Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 2 - 2 | Page 37

Zheng He’s Secret.
Sha Tin Junior School, Liu, Helen - 11
“Somewhere-somewhere, in the coasts of Africa. Find him. KILL HIM!” He whispered menacingly...
Gasping for breath, I woke up with a start! Blindly-grabbing my silky Qipao, I slowly stepped out of bed as
I listened to my crew bickering loudly in the distance.
“Gosh, you don’t need to be so salty! Captain Zheng probably just woke up!”
I smiled, with pride. I’m just 27, and already a captain of a royal fleet. Quickly shaking my dream out of my
mind, I walked confidently out of the cabin. Enjoying the wind that was whipping my face, while the wrath
of the crashing waves surrounded the vessel with a murderous tone. I sighed, Well, I’m just following the
“king’s orders” since I want this voyage to be a success. I mean, people are depending on this job to get
money.
“Don’t forget your true mission...MISSION!” A thundering voice suddenly-ringing in my brain.
“ Kill him... KILL-HIM!!!!!!”
Then it came to me again… Those red, red -eyes, filled with blood. And that smile… Why is the king like
this?
“Captain!” It was Ma, our lead astronomer and my old friend. I quickly snapped out of my scary flashbacks
from the dream.
“There’s gonna be a storm tonight, so we might have to hurry up and stop on a nearby the African coastline
city to find shelter and food. Your choice!” he said cheerfully, holding the pearly ivory telescope he had got
from Vietnam. How can he be so happy when a storm is coming? I thought questionably to myself. I
dreamily gazed to the dark-clouded horizon entangled with the ferocious waves that hit each other. We
didn't make it to shore…
The ferocious waves slammed onto the rocks nearby, creating snow-like water, flying to the deck.
“Prepare the sails!” Sadly, these desperate attempts to communicate were uselessly swallowed away by the
slow tearing sound of the wooden boards, and the screams of the howling wind. I desperately grabbed the
wet railing of the boat as I squinted at the sight of my men. That was when I heard a shattering scream,
followed by other high screeches.
When I turned around, It was Ma. He was slowly pulled down by the waves that were once my friends.
Now they were a mere hooded stranger sucking the lives out of countless men. I tried to cling on to this
tiny speck of hope that was left. But at last, my thin cord of perseverance finally broke. Why Ma? A drop of
water came down my sleeve as water filled my eyes. Why … Isn't this all your set up, Yongle Emperor?
Uggggg, my head hurts, I can’t move! I struggled to get to my feet, while people next to me murmured
quietly “Who is this?”
“Why is he here?” Slowly gaining consciousness, my mind started swirling, flashes of Ma getting grabbed by
the ferocious waves dotted my visions, I started panicking, was he really gone ? I sat up in the speed of light,
beads of sweat tickled my cheeks. We really sank?
“Well, who have we got here?” a soft voice whispered next to my ear. It was weirdly familiar, like Yongle’s.
I slowly opened my salty eyes, squinting to the blurry sight of that mysterious voice. It was him! Whatever
his name was, he had a long-bearded nose, with a-moustache pointing in both directions and a large scar at
the side of his pointy cheek.
“Where am I?” I quickly sat up, the realization of the earlier disaster clearer than ever,
“Well, just to tell you, I found you lying wet on the ground, then I brought you to my home.” that familiar
voice again. “My pleasure, General Zheng.”
“Y-you know me?” I stammered
“Well, I became a low ranked general in China in my early years. You can call me Zhu”
I stared in disbelief, A general in-China?
“It would be a pleasure for you to stay in my house for a while before the rest of your fleet arrives. I’ll send
a pigeon.” Zhu finally announced, “You know, you are pretty safe even amongst us Africans.” The general
announced