Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 12 | Page 220

Behind the Garden of Happiness
Harrow International School Hong Kong, Suen, Gwyneth - 9
T
he engine roared and our plane took off. I was buzzing with excitement. It was my school’s Culture Trip to
Shanghai.
Mr. Hancock handed out booklets about Shanghai. I read with fascination- there were lots of skyscrapers! It
seemed like another Hong Kong.
Then, I read about the Old City, which began as a walled ancient town, now a tourist spot. I was marveling at the
beauty of the Yu Garden when I heard a cracked voice rattled somewhere near my ear.
“Come hear us!”
“Come help us!”
Followed by a spine-chilling scream of a child that ripped through the air.
I sat corpse-like, frozen.
I managed to gather my senses. Looking around, everyone seemed normal. Jess, who sat next to me, was singing as
usual.
I was suddenly more afraid than I had ever been in my life.
On the coach, Mr. Hancock explained that we’d stop at Shanghai Gucheng. We disembarked at Remin Road.
Jess held my hand as we entered the Old City. It was bustling with tourists, packed with restaurants and stalls,
filling the air with an exciting mix of smells and sounds from around the world.
Navigating through the narrow alleyways, a pair of small Chinese lions caught my attention. They stared at me
with mud-brown eyes- dangerous but sad. I felt a sudden shiver. Expressionlessly, the lady screamed, “Twenty
yuan each!’’
Only then did I realize Jess was not there with me. The class had vanished into the colourful, twisting alleyways.
Something urged me on. All my instincts screamed at me to get away, but my legs seemed to move of their own
accord into the Yu Garden.
It was a beautiful wilderness of trees, rockeries, flowers, and ponds. From the distance, I saw two moss-covered
Imperial Guardian stone lions, with cloudy, saucer-like eyes filled with grief. Intrigued, I walked closer. As they
came into focus, a gust of ferocious wind blew hardly at me. The leaves and flowers fluttered. The rocks rolled
towards the lions. My mind was also a whirlwind- a pulsing, surging tornado of fear and disbelief.
Suddenly, the lions leapt to life.
“Nihao! We’re Shishi and Xiaoxiao. We’ve been guarding the Yu Garden for years!” The pair said with bitter
pride.
My heart clenched behind my ribs. I must be deathly pale.
"Come with us!" Shishi exclaimed with a wave of her paws.
Shishi and Xiaoxiao led me through numerous walkways until we stopped at a pavilion. Xiaoxiao touched a heavy
oak door with his paws and miraculously, it opened. Alert, I was also filled with curiosity.