Guangzhou is the historic, as well as the modern name, for this city located on the Pearl River about 120 km [75miles] north-northwest of Hong Kong and 145 km [90 miles] north of Macau. Its history goes back of over 2,200 years and it was a major terminus of the maritime Silk Road.
You may be more familiar with the English name, Canton, which was derived from a Portuguese word. Portuguese traders had been in this area since the sixteenth century and it is said that the name stems from the local Hakka pronunciation [Kong-tung] which referred to the whole area of southern China. Despite the fact that Canton would have been used by the English merchants in 1822, I have chosen to use the Chinese name as Guangzhou would have been more familiar to the main characters in A Strand of Gold.
The PROLOGUE sets the scene for the rest of the story, presenting the reason why Chin Ming wants to get to Singapore. The setting is the Lunar New Year festival.
Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the most important of all the Chinese festivals. It takes place from the first day to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Traditionally, this is a time set aside for family and friends, a time of festivity and merriment. There are a number of customs associated with the festival and many ways to celebrate and to be entertained. In the story, Chin Ming’s father, Li Soong Heng, takes her to see the Lion Dance which is traditionally believed to ward off evil and carry with it all things auspicious. He is an intellectual who pays little attention to such beliefs and his opinion is borne out when the action that takes place at the docks demonstrates the fact that such superstitions are unfortunately rarely true.
In 1822, the first day of the festival was 23rd January, beginning the Year of the Horse. The most recent years of the Horse are 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014 and the next Year of the Horse will be in 2026. The Horse occupies the seventh position in the Chinese zodiac, after the Snake and before the Goat.
In Chinese culture, the horse symbolises power, beauty, and freedom. People born in the year of the horse are very high-spirited, active and energetic. The main symbols that depict the horse are courage and freedom. This majestic animal is a being of power, independence, freedom, nobleness, endurance, confidence, triumph, heroism, and competition.
During the thirty chapters that make up A Strand of Gold, you will meet two selfish and greedy men who use their power to control others. You will witness the growing independence of Raffles’ adopted son along with his heroism. You will recognise the freedom denied to the Chinese women and see their friendship develop as their dreams fade. All the main characters endure many challenges along the way. I hope you will enjoy discovering what happens to them before preparations for the next Lunar Festival begin.