CHAPTER IV. KI SING IN THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY.

 Ki Sing turned when he heard the sound of horses' feet, for in that mountain-solitude such a sound was unusual. He was not reassured¹ by the appearance of the two men, whose intention seemed to be to overtake him, and he turned aside from the path with the intention of getting out of the way.

 

"Stop there, you heathen!" called Bill Mosely in his fiercest tone.

 

Ki Sing halted, and an expression of uneasiness came over his broad, flat face.

 

"What are you doing here, you Chinese loafer?"

 

Ki Sing did not exactly comprehend this speech, but answered mildly, "How do, Melican man?"

 

"How do?" echoed Bill Mosely, laughing rather boisterously².—"Tom, the heathen wants to know how I do.—Well, heathen, I'm so's to be around,[Pg 39] and wouldn't mind chawing up a dozen Chinamen. Where do you live?"

 

"Up mountain," answered Ki Sing.

 

"Which way?"

 

The Chinaman pointed³ in the right direction.

 

"What do you do for a living?"

 

"Wait on Melican man—cookee, washee."

 

"So you are a servant to a white man, John?"

 

"Yes, John."

 

"Don't you call me John, you yellow mummy! I'm not one of your countrymen, I reckon.—What do you say to that, Tom? The fellow's gettin' familiar."

 

"I should say so," remarked Tom Hadley, with his usual originality⁴.

 

"What's the name of the Melican man you work for?" continued Mosely, after a slight pause.

 

"Dickee Dewee," answered Ki Sing, repeating the familiar name applied⁵ by Bradley to the invalid⁶. The name seemed still more odd as the Chinaman pronounced it.

 

"Well, he's got a queer name, that's all I can say," continued Mosely. "What's your name?"

 

[Pg 40]"Ki Sing."

 

"Ki Sing? How's Mrs. Ki Sing?" asked Mosely, who was disposed, like the cat, to play with his victim before turning and rending⁷ him.

 

"Me got no wifee," said the Chinaman, stolidly⁸.

 

"Then you're in the market. Do you want to marry?"

 

"Me no want to mally?"

 

"So much the worse for the ladies. Well, as to this Dickee, as you call him? What does he do?"

 

"He sick—lie down on bedee."

 

"He's sick, is he? What's the matter with him?"

 

"Fall down and hurt leggee."

 

"Oh, that was it? What did he do before he hurt himself?"

 

"Dig gold."

 

Bill Mosely became more interested. "Did he find much gold?" he asked eagerly.

 

"Yes, muchee," answered Ki Sing, unsuspiciously.

 

"Does he keep it with him?"

 

Bill Mosely betrayed a little too much interest when he asked this question, and the Chinaman, hitherto unsuspicious, became on his guard.

 

[Pg 41]"Why you wantee know?" he asked shrewdly.

 

"Do you dare give me any of your back talk, you yellow heathen?" exclaimed Mosely, angrily. "Answer my question, or I'll chaw you up in less'n a minute."

 

"What you ask?" said Ki Sing, innocently.

 

"You know well enough. Where does this Dickee keep the gold he found before he met with an accident?"

 

"He no tellee me," answered Ki Sing.

 

This might be true, so that Mosely did not feel sure that the Chinaman's ignorance was feigned⁹. Still, he resolved to push the inquiry¹⁰, in the hope of eliciting¹¹ some information that might be of value, for already a plan had come into his mind which was in accordance with his general character and reputation—that of relieving the invalid of his hoard¹² of gold-dust.

 

"Where do you think he keeps the gold, John?" he asked mildly.

 

Ki Sing looked particularly vacant as he expressed his ignorance on this subject.

 

"Has he got a cabin up there?" asked Mosely.

 

[Pg 42]"Yes."

 

"And how far might it be?"

 

"Long way," answered Ki Sing, who wished to divert Mosely from the plan which the faithful servant could see he had in view.

 

Bill Mosely was keen enough to understand the Chinaman's meaning, and answered, "Long or not, I will go and see your master. I am a doctor," he added, winking¹³ to Hadley, "and perhaps I can help him.—Ain't I a doctor, Tom?"

 

"I should say so," answered Hadley, whose respect for truth did not interfere¹⁴ with his corroborating¹⁵ in his usual style anything which his companion saw fit to assert.

 

Ki Sing did not express any opinion on the subject of Bill Mosely's medical pretensions¹⁶, though he was quite incredulous.

 

"Lead the way, John," said Mosely.

 

"Where me go?" asked the Chinaman innocently.

 

"Go? Go to the cabin where your master lives, and that by the shortest path. Do you hear?"

 

"Yes."

 

[Pg 43]Ki Sing, however, still faithful to the man who had befriended him in the hour of danger, did not direct his course toward Richard Dewey's cabin, but guided the two adventurers in a different direction. The course he took was a circuitous¹⁷ one, taking him no farther away from the cabin, but encircling the summit and drawing no nearer to it. He hoped that the two men, whose purpose he suspected was not honest nor friendly, would become tired and would give up the quest.

 

He did not, however, understand the perseverance¹⁸ of Mosely when he felt that he was on the scent¹⁹ of gold.

 

Finally, Mosely spoke²⁰. "John," he said, "is the cabin near by?"

 

Ki Sing shook his head. "Long way," he answered.

 

"How did you happen to get so far away from it, then, I should like to know?" and he examined the face of his guide sharply.

 

But Ki Sing's broad face seemed utterly²¹ void of expression as, neglecting to answer the question, he reiterated²² his statement, "Housee long way."

 

[Pg 44]"The man's a fool, Tom," said Mosely, turning to his companion.

 

"I should say so," was all the help he got from Hadley.

 

"Do you know what I mean to do, Hadley?—Here, you yellow mummy, go a little ahead." (The Chinaman did so.)—"There's a bonanza²³ up there in that cabin, wherever it is. The Chinaman says that this man with the queer name had got out a good deal of gold before he met with an accident—broke his leg, likely. Well, it stands to reason he's got the gold now. There ain't no chance here of sendin' off the dust, and of course he's got it hid somewhere in his cabin. Do you see the point, Tom?"

 

"I should say so."

 

"And I should say so too. It strikes me as a particularly good chance. This man is disabled and helpless. He can't prevent us walking off with his gold, can he?"

 

"Suppose he won't tell us where it is?" suggested Tom Hadley with extraordinary mental acuteness.

 

"Why, we'll knock him on the head or put a bul[Pg 45]let in him, Hadley. It's a pity if two fire-eaters like us can't tackle a man with a broken leg. What do you say?"

 

"I should say so."

 

Fifteen minutes more passed, and they seemed to be getting no nearer their destination. At any rate, no cabin was in sight. Ki Sing only answered, when interrogated²⁴, "Long way."

 

"Hadley," said Bill Mosely, "I begin to believe that heathen's misleading us. What do you say?"

 

"I should say so."

 

"Then I'll attend to his case.—Here, you heathen!"

 

"Whatee want?"

 

Bill Mosely sprang from his mustang, seized Ki Sing, and, in spite of howls, with Hadley's assistance tied him to a small tree with a strong cord he had in his pocket.

 

"That disposes of you, my friend," he said, mounting his mustang. "I think we shall find the cabin better without you."

 

The two men rode off, leaving poor Ki Sing in what appeared, considering the loneliness of the spot, to be hopeless captivity²⁵.

1 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 boisterously   

adv.喧闹地，吵闹地

参考例句：

• They burst boisterously into the room. 他们吵吵嚷嚷地闯入房间。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Drums and gongs were beating boisterously. 锣鼓敲打得很热闹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

4 originality   

n.创造力，独创性；新颖

参考例句：

• The name of the game in pop music is originality.流行音乐的本质是独创性。
• He displayed an originality amounting almost to genius.他显示出近乎天才的创造性。

5 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

6 invalid   

n.病人，伤残人；adj.有病的，伤残的；无效的

参考例句：

• He will visit an invalid.他将要去看望一个病人。
• A passport that is out of date is invalid.护照过期是无效的。

7 rending   

v.撕碎( rend的现在分词 )；分裂；（因愤怒、痛苦等而）揪扯（衣服或头发等）；（声音等）刺破

参考例句：

• The cries of those imprisoned in the fallen buildings were heart-rending. 被困于倒塌大楼里的人们的哭喊声令人心碎。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• She was rending her hair out in anger. 她气愤得直扯自己的头发。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 stolidly   

adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地

参考例句：

• Too often people sat stolidly watching the noisy little fiddler. 人们往往不动声色地坐在那里，瞧着这位瘦小的提琴手闹腾一番。 来自辞典例句
• He dropped into a chair and sat looking stolidly at the floor. 他坐在椅子上，两眼呆呆地望着地板。 来自辞典例句

9 feigned   

a.假装的，不真诚的

参考例句：

• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work. 他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。
• He accepted the invitation with feigned enthusiasm. 他假装热情地接受了邀请。

10 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

11 eliciting   

n. 诱发, 引出 动词elicit的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• He succeeded in eliciting the information he needed from her. 他从她那里问出了他所需要的信息。
• A criminal trial isn't a tribunal for eliciting the truth. 刑事审讯并非是一种要探明真相的审判。

12 hoard   

n./v.窖藏，贮存，囤积

参考例句：

• They have a hoard of food in the basement.地下室里有他们贮藏的食物。
• How many curios do you hoard in your study?你在你书房里聚藏了多少古玩？

13 winking   

n.瞬眼，目语v.使眼色( wink的现在分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮

参考例句：

• Anyone can do it; it's as easy as winking. 这谁都办得到，简直易如反掌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The stars were winking in the clear sky. 星星在明亮的天空中闪烁。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

15 corroborating   

v.证实，支持（某种说法、信仰、理论等）( corroborate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Neither can one really conclude much from a neat desk, unless there is further corroborating evidence. 实际上，我们也无法从一张整洁的办公桌中得出什么结论，除非还有其它证据进一步证实。 来自互联网

16 pretensions   

自称( pretension的名词复数 )； 自命不凡； 要求； 权力

参考例句：

• The play mocks the pretensions of the new middle class. 这出戏讽刺了新中产阶级的装模作样。
• The city has unrealistic pretensions to world-class status. 这个城市不切实际地标榜自己为国际都市。

17 circuitous   

adj.迂回的路的，迂曲的，绕行的

参考例句：

• They took a circuitous route to avoid reporters.他们绕道避开了记者。
• The explanation was circuitous and puzzling.这个解释很迂曲，让人困惑不解。

18 perseverance   

n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠

参考例句：

• It may take some perseverance to find the right people.要找到合适的人也许需要有点锲而不舍的精神。
• Perseverance leads to success.有恒心就能胜利。

19 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

20 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

21 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

22 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

23 bonanza   

n.富矿带，幸运，带来好运的事

参考例句：

• Bargain hunters enjoyed a real bonanza today.到处买便宜货的人今天真是交了好运。
• What a bonanza for the winning ticket holders!对于手持胜券的人来说，这是多好的运气啊。

24 interrogated   

v.询问( interrogate的过去式和过去分词 )；审问；（在计算机或其他机器上）查询

参考例句：

• He was interrogated by the police for over 12 hours. 他被警察审问了12个多小时。
• Two suspects are now being interrogated in connection with the killing. 与杀人案有关的两名嫌疑犯正在接受审讯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。