Fiction: Group 2
How the Pearl River Delta Got It's Name
Dulwich College Beijing, Shin, Celina - 11, Fiction: Group 2
ar away down in the very south of China, following the many mountains there was a river that was
unusual. The villagers called it the black river. This was because the water was never clean and it
certainly did not have beauty that other rivers had. There was one girl in the village that was very
curious aboutthis river. She thought there had to be some explanation to why this river was so filthy. Her
name was Xinxin. Unfortunately Xinxin did not have parents, instead she lived with her Uncle. Since the
past few weeks her uncle was ill she had to work. She had many different jobs but she quit most of them
because she thought it was boring but there was one job she loved the most, working at a Qipao factory.
She had many reasons why she loved it but her main two reasons were that she could look at varies of
beautiful dresses and she could see the black river from the factory. This would help her observe the river if
there was
anything strange or odd about it.
One evening Xinxin’s boss gave her extra work to do therefore she had to stay in the factory overnight. She
ran to her house and told her uncle that she would be spending the night in the Qipao factory. Her uncle
nodded his head and gave Xinxin a bowl full of rice with some vegetables on it and also a pearl necklace. He
explained to Xinxin about the necklace, he said” Xinxin this pearl necklace is special, it gives you luck. All
you have to do is wear it however you must not break it or lose it; you must keep it on your neck.” Xinxin
was curious why but she knew asking her uncle many questions weren’t the best idea. As Xinxin was about
to open the doors her uncle kissed her on her forehead goodbye. She walked out of her house and headed
towards the factory. She reached the door, unlocked the lock and went in. She had a lot of work to do so
she moved fast. She grabbed a Qipao and ironed it then folded it then put it on the table. She had to do 40
of those. After she finished, she had a little rest eating her dinner. Suddenly she heard voices echoing from
outside. She peeked through the hole in the door. She saw something that was unbelievable!Shiny scales
glittered among the skies flying gracefully above the black river.
Xinxin was scared and excited. She never seen a dragon before, she didn’t even know that dragons were
real! She was amazed by the dragon but the dragon wasn’t as colourful like the ones in stories. Its scales were
black and dull also the dragon seemed a little bit unpleasant. The dragon started murmuring” I wish white
dragon came back, I hate the king! If the king didn’t do what he did, white dragon wouldn’t be turned into
pearl! I know that making other peoples life miserable isn’t the answer for letting my angers out but I can’t
stop unless white dragon comes back.” Xinxin thought to herself. White dragon? Making people life
miserable? The King? A pearl? She thought carefully until she came up with an idea. What if the pearl she is
wearing is the white dragon? What if uncle said not to break it because a dragon will come out? What if the
reason why the black river is filthy is because the black dragon was the one who made it dirty? What if the
river was like the dragon’s heart? Such as when the dragon is sad or miserable the river is filthy and when he
is happy the river is clean again. Questions filled her head so the next morning she ran to her uncle and
asked where he got the pearl. He told her that it was a long story but Xinxin didn’t care and asked her uncle
to tell her so the uncle said “When I turned 20 I was brought to a fancy tea shop where the king often goes,
then luckily the king came in and asked me what was happening. I explained to him that it was the day I
was born. Then he reached deep into his pockets and gave me the pearl necklace. He told me not to break
it nor lose it so I held on to it until now.” This all made sense to Xinxin it was what the Black dragon was
talking about last night. Then after all the pearl was the white dragon! She gasped. She could save the Black
dragons life. The dragon won’t be miserable again and then something might happen, such as the river
getting clear again.
Xinxin was so excited that, that night she hid behind the bushes that were lined in front of the river and
when the Black dragon came she quickly smashed the pearl onto the ground. For a few seconds nothing
happened to the pearl but then slowly a white dragon rose out of the pearl beautifully. It flew with no words
towards the Black dragon. As tears came out of both the dragons eyes they hugged each other and soon they
cried and cried, then droplets of tears became a shower of tears. All of a sudden as the tears drop down to
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