On February 28, 1985, Xu Shiyou’s children reunited to celebrate the 80th birthday of the veteran general. This year, Xu Shiyou was 80 years old. Although he was still in good spirits, and although his children and grandchildren were happy, everyone felt a little shadowy.

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On February 28, 1985, Xu Shiyou’s children reunited to celebrate the 80th birthday of the veteran general.

This year, Xu Shiyou turned 80. Although he was still in good spirits, and although his children and grandchildren were all happy, everyone felt a little shadowy.

Because this year’s Spring Festival had just passed, Xu Shiyou had said several times that he felt a little sore.

Xu Shiyou fought all his life and suffered many injuries. When the weather was cloudy and rainy, the children often heard the old general talk about pain, but he always talked about those injuries with pride and disdain. They were medals of glory left to him by the revolutionary cause, so pain was nothing special.

But this time is different.

The old general couldn’t tell where the pain was, but he could only say the right rib.

As soon as he mentioned the right side, the children all felt that something was wrong. I went to ask the health care doctor. When I mentioned this position, the health care doctor was a little nervous. The old general had never mentioned the pain in this place. After all,

is already 80 years old, not what it used to be. Without telling Xu Shiyou, everyone went to a professional doctor to consult the situation.

At that time, the soldiers and civilians in Nanjing all knew that Commander Xu loved drinking, especially Maotai. Upon hearing this, the doctor, like the health care doctor, realized that there might be something wrong with Xu Shiyou's liver. The doctor quickly advised the children of the Xu family to ask Commander Xu to come to the hospital for a specialized and in-depth examination. If they were sick, they would be treated as soon as possible. If they were not sick, they would not be nervous.

When the children came back, they didn't dare to say that he was sick. They just asked Xu Shiyou to go to the hospital in the name of a physical examination.

Xu Shiyou is a smart man. He suddenly said that he should go to the hospital. He knew that his children were worried about him.

Xu Shiyou said confidently: "It's okay. My health is very good. You can see that I have a clear mind, flexible hands and feet, and can eat and drink. I can guarantee that I will not get any serious illness in one or two years."

Xu Shiyou said it very easily, but, This does not erase the shadows and uneasiness in the hearts of the children and health doctors. In order to comfort Xu Shiyou, although they pretended to be relaxed, they mentioned it very seriously. Xu Shiyou said: "Wine is a good thing. Drinking less can refresh you and activate your blood. But Everything has its disadvantages. Drinking too much alcohol will damage your body over time. It's harmful to your health. You'd better reduce the frequency and quantity in the future."

The health care doctor carefully and softly comforted Xu Shiyou. He glared and reprimanded: " What nonsense? I can drink it whenever I want. No time, no bite, as long as I have a breath, I will drink to my heart's content."

Obviously, Xu Shiyou regards drinking as an important and indispensable part of his life, and it is inseparable.

htmlIn May, Xu Shiyou reluctantly agreed to go to Shanghai for a physical check-up after the health doctor persuaded him. Shanghai East China Hospital is a high-end hospital in East China. The medical level is second to none in this area. However, the examination methods at that time were still backward compared with now. Many examination instruments were not available. The doctors carefully and comprehensively examined Xu Shiyou. As a result, many tests were normal, but his blood test results surprised the doctors. The content of alpha-fetoprotein was greater than 1,000 nanograms, 40 times higher than the normal value.

This means there is a big problem with the liver.

Hospital leaders did not dare to be careless and personally organized experts to conduct consultations and studies, and concluded that Commander Xu had at least cirrhosis of the liver. Whether he had liver cancer or not, further examination was needed to confirm.

The doctors gave Xu’s family clear instructions to pay close attention to physical changes and conduct regular check-ups.

Xu Shiyou has a very bad temper. The health care doctor did not dare to tell him what his test results meant. He just told him vaguely that although there was a slight problem in the test, it was not a big problem. The liver pain was due to an inflammatory reaction. Xu Shiyou must listen. Doctor, pay attention to maintenance and don't drink too much.

Xu Shiyou agreed very well at the time, but soon he forgot about the doctor's instructions.

One day during lunch, his grandson came. Xu Shiyou was in a good mood and asked someone to bring him a bottle of wine, but he still wanted to drink it. The health care doctor patiently tried to persuade him, but Xu Shiyou got very angry. He slapped the table and said, "No matter what, you have nothing to do after eating, so you know how to control my drinking! As long as I live for one day, I have to drink for one day!"

has always had its own way. Xu Shiyou did not listen to the advice and drank another half a catty of wine.

The health care doctor was aggrieved, but his worry about Xu Shiyou's health still did not ease at all. He went to Xu Shiyou's children and said that he thought it was not a good thing that Huadong Hospital did not have a clear diagnosis of Xu Shiyou's condition and that further examinations should be carried out.

At the risk of being reprimanded by Xu Shiyou again, everyone persuaded him to go to the Nanjing Military Region General Hospital for another check-up.

Xu Shiyou was really upset and said angrily: "It's not okay to get checked in Shanghai. Why do we need to check again? I won't die for a while."

The health care doctor changed his tune and said: "We just imported it from Germany. A new machine, man If you stand in front, you can see whether you are sick or not."

Xu Shiyou was also amused: "Isn't this the magic mirror of Tota King ? If you can see the disease, go and see it."

Health care doctor. It's a CT machine. After going for a checkup, it was concluded that he had cirrhosis of the liver and no obvious space-occupying lesions were found.

The so-called space-occupying lesions can be regarded as a representative word of cancer to a certain extent. When Xu Shiyou learned about this situation, he laughed and said to the health care doctor and his family: "You are all afraid that I am sick, and it is not a big deal."

However, the Nanjing Military Region General Hospital was not optimistic about Xu Shiyou's condition. Depending on age and liver condition, cirrhosis may develop into liver cancer at any time.

After Xu Shiyou returned home, he still insisted on drinking. He used his salary to buy a lot of Maotai and saved it. Sometimes he drank Maotai and sometimes other drinks. Although the amount was much smaller, it was always constant. Who dares to persuade him not to drink again? , he will train anyone.

Everyone was worried about Xu Shiyou.

Xu Shiyou is not an unreasonable person. The health care doctor must know much more about medicine than he does. His judgment cannot be groundless or looking for trouble. He couldn't ignore the constant pain in his body.

Finally, under the force of his children, he went to the Nanjing Military Region General Hospital for examination again.

In July 1985, the results of Xu Shiyou's two blood tests were not good. Both alpha-fetoprotein levels were greater than 1,000 nanograms, which was consistent with the conclusion of Shanghai Huadong Hospital.

After consultation, experts believed that after five consecutive months of examinations, the results were the same and primary liver cancer could be diagnosed.

According to common sense, the diagnosis is clear and the patient's family can be informed. However, Xu Shiyou is not an ordinary patient, so the doctors will not act according to common sense. They adopt a cautious attitude for fear of making an incorrect diagnosis.

They drafted a document titled "Report on Comrade Xu Shiyou's Health Condition" and submitted it to the Military Region Party Committee and to the Central Advisory Committee - Xu Shiyou was serving on the advisory committee of at that time.

The "Report" has been repeatedly scrutinized. They carefully considered every sentence and punctuation for fear of making mistakes. One of the paragraphs reads: "After research, it is believed that there are liver cirrhosis lesions and clinical symptoms. Alpha-fetoprotein Significant growth, high suspicion of liver cancer, or Cancer has occurred on the basis of liver cirrhosis. To confirm the diagnosis, it is recommended that the commander go to the Beijing People's Liberation Army General Hospital for further examination. "

It can be seen from this paragraph that the Military Region General Hospital has determined that Xu Shiyou has liver cancer, but for the sake of caution, he made suggestions. Beijing inspection.

At this time, Xu Shiyou's condition had alerted the central government, and Deng Xiaoping knew about it. Everyone likes this general who has a distinctive personality, dares to act, and dares to speak out. They also hope that he will be safe, healthy and live a long life.

has received much attention and expectations from many parties. The Central Military Commission and the Central Advisory Commission both sent telegrams urging Xu Shiyou to go to Beijing for medical treatment, but Xu Shiyou declined. Leaders from the Nanjing Military Region and Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee also took turns coming to mobilize Xu Shiyou to go to Beijing.

Xu Shiyou always said the same thing to everyone he met: If you don’t want to go, you just won’t go.

He still eats and lives as usual, directing everyone like a production captain every day, feeding the pigs, growing vegetables, and making arrangements in an orderly manner. Sometimes he felt that he was in good health and would take everyone hunting. He seemed to have endless strength in his body, as if he was still the "Monk Xu" who rode on horseback to fight.

But careful health practitioners have observed many sad signs.

Xu Shiyou's appetite has become smaller. He often says that he cannot digest pantothenic acid , his face is getting darker and darker, his hands and feet are shaking from time to time, and he can't even hold the gun tightly when hunting...

On September 10th, Xu Shiyou went out hunting again. , but his legs were so weak that he couldn't even get in the car. The health care doctor did not dare to neglect and quickly notified the Military Region General Hospital to come to Xu Shiyou's home for treatment.

The hospital immediately sent a team of experts to the home to investigate, and Xu Shiyou had already passed out. Everyone frantically rescued him. Fortunately, Xu Shiyou woke up.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he woke up, he opened his mouth and said: "Bring me a drink."

In the past war years, when he was extremely tired, he always relied on drinking to refresh himself, and he almost always tried his best. So for decades, he never stopped drinking. Even if his body showed warning signs, he still refused to give up this habit, as if it was already a part of his life force.

The doctors looked at each other, it was already this time, who dared to get him wine!

Xu Shiyou kept insisting, but at this time the pain of liver cancer had already struck, and all his energy was devoted to fighting the cancer pain. With his eyes blurred, he seemed to have returned to the moment when he fought fiercely with the Japanese in Shandong...

After the rescue was successful, Xu Shiyou calmed down for a few days. This time he really realized that there was no problem with the hospital's diagnosis. . The end is approaching and no one can escape. Xu Shiyou did not reveal much about his death fears to doctors or family members.

One day, he endured the pain, called his children, and solemnly arranged something. When

spoke, his tone was calm, as if he was not sick.

The children couldn't help but cry when they heard it.

It turns out that the old general arranged the funeral arrangements.

When a person is about to die, how to arrange his funeral becomes the last important thing. What ordinary people arrange is nothing more than inheritance, legacy, and the like.

Xu Shiyou didn't have much savings, so all his salary was used to buy wine. According to Xu's family, he only left more than 1,000 yuan. There is no need to bother dividing the money.

The big thing he arranged was to bury in his hometown, Xin County, , next to his parents' tombs. This matter of

has actually been mentioned several years ago.

At that time, national leaders took the lead in cremation, and the trend of cremation gradually emerged in the whole society. The initiative

was first proposed in 1956. At that time Xu Shiyou had some ideas of his own.

In 1956, during the Central Work Conference held in Zhongnanhai, , central leaders silently circulated a "Proposal" on the cremation of leaders of state agencies. One paragraph of it read: "From birth to death, people This is a natural law. After a person dies, he should be properly placed and mourned in appropriate ways. This is human nature. There are various arrangements for death in the history of our country and among all ethnic groups in the world. Among them, burial and cremation are the main methods, and burial is the most widely used. However, burial occupies cultivated land and wastes wood. In addition, the feudal ruling class of our country in the past dynasties used thick burials and long funerals as rituals, which often caused many families to go bankrupt because of burying the deceased. The situation, cremation does not occupy cultivated land, does not require a coffin, can save the cost of burial and burial, and does not hinder the commemoration of the deceased..."

At that time, all central leaders signed the "Proposal" . Soon after, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China held its Eighth National Congress, and Xu Shiyou was elected as a member of the Central Committee. Central committee members and leaders of the party, government and military who attended the meeting carefully signed their names on the back of the "Proposal". When the "Letter of Initiative" was passed to Xu Shiyou, he not only did not sign it, but also went to Chairman Mao to say that he did not understand it and gave his reasons.

He expressed that he wanted to return to his hometown for burial.When he was young, he left home to start a revolution and never took care of his father and mother much in his life. He went home to visit his mother for the last time in 1932 and did not return home for 20 years. When he returned home in 1952, only his mother was left at home and she was still living in poverty. Xu Shiyou could not kneel down in front of his mother and cried all day long. .

Later, he vowed to repay his mother well and took care of her loving mother for several years.

Xu Shiyou's idea was to be loyal to the party and the people during his lifetime, and to be filial to his parents after his death. He asked the Party Central Committee to allow him to be buried next to his parents after his death.

Chairman Mao did not express his position at the time.

Because Xu Shiyou was still young at the time and did not need to face such problems, Chairman Mao did not speak, and other central leaders did not pay attention.

Later in 1979, when many central leaders died, they were cremated according to the signatures signed that year. Xu Shiyou was already 74 years old at that time, already in his seventies, and it was time to make arrangements for his funeral. He sent 50 yuan to his son Xu Guang and asked him to arrange his burial in advance. Xu Guang immediately followed the custom of Xin County, selected good wood in his hometown, and made a coffin for his father.

At that time, the rural elderly were not afraid of death. They were accustomed to preparing longevity materials for themselves in their old age and keeping them generously at home. Xu Shiyou is not taboo about this either.

On New Year's Day in 1985, Xu Shiyou actually had a premonition that he was ill. Although he was carefree to his family and doctors, saying that he was not afraid of death and that he was not sick, his health could not be ignored.

He suddenly made a report to the central government, applied again, and was buried after his death.

In September of this year, when Xu Shiyou was seriously ill, he asked many times whether the central government approved his report to the central government and requested that he be buried back in the new county.

Central leaders all feel very embarrassed. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, except for Comrade Ren Bishi who died early (in 1950), Chairman Mao was not cremated at the invitation of the people of the country to commemorate him. All other leaders have been cremated.

No one dares to break this example now.

Finally, the report reached Deng Xiaoping. Deng Xiaoping was hesitant at first, not knowing whether to approve or not. In late October, the

matter finally reached the point where it was no longer possible.

On October 22, the famous general Xu Shiyou passed away at the age of 80. The Xu family and the Nanjing Military Region are eagerly waiting for instructions from the central government on whether they can be buried instead of cremated.

On October 26, the central government’s instructions came, yes!

But Deng Xiaoping also said that this was just an example and would not be repeated in the future.

Xu’s family and the Nanjing Military Region felt great comfort.

The central government commissioned General Wang Zhen to come to Nanjing to say goodbye to Xu Shiyou. General You Taizhong, then commander of the Guangzhou Military Region, personally sent people to the virgin forests of Guangxi to cut down the best nanmu and made a coffin for General Xu.

On the night of November 9, 1985, General Xu Shiyou's coffin arrived at Xu Shiyou's hometown in Xin County, and a grave was dug in front of his parents' grave. General Xu returned to his hometown.

The all-powerful and powerful general has returned to his role as a filial son and will always stay by his parents' side...