under the tilted bronze dome, looking down at the skeleton at their feet.
'Yes,' Judge Dee said in a toneless voice, 'it was Lin Fan who committed this vile murder. As the crow flies this temple is not far from Lin Fan's mansion. Doubtless the two compounds have a common back wall, they are connected by that heavy iron door.'
'That third courtyard,' Tao Gan said quickly, 'must have been used by Lin Fan for storing his smuggled salt! The secret sect must have left there much earlier, together with the monks.'
Judge Dee nodded.
'We have obtained valuable evidence,' he said. 'Tomorrow I shall open the case against Lin Fan.'
Suddenly the stone barrel was jerked away. With a dull crash the bronze bell settled down over the five men.
Twenty-first Chapter:
All burst out in angry exclamations. Ma Joong and Chiao Tai cursed violently, they groped frantically with their fingers along the smooth inside of the bronze dome. Tao Gan started to lament loudly, cursing his foolish mistake.
'Silence!' barked Judge Dee. 'Time is short, listen carefully! We could never raise this accursed bell here from the inside. There's only one possible method for getting out from here. We must try to displace this bell a few feet by pushing it. When one part of it is over the edge of the platform, there'll be an opening through which we might climb down.'
'Won't the corner pillars be in the way?' Ma Joong asked hoarsely.
'I don't know,' the judge replied curtly. 'But even a small opening will serve at least to save us from being suffocated. Put the lights out, the smoke spoils the little air we have. Don't talk, strip and set to work!'
Judge Dee threw his cap on the floor and stripped naked. Scraping about with his right foot till he had got a hold in a groove between the stones, he bent his back and pushed the bell.
The others followed his example.
Soon the air became close and breathing became increasingly difficult. But at last the bell moved a little. It was but for the fraction of ah inch. But now they had proof that their task was not impossible and they redoubled their efforts.
None of the five men ever knew how long they toiled in their bronze prison. Perspiration streamed down their naked bodies. Their breath came in gasps, the foul air scorched their lungs.
Sergeant Hoong's force gave out first. He collapsed on the floor just when a desperate effort had pushed the bell a few inches over the edge of the platform.
A small crescent-shaped opening appeared at their feet and a waft of fresh air entered their prison.
Judge Dee dragged the Sergeant to the opening so that he could catch the fresh air. Then they concentrated all their strength on one more effort.
The bell moved further over the edge. There was now an opening large enough for a child to crawl through. They pushed and pushed with all their remaining strength, but in vain. Apparently the bell had become stuck against one of the pillars.
Suddenly Tao Gan squatted and let his legs down through the opening. He made a determined effort to get through. The rough stone edge cut a deep gash all along his back, but he would not give up. Finally he managed to get his shoulders free and he dropped down among the undergrowth.
After a few moments a spear was passed through the opening. Now Ma Joong and Chiao Tai could make the bell move round a bit, and soon the opening was large enough for letting Sergeant Hoong down through it. Then Judge Dee and the two others followed.
They sank down among the shrubs, completely exhausted.
But soon Judge Dee rose again and went over to where the Sergeant was lying. When he had felt his heart he said to Ma Joong and Chiao Tai:
'Let's carry the sergeant to the lotus pond and moisten his face and breast. Don't let him get up before he has completely recovered!'
As he turned round the judge saw Tao Gan kneeling behind him, and knocking his forehead on the ground.
'Rise, my man!' Judge Dee said. 'Let this be a lesson for you! You have seen now for yourself what'll happen if you don't execute my orders-which as a rule are not given without a good reason. Come along now and help me to verify how our prospective murderer succeeded in wrenching that stone barrel out from under the bell.'
Clad only in his loincloth Judge Dee climbed on to the platform, followed by a very submissive Tao Gan.
Once there they soon realised how it had been done. Their assailant had taken one of the spears they had used for tilting the bell, and laid it behind the barrel. Then he had pushed it further till its point had landed against the nearest pillar. Using this spear as a lever, he could wrench the stone loose.
Having verified this point, the judge and Tao Gan picked up their lanterns and went to the third courtyard.
When they examined the iron back door, they saw that the strips of paper, which Tao Gan has pasted on, were broken.
'This,' said Judge Dee, 'clearly proves that Lin Fan is the criminal. He opened this door from inside and secretly followed us to the first courtyard. He spied on us while we were tilting the bell and when he saw that all of us had crept inside he realised that this was his chance to get rid of us for ever.'
The judge glanced about him.
'Let us now go back,' he said, 'and see how Sergeant Hoong is getting along.'
They found that the sergeant had regained consciousness. When he saw the judge he wanted to get up. But Judge Dee firmly ordered him to stay where he was. He felt the sergeant's pulse and said kindly:
'There is nothing for you to do just now, Sergeant. Stay where you are and rest here till the constables arrive!'
The judge turned to Tao Gan.
'Run to the warden of this quarter and order him to come here with his men. He is to send a man to the tribunal on horseback to summon twenty of my constables. They are to come here immediately, bringing two sedan chairs. When you have transmitted these orders, Tao Gan, you run as fast as you can to the nearest pharmacy. You are bleeding all over.'
Tao Gan rushed away. In the meantime Ma Joong had collected Judge Dee's cap and robes from beneath the bell. He had shaken the garments free of dust and dirt. Now he was holding them up for the judge to put on.
Judge Dee shook his head.
To Ma Joong's amazement he put on only his undergarment and rolled up the sleeves, baring his muscular forearms. He tucked its slip under his girdle. Parting his long beard, he made it into two strands. He threw them over his shoulders and then knotted both ends together behind his neck.
Ma Joong eyed the judge critically and decided that although he had some excess fat on him he would be an unpleasant customer in a hand-to-hand fight.
While the judge completed his preparations by tying his hair up with a handkerchief, he said to Ma Joong:
'I hope I am not a vindictive man. But this Lin Fan tried to kill all of us in a most cruel manner. Had we not succeeded in pushing this bell over the edge of the platform, another sensational disappearance would have been added to the records of Poo-yang. I am not going to deny myself the pleasure of arresting Lin Fan with my own hands. I hope that he puts up some resistance!'
The judge added, turning to Chiao Tai:
'You will stay here with the sergeant. When the constables arrive they shall haul the bronze bell into its original position. The bones shall be collected and placed in a casket. Then you will sift carefully the dirt of the area under the bell and search for more clues.'
