The New Tale of the Great Wall
Tsz Ching L
inally, here I am.
tour
in, Group 3: Fiction, Heep Yunn School
My mother is elatedly fooling around; she is waving crazily and pointing all around.
“
Oh gosh! Can you see that? It’s so looooooong…”
My father is not less enthused; he is taking photos for my mother, even posing her. Other
ists are staring. My cheeks are burning, and I hiss through clenched teeth, “For god’s sake, mom,
could you please stop making such a big fuss?”
F
My mother just cannot calm down. “Come on, sweetie! Don’t be such a killjoy! Just look at all these
magnificent views around you! Now aren’t you kind of proud of being a Chinese?” She drags me to her side,
and soon the camera lights are flashing on my face. I force a smile, and after a few shots I push her away and
start wandering around.
So this is it. While my classmates are in Tokyo, Seoul, whatever places abroad, I am stuck in mainland
China. How can you even call this a trip?
What’s so special about the Great Wall of China anyway? To me, it’s just a series of constructions
made of stone and bricks, no variation, no excitement, just like a line of blocks.
I drum my finger aimlessly on the bricks. Suddenly, I notice an unusual brick which sticks out from
others. It is near the bottom, so I guess nobody has seen it. I kneel down and try to push it back. That’s when the
small drawing on it captured my attention. Curiously, I poke it with my finger.
I feel dizzy; the whole world is swirling around me. I am bombarded by all kinds of noises. My head
hurts so much that it feels like a long needle has pinned through it. My legs are like jelly and I fall hard on the
floor. I become unconscious.
A few minutes have passed. I open my eyes. I am at the same place, but it is now dead silent. I walk
back to search for my parents. I look around, but there is nobody. I begin to sweat with anxiety. Before I notice
it, I am racing and desperately calling for my parents. I take out my mobile phone, but there is no signal.
Not far away a man is darting towards me. As he goes near I shout, “Sir, would you mind…”
Before I can finish my sentence, he grasps my collar and heaves me up. I can’t breathe and kick my
legs fiercely. I am horrified and squeal hard.
“
How dare you escape from work!” I become aware that he is dressed like a Terracota soldier, wearing
a helm and an armour. He must be an actor filming for a drama. I try to explain to him that I am not a staff
member. Not listening to me, he throws me violently to the floor, and then he hauls me hard.
I struggle but he holds my arm firmly. Now I am taken to another section of the Great Wall. The scene
before me is just terrifying. I can’t believe my eyes and my jaws just drop open. This is too real to be a drama.
There are tons of men constructing. Some of them carrying bricks by a shoulder pole, and others are
piling up the bricks.
I notice that the slaves are of different ages – some are only teens and some are in their eighties. They
all look very weak and tired. The sun is blazing, and we are all sweating hard. People start to faint. Many are
now lying unconsciously on the floor. Soldiers rush toward them, but they are obviously not showing any tender.
Instead, they are whipping the people! There are now wounds all over their body, most of them whine, but
others remain still. They are not ever going to get up again.
I am very confused. Did I travel back in time? How am I ever going to go back?
Just then, I am distracted by a loud cry from a woman. There is a huge bundle of clothes on her back, and she is
kneeling on the ground.
“
Poor Meng Jiang,” I hear workers whispering, “She walked miles looking for her husband, only
finding out that he’s dead and was buried deep underground here.”
We are now very quiet. Meng Jiang is weeping so hard that everyone gets attracted by her. Tears run
down my cheek.
Suddenly there is a crack on the wall and a corpse is revealed. Seeing who that is, Meng Jiang becomes
more desperate. She embraces him and runs her finger through his hair. She lifts up her head and moans. The
sky turns grey, as if it is enduring the same pain and sadness.
After a while, someone lends an arm to her and they start to pace towards home.