Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 3 | Page 63

Journey of the Seas
Harrow International School Beijing, Ye, Lola - 12
I was eager and nervous when I was told to go on a treasure voyage with Captain Zheng He, but when I
saw the ship, all that was left was anticipation: there were 60 cabins on the deck of the ship, four masts and
four sails, and most importantly, it was enormous! Crewmates around me all gasped in marvel as a guide
directed us to different parts of the ship. As I wandered around the ship, I felt something hit me, I turned
around to check who it was. It was Chen, my friend! I greeted him and chatted for a little before we were
called away.
Since we were one of the first people to go on the voyage, the emperor himself held a banquet for us before
we left. The emperor told us to follow Captain Zheng, we all toasted the emperor and Captain Zheng. The
emperor gave each of us a pat on the back. I felt contented and respected, soon we are going to be masters
of the seas!
We departed Nanjing, carrying gifts of gold brocade, patterned silks, and coloured silk gauze. Being the
youngest on the ship, I was often ordered to do the most work, like mopping the deck, carrying carts, tying
ropes, and sometimes even preparing food. One night, after a day of hard work, I laid on my bed until a
sudden shudder awakened me. The whole crew was on full alert. I ran to the deck to see what had shaken
the boat. The rain was pouring down onto the deck recklessly, the waves were fiddling with our ship,
swaying it side to side, thunder and lightning sang like a chorus which made the night more frightful.
Captain Zheng ordered some men to raise two more masts, some men lost balance and the entire ship was
in chaos. I saw Chen in a hurry and stopped him to ask what has happened, he replied in a flustering
manner: "It's the storm! The ship has been starved too! Captain Zheng told me to repair it! I have to go
now!" I apologized quickly and let go of him. Just as I was about to go back in, Captain Zheng called me. I
ran obediently towards him and answered," Yes captain?" Captain Zheng replied in a solemn tone, "Go
down and help Chen with repairing the leak, I am afraid he won't be able to handle it on he's own." I
nodded and hurried to the bottom of the ship.
The bottom of the ship was dark with only a few candles lit. I grabbed one and yelled, "Chen? Where are
you?" I waited for a few moments. "Zhang? Why are you here?" I moved towards him until I felt the
coldness of my feet. I held my candle next to the hole, water was flooding in. The air smelled damp and
fishy, and the floor was constantly shaking. Chen was soaking wet so I helped him hold the plank in place
while he mended it. At last, the hole stopped leaking. Chen and I gathered the tools and headed up to the
deck. The storm hasn't stopped but has become less frightening. Chen and I told Captain Zheng that the
hole has been mended. He nodded in satisfaction and told us to rest in our cabins.
After the storm, we travelled for a few more days until arriving at Champa, they greeted us with respect as
we gave them our presents. They were friendly and gave us tributes for our emperor. There were things I
had never seen or even heard of before. As we visited more countries (Java, Malacca, Aru, Semudera,
Lambri, Ceylon, Quilon, and Calicut), our ship became more and more loaded. I feel like a pioneer, seeing
and touching so many new and unique things. From silver to precious stones, coral to tortoise shells, Indian
cotton cloth to spices, they even gave us exotic animals: there were enormous birds that ran at a high speed;
there were animals that were as tough as stones and as big as a house; there were also animals with necks
longer than their body! After receiving all these tributes, Captain Zheng told us we were going to head
back.
The entire crew celebrated the success of the voyage. We all toasted Captain Zheng and we had a great
time; feasting on meat and drinking liquor. Everybody was filled with joy, but none of us knew what was
waiting for us the next day.
After arriving at Palembang, Captain Zheng announced a piece of very important news at the deck, we
gathered around him, some of us still a little drunk, that we were going to have to fight Chen Zuyi and his
pirates. He also sent a message to the 300 other ships that were travelling beside us. There were 27,000 of us
in total. We were all given a sword and armour, I was assigned to fire cannons. I learnt how to put in the
cannonballs and adjusted them to shoot in the right direction. This weapon made me realise the strength in
the military we had.