Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Wuhan University, Postdoctoral Fellow at the National University of Singapore (NUS), a mind to engage in scientific research, amateur writing is not wasted, and strive to surprise you.
------------------
A Jiangsu woman named Wang Shuzhen.
She was widowed for 54 years, lived to the age of 106, raised 13 children alone, and eventually they all became Doctors.
Her son Li Changyu, known as the "Chinese Detective" and "Contemporary Sherlock Holmes", has solved many important cases.
Asked why he was successful, he said, "I only listen to my mother, I learn from my mother. ”
Why can an ordinary woman be so powerful and train so many children to become doctors?
(Wang Shuzhen and son Li Changyu)
In 1897, during the Guangxu period, Wang Shuzhen was born in Rugao, Jiangsu Province, to a family of scholars.
As the name suggests, parents want their daughters to learn from the book and grow up to be everyone's bridesmaid.
When she was a child, she sent Wang Shuzhen to the library, and her mother would teach her needlework on weekdays.
In that era of parental orders and matchmakers' words, 18-year-old Wang Shuzhen met Li Haomin under the introduction of a matchmaker.
(When Wang Shuzhen was young)
Li Haomin is the son of a local grain merchant, and he is with Wang Shuzhen, and the two are really a door-to-door match.
Li Haomin grew up doing business with his father, with a straightforward nature, and talked about it, which made Wang Shuzhen, who was born in a deep boudoir, particularly fascinated.
And Wang Shuzhen's piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, was proficient in everything, and also captured the heart of the rich young master.
Soon, the two touched each other and sparked love.
In 1916, the two officially married, when Wang Shuzhen had just celebrated her 19th birthday.
After marriage, Wang Shuzhen became a housewife and taught her husband and children at home.
Li Haomin inherited his father's grain and rice shop and earned money to support his family outside.
Wang Shuzhen also gave birth to 14 children, 6 sons and 8 daughters for the Li family.
One of the sons died tragically, and 13 survived.
After the birth of the child, Wang Shuzhen had to do both housework and take care of several children.
The hardships were known only to herself, but she never complained to her husband.
When Li Haomin returned home, his home was always clean.
The table was already hot and ready to be eaten, waiting for him to wash his hands and eat.
Every time the husband took the initiative to ask her whether the child had made trouble with her, whether there were any things in the family that needed him to solve,
Wang Shuzhen shook her head, and it was always the same sentence: "Give it to me, and you will make money with peace of mind." ”
In her husband's business, Wang Shuzhen is also Li Haomin's right-hand man.
Every time he negotiates business, Li Haomin will always invite customers to his home.
Wang Shuzhen brewed them good tea and consciously withdrew.
In the living room, Li Haomin talked to people about business, and Wang Shuzhen hid behind the screen to advise her husband.
If this business, she felt that it was okay, she ordered someone to serve a pot of Longjing tea.
If she felt deceitful, she personally sent a pot of oolong tea to hint at her husband.
With the assistance of Wang Shuzhen, Li Haomin made the shop bigger and bigger, and became a merchant on the side of the local rich.
Later, when the war raged, Li Haomin consulted with Wang Shuzhen and moved to Taiwan Province together.
It also means that the family has to start over.
Wang Shuzhen inevitably hesitated, but Li Haomin's words seemed to give her a shot of cardiotonic agent.
"As long as the family is together, it's okay to start again."
(Wang Shuzhen)
But because the business had not yet ended, Li Haomin asked his wife to take the children to Taiwan Province first, and he stayed in Jiangsu alone for the time being.
In this way, Wang Shuzhen left Jiangsu alone with 13 children by boat.
Before the couple separated, Wang Shuzhen said a thousand words, and finally only said one sentence, "You are busy with yours, the child is handed over to me, rest assured."
However, afraid that her husband would be worried, the words she wanted to say most in her heart did not dare to say:
"Be sure to come back safely and be reunited with us."
After settling down, in addition to taking care of the children every day, Wang Shuzhen has one more task:
Pinch the time when the boat docked, and go to the port every day to wait for her husband to come home.
Looking left and right, her husband finally returned, and Wang Shuzhen was so excited that her tears were about to fall.
But forced by everyone's nurturing, she only bowed slightly and said, "You're back."
Only four words, but hidden Wang Shuzhen's full of love.
Later, Li Haomin often traveled back and forth to Jiangsu and Taiwan.
Business trips became a common affair, and all the family affairs were entrusted to Wang Shuzhen.
Every time Li Haomin went on a business trip, Wang Shuzhen was particularly worried.
She took the bead and knelt before the Buddha in prayer.
At the beginning, the heart was sincere, and every time he blessed the special spiritual experience, Li Haomin returned safely.
However, in the era of war, Wang Shuzhen's prayers were pale and weak, and in the face of gunfire, the Buddha could not help it.
On the 29th of The 1949 month, Wang Shuzhen greeted 13 children and got busy buying New Year goods.
Usually gentle, she also became impatient, and the children helped and played, so she hurried to urge them to hurry up, because her husband would return at night.
They hadn't seen each other for more than half a year since they last met.
Wang Shuzhen snapped her fingers to count the time, and finally looked forward to the New Year.
Before that, Li Haomin had already written home, saying that he would return before Chinese New Year's Eve.
On the 29th day of the lunar calendar, Chinese New Year's Eve the day before.
Wang Shuzhen did half of the housework, ran to the port to see, and then ran home to continue to do housework.
As a result, from day to night, Wang Shuzhen ran dozens of times to the port, but she did not see her husband's shadow for a long time.
The family sat at the dinner table, waiting until the food was cold, and Wang Shuzhen's heart beat non-stop.
She knelt in front of the Buddha statue at home and prayed for her husband all the time.
But at this time, the Buddha did not appear to be spiritual, and no longer sheltered the family.
At two o'clock in the morning, I finally waited for the news of my husband.
However, this time, Wang Shuzhen could no longer laugh.
On January 27, 1949, when the Taiping ship turned into the waters of the Zhoushan Islands, it collided with another cargo ship, and 932 passengers on the Taiping ship were tragically killed.
Among the 932 victims, there was Li Haomin.
Unexpectedly, the person who thought about it day and night became a person who could never see each other again.
Wang Shuzhen couldn't accept it for a while, and she didn't want to do housework.
She stood in the harbor all day, aimlessly watching them salvage the Taiping Ship, still hoping in her heart that her husband would be safe.
Until, the remnants of the Taiping Wheel were salvaged ashore, and Wang Shuzhen finally died.
During the Spring Festival of that year, the outside of the house was lively and peaceful, and only the Li family was quiet.
Wang Shuzhen knelt in front of the Buddha statue and kept shedding tears.
But Wang Shuzhen has not been immersed in sad emotions.
She understood that if the pillar of the family fell, she would have to go to the top, and there were still many things that she needed to deal with at the moment.
Li Haomin died suddenly, and many businesses had to be interrupted.
The businessmen who worked with him all came to the door and demanded that their hard-earned money be recovered.
As long as the other party can provide relevant transaction documents, Wang Shuzhen will return them in full, and even give certain compensation.
In order to pay off her debts, Wang Shuzhen even sold jewelry and antiques. Everything that is valuable in the house is pawned.
Watching the home become empty little by little, the sensible children advised their mothers to consider the family.
If they all sold their things, a dozen of them would drink the northwest wind.
However, Wang Shuzhen did not listen to anything, and she said to the children:
"If you can't eat and starve to death, there will always be a way."
But I owe it to others, and I am afraid that I will not be able to rest in peace until I die.
To be a person, you must be innocent, worthy of yourself, and even more worthy of others. ”
In the end, Wang Shuzhen even sold the mansion.
On the day of the handover to the buyer, Wang Shuzhen knelt in front of her husband's tablet and said to him apologetically,
"It's sold here, I'm sorry, I didn't get to hold on here, but home is still there, and you're welcome to go home at any time."
There was no money to hire someone to carry luggage, and when she left the mansion, Wang Shuzhen took her children, carried several large bags of luggage, and left without looking back.
The youngest child asked, "Mother, where are we going?" ”
Wang Shuzhen replied, "Go home." ”
That year, Wang Shuzhen was 52 years old, lost her husband, spent all her savings, and was penniless, with only 13 children with her.
That year, they moved out of the mansion and lived in a simple hut, living a particularly poor life.
A piece of clothing, worn by the older brother, left for the younger brother to wear.
By the time it reached the youngest child, the clothes were already covered with more than a dozen patches, and a pair of shoes was worn for a year.
Wang Shuzhen demanded that although the clothes were old, they must not be dirty.
The shoes can be broken, but they must not be dirty, otherwise the child will be punished for not being able to buy shoes for three years.
She often teaches her children: "Dress like a person, you must be clean." ”
(Wang Shuzhen's son Li Changyu)
Fearing being scolded by their mothers, the children would sneak off their shoes every day after going out, put them on their shoulders, and then walk barefoot to school.
The home was a few miles from the school, and the road was full of mud and gravel.
Sometimes if you are not careful, you will have more scars on the soles of your feet.
Even so, none of the 13 children cried bitterness.
Because they know that mothers are more bitter and tired than they are.
Leaving the Li House, the former "Lady Li" also stayed in the past.
Wang Shuzhen became "Lady Li" and worked as a maid in a wealthy family.
In today's parlance, it's about going to someone else's house and being a nanny.
Every day, before dawn, she would go to a nearby family to help make breakfast.
After that, I went back to my own house and busied myself with my children's breakfast.
After they went to school, Wang Shuzhen went to another family to wash clothes and clean.
In the big winter, Wang Shuzhen squatted in the courtyard and washed the pile of clothes without a word.
As long as she squatted down, she could only hear the sound of water, and she couldn't see the figure at all.
Wang Shuzhen's thin body was tightly blocked by clothes.
For the sake of the children, as long as there is money to be earned, she will do any work.
Even if the neighbor's table foot is crooked, Wang Shuzhen can carry a few pounds of tools to help saw it flat.
365 days a year, wang Shuzhen is hardly seen resting for a day.
Looking at the mother's hands full of frostbite and the increasingly curved back, the children were particularly distressed.
One day, Wang Shuzhen accidentally fell and broke her leg bone.
The doctor told her to rest for a few days, otherwise the bones would be difficult to heal and would fall to the root of the disease.
But the next day, Wang Shuzhen still limped out of the house to work.
That day, Wang Shuzhen not only moved goods, but also went to the small shop to help, and did not see her cry out in pain.
When the children came home from school, as soon as they opened the door, the table was already full of meals.
Wang Shuzhen stood in the kitchen doorway, beckoning the children to wash their hands and eat.
Looking at their mother as usual, they all thought that her mother was not seriously injured.
Until they were eating and heard the kitchen thump.
Running over to see, the mother was cowering in the corner, her face purple and sweating constantly.
She smiled bitterly as she explained, "It's just a little painful, don't get in the way, you eat quickly, and after eating, you can quickly go to study." ”
At that time, they learned that their mother had endured the pain in her legs and feet and had been busy all day, just to save for tuition.
Not seeing that the mother was so tired, several older children took the initiative to propose that they drop out of school and go out to work to share the pressure of their mothers.
Before they could finish speaking, Wang Shuzhen refused:
"Even if you go to study, the rest will be left to me, read out the famous, read out the future, and then you can be considered worthy of me."
If anyone doesn't want to study, he is not worthy to be Wang Shuzhen's child, let alone the child of the Li family! ”
(Family photo of Li Shuzhen's children growing up)
Under her supervision, the children did not dare to slacken off.
They are not afraid of the teachers of the academy, and they are most afraid of their mothers.
As long as Wang Shuzhen opened her mouth, none of them dared not listen.
When my child graduated from college, he thought he would finally be able to come out and work.
Wang Shuzhen ordered him that he must read a master's degree, otherwise he could not be allowed to enter the house.
When the master's degree arrived, Wang Shuzhen asked him to read the doctorate...
In this way, Wang Shuzhen pushed 13 children, little by little, rushing forward to the peak of life.
Years later, all 13 children became doctors in various fields, with beautiful resumes and glorious ancestors:
Li Changquan (male): Graduated from Shanghai Business School and engaged in business.
Li Changduo (male): Engaged in scientific research at New York University.
Li Changgang (male): United Nations Africa Farming Consultant, American Environmental Protection and Hydraulic Engineer.
Li Changyun (female): Graduated from Taiwanese political school and worked for an American stationery company.
Li Changlong (female): Graduated from Shanghai Home Economics School, American fashion design.
Li Xiaofeng (female): Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, USA, tenured professor at New York University.
Li Chang-mi (female): Graduated from New York University, vice president of Berlin Securities, and president of American Petrochemical Corporation.
Li Changxia (female): Graduated from Trudeau University in the United States.
Li Changxin (male): Ph.D., University of Maryland, USA.
Li Changyu (male): Ph.D. of New York University, "The First Chinese Detective".
Li Changru (female): Graduated from Taiwan Medical College.
Li Changzhi (female): Graduated from the American Fashion Advertising Institute, a well-known advertising design expert in the United States.
As the saying goes, parents are a child's first teacher.
This was applied to Wang Shuzhen, and it was not wrong at all.
Li Changyu was the 11th son of Wang Shuzhen, and Wang Shuzhen often told him, "If you are not afraid of small things, you are afraid of not doing well." ”
At the American study club, Li Changyu worked hard and went to the laboratory to wash test tubes.
At that time, the classmates who were working together advised him, "Don't wash too clean, wait for them to use it again, and wash it again, it is too troublesome, if you can wash less, wash less." ”
After listening to his words, Li Changyu just smiled, said nothing, and continued to wash the test tube with his head down.
Others wash the test tube is to go through the water, but Li Changyu will carefully clean each test tube to ensure that the test tube is clean, and he dares to send it to the laboratory.
Later, the two of them needed to work separately, and the teacher asked them which laboratories they wanted to go to.
Li Changyu took the initiative to undertake the busiest 5 laboratories, classmates laughed at him stupid, Li Changyu also did not explain.
At the end of the semester, Li Changyu, who was diligent and earnest, was looked at by the professor.
The professor felt that he was serious and careful, and was willing to accept him as a student and teach him skills.
But there is no salary, ask Li Changyu is willing?
Li Changyu accepted it without saying a word, and he knew that this opportunity was not easy to come by.
How about not having a salary, learning the skill is earned.
Later, with the help of professors, Li Changyu was admitted to the master's degree, got a doctorate, and became the youngest director of the U.S. State Police Department.
He solved countless cases and won numerous awards, and his classmates were still washing test tubes in the laboratory.
Asked about the secret of his success, Li Changyu said:
"My mother taught me from an early age that everything must be done well and be unashamed, and it is the end, and I have always asked myself to do so."
Since the death of her husband, Wang Shuzhen has been eating and praying to the Buddha.
Even after going to the United States, she still insisted on eating only Chinese food and speaking Chinese.
In 2000, Wang Shuzhen's 103rd birthday.
Li Changyu asked her what gift she wanted, and she said without hesitation: "Go home and build a school!"
Later, Li Changyu learned that a school had been built in his hometown, and at present, only a sports field was missing.
Wang Shuzhen also said, "As long as you can help your children to study, you can also build a sports field." ”
A year later, the stadium was built.
The school is named after Wang Shuzhen for her good deeds.
Wang Shuzhen believed in Buddhism and gave herself a name, "Li Wang'an Buddha" (李王安佛).
Therefore, the sports field was called "Li Wang An Fo Stadium".
Wang Shuzhen is old and her legs and feet are inconvenient.
When the stadium was built, she couldn't go back to China to see for herself.
Li Changyu rushed back and dug up a piece of dirt to bring back to her.
In 2003, Wang Shuzhen, who had been busy all her life, left without regret at the age of 106.
(When Wang Shuzhen was old)
On the day of her death, dozens of children and grandchildren were gathered around her bedside, chanting the sutra for her and watching her leave.
After waiting for 54 years, this time she could finally meet her husband without worries.
Before her death, Wang Shuzhen left a last word to future generations, she said:
"No matter where you are, remember that you have Chinese blood on you and will always be Chinese."
It doesn't matter if you learn English, but you must be able to speak Chinese and not lose the face of your ancestors.
You can't be made, but you must not go down a crooked path.
We must be an upright person, do things seriously, and do our best to be a person..."
It is often said that the most precious family property left by parents to their children is a good family style.
In Wang Shuzhen, I see two truths about education:
1. Reading is the most cost-effective investment at any time
Unlike other investments, reading is a matter that requires a long line to catch big fish.
However, most people sit by the river for a few days and watch the fish not be hooked, and suddenly feel that there are no fish in the river, and it is not worth spending time here.
Therefore, by changing positions and turning to short-term and fast-yielding territories, there is the emergence of the "theory that reading is useless".
As everyone knows, everything needs to be invested in costs, and the cost of reading is the lowest.
There is a threshold for everything, and only the minimum threshold for reading is the lowest.
You can read it whenever you want.
In the past, there was a technology that could go all over the world.
But now we find that the competition is becoming more and more fierce, and the threshold of various industries is getting higher and higher.
With technology, it is difficult for us to make a breakthrough.
Competition is gradually refined, and gradually tilted towards cognition.
The future competition must be cognitive competition.
As ordinary people, if we want to improve our cognition in a short period of time, the most economical and effective way is to read more.
Use a book to open up your knowledge blind spots.
Over time, the height of the book can be slowly transformed into the height of thought.
Even if she is poor, Wang Shuzhen still has to train 13 children to study.
Nowadays, high education can be better than fist talking, eating too much food, will be uncomfortable;
And the more books you read, the more you can help you break through the ceiling of your field a little bit.
2. Parents' thinking is the biggest ceiling for children to cross the class
A child's ceiling is often not determined by the child's own knowledge and ability, but by the thinking of his parents and the circle in which their parents are located.
Many times, when a child goes wrong and does something wrong, parents will always say:
"It's because you didn't work hard that you failed the test."
"If you're smarter, you're not going to mess things up."
Over time, parents will form a learned helpless mindset, thinking that it is because of their children that their current life is so bad.
If the children had been a little more angry, they would have lived a good life.
Slowly, children will also be influenced by their parents and "infected" with this mode of thinking.
So when they are frustrated, they will also learn from their parents and begin to complain:
"It's because you're so poor and don't have the money to train me, so I'm inferior to others."
"Other people's parents are from prestigious universities, which is why their children are so good."
You are just an ordinary part-time worker, and you still want me to read out the grades, how is it possible? ”
Parents are mediocre, they scold the child for being stupid, the child has achieved nothing, and then blame the parents and condemn their original family.
Parents are originals and children are photocopies. What a parent is, the child is.
Wang Shuzhen has always led by example, teaching her children to do things seriously, but she is also practicing what she preaches, never being sloppy, and when asking her children to continue to study, she is also learning.
Wang Shuzhen only began to learn English at the age of 65, and in her later years she could not walk, she still had books on her pillow and insisted on reading every day.
Wang Shuzhen set up a fifteen-character family training for the children: treat people well, concentrate on doing things, talk less, and do more.
All 13 children did it, and So did Wang Shuzhen.
The famous German philosopher said: "The essence of education is that one tree shakes another tree, one cloud pushes another cloud, and one soul summons another soul." ”
The parent pattern has opened up, and it is difficult for children to be excellent, and I hope that these two truths will inspire you.
END
See more character stories