Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 12 | Page 346

The New Tales of Old Shanghai
Po Leung Kuk Choi Kai Yau School, Honda, Kazu – 12
M
y name is Quantas Everstone. I have blonde hair and sea green eyes. I have a photographic memory, and
am especially good with faces. I also study ancient languages. I make ends meet by building coastal
defensive walls against notorious Japanese pirates. They are after a 3-inch night glowing pearl from an Edo
samurai that was given to the Chinese imperial family 100 years ago. Everyone thought that Japan was a happy
and healthy society, but they were actually suffering. Without the pearl, their ancient national treasure, bad luck
would continue and more natural disasters would strike. Japan knew they had to get their pearl back.
It was a beautiful summer day, I was walking home from work when I noticed five strange looking people
staring at the defensive wall. They were all bald, with tattoos of a small sabre-toothed tiger behind their ears. This
left a strange feeling in my stomach, but I was too hungry to think, all I had in mind was Shao Long Bao.
The next day, as I went to work, I ran into the sabretooths again as I passed by the fish market. They were
whispering in an ancient Japanese language. I couldn’t hear anything except Ōjo and Pāru, which meant princess
and pearl respectively. These sabretooths were up to no good.
“Quanster! Quanster! There you are!” said my friend Maoshae. He has an unshaven beard and a REALLY
hairy nostril, like a human sized Pekingese, this furball is my best friend.
“Hi furball!” I said, as he ran towards me.
“You don’t know what happened?” Maoshae asked. I shook my head.
“Someone had the guts to scratch a note onto the defensive wall.”
I laughed. That person obviously has a death wish, or is he trying to threaten us? I asked Maoshae, “ So what
did it say?” RETURN THE PEARL OR ELSE…….
“ That’s it?” I asked.
“ Yup.”
As Maoshae and I walked to work, I was thinking hard. Ōjo? Princess? Pāru? Pearl? Of course! The
sabretooths must be Japanese pirates and they were trying to take the night glowing pearl from……. the princess??
THE PRINCESS HAS THE PEARL!
But how to warn her? I thought to myself.
After I finished my work, I was contemplating to tell Maoshae.
“Let’s get dan dan mien, I am so hungry…by the way, I have a favour to ask you.” said Maoshae.
“ Sure!”
“ My cousin from Beijing is looking for a friend in Shanghai, he used to be a royal goldsmith who worked
in the palace. Do you think you can help her find him?”
“Do you have a painting of him for me to search in my brain databank?” I asked.
“Nope. But you can meet my cousin so she can describe his features to you in detail.”
“Sure.”
The next day, I was waiting with Maoshae in Ye Shanghai restaurant when suddenly a faint horrible odour
getting stronger by the second. An old man by the door fainted.
“Hey, Quanster, cover your nose, my cousin is coming now, she suffers a fungal infection caused by her
bound feet.” Maoshae screamed.
Then, Maoshae’s hairier and barefooted cousin came in. A child who was eating Shao Long Bao vomited,
then fainted too. By her side was a Bankhar dog wearing a gold collar with a huge rattle. Her voice was really
deep.
“ Hello, my name is Dong Gu Tou. I have heard from Maoshae that you were willing to help me to locate
my relative.”
Dong Gu Tou continued, “This relative of mine is a one-eyed goldsmith. He has black hair with streaks
of purple dye that hang over his eyes, is that enough for you?”
I processed all this information through my head. An image of the exact description came to my head. Of
course! It was the local goldsmith. He wore an eyepatch and refused to tell anyone how he had lost his eye.