Nigel shrugged his shoulders.
"So many men are brave enough in a fight," he remarked, "who lose their nerve on a sick bed."
"Bravery in battle," Prince Shan pronounced, "is the lowest form of courage. The blood is stirred by the excitement of slaughter as by alcohol. With Immelan I shall have no more dealings."
"Speaking politically as well as personally?" Nigel enquired.
The other smiled.
"I think I might go so far as to agree," he acquiesced, "but in a sense, there are conditions. You shall hear what they are. I will speak before you to the Prime Minister. See, up above is the sign of my departure."
Out of a little bank of white, fleecy clouds which hung down, here and there, from the blue sky, came the Black Dragon, her engines purring softly, her movements slow and graceful. Both men watched her for a moment in silence.
"At six o'clock to-morrow morning I start," Prince Shan announced. "My pilot tells me that the weather conditions are wonderful, all the way from here to Pekin. We shall be there on Wednesday."
"You travel alone?" Nigel enquired.
"I have passengers," was the quiet reply. "I am taking the English chaplain to your Church in Pekin."