In the early days, it was not as if the thought of running away did not occur to him. Slogging from sunrise to sunset, he did think of escaping but what held him back was the memory of the stench of a dead dog in the same basket as him, and the blank face of his father, trying to sell his own children. What also held him back was the memory of his sisters looking back at their home and of their mother standing motionless, leaning on a pillar. Ho Han understood that the world outside may be even more cruel and horrible than what he had to endure under his master. In the course of time, he’d learnt to be a loyal slave. But now he was preparing to leave his long-time shelter and make a journey to an unknown land. The idea of the golden country that this man had spoken of mesmerized him. He wouldn’t be a slave anymore. He would become a free man. In lieu of his labour, he would get enough food, necessary clothes, proper shelter and wages. The man had assured him of all this. Ho Han had always dreamt of having his own shop in the market adjacent to Thirteen Factory. But there was no way to realize his dream. A runaway slave cannot return to his country.

The man who’d promised to take them to the island was supposed to wait for them near a particular pagoda. They had to get there before dawn.

‘Wake up, let’s go! The cock is crowing,’ Ho Han whispered, nudging Ho Yen awake.

Stealthily, the two stepped out of the house. Picking up the bundles hidden behind the chicken coop, they started running. The houses on both sides of the road were shrouded in darkness. They ran silently through the narrow, dark alleys of the ancient city. The fear of uncertainty and getting caught along with the excitement of a new adventure had quickened their blood.

They reached the pagoda some time before dawn. The man was already there, along with sixteen other youths and three horse carriages. The horse-drawn carriages sped through the fading darkness. They reached the port before daybreak.

Ho Han and his group were taken to the Thirteen Factory area.

Each of these factories had three or four storeys. The offices of the foreign traders were here. The first one or two floors of these buildings were warehouses. The third and fourth floors consisted of well-maintained, beautiful apartments. The three carriages flew past Hog Lane, lined with retail shops. Between the American and French factories was the old China Street, on which stood Ho Han’s master’s meat shop. The carriages rushed past this as well and at last halted in front of a warehouse on Thirteen Factory Street.

Taking Ho Han and the others to the warehouse, the man said, ‘You will all have to wait here for some time. There are lots of formalities to go through before you can cross the seas. Tonight, I will come and take you away from here. Meanwhile, you must remain hidden.’