Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 3 2018 | Page 321

A New Journey to the West
St. Paul's College, Ng, Truman Toby -14
“H
ey guys! We have to get on the boat right now! Or else, it will depart without us!’ A pig
was shouting at the top of his voice to his fellow officers on the shore of the Shanghai Pier.
He was a rotund and senile pig with a pink skin, squinty eyes and a gigantic mouth. He was
wearing a black Qing government officer suit with the red character ‘Qing’ printed right in the centre to
show others his country. However, the suit did not fit him as it was far too small. Just then, Li Hongzhang,
who was carried on a sedan chair by a gorilla and a bear, came strolling in slowly towards the pig. The
gorilla, bear and pig were all under the Qing government and servants of Li, a senior officer of the
government, during this trip to the United Kingdom.
They had a mission to accomplish on this voyage. However, as they did not want to leak the plan
to the public, they announced to the strong powers and the citizens that they were going to Great Britain to
observe and assimilate the policies, constitution and military and to learn from them to strengthen the Qing
Dynasty. However, their real plan was to steal a secret manuscript on ruling a country from Great Britain. A
spy that they had sent to work in England reported back to Emperor Guangxu that the reason that England
could become the empire on which the sun never sets was that they had this book called ‘Secrets to Rule an
Empire Successfully’. This book was an ancient book which had been passed on in the monarchy family
ever since 1604, when James I came into place. It teaches the kings and queens how to use their power
correctly. When Emperor Guangxu heard about the book of wonder, he decided that he had to have a
glimpse at it. Therefore, he ordered Li to steal it and bring it back to China.
Li and his three servants successfully got on the ship, which was called Elizabeth. It was a grand,
gigantic vessel which also had cannons for defence. When the four of them saw the weapons, they were all
astounded. They came to realise why they had lost the Opium Wars against Great Britain. This made them
even determined to get their hands on the book, as it could strengthen their country.
Two months passed and they arrived in Bombay, a big port under the rule of England. The four of
them decided that it was time for them to relax, so they got onto the shore for some browsing and shopping
in the markets. Suddenly, they saw a drunk English soldier, shouting and kicking things while strolling
through the aisles of the market. The gorilla, who was the best fighter in China, was very dissatisfied with
the soldier’s deeds, so he went out to fight him. The people around him tried to stop him but he just
stormed out and challenged the giant. However, in the fight between David and Golliath, David lost this
time. The soldier fought his best and defeated the gorilla convincingly. After the incident, the four of the
King officials noticed how weak they were. The gorilla, who was one of the best in China, could not even
win an ordinary soldier who was drunk in English territory. The gorilla felt really ashamed and was adamant
to improve his fighting skills.
As they got back on the ship with the gorilla black and blue all over, they set off for their next stopover
point--- Abyssinia. Three months passed again, and they sailed in serenity across the Indian Ocean. When
they were about to approach Abyssinia, a few pirates barged onto the boat and pointed their spears at the
passengers aboard. They then demanded them to hand over all the valuables to them. When the pirate
pointed his weapon at Li, the loyal gorilla and the faithful pig defended their master from him. The bear
tried to sweep the spear away and the pig attempted to punch the intruder on the belly. However, it was all
in vain, only to make the pirate even more agitated. He poked a hole in each of the servants’ belly and they
fell to the floor, with a tiny blood fountain bursting out of their wounds. Suddenly, an English troop
marched onto the boat and surrounded the trespassers. The pirates endeavoured to fight, but the English
soldiers were just too strong for them to cope with. At last, they were all arrested. One pirate abruptly pulled
out a deck of $100000 banknotes and gave it to the General. Li understood that the pirates were bribing the
troop in order to be released. He was already dreaming about what he would buy with such a large amount
of money if he were the General, but a booming “No” from the Englishman pulled him back to reality. He
was utterly shocked with the General’s answer. He was puzzled why someone would give up the chance of
getting such a large sum of money. Then, he realised that he had been doing the wrong thing all the while.
He had been affected by the corruptive manner of all the Qing officials. He himself had become too greedy
and money-oriented. Therefore, he decided that he would break his habits once he got back to China.