In 1984, it was a special year when China finally won the precious qualification to host the Asian Games.
However, the $2.5 billion needed to host the Olympics is like a heavy mountain, leaving the entire country in a difficult and hesitant position.
At that time, Western countries were gloating and watching from the sidelines, as if they were waiting to see China's jokes. But at this critical moment, a Hong Kong singer who had just emerged in the music scene resolutely stood up.
Zhang Mingmin, in order to help raise funds for the Asian Games, did not hesitate to sell his beloved house and car, and firmly took his team to the mainland, determined to hold a meaningful concert. His name deserves to be remembered forever by every Chinese and deeply engraved in the depths of the soul.
Born in 1956 in the bustling city of Hong Kong, the son of a long-lived expatriate parents, who had a longing for a sense of belonging in their hearts. So, they instilled their great patriotic feelings into Zhang Mingmin bit by bit since he was a child, and patiently taught him to learn to speak Mandarin. During that period in Hong Kong, most of the other children could only speak Cantonese, but Cheung was able to speak Mandarin extremely fluently and sing several moving Chinese songs affectionately.
Due to his mediocre academic performance, Zhang Mingmin entered the journey of social work early after graduating from junior high school and entered an electronics factory. The boring work often made him feel monotonous and boring in life, and singing became the best way for him to pass the boring time.
Perhaps God gave him a unique musical talent, and more and more colleagues were attracted by his singing voice and indulged in it, so he became a recognized "god of song" in the factory. Some enthusiastic colleagues even suggested that he sign up for a grassroots singer contest held by the radio.
In the market where Cantonese songs are popular, Zhang Mingmin relied on his unique voice to perform Chinese songs affectionately and won the championship in one fell swoop.
His faith burned like a fire, and in the same year he signed up for two singing competitions in succession, and without exception, he made it to the top.
At that moment, he realized that maybe singing was the precious opportunity that could change the trajectory of his life. As his fame gradually spread, a brokerage company took the initiative to come to the door and sign a contract with him.
Zhang Mingmin firmly positioned himself as a Chinese singer, and also released several classic songs that are still widely sung by people today, such as the picturesque "Country Road". However, unfortunately, in that era, Chinese songs were not as popular as imagined, Zhang Mingmin's music career did not set off storms, he reluctantly returned to the electronics factory, continued the ordinary working life, and his dream of being a singer was temporarily shattered.
It wasn't until 1982 that the shocking news of Japan's tampering with textbooks came, which made Zhang Mingmin so angry that he couldn't sleep at night, and the anger in his heart burned endlessly. He immediately wrote several songs full of patriotic affection, the most classic of which is the shocking "My Chinese Heart".
It is this song, like the brightest star in the night sky, that attracted the attention of the director of the Spring Festival Gala on the other side of the ocean, thus completely changing the trajectory of his fate.
At that time, the chief director of the Spring Festival Gala was named Huang Yihe, and in 1984, he resolutely decided to change the Spring Festival Gala to a new form of live broadcasting. He intends to invite powerful singers to sing live, but the candidate has not yet been determined. But when he happened to hear the song "My Chinese Heart", he slammed the table and shouted excitedly: "He is the person I am looking for, he is the best choice!" ”
Under Huang Yihe's persistent insistence, the CCTV program team finally successfully contacted Zhang Mingmin after several weeks of hard work and explained the matter to him in detail. Returning to the embrace of the motherland has always been the most ardent desire in Zhang Mingmin's heart, but when this moment really came, he inexplicably hesitated a little.
At that time, he knew almost nothing about the actual situation in China, but fortunately, Zhang Mingmin's parents gave him great encouragement and told him that this was a golden opportunity.
With the deep expectations of his parents, Zhang Mingmin came to the mainland and stepped into the rehearsal site of the Spring Festival Gala. He was worried that he would look out of place with his compatriots, but to his surprise, he was treated with great kindness and warmth.
Director Huang Yihe has been reassuring him not to be nervous, and firmly expressed his belief that he will be able to sing this song perfectly. On the night of the Chinese New Year's Eve, Zhang Mingmin deeply touched countless Chinese on the scene and in front of the screen with his unique and charismatic voice and sincere lyrics.
At this moment, the patriotic sentiment in everyone's hearts was surging like a tide, and it was incomparably high. Zhang Mingmin also relied on his extremely outstanding performance and instantly became a well-known famous singer.
After the Spring Festival Gala, he traveled to many places in China and enjoyed the magnificent mountains and rivers of the motherland. During this time, he received the care and hospitality of countless people. On the phone with his parents, he excitedly said, "I feel like this is my home, I love it so much." ”
However, when he returned to Hong Kong, he was hidden by a brokerage company for political reasons, but Zhang Mingmin didn't seem to particularly care about this, he thought to himself, it would be a big deal to go back to work in the electronics factory.
China's first attempt to host the Asian Games came in 1984, when it cost a whopping $2.5 billion to host the Games, leaving the then-not-wealthiest countries in a difficult position, with a final deficit of 600 million after a painstaking financial struggle.
Western countries are all watching from the sidelines, as if waiting to see the joke. At this moment, a budding Hong Kong singer stepped forward, and he was Zhang Mingmin. At that time, Zhang Mingmin had just become famous for singing patriotic songs affectionately on the stage of the Spring Festival Gala, and became popular all over the country.
After the Spring Festival Gala, he returned to Hong Kong, but in Hong Kong, not only did he not usher in a further take-off of his career, but was ruthlessly hidden by the brokerage company, and in desperation, he had to return to the electronics factory to work hard to maintain the family's livelihood.
This life lasted for a whole year, and he resolutely decided to go to the mainland to seek development. During this period, his son was born, and he affectionately named his son Song Hua, which shows his fiery and pure heart.
Fast forward to 1988, and the Asian Games were imminent. Zhang Mingmin once took the initiative to contact relevant departments, saying that he was eager to contribute to the Asian Games. The organizers also frankly informed that funding is the main problem at present.
He was deeply pondered and felt that he should do something with his fame and influence. He returned to Hong Kong and tried to convince the agency to hold a tour in order to raise funds for his homeland, however, the agency flatly rejected the move.
In desperation, he decided to fund it himself. After gaining the firm support of his wife and parents, he resolutely sold his house and car, purchased his own equipment, and led a team of dozens of people to the mainland to start a concert tour.
He is bent on donating all the ticket proceeds from the concert to the organizers of the Asian Games. In this year, he held nearly 200 concerts and performed the song "My Chinese Heart" thousands of times. At that time, the ticket price of the concert was really low, only a few cents per ticket, but with his tenacious perseverance and firm faith, he successfully earned 600,000 yuan in one year, and did not hesitate to donate all the money to the organizers of the Asian Games.
Although the 600,000 yuan is only a drop in the bucket compared to the funding gap for hosting the Asian Games, in this year, he has repeatedly issued affectionate calls to fans and audiences, coupled with the spontaneous donation boom of the people across the country, and finally succeeded in filling the 600 million funding gap.
After this incident, Zhang Mingmin, who returned to Hong Kong, could only temporarily live in his father-in-law's house. Someone once asked him if it was worth it to sell his house and car. Without hesitation, he replied: "I love my country, I am very proud and proud to be able to dedicate my strength to it, he is the shining star we should really pursue." ”
He really deserves to be remembered by every Chinese.