In 1949, the founding of the People's Republic of China came at a time when the country was facing a waste and a financial constraint. However, despite the country's difficult financial situation, the government has actively invested in the development of the air force to protect the homeland. Pilots are indispensable and critical players in the Air Force, and training a pilot requires a huge investment. These pilots enjoyed relatively high treatment, but there were a few who were relentless in gratitude, including Wu Ronggen, whose defection caused shame among the countrymen.
Wu Ronggen was born in Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, and received a good education in his early years, so during the recruitment process of air force pilots at that time, he successfully obtained the opportunity to enter the air force with his intelligence and learning ability. Wu Ronggen successfully became a full-fledged pilot and had the opportunity to fly an airplane in the blue sky. However, his mind became content with the present, dissatisfied with the status quo, and often listened to the broadcasts of enemy stations.
At that time, the Taiwanese government frequently publicized and encouraged defectors to go to Taiwan, and offered large amounts of gold and other temptations. Under these circumstances, Wu Ronggen was affected and decided to defect to Taiwan in a plane and made a careful plan. On October 16, 1982, he flew a fighter jet from Shandong Airport. He deliberately reported the malfunction of the plane, while not flying on the intended route, to avoid the suspicion of ground forces, and finally got the opportunity to defect.
Wu Ronggen did not go directly to Taiwan, because the flight was too long, he first landed in South Korea, got in touch with the Taiwanese side and obtained approval, then flew the plane to Taiwan, and finally successfully defected. The Taiwanese government trumpeted his defection, awarding him the rank of "major" and 5,000 taels of gold.
However, Wu Ronggen's fate was unexpected. Although his life in Taiwan was not satisfactory, the local government also promoted him, performed with Teresa Teng and found him a wife. Soon after, however, the wife, along with others, took out his property and left the country. Wu Ronggen was alone, feeling lonely and helpless.
To make ends meet, Wu became a military school teacher and had some steady sources of income. But then, he left school. In Taiwan, groups such as veterans and teachers are not given special treatment, and life is still quite difficult. In desperation, he came to the United States to earn a living through connections, but his life in the United States was also challenging due to his lack of English skills and social connections.
In his later years, Wu Ronggen missed his hometown and hoped to return to the mainland, and even publicly expressed his willingness to return to China. However, because he had missed the opportunity, he was criticized by netizens, and most people did not have a favorable opinion of the defectors. Now, the possibility of Wu Ronggen's return to China is quite slim, which is the price for his betrayal of the motherland. As Chinese, we should love our country, not betray the country, and do not do things that are sorry for the country because of our immediate interests, otherwise we will only be like Wu Ronggen, unable to return to the motherland, and nailed to the pillar of shame in history.