Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 2 - 2 | Page 112

Pirate Problems
St Stephens College Preparatory School, Chan, Otis Chihung James - 11
It was a dark, gloomy day Zheng He thought as he settled into his usual seat at the bow of the ship.
There were good and bad days in sailing, he thought. On the good days, there would be rays of sun
reflecting off glittering waves with the pleasant addition of being able to catch fish. Then there would be bad
days where it would rain continually, while the clouds hid the sun as if it was playing hide-and-seek.
Suddenly, a lookout yelled something indecipherable. Zheng He immediately snapped awake and
sat up straight. His second-in-command relayed what the lookout had said back to the admiral.
“Looks like a whole fleet of pirates, Admiral,” warned the sailor.
“No fear,” he replied. “Alert the warships!”
“Yes, sir!”
As the sailor ran off, Zheng He stood up and took a glance at the pirate fleet. The pirates had a vast
number of ships at their disposal, Zheng He thought. He then shook the grain of doubt out of his mind as
he looked at his own warships. They were huge affairs made of wood and strips of iron. On them, he knew,
were hundreds of prime fighting men, eager to strike a blow for the Emperor. He took one last glance at the
pirates and swore in anger and surprise. The pirate ships were hoisting a flag he knew only so well. It was
Chen Zuyi! The most feared pirate to ever infest the seas of Southeast Asia. He frowned. He would have to
change his tactics, he knew. He called for his messenger.
“Yes, Admiral?”
“Tell all the ships to go to Palembang. We’re going to destroy this damned once and for all. If the
ship captains ask who it is, tell them it’s Chen Zuyi. GO!”
As the messenger scurried away, Zhang He closed his eyes and tried to think of a tactic that could
help him defeat Zuyi.
“Admiral, we’re here!”
Zheng He’s eyes immediately shot open. He looked around. They had docked at a gigantic wharf
with his other 150 ships. The thought for a moment and said, “Unload the soldiers first. Then tell one-
eighth of them to stay and guard the treasure ships.”
The messenger nodded and charged off, looking like an enraged bull. Zheng He instinctively stood
back and studied the situation. He decided to climb one of the mountains to get a better view of the place.
He marshalled all of the soldiers into place and started to march.
After several hours of grueling, backbreaking work, they finally reached the top of the mountain.
Zheng He groaned. Chen Zuyi’s whole army was right at the base of the mountain waiting in ambush for
them to return. Zheng He debated on sending a hail of arrows down onto them, but quickly discarded the
idea as it would reveal their position and incur casualties from returning fire. He finally decided to ask Chen
to surrender. If Chen refused, he could overwhelm them with his superior numbers. He roared to the
enemy army:
“Chen Zuyi! Surrender now or we will attack!”
Chen’s army turned around and around trying to find the spot where the voice had come from.
When they finally identified Zheng He’s position, Chen Zuyi roared back:
“All right! I’ll come personally tomorrow to meet you at the wharf.”
As soon as he had finished speaking, Zheng He knew he was lying. He considered attacking now,
but realized that in doing so, they would lose the element of utter surprise. He grinned fiercely and told his
army to march back down the mountain.
After a few days, Zheng He started to worry. Chen Zuyi still hadn’t come to meet him, despite his
advisor’s constant assurances that he and his army would come. Zheng He’s own army was already in place,
ready to fight. Suddenly, he heard the constant drum of horse-hooves beating down on the ground. He
looked around the barricade and was surprised to see Chen Zuyi riding towards his camp.
Chen yelled, “Zheng He! I’ve come to surrender. NOT!” The he screamed to the army behind
him, “Attack!” and they charged forward, seemingly appear out of thin air.
Zheng quickly yelled orders to his own army, and they streamed out of their tents and formed a
shield wall against the charging enemy. The air filled with screams and groans of agony. Zheng He directed
his cavalry to attack the left flank. This forced the enemy flank to try to turn and run in a different direction,
but they had blocked themselves. As they crashed with an audible clang into each other, Zheng He
immediately knew that he had made a good move, and though thousands of soldiers were falling, he had
gained the advantage.