MERSING CHRONICLES

Chapter 19 An email at 2:00 am

She couldn't sleep. Hiang looked up from her pillow towards the 20th floor view of her condo. The dark Singapore skyline was reassuring: towering 60 to 80 floor skyscrappers as far as the eyes could see, rising above the 3 and 4 storey shophouses, and houses that made up 30% of the footprint. And then far in the background was the open sea dotted with anchored ships. 

She got up and made herself a cup of peppermint tea. She had cut down on caffeine considerably once she hit 50 as she realized it was affecting her sleep. 

She opened her laptop and screened some news: The US seeks alliance with India (CNN), United Kingdom in negotiations with EU to attain favored nation status (The Times, London),  Japan boosting quantum computing research with SGD 5 billion over 3 years (Yomiuri Shimbun), Russia launches 5th submarine carrier (AFP).

Her thoughts went back to Mersing 36 years ago when she had seen them in action. The priviledged few who saw the debut of a new first strike and highly effective weapons system. Who would have thought the Chinese had it in them? It was a cataclysmic change. A degeneration to the early 20th century. No more bipolar world order: NATO against the East. Now there is the East Asian Alliance under the umbrella of the Sino-Nippon alliance, comprising ASEAN, Korea and a scattering of Central Asian nations: Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Mongolia, Kazakstan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan. And the Russian alliance comprising Russia and some ex-soviet republics. A tripolar word order. 

She turned to her emails and one was from Jenny sent at 2:00 am Singapore time. Xining time and Singapore time, surprisingly, were the same. Xining was practically north of Singapore. 

"Hi Evelyn,

Some news. Took the guide out for dinner to see if I could glean further info. He had two beers while I had chinese oolong. Surprisingly good tea. Didn't go anywhere outside the hotel. Staying safe just in case. The restaurant was utilitarian, like the city. Nothing fancy. I could walk into a Malaysian coffee shop and I couldn't tell the difference. He said he didn't know why this particular person had to have a PC with him (that's political commissar). Highly unusual. But it happens for individuals considered a high security risk. He has seen this happen before with high ranking political positions, retired and on active duty, or with ex-convicts. Ah No said he had been a farmer all his life, born and bred in Halejing. So that doesn't sound right. I asked, Jing, the guide, if I could see Ah No again without the PC. He said no. He wouldn't dare take me. He would lose his livelihood if the PC found out. I asked could I just rent a taxi and have the driver take me there without any guide? He said no. The two police checkpoints we passed through would know I am not local and would turn me around. I asked Jing if he knew anyone in Xining who is from the village, and he said he will ask around. So there we have it. Waiting for the next turn of the page. BTW I saw a note on the floor as I returned to my room tonight. Someone must have slipped it under the door. The note was in an envelope. Just two words "Uhupai Oku". Nothing else. I tried looking it up on the internet. Due to the heavy censorship here, couldn't make heads or tails of it. Perhaps you would have better results from Singapore.

Best assignment yet. Thanks! Jen"