I would like to use this article to commemorate Comrade Liu Shaoqi, the leader of the Party and the country.
Liu Shaoqi
Return to his hometown, the county party secretary did not recognize Liu Shaoqi
On May 1, 1961, the Ningxiang County Party Committee received a notice from Hunan Provincial Party Committee - President Comrade Liu Shaoqi will go to Ningxiang County to inspect and investigate the next day.
Ningxiang is Liu Shaoqi's hometown. Since he joined the revolution in 1920, Liu Shaoqi has not returned to his hometown for 40 years. The Ningxiang County Party Committee was notified that the next morning, he organized a team to the county party committee compound, waiting for it.
It was almost noon, and two jeeps drove into the yard. The car stopped and several people got off.
didn't have a mobile phone at that time. The county party secretary and deputy secretary didn't know when Liu Shaoqi arrived. When he saw a few people, he thought the chairman had arrived. When he saw that there were only a few people, he didn't look like that, so he stood on the steps and looked around, and did not go over to greet him.
Liu Shaoqi was wearing a blue cloth dress and a pair of green cloth shoes, walking towards him, but no one paid attention to him, so he met the other party and missed it and continued walking in. Wang Guangmei followed behind without saying anything.
Suddenly, a cadre felt that Wang Guangmei, who had just passed by, looked familiar, and hurriedly turned around and asked: "Isn't this Comrade Wang Guangmei?"
Wang Guangmei smiled and agreed.
"Where is Chairman Liu?" County Party Secretary was surprised when he heard the conversation.
"Here, this is not!" Wang Guangmei smiled and pointed to Liu Shaoqi who had just passed by.
everyone was shocked. They thought that the President of the People's Republic of China would definitely have a big show when he came to inspect. Who would have thought that Liu Shaoqi was so low-key, and both sides passed by, but no one paid attention!
On the afternoon of the same day, Liu Shaoqi listened to the report of Ningxiang County Party Committee. After a day of investigation the next day, the Ningxiang County Party Committee arranged for Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei to live in the county. Liu Shaoqi was unwilling and wanted to go back to his hometown, Huaminglou Township, to take a look and live in an old house.
Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei
In November 1898, Liu Shaoqi was born in Tanzichong, Huaminglou Township, Ningxiang County, Hunan Province.
When Liu Shaoqi grew up, he first studied in a private school near Tanzichong. At the age of 15, he entered the First Higher Primary School in Ningxiang County. In 1920, 22-year-old Shaoqi left his hometown alone and joined the revolution, and never returned to his hometown again.
Today, Liu Shaoqi is already the President of the country. According to the ancients, "Wealth and honor will not return to our hometown, like walking in brocade clothes at night" . After being rich and honor, you must return home in glory and shine your family.
But Liu Shaoqi didn't talk about this. After dinner, he and Wang Guangmei dressed in a common clothes and went to Huaminglou Charcoal.
stayed in his old house overnight, lived in the room where his mother lived
When he arrived at Tanzi Chong, Liu Shaoqi found that his old house had been decorated as "Comrade Liu Shaoqi's former residence Memorial Hall" . This was done by the local government. Liu Shaoqi frowned without Liu Shaoqi's consent in advance, obviously not very happy.
Wang Guangmei was very excited when she first arrived at the old house where Liu Shaoqi grew up, but when she entered the house, she was a little disappointed.
The first room in the door was the main hall, empty and there was nothing. In the second room, there was an elegy couplet, which was "You were the first helper in my childhood study and activities."
Wang Guangmei asked Liu Shaoqi curiously, and then she realized that the room was lived in by Liu Shaoqi's brother Liu Yunting. When Liu Yunting was young, he took Liu Shaoqi to work and supported Liu Shaoqi to study. He was deeply brotherly. When he died in 1949, Liu Shaoqi wrote this elegy couplet for his brother, which was later placed in this room.
Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei looked at some other rooms again. The furnishings were very simple. There were white mosquito nets on the bed. Because there were no electric lights, some white candles were placed on the table, which made people feel a little strange and unqualified.
Liu Shaoqi's former residence room furnishings
After walking around, Liu Shaoqi chose the room where he and his mother lived.
Liu Shaoqi's father passed away when he was 9 years old. He and his mother lived in the same room and had a deep relationship. The room my mother lived in was very small, except for the bed, but Liu Shaoqi said that he missed his mother and was willing to live here.
A week after that, Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei were crowding in this small room and refused to stay in the guesthouse in the county.
Wang Guangmei was full of interest in Liu Shaoqi's hometown. The two lived together for so long, and Liu Shaoqi was busy with affairs. He rarely told Wang Guangmei about his hometown and stories about his teenage years. However, this time, when he returned to his hometown after 40 years, he evoked Liu Shaoqi's memory of the past and told Wang Guangmei about his childhood stories.
Liu Shaoqi has 3 brothers, 2 sisters, and 2 younger brothers below, but they died shortly after they gave birth. Liu Shaoqi became the youngest child in the family, ranking sixth. He ranked ninth and youngest by cousins.
Because he is the youngest child in the family, Liu Shaoqi's childhood life is worry-free. Before going to a private school, he helped his family herd cattle, mow grass, and chop wood every day. After going to school, he only helped his family herd cattle during holidays.
Liu Shaoqi was in poor health when he was a child, and had stomach problems , , lung disease, and he also practiced martial arts to exercise. At that time, there was a wooden stick in his old residence. It is said that Liu Shaoqi used it when he was practicing martial arts. Wang Guangmei smiled and asked: "Is it true?"
Liu Shaoqi smiled and said: "I can't remember it myself."
Liu Shaoqi's former residence
resolutely escaped from marriage and embarked on the revolutionary path
Compared with children of the same age, Liu Shaoqi liked to read, observe and think since he was a child. When he was not working, Liu Shaoqi liked to read, and even forgot to eat and sleep. Because he read a lot of books and had rich knowledge, people gave him a nickname "Liu Jiu Bookcase" .
Among Liu Shaoqi's brothers and sisters, the second brother Liu Yunting had a greater influence on him.
Liu Yunting served as a soldier in the Hunan New Army when he was young. After the outbreak of the Wuchang Uprising, his troops went to Hubei to support the revolution, but were disbanded halfway. Liu Yunting returned to his hometown and brought back a book called "The Origin and Last Record of the Revolution of 1911".
The book was Liu Shaoqi's revolutionary enlightenment. He carefully read the whole book, and thus developed revolutionary ideas and firmly demanded to cut off the braids on his head. This action was supported by his second brother, so Liu Shaoqi said "You (Liu Yunting) was the first helper in my childhood study and activities."
As he entered school, Liu Shaoqi's knowledge broadened, and Western mathematics, physics, chemistry and scientific ideas had a great influence on him, making him more disgusted with some traditional backward feudal customs, including arranged marriages.
At that time, once they got married, it was impossible to go to school. Liu Shaoqi refused firmly and was locked up in the house. That night, Liu Shaoqi did not sleep all night. After a fierce ideological struggle, he took advantage of the late night and escaped from the house in the early morning.
Liu Shaoqi took a photo with cadres and the masses in front of his former residence
In that turbulent revolutionary era, many people with lofty ideals had similar experiences of running away from marriage or running away from home. It’s not that they don’t love their families, but in the face of the constraints of feudal ethics, they decisively chose to break free and boldly rush toward the new era.
Later, Liu Shaoqi kept thinking about Zhou's family, and he asked his cousin to tell Zhou that he wanted to break off the marriage relationship with her. Zhou was a traditional rural woman. She thought that this meant being divorced by her husband's family, which was very embarrassing, so she insisted not to go back to her parents' home and begged Liu Shaoqi to allow her to continue living in the Liu family, hoping that Liu Shaoqi would give her a son to support her in the future.
Liu Shaoqi was very distressed, but he understood Zhou's thoughts very well. After all, Zhou was also a victim of feudal marriage system and should not be criticized. Later, Liu Shaoqi acquiesced to Zhou's approach. He also gave all the 30 acres of land in his hometown to Zhou's family, and asked someone to send him and Liu Yunbin, the eldest son of the martyr who gave birth to He Baozhen , to Zhou to raise him.
After the May Fourth Movement broke out, the young Liu Shaoqi immediately rushed to Beijing to participate in the demonstration. Soon after, he was admitted to several higher education institutions such as Peking University . However, because the tuition and living expenses were too expensive, Liu Shaoqi had to go to France to work and study. Later, due to various reasons, he failed to get what he wanted and had to return to Changsha.
Liu Shaoqi said to his mother gently but firmly: "I left the motherland and left my mother for the motherland and for the mother!"
gave up the small family and took care of everyone. This is the realm and pattern of the young Liu Shaoqi. But this time I left, I never came back.
Liu Shaoqi was in Hunan to study
to worship her mother's tomb. Liu Shaoqi instructed "Don't repair"
Listening to Liu Shaoqi's story of his youth, Wang Guangmei deeply felt Liu Shaoqi's determination to pursue revolution. However, one thing that surprised her was that Liu Shaoqi had such a deep relationship with her mother. After returning to Tanzi Chong, he should take the initiative to go to worship his parents' graves, but Liu Shaoqi did not, and Wang Guangmei did not ask.
One day, the two went for a walk on the mountain. Liu Shaoqi suddenly said that he wanted to find his mother's grave, but when his mother passed away, Liu Shaoqi was not at home and had no idea where his mother was buried. In addition, he had not been home for 40 years, so he couldn't find it after searching for a while.
"Go back and ask Comrade Li Qiang, he may know." Liu Shaoqi said to Wang Guangmei.
Li Qiang was the director of the Hunan Provincial Public Security Department at that time. When Chairman Mao returned to Shaoshan in 1959, he accompanied him to pay homage to Chairman Mao’s mother’s grave. He understood the characteristics of the local grave construction and could also inquire with local cadres and the masses.
Under the leadership of Li Qiang, Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei indeed found their mother's grave.
The grave in front of me can't be more ordinary. It's just in a valley, surrounded by no green pine and cypress , and even no trees. The tomb made of loess is very small. It was built with stones outside. A stone tombstone is engraved with "The Tomb of Liu Lu" and the small characters below are the signatures of filial sons and grandchildren.
Wang Guangmei took a closer look and found that among the people who signed the name, there was "Shaoxuan" . This was the name of Liu Shaoqi when he was a child. His brothers and sisters were arranged according to the seniority of the family. They were all Shao generation. They should have signed it on his behalf when the brothers erected the monument.
Liu Shaoqi conducted on-site research in Hunan
Standing in front of his mother's grave, Liu Shaoqi's expression was very serious and quiet, and he said nothing, as if he was recalling the past.
After a while, Li Qiang broke a handful of branches and handed them to Wang Guangmei. Wang Guangmei instantly understood what this meant and handed them to Liu Shaoqi. Liu Shaoqi then realized that he had not brought anything, so he put the branches upright on the grave, and then called Wang Guangmei together and bowed respectfully three times.
According to local customs, you must kowtow when visiting the graves to your parents, but the Communist Party members do not do this and use bowing instead. When Chairman Mao returned to Shaoshan, he only bowed to his mother's grave. In fact, bowing or kowtowing is just a form. It is the most important thing to truly express your memory and longing for your loved ones.
However, compared with Chairman Mao's accompanying his mother's grave when he returned to Shaoshan to sweep his mother's grave, leaving photos and a large number of written records, Liu Shaoqi's process of paying homage to his mother's grave seemed very deserted. If it weren't for the later interviews of Wang Guangmei and Li Qiang, this moment might not have been recorded and thus not known to people later.
Before leaving, Li Qiang asked Liu Shaoqi: "Do you have to repair the tomb?"
Liu Shaoqi shook his head and said: "Don't repair it. This is a deserted slope. In the future, it's okay to plant trees on the mountain. If there are any public facilities to pass by here in the future, it doesn't matter if you go there."
is a coincidence. In 1959, Chairman Mao returned to Shaoshan to visit the grave and stood in front of his parents' dilapidated tomb. When the local cadres asked if they wanted to repair it, Chairman Mao also replied the same way: Don't repair it even if you want to repair it.
This is our leader. They are thorough materialist .
Liu Shaoqi held a discussion with the masses in Hunan
Of course, not repairing a tomb does not mean that he has no feelings for his mother. The real feelings are hidden deep in his heart, not used in superficial skills. On the contrary, Liu Shaoqi has always respected his mother very much. , because his father died of illness when he was 9 years old, the family loved Liu Shaoqi, who was the youngest, especially his mother loved him very much.
visited his elder sister, and went into the house and saw a coffin
After worshiping his mother's grave, Liu Shaoqi remembered his sister again.
Liu Shaoqi has two sisters, eldest sister Shaode and second sister Shaoyi. The two sisters rank sixth and seventh among cousins, so Liu Shaoqi called Liujie and seventh sister (for the convenience of writing, we still called eldest sister and second sister). At that time, the second sister Liu Shaoyi had already gone to Beijing with her children, and the eldest sister Liu Shaode still lived in the countryside.
The eldest sister is 9 years older than Liu Shaoqi, and is very honest. She is an ordinary farmer woman. She married a family named Lu of Zhao family. Li Qiang suggested sending a car to pick up the eldest sister to Tanzi Chong to meet, but Liu Shaoqi did not agree and insisted on walking.
Liu Shaoqi shook hands cordially with the masses
In his impression, the eldest sister's house was only more than 10 miles away from Tanzi Chong, and just walk, but he But I didn't know that my elder sister had moved and the road changed a lot. The group walked for most of the day before they arrived.
arrived at Zhao's family and soon found my elder sister Liu Shaode's house.
At this time, an old lady stood at the door. Liu Shaoqi recognized this as the elder sister at a glance. He quickly stepped forward and held the elder sister's hand, and called "sister" affectionately. Wang Guangmei also called "sister".
Surprisingly, my elder sister Liu Shaode's reaction was very indifferent, as if she didn't know them at all. Thanks to the elder sister's daughter Lu Xinxiu, who was very enthusiastic, called her uncle and aunt into the house. As soon as
entered the main hall, Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei were stunned: There was a coffin in the main hall!
Although it is broad daylight, a coffin is placed in the house, which also looks gloomy.
From Lu Xinxiu's mouth, Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei learned the origin of this coffin, and also learned that my elder sister's family has encountered incredible suffering and desolation over the years, especially in the past decade.
Historical ancestors of the Lu family had dozens of acres of land. In addition to some of them farming themselves, some of them were rented to other people and collected some rent. They lived a good life. However, because they managed more than 100 acres of family land, they were designated as rich peasants during the land reform in the early 1950s. A large part of the land was deducted, and their life was getting worse day by day.
In 1959, Wang Guangmei, who was far away in Beijing, received a letter from her elder brother-in-law, saying that her elder sister was sick and had no money to treat her. My elder sister and her family rarely contacted them. If it was not particularly difficult, they would not write a letter to Liu Shaoqi. At that time, Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei both took the initiative to reduce their wages, and the living expenses of the whole family were very tight, but Wang Guangmei still squeezed out 100 yuan and sent it to her elder sister.
After receiving the money, my elder sister was not willing to take the money to see a doctor, but bought a coffin.
According to local customs, people who are old and sick can not be cured if they have no money, but they must buy a coffin, otherwise they will be uneasy and will not have a home if they die. Having a coffin means having a home, and they will not be afraid of death. Since then, my elder sister has to touch the coffin every day when she gets up, so she feels at ease.
Later, three years of difficulties began, and famines were common in the countryside. My elder brother-in-law wrote another letter saying: There is not enough food in the family, and the elderly and children are so hungry that they are dizzy. Their families are honest people, and they cannot steal or rob. What should we do?
Liu Shaoqi took a photo with his family
In fact, my elder sister's family didn't know that although Liu Shaoqi is the president of the country, his life is also very difficult. His meager salary and Wang Guangmei can only support his family and have no savings at all.
Looking at the letter from my elder brother-in-law, Liu Shaoqi was in a heavy mood and did not speak. Wang Guangmei squeezed out 60 yuan and sent it to her elder sister's family.
After getting the money, my brother-in-law went to the market to buy some meat and snacks. Unexpectedly, a tragedy happened. Because I was so hungry that I had no oil and water in my stomach, I suddenly ate meat and snacks, and I couldn't digest it, so I was so full.
After his father died, Lu Xinxiu wrote to his uncle that his father died of illness and that his family had no money to bury him. Liu Shaoqi asked Wang Guangmei to send 50 yuan to his elder sister. Lu Xinxiu used the money to handle the funeral of his father, and left the remaining money for his mother to treat the disease. Her own husband suffered from severe swelling, and Lu Xinxiu was not willing to take out some money to treat him.
Now it seems that Liu Shaoqi's elder sister should have Alzheimer's disease, so she doesn't know Liu Shaoqi. Even though her daughter later introduced that this was her younger brother, the elder sister still looked confused.
Liu Shaoqi was conducting research in rural Hunan
. When combined with what Lu Xinxiu said, Wang Guangmei felt very uncomfortable, and Liu Shaoqi's expression was also extremely heavy.
Wang Guangmei knew that in Liu Shaoqi's heavy emotions, it was not only sympathy for the suffering of his elder sister, but also worries about the lives of the people across the country, because Liu Shaoqi knew very well that families like his elder sister were everywhere in the countryside at that time. As the President of the country, he watched the people suffer from suffering, and the guilt in his heart was imaginable.
At this time, Liu Shaoqi found that he was coming empty-handed and had no preparation. Liu Shaoqi was not happy to see him off and invited him to give him gifts. He had no idea of preparing gifts at all. Fortunately, the local cadres were thoughtful and temporarily prepared some rice, flour, oil, and a few kilograms of candy biscuits. Afterwards, Liu Shaoqi and Wang Guangmei insisted on paying the expenses to each other.
came out of my elder sister's house. Liu Shaoqi was in a complicated mood. He sighed and did not return to the charcoal until the evening.
This day was May 8, 1961.
Liu Shaoqi had a discussion with cadres and the masses in rural Hunan
ending: The President of the People is the serviceman of the people
7 days later, Liu Shaoqi and his party left Hunan and returned to Beijing, ending their 44-day investigation in Hunan. During the 44-day survey of , Liu Shaoqi listened a lot and read a lot, and truly listened to the truth, read the real situation, and understood the truth. He had a deeper understanding of the situation at the grassroots level, laying the foundation for the next step of central government policy adjustment.
Since then, Liu Shaoqi has never returned to his hometown.
After Liu Shaoqi left, the relevant departments of the Hunan Provincial Party Committee took their elder sister to Changsha for treatment, but the effect was not great. In 1968, his elder sister Liu Shaode died of illness at the age of 78.
Only one year later, on November 12, 1969, Liu Shaoqi died suddenly in Kaifeng at the age of 71.
Liu Shaoqi presided over a symposium
Now, Liu Shaoqi has left us for more than 50 years.
We are increasingly discovering the life of this leader of the Party and the country, as he said: "The President of the State is the people's servant. There is no distinction between high and low revolutionary work. We should serve the people wholeheartedly in any position."
Reference materials: "Interview with Wang Guangmei", "Forty-four days of Liu Shaoqi's investigation in Hunan" and other
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