葉音均
How many stories can a piece of antique tell? It might have existed for
thousand years, traveling for thousand miles, touched by thousand
people. Look at it carefully. The old and experienced art may show you
something you shouldn』t know……
When I was still young enough to believe a fairy tale, once my mother
took me to a meeting with my aunt at Lia-Lia Hotel. There was always
too much to say between two women, so I got bored with their tedious
topics quickly. The first floor of the hotel looked like a palace, so I
decided to take a walk to explore it.
While I was enjoying myself wondering in the great hall, I found a
stairway opposite to the toilet, which led to a shopping center in the
basement. Being of the curious kind, I went down immediately. There
was a Chinese restaurant in the basement but there were only a few
people in it. On the left were a lot of shops, but I was not
interested, so I turned right. Instantly, I saw an antique shop in the
corner. It was so quaint that I couldn』t help but walk forward to take
a closer look.
As soon as I approached the shop, something caught my attention. An
old but beautiful mirror hung on the wall beside the door. It was oval,
along with some delicate golden carving decorations on the edge. When I
was ready to move on to take a look at myself in the mirror, something
flashed into my eyes inexplicably--an eerie-looking man dressed in Ching
costume and an official cap appeared in the mirror, staring blankly at
me. Anyone who was in my position knew it was impossible because
opposite the mirror was nothing but a whole blank wall! The man』s pale
face reminded me of the horrible zombies I had seen on TV. I was too
stunned to move or scream; paralyzed, I stood looking at him for several
seconds. It felt like a century for me because time seemed to have
stood still then.
No sooner had I recovered myself than I ran away from the antique shop.
I did not have the courage to turn back again. After I got to the first
floor, everything seemed so normal that I almost couldn』t believe what
had happened just now. I told my mother about my strange adventure in
panic, but she didn』t care about it too much. On that night after going
to bed, I woke up from nightmares constantly and cried on my mom』s
shoulder. The next morning she took me to a nearby temple where we
prayed and got some charms and holy incense ashes to help appease my
panic.
A long time has passed since then, and my fears have become a blur
gradually. But whenever I encounter quaint mirrors, some obscure images
would cross my mind--a pale and blank face that I once saw.