'I went out four hours ago, and have just returned.'
Then the palanquins were brought to the foot of the verandah stairs.
'Good-bye, and God bless you, all three!' Williams said, and shook hands heartily with his friends.
'God bless you, old fellow!' Charlie said; 'and don't forget to look us up when you return to England.'
The procession of palanquins passed out through the streets and along the road to Su-ching. The bearers were hard-working fellows, and shuffled along, half-running and half-walking, at a pace which made the distance from Kwang-ngan appear very short to the travellers. On entering Su-ching, Ping Wang directed the bearers to carry them to the mission, but, on arriving there, a Japanese officer told them that Barton and his friends had started for Tien-tsin the afternoon before.
After remaining at Kwang-ngan for about an hour Ping Wang hired fresh palanquins, and they resumed their journey. It was a very uneventful one, for the Boxers had been cleared out of that part of the country; the only exciting moment being when some Russian or Japanese sentry barred their progress. The arrival of an interpreter on the scene always resulted in the travellers being allowed to continue their journey.
On arriving at the river, they soon found a boatman to take them down to Tien-tsin, and thence they went straight to Hong-kong, where they remained four days as the guest of their former host. In Hong-kong they procured new clothes, and when they went aboard the homeward-bound steamer they felt, for the first time for many weeks, that they need not be ashamed of their appearance.
Fine weather and very agreeable fellow-passengers made the voyage to England an enjoyable one, but, nevertheless, the Pages and Ping Wang were delighted when, at last, the ship reached London. Mr. Page was waiting for his sons on the landing-stage, and was so pleased at seeing them back safe and sound that he almost forgot at first to ask them about their adventures. He was, naturally, delighted with their news.
As soon as possible the jewels were valued by a London diamond merchant, who looked at them very carefully, and, after some thought, offered a price which startled the Pages and Ping Wang. They gladly accepted the offer, and returned home in high spirits to Lincoln, where they enjoyed themselves thoroughly, in spite of being called upon several times a day to relate to various friends their adventures among the Boxers. After a week's holiday Fred went back to London to continue his medical studies, and Mr. Page then began to think what to do with Charlie.
'I have had enough trawling to last me for a life-time,' Charlie declared: so the idea of putting him into a steam-trawler company was dismissed for good.