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Text | Edit: Shi Zai has no money
Preface
In the vicissitudes of the 60s of the last century, Chairman Mao's daughter Li Min had to leave Zhongnanhai and her father's warm embrace. Despite the many trials that life has given her, Li Min always cherishes a deep nostalgia for her father and a longing for home in her heart.
Her destiny is full of twists and turns, from a simple but heartwarming wedding to a forced separation from her father for a long time, and every turning point highlights her resilience and perseverance. In the tide of society, she experienced injustice and setbacks at work, but she never forgot her father's teachings and insisted on propagating Chairman Mao's thoughts. In the face of the pressure of life, how did she stay strong, and what kind of strength allowed her to return to her post and continue to move forward?
In 1936, in a humble earthen hill building in Yan'an, Li Min was born in a period when the Long March had just ended and supplies were extremely scarce. Her arrival brought a glimmer of warmth and hope to this difficult environment. Deng Yingchao and Kang Keqing rushed to hear the news, and when they first saw Li Min, she was lying in the cradle, weak and cute.
Deng Yingchao couldn't help but praise: "This child is really petite and cute. Chairman Mao was touched by this description and decided to nickname his daughter "Jiaojiao". But when Jiaojiao was about a year old, He Zizhen went to the Soviet Union, leaving little Li Min to live in a nursery in Yan'an.
Although Li Min is still very young, she already has some memories of her own, especially the loneliness of seeing other children being picked up by their parents on weekends and being alone with the staff at the nursery school.
In 1940, at the age of four, Li Min was also sent to the Soviet Union to reunite with her mother, a journey that was both an adventure and a challenge for her. In her recollections, Li Min remembers that morning vividly: riding in a car with her three children, the car jolted on a rough road, each bump forced her head to be careful not to hit the roof of the car. But Chairman Mao hugged her tightly all the way, silent and firm, until he left quietly, leaving Li Min with an exploration of the unknown and a deep longing for his father.
In the spring of 1941, in order to alleviate He Zizhen's loneliness in Moscow and to enhance the emotional bond between mother and daughter, Chairman Mao made the decision to let Li Min go to the Soviet Union to reunite with his mother. Due to the very little time Li Min spent with her father in Yan'an, and the memory of her father when she left as a young child, she had begun to blur until she gradually forgot his face.
In Moscow, Li Min finally felt the warmth of his family that he had not seen for a long time. Not only is she accompanied by her mother, but whenever weekends come, her two older brothers, Mao Anying and Mao Anqing, will also come to visit her and play with her. This love from her relatives made her gradually feel the warmth of home and the power of family affection, filling the vacancy in her heart.
Until 1947, Li Min returned to China with his mother and lived in Harbin. She tried to write a letter to her father in a few Chinese characters she had learned, asking expectantly if she was still his daughter. When she received Chairman Mao's reply, she was full of longing for a reunion with her father.
In the early summer of 1949, Li Min finally returned to Chairman Mao's side. After returning to China, she faced a language barrier and had to relearn Chinese and write Chinese characters. Chairman Mao not only taught her to write personally, but also carefully prepared the four treasures of the study room to cultivate her love for traditional culture. As time passed, Li Min began to understand her father's painstaking efforts, and in this way, he not only allowed her to learn Chinese characters, but also hoped that she would have a deep understanding of the essence of Chinese culture.
Chairman Mao also stressed the importance of reading the "Four Great Classics," and he demanded that Li Min read the Chinese version instead of relying on Russian translations. Li Min devotes all her free time to reading and studying, striving to live up to her father's expectations. He not only assigned reading tasks, but also provided specific help, such as inviting teachers to tutor her, taking her to enjoy Peking Opera and cross talk, so that she could fully contact and feel the breadth and profundity of Chinese culture.
Under the guidance of Chairman Mao, Li Min gradually integrated into the process of learning Chinese, and she praised her father as not only a leader in her life, but also a mentor and friend for her wisdom growth.
In addition to study and life, Chairman Mao also spared no effort in the ideological education of children. He often taught them to "be an ordinary worker", emphasizing that there should be no privileges, but more importantly, they should blend in with the people, endure hardships and stand hard work, and lead by example.
At a warm moment in August 1959, Li Min and Kong Linghua entered the palace of marriage. Their marriage is not only the union of two hearts, but also the joy of two families. In the fall of 1962, they welcomed a new member of the family, a healthy baby boy. Chairman Mao was extremely pleased with this, and he said with emotion: "This year, I have entered the age of antiquity, and I never expected that I would be upgraded to a happy grandfather."
For the newborn grandson, Chairman Mao personally chose the name - Kong Jining. This name not only carries the inheritance of the spirit of Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution, but also implies the hope and future of the socialist cause. Because Li Min and Kong Linghua were too busy with work to take care of their children wholeheartedly, they made the difficult decision to send Kong Jining to Shanghai and foster him in the arms of his maternal grandmother, He Zizhen.
Li Min's ordinary and busy life has nothing to do with her identity, she handles the housework, buys ingredients, cooks, and washes by herself, just like a mother in thousands of families. However, what is different is that she often writes letters to her father Chairman Mao, who is far away in Beijing, to share the bits and pieces of life and the bitterness and joy in her heart.
Whenever Chairman Mao received a letter from his daughter, he was always very happy, carefully read every word, and patiently replied, using his wisdom and experience to help his daughter solve the problem.
Early one morning in November 1967, Li Min was preparing to go to work. She pedals her bicycle through the bustling streets. When passing by Fuyou Street, Li Min had a thought in his heart, remembering that this place was only a few steps away from the West Gate of Zhongnanhai, so he decided to stop by to visit his long-lost father.
After a quick ride, Li Min arrived at the west gate of Zhongnanhai. Just as she was about to enter the door, the guard at the door politely and resolutely stopped her, citing the rules. Although Li Min explained that she was Chairman Mao's daughter and hoped to meet her father, the soldier in front of her, as a newly transferred guard, did not know her and still carried out his duties and did not let her in.
Li Min, who was disappointed, had no choice but to return, and the loss and helplessness at that moment made her difficult to let go for a long time. Fast forward to April 1968, spring is full of joy, and the magnolia and begonia in Zhongnanhai compete for beauty. Li Min did not let history repeat itself this time, and she contacted her colleagues in the General Office of the Central Committee in advance to ensure that she could enter smoothly this time. When she stepped through the door again and saw her father, the emotions in her heart turned into a long sigh.
Chairman Mao saw his daughter, showing a warm smile that he had not seen for a long time, and the two saw each other, needless to say, the joy of reunion after a long absence was beyond words. Li Min held his father's hand tightly and helped him sit down slowly, and the grievances and dissatisfaction that had accumulated in his heart disappeared the moment he saw his father.
The father in front of him has obvious traces left by the years, and Li Min suddenly realized that time has left an irreversible mark on everyone. She withdrew her words of complaint, and could not bear to add to her father's worries at such a moment.
In this warm time of father-daughter reunion, Chairman Mao expressed his wish that his daughter could spend more time with him in her busy schedule. Li Min was deeply moved and promised to do his best. This reunion is not only a family reunion, but also a deep touch of Li Min's heart, she understands the depth of father's love and the precious meaning of time to family affection.
In 1971, when the news of Li Min's pregnancy again came, there was not much joy in her heart, but worry and distress occupied her heart. She was worried that her health and busy work would affect her child's care, and she even considered giving up the child. Kong Linghua was full of expectations for this new life, resolutely opposed his wife's idea, and proposed to ask Chairman Mao for advice.
Li Min then wrote to his father and poured out his doubts and predicament. After Chairman Mao read his daughter's letter, he was emotional and frowned. Although he is old, Chairman Mao's love for his family and respect for life are still deep. He replied that the birth of life is not only about the individual, but also about the future of the family and even the country. He strongly expressed his desire to preserve this life and offered to take on the responsibility of raising it himself.
After Li Min read his father's reply, the doubts in his heart gradually dissipated, and he decided to welcome this new life. In 1972, a girl came into the world and met the world for the first time in Shanghai. Although Chairman Mao was unable to see his granddaughter in person, Li Min sent photos of the child to Beijing. When Chairman Mao saw the photo, his joy was beyond words, and he personally named his granddaughter "Kong Dongmei", expressing his deep love for this little life.
Chairman Mao also wrote to Li Min, hoping that she could take the child back to Beijing and let him hug his granddaughter in person. Unfortunately, for various reasons, Kong Dongmei stayed in Shanghai, accompanied by her grandmother He Zizhen, and could not make the trip.
In September 1976, a sad news shocked the whole country: the death of Chairman Mao. Subsequently, the central government began to prepare for the wake, and compiled a list of relatives invited to participate in the wake. The moment Li Min received this list, he was deeply touched in his heart, and tears couldn't help but overflow from his eyes. She said to the organization staff in a heartbroken manner: "My brother Mao Ancheng, why is he not on the list.
Seeing the pain that Li Min endured to find her brother, the organization couldn't bear to see her like this, so they specially obtained He Lucheng's contact information for her. As Chairman Mao's nephew, this identity gradually became known within the party, but given his special status as an engineer, the information was not widely disseminated publicly.
In Beijing, He Lucheng quietly devoted himself to the research of missile technology, and for 20 years, he could only pay attention to his uncle's news through the news and radio, and never revealed his family background to outsiders. He Lucheng finally made remarkable achievements in technical research and passed the test of the organization, but he did not expect to meet his uncle in such a way as "mourning", which made him feel extremely regretful.
"Loyalty and filial piety cannot be both", this ancient saying means a lot to He Lucheng. As a revolutionary family, he seems destined to take on extraordinary responsibilities and sacrifices.
During a profound political campaign in 1977, Li Min unexpectedly became the focus of an investigation because of his complicated relationship with Chairman Mao and Jiang Qing. Although she has always followed her father's teachings and maintained a low-key attitude towards life and work, this time she was inevitably involved in a political turmoil.
Li Min went to work as usual that day, but he didn't expect to encounter unprecedented changes as soon as he arrived there. At the same time that her work card was confiscated, she was also informed that she had to cooperate with the organization's investigation. What was even more unexpected was that the investigation team actually linked her to the counter-revolutionary clique led by Jiang Qing, and was not only removed from her post, but also restricted her freedom, and asked her to be on standby at all times for further review.
Li Min's heart was full of pain, and her husband Kong Linghua also tried his best to explain the truth to the higher authorities, hoping to clear his wife's grievances, but for a long time, all this seemed to be in vain. Luo Ruiqing, who was receiving treatment in Germany, was anxious and eager to support Li Min after learning about his situation, but being in a foreign country and poor health made him unable to do so.
Unfortunately, not long after his successful operation, Luo Ruiqing died unexpectedly due to a sudden myocardial infarction, which was undoubtedly worse for Li Min. Just when Li Min was in despair, the founding general Huang Kecheng stepped forward to speak for her. Huang Kecheng himself was wrongly convicted of being an anti-party element during the Cultural Revolution, and he knows the pain of being wronged and imprisoned. He couldn't watch the innocent Li Min suffer unfair treatment, so he decided to defend Li Min himself.
He directly approached the person in charge of the National Defense Science and Technology Commission and said firmly: "Li Min is innocent, and she will never be in cahoots with the Gang of Four." You all know the actual relationship between her and Jiang Qing, and it is extremely unfair to involve Chairman Mao's daughter in this turmoil. Please reconsider, let her resume work, and don't let Chairman Mao's family be hurt for no longer reason.
Chairman Mao dedicated his life to the Chinese Revolution, and his family paid great sacrifices for it. Huang Kecheng's appeals and efforts eventually led to Li Min's rehabilitation and resumption of her work. Li Min and her husband Kong Linghua have returned to the track of ordinary people's lives and continued their ordinary and quiet days.