Now most Chinese ships are dingy and dirty but this particular junk was just the opposite. Its sails were new, its decks neat and clean, and all because it carried a mandarin of high rank on his way to a wedding feast in the distant town. Very fat this mandarin was, and very smiling, and the wedding presents he carried were enormously valuable--gold and silver, and silks and jewels--packed away in his cabin; and the sight of them made the mouths of the captain and crew water. So finally the sailors and their commander determined to throw the mandarin overboard and take the presents for themselves. However, as Chinese people are always polite, no matter what the circumstances, instead of going below and seizing him without another word, they sent the cabin boy, Dong, down with a note requesting the pleasure of the mandarin's presence on deck at once and expressing their deep regret that they would have to put an end to him. "Ahem!" remarked the mandarin, as he finished reading the note, "how very kind of them." Then looking over his horn spectacles he examined Dong, the cabin boy, as he stood before him. "I'm awfully sorry," he said, "that a boy like you--you can't be more than seven--and such a nice looking boy, too, should join in such a wicked conspiracy. How would you like to be drowned?" Dong shook his head. "I wouldn't like it," he said. "No more do I," replied the mandarin, "and yet, unless you save me, I shall be." "But," said Dong, "how can I save you? I would if I could, but I am only a boy." "That makes no difference," said the mandarin; "if you are a brave boy, you can do it." Then he handed Dong a large fan and told him to go up on deck and fan the captain and the crew with three big sweeps and they would dissolve like mist. "I'd do it myself," he continued, "but I'm afraid they'd seize me before I could get a chance to do it and throw me overboard. But of course they will not suspect you." So Dong, trembling with excitement, took the fan and climbed the ladder to the deck. "Well," asked the captain of the junk, "is the mandarin coming?" "No," replied Dong, opening the fan with a jerk, "he is not. He declines your invitation and says he prefers to remain in his cabin with the wedding presents." "Oh, he does, does he!" bawled the captain. "That's what we get for being polite." Then he shouted for the crew to follow him and started for the mandarin's cabin, but Dong, all ready with the fan open, quickly stepped in front of him, gave three big sweeps, and pish! the captain and the entire crew of the junk disappeared completely. "Gracious!" gasped the boy, closing the fan quickly for fear he might fan himself, "wasn't that awful?" Then he ran down to the cabin and told the mandarin what he had done.