preface
At 8 p.m. on June 14, 1971, a black Jim slowly pulled into a troop camp.
Dong Yaodong, a soldier who was checking the post, saw a young officer coming down from the car, and the officer hurried to the head of the unit with a serious look, and after the two talked for a while, a confused expression appeared on their faces.
Later, they got together and looked at the roster over and over again, and finally didn't seem to find the person they were looking for, and the young officer got into Jim's car with a calm face and left in a hurry...
At that time, Dong Yaodong said that he did not expect that the person the young officer was looking for was actually himself.
Dong Yaodong was stunned at first, he knew that Building 49 of Black Rock Reef was a place dedicated to receiving senior cadres, not everyone was qualified to go, his mother was just an ordinary housewife, how could he go there?
Then, Dong Yaodong felt a little repulsive, he was the only son in the family, and his mother doted on him too much, because of this, Dong Yaodong was teased by his peers from childhood to adulthood.
Therefore, he had already told his mother that she was not allowed to come to the army to see him.
So why did she come?
On the way to Building 49 of Black Rock Reef, Dong Yaodong had mixed feelings, both happy to see his mother, but also annoyed and confused.
When Dong Yaodong stepped on the steps of Building 49 step by step, he did not know that his mother's arrival this time had revealed a secret that had been kept for 18 years.
And this secret is related to Dong Yaodong's life.
1
When he was a child, Dong Yaodong's most envious of the children who had their father picked them up.
Every time his mother Zhang Bo came to pick him up, Dong Yaodong would always ask, "Mom, where has my father gone?" ”
While helping him sort out his clothes, his mother bowed her head and replied, "Your father fought in North Korea and has not yet returned." ”
So when will he be back?
Dong Yaodong wanted to continue to ask questions, but seeing tears flashing in his mother's eyes, he opened his mouth and hid the doubts in his heart.
Will Dad never come back?
Finally, one day, dong Yaodong's day and night thoughts appeared.
On that day, his mother went to the school to pick him up as usual, and beside her, there stood a tall, calm man, and the mother whispered to Dong Yaodong: "Dongdong, your father has returned from the battle." ”
Dong Yaodong's eyes widened, both a little restrained and extremely excited, he listened to his mother's words, first gave his father a polite salute, and then stared at him tightly, afraid that the next second his father would leave again.
The man squatted down, took Dong Yaodong in his arms, and refused to let go for a long time: "Child, Daddy is back." ”
This man is Dong Fengkui.
Dong Yaodong remembers that since his father returned, the family moved to Dandong.
That year, he was in the fourth grade and transferred to Dandong Bayi Primary School.
This primary school recruits mostly military children, is a full-time boarding school, paramilitary management, every morning when the bell rings, all students have to quickly get up, dress, fold quilts, and then go to the playground to do exercises and run; every night is also a unified washing, lights out and bed.
Dong Yaodong is a child with a simple heart and a kind heart, but not long after he transferred from school, he was despised and alienated by a considerable number of classmates.
The reason was simple: his mother was so used to him.
In everyone's eyes, Dong Yaodong is full of squeamishness, his mother is very doting on him, once, the classmates are in the self-study class, the class is quiet, suddenly Zhang Bo rushed into the classroom, shouting "Dongdong, Dongdong", next to no one to sort out the red scarf on his chest for his son, at that moment, the whole class was looking down and laughing at Dong Yaodong.
At that time, the rations of urban residents in the northeast were rationed to coarse grains and fine grains, and coarse grains accounted for 60%.
As soon as Dong Yaodong enrolled in school, his mother found the school leader and said that the child had a stomach problem and could not eat coarse grains.
In the summer, his mother came to the homeroom teacher again and firmly opposed her children swimming.
Among the whole school, only Dong Yaodong had a wooden box under his bed, which contained biscuits, candy, villain books, and a lot of cod liver oil, vitamins, and medicines for stomach medicine...
The school has to check the hygiene of the dormitories every week, and each inspection, Dong Yaodong's mattress is the thickest and most eye-catching.
And all of this is incompatible with the environment at that time.
At that time, Chairman Mao repeatedly criticized the education system at that time, especially the "Bayi Schools" in various places, and was worried that the children would be trained into a new generation of "Eight Flags Children".
Therefore, Dong Yaodong's "Dandong Bayi Primary School" also began to recruit the children of workers and peasants, and often organized students to participate in production and labor.
Although most of the dolls are only a little more than 10 years old, under the education of the teacher, they all have a firm idea: we are the successors of communism, and we must not lie on the credit book of our parents, and be a pampered 'little young master'!
Isn't Dong Yaodong a negative example?
Therefore, the classmates are not accustomed to Dong Yaodong, often say cool words to taunt him, once, Dong Yaodong and a classmate quarrel, the classmate blurted out: "You are not surnamed Dong, your surname is Cai, your father died in North Korea!" ”
Dong Yaodong craned his neck and shouted, "My name is Dong Yaodong!" ”
"You also have an older brother named Cai Sidong."
"No, my brother's name is Dong Sidong!"
Whether the children's words left waves in Dong Yaodong's heart, no one knows.
Everyone only knows that after this incident, Dong Yaodong's mother, Zhang Bo, personally went to find the parents and school leaders of the classmate.
At the same time, almost all of the students received severe warnings from parents and teachers.
Since then, Dong Yaodong has also begun to change, in school, he rushed to suffer everywhere, competing with others who got up early, he refused his mother's love again and again, sometimes even simply hid from his mother, and his classmates also changed from disgusting Aunt Zhang Bo to gradually turning to pity.
Although the matter had passed, the children were still vaguely aware that they had hurt Dong Yaodong's self-esteem.
Years later, the students still remember: for a long time, Dong Yaodong often told everyone how his father carried him on his shoulders, held him in his arms or let him ride on his back, teased him, and told him stories...
How could Dong Fengkui not be his own biological father?
Dong Yaodong said that he would not believe anything.
When he was 15 years old, Dong Yaodong was clamoring to become a soldier, Zhang Bo was afraid and resolutely refused to agree, dong Yaodong was so angry that he did not eat, drink or sleep.
Late that night, Dong Fengkui, who was the political commissar of Dandong 230 Hospital, returned home from work, and the father and son talked for a long time in the house.
In the end, Dong Fengkui advised Zhang Bo: "Let him go, and it is more reassuring to send him to the army!" ”
Dong Yaodong finally got his wish.
However, what he didn't know was that when he got on a big truck and left the house, Dong Fengkui rode his bicycle and followed all the way behind...
Dong Fengkui
2
In 1971, Zhang Bo happened to meet Deng Yue, deputy commander of the Shenyang Military Region, and his wife Han Jun.
Deng Yue and his wife were preparing to go to Dalian, so they persuaded Zhang Bo to go with them.
At that time, Dong Yaodong was serving as a soldier in Dalian.
Zhang Bo said: "I can't go, my son won't let me go, I suddenly go to the army like this, the child will be unhappy." ”
However, Deng Yue and his wife saw that Zhang Bo missed the child, so they involuntarily took her to Dalian together.
After arriving in Dalian, Deng Yue immediately sent people to the army to pick up Dong Yaodong.
Who knows, the young officer and the head of the unit went through the roster and did not find him.
Seeing that the young officer had not brought the person back, Deng Yue instantly blackened his face, and just when he was about to get angry, Zhang Bo on the side heard the famous hall.
She quickly stopped Deng Yue and asked, "When you went to pick someone up, what name did you say?" ”
"Cai Xiaodong!"
"Wrong!"
Zhang Bo whispered, "Deputy Commander Deng, I forgot to tell you, I changed his name a long time ago, and now his name is Dong Yaodong." ”
Everyone present was silent.
After a long time, Deng Yue trembled and asked, "That is to say, the child does not know it yet?" ”
Zhang Bo had tears in his eyes and nodded.
There was another moment of silence.
Deng Yue raised his head violently and looked at Zhang Bo sincerely: "The child is already 18 years old, and he is already a revolutionary soldier, he should tell him this secret!" ”
Zhang Bo's tears fluttered and fell: "Yeah, I should have let him know a long time ago, but I don't know how to tell him..."
Deng Yue pondered for a moment, and his expression gradually became serious.
Deng Yue
Leave it to me! Just take advantage of this opportunity, let us, the old subordinates and comrades-in-arms of Commander Cai, come and tell him together!
When Dong Yaodong stepped onto Building 49 of Black Rock Reef and pushed open the door, he realized that something was wrong.
I saw that the sofa in the room was full of chiefs, many of whom were very familiar to him, and there were also strangers, but whether strange or familiar, everyone had changed their previous love and smile and were looking at him with a serious face.
Mother Zhang Bo and the two aunts sat next to each other, silently bowing their heads.
The atmosphere in front of him suddenly frightened Dong Yaodong, and a cold sweat instantly appeared in his head: Did I make any big mistakes? Otherwise, how could my mother have moved out of so many chiefs to teach me a lesson?
Dong Yaodong sat nervously in the doorway, not even daring to come out of the atmosphere.
As soon as he sat down, Uncle Zhao Guotai began to speak.
Zhao Guotai was the first deputy commander of the brigade's large garrison area, and he and his wife Peng Fenxu had always been very kind to Dong Yaodong.
When Dong Yaodong was in elementary school, he had to be picked up by Uncle Zhao and Aunt Peng every week, eat a good meal, and live for another night, he often heard people say that Uncle Zhao was a fierce warrior, but in his impression, Uncle Zhao was always amiable.
Zhao Guotai
However, today, Uncle Zhao's expression was particularly serious.
Xiao Dong, we have called you to this meeting today to solemnly explain to you your origins. You have turned 18 years old, you are a PLA soldier with 3 years of military experience, you are an upright revolutionary soldier, you should know your origins.
Dong Yaodong only felt a bang in his head, as if a bomb had exploded overhead.
"Xiao Dong, your surname is not Dong, your surname is Cai." Your biological father's name is Cai Zhengguo. ”
"Your father was a revolutionary martyr, the first deputy commander of the 50th Army, and the highest-ranking commander of our army who died on the battlefield of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea."
"All of you here today are your father's old comrades-in-arms, some of whom have gone through the 25,000-mile Long March with your father, some of whom have fought with your father against Japanese devils, some of whom have fought with your father from the northeast to Hainan Island, and some of whom have participated in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea with your father..."
Dong Yaodong's head was wooden, he looked around blankly at the uncles, uncles, aunts around him, no wonder from childhood to adulthood, they always cared so much for me, it turned out...
Dong Yaodong raised his head and looked at his mother, and the moment the mother and son looked at each other, Zhang Bo's tears suddenly burst out like a broken embankment...
Zhang Bo and Dong Fengkui
3
Zhang Bo joined the Eighth Route Army in 1938 and married Cai Zhengguo in 1943.
Their first child was a daughter with big eyes and long eyelashes, like a doll.
When Zhang Bo gave birth, the troops had been transferred, and there was only a doctor and a guard platoon around him.
As soon as the daughter landed, the guard platoon lifted Zhang Bo and the child and quickly rushed out of the village.
As soon as they left, the enemy's gunshots rang out behind them.
The soldiers ran for a whole day and a night before they got rid of the pursuing soldiers, and the first meal Zhang Bo ate after giving birth was a scoop of boiled corn water that the guard platoon leader had found so hard to find.
Without milk, Zhang Bo had to take the child to his hometown and eat the rest of the milk of the children.
But in that era, the compatriots were also poor. After the birth of the child, he ate the milk of 24 people and eventually starved to death.
The pain of losing his son made Zhang Bo unable to let go for a long time.
In 1948, the second child, Cai Sidong, was born.
People say that Cai Zhengguo is a fierce general, but when he returns home, he is just a father who loves his children incomparably.
Every time he came home, the first thing Cai Zhengguo had to do was to hug his son.
Once, he just picked up his son, he was sprinkled with a soak of urine, Zhang Bo was anxious to hold the child away, Cai Zhengguo did not let it, afraid of scaring the child, had to wait for the child to finish peeing, and then gently put him down.
During the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Zeng Zesheng, former commander of the 50th Army, returned to China to recuperate, and Cai Zhengguo was transferred to the 50th Army as acting commander.
Just a month after taking office, Cai Zhengguo caught up with the fourth battle.
At that time, the "United Nations Army" launched a large-scale offensive across the entire line north of Seoul.
The task of the 50th Army was to defend frontally, and the enemy they faced was the British 27th Brigade, an elite British unit with excellent weapons and a tank battalion.
For two consecutive days, the British, under the cover of tanks and artillery fire, quickly seized three positions of the 50th Army.
Faced with this situation, Cai Zhengguo proposed to send an explosives team to infiltrate the British position at night and blow up the enemy tanks.
He believes that the enemy is very dependent on weapons, and once there is no tank, the heart will be afraid, so no matter what the cost, we must kill their tanks.
So, at midnight, Cai Zhengguo sent 12 demolition teams to quietly approach the tank position, accompanied by a deafening explosion, and most of the British tanks turned into a pile of scrap iron.
Early the next morning, Cai Zhengguo led his troops to attack the British army, and after a fierce battle, most of the officers and men of the British 27th Brigade were annihilated.
From then on, the Volunteers began to launch a counterattack, changing from a full-line defense to a mobile attack, completely turning the tide of the war.
After the end of the fourth campaign, the headquarters of the Volunteer Army praised the 50th Army, and Peng Dehuai and other chiefs believed that it was really too right to put Cai Zhengguo in the 50th Army!
Cai Zhengguo
When Cai Zhengguo was fighting on the front line, Zhang Bo was staying at the volunteer army garrison in Heilongjiang, and she received a total of 16 family letters from her husband from North Korea, each of which Cai Zhengguo carefully advised his wife to pay attention to supplementing nutrition, and he also remembered his young son who had just been born.
Cai Zhengguo named the child "Cai Xiaodong", which was later Dong Yaodong.
At about 9:40 p.m. in 1953, at the headquarters of the 50th Army, Cai Zhengguo and others were holding a military conference.
Suddenly, the enemy roar sounded in the night sky, and Cai Zhengguo was preparing to end the meeting when a bomb exploded next to him.
Four splashes of shrapnel hit Cai Zhengguo's head and chest, and due to excessive blood loss, Cai Zhengguo died that night.
In his shirt, people found a note, a letter he had just written the day before, before he could send it to his wife.
The letter reads: "I am all right on the front line, don't worry about it, when this battle is over, I will take leave to go back to see you and my son." ”
No one expected that this letter would become Cai Zhengguo's suicide note.
After receiving the news, Zhang Bo cried heartbreakingly.
Zhang Bo at the memorial service
However, the bigger blow is yet to come: more than a year after Cai Zhengguo's death, when Zhang Bo entered Beijing to contact the school for his eldest son, the courtyard wall was crushed by torrential rain, and the eldest son who remained at home was smashed to death by the courtyard wall.
Zhang Bo, who had just experienced the pain of widowhood, failed to withstand the blow of losing her son, and she not only blamed herself for leaving her eldest son alone at home, but also ashamed of Cai Zhengguo's spirit in heaven, and was once insane.
In those years, Zhang Bo was plagued by illness and lost his job.
Later, under the persuasion and guidance of the comrades around him, Zhang Bo remarried to Dong Fengkui.
At this time, it had been six years since Cai Zhengguo's death.
Before getting married, Zhang Bo and Dong Fengkui made a special trip to the Cemetery of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea in Shenyang.
The kind and upright Dong Fengkui solemnly swore to Cai Zhengguo's mausoleum that he would do his best to take good care of Zhang Bo and Xiaodong.
Since then, Dong Fengkui has never let Zhang Bo receive a martyr's maintenance fee, he carefully cares for Zhang Bo and gives her and Dong Yaodong a complete and happy family.
On the day that Dong Yaodong left his home to join the army, Dong Fengkui rushed to the army on a bicycle and specially instructed the leaders of the unit that this was the orphan of the martyr, please pay more attention.
No wonder they are so fond of Dong Yaodong, this is the only bone and blood left by the martyr Cai Zhengguo, how can people not be sorry?
4
Listening to Uncle Deng Yue and Uncle Zhao's stories, and watching the reverence and nostalgia for their biological father Cai Zhengguo on their faces, Dong Yaodong's tears flowed from his eyes unconsciously.
There seemed to be countless emotions in his heart that could not be cathartic, and the hot tears made the chaotic thinking even more burning.
The surrounding area suddenly became quiet, and everyone present looked at him, and Uncle Zhao said, "Xiao Dong, now that you know your own origins, you can also say a few words." ”
Dong Yaodong was in tears, he said a lot, and what he said was not clear to him, he only knew that those words were all poured out of his heart.
The more Dong Yaodong spoke, the more fluent he became, and the more he spoke, the more excited he became, and the generals in the room who had experienced hundreds of battles cried as they listened.
Suddenly, Dong Yaodong felt that his eyes were suddenly black, and then he didn't know anything.
It turned out that because he had been greatly stimulated without any mental preparation, Dong Yaodong was in shock.
When he opened his eyes, everyone was around, Uncle Deng Yue and Uncle Zhao, their faces were tense, and their faces were white with fright.
Cai Zhengguo was buried in the Martyrs' Cemetery of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea in Shenyang.
In the past, Cai Xiaodong had come here again and again under the organization of the school, but at that time, he did not know that his father was buried here.
Finally, one day, he came back here as a son.
When the old man who guarded the tomb heard that Cai Zhengguo's son had come, he immediately cried.
He took Cai Xiaodong's hand and said vigorously, "Child, you are so old!" You were only a little bit old, still holding it in your arms..."
Yes, when Cai Zhengguo was sacrificed, Cai Xiaodong had just been born not long ago.
Behind the monument is a neat group of martyrs' tombs, and in the middle of the first row, a tombstone inscribed with red characters is erected: The Tomb of Comrade Cai Zhengguo, a martyr.
Cai Xiaodong stepped forward, reached out and gently touched the tombstone, and the tears couldn't stop flowing: "Dad, please forgive me for not coming to see you until now." ”
Cai Xiaodong in front of his father's tomb
Although he already knew the secret of his origins, Dong Yaodong did not intend to change his name.
Although Dong Fengkui was not his biological father, the grace of nurturing was greater than heaven, and in his heart, Dong Fengkui was as important as his biological father!
Until before changing careers, Dong Fengkui specially called him to the front and took the initiative to say:
At first, you came with my last name to protect you, and second, it can also reduce a lot of trouble and unnecessary explanations, and now it's okay, you change your name back!
Dong Fengkui suffered from bone cancer in his later years, and the pain was unbearable and tortured, but he was reluctant to spend money on expensive medicines, and always wanted to leave some money for Zhang Boduo.
Before dying, he forcibly supported the sick body, invited the leader of the dry rest center to the bed, and talked for a long time.
When the leader of the dry rest center left the ward, he told Zhang Bo with red eyes: Commissar Dong can't rest assured of you!
Dong Fengkui did not have his own children, he put all his energy into this family, poured all his efforts into Dong Yaodong, on the occasion of his death, talking about his hometown in Shandong, Dong Fengkui sighed with regret: "I have not gone back to see it for more than thirty years, and I don't know how much has changed there." ”
Dong Yaodong shook his father's hand and said tearfully: "Dad, you can rest assured, I will go back for you..."
After dong fengkui's aftermath, Dong Yaodong personally returned to his father's hometown, where not many people still remember the person "Dong Fengkui".
When the villagers asked him who he was, Dong Yaodong replied word by word: "My name is Dong Yaodong, and I am Dong Fengkui's son..."
postscript
The children who grew up with Dong Yaodong still remember one thing, that is, the one that happened in the self-study class.
A classmate came home on the weekend and "publicized" this matter to his family in a mocking tone: Dongdong's mother actually ran to the study room to sort out the red scarf for him...
Who knows, the classmate's mother immediately scolded: "You are really an ignorant child!" Dongdong's father died on the Korean battlefield, your aunt Zhang's three children died twice, leaving this single seedling, is she easy! ”
It was an era of hero worship, and although the dolls were mischievous, there was a truth they remembered: bullying the children of martyrs was intolerable!
Since then, the children have gradually understood the pain of the crazy Aunt Zhang, and no longer laugh at her "doting" on Dong Yaodong.
Dong Yaodong is unfortunate and fortunate, his biological father sacrificed his life for the country, dazzling as a star; his stepfather's selfless contribution, let people respect incomparably; he has a great mother, and countless people who silently care about him...
Remembering the martyrs!