Tales of Old Japan - Maybe You Like It

Sazen was not a little taken aback at this; however, he put on an innocent
face, as though he had never heard of Chokichi before, and said, "I
never heard of such a thing! Why, I thought you were some respectable
person; and you have the impudence to tell me that your name is Chokichi,
and that you're one of those accursed Etas. To think of such a shameless
villain coming and asking to be friends with me, forsooth! Get you
gone!—the quicker, the better: your presence pollutes the house."
Chokichi smiled contemptuously, as he answered, "So you deem the
presence of an Eta in your house a pollution—eh? Why, I thought you
must be one of us."
"Insolent knave! Begone as fast as possible."
"Well, since you say that I defile your house, you had better get rid of
O Koyo as well. I suppose she must equally be a pollution to it."
This put Sazen rather in a dilemma; however, he made up his mind
not to show any hesitation, and said, "What are you talking about? There
is no O Koyo here; and I never saw such a person in my life."
Chokichi quietly drew out of the bosom of his dress the letter from
Sazen to Kihachi, which he had picked up a few days before, and, showing
it to Sazen, replied, "If you wish to dispute the genuineness of this
paper, I will report the whole matter to the Governor of Yedo; and
Genzaburô's family will be ruined, and the rest of you who are parties in
this affair will come in for your share of trouble. Just wait a little."
And as he pretended to leave the house, Sazen, at his wits' end, cried
out, "Stop! stop! I want to speak to you. Pray, stop and listen quietly. It is
quite true, as you said, that O Koyo is in my house; and really your indignation
is perfectly just. Come! let us talk over matters a little. Now
you yourself were originally a respectable man; and although you have
fallen in life, there is no reason why your disgrace should last for ever.
All that you want in order to enable you to escape out of this fraternity of
Etas is a little money. Why should you not get this from Genzaburô, who
is very anxious to keep his intrigue with O Koyo secret?"
Chokichi laughed disdainfully. "I am ready to talk with you; but I
don't want any money. All I want is to report the affair to the authorities,
in order that I may be revenged for the fraud that was put upon me."
"Won't you accept twenty-five riyos?"
"Twenty-five riyos! No, indeed! I will not take a fraction less than a
hundred; and if I cannot get them I will report the whole matter at once."
Sazen, after a moment's consideration, hit upon a scheme, and
answered, smiling, "Well, Master Chokichi, you're a fine fellow, and I admire
your spirit. You shall have the hundred riyos you ask for; but, as I
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