Laborer’s Diary
Ethan Sa
grabbed my bag and hurried to an antique shop with my family. We had plans to buy some furniture.
When we got there I was amazed by the stunning and beautiful furniture. I ventured further into the shop in
search for some hidden gems, to my surprise, I found an old and dusty rattan case. I saw a lot of such rattan
cases in documentaries but it was the first time seeing it right in front of my eyes!
muel Chao, Group 2: Fiction, Shanghai Singapore International School
Triggered and fixated by the mysterious-looking rattan case, I begged my parents to buy it for me so I
could use it as a school bag. My parents finally gave in and bought me the rattan case. When I returned home, I
dusted the dirt off the case gently and chose a few of my lightest books to be placed inside the rattan case.
I
“
What is this?” I thought to myself as I opened up the case slowly, examining every inch of it. I found a
small compartment in the case. Out of curiosity, I rummaged through the compartment and found a bunch of
notes.
The notes turned out to be a diary that was old and yellowed. I could not wait and started flipping the pages,
reading it carefully, word by word.
“
I, Xing Shao Long, have survived 10 years of torture as a laborer. Coming from a poor family, I do not
have a choice but to be a laborer when Qin Shi Huang deployed us to build the Great Wall. I have been carrying
heavy bricks up the mountain every day. Day after day, rain or shine, I don’t even remember how many bricks I
have moved.” My heart was racing as I read the first page of the diary. I could not wait to find out what was
happening to Xing Shao Long.
The next page read, “My heart aches so much today to see another of my fellow laborers drop dead in front
of my eyes. He literally dropped dead as the brick was too heavy for his fragile body! When would this misery
end? Being here for 10 years, I have seen countless laborers died and just buried under this Great Wall, but the
frequency does not make it easier for me. My turn should be coming soon!” My heart sank after reading the
second page and my eyes swelled with tears.
I was determined to find out more about the Great Wall, determined to find out what cost so many lives. I
searched for information on the Internet and finally gathered some information.
Around the 220 B.C., Qin Shi Huang, one of the eight Dynasty leaders, defeated his enemies to unify China.
The Great Wall was built by connecting discontinued walls to keep the Mongol nomads out of China. However,
the Mongols invaded the Qin dynasty eventually and the walls could not stop the agile invaders.
During the Ming Dynasty, in 1211 A.D., the wall was lengthened and strengthened, more resources and
lives were sacrificed, but once again, it was proven useless as the Genghis Khan invaded and conquered China.
The Manchurians also suffered an attack from the Europeans, otherwise known as the “White Ghost”.
I also found out that the Great Wall of China is one of the seven man-made marvels of the world in
exchange for the countless lives sacrificed. The laborers who spent their lives building The Great Wall are the
true heroes who make Chinese proud, not simply the structure that is rumoured to be visible from space.
***