New Tales of Great Wall
Dylan Ngan, Group 3: Fiction, Island School
ou may have learned from your history lessons in school that the Great Wall of China is the longest
man-made structure in the world, that it is also the longest cemetery in the world, and that it has now
been ranked asa World Heritage. It is now also under the management of the People’s Republic of
China on the Protection of Relics. However, you might not know about a small tale, which has not
been passed on like many Chinese stories but instead has been made into one of the most significant
works in the Chinese history. That is the tale of “Baiyou the Wallbreaker”.
It happened in the era of the Ming Dynasty, an era in which fat woman was a symbol of beauty and of
a long cultural revolution. This is a tale about Baiyou Khan.
Born as a Mongol, he was discriminated throughout his childhood. Smuggled across the border when
famine broke out throughout the tribes to the north, Baiyou’s family went around the Great Wall through the
east and managed to be unseen by outposts and patrols. They settled in the town of Kangshui. Baiyou’s father
found a job as a merchant, as a result he was always out of town leaving his wife and child in a rusty old house
made of wood. Baiyou was sent to a makeshift school in the town, usually made out of retired teachers who had
nothing to do. Baiyou lived this life for 5 years, occasionally going out with his father on holidays.
When Baiyou was 15 years old, he was already too old for the school and had been kicked out. He
found a job as a woodcutter to the east of the town near the sea, earning only 5 cents a day. One day, a
messenger of the King visited the town. The messenger said, “We are looking for a young man who is strong to
fill in a job at the Great wall for we are making renovations to keep out the Mongols. Everyone has been told of
what happens at the Great Wall, you have to work on edges and if you fall, that’s the end. Everyone knows most
who goes, mostly likely doesn’t return. Unlike other Kings, this King dislikes using slaves, which has made him
a very honorable and respectable man among the peasants and citizens. There were plenty of strong young men
in the town but none was willing to go on a job knowing the chances of returning was awfully slim. A minute of
silence passed through the town. The messenger finally added, “Ten billion dollars will be awarded for every
men working on the renovation.” Even with this handsome award, people know that you can only get it if you
can survive and return. No one spoke. Finally Baiyou broke the silence, “I’ll go. I know the stakes are high but
I’ll go.” Baiyou’s mother immediately cried out, “No my son, you shan’t leave. You’ll leave me and your dad
with nothing but an empty house, No! Son,please.” Baiyou spoke firmly, “No mum, I’ll return, and together we
shall live a happy life in the countryside. Trust me I will.” This was no promise, just words of comfort for his
mum.
So the next day, Baiyou packed all his essentials and left the town at dawn, so as not allow his mother
to stop him going. This was a fresh start for Baiyou, whose survival depended on mostly luck and skill. He
arrived shortly at the Great Wall after two days of walking, stopping at towns in between to have meals and rest.
Immediately, he was greeted by the strong smell of stones and bricks. Renovation had already begun with giant
ladders set across the Wall. Baiyou reported to the commander of the site. He made peeked at the list and found
that more than 4000 men were enlisted and more were to come. The commander looked at him and smirked,
“
Oh dear, the country might not have enough young men for I think I see a teen here. Go to the workshop and
get your tools. Someone there will tell you what to do.” Baiyou was unaffected by the commander’s comment
and proceeded to the workshop. Hammers and all sorts of tools were hanging everywhere, and there was a
storage even further behind. It looked like the King was expecting this to be a project for a decade. A voice
called out behind him, “Oi! You, what is your name?” Baiyou turned around and nearly fell. A man of 8 feet tall
was standing behind him. Baiyou nearly thought the ancient myths of Giants living in the mountains were true.
“
YOU DEAF? I’M ASKING YOU, WHAT IS YOUR NAME?” Baiyou was tooshocked to reply, but managed
a word, “Baiyou.” “FINALLY. Now take these, they will be your tools for the next month, break it and you
might as well suicide. You’ll be working on the outer walls. Don’t move too much on the ladders or you might
break them.” Baiyou started to regret his decision. “WAIT WHATTTTT! We are using ladders? No ropes? No
safety harnesses or something like that?” “Are you serious? You’ll need 4000 50 metre long ropes and 4000
safety harnesses. You out of your mind? Now take the tools and get your butt moving.” Baiyou cursed under his
breath, “Darn. What on earth did I sign up for?”
So that was the beginning of Baiyou’s torture in working on the renovation. He worked 15 hours a day
and only had 20-minute breaks every 5 hours. It was hell. Around him he saw people dying, some of clumsiness,
and some of stupidity. It did affect him, very greatly indeed, sometimes it was fatal. He was watching a very
unfortunate man trip over the ladders and the whole thing collapsed and squashed the man like sponge. It was a
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