Disclaimer: I do not own Sherlock Holmes or The Little Nyonya; they belong to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Ang Eng Tee respectively.
Chen Xi walked along the streets of London, his home for three years. During this time, he had married Libby, had half a dozen children with her, and was living a happy life. Except for one thing; Yamamoto Yueniang. She was left trapped in the fire and he had regretted it for his entire life. Then, he spotted that there were no remains the last time he went there. Yueniang was alive. There was only one man who could help him find her.
Sherlock Holmes.
He had heard of him during his stay in London, and had come to consult him. But he was hesitant. Should he tell about his secret affairs? Looks like he had too, otherwise the Englishman would not accept the case. He sighed deeply and then, he rang the bell. There was a sharp clang, and the landlady had ushered him in. He gave his name card and waited. He entered the room and saw two gentlemen in the room. One was a tall, thin fellow with piercing grey eyes and a hawk-like nose. The other was dark, short, and mustached.
"My name is Sherlock Holmes, and this is my friend Dr. Watson. How may I help you, Mr. Xi?" the tall one spoke at last.
"Please sir, my surname is Chen, and as you can see, I am a Chinese. To be more precise, a Baba." He replied. The two men looked skeptically at him. He had to resist smacking his head on his hands, these Europeans do not know about Asian cultures.
"Baba? What on earth is that?" Dr. Watson asked.
"Baba is the male versions of Nyonya, or Peranakan as you call them. A peranakan is a result of a Chinese man marrying a Malay woman. Mr. Holmes, do you want to listen to my story?" he asked. Mr. Holmes showed him into a chair.
"You have been in England for three years, by the sound of your accent."
"More then that, I've spent my childhood in here, but during my twenties, I went back to Singapore, my homeland."
"Kindly check it in my index book, Watson." He said. Dr. Watson took down the said book and searched through its pages. He finally came at a stop.
"Singapore, a tiny island off the peninsula of Malaya; discovered by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819. Famous for being a small free port and its different wares from all over Asia." He recited. Chen Xi arched his eyebrow.
"Yes, I shuffle between Malacca and Singapore. It was in Singapore did I meet one of the most beautiful women in the world. Her name was Yueniang. I shall start from the beginning.
Her mother, Juxiang, was the most beautiful woman in the whole of Asia. But she was the deaf-mute daughter of a second mistress of an affluent Baba family. Due to her status, she was treated like a maid and was arranged to be married to Charlie Zhang, the rich and ruthless womanizer. That night, she escaped with the help of a Japanese photographer. They fell in love and married. Sadly, they died after being tortured by the Japanese Army because the photographer escaped being in the army. During this time, Yueniang was born, and she was sent to her grandmother's place. During this time, she grew up and inherited her mother's beauty and positive traits.
I met her when she was secretly buying chicken soup for her grandmother. That time, I was posing as my chauffeur, Ah Young. She keeps on saying "Give me back my Chicken Soup" in Chinese. So I called her Chicken Soup. We went through a long series of obstacles, and then finally, she said that she refused to marry me. She did not want to be manipulated by other men. Since then, she has sworn brother and sister with a butcher-turned-gangster, turned him into a wealthy business man, and a lawyer has proposed marriage to her. I, in turned, have been married to her cousin, my wife eloped with another man, and I have married a much worthy woman who has borne me six lovely children. She was supposedly dead in a fire which Robert Zhang, Charlie Zhang's son, had tried to kill her with. But there were no remains and her slippers are not burned. Now, I would like to see her again, but I do not know where she is living." He spoke in good English.
"Do you know where she is? Which country is she in?" Holmes asked after a few minutes.
"She has to be in England. Her would be fiance, a Mr. Paul, has arrived in London two days ago with a Chinese woman called Moon. I think that is her, as the description of her is similar and her name literally means "Moon Maiden". I really want to see her, Mr. Holmes. I give you my word that she is one of the most exceptional of woman, and I would do anything to get her back!" He had risen from his seat and had flumped back. Mr. Holmes looked at him, and finally, after a few agonizing minutes, nodded.
"Thank you, Mr. Holmes. You shall see me in my house at 131 Camden Lane." With that, he left the room.
"Why did you accepted the case, Holmes? It sounded like the time you attempted to retrieve the Irene Adler papers." I asked. "This case has some features of interest. I shall go out now, don't wait for me, Watson" with that, he walked out of the room
A/N: Finally finished Chapter 1. By the way, if you want to know about the drama, log on to youtube and type "The Little Nyonya".