New Tales of the Great Wall
Angus Yat Lam Leung, Group 3: Fiction, Diocesan Boys' School
till. I remember how I stood here hundreds of years ago. The finest bricks, and I stood on mountains.
They had millions of men, giving their lives to one of the greatest constructions in human history. Every
day they sweat and bleed and were whipped, they carry bricks as heavy as their own weights, half naked.
They fell off the cliff. They exhausted themselves and starved. And finally, they gave birth to me.
I, am the Great Wall of China. And I remember those times, when I was the sign of despair for
the enemies. I had been unbreakable, and I protect those in the stretch of my arms.
Back in the Qin Dynasty, when I was first being built, my presence symbolized the absolute power of
the great nation at the centre of the world. Soldiers marched on my back, and together we form the strongest
defense ever known.
That was, back in the Qin Dynasty.
During the inter-war period of China, minoritiy races in the borders grew into a threat. They stepped in
and began interfering with our affairs. Our country was then invaded and the descendants of my masters
surrendered. They ceded lands to the minorities. The lands I stood on. The absolute defense was then, gone,
handed to the minorities. It was the biggest mistake that was never supposed to be made.
From then onwards, China was frequently invaded by races near the borders. The Liao race, the Jin
race, the Mongolians… And at last the Qing Dynasty began. I watched the outsiders bringing the country once
again to prosperity, and I watched them when their influence declined. I watched when the real enemy emerged
from the far end of the ocean. And I watched how they exterminated the Chinese.
They fought with what they called dreadnoughts and tanks, the Europeans, had shown overwhelming strength
with guns and cannons. Our bows and arrows stood no chance, and so as my “unbreakable” defense. With less
than two to three times of bombing, my walls were already penetrated. I have not been able to protect my people
ever since.
Now, I no longer stand as any sort of defense. I am now treated as what they consider a “tourist
attraction” and also a “national heritage”, which basically, helps making money. Tourist, instead of soldiers,
march on my back, thousands of them. And among those thousands there’s got to be someone, who truly thinks
about and understands the story behind the once glorious Great Wall. And as long as that “someone” exists, I
will continue standing, for I would be proud of what I was once able to do for my country, and proud of the fact
that someone remembers it.
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