In 1952, Major General Li Wenqing of the Northern Sichuan Military Region took a short vacation to return to his hometown in Songzi County, Hubei Province, which was his first return in 23 years. The welcome and gongs and drums of the villagers shook the entire Li Jiahe, but Li Wenqing's heart rippled with different waves. He has never forgotten the former bully Li Xuewu and his ex-wife Zhou Yimei.
When he walked to the door of his house, a middle-aged couple knelt on the ground, and the woman in front of Li Wenqing was the sister Zhou Yumei he once loved. He hurriedly helped the two of them up, and said in a chapter: "What about the bully who robbed you back then?" Zhou Qimei's eyes were blurred with tears, and she couldn't continue the conversation, just with endless apologies and unbearable past.
Zhou Qimei was speechless, and she uncovered the dusty history: Li Xuewu not only occupied her, but also sold her to another man, the person in front of her whom she called her husband. Regarding Li Xuewu, this bully had hanged himself on the eve of Li Wenqing's return to his hometown, and committed suicide in fear of crime. Li Wenqing didn't ask any more questions, but just said words of forgiveness lightly.
Li Wenqing's heart has long been calm. Faced with the pain of the past, he chose to forgive. He asked Zhou and her husband to stay, hoping that they could live well in the new China.
On the eve of returning home
Li Wenqing, a veteran who went from the Red Army uprising to the anti-Japanese battlefield, and then became a major general after the founding of the People's Republic of China, decided to return to his hometown in the late spring of 1952, Lijiahe Village in Songzi County, Hubei Province. It has been 23 years since he left his hometown, during which time the world and China have undergone earth-shaking changes. The smoke of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression dissipated, followed by a four-year civil war, until 1949, when the founding of the People's Republic of China was established, and the civil war finally came to an end. In this process, Li Wenqing, as a member of the Red Army, has been fighting bloody battles on the front line, and his military talent and courage have made him repeatedly promoted, and finally became the deputy commander of the North Sichuan Military Region, and was also awarded the rank of major general in 1955.
Lijiahe Village is located in a small village on the north bank of the Yangtze River, not far from the county seat of Songzi. The land here is fertile, typical of the Jianghan Plain, and most of the villagers make a living from farming. But since ancient times, the peasants here have lived in misery, and the oppression and exploitation of the landlords have made their lives difficult. Li Wenqing's family was a typical oppressed peasant, with a poor family that was unable to resist the oppression of the landlords.
In 1910, Li Wenqing was born into such a peasant family, and his father, Li Zhenhua, was a simple farmer, and the family had limited financial resources, so he could only rent the barren fields of the landlords. Li Wenqing's mother was a hard-working peasant woman, working at sunrise and resting at sunset, trying her best to maintain the family's meager life. Since he was a child, Li Wenqing witnessed how his father struggled to survive under the oppression of landlords, and his childhood memories are full of the sorrow of the four walls of his family and the figure of his parents working day and night.
Growing up in such an environment, Li Wenqing was frail and sickly since he was a child, but his character was extremely tenacious. At the age of sixteen, his father decided to marry him, hoping to alleviate the family's poverty by increasing his labor force. So, Li Wenqing and his cousin Zhou Yumei became husband and wife. Zhou Yimei married a woman at a young age, which should have been the beginning of family life, but fate did not favor them.
In 1929, when Li Wenqing was 19 years old, the wave of the Red Revolution in Chinese mainland gradually rose, and the power of the Red Army expanded rapidly in the countryside. Li Wenqing decided to leave Li Jiahe, and he had too much dissatisfaction and anger, especially for the oppression of the landlords. He heard that the Red Army represented the interests of the people at the bottom and resisted the injustice of the old society, so he resolutely joined the Red Army and became a soldier. This decision completely changed his fate.
In the Red Army, Li Wenqing relied on his bravery and wisdom to quickly grow from an ordinary soldier to a platoon commander and company commander, and constantly rose through the ranks. He participated in numerous battles against the Kuomintang, and each time he performed well. On the battlefield, he was extremely brave and wounded many times, but he always insisted on fighting. His fighting spirit and leadership skills earned him great prestige in the army.
Between 1931 and 1949, Li Wenqing underwent a transformation from the Red Army to the Eighth Route Army and then to the People's Liberation Army. In the process, he not only made achievements in the military, but also gradually established his influence in politics. In 1949, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Li Wenqing continued to serve in the army and was appointed deputy commander of the North Sichuan Military Region, beginning his new duties.
Sub-heading: A New Chapter of Li Jiahe
After Li Wenqing left the clinic and school, he decided to visit the fields of his homeland, Lijiahe, again. He walked past the newly built canals, which were part of the efforts of the new post-liberation government to improve rural irrigation facilities. The villagers were busy in the fields, and when they saw Li Wenqing, they stopped their work one after another and saluted him from afar to express their respect.
Along the ridge, Li Wenqing came to a small hill in the north of the village. This is where he used to play as a child, and the newly built wind turbine on the hill is slowly turning, providing the village with the necessary electricity. The appearance of the village has changed a lot, the dilapidated thatched huts of the past have been replaced by sturdy brick houses, and the life of the villagers has improved significantly.
At the warm invitation of the villagers, Li Wenqing participated in a simple celebration. The elderly and children of the village sat around and shared a sumptuous dinner, and the villagers specially prepared local specialties for him to express their welcome and respect for Li Wenqing's return. After dinner, the young people of the village performed traditional dances and plays, showcasing the vibrancy of the village culture.
Subsequently, Li Wenqing visited the homes of the elderly in the village and asked them about their living conditions and areas for improvement. The old people talked about the benefits of a new life with emotion and expressed hope for the future. Li Wenqing listened carefully, nodded his head from time to time, and said that he would do his best to help improve their living conditions.
After the event, Li Wenqing walked alone on the path in the village, quietly observing the changes around him. The night sky in the village was exceptionally bright, and the starlight illuminated his way home. His steps were steady and powerful, and each step seemed particularly heavy, as if he was thinking about something important.
The next morning, Li Wenqing, accompanied by the village head, visited the newly built library and activity center for the elderly in the village. The library is not only rich in books, but also has a study space for villagers to study on their own or receive guidance. The Senior Activity Center provides a comfortable environment for the elderly in the village to gather together for activities such as board games and calligraphy practice.
This return to his hometown made Li Wenqing deeply feel the changes and progress in his hometown. On the eve of his departure, Li Wenqing decided to hold a meeting in the village committee to discuss future development plans with village officials and village representatives. At the meeting, he put forward several proposals, including strengthening the village's educational facilities, improving medical services, and upgrading agricultural technology.
In the course of the discussion, Li Wenqing emphasized the importance of education, believing that only by improving the education level of the villagers can they truly change their fate. He suggested that more resources be invested in village schools, while more educational programs, such as vocational and technical training, should be introduced to help villagers acquire more productive skills.
With regard to medical services, Li Wenqing proposed a more complete health network, not only with fixed medical points, but also with mobile medical vehicles that regularly visit remote areas of the village to ensure that every villager has access to basic medical care.
Finally, Li Wenqing paid attention to the innovation of agricultural technology. He proposed the introduction of new agricultural machinery and planting techniques to improve the yield and quality of crops while reducing the pressure on the environment from traditional agriculture. He hopes that through these measures, Lijiahe can become a demonstration site for agricultural production and promote the agricultural development of the surrounding areas.
After the meeting, Li Wenqing waved goodbye to the villagers and promised to do his best to help them achieve these improvements. When he left the village, his heart was filled with hope for the future and a deep affection for his hometown. A new chapter in Li Jiahe is slowly unfolding, and this veteran general, as a witness and promoter of this change, will always be remembered in the hearts of the villagers.