From this, and the movements I could hear on our right and left, I gathered that the remainder of the column was surrounding a village which lay before us, but owing to the darkness and the rain I could distinguish nothing ahead of me.
We had been lying on the ground some minutes, and, notwithstanding the chill dampness, I was almost falling into a doze, for the walk had tired me, when from the surrounding darkness a figure came noiselessly and crouched beside me. The next instant Tho's voice whispered in my ear:
"I told you so; it has come."
"Yes"—I shivered—"and I think I have had enough of it."
"No! say not so! A few more hours and you will grumble at the heat once more, camarade! 'Tis a fool who ever complains. Our land had sore need of the rain; the crops will drink this as the mandarin does his Yunan tea. When the sun rises all the earth will rejoice. The voice of the tempest has shut the ears of our enemy to the noisy approach of the linhtap lanxa (European soldier). This time we shall surely surprise the brigands; therefore we should thank our Lord Bhouddah for his great mercy."
"What village is before us, friend?"
"Yen-Trieu," he answered; "and in it is a linh-binh (sergeant) of the De-Nam with twenty men. They are collecting the taxes, and were to have left it this morning. But they will never leave it," he added, with a low chuckle. "Yesterday the spies came and told the Captain. I was there. Last night they surely feasted, drank much choum-choum (rice alcohol), and smoked many pipes, for the headman is a great traitor, and in secret a partisan of Ham-Nghi."
"We shall have much trouble to enter," I ventured, "for we have not brought axes."
Tho chuckled again, and said: