Ho Han and the others remained indispensable because of their unmatched dexterity. The making and maintenance of tea garden machinery and tools was done by the Chinese. There was no work as such that Ho Han could not do. As a result, the manager gave him some importance and whenever Ho Han demanded something, he paid attention. A Chinese tea grower called Ah Mong had set up the first experimental tea plantation in Chabuwa, where he taught Ho Han the nitty-gritties of tea cultivation. Ah Mong had bought this garden from the company. Unable to maintain it, he sold it to a trader called James Warren. This happened after Ho Han had left Chabuwa for Keheng.

Ho Han met a group of labourers returning from work. They looked at the short, slant-eyed, fair Chinese man with a pigtail who looked as much a stranger to them as the fair-skinned Europeans, though not as scary. He was also a labourer like them.

Ho Han smiled gently at them.

‘Where are you going?’ one worker asked.

‘Machine room. How are you?’

‘I’m well, how about you?’

‘Good, good.’

‘Hey Chinese brother, Ah Chin is going to die from smoking opium. Control him.’

‘He doesn’t understand. No way out.’

‘Take care of him,’ a worker said as the group moved on.

Ho Han turned right to go to the factory. He felt bad about Ah Chin. His health was going from bad to worse. He didn’t listen to anyone. These days, he would smoke opium, silently perform his tasks, and sit around hopelessly.

Ho Han entered the factory. Ho Yen, who was standing there, smiled at him.

‘What’s the problem? Why has the manager sent me here?’

Ho Yen took him to the rolling table and showed him the problem. In ten minutes Ho Han had repaired the machine.

‘Where is Ah Chin?’ he asked.

‘He has gone away. He did not want to work today, so the manager beat him. He said he would throw Ah Chin in jail if he continued like this.’

‘I think that was the reason I was asked to come here. Where has he gone?’

‘I don’t know. Perhaps to smoke opium,’ Ho Yen answered sadly.

Ho Han was worried. He found Ah Chin adjacent to the garden in an opium den, a small, dark hut where a group of men were smoking silently. They were skin and bones in dirty clothes. Seeing Ho Han, they smiled. One of them asked, ‘Have you come to join us?’

Ho Han did not answer. Silently he sat beside Ah Chin. This was the first time he was in an opium den. He looked around curiously.