Crocker had something of a taste for Chinese goods, people, and prostitutes. With Crocker, Ling was often used as a representative of his race. Little Sister was eventually sold to another man. Ng was shocked at the matter of fact attitude of Little Sister and Ng both at what they saw was a matter of business and profit. Little Sister revealed to him that she was Ng's daughter and that he used her prostitution to earn money. Ling was overjoyed, and he spent his first gold coin on a session with Little Sister and quit Ng's employment. He hired Ling to be his live-in laundryman and manservant. Ling was soon employed by Charles Crocker, a laundry customer and a titan of the railroad industry. Ling was infatuated with Little Sister, though she would not sleep with him unless he paid her.

His colleague at the laundry service was Little Sister, a young Chinese prostitute who worked as a courtesan for Ng's customers. Ling worked for Ng, but he desperately wanted to strike it rich and earn enough gold to be wealthy. His late mother a Chinese prostitute and his father an unknown Western man, Ling was biracial and struggled to assimilate to 19th century America. The first story, Part 1: Gold - Celestial Railroad depicts an orphan Ah Ling, who came to America at age fourteen having been sold to a laundryman, Uncle Ng. Author Peter Ho Davies uses a historical basis for the first three stories while the last is entirely fictional. The Fortunes is comprised of four interconnected short stories that examine themes like fortune, women, identity, names, and ownership through the lens of the Chinese American experience. The following version of this book was used to create this study guide: Ho Davis, Peter.

The Fortunes by Peter Ho Davies