To himself he added: ‘And that is also the excuse our colonialism invokes for staying here. We have seen the writing on the wall, and we are ready to let go, even if only slowly … but our credentials before God for hanging on are only this excuse, that if we go, something worse may happen, another tyranny, worse than ours. Whether it’s a good excuse or not I don’t know. But I do know that if I were Mr Tay I’d resent any master, whether good or bad. I’d rather be free and make my own mistakes; but then I was born free, and he was born protected, and that’s the difference.’

‘I’d like to know why this man is “bad” as you say, Mr Tay.’

‘I’ll find out for you, sir,’ said Mr Tay eagerly, happy to be given a job to do. ‘Though with all due respect it’s too kind of you to bother yourself with these people; but I’ll find out for you.’

*  *  *

Neo had had his chance. No one, not even Neo himself, could aver that he had not been given opportunity to redeem himself.

It was at the trial of Big Dog Tsou that Neo failed to grasp his life into his own hands once again.

Big Dog Tsou was tried, as usual, by a judge and two assessors. The commandant of the rehabilitation camp himself testified to his excellent conduct while an inmate. But against him were brought detainees and surrendered enemy personnel, among them the waiter with the clip, and Fong Kiap, and others who had been with Neo tapping in the rubber.

Neo, too, was brought to testify and stood looking across the cool and dusty room with its sombre panelling at Big Dog Tsou, gaunt in the dock.

And could not say what he had to say:

Yes, Big Dog Tsou was known to him, and had collected money for the People Inside. Yes, it was Big Dog Tsou who had shown them the corpse of Meng in the rubber, with the head hacked off, and yes, Meng had weighed the latex on the estate and it was known that he had wanted to go to the police and inform … and he, Neo, was but a poor rubber tapper, and knew that he had done wrong not to report the matter to the police, but he had been too frightened by Big Dog Tsou, and really, in his heart, he had always hated the People
Inside …

Neo could not say one of these things.