Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 4-7 2019 | Page 76

Anna Harrow International School Hong Kong, Ho, Sophie - 15 It was in Grandmama’s little attic where she first found them hidden beneath all their glory: a pot of decent gold, some letters, and a roll of soft silk the colour of vintage pearls. The girl didn’t want to clean up the attic in the first place. It was dark, dirty, and infested with spiders and termites and mice and the nastiest creatures ever known to man. Why would Mom force her to clear the attic instead of anyone else? Though, she had to admit that a part of her wasn’t even surprised. Mom had been acting ten times freakier than she usually was after Grandmama died from some kind of cancer some time ago. Honestly, what was the point? She died already. The girl knew there was no use worrying and mourning someone who would never walk on the face of the earth again. That was the cold, hard truth, and Mom needed to know it whether she liked it or not. Plus, she didn’t want to mourn for another hundred days. For God’s sake, the funeral was done and over with. She didn’t want to wear a piece of dull cloth that was basically like screaming in people’s face, “Oh, look, my family member died, give me pity!” It was so embarrassing, especially at school where all her American friends would ask her what it was for. Of course, she wouldn’t tell them it was a weird Chinese tradition that signified mourning. So, she did what any other sane being would do: she hid the cloth in her bag before school started, and put it on again before she went home. It was such a smart idea. It was just too bad that Mom had to spoil it once again by catching her on the street without wearing a so-called “important” piece of cloth. Not only did she have to wear a white rag that didn’t match her expensive, photo-worthy outfit, she now had to clean - to clean! - an attic that was a million years old. It made her absolutely furious. Thankfully, those items that she found were a bit more interesting than the dust around her, so she decided to stick her nose around. Naturally, the girl grabbed the pot of gold first. She got over her initial disappointment at its lack of glamourous grandeur. After all, it would come in useful when she needed some cash. She then unrolled the roll of silk, but found it incredibly boring. She kicked it away, too lazy to roll it back. And all there was left, unfortunately, was the dull stack of letters. It was trivial, she knew. Who would want to read some ancient scraps of garbage? But bear with her - there was literally nothing else to do up there. She had to find something to do. Thus, after screaming at a pile of cobwebs above her head, she settled in a corner and began to read. Dear Kaiser (kai ze 凯泽), I cannot bear it any longer! I am meant to be sewing a dress for a customer, but the sun is peeking out behind the cloud, persuading me to write to you instead. It’s only been ten days since you’ve left for the palace to fulfil your dreams of being promoted as an official, but to me it’s been an eternity. I’m afraid my curiosity has got the better of me, as I have never been out of the village before. What does the palace look like? How are the people treating you? Is it true that for the emperor gets a hundred dishes each meal just for himself? And to be honest, you’ve made me quite jealous. You get to travel all around China and experience things I’ve never even heard of before - just because you’re male. I’m sorry, but don’t you think that’s just terribly unfair? It may be my culture, but that’s not the kind of culture I want to believe in. Please reply. The whole village has quietened down from the buzz and chatter to a drone of serenity. I’m rather lonely. Lonely, that’s all. Oh well, I’ll see you soon. Goodbye! From Anna (an na 安娜) July 1, 1405