The Emperor’s Pearl

by Robert Van Gulik Book 6 in the Judge Dee Mysteries series.

First published 1963

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During the dragon-boat festival at Poo-yang in 669, a drummer collapses in the leading boat and the body of a young woman is discovered in an abandoned country house. Judge Dee finds that the two deaths are connected to rumours of a fabulous pearl stolen from the imperial harem nearly a century earlier.

The legend of the White Lady, a river goddess associated with a bloodstained shrine, gives the investigation a supernatural appearance. Dee instead follows medical evidence, old relationships and the movements of the treasure, uncovering how an imperial secret has continued to shape private lives and present crimes.