Hero Li Yannian an ordinary day

Source: Jiefangjun Daily, PLA News and Communication Center Rong Media Author: Chen Dianhong, reporter of this newspaper, special correspondent Feng Qiang

An autumn rain took away the last trace of warmth in the green city of Nanning. The rain in Nanning is more like a fog woven by rain silk. The streets are empty, and pedestrians, buildings, and trees are all vaguely outlined.

In the rain and fog, the reporter stepped on the wet path and came to a simple two-story building. The pale yellow building still maintains the architectural style of the 1980s. Entering the living room, the family smiled at the group photo placed in the corner of the TV cabinet.

This is the home of the hero Li Yannian.

With the popularity of the first unit of the TV series "Meritorious Service" "Nengwen Nengwu Li Yannian", the name Li Yannian has aroused heated discussion among the whole people. Many young netizens do not know that the hero Li Yannian on the screen is still alive. When people talked about Li Yannian after tea and dinner, the old hero's home was as quiet as ever.

Slowly put on the army green clothes and gently smooth the folds of the corners of the clothes. Tidying up in front of the mirror is an action that Li Yannian repeats every morning.

In the sound of the rain, the 93-year-old hero buckled the wind discipline buckle on the collar, straightened his back, and slowly walked out of the bedroom.

This day is November 2, 2021. This reporter came to the recuperation center for the third retired cadres in Nanning of the Guangxi Military Region and walked into the ordinary day of hero Li Yannian.

"War, far more brutal than television"

At 7 a.m., Li Yannian got up on time as usual.

Neatly stacked bedding, a few military green clothes, clean shoes... Every detail in the room is silently telling every visitor that the owner here is a veteran.

Over the years, the furnishings of Li Yannian's house have hardly changed.

The only significant change is that on the wall behind him hangs a picture of him when he was awarded the Order of the Republic -

On the morning of September 29, 2019, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Li Yannian received the "Order of the Republic" from President Xi Jinping. The award speech reads: "Li Yannian, a first-class hero and special meritorious hero of the Volunteer Army, has experienced the baptism of war, sacrificed his life and forgot his death, bravely killed the enemy, and made great contributions to the establishment and defense of new China. ”

This is the highlight moment of the hero Li Yannian, and it is also the republic's highest praise for a combat hero.

In sharp contrast to the shining glory is Li Yannian's simple life.

A bowl of white porridge, a plate of side dishes, two buns. At the dinner table, Li Yannian ate breakfast unhurriedly. He put down his chopsticks, picked up the fallen small dishes from the table, put them in his mouth, and wiped the table clean.

Seeing this scene, her daughter Li Zhongxia told reporters: "For decades, he has been so frugal. ”

frugal? Perhaps it is more appropriate to say that it is cherished. Li Yannian picked up the small dish that had fallen, which may be just a habit of a veteran for him.

Not long ago, the movie "Chosin Lake" was broadcast, and a set of pictures made countless viewers cry -

In the snow and ice, the frosted warrior took out the hot potatoes in his arms. The black, small frozen potatoes were the rations of the Chinese Volunteer Army on the Korean battlefield.

At that time, Li Yannian was in the Korean battlefield, and the frozen potatoes were also his breakfast.

If you ask Li Yannian, what is the difference between a hero and an ordinary person? The answer, perhaps, is to know how to cherish more.

Today, 71 years have passed since the Chinese Volunteer Army went abroad to fight in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. People can only see the war on the screen.

On September 26 this year, the major realistic theme work "Meritorious Service" was released, and the premiere unit "Nengwen Nengwu Li Yannian" aimed the camera at Li Yannian, a first-class hero and special meritorious hero of the Volunteer Army, attracting people to pay attention to the war-torn years.

Li Yuan, a demining soldier who was shot and killed after stepping on a mine, Luo Houcai, who died in a tank battle, and Zhang Shaojie, an artilleryman who sacrificed himself to blow up the enemy's ammunition depot...

In the play, the sacrifice of every volunteer soldier makes it difficult for the audience to suppress tears.

Watching "Nengwen Nengwu Li Yannian" by the TV, Li Yannian said a word to his son Li Zhongnan: "War is far more cruel than the TV stage." ”

"When we went, the mountains were full of trees, and when we left, the hillside had been blown into a scorched earth by shells." Li Yannian will never forget that at that time, in order to occupy the 346.6 heights, the whole company had 203 people on the position, and only about 40 people were left at the end of the battle...

The audience, watching the play. Li Yannian is looking at his own life.

When people were touched by the plot in "Noh Wen Neng Wu Li Yannian", the protagonist in the play silently walked to the wall, looked at the map on the wall, and stood for a long time.

The War of Liberation, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, border operations... Having experienced more than 20 large and small battles, Li Yannian has in his heart those comrades who fought side by side and sacrificed on the battlefield in the past, and none of them have been forgotten.

"I just firmly believe that the party's leadership will be able to win the battle."

"High pressure 110, low pressure 70, better than young people's blood pressure." At about 9:00 a.m., Zhang Ying, a nurse at the Dry Rest Center, came to inspect and measured Li Yannian's blood pressure, and the old man very cooperatively stretched out his arm.

After measuring his blood pressure, Li Yannian sat down on the old rattan chair that was unknown how many years old. Putting on his reading glasses, he took a magnifying glass and began to read the newspaper word by word.

"On weekdays, the last time you can disturb your father is when he studies." Son Li Zhongnan told reporters, "Can't be persuaded! The old man is 93 years old this year, and he still wants to participate in the party history knowledge contest for the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. ”

On Li Yannian's bookcase, there are two neatly arranged scrapbooks. On his study notes, one stroke and one painting are full of loyalty to the party and the people: "I joined the army and fought for 27 years, 'I can't eat enough, wear and don't warm' and 'millet plus rifle', but when I win, I firmly believe that the party's leadership will be able to win the battle..."

After experiencing the baptism of war, Li Yannian more and more deeply realized the truth that "political work is the lifeline of our army."

"Respect and trust are also fighting power!" In a situation where they could be killed in artillery fire at any time, what supported the young soldiers to persevere and continue to fight was, in addition to firm faith, the full trust and timely encouragement from the cadres around them. ”

On the battlefield, he led by example, always interpreting the great truth in a down-to-earth and simple language. He exerted the work responsibilities of the instructors to the extreme, and also stimulated the combat effectiveness of each soldier to the extreme.

Just as the headquarters of the Volunteer Army commented on him: Comrade Li Yannian, in the battle to attack the 346.6 highland, under the condition of fierce fighting and heavy casualties, reorganized the organization five times in succession, and put forward powerful agitation slogans at any time, bravely advanced under the circumstances of victory, suppressed the position under tense circumstances, and maintained the organized fighting of the troops from beginning to end... It played a decisive role in the victory of the battle.

"In a day, watching the news and studying is the most time he spends. I was particularly kind to see him say those words to everyone in the TV series. At Li Yannian's home, there are nearly 10 kinds of newspapers such as "Reference News", Li Zhongxia told reporters, "Learning is the habit that my father has maintained for decades." ”

"The job of a soldier is to fight. On the battlefield, shells do not care whether you are a military cadre or a political cadre. Talking about "Nengwen and Wu", Li Yannian did not seem to think that there was anything special about this. In his opinion, this is the most basic quality of a commander.

In "Nengwen Nengwu Li Yannian", the daughter Li Zhongxia met the other side of her father -

Standing at the forefront of the battlefield, Li Yannian faced the enemy's artillery blockade of the open passage of the 346.6 height, and successfully led the troops through the artillery blockade belt by observing the interval between shelling; by constructing two layers of defense lines with different heights and heights to confuse the enemy, using the anti-slope of the enemy's artillery fire not covered to avoid bombing attrition; by observing the movement of the US army to determine the location of its ammunition depot and send people to blow it up, and launch a charge with comrades-in-arms, and launch a white-knife battle with the enemy army...

"The way he charged with blood was simply handsome." Seeing Li Yannian on TV, nurse Zhang Ying had a hard time connecting the kind old man in front of her with the heroic figure.

Not only Zhang Ying, after leaving retirement, many people around Li Yannian "ignored" the heroic nature of him.

"He didn't like to talk about things on the battlefield, and he never mentioned his merits and names to people. When talking about this area, he will diverge from the conversation. Wang Bingshan and Li Yannian, retired cadres, have been neighbors for more than 30 years, and they rarely hear Li Yannian mention the events of that year, but his deeds are still seen from the propaganda materials and books of the troops.

After the broadcast of "Meritorious Service", "Noh Wen Neng Wu" and "Hero" seemed to have become Li Yannian's life "label", but he never took the initiative to mention this matter.

"Honor belongs to all comrades-in-arms who sacrificed their lives, and I will listen to the party." Li Yannian's tone was slow and firm.

"We must win the war so that the next generation will not fight"

Near noon, steam was pouring in the kitchen. Unlike many retired elderly people who like to play cards, travel and square dance, Li Yannian prefers to read newspapers, do laundry and cook.

Chicken soup, dumplings... Before his wife died last year, it was Li Yannian who took care of her. The laundry, even on days of gunfire, he always did it himself. Li Yannian said: "Since I became a cadre, I have not let people do it once, and I wash my clothes when I get dirty. ”

Just like in "Nengwen Nengwu Li Yannian", in order to hold the position, Li Yannian inspected the bunkers one by one and the tunnels one by one to meet the storm of steel poured by the US army after dawn.

Personally, whether on the battlefield in the past or now, Li Yannian has carried out this point all his life.

Before the age of 80, he insisted on riding his bicycle to run errands, give reports to school, and often took his wife and cart to the nearby market to take a turn, enthusiastically carrying this and that for the neighbors.

Every time he came back, Li Yannian would refuse the help of others and push the cart up the slope of three or four hundred meters in front of his home. This impressed the nurse Zhang Ying.

In life, Li Yannian is very low-key, just like he lives every day, living in simplicity. After receiving the "Order of the Republic", many units and organizations invited him to participate in the event, but they were rejected. Only the primary and secondary schools invited him to give lectures on red education, and he almost responded to every request. It was one of his few public appearances.

"We want to let the children know about the history of the past. For decades, we have gone from not having enough to eat and wear warm clothes to now not being able to eat and wear all, all of which were bought with the lives of comrades who sacrificed their bloodshed, and they are real heroes. ”

At Li Yannian's home, there is a handmade painting given to him by a student of Hongxing Primary School in Nanning City. On the painting, two elementary school students on the playground salute the bright red national flag. Whenever a guest came to the house, he would show the painting to everyone.

"Only when the next generation understands China's past can it be a good successor to the revolution." Young people should study hard and inherit the great cause of New China. What makes Li Yannian happy is that the story of their generation is known to more and more posterity.

"We have to win the war so that the next generation doesn't fight. The next generation will give new weight to the lives of those martyrs. ”

After the lunch break, Li Yannian will go up to the second floor.

Here, flowers and plants such as bougainvillea, orchids, and cacti are planted, and Li Yannian has to come to see them almost every day and water them. In his opinion, these bougainvillea that can bloom in the cold wind and the cacti that can withstand drought are the strongest in flowers and grasses, like those who have come from the revolutionary war years, and have an inexhaustible momentum.

At about 21:00, night fell, and Li Yannian went to bed on time to rest.

With the light rain outside the window, Li Yannian fell asleep.

In the distance outside the window, the lights of the city are brilliant.