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When he bought the monastery, Qin Shang's first project was to enlarge and pave the winding foot trail leading up to the temples from a small harbor so that construction materials and later his artwork and furnishings could be carried up the steep hill by vehicles. He wanted more than to rebuild and remodel the temples, much more; he wanted to create a stu
It took five years from start to finish before the grounds inside the walls were lushly landscaped and the decor inside the temples was completed. Another six months passed before the art and furnishings were set in place. The main temple
became Qin Shang's residence and entertainment complex, which included a lavishly decorated billiard room and a vast heated indoor/outdoor swimming pool that meandered in a circle for over a hundred yards. The complex also sported two te
Qin Shang was an extremist when it came to perfection. He never ceased fine-tuning his beloved temples. The complex seemed in a constant state of activity as he redesigned and added costly details that enriched his creation. The expense was enormous, but he had more than enough money to indulge his passion. His fourteen thousand art objects were the envy of museums around the world. He was constantly besieged with offers by galleries and other collectors, but Qin Shang only bought. He never sold.
When completed, the House of Tin Hau was grand and magnificent, looming over the sea like a specter guarding Shang's secrets.
An invitation to visit the House of Tin Hau was always accepted with great pleasure among Asian and European royalty, world leaders, society people, financial tycoons and movie stars. Guests, who generally arrived at Hong Kong's international airport, were immediately flown by a huge executive helicopter to a landing pad just outside the temple complex. High state officials or those of a special elite status were carried by water on Qin Shang's incredible two-hundred-foot floating mansion, actually the size of a small cruise ship, which he designed and built in his own shipyard. Upon arrival the guests were met by a staff of servants who would direct them to luxurious vans for the short drive to their sleeping quarters, where they were assigned their own private maids and valets during their stay. They were also informed about di
Properly awed by the scope and splendor of the rebuilt temples, the guests relaxed in the gardens, lounged around the swimming pools or worked in the library, which was staffed with highly professional secretaries and specially equipped with the latest publications, computers and communications systems for businessmen and government officials so they could remain in convenient contact with their various offices.
Di
After everyone was seated, Qin Shang made his appearance in an elevator that came up through the floor. He usually wore the expensive silk robes of a mandarin lord and sat on an ancient throne elevated two inches above the chairs of his guests. Irrespective of status or nationality, Qin Shang acted as if every meal was a ceremonial occasion and he was the emperor.
Not surprisingly, ranking guests loved every minute of a stylishly staged di
This evening Qin Shang requested the presence of Zhu Kwan, the seventy-year-old scholar who was China's most respected historian. Kwan was a little man with a smiling face and small, heavily lidded brown eyes. He was invited to sit in a thickly cushioned wooden chair carved with lions and offered a small Ming-dynasty china cup of peach brandy.
Qin Shang smiled. “I wish to thank you for coming, Zhu Kwan.”
“I am grateful for your invitation,” Zhu Kwan replied graciously. “It is a great honor to be a guest in your magnificent home.”
“You are our country's greatest authority on ancient Chinese history and culture. I requested your presence because I wanted to meet you and discuss a possible venture between us.” “I must assume you want me to do research.” Qin Shang nodded. “I do.” “How can I be of service?”
“Have you taken a close look at some of my treasures?” “Yes indeed,” answered Zhu Kwan. “It is a rare treat for a historian to study our country's greatest artworks firsthand. I had no idea so many pieces of our past still existed. It is thought many of them were lost. The magnificent bronze incense burners inlaid with gold and gemstones from the Chou dynasty, the bronze chariot with life-size driver and four horses from the Han dynasty—”
“Fakes, replicas!” Qin Shang snapped in a sudden display of torment. “What you consider masterworks of our ancestors were re-created from photographs of the originals.”
Zhu Kwan was astonished and disillusioned at the same time. “They look so perfect, I was completely fooled.”
“Not if you had time to study them under laboratory conditions.”
“Your artisans are extraordinary. As skilled as those a thousand years ago. On today's market your commissioned works must be worth a fortune.”
Qin Shang sat heavily in a chair opposite Zhu Kwan. “True, but reproductions are not priceless like the genuine objects. That is why I'm delighted you accepted my invitation. What I'd like you to do is compile an inventory of the art treasures that were known to exist prior to nineteen forty-eight, but have since disappeared.”
Zhu Kwan eyed him steadily. “Are you prepared to pay a great sum of money for such a list?” “I am.” “Then you shall have a complete inventory itemizing every known art treasure that has been missing in the last fifty to sixty years by the end of the week. You wish it delivered here or at your office in Hong Kong?”
Qin Shang looked at him quizzically. “That is quite an exceptional commitment. Are you sure you can fulfill my request in so short a time?”
“I have already accumulated a detailed description of the treasures over a period of thirty years,” explained Zhu Kwan. “It was a labor of love for my own personal satisfaction. I only require a few days to put it in readable order. Then you may have it free of charge.”