Excellent family background, but has experienced ups and downs in life
In the spring of 1924, when the poplars were green and the pear blossoms were beginning to bloom, the Cha family gave birth to a lovely boy named Zha Liangyong. The Cha family is a prominent family in Haining, "a family of seven jinshi, uncles and nephews five Hanlin", which can be described as an enviable pair.
However, the good times did not last long, and by the generation of Zha Liangyong, although the Zha family had fallen a little, it was still a landlord's home with hundreds of tenant farmers and 3,600 acres of fertile land.
Zha Liangyong is intelligent by nature, and under the cultivation of a scholarly family, he has a patriotic heart to help the Qing Dynasty extinguish the foreign. He aspired to be a diplomat and use his intellect to contribute to a country that was in dire straits.
However, the road to training seemed destined to be bumpy and difficult, and he was expelled from school twice for rebelling against discipline, and the ideals of a diplomat could only be put on hold. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he realized that the autumn of national danger and went south to devote his pen to the war, experiencing the bitter blood and tears brought by the broken country of China.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zha Liangyong finally saw the dawn of saving the country and set off again with the ideal of going north. But fate made him, he had to continue to be a bitter reporter in Hong Kong, and he also had to face a double blow to his career and feelings.
At that time, his heart was extremely painful, and life was indeed not as smooth as he imagined.
Martial arts novels became famous, and their love life was full of twists and turns
In 1953, Zha Liangyong, who was middle-aged, began to use the pen name "Jin Yong" to create his first martial arts novel "Book of Swords and Enmity". He turned the mystery of Emperor Qianlong's life that he heard as a child into a wonderful story of the rivers and lakes, which immediately caused a sensation in the newspapers and magazines, and since then the name of "Jin Yong" has also spread.
In 1956, Jin Yong married Zhu Mei, who was also from the press. Zhu Mei is beautiful, gentle and considerate, like-minded and natural with Jin Yong. The two co-founded "Ming Pao", sharing weal and woe, and can be described as bosom friends.
However, the good times did not last long, and the relationship between the two gradually drifted apart due to their ideas, and the relationship deteriorated day by day. Seeing that it is not uncommon for husband and wife to fight and slam the door, Jin Yong's heart is extremely painful, and he begins to look for solace outside.
When he finally mustered up the courage to confess to the actress Xia Meng, whom he had loved for many years, he was ruthlessly rejected. There is indeed too much helplessness in life, so he has to continue to be sad and keep writing.
In 1976, by chance, 52-year-old Jin Yong fell in love with a 29-year-old waitress named Lin Leyi. For the older him, Lin Leyi, who is more than 20 years younger than him, is like a clear spring that can dilute the dryness in his heart.
However, this relationship is undoubtedly the biggest betrayal of Zhu Mei, and it also pushes the two bosom friends who could have grown old to a ruthless end.
The eldest son commits suicide, and the marriage comes to an end
In the cold winter of 1978, Jin Yong received a bad news from overseas - his eldest son Cha Chuanxia unfortunately chose to commit suicide while studying in the United States. This news was like a thunderbolt from the sky, making Jin Yong, who was supposed to be middle-aged, feel miserable, he fell to the ground, tears rolling down uncontrollably.
Cha Chuanxia is his most beloved son, who died young at the age of 18, which is an unimaginable blow to a father. Jin Yong's heart was tormented, he couldn't sleep day and night, and his mind was full of his son's figure at every stage of growth.
He will never see his son's eyes that sparkle with wisdom, nor hear his son's silver bell-like laughter, and this remorse and pain will stay with him for the rest of his life.
The death of his son was undoubtedly the last straw that crushed the couple of Jin Yong and Zhu Mei. Zhu Mei's heart has long been dead, and she put forward three conditions on the divorce agreement that are difficult for Jin Yong to accept, but Jin Yong, who blames himself in his heart, still readily accepts it to show his remorse for this marriage.
Seeing that this bosom friend and wife, who have been together for decades, are separated, Jin Yong's heart is like a knife, and he knows that he is destined to die with this regret in this life.
A life of success and regret
Jin Yong can be said to be a model of success. Since his rise to fame in The Book of Swords and Enmity, he has worked tirelessly on the road of martial arts novels, integrating Chinese folk tales into his literary creations, bringing those legendary characters to life in his pen.
During his lifetime, he wrote a total of 14 martial arts masterpieces, which were translated into many languages, sold as many as 300 million copies, and influenced every corner of the world where there are Chinese.
It can be said that Jin Yong has become synonymous with Chinese literature and is a grandmaster-level figure of a generation.
However, when we admire this hero's great contribution to literature, it is not difficult to find that his life is full of regrets. He couldn't grow up with his son Cha Chuanxia, and failed to retain Zhu Mei, who shared weal and woe; His ideal love is far from real life, and he is no longer affectionate when facing Lin Leyi; Behind his success and reputation lies an indelible pain and guilt.
In 2018, the 94-year-old died in Hong Kong. When his coffin slowly moved out of the house, there was silence all around, as if to declare the loneliness of his life.
What he left in the world is not only the heroic shadow between the lines, but also his unconveyable heart.
drifted away, regret between the lines
On October 30, 2018, on a beautiful autumn day, Jin Yong passed away peacefully at his home in Hong Kong at the age of 94. Coincidentally, his death coincided with the second anniversary of the death of his "Xi Shi" Xia Meng, and seemed to remind him that deep affection was so unaccommodated by the world.
Lin Leyi trembled with her hands to remove the white hair covering Jin Yong's eyes, and gently stroked his pale old face. She knew that she would never see the eyes that haunted him again, and she would never hear his gentle voice again.
Jin Yong left like this, leaving a lot of regret for her and the world.
"May you be prosperous and blessed throughout your life. This is the famous quote chosen by Jin Yong's family for his tombstone. However, looking back at the magnificence of the past 94 years, we can't help but ask, is his life really good luck? Success cannot make up for the wounds in his heart, reputation cannot make him feel real happiness, and behind the prosperity is the exhaustion and emptiness accumulated over time.
This hero may have foreseen his own end. His words will be passed down through the ages, but what is hidden behind it is his broken heart. And what we will eventually face up to is not only his grievances and hatreds, but also his unspeakable sorrows.