Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 12 | Page 493

Don't Judge a Book by its Cover
The Independent Schools Foundation Academy, Tang, Zachary Tianyi – 10
W
ow! That ant looks so small and weak!” I said as I saw a red ant, scuttling under a log on the way home.
“Can I keep it as a pet?”
“You know, Ping Le,” Mother said as the ant picked up a small piece of you tiao 10 times its size, “you shouldn’t
judge a book by its cover! The ant is very strong!”
“Whatever,” I muttered to myself.
Later, after I finished a good bowl of Mother’s special oyster sauce-coated noodles with dumplings for dinner,
Mother asked, “Can you go down to Shan’s Fabrics and pick up the clothes I ordered last week?”
“Can I bring my friend Chen Le?” I asked back.
“Yes,” Mother replied, “but come back soon!”
Right after she finished talking, I got on my vest, and walked to Chen Le’s house to ask if he could come. After
we got his parent’s approval, we went past the old wall that was built to protect against Japanese pirates, and down
a secret shortcut to the Fabric Market. After a long time of walking and looking around, me and my friend realized
that we were lost. “Maybe we did a wrong turn?” I thought to myself.
Suddenly I heard a low, menacing voice from above us say, “What are you kids doing here so late at night?”
After hearing the voice, me and Chen Le started trembling, sweat suddenly dropped down our fingers and I started
to have a very bad feeling in my stomach. This was because lately, bandits and clans have been scavenging many
different neighborhoods in Shanghai like Pudong, taking all of their belongings with Gongfu and different types of
guns. When we slowly looked around to see where the voice came from, suddenly, we heard a “Swoosh!” behind
us, and when we turned, a man in a black suit with a western top hat appeared. Me and my friend stopped in our
tracks, and slowly walked back a step. It was Long Yun, the head of the infamous Long clan, one of the strongest
clans in Shanghai! I could recognize him because only their clan had top hats when they robbed. “What are you
little kids doing here so late at night?” He asked, with a deep voice. Me and Chen Le stayed so quiet, you could’ve
heard a pin drop, or a mouse squeak. “You still haven’t answered my question…” Long Yun said in a less
menacing, almost apologetic voice. “What are you doing so late at night?”
“We… we were,” I muttered.
“Going to Shan’s Fabrics to pick up our clothes for his mother!” Chen Le suddenly burst out, then put his hand
over his mouth as if he suddenly regretted it. I glared at him, and made a mental note to kill him later if we got out
of this situation alive.
Long Yun saw me glaring at him, and quickly said, “Thank you for telling me. Come.” A split second later, 3 men
in black suits dropped down behind us, and pushed us forward.