General Zhang Xueliang, a man of the hour who once dominated the military and political power in Northeast China and even the whole of China, died a good death in his later years and spent nearly 20 years in prison. After 54 years of leaving his homeland, his 64-year-old only son Zhang Lulin finally had the opportunity to return to his hometown in Northeast China and fulfill his father's long-cherished wish for many years. However, Zhang Lulin, who has a special status, was entrusted to foreign friends by her biological mother Zhao Yidi since she was a child, and when she grew up, she settled in the United States and became an aerospace expert. How did Zhang Lulin, who was backward in Chinese and unfamiliar with her homeland, return to her motherland, and whether she could fulfill her father's last wish? What hardships did he go through on his way home?
1. The father's life is ill-fated and the son's fate is bumpy
In 1914, Zhang Xueliang continued to Fengzhi, and at that time, he added fragrance to his red sleeves, and seemed to have fulfilled his wish. The family was happy, but fate was ruthless, and the three sons of the Zhang family were taken away one by one. The eldest son Zhang Luxun was mentally ill, and Zhang Xueliang spared no effort to fund his education, but finally died in the shadow of the Xi'an Incident. The second son Zhang Luyu was even shorter-lived, which made Zhang Xuezhong sad and grieved. Although the youngest son Zhang Luqi was virtuous, he also died at the age of 10.
Suddenly, Zhang Xueliang's pain of losing his son weighed on his heart like a mountain, and his wife Yu Fengzhi was also grief-stricken. The only consolation for the two is Zhang Xueliang's illegitimate son Zhang Lulin. In 1930, Zhao Yidi gave birth to this son for Zhang Xueliang, which was not only his love debt abroad, but also his only heir in his later years.
However, fate made people, not long after Zhang Lulin was born, Zhang Xueliang was imprisoned due to the Xi'an Incident, and Zhao Yidi fled with his infant son. In order to give his son a safe living environment, Zhao Yidi finally entrusted Zhang Lulin to his old friend Yiage and his wife, and he went to Yangmingdong, Guizhou Province to accompany Zhang Xueliang through the difficult prison years.
In this way, the young Zhang Lulin was isolated from her parents and entrusted to a foreign country. In order to ensure his safety, the Ijag couple had to change his name to "Kerr" and asked him to change his English, breaking with his mother tongue. Under strict protection, Zhang Lulin grew up little by little, and it was not until she stepped into her youth that she vaguely learned of her life experience.
At the same time, Zhang Xueliang and his wife coexisted with physical and mental torture in prison. Every time Zhang Lulin dreams, she dreams of her parents' haggard faces, and tears roll down. Zhao Yidi's jet-black hair was also gray due to worry. Mother and son often see each other in dreams, but they can't meet again after all.
The years are urging people to grow old, and 54 years have passed in a flash. When Zhang Lulin set foot on his homeland for the first time, his heart was full of joy, but it was mixed with a little estrangement and strangeness. Yes, more than half a century of waiting in exchange for nothing more than a strangeness to the mother tongue and the culture of the homeland.
Second, the road back to the hometown is long and the journey of finding roots is arduous
Zhang Lulin has been isolated in a foreign country since she was a child, and she has no chance to meet her biological parents. It was not until 1988, when the Kuomintang and the Communist Party resumed postal exchanges, and the Taiwan side agreed that Zhang Xueliang's family could visit relatives through Hong Kong, that Zhang Lulin had the opportunity to find his roots.
The road to finding relatives is far from easy. When Zhang Xueliang was imprisoned, his family was scattered all over the place, and there was no news. To find Zhang Lulin's whereabouts, it is really a bumpy road to the pavilion. Fortunately, Zhang Xueliang's nephew Dong Xianguang worked tirelessly and went through hardships, and finally followed the line to clear the clouds and mist and appeared Zhang Lulin's trace.
It turned out that Zhang Lulin had already been naturalized in the United States, changed her name to "Johnny K.C. Chang", and worked as an aerospace engineer. In order to visit his hometown, he tried several times to obtain a Chinese visa, but all of them ended up in vain due to tensions between China and the United States.
It wasn't until 1995, after the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States, that an exhibition in the aerospace industry created a good opportunity for Zhang Lulin to return to her homeland. At the invitation of the Chinese government, he set foot on the soil of his homeland for the first time as an aerospace expert.
Although it was only for the exhibition, the temporary short-term visa still could not allow Zhang Lulin to enjoy visiting his hometown, but he finally realized his dream of returning to China. The Chinese government attaches great importance to this special guest, and the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council has arranged a special person to warmly receive him and carefully plan the itinerary.
Accompanied by the accompanying officials, Zhang Lulin's first stop was his hometown of Shenyang. When he set foot on the familiar and unfamiliar land of the Northeast, his heart was mixed. On the one hand, he never forgets the beautiful natural scenery of the motherland; On the other hand, the unfamiliarity of his mother tongue made it impossible for him to speak freely with ordinary people, so he could only communicate with the help of translators.
In order to help Zhang Lulin get acquainted with the national conditions of the motherland as soon as possible, the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the People's Republic of China specially arranged a colorful itinerary for him. He first visited the cemetery of his great-grandfather Zhang Zuolin, and visited the tomb to pay tribute to the merits of his ancestors; Later, he visited Zhang Xueliang's former residence and immersed himself in the glorious memories of his father.
3. Revisit the hometown and reunite relatives and friends
Zhang Lulin returned to her hometown for the first time, and her mood was very excited. Although he could not express himself directly in fluent Chinese, with the help of a translator, he still told the accompanying staff about his attachment and nostalgia for this land.
"I was born here, and although my mother sent me abroad, I still remember everything here. Zhang Lulin said in English, and then the interpreter interpreted his words to the staff present, "I am extremely excited to return to my hometown, as if I am in a dream." ＂
After hearing this, the staff were also moved by the simple language of this guest, and said that they would do their best to let him regain his sense of intimacy and identity with the motherland.
Therefore, in the next few days, the staff worked hard to meet Zhang Lulin's various requirements in line with the principle of "practice makes perfect". They first led Zhang Lulin to the Zhang Zuolin Cemetery in Shenyang, where he had the opportunity to pay homage to his great-grandfather.
Standing in front of the Great Ancestor Cemetery, Zhang Lulin silently stared at the name on the tombstone, although he could not fully understand the meaning of the inscription, he still bowed deeply, expressing the highest respect to this pioneer who opened up the territory.
After visiting the Great-Ancestral Cemetery, Zhang Lulin was led to the Zhang family compound, which was once the old residence of his father Zhang Xueliang. Although it is very old, there is not much left of the atmosphere of that year, but the familiar architectural style still makes Zhang Lulin feel very intimate.
"This is my father's old house? It's unbelievable! Zhang Lulin said in surprise, her tone full of longing. In order to let him better relive the past, the staff specially prepared some precious old photos for him, and also invited some old people to come and have a long talk with Zhang Lulin and reminisce about the past.
One of the old men said with tears in his eyes, "You look so much like your father!" Back then, he was heroic and dignified, and he was really a famous general! ＂
Hearing this, although Zhang Lulin couldn't fully understand it, from the translator's expression, he had already felt the old man's infinite nostalgia and nostalgia for Zhang Xueliang. So, with tears in his eyes, he also bowed deeply to the old man to show his nostalgia for his father.
4. Searching for lost mother tongues and traditions
Zhang Lulin was forced to leave her hometown at an early age and grew up in a foreign country, and although she was fortunate to grow up healthily under the careful care of the Ijag couple, she was never able to appreciate her own cultural traditions and the influence of her mother tongue. All this made him sweat more in learning his mother tongue and traditional culture.
After returning to China for the first time, Zhang Lulin complained to the staff: "Although I am a native Chinese, I have little understanding of the language and traditional culture of my motherland, which makes it very difficult for me to communicate with relatives and friends, and I feel very sorry." ＂
After hearing this, the staff also had a deep understanding, so they specially invited the top language experts in China for him, hoping to let him regain his long-lost mother tongue. The linguists first corrected Zhang Lulin's accent step by step, starting with pronunciation, and taught him some of the most basic words and phrases, so that he could initially master the ability to communicate in daily life.
With the continuous improvement of her Chinese language skills, Zhang Lulin began to develop a strong interest in traditional Chinese culture. The staff then arranged traditional culture courses such as Chinese painting and calligraphy, so that Zhang Lulin could understand the profound cultural connotation of the motherland bit by bit.
In the Chinese painting class, although Zhang Lulin's brushwork is unfamiliar, she still sketches fresh and simple paintings with a pen, full of nostalgia and longing for her hometown. In the calligraphy class, he held the pen unhwa, and wrote the three big characters of "Zhang Xueliang" again and again with a strong and powerful pen, revealing a kind of infinite nostalgia for his father between the lines.
In addition to cultural courses, Zhang Lulin also tried to cook some classic Northeast hometown dishes under the guidance of the staff. He personally cooked, and in accordance with the ancestral practice, skillfully cooked Goubuli buns, sauerkraut white meat, cold cucumbers and other specialty dishes, and the long-lost local flavor made him feel a lot of emotion.
"The taste reminds me of my mother's hometown food when I was a child, and I miss it so much! Zhang Lulin tasted the delicious food and said to the translator, "Although I have been growing up abroad, through learning language and traditional culture, I have felt more deeply the breadth and profundity of Chinese culture, and I have finally found my roots." ＂
Fifth, continue the family bloodline and be happy to see relatives reunited
As Zhang Xueliang's only heir, after visiting his hometown, Zhang Lulin's greatest wish in his heart was to be able to meet his father's relatives and the descendants of the Zhang family, so as to continue the bloodline of this long-standing family.
With this wish, the staff immediately began to arrange a meeting between Zhang Lulin and the descendants of the Zhang family. After many inquiries, they finally contacted Zhang Xueliang's nephew Zhang Fuzhen, and booked a private room in a hotel in Shenyang to prepare for the reunion of relatives.
On the day of the meeting, Zhang Lulin came to the private room early. When Zhang Fuzhen and his party walked in, he was attracted by Zhang Fuzhen's very similar face to Zhang Xueliang at first sight, and he was so excited that he almost couldn't close his mouth.
"Fuzhen, you really look like my father! Zhang Lulin said in unfamiliar Chinese, then turned to the translator and said, "May I ask if he is also surnamed Zhang?" Is it my father's relative? ＂
After receiving an affirmative answer, Zhang Lulin immediately got up and gave Zhang Fuzhen a warm hug. The relatives who reunited after a long absence burst into tears, and the scene was extremely touching.
In the ensuing exchange, Zhang Lulin inquired in detail about what happened to the Zhang family after he left. It turned out that after Zhang Xueliang was arrested and imprisoned, the entire Zhang family was almost wiped out, and other members of the family were also implicated and suffered. It was not until after the founding of the People's Republic of China that the Zhang family was rejuvenated, and the descendants finally lived a good life of living and working in peace and contentment.
"I was forced to leave back then, and I have never been heard from again, and I have always felt guilty about what happened to the Zhang family. Zhang Lulin said, "Being able to meet again today, I finally unloaded this major psychological baggage." You are all my relatives, and I will definitely try to make up for what I have missed over the years. ＂
After hearing this, Zhang Fuzhen waved his hand again and again to show that he had no resentment, but was sincerely happy that Zhang Lulin could grow up healthy. He said: "Lu Lin, you are the only eldest grandson of the Zhang family, and we are all very happy that you can survive safely." From now on, let's support each other and continue the Zhangjia incense together! ＂
Under the operation of the staff, the two sides then held a grand ancestor worship ceremony to remember the ancestors and pray for the prosperity of the descendants of the Zhang family. Zhang Lulin was officially incorporated into the family by the descendants of the Zhang family and became the heir of the Zhang family.
In this way, after a long time of parting and reuniting after a long thirst, Zhang Lulin finally fulfilled his long-cherished wish. With the support and help of the descendants of the Zhang family, he finally found his own home. In the future, he will do his best to make up for the regret of continuing the Zhangjia incense.