Fiction: Group 3
John was very interested. Not in the man’s tea, but in the man’s desperation. Maybe there was a chance he could
save his company after all.
~
It had been 6 months since Long-Wei had accepted the proposal given to him by the Englishman, John
Matteson. It had been 4 since he could finally afford a real home for himself and his daughter, Li-Hua, instead of
the usual dingy guesthouses they stayed in, and it had been 2 since he had stopped questioning his decision to
accept the proposal. With the proposal, he also had to accept that he could be caught by the Canton authorities,
and that he could be taken away from his daughter forever.
At the moment, Long-Wei was happy. He was alone at his home, sipping tea and reading the newspaper. Li-
Hua wasn’t home with him; she was instead with Rosa, John’s daughter, playing. Rosa and Li-Hua had become
good friends ever since John and Long-Wei had started working together.
Everything was peaceful, and Long-Wei was enjoying the peace. He was enjoying the silence and, he was-
In a split-second, everything changed for Long-Wei. From the second he had read the words in the newspaper,
he knew his fears were becoming reality. They knew. They knew what he had done-and was doing-and they
would come for him.
In the past few months, there had been no news relating to opium trafficking in the Canton. No news implying
that the Jiaqing Emperor was aware of the trafficking he was involved in. That’s why he had stopped worrying,
that’s why he thought he was safe.
Suddenly, there was a knock on his door, and Long-Wei felt his heart beating faster, and his eyes watering.
They were here. They would take him away, and he wouldn’t even get to say goodbye to his blossom.
~
“Father, Father, I’m home!” Li-Hua said, as she rushed through the door of her home. It was already very dark
outside, so Li-Hua knew she was later than usual.
“I hope you haven’t started dinner without-” Li-Hua stopped talking. Why was her home so quiet? Where was
Father?
Li-Hua started searching her entire home, and by the end of her search, her eyes started to water. Where could
he have gone?
Suddenly, Li-Hua sensed a presence behind her; she turned around to see her neighbor, an old woman called
Yanyu, standing at the door.
“Where’s my father?” Li-Hua asked Yanyu.
“Li-Hua, your father told me to look after you.” Yanyu said, ignoring Li-Hua’s question.
“Where’s my father?” Li-Hua repeated, her eyes filling with tears.
The old woman took a deep breath. “Li-Hua, he’s…gone. Your father’s gone.”
When she said that, Li-Hua couldn’t handle it any longer. Tears flowed on her face and she could feel herself
shaking.
Yanyu embraced Li-Hua. She could almost feel the little girl’s pain and confusion. “Don’t worry, Li-Hua. It’s
going to be okay. It’ll all be okay.”
~
John Matteson stared at the sea. It had been a couple of days since he had left Canton, and the Pearl River Delta
was now no longer visible. He looked at the solemn little girl who was standing a few feet away from him. She
was also staring at the sea. She had been doing the same thing for days.
When Long Wei got arrested, John Matteson immediately decided to flee, but as he was boarding his ship with
his daughter, he remembered Long Wei’s little girl and guilt filled him. He was the reason her father was gone,
so he felt as if it was his responsibility to make it right.
Hence, he made a decision to take her in, to take her away from everything and to give her a fresh start, but
now, as he stood and stared at the sea with the solemn little girl, he wondered if it was the right one.
