Zhu Rongji
However, Zhu Rongji has stated more than once that he believes that his retirement life will be rich and colorful, which is completely opposite and even contradictory to the "workaholic" style that everyone thinks of him as his "second life" and lifestyle habits during his tenure.
Why was Zhu Rongji so different before and after he left office? What did you do after retirement? What new insights did he get from it?
Everyone praises his outstanding achievements, but he keeps a low profile
Zhu Rongji
"If I can be elected mayor, I am determined to make the next The next government will become a government that serves the people wholeheartedly, is efficient and clean. "
In 1987, the 59-year-old Zhu Rongji made a bold statement when he was about to be elected mayor of Shanghai. This was also a new starting point for his political career. But for Shanghai at that time, and were as high as the sky in order to realize this dream.
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Although Shanghai can be regarded as the largest city after the founding of the People's Republic of China, with a population of more than 10 million, it is not as prosperous as it is now, and is even extremely backward. Poverty, filth, disorder and other phenomena are even more common, resulting in an annual decline in 's fiscal revenue, showing a trend of decline.
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For example, , local products such as "White Rabbit" toffee, "Butterfly Brand" sewing machine, "Shanghai Brand" watches and "Guangming" ice cream that were popular in Shanghai at that time, became slow-selling products for a time, and merchants sighed: "Shanghai people don't buy Shanghai products, they all go to buy foreign gadgets, how can we make money!"
In addition, the incidents that have made ordinary citizens complain, are undoubtedly the " pneumonia pandemic" and the "Lujiazui Ferry Stampede ", which seriously endanger everyone's life safety. When people are in panic, how can they have peace of mind to manage their lives?
Zhu Rongji
Faced with the various difficulties encountered by Shanghai, Zhu Rongji began drastic reforms as soon as he took office as "Mayor of Shanghai". That afternoon, after he arrived in Shanghai from Beijing, he did not go directly to the city government, but first arrived at the Ministry of Finance.
"Secretary of Finance, please show me the fiscal revenue records of Shanghai over the past two years!"
Everyone said that "the three things a new official should do when taking office" , and Zhu Rongji's fearless attitude made managers of various positions in the Shanghai Municipal Government fully aware that "Shanghai is about to change."
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As expected, he quickly proposed the "vegetable basket" project , and formulated purchasing and marketing reform policies and plans for the production of non-staple food, promoting "integration of production and marketing", which greatly promoted the economic development of Shanghai.
What made the general public applaud even more was Zhu Rongji's reform of the Shanghai Municipal Government. At that time, the bad trend of "taking advantage of connections and sending cigarettes to foreigners" was prevalent. When he saw this, he directly made the service system of government agencies public and allowed all citizens to supervise it.
Not long after, the Shanghai Municipal Government changed its past behavior and its work efficiency was greatly improved.
Zhu Rongji
It can be said that without Zhu Rongji,Shanghai would not occupy the first place in China's first-tier cities today, and because of his outstanding performance this time, he was elected as the Vice Premier of the State Council, and has been busy with national affairs since then.
No matter how Zhu Rongji's position changes, he has always maintained his consistent enthusiasm for his work. In particular, his trip to the United States when he later served as Prime Minister of the State Council became an unprecedented opportunity for him to demonstrate his abilities.
You must know that Sino-US relations have made obvious good progress since the "ice breaking" in 1972, but there have also been many stumbling blocks. Especially with the improvement of China's international status, the uneasy heart of the United States has become restless again.
Left one Zhu Rongji
In 1995, the original " General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade " was changed to " World Trade Organization " , and China's "return to customs" journey also became "joining the WTO".However, the United States holds great power in the WTO and can influence whether China's accession to the WTO is successful with just one sentence. Therefore, Zhu Rongji had to visit the United States for mediation.
In 1999, when a group of Chinese delegation members including him arrived in Los Angeles, the United States, the sky was originally clear but suddenly cloudy. However, he did not panic at all. Instead, he shook hands with the American receptionist and said hello humbly and politely.
Zhu Rongji
When an American reporter asked a question, Zhu Rongji smiled and pointed to the US President Clinton next to him, and replied : "I don't have the experience to deal with you, and my heart is beating faster now."
Although he obviously refused the other party's inquiry, he did not lose the humor and cheerfulness of the Eastern style. However, to the surprise of all members of the Chinese delegation to the United States, including him, Clinton would use the excuse of a "mistake" to wantonly distribute the "China-U.S. Joint Statement."
On that day, Zhu Rongji rarely lost his temper and even postponed his participation in the Sino-US negotiations. As soon as he entered the door, he expressed his dissatisfaction to the United States, and then argued with reason to expose the consequences of the wrong actions of the United States..
Zhu Rongji
The style of doing things as a great power demonstrated by Zhu Rongji during his visit to the United States will undoubtedly promote China's journey to join the WTO. Moreover, in the last Sino-U.S. negotiation, he directly appeared on the scene, ignoring Long Yongtu's reminder, and responded to three requests made by the United States in succession.
"The first three issues are for us to make concessions, and the last three issues are for you to make concessions. If you agree, we will sign."
Zhu Rongji's power and caught the US representatives off guard and put them in a passive position, and they had no choice but to agree. The Sino-US negotiations have concluded successfully, and China's accession to the WTO has finally been put on the agenda.
Zhu Rongji
During his five years as Premier of the State Council, he made significant contributions to national development. However, he never expected the world to remember his achievements. He only said lightly : "After I leave office, I hope the people will say that I am an upright official, not a corrupt official. If they are more generous and comment that I have done some practical things, then I will be even more satisfied!"
Zhu Rongji's remarks made the Chinese people agree with him, and he was grateful for his great achievements and spirit.. However, what people don't expect is that the reason why he has this "indifferent and watery" character is because of his experience after experiencing a difficult life.
Suffering creates hard will, which is the reason for his success.
Zhu Rongji
On October 1, 1928, , Zhu Rongji was born in Changsha, Hunan.. Living in troubled times, life was not easy, but his fate was even more miserable. First, his father died of illness when he was not born, and then his mother passed away when he was ten years old.
After that, Zhu Rongji became a helpless orphan, surviving like duckweed in the difficult world at that time.. Fortunately, his third uncle Zhu Xuefang kindly adopted him and gave him a place to stay.
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It is worth mentioning that, after subsequent research, Zhu Rongji was confirmed to be a direct descendant of Zhu Yuanzhang. Perhaps due to his bloodline genes, or because of his difficult experiences at a young age, he particularly cherished the hard-won opportunity to study, and his academic performance was always among the best.
However, in that era of war and chaos, 's peaceful days were numbered .
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Since the "Maritime Incident" broke out in Changsha in 1927, thousands of Chinese Communists and patriots died tragically, but the Kuomintang still did not stop persecuting revolutionaries. The Red Army troops also attacked Changsha twice and achieved certain results.
Therefore, Changsha at that time became the center of the battle between the Kuomintang and Liang Jun, and there were constant melees all year round. Then, as the Japanese invasion of China unfolded, the provinces downstream of Changsha were occupied one after another, and Changsha was also bombed by Japanese planes in turns.
At that time, Chiang Kai-shek telegraphed the Kuomintang troops stationed in Changsha: "Once Changsha falls, the entire city must be burned down and no brick or tile will be left for the Japanese army.""
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However, the Japanese army did not officially launch an attack on Changsha City . Xu Kun, the head of the security regiment responsible for the fire prevention task, received wrong information and issued an order without authorization, asking the soldiers to carry kerosene and sprinkle it on various private houses and shops.
As the torches were ignited, Changsha fell into a sea of fire. The burning time lasted for three days, and the face was burned. As many as 70% of the total has been burned, and as many as 3,000 people have been burned by , which can be called "purgatory on earth". This disaster is also known as "Wenxi Fire" .
Although Zhu Rongji was not aware of the occurrence of this tragedy, the current turbulent social reality also made him unconsciously have the idea of studying diligently and changing his destiny. Finally in 1941, he was admitted to the major with excellent results. Sha Guangyi Middle School .
Zhu Rongji
In 1947, Zhu Rongji ranked first in the province and was admitted to the electrical engineering major of Tsinghua University. There, he not only gained love, but also cultivated a firm revolutionary belief.
It is worth mentioning that due to the influence of his third uncle Zhu Xuefang, Zhu Rongji was very interested in opera, classical musical instruments, etc. He has in-depth study and research on traditional entertainment methods. When he was in college, he often participated in various activities organized by the school. This has also become one of his main leisure activities after retirement.
Zhu Rongji
For Zhu Rongji, his perseverance was forged by his difficult experiences in his youth, and he also said: "I have no father or mother, and I am not afraid of offending others. "This led to a series of great achievements during his tenure as Prime Minister.
Therefore, the world calls Zhu Rongji the "Prime Minister of Common People". He emerged from suffering and led the people in the country to seek happiness. However, no one could have imagined that his thunderous momentum when he took office, was in sharp contrast to the mediocrity after leaving office.
Zhu Rongji
It is reasonable to know that even after a township party committee secretary retires, he can still guide some local work. However, Zhu Rongji is different. He not only stubbornly refuses every official who comes to visit, but also publicly states: "I don't talk about work. "
The reason why he was so determined to separate from the work when he took office was that on the one hand he paid attention to his own life and put his reputation above all else, on the other hand he did not want to hinder the new leadership team, put them in a passive situation and affect their work.
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After leaving office, Zhu Rongji gradually disappeared from the public eye, but he did not stop his contribution to the country and the people, and his life after retirement was amazing. The most incomprehensible thing is that he stopped writing books and even strictly prohibited himself and his family. People read biographies.
He also enjoyed his rich retirement life.
Like many retired elderly people, Zhu Rongji especially loved writing, reading books and newspapers. However, despite his extensive reading, he abandoned his biography, and when others asked for calligraphy, he usually refused.
Zhu Rongji
"Writing a biography is just a patchwork of things, mostly for the purpose of making money. Furthermore, I don't want people to pay too much attention to me personally. I hope they can pay more attention to national affairs. "
Zhu Rongji always adhered to this principle, whether it was for himself or his family, but there was a friction because of it.
At that time, his cousin wrote a biography about him, and showed it to him happily. However, what his cousin did not expect was that Zhu Rongji walked away directly and almost broke off the relationship with him. Come.
Zhu Rongji
Fortunately, their brother Zhu Jingzhi became the "peacemaker" , and they reconciled. Afterwards, Zhu Rongji seriously warned his family: "Don't try to show off our kinship to others by publishing books, otherwise, it doesn't matter if the friendship is broken." "
It is worth mentioning that Zhu Rongji respected his brother Zhu Jingzhi very much, so he persuaded him to forgive his cousin's fault.Moreover, he rarely gave gifts of calligraphy, but on Zhu Jingzhi's 90th birthday, he wrote a birthday message in his own handwriting and gave it to his brother.
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These two books, "Zhu Rongji Answers Questions from Reporters" and "Records of Zhu Rongji's Speeches" , both record Zhu Rongji's words and deeds during his work.
He originally did not want to publish it, but in order to let more Chinese people understand the difficult journey of national development, he revised it repeatedly. It achieved good sales immediately after publication, and he also used all the royalties for charity.
In addition to , Zhu Rongji also refused to join any association . As long as someone uses the name without permission, he will strictly demand cancellation.
Zhu Rongji and Deng Xiaoping
And like Deng Xiaoping, he chose not to return to his hometown after retirement, fearing that someone would ask him for help. Even his mother's cemetery was in a dilapidated state and he never repaired it.
Zhu Rongji said: " I want to reduce my presence and try not to interfere with national development or people's livelihood policies." However, although he still imposes strict demands on himself, his life after retirement is still colorful.
Zhu Rongji
Because of Zhu Rongji's love for Peking opera , would often watch Peking opera performances with a few fans. Sometimes he would simply dress up and hum a familiar melody. Even teacher Zhang Zaifeng of the Hunan Peking Opera Troupe gave him the highest praise:
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"He is good at Laosheng singing, and he is very discerning, which I admire."
In addition, Zhu Rongji can play the huqin. He was busy with work and rarely practiced, but after retirement, he has more time, and his piano skills have also improved rapidly.
In addition to his pursuit of literature and art, Zhu Rongji never forgot the contributions of his revolutionary ancestors. Whenever he had time, he and his wife Lao An visited the memorial hall to review red classic thoughts and encourage young people to learn from the heroes.
Zhu Rongji
On October 12, 2018, Zhu Rongji, who had not appeared in public for a long time, appeared at the Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management event. Although he looks like an old man, he is full of energy in every gesture, making the people of the country unable to help but feel excited.
Today, Zhu Rongji still lives in seclusion, and people can only learn about his current situation from a few reports. However, his beliefs and actions have influenced generations to work hard for international prosperity.
The history of China will leave traces of Zhu Rongji's struggle, and future generations will always remember his great contributions.
