Chairman Mao specially approved that in 1955, the first ceremony of the new China to award the title was about to be held, and the whole country was happy, but the beard of an old man made everyone worried, the beard affected the appearance, and the old man refused to shave!
When Chairman Mao found out, he smiled and said, "Just give him a special case." ”
Why did this old man get the chairman's special approval? This has to start with his legendary life experience.
Fate is too bad to serve the country
The old man's original name was Jiang Shunfa, and his parents hoped that he would develop smoothly in his life, but he was born in a chaotic world, and he followed his parents to drift away from him since childhood, hiding from famine everywhere.
In 1895, the Sino-Japanese War broke out, and the Beiyang Marine Division was completely destroyed, tearing the fig leaf of the Corruption and Incompetence of the Qing government.
Jiang Shunfa, who was full of patriotic enthusiasm, threw away his hoe and said angrily, "I want to go to the battlefield to kill the enemy!" "He had just turned seventeen that year.
Immediately, Jiang Shunfa joined the foreign affairs army formed by Li Hongzhang. But two years later, he came back, because he found that the army was as corrupt as the government, so he threw away his spear and picked up his hoe.
In 1912, Yuan Shikai overthrew the Qing government and became a salvation hero for a time, recruiting troops under the banner of repelling foreign enemies.
Jiang Shunfa had a glimmer of hope in his heart, wanting to follow Yuan Shikai and drive away all the foreign devils.
But when he was still on the road to Yuan Shikai, he was forcibly pulled away by a group of people, "This strong, take away!" Take! ”
Jiang Shunfa was confused, "You are..."
"Less bullshit! Of course, if you join the army and fight, you can be obedient and obedient, and you can also suffer less..."
It turned out that this was Yuan Shikai's troops. However, at this time, Jiang Shunfa thought that Yuan Shikai was a big hero, so he did not pay much attention to the rough behavior of the soldiers.
However, soon after joining the "Beiyang Army", Jiang Shunfa completely saw the true face of Yuan Shikai's restoration of the imperial system, and he left again in anger.
After several turns, Jiang Shunfa joined Duan Qirui's command, looking forward to truly serving the country. Through continuous efforts, he was promoted step by step to the rank of regimental commander.
However, when he was satisfied, an incident occurred that made him completely disheartened.
Once, he saw an officer bullying a weak fourteen-year-old woman, only to see the girl trembling with endless fear in her pleading eyes. The officers and men should only watch the bustle, and none of them were willing to come forward to stop it.
Jiang Shunfa gritted his teeth in hatred and waved his fist and prepared to rush forward.
The person next to him quickly grabbed him, "He's the top man, don't you want to mix?" ”
"As an officer, I don't want to protect the people, but I bully the weak, what is the difference between me and bandits!" Where can I tolerate his misdeeds, Lao Tzu has taken care of this matter!" As soon as he finished speaking, he pushed the officer away, and his fist fell violently.
As a result, Jiang Shunfa was immediately expelled from the army and returned to his hometown again.
That year, he had entered forty, joined the army three times with hope, and returned disappointed three times. The first half of his life was full of ups and downs, but the second half of his life was even more legendary.
Saving lives and helping the injured Is a noble medical ethic
After Jiang Shunfa was depressed for a while, he shifted his desire to serve the country from the battlefield to the clinic.
While teaching himself medicine, he explored the practice and established an infirmary and pharmacy.
In his clinic, there was a special rule: poor peasants should ask for less money or even free medical treatment; if the landlord Shen Hao came to treat the disease, he would let them pay more.
There was an old man named Wang Qi, who had a 7-inch sore on his back, and the pain was so painful that he couldn't stand up straight. The old man's family was destitute and had no money to heal.
After Jiang Shunfa knew, without saying a word, he came to the door to treat the old man for free, every day for three consecutive months, and finally cured the old man's illness, and the old man was able to stand up and walk, he excitedly held Jiang Shunfa's hand, and the old tears flowed.
There is a woman in a neighboring village who suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and has severe deformation of her bones and joints all over her body, and even if she crucifixes, she can only stagger.
Jiang Shunfa felt pity in his heart and went to the door to heal her in the wind and rain for three consecutive years. At his insistence, the woman's illness gradually improved, and she finally lost her crutches and was able to go to the ground to do some housework. The woman was so moved that she knelt down and prostrated herself, "Great good man, living bodhisattva!" ”
For more than 20 years, Jiang Shunfa has silently contributed his strength, and his good deeds have been supported by the local people, because he has a thick long beard and is affectionately known as the "bearded doctor".
Such a life, ordinary but also full, Jiang Shunfa originally wanted to live like this for a lifetime, but he did not expect that after the Lugou Bridge Incident in 1937, this calm was also broken.
In September 1937, the Japanese army occupied the villages of Fangshan County and Erzhan Where Jiang Shunfa was located.
Frenzied Japanese troops poured into the Church of the Second Station, killing more than 80 people and taking refuge there, unarmed civilians and church priests were not spared.
Jiang Shunfa burst into tears to help take care of the aftermath, and immediately decided to establish a refugee shelter and teach himself as a teacher. Once again, he stepped forward to take care of the food and livelihood of the refugees.
One winter night, a group of people suddenly broke into the church, smashed and swept up, beat Jiang Shunfa's relatives, and viciously shouted, "Hand over Jiang Shunfa!" ”
Jiang Shunfa, who returned from the consultation, was not afraid to see the situation, ignored the pull of others, pulled away from the crowd and stepped forward again, and sternly shouted: "Less wilderness!" What are you! ”
It turned out that this was a group of local bandits, who arrested Jiang Shunfa and took him to Louzi Village as a military doctor.
These bandits specialize in bullying the people and committing misdeeds. How could Jiang Shunfa, who was full of righteousness, go along with this group of rabble-rousers? He took his family into hiding, and finally escaped from the control of bandits after all the hardships.
There were Japanese troops running rampant outside, and bandits inside, and Jiang Shunfa was so worried that he couldn't sleep at night.
One night, he paced back and forth in the courtyard dressed, looking up at the white moon, issuing a long sigh, he slammed his fist helplessly against the door frame, he hated himself for not having a way to serve the country!
His righteous son Jiang Zhigang saw the situation and hurriedly advised, "Father, the Eighth Route Army has come to Fangshan, and I have heard that this unit is strictly disciplined and is a good unit that truly loves the people. I want to join the army! Do you want to come with me? ”
When Yoshiko wanted to join the army, he was overjoyed, and seeing him, Jiang Shunfa seemed to see the spirited self of that year.
But himself, he smiled bitterly and touched his long gray beard, and said, "I'm old, what can I do when I go?" ”
Jiang Zhigang hurriedly stepped forward to persuade: "Father, you have such good medical skills, which is exactly what the troops need!" Jiang Shunfa froze and thought about it for a long time, but he still decided to do it again, even if it was already an old bone!
Finally have a long-cherished wish bow to exhaustion
Jiang Shunfa saved his life and helped the injured, and was supported and loved by the villagers, and the news that their father and son wanted to join the Eighth Route Army went away.
Villagers came from all directions to send off, some brought dry food, some people were in tears, holding the hands of father and son and refusing to leave, until the two people carrying medical equipment and medicines gradually disappeared at the end of the village...
After a day and a night of hurrying, the father and son rushed to the garrison of the Eighth Route Army.
However, the captain of the Eighth Route Army saw Jiang Shunfa with a gray beard and refused with some embarrassment: "You are old, I am afraid it will be difficult to withstand a difficult battle..."
Jiang Shunfa quickly shook his head and said eagerly, "No! I can still walk, and I can do it for a day. ”
After saying that the tears quietly slipped down, but the eyes were extremely determined, he said word by word: "I am determined to dedicate the rest of my life to the country, as long as I have breath, I will work non-stop until I stop breathing!" ”
He also changed his name to Jiang Weiping, determined to maintain national peace.
In this way, the 60-year-old Jiang Weiping officially joined the Eighth Route Army. He stood in the middle of a group of young men with a large white beard, looking out of place.
But as long as you can do something for the country, why be afraid of age?
He repeatedly asked the war to go to the front, but the leader could not resist this stubborn old man, so he had to specially approve him to go to the 359th Brigade of the 120th Division to be responsible for the work of the health team. Everyone took special care of him, but Jiang Weiping was unwilling, and he worked harder than the young man.
On May 8, 1939, the Battle of the Upper and Lower Waist Streams began.
The 359th Brigade was ordered to rush from Lingqiu County, Shanxi Province, to Mount Wutai to cooperate with the troops of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region in encircling and annihilating the attacking Japanese army. The mountain road is steep and it is a long journey, and the leader specially equipped him with a horse.
However, Jiang Weiping used horses to drive medicines and medical equipment, but he marched side by side with young people, and the blisters on the soles of his feet were ignored.
The fierce battle lasted for seven days and seven nights, and Jiang Weiping rescued him for seven days and seven nights in succession in the midst of the war, and he hardly closed his eyes. He raced against the clock to snatch the lives of his warriors from death, operating day and night, sometimes not even having access to water.
The warrior next to him said bitterly, "Elder Jiang, take a break, your body will collapse." But he said firmly: "Don't get in the way, a minute earlier, the warriors will have more hope to get out of danger!" ”
His superb technology enabled the wounded to receive effective treatment, and he adopted measures such as timely hemostasis, blood replenishment, and infection prevention, which greatly reduced the mortality rate. For this reason, he was praised as "Jun Zhonghua Tuo".
Jiang Weiping made outstanding contributions to saving lives and helping the injured; when reclaiming land, Jiang Weiping rushed forward.
In 1943, Jiang Weiping drove into Nanniwan with the 719th Regiment of the 359th Brigade, and at the age of 65, he led more than 100 people to reclaim more than 400 acres of wasteland, not only achieving self-sufficiency, but also handing over 28,000 kilograms of grain.
Because of his outstanding performance, Jiang Weiping was rated as a labor hero in the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia region, and even Chairman Mao could not help but praise: "Living is work, and Jiang Weiping is an influential model!" ”
After doing so much, Jiang Weiping still felt that it was not enough.
After the outbreak of the Liberation War in 1946, Jiang Weiping became the vice president of the first branch of the Bethune International Peace Hospital. In the Battle of Qingfengdian, Jiang Weiping led the medical staff to rescue more than 1,200 wounded from the hands of the God of Death day and night, driven by old age.
Jiang Weiping contributed his strength little by little, and he only regretted that he had joined the party late in his previous life, lest the younger generations make little contribution.
The old Ji Futuo, determined to be in a thousand miles. The martyr is in his twilight years, and his heart is full of excitement!
After the founding of New China, he took out the only three thousand yuan of his life savings to donate to the impoverished New China, and at the wedding of his grandson, the old man could only take out two hoes.
He repeatedly instructed the newcomers: "Grandson and granddaughter-in-law, use these two hoes to work well and do your part for the country!" ”
In 1955, the first ceremony was about to be held, and the old man was reluctant to shave off the beard that had accompanied him for most of his life.
These beards accompanied him through the spring, summer, autumn and winter, accompanied him in struggle, and witnessed his love, persistence and vicissitudes.
Chairman Mao said that the old man had done a great job, and if he did not want to shave his beard, he should not shave it.
In this way, the 77-year-old Jiang Weiping grew a white beard and participated in the award ceremony with great spirits, becoming the oldest major in the republic.
Looking back on Jiang Weiping's life, he has successively participated in the Qing Army, the Beiyang Army, the Nationalist Army, and the Eighth Route Army, and he sighed again and again, and rose up again and again, only because of the deep love for the country in his heart, he has been defending the country all his life.
His exemplary deeds were made into a documentary "Old Hero Jiang Weiping" by Bayi Studio, and he was the backbone of the nation.
At a time of national crisis, it is precisely because there are many heroes like him who have blood and ambition and are righteous and awe-inspiring to stand up and support the sky with their backbones without hesitation, which has led to our happiness today.
My generation will cherish!
The author | a trace of rain
Edit | leftovers
Typography | Li Yike