It can be said that the Chinese people have had the dream of flying to the sky to explore the moon since ancient times. From the attempts of thousands of households in the Ming Dynasty to the successive launches of rocket ships, the Chinese people have paid too much on the road to flying for thousands of years. Behind every astronaut carries the hope and pride of the motherland.
But there is one group that is often ignored by people. They are the family members of the astronauts. When the astronauts soar in the blue sky, it is they who hold up another blue sky behind the astronauts...
The great aerospace career The woman behind the scenes
Every astronaut has her own family. Many of them have happy families and harmonious relationships. While they have successful careers, they also have enviable families. Among them, Zhai Zhigang and his wife Zhang Shujing’s story is even more envied by many people.
Their story also has an ordinary and romantic beginning.
Many years ago, Zhai Zhigang was still far away from Xingchen Universe. At that time, he was just the instructor of a certain regiment of pilots at a trial training center of a certain department of the Air Force. At that time, Zhai Zhigang was very high-spirited. In addition to his excellent professional skills, he was also good at playing music, chess, calligraphy and painting. , poetry and poetry also have some insights, he is a person who is both internal and external.
But only when it comes to marriage, Zhai Zhigang always makes his family worried. He seems to have no desire to start a family and has always been alone. The military wives at the base initiated various relationships to introduce Zhai Zhigang to a partner, but he was always lack of interest. lack.
At that time, Zhang Shujing was thousands of miles away in Harbin. She was born into a family of pilots.
Zhang Shujing is a famous beauty in the military camp, but she is not very interested in dating and marriage. Her relatives, friends and colleagues have repeatedly introduced her to someone, but she is not even willing to give her a chance to meet. When others ask her what her requirements are for choosing a mate, she just shakes her head and smiles without saying a word.
Many things are destined. One day, someone saw Zhai Zhigang returning to the base to work, and sitting next to him was the beautiful Zhang Shujing. The two sat on the grass beside them in the name of fellow villagers, smiling. Chatting happily.
One of them looked up at the sky as clear as water, and the other lowered his head and caressed the grass by the river. This scene also fell into the eyes of the matchmaker, and she slapped her head: How could you forget these two people!
So she immediately stepped forward to connect the two of them. Zhai Zhigang's answer surprised her even more. He said: "We are already talking about friends."
It turned out that they were both from Heilongjiang, and they were participating in the same group The Air Force, the two knew each other when they were in the recruit company . Later, one was assigned to the flight team , and the other was assigned to the logistics department, so they were transferred to different places, but the two parties have always maintained communication.
They are thousands of miles apart, but they are so similar. No wonder they end up together.
In the eyes of their relatives and friends, the sudden relationship between the two was like a thunderbolt. They were thousands of years old. So relieved.
In 1993, Zhai Zhigang and Zhang Shujing became a couple, and they also formed an ordinary and happy family.
Reality and romance have always been somewhat different. After marriage, Zhang Shujing followed her husband and was transferred to the trial training center. From the bustling city to the remote countryside, the place is sparsely populated and has an unpredictable climate. Many times, you can't even eat fresh fruit. If you don't watch it every day, Seeing the roaring fighter planes, Zhang Shujing even thought she had arrived in a primitive society.
As a daughter who is treated like a treasure by her family, Zhang Shujing was very uncomfortable with this kind of life at first. She felt a little unbalanced in her heart. Once she thought the food was unpalatable, so she threw down her chopsticks and stopped eating.
Zhai Zhigang on the side saw this and remembered the experience taught by veterans that "you miss home when you are full", so he tried every means to buy a jar of pickled sauerkraut for his wife. When he was not on flight missions, he cooked for his wife in different ways. Eat, sauerkraut vermicelli, sauerkraut with white meat ... Zhang Shujing felt much better after eating dishes with the taste of her hometown.
Although she had some minor tempers, Zhang Shujing was Zhai Zhigang's haven for most of her life.
On May 5, 1995, Zhai Zhigang was flying a trainer aircraft at an altitude of 1,000 meters. The weather changed midway through the flight. Suddenly, it was covered with dark clouds and heavy rain. Fortunately, in the end, Zhai Zhigang relied on his experienced experience and The technology landed smoothly without any danger.
Such news reached Zhang Shujing's ears, and she immediately broke into a cold sweat. She was extremely worried. At this time, she suddenly discovered that her husband Zhai Zhigang was so important in her heart. To a certain extent, This importance even exceeds her own.
From then on, when Zhai Zhigang was about to go out to perform a mission, Zhang Shujing would give him an affectionate hug. Every night, when her husband knocked on the door at home on time, she would feel calm in her heart. It was with this The care of his family made Zhai Zhigang, who was alone outside, feel a lot of warmth and gave him the strength to hold on in this difficult position.
In 1996, an opportunity came to Zhai Zhigang: to participate in the astronaut primary selection physical examination.
Zhai Zhigang has professional driving skills and excellent psychological quality. These two conditions are destined for him to go further. He had already expected this, but at the moment when he heard the news, he still felt overjoyed. Crazy, you know, becoming an astronaut is the biggest dream of every pilot.
Zhang Shujing also knew about this. She was also happy for her husband. However, she was still far away from becoming an astronaut after participating in the astronaut primaries. The physical examinations became a matter of course. The first hurdle before the two of them.
After passing the clinical physical examination, the organs of the human body, large and small, must be examined one by one. After several rounds of physical examinations, there are very few of the more than 1,000 preliminary finalists left. After several rounds of selection, it is time to study profound and boring theory. , more than a dozen courses were thrown at him at once, and Zhai Zhigang had to study from morning to late at night every day, just like he was about to take the college entrance examination.
After successfully passing the cultural exam, Zhai Zhigang finally entered the short list of 20 people. At this time, he was only one step away from success. The last hurdle naturally came before him: testing the candidates' family members. .
In other words, if an astronaut's family members fail to meet the requirements, he will also be eliminated. Knowing this news, Zhang Shujing was very worried. She could not have imagined that her husband's future was still in her own hands.
During the days of waiting for the result, both of them were a little uneasy. Zhang Shujing thought for a while and said to her husband: "If it affects you because of my physical condition, then I would rather get divorced. Even if it is divorced, it will not affect yours." The future! "
At this time, Zhang Shujing no longer focused only on her own family. Because of this love, she understood her husband's career and everyone behind her husband. From this time on, Zhang Shujing also began to From a little daughter-in-law pursuing a little love, she has transformed into a piece of heaven behind her husband.
Fortunately, good news has come. Zhai Zhigang has become China's first-generation space pilot as he wished. He will go to the northwest together with several other astronauts to prepare for the future flight to the stars.
Zhang Shujing also set off immediately, following in her husband's footsteps. She worked at the Aerospace Food Research Institute, and both husband and wife became "aerospace people."
A happy family, a long-lasting love
From the blue sky to the sun, moon and stars, Zhai Zhigang took a big step in his career, while Zhang Shujing quietly pulled behind him and ran a warm and happy family.
Zhang Shujing said to her husband: "You will be a national treasure from now on, and you don't have to worry about family affairs."So I took over the burden of the family.
Career and family are the two most difficult problems for people to solve. The burden that Zhang Shujing took over in one sentence was obviously not that easy. They had just settled down the family, Zhang Shujing thought When she was thinking about making something delicious for her husband, a cold copy of the "Interim Regulations on the Management of Astronauts" was placed in front of her.
Zhang Shujing took a look and it clearly stated that three meals a day must be attended by a nutritionist. Formulate recipes and keep samples of each meal. To purchase food, you have to go to a specialized store. If you want to buy vegetables, you have to go to a green vegetable base in the suburbs of Beijing. Astronauts must not eat whatever they want like ordinary people. .
Zhang Shujing was stunned. Astronauts were indeed "pandas".
Just eating was enough, and the life that followed exceeded Zhang Shujing's expectations: whenever she went out with Zhai Zhigang, there would always be someone behind her. The entourage followed, and even if they were crowded on the bus outside, there were still people who came to help. When Zhang Shujing was in an emergency, she wanted Zhai Zhigang to ride a motorcycle to take her there, but there were organizational regulations that Zhai Zhigang could not ride a motorcycle...
There are many such things , which made Zhang Shujing feel a little uncomfortable at first. She felt like a prisoner in a concentration camp, but when she thought that doing so would be good for her husband and herself, for example, not being allowed to smoke or drink, it invisibly restricted her husband's living habits. Not being allowed to ride motorcycles also reduced many potential risks. After adjusting her mentality, Zhang Shujing accepted this fact.
In 1999, their precious son was born, and the new addition made the family lively and lively. Zhang Shujing was so busy that she was originally worried that her child would disturb Zhai Zhigang, so she wanted to take her child back to her hometown. However, Zhai Zhigang said: "Astronauts are also human beings, how can you deprive me of my right to be a father?" "As long as he is at home, Zhai Zhigang does his best to take care of his children.
The arrival of new members not only did not trouble the two of them, but also made Zhai Zhigang more calm in his career.
In 2003, Zhai Zhigang and Yang Liwei and Nie Haisheng At the same time, Zhai Zhigang became a candidate astronaut for the " Shenwu ". Zhai Zhigang devoted himself to the closed training with confidence. At this time, a change quietly happened to his family.
Zhang Shujing received her mother-in-law. News of serious illness.
For Zhai Zhigang, his mother is the most important person in his life. His father has been ill for many years, and all the children in the family are raised by his mother selling fried melon seeds. This great The mother has also raised several children to be talented, and they have all studied above high school. It can be said that without her mother, there would be no Zhai Zhigang who entered the space agency today.
However, if this news is told to Zhai Zhigang now, it will have some impact. Her husband's training, but if she kept it secret, she was afraid of bringing lifelong regret to her husband.
At this time, Dayi's mother-in-law called and said that she was afraid of affecting Zhai Zhigang's training and asked her to help hide the news. Zhang Shujing had no choice but to agree with tears, and during this period of time, Zhang Shujing had to support the pain by herself. After that, she kept in touch with her mother-in-law at any time, rushed home whenever she was free, and bought a lot of medicines to send back. .
Zhang Shujing thought a lot. She asked herself to take good care of her mother-in-law, and she also asked herself to fulfill her husband's filial piety. For the sake of her husband's condition, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law have been hiding the news, even though the mother-in-law has been actively treating her, but it is a pity that things do not work out. Hopefully, my mother-in-law died of illness in 2004.
At that time, Zhai Zhigang was still in training. Zhang Shujing rushed back to her hometown alone and tried her best to arrange the funeral arrangements for her mother-in-law. In 2005, Yang Liwei was selected for the Feitian, and the rocket successfully took off. , Zhai Zhi just got the opportunity to go home to visit relatives. When he returned to his hometown after a long journey, all he saw was his mother's grave. Only then did he understand what happened.
The man could not shed tears easily. He burst into tears in front of his mother's grave. This was the first time Zhang Shujing saw her husband shed tears. She stood behind him, grieving for him while also understanding her husband's aerospace career better.
Fate played a trick on Zhai Zhigang. He was not able to see his mother for the last time during the "Shenzhou Five". He was also unsuccessful in the "Shenzhou Five". As a result, he still failed in the " Shenzhou VI ". His teammates Nie Haisheng and Fei Junlong Flying into space, Zhai Zhigang was inevitably disappointed.
The frustrated Zhai Zhigang asked his wife with a wry smile: "Do I still have a chance?"
As a wife, Zhang Shujing gradually became stronger in the trials of life. This time, she comforted her husband: "You are in At the golden age of an astronaut, you still have a chance. Your mother-in-law’s last wish is for you to fly into space. How can you give up?”
Under his wife’s repeated guidance, Zhai Zhigang cheered up and soon, the "Shenzhou 7" flying project was launched. Implementation began, and Zhai Zhigang was once again selected into the astronaut echelon. This time he finally got his wish, and went into battle easily with excellent physical fitness and a relaxed spirit.
If it is gold, it will always shine. Zhai Zhigang’s efforts were finally not in vain. At 6 pm on September 25, 2008, China Aerospace gave birth to three astronauts again. At 16:40 on the 27th, Zhai Zhigang opened the Shenzhou 7 spacecraft. The door of the orbital module of the human spacecraft was opened, and the space extravehicular activity was carried out for the first time.
In the vast space, for the first time, Chinese footprints were left.
At this moment, Zhai Zhigang became the focus of the world's attention, and Zhang Shujing watched her husband take an epoch-making spacewalk on the screen. At this moment, in addition to the indescribable excitement, there was also endless worry and worry in her heart.
Fortunately, everything came just right.
A few things about Zhai Zhigang and his wife
At the ceremony to welcome the astronauts back, the other two astronaut wives presented a large bouquet of roses, but Zhang Shujing only brought her husband a bouquet of lilies, with lilies in the middle With a pink rose inserted, it looks particularly eye-catching.
A reporter saw this and asked curiously: "Why did you choose only one rose?"
Zhang Shujing joked: "Originally, I planned to buy 99 roses, but yesterday I heard a TV host say that there are many women The child fell in love with Zhigang, so I changed my mind and decided to buy only one rose. As long as I have this one, no other roses can be inserted in!"
After saying this, Zhang Shujing laughed, and Zhai Zhigang stood aside! Then he scratched his head in embarrassment and said to his wife: "Hey, I only have this one in my life."
A rose symbolizes single-minded love; a bouquet of lilies symbolizes a century-old love.
When he returned home, Zhai Zhigang was an out-and-out model husband. After becoming famous, he always felt that he owed his wife and children too much, and always wanted to share more for his wife, such as washing, cooking, mopping the floor and washing dishes, as long as he was there At home, he always snatched things from his wife's hands and worked hard.
A familiar person once curiously asked: "Why can't I see any sadness in you two?"
Zhang Shujing answered this question in just three sentences: "A warm husband, a lovely father, and a filial son. "
When talking about Zhang Shujing, everyone who knows her will give her a thumbs up, and her friends will praise her for her beauty. Zhai Zhigang often shows off the beauty of his wife, but in fact, in his heart, the beauty of his wife comes from the inside out. A light that cannot be concealed.
Along the way, Zhai Zhigang never forgot his dream of spaceflight, and as a wife, Zhang Shujing always understood and supported her husband's choice.
Finally, Zhai Zhigang once again had the opportunity to go to space - Shenzhou 13.
On October 16, 2021, Shenzhou 13 was successfully launched.
On April 16, 2022, Zhai Zhigang successfully completed his "Shenzhou 13" mission and returned to Earth smoothly.
When Zhai Zhigang got off the plane, the scene of him hugging his tall and handsome son holding flowers moved countless people.
On June 28, 2022, 74 days after Zhai Zhigang and three other astronauts returned to Earth, they officially appeared in public for the first time in Beijing Space City .
When interviewed by the media, Zhai Zhigang said that the whole return process was very exciting, and his energetic expression when he said these words was enough to illustrate his love for the aerospace industry.
Behind Zhai Zhigang's glorious achievements is the selfless dedication and sacrifice of Zhang Shujing, a good wife and mother. She has always been firm in her choice, followed in her husband's footsteps, and never left.
References
[1] "The Gentle Man Zhai Zhigang"; Duxiu.com; 2004
[2] "The Wives Behind the Astronauts"; Duxiu.com; 2015
[3] "Hu Jie Jie Xi Soaring Together"; Duxiu.com; 2014
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