Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 2 -1 2019 | Page 54

New Tales of the Ming Treasure Voayages
Creative Primary School, Lam, Katrina - 11
In the early 1400’s, there lived a greedy king in China who wanted to rule China forever and not pass his
throne on to his sons. To do that, he had to find the Potion of Youth so that he could live forever. So he
appointed his minister Zheng He to find the potion.
Zheng He was a very loyal and humble person. Although he never liked the king, he followed all his
commands no matter how ridiculous they were.
Zheng He worried about his voyage of getting the potion. He paced around his room, thinking about what
would happen during the trip. What dangers might he face? How should he get the potion? At this
moment, his servant came in and said, “Your Excellency, it is time to go.” Zheng He stopped his pacing
and put on a brave face before leaving his room.
When he went outside, he saw a fleet of ships waiting for him. He stared at the ship in awe. Although he
went on the ship seven times already, he still couldn’t help himself from getting so surprised about it.
After sailing for a couple of weeks, they arrived in Egypt. They sailed down the river Nile, and arrived to
the palace where the pharaoh lived. When the soldiers saw them coming to the palace, they quickly blocked
their way with weapons raised. Zheng He calmly said, “May I go and visit the great pharaoh? My name is
Zheng He and I’m from China.” The soldiers hesitated but then answered, “Very well, wait a moment
please.” The soldiers went into the palace and returned. They said in unison, “You may go inside the
palace.” Zheng He followed the soldiers and went into the grand palace.
“Welcome to my great palace! What brings you here today, minister of China?” said the pharaoh. Zheng
He replied, “I am here to collect the Potion of Youth. And it happens to be in your famous pyramid of
Giza, so can I get inside and take it?” The welcoming smile faded from the pharaoh’s face. He said, “Of
course you can but be careful.” Zheng He saw the face the pharaoh was putting on and asked, “Is something
wrong?” The pharaoh sighed and confessed, “I once had a son, who was very smart and caring. He tried to
get the Potion of Youth for me. Unfortunately, he died trying. I have a weapon that might help. If you can
get the potion successfully inside the pyramid, you will be the first and the last to do it!”
After days in the Sahara desert, they finally arrived at the Pyramid of Giza. Before letting the servants open
the door, Zheng He checked on the things the pharaoh had given him. There was the Pendant of Life
separated into two pieces. Zheng He put them back and…… BOOM!
Once the door opened, the soldiers backed out, hesitating to go inside and fearing something would pop
out. Zheng He put on a brave face and told the soldiers to move. When they went inside, the servants
slammed the door shut and waited outside. Zheng He grabbed a torch and went deep inside the pyramid. It
was very cold and it shivered down the soldier’s spine. Seeing the cobwebs and hieroglyphics, Zheng He
knew no one had been in here for hundreds of years. They skipped through the booby traps, some of the
soldiers disappeared. The other soldiers cautiously moved around the pyramid with weapons raised. After
hours of wandering around the pyramid, they found a door made of pure gold. They pushed through the
door and saw a large casket on the ground. Zheng He slid the lid off and found a mummified king holding a
bottle of blue potion. Zheng He knew, it was the legendary Potion of Youth. He quickly took it, but
suddenly, the door busted open and hundreds of mummified soldiers pointed their weapons at Zheng He
and his soldiers. Zheng He took out the Pendant of Life and locked the two pieces together. The
mummified soldiers fell on the ground and gave Zheng He and the soldiers plenty of time to escape. They
ran away as fast as their tired legs could carry them. They bumped through the door just as the mummies
caught up to them, they slammed the door shut and panted.
Once their hearts caught up to their brain, Zheng He and his soldiers were back to the steps of the palace.
Once they were in the grand hall, the pharaoh stared at them in astonishment. He was speechless to what he
was seeing. The pharaoh looked at the small blue vial like it was a ghost, he peeped, “Send the … minister
and his team … to their ship, I am going to take a nap.” The servants escorted them to the fleet of ships on
the Nile, Zheng He and his team boarded the biggest ship and sailed back the China.