During this inspection, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to "carry forward the Yan'an spirit and the Hongqi Canal spirit". These two spirits "are in line with each other, an indelible historical memory of the Chinese nation, and will always be shocking."

Category：history

2025-07-15

From October 26 to 28, 2022, General Secretary Xi Jinping visited Yan'an, Shaanxi and Anyang, Henan. This was his first domestic inspection after the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. During this inspection, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the need to "carry forward the Yan'an spirit and the Red Flag Canal spirit ". These two spirits "are in line with each other, an indelible historical memory of the Chinese nation, and will always be shocking."
The story about Hongqi Canal must start with "the years of passion". In the 1950s, a 26-year-old young man named Yang Gui came to Lin County, Anyang, Henan Province and served as the county party secretary. From then on, Lin County became Yang Gui's second hometown, and his fate was closely linked to Lin County. And Lin County, with Yang Gui and Hongqi Canal, its dreams for thousands of years have gradually become reality. They united and united, "rearrange the rivers and mountains", so that the water of the rolling rivers and rivers flowed over, flowed into the cities, merged into the fields, and merged into the long river of the Republic. The story behind Yang Gui and Hongqi Canal was and is still a very wonderful "Chinese story".
Premier Zhou Enlai once proudly told international friends: "There are two miracles in New China, one is Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge , and the other is Linxian Hongqi Canal." People commented on Yang Gui in this way: "In ancient times, there was Dujiangyan, and now there was Hongqi Canal; in ancient times, there was Li Bing , and now there was Yang Gui."

Yang Gui

Rearrangement of the Heshan

Yang Gui, born in 1928, from Luoquan Village, Weihui City, Henan Province (formerly Ji County), he came to Linxian County as the top leader, and was just twenty-six years old. Don’t look at him as young, he is actually an “old revolution”.

Yang Gui was born into a poor family. When he was a teenager, under the leadership of his hometown party organization, he participated in activities against Japan and against the reactionary rule of the Kuomintang government. In 1943, Yang Gui was fifteen years old and had already joined the party. He has served as the village party branch secretary, vice chairman of the county peasant anti-Japanese and national salvation association, and also as the district mayor and director of the county party committee office. After the founding of New China, Yang Gui became the Minister of Propaganda of Tangyin County Party Committee and the Deputy Director of the Anyang Prefectural Party Committee Office.

Yang Gui, who became the secretary of the Lin County Party Committee, traveled all over Lin County in a short time. He wants to understand all the situation in Lin County clearly. He told the leaders of the county party committee that when fighting, we must know ourselves and our enemy; when doing construction, we must also know ourselves and our enemy. To know oneself and enemy in peaceful times is to know the needs of the masses and understand the laws of nature.

At this time, Lin County had more than 900,000 mu of arable land in the county, and only more than 10,000 mu of irrigated land. Most of the arable land can only be harvested for the sky, and it will be harvested on a large scale when it encounters severe drought. There are a few rumors from the people of Lin County: There is no grain harvest on the mountain, and there is no food in the pot. Water is more expensive than oil, and people with drought are also drought.

The people of Lin County suffered from water shortage and started to build water conservancy projects very early. " Lin County Chronicles " records that Lin County has Patriotic Canal, Aimin Canal, Anti-Japanese Canal, Construction Canal, Hero Canal... Yang Gui visited Aimin Canal. This is a canal that began to be built during the Anti-Japanese War. Holding the clear canal water in his hand, he fell into deep thoughts. He came to Xiaozhai Village, Hejian Town, and read the inscription of the "Desert Year Monument" here word by word:

... Recalling the bad years, I felt miserable and suffered from disasters. Shanxi and Henan, but I, Linyi, are pitiful... The population has no food, and two or three houses of ten houses are left... Eat human flesh to cure hunger, the road to death has no flesh, the elm bark is peeled to fill the belly, and when entering the village village, the trees are no skin, from winter to spring, from spring to summer, about seven people die...

He came to Anzigou Village and saw that the village branch secretary led the people of the village to plant thousands of saplings, and the hillside was so sad that he shed tears.

He discussed with the county party committee members. Everyone's opinions are consistent: it's better to work hard than to endure hard. It is not easy to divert water, but you have to do it even if you take a little risk, and you have to do it well. Only when you attract water can you not be afraid of someone saying it...

Yang Gui (stander) and the county party committee leaders conducted investigations and research on diverting water

Today, when people tell the story of Lin County, they often mention the saying "rearrange the rivers and mountains of Lin County".

It was December 1957. At the Second Party Members' Congress of Lin County, Yang Gui, on behalf of the county party committee and county government, delivered a report entitled "The whole party takes action, the whole nation mobilizes, fights hard for five years, and re-arranges the rivers and mountains of Lin County." It not only summarizes the previous experience of the Lin County Party Committee, but also sounds the clarion call for the people of Lin County to fight against the sky and the earth. It mobilized Lin County people to rely on themselves, work hard, and devoted themselves to "rearrange Lin County's rivers and mountains" with greater enthusiasm. This is the declaration that the people of Lin County have the most resolute attitude and loudest voices after the founding of New China.

In the words of Yang Gui's report, "Let the water conservancy projects such as water diversion, building reservoirs to store water, digging mountains and digging holes, burying underground pipelines, digging mountain springs, and digging dry wells bloom everywhere..." Lin County's extensive planning of such a blueprint is inseparable from Yang Gui's judgment of the situation in China at that time and his personal acceptance of the encouragement of the central leadership.

On November 1, 1957, the Rural Work Department of the CPC Central Committee held a symposium on mountainous production in Beijing. This is the first time that the central government has held a symposium on mountain production in the first place since the founding of New China. The meeting believes that moving towards mountainous areas that account for 80% of the mainland my country's area and comprehensively developing mountainous production is one of the important directions for my country to develop agricultural production.

Twenty-nine-year-old Yang Gui attended such a national conference for the first time. It was his turn to report to the conference on the local construction situation. He started with the geographical location and natural environment of Lin County, talked about the history of inconvenient transportation and backwardness in Lin County, talked about how serious soil erosion is here, and how endemic diseases unique to Lin County people bring harm to people's health. Naturally, he talked more about how people in Lin County lack water, how they cherish water as if they were alive, and how a young life disappeared because of a load of water...

He talked infectiously. He choked up in the emotional state. All the delegates were deeply moved by it.

Director of the Central Rural Work Department said loudly: Comrade Yang Gui, please speak freely and not be subject to time limits.

Yang Gui also talked about how Lin County people manage soil erosion and how to build canals. He personally did a lot of the content. He was confident, understood and spoke easily...

conference briefing was sent to the Prime Minister's Office. Premier Zhou Enlai saw it and specially sent comrades from the General Office of the State Council to visit Yang Gui at the meeting and asked Yang Gui to further introduce the situation.

This is the first time that Premier Zhou Enlai learned about the situation in Lin County, and it is also the first time that Yang Gui had contacted Premier Zhou. Premier Zhou ultimately failed to go to Lin County to take a look at the Red Flag Canal in person, but for more than 20 years since then, he has been paying attention to Lin County and a young cadre named Yang Gui.

The people of Lin County not only put forward slogans loudly, but also quickly began to act, and successively built Yingxiong Canal, Yaozijie Reservoir, Gongshang Reservoir, and Nangudong Reservoir. These water conservancy facilities were drills for people from Lin County to build the Hongqi Canal. After the completion of the Hongqi Canal, some of them worked separately, and some were connected to the Hongqi Canal to divert and replenish water, becoming the latter's supporting projects. To this day, they still play a very important role.

Today’s Hongqi Canal

Questions

In fact, Yang Gui in 1958 was relatively down-to-earth. Several major projects in Lin County were almost completed at this time. If nothing unexpected happens, the problem of irrigation in the entire Lin County should be solved.

But things didn't go as expected. In the spring of 1959, Lin County encountered a severe test of the drought demon. There is no water in the river, the reservoir is bottomed out, the pond is dry, the built channels have no water to guide, the built reservoir has no water to store, the irrigated land has no water, and even the draft has become a problem. Without water sources, no matter how many channels or reservoirs are, they will not come in handy. Want to save water by raining down in the sky? That's unreliable.

A bold idea was born in Yang Gui's heart: go to another county to find water.

Three investigation teams were established:

group 1, led by Yang Gui, secretary of the county party committee and Zhou Shaoxian, secretary of the county party committee secretariat;

group 2, led by Li Gui, governor;

group 3, led by Li Yunbao, secretary of the county party committee secretariat.

three investigation teams went to the adjacent Shanxi Province Pingshun, Lingchuan and Huguan County to conduct investigations. These three counties are distributed in the western and northern parts of Lin County, and are higher than Lin County and have water sources in the territory.

They are walking to. In June, there was still no heavy rain, but the grass and trees on the mountain still stubbornly revealed a large area of green, followed by the ochre red Taihang Mountain , which was steep and steep, just like these people passing through the mountains, showing eternal vitality to the sky.

different routes, same goal. They walked the path, climbed the cliffs, slept in the open air, and when they were thirsty, they drank a few sips of mountain springs; when they were hungry, they ate some dry food. Sometimes I live in a cave, sometimes I lie down in the open air. This scene is exactly the life of migrant workers on the Hongqi Canal construction site eight months later. The three groups looking for water felt it in advance. When they looked up, the stars in the sky were dazzling.

Yang Gui and his team walked along the Zhuozhang River. What surprised them was that the water volume was quite large. From time to time, everyone heard the sound of water rushing in the canyon. When they approached, they saw waves one after another. They learned that the Zhuozhang River originated in Shanxi has three tributaries in the upper reaches, and there are groundwater and mountain springs in the middle to replenish water. There are sufficient water sources all year round. Even in the dry season, the flow rate is about ten (one flow rate means that the water passing through the section within one second is one cubic meter), and the water volume in the rainy season is even greater. We can imagine how excited Yang Gui, Zhou Shaoxian and his group were.

The fate of the people of Linxian County He Hongqi Canal was decided at this moment. For decades after that, the history of Lin County has been linked to this moment.

Back to Lin County, Yang Gui and others introduced the hydrological data and data of the Zhuozhang River obtained from the investigation one by one, and solemnly proposed that it is possible to consider diversion from the Zhuozhang River.

Yang Gui's proposal was "applauded" without everyone's "unanimous agreement". After all, Lin County has been building canals and reservoirs for several consecutive years. The county’s finances are tight, and the migrant workers have worked a lot of work and are very tired. If they take another “big mage” project, who knows what the consequences will be?

Several sharp questions were raised:

can't do anything without money.

How much money can the country give?

How big is the lotus leaf in Lin County that can make such a big rice dumpling? The

question is certainly reasonable. China in 1959 was in a difficult situation. The "Great Leap Forward" and "Large Steel" movement, which ignored social reality, brought dual difficulties to the Chinese people in production and life. Henan’s difficulties are more serious than in many places across the country, and it is difficult for the province and region to have the energy to help Lin County.

Yang Gui is not in a hurry to draw a conclusion. He is waiting.

He is waiting for more opinions to be put forward.

He still has to wait for the water conservancy technicians to investigate again.

He also wants to calm down his passion.

He still has to wait to report to the prefectural committee and provincial party committee to seek support from his superiors.

On the night of October 10, the lights in the Lin County Party Committee meeting room did not go out all night. Yang Gui presided over a full (expanded) meeting of the county party committee to study the project of inducing Zhangzhou into the forest.

Yang Gui came to a map of Lin County. He didn't know how many nights he had seen this map, and how many times he had drawn the route to lead Zhangzhou into the forest in his heart. He waved his hand and his palm slid across those important places: Xin'an, Danche, Houbiduan, and Fentouling... He said to everyone: "To completely change the appearance of drought and water shortage in Lin County, I see three things: one is to store water from the sky, two is to dig out the underground water, and three is to bring in the outside water. We have made two of these three things, but it is not enough. The third is to diversion from other places, and we have to work hard on this one. Now we need to drive it out and go to Shanxi to lure the water of the Zhanghe River."

Yang Gui (the one in front of his finger) was working in Linzhou

The words of the county party secretary shocked the hearts of every participant. Silence, whispers, noise... The atmosphere in the venue gradually became warmer.

The venue calmed down later, and Yang Gui continued: "The idea of waiting, relying on, and asking for is absolutely unacceptable. In order to change the appearance of Lin County, so that the people will no longer suffer from water shortage; to guide Zhang County into forest, it meets the basic requirements of the people of Lin County, and will definitely be supported by the general public; relying fully on the strength of the masses, there will be no difficulties that cannot be overcome, and the Zhang River water will definitely be directed to Lin County..."

County Mayor Li Gui made a statement.

County Party Committee Secretariat Li Yunbao made a statement.

County Party Committee Secretariat Zhou made a statement. Shaoxian made his statement. The final result of

, most of the fourteen members of the county party committee agreed. Most of them had suffered from lack of water and hoped to bring the water of Zhanghe as soon as possible; most of them came from difficult life and were used to seeking victory in difficulties and breaking through desperate situations.

Yang Gui (stander) and the county party committee leaders conducted investigations and research on water diversion

Even so, the young Yang Gui still did not panic. He arranged for everyone to go to the commune and village after the meeting, meet more with the masses, tell everyone about the construction of canals, let them figure out what it is about bringing Zhang to forest, and also solicit their opinions, strive to do a solid job of mobilization. In addition, let water conservancy engineering technicians measure the route again to ensure that there is no technical problem.

On November 6, 1959, the Lin County Party Committee submitted the "On the Induction of Zhang" to the Prefectural Party Committee and the Provincial Party Committee. "Report on Forestry Construction".

On December 23, the Regional Water Conservancy Construction Command made a reply:

Regarding your county's plan to build the Zhangzhou forest project, after research and approval, your county's construction will be carried out in stages according to your county's financial, material and manpower. If there is insufficient strength, there are indeed difficulties and it is difficult to overcome, you should do what you can. I hope to tell us your plans as a trustworthy person.

approval efficiency is quite high and the speed is very fast. But if you read the approval carefully, you will find that the approval of the region is actually a bit reluctant. The prefectural committee has already made its attitude: the project needs to start, it depends on the strength of Lin County. Lin County needs to be self-reliant, and the region cannot provide substantial help.

No matter what, approval is good news, it means that it is one step closer to the work. Yang Gui did not expect to get much help from his superiors. In that era, "self-reliance and hard work" "Dou" is not just a sentence that is on your lips, it is a guide to action.

borrowing water

At this time, a key problem has not been solved: Pingshun County can agree to them diversion water?

009, the mountain wind is cold, and the "liaison officer" Wang Caishu and others sent by Lin County passed through the vast Taihang Mountains and ran between Lin County and Pingshun . Discussing the issue of "borrowing water". However, the efforts of Lin County people have not been successful. Shanxi does not agree with "borrowing water".

is not difficult to understand. The problem of water has always been the focus of people's attention. In human history, because of water competition, countless entanglements have arisen between villages and villages, tribes and tribes, and even countries and countries. The quarrels are the slightest, sometimes they are armed fighting, sometimes even wars. Lin County borrows water from Pingshun, and the reason is the same: as long as there is no flood disaster, there is no need to worry about the amount of water, and it is afraid of the small amount.

Yang Gui, who never gave up until he achieved his goal, started thinking: We can't negotiate ourselves, try to take the "high-level route".

On January 16, 1960, the People's Committee of Lin County sent a request report to the Prefectural Committee and the Provincial Party Committee, requesting the Prefectural Committee and the Provincial Party Committee to help Lin County discuss and solve the water source problem with Shanxi. After the request report to the Provincial Party Committee was sent, Yang Gui was still uneasy. He also wrote a letter to Shi Xiangsheng, secretary of the Secretariat of Henan Provincial Party Committee, asking him to pay attention to Lin County.

On November 27, Shi Xiangsheng and Han Provincial Party Committee Secretary-General Dai Suli wrote a letter to Tao Luqian, First Secretary of the Shanxi Provincial Party Committee, and Wang Qian, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Secretariat, requesting the leaders of Shanxi Provincial Party Committee to support Lin County in building the project of attracting Zhangzhou into the forest.

2, on the fifth day of the first lunar month, Tao Luqi, the first secretary of the Shanxi Provincial Party Committee, who was far away in Taiyuan, convened Wang Qian and Liu Kaiji to a meeting to study Lin County's request to "borrow water". The meeting decided to agree to Henan's request and instructed Pingshun County to cooperate with Lin County to do the corresponding work.

2 On February 6, when receiving a reply from Shanxi, Yang Gui was attending the Henan Provincial Five-level Cadre Meeting in Zhengzhou. Li Yunbao, secretary of the Secretariat of Lin County Party Committee, and Yang Gui called and said that they were in Lin County and had done all the preparations and would start construction when Yang Gui returned to Lin County. Yang Gui said he didn't have to wait for him to come back, and he asked Li Yunbao to make final preparations immediately. The two agreed to choose an auspicious day, and the Lantern Festival will officially start on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

February 11, 1960 has since become a turning point in Lin County's history. When people tell Lin County and the story of Hongqi Canal, they always regard this day as the starting point.

has long been deeply rooted in people's hearts. It has become a consensus among people in Lin County. The people of Lin County were ready to go, and just waited for the mobilization order to come, and rushed to the construction site without hesitation.

A team of tens of thousands of people is vast and winding in the Taihang Mountains in the first month of the year.

Their figures are not tall enough and have not good complexion. They wear patched clothes and mostly have cloth shoes on their feet. Yellow military shoes are already luxury goods, and they are the most common hammers, chisels, shovels, and crowbars in their hands. However, their faces were filled with pride. Their figures merge into a spiritual river, coiling on the Taihang Mountains.

artificial canal construction

Flags in the wind and rain

Red Flag Canal project has just started, and some people have expressed their opposition. It is unrealistic to think that Lin County is carrying out such a big project, which is "Hidden the canal by Emperor Yang of Sui" and accusing the county party committee of "building canals hard and serving as heroes." These comments did not disappear when the first phase of the project was completed. Taking advantage of the "100-day rest" period, someone began to reiterate the old saying. The difference is that this time, the discussion is not only at the level of "accusation" or "gossip", but they are reported to Tan Zhenlin, Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council.

In early July 1961, Vice Premier Tan Zhenlin held a meeting at the North Henan Hotel in Xinxiang to arrange and deploy rural "left" work. At the meeting, Tan Zhenlin severely criticized Lin County's work: the masses had no food to eat, Lin County was still forcing the people to build canals, and renamed the Hongqi Canal to lead Zhangzhou into Lin. It was really "holding the red flag to change", and the ghost of the "left" was still lingering. This county party secretary is a dead bureaucrat and should be removed from his post! The Deputy Prime Minister's speech was of course extraordinary. The fate of Yang Gui and Hongqi Canal has reached a critical moment of life and death.

On July 14, the Prefectural Committee Office notified Yang Gui to attend the meeting in Xinxiang.

As soon as he walked into the hotel in northern Henan, Yang Gui felt the nervous air there. In the past, no matter where I attended the meeting or met with old friends, I was very enthusiastic. But this time, Yang Gui found that no one dared to shake hands with him, and people hid when they saw him.

The meeting the next morning began with a burst of depression and silence. Leaders from the Central South Bureau, Henan Provincial Party Committee, and Xinxiang Prefectural Committee participated. At the beginning of the meeting, several county party secretaries talked about the abnormal deaths in rural areas due to food shortages. The severe situation reflected in the speech made the atmosphere in the venue very solemn.

Yang Gui spoke.

He said: The leader criticized us for building the Hongqi Canal. I took the liberty to ask, how many people have been to Lin County and how much do they know about Lin County? Lin County has a shortage of water and does not build the Red Flag Canal, the water use problem of hundreds of thousands of people will never be solved. If the problem of water shortage in Lin County is not solved, it is not worthy of being a cadre in Lin County. The country is in trouble, but we are in trouble. Fortunately, we have some reserved grain , and we have taken out some subsidies to the needy and migrant workers in the canal repair.

He continued: I think the problems that arise in rural areas should be analyzed and solved in a realistic manner. Which level of error should be corrected. We must blame the lower ones without discrimination. The construction of canals in Lin County meets the needs of Lin County people.

The venue was silent. Vice Premier Tan Zhenlin said nothing. After a long time, the host announced that the meeting would be temporarily adjourned... After the meeting, Vice Premier Tan sent an investigation team to Lin County as quickly as possible to learn about the situation in Lin County, and soon the investigation results were obtained. What Yang Gui said is true.

"Bold" Yang Gui later commented: Vice Premier Tan is worthy of being an old revolutionary, with a open mind, and a good leader who is good at understanding the feelings and listening to the opinions of the masses.

Deep down in his heart, Yang Gui is confident. He and his colleagues set rules for the construction site. On the construction site, every kilogram of explosives, every kilogram of grain, and every kilogram of steel brazing must be recorded. The things are first registered in the storage place, and they are put into the warehouse, and they correspond one by one. Whoever collects them and signs them. For example, explosives, depending on the hardness of the stone to be fried, the quantity is accurate to two, and whoever takes it will be responsible. For example, food should be strictly followed by quantitative quantification. On which day, how many people will eat, whether there are any wounded or sick people, how much food is needed, and what kind of food is needed, every account must be recorded.

There are also explicit regulations on the construction site: Like migrant workers, cadres cannot have small training sessions or specializations. They eat, stay, work, study, and discuss construction plans. Cadres must also swing hammers, chisel stones, and quantify them. If they fail on the same day, they must be made up for the next day. The difference is that the food subsidy for cadres is lower than that of migrant workers. If the supply of grain is not high, the subsidy will be reduced, but the reduction must be reduced together. The subsidy for cadres is still lower than that of migrant workers...

Take Yang Gui for example. One day, on the construction site, an cook secretly cooked a bowl of dried millet rice for Yang Gui to serve him. Yang Gui became popular all of a sudden: I will eat whatever the masses eat. The migrant workers are so tired and eat so little, how can I have a small meal!

As a result, the millet rice was poured into a large pot and stirred by a spoon, and it became the Chinese food of dozens of migrant workers.

Red Flag Canal Project has been built for nearly ten years, with an investment of more than 60 million yuan. There has never been any corruption, corruption, misappropriation of canal repair materials, public funds to treat guests and give gifts, and no cadre has dereliction of duty.

This is the pride of Hongqi Canal, the pride of all Linxian people, and the pride of Chinese people in that era.

In September 1962, Yang Gui went to the province to attend the meeting. On the evening of September 21, Liu Jianxun, the first secretary of the provincial party committee, and Wu Zhipu, who had just arrived in Henan to preside over the work, specially summoned him to listen to him report on the construction of the Red Flag Canal. Yang Gui told the two leaders about the construction of the Red Flag Canal in one breath. Finally, he frankly said that after the Xinxiang North Henan Hotel meeting, the county party committee was under great pressure, and the people of Lin County were worried about building the Red Flag Canal.

Liu Jianxun said that he knew the situation in Yang Gui and Lin County. Lin County’s work can stand the test. At the Lushan Conference, Premier Zhou Enlai also specifically asked about the situation in Lin County. Premier Zhou Enlai believed that repairing the Red Flag Canal was a good thing.

This is the second time that Premier Zhou Enlai specifically learned about the situation in Lin County. The first time was after Yang Gui’s speech at the National Mountain Production Symposium in 1957.

Liu Jianxun said to Wu Zhipu: "Comrade Zhipu, it is unreasonable to support a project like the Hongqi Canal without supporting a little money. Comrade Tao Zhu also said that he should support the Hongqi Canal. I think it is necessary to solve one or two million yuan for Yang Gui and the others from the money saved by the provincial administrative funds this year. Their spirit of self-reliance is very good." Wu Zhipu said: "Yes, we should actively support it."

The one or two million yuan at that time was not a small number, it was really a timely help.

What made Yang Gui even happier was that the provincial party committee was able to allocate money to Lin County, which shows that the Hongqi Canal has received attention and support from the leaders of the Central Committee, the Central South Bureau and the Henan Provincial Party Committee.Premier Zhou and Secretary Tao Zhu both support Hongqi Canal, what else can I worry about? Work boldly, work hard, and strive to build the project into water as soon as possible. This is the only choice for people in Lin County.

Yang Gui is loading and transporting soil

does not leave any trouble for future generations

On August 15, 1962, leaders, cadres and representatives of the masses from Pingshun County, Shanxi Province and Lin County, Henan Province sat together. They want to discuss an important matter of the Hongqi Canal Project. The problem of

is the problem of the land occupation of the Hongqi Canal Project in Pingshun County.

Linxian has always had a good relationship with Pingshun, a pair of clothes and water. Historically, there were many wars in the Central Plains, and in order to escape, many people often chose to travel west through the vast Taihang Mountains. Using the eight hundred miles Taihang as a barrier, the lives of ordinary people always have an extra layer of protection. In fact, many Pingshun people are originally from Lin County. They either escaped the wasteland or found a living, crossed mountains and ridges, made a long journey to settle down, relying on their hard work to support the sky of their families.

Lin County Party Committee has always paid great attention to the relationship between the two counties. The cadres and masses of Pingshun County support Lin County to diversion and repair canals, and Lin County people will never forget it. In March 1960, less than a month after the construction of the Hongqi Canal started, Yang Gui walked along the canal line to the head of the canal. While walking, chat with the cadres and masses of Pingshun County. At that time, local people made suggestions: firecrackers were fired on the mountain, and they were still fired. One collapsed on the mountain, and it was like an earthquake, which broke the houses and broke the animals away. In response to this situation, Yang Gui made very specific arrangements at the Panyang meeting held on March 10, 1960. His arrangements reached a "trivial" level. For example, strict criticism of speaking out (reckless and inappropriate); no matter where, if the wheat fields have been turned into a small path, it is necessary to dig quickly to protect the wheat seedlings; get some seedlings and set up a nursery for the local area...

Yang Gui felt that the channel occupied other people's land, and there must be an explanation. There is no explanation. Whether it is Lin County or Pingshun, it will be difficult to explain to their descendants in the future.

He sent someone to Pingshun County to discuss with the other party. His idea was that the land occupied by the Hongqi Canal in Pingshun County, including the canal head, would be compensated for Pingshun County in accordance with the standards determined by the national construction land expropriation measures. After many discussions, Lin County and Pingshun County finally got together and signed an agreement on the "Agreement between Lin County and Pingshun County to discuss and determine the right to use the Hongqi Canal Project".

Yang Gui later recalled the motivation for signing this agreement and said: No trouble for future generations. The agreement clearly states what Lin County and Pingshun County should do and what should not be done at that time and in the future. Whether it is the descendants of Lin County or the descendants of Pingshun County, with this agreement, there will be a basis for whatever they do in the future.

In fact, decades later, there was indeed a problem between Linxian and Pingshun because of water use. As the amount of water in the upstream has become smaller, the water in the Hongqi Canal canal can no longer be distributed to the flow of that year. Pingshun people have to repair the power station. After the repair, it will affect the water use downstream. Fortunately, this kind of dispute was agreed that year. Otherwise, it will become a problem for the cadres and masses of the two counties to negotiate and what basis to negotiate.

Millennium dream come true

When the time came on April 5, 1965, Lin County people ushered in the water-opening ceremony of the main channel. It marks the completion of the first phase (i.e., the main channel), the most difficult project of the Hongqi Canal. The water of Zhang River finally flowed to Lin County.

Thousands of years ago, they were dreaming of this day. Five years ago, they took the pace to go to Taihang Mountain for their dreams. They fought a tug-of-war with Taihang Mountains for more than a thousand days and nights. They shed blood and sweat, and some even paid the price of their lives.

Therefore, County Party Secretary Yang Gui couldn't help but express his feelings at the water transfer ceremony:

Zhanghe River water is hard-won.When you use the water of the Hongqi Canal to irrigate the land, when you use the water of the Hongqi Canal to cook, when you use the water of the Hongqi Canal to generate electricity, when you use the water of the Hongqi Canal to process, when you use the water of the Hongqi Canal to wash clothes, don’t forget the leadership of the Communist Party of China, don’t forget the support of the country, don’t forget the help of brother counties and brother units, don’t forget that every drop of water in the Hongqi Canal is exchanged for the blood and sweat of cadres and migrant workers.

At 2:30 pm that day, after Cui Guanghua, secretary of the Anyang Prefectural Committee who attended the water opening ceremony, Yang Gui announced that the gate would be opened and the water would be released. The water of the Red Flag Canal is like a group of horses, rushing out of the water divider. Yang Gui was less than forty years old at this time.

In September 1965, three main canals of the Hongqi Canal Project were fully started.

The Hongqi Canal Project this year has occupied the best time, place and people.

The situation in the country is getting better, and the situation in Lin County is much better than in previous years. Henan Provincial leaders have given Lin County dual spiritual and material support, which is the time; all three main canals are constructed on Lin County's own land, and material transportation and organization of construction are very convenient. The mountains in Lin County are not that high, and the construction site is not so dangerous. This is a good location; there are hundreds of thousands of people in Lin County, and they have accumulated rich experience in the years of building the main canal. Now, they only need to transplant these experiences and use them according to local conditions. This is a harmonious person.

Push the road across mountains and build bridges across water.

laughter and joy, chasing each other.

You can imagine the joy deep in the hearts of these Taihang men. The speed of construction of three main canals of

far exceeded Yang Gui's expectations. By April 1966, all three main canals were completed, less than a year before construction was started.

On April 20, Lin County people once again ushered in a more grand and grand festival celebration: the completion and water opening ceremony of the three main canals. Tens of thousands of Hongqi Canal people gathered at five venues in Lin County, and 210,000 Lin County people listened to the radio at home. They witnessed this historical moment together with leaders from the provincial party committee, prefectural committee, and guests from Shanxi Province.

" Lin County News' report on the "Introduction of Zhangzhou into Forestry Project"

At this time, Yang Gui was not only the first secretary of the Lin County Party Committee, but also the secretary of the Anyang Prefectural Party Committee. His speech was powerful and meaningful: "The construction of the Red Flag Canal is a decisive battle for the people of the county to march towards nature under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. Through the construction of the canal, the cadres and the masses have further improved their ambitions to conquer nature, and enhanced their confidence and determination to 'mand conquer nature'. People's courage to change the world has become increasingly stronger and their enthusiasm has become higher and higher. In the process of transforming nature, they have also transformed people's subjective world." At

12:20, Wen Minsheng, the second secretary of the Henan Provincial Party Committee and the governor of , raised the scissors for cutting ribbons, and Yang Gui announced the opening of the gate and letting water go. Inside and outside the venue, applause and cheers resounded throughout Lin County in spring.

A thousand-year dream will come true today.

(Original text "The "Chinese Story" of the Hongqi Canal Flag Bearer Yang Gui" was published in "Celebrity Biography" 2021 Issue 7, Text/Zheng Xiong)

Editor 丨 Wang Yuan Responsible for 丨 Wang Yuan Responsible for 丨 Zhang Jingyi

Type Wang Yuan Review 丨 Yang Yanling