Fiction: Group 4
Will that be me one day? Is this all part of my destiny?
These questions were left unanswered as she turned around to face forwards. She stood there frozen in time,
staring unblinkingly at the blurred outlines of a collection of metallic, glassy, rectangles in the distance.
Suddenly-as if being awoken from a spell, she climbed down the tree and ran back before she could be
tempted by the vibrant city lights of Guangzhou, the energetic, bold, neon mixture of yellow, red, white
and blue that had just been beckoning her a brief moment ago.
* * *
“Xuehua, where have you been? I was worried sick! You bad girl, always making your
Mama
worry!”
“Sorry”, she bowed her head.
“I was just…just….” She blurted out nervously.
I don’t want to hear excuses. Her father annunciate each word clearly, coldly.
“Um…” Xuehua hesitated and stopped.
“Oh come off the poor child, she’s just come home. Look at her! She’s all sweaty and tired from all that
running.” Her mother intercepted.
Xuehua looked her mother in the eyes and gave her a look of gratitude.
“And please don’t embarrass yourself in front of your brother, he didn’t come all this way to see you give
your daughter a hard time.” Ma added, giving Xuehua’s arm a comforting squeeze.
“Fine. I’ll let you off this time, young lady, but next time- if there is a next time, I would really not like to
be in your shoes.” Father warned.
“Enough of that now, I have too many stories to tell you. Brother, you will never believe what good
fortune I have come across in the city of Guangzhou in these last two decades.” Uncle leaned in, his mouth
already wide open in a smile, unable to contain his excitement.
“Let us eat and talk at the same time, your journey must have been tiring and you must be hungry by now.
Here, have a piece of your favourite childhood hakka tofu.” Father was all smiles now as he placed a square
of golden, fried tofu in uncle’s bowl.
“You truly know me brother!” Uncle laughed, placing the tofu in his mouth.
“Go on, go on what happened in the city? What’s it like?” Xuehua chided, impatient to find out.
“I see you’ve got a curious one here. She’s just like a younger version of you, always looking for answers.”
Uncle chuckled and proceeded to swallow, clearing his throat.
“Me? Ha!” Father laughed, showing a slight hint of pride that he tried to conceal.
“Please go on brother.” Father requested.
“Alright, alright. Let’s start from a while back. Do you still recall the young, unqualified and completely
clueless twenty year old I was, when I first set foot in Guangzhou? It was some time in the 1990s and the
economy at that time had become way more liberal under Deng’s Open Door Policy of 1980. He mused,
with the faint sign of a smile gradually appearing on his face.
