Chopsticks (HKYWA 2024)
by Kalie Fok Ho Yee 6C
This short story was written for the Hong Kong Young Writer’s Awards 2024. This year’s theme was “New Tales of China’s Inventions”. Students were allowed to write about the old and new Chinese inventions everyone uses today!
Winner of the Bauhinia Club Award in Creative Fiction Group 2 as part of the Hong Kong Young Writer’s Awards 2024.
“Wake up and get to work!”
There was a booming voice ringing in her ear as Jade dragged herself out of bed. It felt oddly rough like the bark of a tree. A cold gust of wind was blowing on her back. She swore she had shut the windows tight last night. Jade rubbed her eyes and realised she was in a stable! Shocked yet confused, she rushed out to see a palace full of bustling servants.
“Ah, there you are, new kid. Help me with this food. Be quick, the Emperor is getting impatient.”
Jade looked up to see a tall and plump man staring at her. He pointed at a stove and a pair of chopsticks that were neatly placed next to it. Not knowing what to do, Jade grabbed the chopsticks and started to stir the soup.
What is this place? Jade thought. Should I go to the market and ask? That would be stupid…
Jade decided to go to the market once she finished the soup. She made an excuse that they were out of eggs and set off. People in Hanfus walked hurriedly around the busy streets, barely paying attention to Jade.
As Jade walked around, she realised this was Ancient China. She saw one of the stands with no customers and walked towards it. As she approached the stand, she caught a glimpse of the things the seller had. There were chopsticks of different sizes, some had weird sharp ends and some looked like twigs plucked from an old tree. It reminded her about the assignment she was supposed to do about China’s history. She shivered at the thought of the face Ms. Johnson, her strict History teacher, would make if she didn’t hand it in.
“Excuse me, sir. May I ask which year we are in?” Jade asked in a timid tone. Surprisingly, the seller laughed at her.
“Hahaha! You really took a hit in the head, haven’t you?” teased the seller, “Haven’t you looked in a mirror? Your clothes look so odd! Is that some kind of clown costume? Well, before you get changed, just to let you know, we’re in the Han Dynasty since you are so curious.” added the seller.
Sure enough, Jade looked down and realised she was wearing her pyjamas from last night! She tried to put on a confident tone as she spoke, “Er–these are some nice chopsticks you’re selling… how’d you get the idea?”
“These are my special handmade chopsticks. I used some twigs and my chisel to make these exquisite shapes.” replied the seller. Jade made a slight cough when she heard the word “exquisite” as she thought it was nowhere near. She finally thanked the seller for his time and left.
As she made her way to the palace, she thought about how she was going to write this assignment. Without realising it, she had arrived at the kitchens, which were still filled with people running around, preparing food for the emperor.
“Where were you, new kid? The emperor was furious when he didn’t receive his breakfast. We’re trying to make a feast for lunch to make it up to him. And we never run out of eggs! What did you go out for?” Shouted the head chef. His face was bright red like he was about to explode.
Jade panicked as she tried to help the chef. Seeing as the chef is calming down, she approached him once she finished her work.
“Pardon me, but can you tell me the history of chopsticks? I’ve been so fascinated with them lately.” asked Jade, batting her eyelashes.
“Well, you see, nobody knows who invented chopsticks. One person just took two twigs and started to eat food with it. We thought it was a good idea and soon, we started to use them. We assume that they dated over a thousand years ago as we are progressing so fast.” The chef added proudly. Jade wanted to say that now, in 2024, things are much better, but decided not to destroy the chef’s mood.
Wanting to start her assignment as she had learnt so many facts about chopsticks, she started to wonder how she would get home. Making her way back to the stable, deep in thought, she came across the emperor’s chamber, fiddling with his chopsticks. Jade took a quick glance at it and left. She strained her memory and saw that it was actually made of jade! Going back to the stable, she started to write her essay on the wall with a stick so she would remember the next day. Hours passed and Jade finally managed to carve her essay on the wall. Starting to feel tired, she decided to end the day. She gathered some hay from the horses and made a small bed, laid on the rough hay and dozed off.
“Jade, wake up! I know it’s the weekend, but it doesn’t mean you can sleep in!” Jade heard her mother's voice and got out of bed. She stumbled across the hall, rubbing her eyes as she walked into the living room. There, she heard the TV playing the news.
“Next up, is some exciting archaeological news. They’ve found a piece of wood that contained a 500 word essay in China! Who knew, maybe Chinese people secretly learned English? Well, that piece of wood is now displayed in the National History Museum of China where you can admire it. Stay tuned, folks! After a quick ad break, we’ll be reading the weather report…” said the news reporter. Hearing this, Jade became wide awake and noticed the TV. She was home!
“Quite odd for someone to carve an entire essay on a piece of wood, isn’t it? That reminds me…have you done your assignment yet, Jade?” asked Jade’s father.
“Nope, but I finally know how to write it!” exclaimed Jade. She quickly ran into her room to grab her pencil and a piece of paper, writing about Ancient China’s chopsticks.