“I think they will both be better for a rest, Mother,” he said. “They both look fagged, which is not to be wondered at, considering all they have come through, but they are a good deal better than when I first saw them.”
As soon as breakfast was over, and before he questioned Rex further, Mr. Bateman sent for Ah Lo.
“Ah Lo,” he said, when the Chinaman came in, “you did wrong to aid my son to carry out this enterprise. However, as it succeeded so well I cannot blame you, and indeed must thank you heartily for having carried Rex safely through the matter.”
The Chinaman smiled. “I think it is the other way. Mr. Rex carried me through the affair. He always told me what to do; I did just so and it came out all right.”
“Well, I shall not forget the great service you have rendered us.” Ah Lo bowed and went off.
“Now then, Rex, give us an account of your doings, for at present I cannot imagine how you managed to get the girls out from the governorʼs yamen.”
It took Rex more than an hour to relate his adventures, for he was very frequently interrupted by exclamations and questions from his father and mother.
“It was a wonderful rescue,” his father said, when he had brought that part of the story to a close. “It seems simple enough as you tell it, but I really can hardly imagine how the plan occurred to you. There the girls were shut up in the strong house of a governor, with sentries over them and a guard but a few yards away. It was a problem that might have puzzled the sharpest brain, and it was carried out without the slightest hitch. It does you extreme credit, Rex, and I feel proud of you. Well, go on with your story.”
There was a fresh outburst of surprise when Rex related the fight with the twelve Boxers.
“Well, my boy,” Mr. Bateman said when Rex brought his story to an end, “after that you can be trusted to go anywhere, and I donʼt think your mother or I will in future feel anything like the same anxiety concerning you as we have experienced this time.”