Spurred by curiosity over the state of Chinese opera, Gallimard attends one of Song’s performances a month after their first meeting. Song spots him immediately because he’s the only white man in attendance and tells him that she wants to leave because she hates the smell of the masses in the audience. They exit the opera house together and walk through Peking.

Song wishes that Peking had cafés and jazz clubs like a Western city. When Gallimard points out that the Chinese are never allowed to frequent nightclubs, Song points out that this restriction applies only to men; women are allowed inside to entertain the white club owners. Gallimard argues that this is an imperialist assertion. Song insinuates that the desire is mutual. She parts ways with Gallimard at what she reveals is her apartment. Gallimard wonders if her last comment was meant as a flirtation but is equally surprised that he held a conversation with a woman.

Helga complains that Gallimard came home late without informing her beforehand. Gallimard lies that he was at a diplomatic event. Later, he’s surprised with himself for lying to his wife at all.

That night, Gallimard dreams of Marc congratulating him for wooing Song. He doubts that Song actually likes him, so Marc reminds him of her flirtation. Marc encourages Gallimard to cheat on his wife, having done so in his own marriage hundreds of times. Finally, Marc argues that Song’s desire for him merely fulfills the Oriental woman’s destiny to submit to white men like them.

Marc shows Gallimard a vision of Song’s window, where she’s beginning to strip off her robe. He encourages Gallimard to indulge in his fantasy of courting a beautiful girl after waiting all his life for one. As Marc leaves Gallimard to enjoy the view, a phone rings, waking Gallimard from his dream.

Song is on the other end of the phone. Eager to talk, she asks Gallimard to forgive her, though she doesn’t specify for what. She makes him confirm his interest in the opera and then invites him to her performance the following week.

Gallimard attends Song’s performances for several weeks in a row. He continues to doubt whether Song is really interested in him, given the hard stop she imposes on each of their conversations. Gallimard holds out hope, however, thinking she’s merely shy.

One night, Song invites Gallimard into her apartment. He learns about her father, who died before the Communist Revolution. Song is embarrassed when she realizes that none of her servants have brought Gallimard any tea. Her constant apologies make it clear that she’s nervous to have him in her home. He reassures her, though they continue to dance around Song’s reasons for inviting him in.

Song eventually becomes frustrated about her inability to articulate those reasons and asks Gallimard to come back another time. When he assures her again, she admits to her anxiety over trying to prove herself as a modern woman. He assures her one last time by complimenting her beauty and behavior. As he leaves her apartment, Gallimard theorizes that Song thinks of herself as being beneath Westerners.

Gallimard tests his theory by cutting off all contact with Song for five weeks to see if she reaches out to him. The experiment makes him feel powerful.

Gallimard has an imaginary conversation with Marc, where Marc admits that he was friends with Gallimard only because he knew that Gallimard would end up better off in life. They recall Gallimard’s first sexual experience. Marc convinced a beautiful girl named Isabelle to have sex with Gallimard, even though she was attracted only to Marc. Gallimard vividly remembers how he thought his legs would fall off during their encounter, though he admits that he had a good time. In his dream, they belittle Isabelle as a sexual partner.

Marc turns Gallimard’s attention to a letter that arrived from Song. The letter lightly expresses Song’s wish for Gallimard to attend her performance again. Gallimard doesn’t respond, and the following week he gets another letter from Song wondering why he’s ignoring her. She writes that she misses him but calls him a “friend,” which Gallimard dislikes. The next week, her letter criticizes him for being rude. Gallimard waits one more week, after which Song sends a letter mourning the loss of her dignity. This fills Gallimard with shame for his actions, even if it proves his theory correct. Marc discourages Gallimard’s shame, so he sends Marc away. Gallimard worries that something bad will soon happen.

The French ambassador to China, Manuel Toulon, informs Gallimard that following the loss of Indochina to Communist influence, the embassy’s priorities are shifting. He confides that many of the embassy officers are being fired or transferred, including Gallimard’s immediate superior. Gallimard initially worries that he’ll never see Song again, but Toulon indicates that Gallimard is being promoted to vice-consul. Toulon explains that Gallimard has become unexpectedly bold over the last few months, which influenced the decision to promote him. Gallimard accepts the role, in which he’s expected to gather intelligence on Chinese foreign policy. He’s later flabbergasted, unable to believe that God would reward him after his cruelty to Song.

In the late hours of the evening, Gallimard rushes to Song’s apartment to tell her the news. He demands to know if Song is his Butterfly. Song is reluctant to answer his question, so Gallimard recalls what she wrote in her most recent letter: “I have already given you my shame” (39). He insists on an answer from her, assuring her that he simply wants their relationship to be honest. Finally, Song admits that she’s his Butterfly. Gallimard returns her answer by professing his love.

Gallimard starts to aggressively kiss Song. She hesitantly asks him to be gentler. When he starts to undo her gown, she asks if she can keep her clothes on because she’s scared of losing her modesty. She promises to please him if he can turn off the lights. She seduces him by quoting the “Love Duet” from Madame Butterfly.