The Last Ditch

On a bright May afternoon the river steamer Sungkiang drifts past the rice‑green flats of the Yangtze, carrying a curious mix of travelers. Among them is Romney, a restless young man drawn to the striking yellow rug that cloaks a mysterious woman of foreign bearing. Their first meeting is intimate yet uneasy, as she cradles a missionary’s child and eyes Romney with a mixture of challenge and yearning that hints at untold stories.

The woman’s presence is both graceful and fierce, her voice carrying the weight of distant lands and hidden longing. As the steamer rolls toward Hankow, Romney finds himself pulled into conversations about faith, travel, and the vastness of China’s interior. The encounter sets the stage for a larger journey—through drifting waters, the desolate Gobi, and bustling towns—where personal ambition, love, and danger will intertwine, testing the limits of his courage and desire.