo, the Governor of Yunxi.”
“Lieutenant Colonel Endo? Never heard of him. Who is Endo’s superior?”
“Lieutenant General Awata, Commander of the Lingnan and Lingbei District.”
“Ah. Awata. I see. Then I’ll have Awata order you directly. What a nuisance. Give me the phone.”
Who is this woman? Hiejima wondered. Calling Lieutenant General Awata? In the middle of the night?
“Pardon me, but may I ask your name?”
“My name? It is Ryoko.”
“And your family name?”
“I have no family name. Though, if you insist, it is Takakibi-no-Miya. I am Her Imperial Highness, Princess Ryoko of Takakibi-no-Miya.”
The Takakibi house? An Imperial Princess? Royalty?
Hiejima knew almost nothing about the Imperial Family. Even if he asked the recruits, they wouldn’t know a thing. Is this some madwoman’s delusion? Half-doubting, Hiejima used the guardhouse phone to call the General Staff Office in Xiangwu to verify General Awata’s whereabouts. After explaining the situation, the operator patched him through. He handed the receiver to the woman.
“Awata? It’s me, Ryoko. Sorry for the late hour.”
The woman began speaking to General Awata with an alarming level of familiarity.
“I’ve settled it with Awata. You’ll soon receive a coded telegram from your superior, Endo. Once it arrives, fix the car immediately.”
What an arrogant little lady, Hiejima thought. She really is a princess. It seemed safer to simply obey.
“Could you please sign the visitor’s log?”
“You write it for me.”
“Regulations require the visitor’s own handwriting for the signature.”
“Fine.”
She used an entire page for a single, scribbled entry:
01:30 Ryoko
And now for the repairs, he thought. Midnight overtime pay? Of course not.
Hiejima ordered the recruits, save for Fukakusa and the sentry, back to bed. He raised the barrier and let her car into the garrison, driving it himself into the garage. He popped the hood and, while inspecting the engine, asked Ryoko:
“By the way, where did you come from?”
“Yingtian.”
“My, all the way from the capital. You must be exhausted.”
“It was nothing.”
“And where are you headed?”
“To Wuzhou, in Lingnan Province.”
“What’s wrong with the car?”
“It’s lost its power. Every time I let it idle, it just… dies. It was an expensive purchase, too. I’ve been limping along this far.”
“Ah. This is bad.”
“What do you mean, ‘bad’?”
“Look here. There’s a fragrant, sweet smell coming from the fuel tank. Someone put sugar in your tank. A common, nasty prank.”
“Can it be fixed? How long will it take?”
“Well. The fuel pump filter is clogged, so it might run if I replace that. I’ll have to swap out the gasoline in the tank too, but since there’s still sugar residue, I’ll have to flush the whole system or it’ll just clog again. It’s a day’s work. There’s also a chance the cylinders are seized; if so, the whole engine needs replacing. I can’t do anything without the parts.”
Ryoko’s face flushed with rage. “Damn it! Then lend me another car!”
“You’re crossing the mountains? You won’t make it by tomorrow noon. Look, I’ll keep the car here. Why not rest until morning and take the first train out of Yunxi?”
“That’s far too slow.”
“As for a car…” Hiejima led her toward the garage. “Normally we have two or three jeeps and a transport vehicle, but unfortunately, they’re all out today.”
“Not a single one?”
“I have a few motorcycles. With sidecars.”
Hiejima pointed to his Type 97.
“However…” He started to explain that sidecar motorcycles, including the Type 97, were surprisingly fragile. The bike itself was sturdy and rode well, but the sidecar was flimsy with poor suspension. The rear wheel of the bike and the sidecar wheel were connected by a shaft to transmit power, but on rough roads for long periods, that connection was prone to snapping. Once that happened, the sidecar became useless junk. The mountain roads between Songxiacun and Wuzhou were
partly gravel and poorly paved; there was a high risk of the shaft snapping, leaving them stranded. To pull such a toy as a sidecar required a massive engine—over 1000cc—but the overall performance was abysmal. He’d rather be in any four-wheeled vehicle.
Ryoko cut him off. “This looks perfect. You drive. I don’t know how to ride a bike.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“I… I’ve had some liquor. That would be drunk driving.”
“Listen, Private First Class Hiejima. Your attitude has been quite arrogant. Do you intend to disobey my orders? Are you mocking me because I am a woman? I’ll have you brought before a court-martial. I’ll send you to a forced labor camp!”
Good grief.
“One moment, please.”
Hiejima read through the orders that had arrived via telegraph. Then, just to be safe, he called Lieutenant Colonel Endo.
“What is it, Hiejima?”
“Colonel. There is a woman here claiming to be Her Imperial Highness, Princess Ryoko.”
“Yes, I heard the same from General Awata.”
“She wants to use my motorcycle. With me driving.”
“Then drive her.”
“Sir…”
“Princess Ryoko is a troublesome royal who calls herself the ‘Mata Hari of the East’ and does whatever she pleases. Take my advice: just say ‘yes’ to everything. You’ve had a run of bad luck, son.”
With that, Endo hung up. It seemed Ryoko was a notorious rebel, known to everyone in the upper echelons of the military.
Hiejima tried one last time to voice his greatest concern. “Driving in the mountains at night is dangerous.”
“Is it?”
“The raiders come out. Almost certainly.”
“Raiders? What is that?”
“The sorts who make their dens in Jiaolong Gorge—bandits, horse-thieves, continental ronin.”
“Oh, them? You mean those eccentric fellows who live in the mountains with their horses? Don’t worry; they are my friends. I’ll handle them.”
There’s no way you’ll ‘handle’ them, Hiejima thought.
“Hurry up. We have to get ahead of the enemy.”
“Who is the enemy?”
“Classified. It’s for your own good that you don’t know. If I need to tell you, I will. Let’s go. Fill the tank.”
Hiejima went to the garage to get the bike and a fresh set of coveralls.
“Shall I come along?” Fukakusa asked.
“I can’t let you,” Hiejima replied. “It’s a problem if the garrison is left without a single commander. You’re in charge while I’m gone. I leave the recruits to you.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Now, listen. While we’re moving, please keep your seatbelt fastened, or you’ll be thrown right out. Also, here—goggles and a helmet. They’re for recruit training, so they smell a bit, but bear with it. Grit your teeth and don’t talk. It might be better to chew on a leather strap or something. And watch out for whiplash. Keep your head against the backrest.
Brace your feet. The mountain roads are riddled with potholes. We’ll be bouncing up and down by as much as two meters.
I’m warning you now.”
“It’s just like riding a horse. I know the drill.”
“And let me take a break every two hours. If we have an accident, it’s all for nothing.”
“Do whatever you want.”
Leaving Songxiacun and crossing the border of Yunxi, the houses vanished. They had only the motorcycle’s headlight and the starlight to guide them.
As expected, the mountain pass was blocked by raiders. There was no way around. They were hopelessly outnumbered; it didn’t look like they would be let through. The only option was to turn back.
“Who is this that thinks they can pass through our territory?”
“I do.”
Before Hiejima could stop her, Ryoko stepped out of the sidecar and walked straight up to the man who appeared to be the eldest. She showed no fear.
Damn it, Hiejima thought. I can’t just leave her here and run. He was trapped. He reached for the safety catch of the automatic pistol hidden inside the handlebar’s windscreen.
The leader, peering curiously at the woman’s face now that her goggles were off, suddenly screamed:
“Dajie! Is that not Dajie Ryoko!”
“Don’t call me Dajie. It makes me sound like a dead person. It’s bad luck.”
“Then, Sister Ryoko!”
“I’m going to Wuzhou. Let us pass.”
“Wuzhou, Sister? It’s too late. Please stay at our hideout. We’ll treat you to a feast. Let’s drink until morning!”
“I’m not hungry. Besides, I’m in a hurry. This is no time for drinking.”
“Then we shall escort you!”
“Fine by me. I’m riding this man’s bike.”
“And who is this pretty boy?”
“The Commanding General of the Songxiacun Garrison, Private First Class Hiejima.”
At the mention of Songxiacun, the bandits looked at each other and grinned.
“So he’s the boss of the lot who always give us sheep and radishes?”
“Nah, we’re the ones who are the regulars. He always pays us in cash with rifle ammunition.”
“Too right.”
“Keep the change, then. No need for modesty, Governor,” one of them said, stroking his weapon.
Hiejima felt completely looked down upon. He kick-started the air-cooled V-twin engine and revved the throttle. Ryoko climbed back into the sidecar and fastened her belt. He wanted to get away from this dismal place as quickly as possible.