Source China Military Network
I was appointed as Commander-in-Chief of The Guard in October 1974. After two years of getting along day and night, from the bits and pieces of life, I deeply felt the great spiritual style of his old man's generous morality and hundreds of rivers.
According to the chief's relatives and the veteran comrades who worked around him, in their memory, Commander-in-Chief Zhu rarely traveled to other people's homes, and most of the time it was others who came to see him at home. But when he was nearly 90 years old, he still insisted on visiting a translator and educator, Comrade Cheng Fangwu. This past has left me with a memorable memory for a lifetime.
It was May 20, 1976, and I distinctly remember it as a Friday morning. Commander-in-Chief Zhu drove to the Central Party School behind the Summer Palace to visit Comrade Cheng Fangwu.
The day before (May 19), Commander-in-Chief Zhu's secretary, Yin Qingmin, said to the chief who was having breakfast in the restaurant as soon as he went to work in the morning: "Chief, Comrade Cheng Fangwu has sent two copies of the latest translation and publication of the Communist Manifesto, one in large size and one in small font. Commander-in-Chief Zhu said very happily, "Good! You get me to the office. "It's already on your desk," Secretary Yin said.
Commander-in-Chief Zhu drank the porridge in a few sips, and even if there were not enough dried roasted steamed buns left for him, he got up and went into the office, put on his reading glasses, picked up the large-scale copy of the "Communist Manifesto" and read it on the case.
On this day, Commander-in-Chief Zhu ate very quickly and did not eat much. After dinner, when chef Cao Bingquan cleaned up the table, he saw that the chief's meals were left with some left for three meals, so he asked me: "Xiao Li, today's chief's appetite is not good, sick Wow?" "Nothing! The chief read the newly published "Communist Manifesto" one day today, and the walk was only a small circle in front of the building, and he was particularly energetic! I replied to Master Cao.
Commander-in-Chief Zhu spent a day carefully circling the newly translated and published Communist Manifesto.
The next day, Commander-in-Chief Zhu got up early in the morning to wash up, went into the restaurant to prepare breakfast, and just sat down and said to me: "Tell the secretary, today, I want to see Cheng Fangwu." ”
"Chief, your old man is so old, let's take him over and talk about it." Secretary Yin rushed to the restaurant to persuade him not to go.
"Why do you want people to come and see me?" He's about the same age as me, so I'll go see him! After eating, I went. The old man insisted on his opinion.
Secretary Yin had no choice but to quickly call Comrade Cheng Fangwu by phone.
When Cheng Fangwu heard that Commander-in-Chief Zhu was going to see him, he hurriedly said, "No! No! Mr. Zhu is old and inconvenient to move, or I will come! Secretary Yin said busily: "I have already persuaded the boss, he insists on coming, you will wait at home!" ”
I hurriedly reported to the Central Guard Bureau that Commander-in-Chief Zhu was going to visit Cheng Fangwu at the Central Party School in the morning, and asked the nurse Sheng Juhua to accompany Commander-in-Chief Zhu to chat for a while and strive for more time to arrange relevant work.
While eating breakfast, Commander-in-Chief Zhu asked Me and Xiao Sheng: "Have you read the Communist Manifesto?" "Read it, studied it in the company, it's a bit of a mouthful to read." Xiao Sheng and I answered in unison.
Commander-in-Chief Zhu said, "Go and get the new Communist Manifesto book on the table." I hurried to his office and took the book and handed it to him. He pointed to the book and said, "This is the latest translation of Cheng Fangwu, there is no upside down sentence, it is easy to read and understand." I've read it all over again. ”
Commander-in-Chief Zhu continued: "Cheng Fangwu was born into a family of intellectuals, and he has been pursuing truth and progress since he was a child, and is an old party member. This man is very knowledgeable! He understands the languages and scripts of many countries, is proficient in German, French, English, Japanese and Russian, and is the only university professor on the Long March Road. He has done a great deal of work for our party to disseminate and master Marxism, and has trained many cadres for our party and the army. ”
Commander-in-Chief Zhu pointed to the book "Communist Manifesto" and said, "This is the third version I have seen in the Cheng Fangwu translation, and this version is very well translated!" ”
After eating, Commander-in-Chief Zhu simply washed up and said, "Bring the book with you, let's go!" ”
Nurse Xiaosheng knew that the entourage of the guard car of the Security Bureau had not yet arrived, so he said: "Chief, you take a little rest, I will bring the medicine, you can eat it and leave, can you?" ”
"Okay." After answering reluctantly, he went into the living room and sat down on the sofa.
According to the living habits of Commander-in-Chief Zhu, after breakfast, he had to walk around the courtyard for a few laps before going to work in the office. But his old man canceled the walk on this day.
The staff around Commander-in-Chief Zhu quickly made their own preparations. Commander-in-Chief Zhu went to the coat rack and put on his coat, and said to himself, "No crutches." ”
On that day, only Sister Kang Keqing was at home, and her relatives were not there. When she saw that Commander-in-Chief Zhu was reluctant to take crutches, she was a little anxious and said, "Boss! Didn't you say 'one more stick and one more leg'? Crutches are still good to wear. It's still early, so don't worry. I also want to see Comrade Cheng Fangwu, but this is your job, and I am not in a position to go. You will say hello to Comrade Cheng Fangwu on my behalf! "Therefore, this outing was accompanied only by staff.
At 8:30 a.m., Secretary Yin Qingmin, health nurse Sheng Juhua and I followed Commander-in-Chief Zhu in a red flag car driven by Su Shuting. Zhao Yuxin and Guan Xueping accompanied the guards. At 9 o'clock, we arrived at the residence of Comrade Cheng Fangwu on the right rear side of the Central Party School.
Comrade Cheng Fangwu was already waiting in front of the door, and when he saw Commander-in-Chief Zhu, he was very excited, and hurriedly went forward to help him and said, "Boss! I should have visited you!" How can I get you to come in person?! ”
After sitting down and greeting a few words, the topic turned to the new translation of the Communist Manifesto.
Commander-in-Chief Zhu said, "I have already read the book you gave me. I can read the big font for myself, and the small font size will let the secretary and staff read it to me. ”
Commander-in-Chief Zhu said as he opened the large-scale copy of the Communist Manifesto, which was given to him by Fang wu, with many red circles and bars.
Comrade Cheng Fangwu said: "The level is limited, and I don't know if the translated text is easy for Zhu Zong to understand?" ”
"Easy to understand, very easy to understand. If it's not easy to understand, I won't read it in one sitting. ”
Commander-in-Chief Zhu also said: "This is a fundamental task, and doing a good job in this work is of world significance." This classic work deals with basic issues, such as the class struggle, the question of the nation and the state, the question of the family and women, etc., all of which are very clear. Now that we are talking about many questions, we still have to consult Marx and Engels, and we always have to look at how the Communist Manifesto speaks..."
Commander-in-Chief Zhu also learned in detail about Cheng's translation work, asked how many assistants there were, how long it took to translate the new translation, and said, "There are not many old comrades in our ranks, and it is very important to train more successors." Commander-in-Chief Zhu smiled at Comrade Cheng Fangwu and said, "I want to treat you here as a 'point' and come to see you from time to time in the future." Comrade Cheng Fangwu hurriedly said, "Elder Zhu, you can't stand me when you come to see me!" I'll take the time to visit you later!" ”
Comrade Cheng Fangwu then briefly introduced the work of the new translation of the Communist Manifesto: "This was approved by the Central Committee at the beginning of last year. The original translation was based on the German version in 1929 and 1938, and it was later revised according to the Russian version. This time, my assistants and I re-corrected it more rigorously according to the original German published in 1848. ”
Time passed quickly, and considering Commander-in-Chief Zhu's physical condition, Comrade Cheng Fangwu quickly diverted the topic and asked, "Is your old body still tough?" ”
Commander-in-Chief Zhu smiled and said, "I can still move, my digestion is good, I insist on soaking in the water every day, and I can use the crutch!" Both laughed.
Finally, Comrade Cheng Fangwu accompanied Commander-in-Chief Zhu to get into the car and guided Xiao Su to drive around the campus in a large circle, briefing Commander-in-Chief Zhu on the development of the Central Party School as he walked. Before leaving, Commander-in-Chief Zhu asked Comrade Cheng Fangwu to take care of his health. Comrade Cheng Fangwu clasped Commander Zhu's hand and said movingly, "Boss! You and Sister Kang should take extra care! ”
In 1975, Chairman Zhu De received NPC staff at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The second from the right is Comrade Li Tingliang, the author of this article.
In 1986, Chairman Zhu De's wife, Sister Kang Keqing, received Comrade Li Tingliang, the author of this article, and his wife and daughter.