At the end of 1968, the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge was completed and opened to traffic, becoming a grand event in New China, and many party and state leaders came to inspect, leaving behind the figures of Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping and other great people.
Chairman Mao came to the bridge late at night to inspect
On the morning of September 19, 1969, Xu Shiyou, commander of the Nanjing Military Region, held a meeting at the headquarters of the Independent Second Division and demanded that preparations be made for the inspection of the bridge by the central leaders in accordance with the first-level security plan. Although it was not clear which chief was coming, according to the determined level of the plan and the degree of attention paid to Xu Shiyou's personal deployment, everyone guessed in their hearts that the central leaders who came were either Chairman Mao or Premier Zhou.
At 2 p.m. on the 20th, the bridge guard task began, and all the sentries changed into neat military uniforms. At about 7 p.m., the magnolia lanterns of the bridge and the colored lights hanging on the outer wall of the North and South Forts were lit, and the 8 searchlights borrowed from the Air Force were placed on the platform of the North and South Forts. The lights on the bridge are shining, the lights on both sides of the strait are shining, and the colorful colors decorate the bridge more dazzlingly.
At about 8:00 p.m., the leaders of the Nanjing Military Region and cadres of the former 60 or above who had participated in the construction and protection of the bridge came to the bridge together and stood side by side on the sidewalk of the bridge deck. At that time, because martial law was imposed on the bridge, ordinary citizens could not enter, but they could not do without the masses, so the Nanjing Military Region organized some cadres and their families to go to the bridge to watch the night scene.
At 11 p.m., Xu Shiyou inspected the guards of the bridge in a jeep and then quickly left.
At 1:37 a.m. on the 21st, only to see a string of lights shining in the direction of the "I-Fort" on the south side of the bridge, the convoy drove on the South Lead Bridge, drove through the South Fort to continue to the north, and after arriving at the North Fort, the motorcade turned around and drove south. After about 10 minutes, the convoy stopped at South Fort. Xu Shiyou got out of the car, walked quickly to the other side of the car, opened the car door, and carefully helped Chairman Mao get out of the car. When Chairman Mao and Xu Shiyou stood still at the bridgehead, the camera immediately flashed a white light: the great man left a figure on the bridge.
Chairman Mao came to the cadres of the Second Independent Division and said: "The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge is very important, and the troops must guard the bridge well. Afterwards, Chairman Mao went to the other greeters and shook hands with everyone one by one. Everyone was excited and kept cheering and clapping.
According to Zhang Jingfang, the reception section of the bridge management office, the news received in advance was that Chairman Mao was going to enter the bridgehead, so the bridge management office made careful and detailed preparations up and down. Chairman Mao was also a famous poet and calligrapher, and he hoped that he would leave pen and ink after visiting the poetry, so he specially prepared the four treasures of the study room. Among the big people who visited the bridge, only two people enjoyed this treatment, except for Chairman Mao, who was Guo Moruo.
Chairman Mao inspects the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge (oil painting)
Chairman Mao's car drove from the South Lead Bridge to the north of the river, and then returned to stop between the large and small bridgeheads on the south side of the bridge, and then it was ten minutes. The comrades at the reception were waiting for Chairman Mao's arrival at the bridgehead when Xu Shiyou, who was on the bridge deck, pulled Chairman Mao into the car and sped away. This is something that no one expected! In her memory, there are few people like Chairman Mao who visited the bridge, and the visit time was unique.
Bridge construction workers take photos at the bridge site
Mechanical worker Dou Runfang recalled: At the bridge construction site, I was most excited about when, that is, the day Chairman Mao came to the bridge. In the middle of the night that day, there was a silence on the Jiangbei construction site, and the bridge workers who had worked hard all day had entered a sweet sleep, and I was suddenly awakened by a series of neat slogans, so I hurriedly dressed and walked out of the dormitory, only to see that the bridge that had just been opened to traffic was brightly lit, and the light pillar of the searchlight broke through the night sky. The slogan came from the north fort of the bridge, and it sounded like there were hundreds of people, shouting rhythmically over and over again: "Long live Chairman Mao" and "Long live Chairman Mao"! At that time, my brain was not flexible, I did not realize that Chairman Mao had come, and I only learned about it the next morning. I regretted it at that time, I really regretted it. I was wearing shorts at the time, and if I had been dressed neatly, I would have run.
Chairman Mao came to the bridge late at night. This news is like a warm current, nourishing everyone's heart.
Premier Zhou said: "Today I criticized you, but I also learned some things from you."
In the 1970s, Premier Zhou Enlai proudly told visiting international friends: "There are two miracles in New China, one is the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge, and the other is the Hongqi Canal in Linxian County. "Premier Zhou, who is full of opportunities, paid special attention to the national project of the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge and poured a lot of effort. The plan for dealing with many major issues was also determined under the personal presidency of Premier Zhou. After the completion of the bridge, on the afternoon of June 5, 1971, Zhou Enlai accompanied the Romanian party and government delegation to Nanjing to visit the bridge. First took a yacht in the river to watch the whole picture of the bridge, then drove from the South Lead Bridge to the bridge, drove through the Huilong Bridge to the South Fort to stop, Zhou Enlai and Romanian guests walked into the VIP reception room together, and sat on the sofa in the first row.
Premier Zhou took a group photo with Romanian foreign guests
Yang Zuxu, then deputy director of the Bridge Management Office, was a military management cadre, and although he had made full preparations in advance, he was still a little nervous. Yang Zuxu introduced: "The geological and hydrological situation in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River is very complicated, and US and Japanese imperialism has asserted that it is more difficult to build bridges here than to ascend to the sky. Carrying forward the spirit of self-reliance, we designed and built our own construction, and built the world-famous Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge with our own materials. ”
Zhou Enlai immediately interrupted Yang Zuxu's words and said with a serious expression: "Why don't you talk about the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge?" The construction of the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge is the development of the experience of wuhan bridge construction. The pipe string drilling method used in the Wuhan Bridge was designed by the Soviet expert Xilin, which was not adopted by the Soviet Union, we adopted it in Wuhan, and Nanjing also used it, and there was development. For the construction of China's bridges, Xilin is credited. The Wuhan Bridge has erected a monument to the pipe column drilling method, and the Nanjing Bridge can hang a photo of Xilin to respect history. ”
In the atmosphere of the Cultural Revolution, Zhou Enlai openly affirmed that the credit of Soviet experts for the construction of the Yangtze River Bridge has a special significance, and is a negation of historical nihilism and blind xenophobia of ultra-leftist thought. Zhou Enlai then said euphemistically: "You did not talk about this paragraph well, if you don't understand it, you must learn it, and the next time you talk about it, you must make up for this lesson." ”
Zhou Enlai listened to the introduction that the bridgehead was built in only 28 days and asked: "How is the quality of the project?" At this time, a deputy director in charge of production sitting at the back bridge pipe got up and replied: "We have been inspected, the quality is very good, there is no problem." Zhou Enlai looked back at him and said in a very serious tone, "Young man, don't fill your mouth." If everything is good, isn't that a 'one-point theory'? This is inconsistent with Mao Zedong Thought. Our bridge is not perfect, there have been cracks on the bridge. Zhou Enlai went on to say: "Achievements are the main thing, but we can't say enough, and this kind of project will develop in the future." ”
Things are evolving and changing. Premier Zhou's appraisal of the bridge project is realistic, stressing both achievements and problems, and a few words that are clear and clear show the mind and arrogance of the premier of a big country. The original six or seven minutes of explanations were extended by nearly half an hour. After listening to the introduction, Premier Zhou smiled and took the lead in clapping, and everyone present also clapped. Just as Yang Zuxu was guiding the foreign guests out of the reception room and preparing to visit the bridge, Premier Zhou took two steps, shook Yang Zuxu's hand, and said, "Today I criticized you, but I also learned something from you!" Yang Zuxu was excited for a moment and did not know what to say.
It turned out that one of the contents of Premier Zhou's visit this time was to check the reception of foreign affairs. Just now, I learned from Commander Xu Shiyou, who accompanied him, that Yang Zuxu was a cadre of the troops who came to support the left. This handshake was full of condolences and understanding, which made Yang Zuxu's heart suddenly hot and unforgettable.
Deng Xiaoping waved his hand one after another: "No, no! ”
On February 2, 1985, the weather was clear, but the city of Nanjing was still cold in spring, and it seemed a little cold. At 8:00 a.m., three milky yellow vans drove to the south bridgehead of the bridge, and Deng Xiaoping and Wang Zhen, accompanied by relevant leaders of Jiangsu Province and the Nanjing Military Region, inspected the bridge and shook hands with the people waiting here with smiles and greeted everyone.
Deng Xiaoping, Wang Zhen and other central leaders visited the bridge
Deng Xiaoping and his party first reached the railway bridge by elevator from Dabao, and the cold wind on the river was gusting. Deng Xiaoping was at the forefront, followed by Liang Jinyu, the director of the Bridge Management Office, who was worried that Deng Xiaoping was cold and rushed to take the coat from his entourage and put it on him. Deng Xiaoping waved his hand one after another: "No, no! "Continue to look closely along the rails, although the old man is 80 years old, he is still walking well.
After deng xiaoping and Wang Zhen finished seeing the railway bridge, they walked up to the platform east of Nandabao with great interest. At this time, the entourage offered to take a group photo with the two chiefs, and Deng Xiaoping saw Liang Jinyu standing next to him and hurriedly beckoned him to stand in the middle of the group photo. After taking the photos, Deng Xiaoping and Wang Zhen were not tired and continued to inspect the highway bridge deck with great interest.
Hua Guofeng, chairman of the CPC Central Committee, and Hu Yaobang, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, also inspected the bridge. A bridge, three presidents (general secretaries) to inspect, this is no bridge can match the honor.
Show the business card of new China to the outside world
On January 1, 1969, the bridge was put into use. In order to strengthen management, the Nanjing Military Region dispatched military representatives and transferred personnel from the Nanjing Railway Sub-Bureau and the Municipal Urban Construction Bureau to form the Bridge Management Office to carry out external work.
According to the staff in charge of the reception of the bridge, the state leaders at that time either accompanied foreign guests or came to Nanjing to inspect, almost all of them came to the bridge, such as Li Xiannian, Ye Jianying, Xu Xiangqian, Wang Zhen, Deng Yingchao, Guo Moruo, Liao Chengzhi, etc., and some of them came more than once.
After the Cultural Revolution passed, there were more countries with poor friends, girlfriends, and children. The Iranian princess stood on the top of the bridgehead, and at a glance, the sky was blue, the Yangtze River was yellow, the ground was lush, and she could always see the Purple Mountain and see the skyline of the Yangtze River. She said that it was the first time I had seen such a beautiful view.
In April 1987, Bangladeshi President Elshard and his wife visited the Yangtze River Bridge
Once, Peng Chong accompanied the Polish government's minister of education to visit the bridge. When he heard that the construction of the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge had originally been intended to invite the Soviet Union as an expert as an adviser, the Polish Minister of Education immediately interjected that their big river was the Volga River, and that they had not built a bridge like yours, and they would not have had this experience.
Japan once sent a 20-member civil construction delegation to China, composed of elderly and senior authorities in civil engineering who were interested in the Nanjing Bridge. Mr. Atsushi Hirai, an emeritus professor at the University of Tokyo who served as vice president of the World Bridge Society for 18 years, kept asking this and that. During the conversation, they said that some of the technologies used in the Nanjing Bridge have surpassed those of Japan. For example, the 480-meter-long welded seamless rail paved by the railway bridge is still used in Japan. Later, Mr. Atsushi Hirai led two delegations to visit the Nanjing Bridge in preparation for the erection of a super-large railway suspension bridge from Honshu to Shikoku in Japan.
Overseas Chinese, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan compatriots also came, especially after living overseas, they were very excited, they said, after we saw the bridge, we felt that our waist pole abroad was hardened, and we were proud that we were Chinese.
In 1970, Edgar Snow, the author of "Red Star Shines on China" and a famous American journalist, visited the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge
The famous nuclear physicist Wu Jianxiong and her husband Yuan Jiaxiao both came to visit the bridge, and the two asked some questions from time to time and discussed with each other, which was very elegant. Yang Zhenning, who won the Nobel Prize in Physics, came with his mother, an old lady with a brutal spirit, wearing a traditional Chinese women's cardigan with an Anhui accent. Yang Zhenning's mother is long and short, and she cares for her all the way. At this time, Yang Zhenning is no longer a scientific superstar who has attracted the attention of thousands of people, but his son accompanies his mother. The accompanying personnel said that Yang Zhenning's eyes were bright and breathtaking. American journalist Snow also came and excitedly said that the red flag sculpture is a very representative artistic symbol. In the past, the Red Flag guided the Chinese Communists to overcome all difficulties and dangers and establish a new regime; now, the Red Flag calls on the people to build a happy and beautiful new life. The bridge connects China's past and future.
References for this article: "Crossing the Barrier", interview notes