The Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee

On a stage, which represents a river bank with blooming prune trees, three actors play out a scene. They represent a maiden, a young lover, and an older man.

The maiden has come out by herself to observe the blooms and dream about love. The older man questions why she is all alone, for surely there is someone at home who must love her. The maiden replies that even if that were true, on such a nice day she does not want to think about the people at home.

A young man appears and comments on the view. The maiden is intrigued. She also complains of a “cruel, cruel man, who asks, always asks me questions” (115). The older man replies, “I want to help you” (116), and even suggests that all three of them go together to admire the blossoms. The young man, however, implies that the blooming season, like their encounter, is a fleeting thing. The older man contradicts him, saying that “a flowering spring, well tended, will last long” (116).

The maiden bemoans that “nothing is so brief as a day-dream late in spring” (116). The young man concludes the Interlude by stating that duty has no place when seeking love and beauty.