As Director Hu took a step toward the cave, Shan moved in front of him. "I do have some questions for you."

"In my mine, I can show you-"

"No," Shan pressed. Had Hu seen the Americans? He half expected Kincaid to step out for a photograph. "Please. I'd rather not." He put his hand on his stomach and tried to look nauseated. "It's very unsettling for me."

"You're scared?" The Director of Mines looked amused. He wore a large gold ring. For a geologist he seemed extremely well dressed. "We could sit in the car perhaps? It's British, you know."

"I have to return to town. Colonel Tan."

"Excellent! I'll drive you. I must explain my evidence." Hu called out and Chang threw him the keys, then nodded as Hu instructed him to follow with Feng and Yeshe.

"Evidence?" Shan asked.

Hu seemed not to have heard. They spoke no more until they were on the main road. Hu drove hard, seeming to enjoy the rough road and the way Shan grabbed the dashboard as they bounced. On the curves he accelerated, laughing as the rear wheels skidded in the dirt.

"Civilization," Director Hu said abruptly. "It's a process, you know, not a concept."

"You spoke of evidence," Shan said, confused.

"Exactly. It's more than a process. It's a dialectic. A war. My father was stationed in Xinjiang, with the Moslems. In the old days they were even worse than the Buddhists. Bombings. Machine gun raids. A lot of good government workers were sacrificed. The dynamic of civilization. New against old. Science against mythology."

"You're speaking of the Chinese against Tibetans?"

"Exactly. It's progess, that's all. Advanced agricultural techniques, universities. Modern medicine. You think the advance in medicine wasn't a struggle? A battle against folklore and sorcerers. Half the babies born here used to die. Now babies live. Isn't that worth fighting for?"

Maybe not, Shan wanted to say, if the government won't let you have babies. "You're saying Prosecutor Jao was a martyr for civilization."

"Of course. His family will get a letter from the State Council, you know. The lesson is there for all of us. The challenge is making sure they get the lesson."

"They?"

"This case must also be an opportunity for the minority population to recognize how regressive, how backward, their ways are."

"So you want to help with the evidence."

"It is my duty." Hu reached into his pocket and produced a folded paper. "A statement from a guard stationed at the road into the skull cave. The night of the murder a monk was seen walking along the road near the entrance."

"A monk? Or a man wearing a monk's robe?"

"It's all there. Matches this Sungpo's description."

A monk was seen acting suspiciously near the entrance, the guard had written. He was of medium height, medium build. His head was shaven. He appeared antagonistic, and was carrying something in a cloth sack. The guard had signed the statement. Private Meng Lau. Shan put the paper in his pocket.

"When did this guard see this man?"

Hu shrugged. "Later. After the murder. It happened at night, right?"

"How close was he? There was a new moon. Not much light."

Hu sighed impatiently. "Soldiers make good witnesses, Comrade. I expected more gratitude."

He sped up as they reached the valley floor, laughing as he raised a cloud of dust around Feng, Yeshe, and Chang, still following closely. "You said you had questions for me, Comrade Inspector?"

"Mostly about security. And how someone might get in the cave at night," Shan replied.

"When we first discovered the cave we posted guards at its mouth. But after the contents were revealed they were all spooked. So we put a detail out on the road. Only way in and out. Seemed adequate."

"But someone found another way."

"These monks, they climb like squirrels."

"Who discovered the cave?"

"We did," Hu acknowledged. "I have exploration teams."

"So it was also you who found the Americans' brine deposits?"

"Of course. We issued their license."

"But now you want to cancel it."

Hu looked at Shan, plainly peeved, then slowed the truck. They had reached the outskirts of Lhadrung. "Not at all. What is being discussed is the operating permit, which assures that they comply with specified management systems. We are engaged in a dialogue about management. I am a friend of the American company."

"By 'management' you mean individual managers?"

"Pond construction technique, harvesting technology, equipment specification, utility consumption, and the conduct of their managers are all subject to permit criteria. Why do you ask?"

"So if you wanted a certain manager to leave, you might suspend the operating permit."

Director Hu laughed. "And I thought your geological interests were confined to hauling rocks."

Shan considered his words as they parked in front of the municipal building. "I find it interesting that you knew I am a prisoner and still you came all the way out to the cave. I thought the Director of Mines would simply order me to appear."

Hu replied with a wooden smile. "I'm teaching Lieutenant Chang how to drive. When Colonel Tan told me where you were-" Hu shrugged. "Chang must learn to navigate the mountain roads."

"Is that why you were at the 404th worksite the day the body was found?"

Hu sighed, trying to control his impatience. "We must be vigilant against faults."

"Geological, I presume."

Hu grinned. "The ranges are unstable. We must be careful about the people's roads."

Shan was tempted to ask again if Hu was speaking of geology. "Comrade Director, would you please join me with the colonel?" he asked instead.

Director Hu's look of amusement did not fade. He tossed the keys to Chang, who had appeared behind them, and followed Shan inside.

Madame Ko gave Shan a nod of welcome and dashed into Tan's darkened office. The colonel's eyes were puffy. He was stretching. Shan glanced around the room. On the table by his desk was a rumpled pillow.

"Colonel Tan, I would like to ask Director Hu a question."

"You interrupted me for this?" Tan growled.

"I wanted to do it in your presence."

Tan lit a cigarette and gestured toward Hu.

"Director Hu," Shan asked, "can you tell us why you suspended the Americans' permit?"

Hu frowned at Tan. "He is intruding into Ministry business. It is counterproductive to engage in public dialogue about our problems with the American mine."

Tan nodded slowly. "You do not have to answer. Comrade Shan is sometimes too enthusiastic." He fixed Shan with a sharp look of censure.

"Then perhaps," Shan pressed, "you could tell us where you were on the night Prosecutor Jao was murdered?"

The Director of Mines stared in disbelief at Shan, then, as a broad smile grew on his face, turned to Tan and began to laugh.

"Director Hu," Tan explained with a cold grin, "was with me. He invited me to dinner at his house. We played chess and drank some good Chinese beer."

Hu's laughter became almost uncontrolled. "Have to go," he said between gasps and, throwing a mock salute at Shan, he disappeared through the door.

"You are fortunate he is so easygoing," Tan warned. There was no amusement in his eyes.