Have you read Part 1?
The Goblin King looked at the children. His small eyes glinted and he snapped his long, thin fingers. “How do you want to die?” he asked. “We want to die of old age,” said Hong. “Grrr! That is the right answer,” said the Goblin King. “So I must let you go.” He opened the door of the cage. “Brilliant!” said Chip. “But how did you know the right answer?” “I don’t know,” said Hong. “I just did.” “Let’s find the next riddle,” said Ty. “The goblins still have the magic key,” said Biff. “We must get it back.” “Give us back our key,” said Chip. “No,” said a goblin. “We won’t.” “Give it back!” shouted Chip. “Make us!” called the Goblins. Hong had an idea. He spoke to the Goblin King. “We will ask you a riddle,” Hong said. “You must give us back the key if you can’t answer it.” “All right,” said the Goblin King.” “What is the riddle?” Hong wrote in the sand, 1+1=6. “Make this work by drawing a straight line,” he said. The goblins scratched their heads. At last they said, “We can’t do it.” Hong put a line on the ‘plus’. “One, and one, and four add up to six!” said Hong. “Very clever,” said the Goblin King and he gave Biff the key. The children went on. At last, they came to a flat desert. There were strange shapes in the sky. Suddenly, the shapes flew down and whizzed over the children’s heads. “Ouch! That one hit me,” said Ty. The flying shapes were kites. The kites dived at the children. “What is the answer to this riddle?” shouted the kite flier. “I can be cracked, I can be played, I can be told, I can be made. What am I?” “I know this one,” said Hong. “The answer is a joke.” The kite flier let them pass, but next they came to a wide river. “We can never cross this,” said Chip. “It’s too deep and dangerous.” Then they saw an old man on a raft. “I will take you across,” said the old man. “But first answer this riddle. I have seven children. Half of them are boys. How can this be?” “I know the answer,” said Hong. “All your children are boys.” “That is right,” said the old man. “I will take you across the river.” “How do you know the answer to all the riddles,” Ty asked Hong. “I don’t know,” said Hong. “The answers just come to me.” The children came to a dark, gloomy forest. The trees were bent and twisted. “What a scary place,” said Biff. “I can see eyes looking at us.” Suddenly, wolves sprang out of the trees. They had red eyes and long, sharp, white teeth. “They’re after us,” yelled Chip. “Run!” The children ran fast, but the wolves were faster. “Quick!” yelled Biff. “Climb a tree.” The children climbed quickly, but Hong was a bit slow. A wolf sprang up at him. The wolf snapped at Hong. It sank its teeth into his bag and pulled it off his back. “Help!” yelled Hong. Then a strange woman came out of the trees. The wolves ran up to her. The Wolf Woman told the wolves to sit. She told the children to climb down. The Wolf Woman picked up Hong’s bag, but she gave it to Ty. “Answer this riddle,” she said. “It lives half its life. It dies half its life. It dances to no music. It drinks with no mouth.” This time, Ty knew the answer. “That’s easy,” he said. “It’s a tree.” “Good,” said the Wolf Woman. “The next riddle is at Riddle Mountain. No one has ever got it right.” The children went on. Then Biff said, “Hong has known the answers to all the riddles, but not the last one. Why?” “I don’t know,” said Hong. “It’s strange,” said Biff. By now they were at Riddle Mountain. At the top was a cave. “The last riddle will be up there,” said Ty. “Come on!” They climbed up to the cave. “What a climb!” said Chip. “I’m tired.” “Let’s have a rest,” said Ty. The children sat down. Ty took off Hong’s bag. Suddenly, the ground began to shake. A stone statue rose up out of the earth. The statue opened its hand and spoke. “Who answers this riddle, will be the Riddle Maker!” it said. “This is the riddle,” said the statue. “If the answer I give is ‘yes’, but what I mean is ‘no’, then what is the
question?” Everyone looked at Hong. “I don’t know the answer,” said Hong. “Neither do I,” said Ty sadly. “We’ve failed,” said Biff. “Wait!” said Chip. “I have an idea!” “Where is that stone with the Chinese writing?” he asked. “It’s in my bag,” said Hong. “Ty knew the Wolf Woman’s riddle and he had Hong’s bag,” said Biff. “Maybe whoever has the stone can answer riddles,” said Chip. Ty took the stone out of the bag. “I know the answer to the question,” he said. “It is ‘Do you mind?’” Ty put the stone in the statue’s hand. “It is the right answer,” said the statue. “You are the new Riddle Maker.” Just then the magic key began to glow. The adventure was over. “So we knew the answer all along,” said Chip. “It was on the stone.” “Well, I didn’t want to be the Riddle Maker,” said Hong. “Did you?” “No,” said Biff. “And I never want to hear another riddle.”
7-17 A Sea Mystery
“It’s the last day of the holiday,” said Kipper. “I’ve seen something l want to buy before we go home.” Kipper took Biff and Chip to an old shop. Inside, it looked dark and dusty. In the window was a model of a fishing boat. “I want to buy that boat,” said Kipper. The shop was full of things for boats. An old man sat in the corner. “Excuse me,” said Chip. “We’d like to buy the model boat. How much is it?”“It’s not for sale,” said the old man. “That boat is a model of my great
grandfather’s fishing boat. It was made after he was lost at sea.”“What happened to him?” asked Biff. “No one knows,” said the old man. “One day he went to sea in his boat and he never came back.” The old man began to cough. “Now go away. I want to shut the shop,” he said. Kipper was upset. “He wasn’t a very nice man,” he said. “Never mind, Kipper,” said Mun. “I’ll buy you an ice lolly to cheer you up.” The children sat on the sea wall eating their lollies. Suddenly, they heard a cough. It was the old man. He was holding a little model rowing boat. “What do you want?” asked Biff nervously. “I am sorry I was rude,” said the old man. “I’ve bought you a present.” He gave Kipper the little boat. “It’s from the model you liked,” he said. The little boat was made of wood. It looked very real. It even had a little pair of oars. “Oh, thank you,” said Kipper. He looked up, but the old man had gone. “It’s time to go home I’m afraid,” said Did. “Did you see where the old man went?” asked Chip. “What old man?” asked Dad. When they got home, the children went to Biff’s room. They wanted to play with the model boat. “Oh!” said Chip. “I’ve broken off an oar!” Just then the key began to glow. The children landed in water. The magic had taken them out to sea. “Where are we?” yelled Biff. “I’m scared!” said Kipper. “I’m not a very good swimmer.” Suddenly, the oar splashed into the sea next to them. “Hold on to the oar!” said Biff. “It will keep us afloat.” The children held on to the oar. They floated for a long time. “There’s nothing but sea,” said Biff. “I don’t like this adventure,” said Chip. It began to get foggy. Then they saw a strange shape through the fog. It was getting bigger and bigger. “Now I’m scared!” said Biff. A sailing boat came out of the fog. It drifted towards the children. “Over here!” shouted Chip. “Help!” yelled Kipper. “I can’t see anyone,” said Biff. As the boat got near, Chip saw a rope hanging into the water. “Tie the rope to the oar, then we can climb on board,” said Chip. They climbed up on to the boat. “Phew!” said Kipper. “That was scary.”“Let’s find the crew,” said Biff. “They can tell us where we are.” They looked around. On deck there were nets and baskets of fish. There was an open hatch leading down into the boat. “Maybe they are down below,” said Chip. The children went down into a large cabin. It was lit by lamps. There was a big table in the middle of the cabin.
The table was set for dinner. In the corner, a big pot of stew was bubbling away on a stove. On the table there were three mugs of hot tea. “This is strange,” said Biff. “There’s nobody on board.”“There has to be,” said Chip. “Why would the food be hot?”“And who lit the lamps?” asked Kipper. Suddenly, there was a loud crash above them. The boat shook. The children ran up on deck. The fog had gone. It was windy. “The crash must have been the sail,” said Biff. “It has caught the wind.”“The boat’s turned around!” said Chip. The boat started to move quickly. “I’ll try to steer it,” said Biff. “Good,” said Chip. “I’ll tie down the sail. Kipper, go to the front and look out.”“Look out!” shouted Kipper. “Rocks!”“Hold on!” shouted Biff. She turned the wheel hard. Chip fell over, but the boat missed the rocks. “That was close!” yelled Kipper. The boat sailed on. Suddenly, Kipper saw a little rowing boat. In it were two men and a boy. They were waving. “Help us!” they shouted. “We can’t row. “We’ve only got one oar!” Chip pulled up the oar. He threw it to the men. They caught the oar. Then the men rowed to the boat and climbed on. “Who are you?” asked Biff. “I’m Captain Turbot, this is Flounder, and the boy’s called Shrimp,” said the Captain. “This is our boat, The Barnacle.”“What happened to you?” asked Kipper. “We were about to eat,” said Flounder. “Shrimp was pulling up the last net when we struck a rock and he fell in.”“We got in the boat to help him,” said the Captain, “but we only had one oar. We couldn’t row back.”“Where did you find our oar?” asked Shrimp. “It’s a mystery,” said the Captain. “We always keep the oars in the rowing boat.” Chip thought about the model. “It is a mystery,” he said. Suddenly, the magic key began to glow. The magic took them back to Biff’s room. “Oh no!” said Kipper. “We left the oar.” They looked at the model boat. It had both its oars. “It’s a mystery,” said Chip.
7-18 The Big Breakfast
“Ding, ding! Ding, ding!” Dad came into Chip’s room. He was ringing a bell. Chip sat up in bed. “It’s time to get up,” said Dad. “Mum’s away and we have a lot of jobs to do.” Dad rang the bell on the stairs. “Time to get up!” he called. “Do we have to?” asked Biff. “It’s the weekend.” “Yes,” said Dad. “Mum gets back tonight. The house is a mess. We must tidy up.” “I suppose so,” yawned Chip. “Good. I’ll start breakfast,” said Dad. The children came down for breakfast. “Bad news,” said Dad. “The milk has gone off, “I’ve burned the toast and we’ve run out of juice. “I’m sorry.” “Oh no!” said Kipper. “I’m hungry!” “We’ll have to go to the supermarket,” said Dad. “We need some more food.” “I’ve got a better idea,” said Chip. “Let’s have breakfast in the café.” “You can eat what you like,” said Dad. “Then we’ll do the shopping.” ‘Hooray!” said Kipper. “I’m going to have a big breakfast!” “I’d like blueberry pancakes,” said Biff. “I want eggs,” said kipper. “Why not have a kipper, Kipper?” said Chip. “Only if you have chips, Chip!” said Kipper. At home, Dad told the children to start their jobs. “I’ll put the shopping away,” he said. “You go and tidy your rooms. That big breakfast should give you lots of energy.” The children looked at the mess. “Let’s tidy up later,” said Chip. “I’m so full, I can’t move!” “No chance of a walk then,” thought Floppy. Just then, the magic key began to glow. The magic took them back in time. It took them to a big house. It took them into a large hall with a big staircase. “It’s still dark outside,” said Biff. “Ding, ding!” A bell began to ring. Suddenly, a door opened. A little girl came in. She was holding a candle. “I’m Rose. You must be the new servants. The housekeeper will see you now. Follow me,”
she said. Rose took them down a corridor into a large storeroom. The housekeeper was waiting for them. “You are late,” she said, sternly. “There are lots of jobs to be done.” She gave the children lists of jobs. “Begin with the cleaning,” she said. “It has to be done before breakfast. Ah! I see you have brought a dog. Good.” Rose took them to a large kitchen. “This is Mrs Fry,” said Rose. “She’s the cool.” “Hello,” said Mrs Fry. “I see you have brought a dog. Good.” “Why is everyone pleased that we have brought a dog?” asked Chip. Mrs fry pointed at a wooden wheel. “Put your dog in here,” she said. “I may not like this,” thought Floppy. Rose put Floppy inside the wheel. “The wheel turns the meat over the fire,” said Rose. “It tops the meat burning.” “You look like a giant hamster,” laughed kipper. “Now we must hurry, there’s so much to do,” said Rose. “Lord Plum will be up soon. We must finish the jobs, then we can get his breakfast ready.” Mrs Fry put the meat on the spit. “We need this for Lord Plum’s breakfast.” She looked at floppy. “Keep walking and don’t stop!” she said. “Funny way to get a walk,” thought Floppy. “What else is for breakfast?” asked Biff. “Kipper, oyster bread, beetroot pancakes, ale and ice-cream. Nothing too fancy,” said Rose. “I’ll get it ready. You get on with the jobs on the list.” Biff had to scrub the clothes clean. She beat the rugs. Then, she had to make some bread……and put powder on some wigs. Chip had to clean all the fireplaces. Then, he had to collect a lot of coal. Next, he had to polish the silver…… and polish all the boots. Kipper churned milk to make butter. He got ice cream from the icehouse. He had to carry water to the bathrooms…… and scrub all the floors. “Come quickly,” said Rose. “The food is ready. We must take it to the dining room. “Hurry up and don’t forget Lord Plum’s newspaper,” said Mrs Fry. The children put out the dishes on a big table. “Hurry up,” said the housekeeper. “Lord Plum will be down soon. He won’t want to see you in here.” At last, breakfast was finished. “Was Lord Plum happy with his breakfast?” asked Kipper. “No!” said the housekeeper. “You forgot to iron his newspaper!” “I’m worn out,” said Kipper. “I never want another walk,” said Floppy. “At least we can have a rest now,” said Chip. “A rest?” said Rose. “We have to start getting ready for lunch!” Suddenly, the magic key began to glow. It was time to go home. “What a relief!” said Biff. “That was hard work,” said Biff. Dad came into Biff’s room. “Hurry up,” he said. “We’ve still got lots of jobs to do. Then we have to walk Floppy.” “Oh no!” said everyone. Early next morning, the children made Mum a surprise breakfast. “What a big breakfast!” said Mum. “You have gone to so much trouble.” “It was nothing,” said Biff.
7-19 The Joke Machine
Everyone was in the playground. “I’ve got a good joke,” said Wilf. “What goes black, white, black, white?” “I don’t know,” said Biff. “A penguin rolling down a hill!” said Wilf. “I’ve got one,” said Anneena. “Why couldn’t the skeleton go to the party?” “Why couldn’t the skeleton go to the party?” asked Chip. “It had no body to go with!” said Anneena. “Time to come inside!” called Mrs May. “Line up quietly, everyone.” “What do sea monsters eat?” said Nadim. “Fish and ships!” “That’s a terrible joke!” said Biff. “Get in, you chatterboxes,” said Mrs May. “Didn’t you hear the whistle?” “Sorry, Mrs May,” said Wilf. “We were telling jokes.” “Well, it’s time to stop now,” said Mrs May. “Mrs May!” called Biff. “What does an elephant do on a motorway?” “Not now, Biff,” said Mrs May. “Tell me later. In you go everyone.” “Biff,” whispered Nadim. “What does an
elephant do on a motorway?” “About two miles an hour!” said Biff. “Biff! Nadim!” said Mrs May. “Go inside quietly!” It was nearly time to go home. “Well done!” said Mrs May. “You have worked hard today. Now it’s time to tidy up.” “Mrs May!” called Anneena. “Do you want to hear one of Nadim’s jokes?” “Well, just one,” said Mrs May. “I want to get home tonight.” “Why do cows wear bells?” asked Anneena. “I don’t know,” said Mrs May. “Why do cows wear bells?” “Because their horns don’t work!” said Nadim. Mrs May clapped her hands. “I want to ask you something,” she said. “Who knows about Help the Children Day?” “There’s a special day,” said Chip. “People raise money to help children,” said Wilf. “How could we raise money for Help the Children Day?” asked Mrs May. “We’ll have to think hard,” said Anneena. “Tell me your ideas tomorrow,” said Mrs. May. Everyone was at Biff and Chip’s house. “I can’t think of anything,” said Chip. “Nor can I,” said Anneena. “What ideas have we had so far?” asked Biff. “Read out the list, Nadim.” Nadim read out the list. “Ideas for Help the Children. Washing cars, toy sale.” “That’s only two ideas!” said Anneena. “Well, we’ve only had two ideas,” said Wilf. “I didn’t think washing cars is a good idea,” said Chip. “I don’t think Mrs May would let us.” “And I gave all my old toys to the last toy sale,” said Wilf. Then Nadim had a good idea. “What about a joke machine?” he said. He told them all about his idea. Everyone was excited. “I can’t wait to tell Mrs May,” said Chip. The next day, they were back at school. “Mrs May!” called Anneena. “We’ve got an idea for Help the Children!” “It must be a good one,” said Mrs. May. “You all sound excited.” They told Mrs May what the idea was. “It’s a joke machine!” said Biff. “We write jokes on slips of paper,” said Chip. “Then we put the jokes in a box.” “The box is the joke machine,” said Wilf. “It’s a great idea!” said Anneena. “People pay for a joke!” “They give some money,” said Wilf. “Then they get a joke from the box.” “I think it’s a lovely idea,” said Mrs May. “But I can see one problem.” “What’s that?” everyone asked. “You will need lots and lots of jokes,” said Mrs May. The joke machine was finished. “It’s brilliant!” said Chip. “Look! I’ve finished the poster.” “A laugh does you good,” read Wilf. “Do good with a laugh.” “We have put the jokes on the computer, now we can print them off,” said Nadim. “And here’s the next one: What game do horses play?” “Stadle tennis!” laughed Anneena. “How many jokes have we got?” asked Wilf. “Forty-nine,” said Nadim. “I wish we had some more.” “Here is one more for you,” said Mrs May. “What can fly and has four legs?” “We don’t know!” they all said. “What can fly and has four legs?” “Two birds!” said Mrs May. Everyone laughed. They took the joke machine to the shopping centre. “Roll up! Roll up!” they shouted. “Support the children! Buy a joke for not less than 50p!” A man came up to buy a joke. “He’s given us a pound!” called Chip. “Thank you very much.” The man wanted them all to tell the joke. So they told it together. “What has only one foot?” they all said. “I don’t know,” said the man. “What has only one foot?” “A leg!” they said. Everyone laughed. “I have some good news,” said Mrs may. “The mayor loves your joke machine. She wants to buy all your jokes! Guess how much she will pay you for each one?” “We don’t know,” said everyone. “How much will she pay for each one?” “Two pounds!” said Mrs May. “Fifty jokes at two pounds each!” said Nadim. “That’s a hundred pounds!” “But we’ve sold twenty jokes,” said Wilf. “There are only thirty left.” “I’ve been putting them back,” said Nadim. “There are still fifty in there.” “Three cheers for Nadim!” said Anneena. “It was his brilliant idea!” “And three cheers for the joke machine!” said Mrs May. “I’ve thought of another joke,” said Nadim. “What card game do crocodiles like?” “We don’t know,” they all said.
“What card game do crocodiles like?” “Snap!” said Nadim. Everyone groaned.