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He was born in the revolutionary artillery and is the prototype of Pan Dongzi in the movie " Shining Red Star ";
He grew up in the army and was one of the first naval officers in New China with a bachelor's degree;
He took root in his hometown and was a member of the New China Navy in Henan Province. A builder of the county for decades.
He is Xu Guang, the son of General Xu Shiyou.
As a son of a high-ranking cadre, Xu Guangben had a bright future, but he gave up the opportunity to develop in the military and chose to stick to his hometown.
Not only that, he never used his privileges and lived a very poor life. He even repaired shoes at a roadside shoe stall at the age of 81.
In addition, he also has very strict requirements for his children, and often warns them: "I have long taken off the hat of the children of high-ranking officials, and you can't wear it."
So, why did Xu Guang make this choice? What contribution has he made to the development of his hometown? Why is his life so poor?
proposed the "three no's" principle and left a deposit of 200,000
In May 2012, in a hospital in Wuhan, a gray-haired old man was half leaning on the hospital bed.
He held a piece of yellowed paper in his hand, and he stared at it and fell into deep thought for a long time.
This old man was Xu Guang. At that time, he had been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer and was dying.
However, what he read over and over again at this time was not his report card, but the last handwritten letter written by his father Xu Shiyou before his death.
I saw the letter written: "Xu Guang, please send me five hundred yuan in cash. This five hundred yuan is for my funeral expenses."
Thinking of his father Xu Shiyou's honest life, even the funeral was quite simple, Xu Guang felt mixed emotions in his heart, and his wrinkled cheeks were quickly soaked with tears.
"Dong dong dong", after knocking on the door softly a few times, four middle-aged men and women walked into Xu Guang's ward.
They are Xu Guang's four children, named Xu Daokun, Xu Daolun, Xu Daojiang and Xu Daohai.
Xu Guang named his children after "Kunlun Jianghai", hoping that they would remember the great rivers of the motherland and always contribute to the country firmly.
Under his strict requirements, these four children have grown into outstanding talents in all walks of life, and Xu Guang has no regrets.
However, the eyes of the four of them were already a little red at this time. After all, their father dedicated his whole life to his hometown and never enjoyed happiness, but he contracted cancer in his later years. It is really a pity.
However, before they could speak, Xu Guang said straight to the point,
"No imported drugs, no excessive treatment, no trouble for you. No matter how sick I am, you must remember this principle."
Seeing that their father was still thinking of others and unwilling to waste the country's resources, the four children were completely unable to control their emotions and burst into tears.
What they didn't expect was that after only staying in the hospital for about 20 days, Xu Guang insisted on going home.
"My body has recovered. The cost of a big hospital is too high, so I can't stay here forever."
Unable to defeat his father, his children had no choice but to take him back home. After that, Xu Guang's condition often recurred, and he coughed all the time. In severe cases, it was even difficult to breathe.
But Xu Guang insisted on no longer being hospitalized and only received conservative treatment at home. Until the evening of January 6, 2013, he fell asleep peacefully and never woke up again.
After Xu Guang passed away, his family was very sad. Considering that he was the founding father of the country, units at all levels took the initiative to take care of his posthumous affairs.
However, the four children abided by their instructions during his lifetime, rejected the good intentions of all parties, and simply held a funeral for him.
After failing, the eldest son Xu Daokun found a will in the drawer of Xu Guang's study, which contained a bankbook worth 200,000 yuan.
However, after he read the contents of the will, he discovered that his father had other uses for the money.
Speaking of this, some friends may be curious, as Xu Guang’s eldest son, why is life like this? To whom was his savings left?
To understand this, we have to start with Xu Guang’s experience.
After seventeen years, father and son reunited again
In April 1929, Xu Guang was born in Macheng, Hubei, which is now Xin County, Henan.
Xu Guang is the child of Xu Shiyou and his wife Zhu Ximing. In fact, the two had given birth to two children before. However, the country was in turmoil at that time, the people were in dire straits, the living environment was quite difficult, and the two children unfortunately died young.
In this way, Xu Guang became Xu Shiyou's eldest son. Xu Shiyou also loved this hard-won child and gave him the nickname "Heiyou".
The family once spent a happy time, but the good times did not last long. In 1930, the Hubei-Henan-Anhui base area was lost, and the Red Army was forced to relocate. Xu Shiyou could only be separated from his family temporarily.
Before leaving, Xu Shiyou once told his wife, "Live a good life with Hei Ya, and we will reunite when the revolution is stable."
But no one expected that the separation would be 17 years. It was not until the early days of the Liberation War that Xu Guang reunited with Xu Shiyou.
Of course, this is all a thing for another day. A few years after Xu Shiyou left, Xu Guang's grandmother thought that he had been sacrificed when she saw no news from him. In order not to delay Zhu Ximing, she personally arranged for her daughter-in-law's remarriage.
In 1937, Japan launched a full-scale war of aggression against China. For a time, the mountains and rivers were broken, the current situation was chaotic, and Xu Guang's life began to become chaotic.
Because of this, he has hated the Japanese invaders since he was a child, and he has always longed to join the Eighth Route Army team that charges to kill the enemy.
He was only 8 years old at the time, but he took the initiative to join the Anti-Japanese Children's League and made considerable contributions in information transmission and other work.
However, facing the iron hoof of the Japanese army, Xu Guang's strength as a child is meager after all, so he is often in danger.
These experiences are engraved in Xu Guang's mind. His longing for his parents and hatred for the Japanese army jointly shaped his perseverance and precocious character.
It was not until 1948 that Xu Guang learned about his father for the first time. Later, with the help of Wang Shusheng, the then commander of the Hubei Provincial Military Region, he got in touch with Xu Guangda.
After 17 years, father and son finally reunited. General Xu Shiyou, who has always been strong, could not help but reveal his tender side.
Seeing that his son was strong and powerful, he asked him what his ideals were. What Xu Shiyou didn't expect was that Xu Guang said without hesitation: "Like his father, join the army and serve the country."
He achieved little success in joining the army, but was forced to return to his hometown.
So Xu Guang was sent to serve in the army. However, because he grew up in the war, he had no chance to learn cultural knowledge.
So before he officially enlisted in the army, he first studied at the Shandong Military Region Cultural Accelerated School for half a year.
Xu Guang understood that he only went to school at the age of 17 and started later than others, so he should study hard. Therefore, during his time at the accelerated school, he spent almost every day studying day and night, forgetting to eat and sleep.
Finally, with unremitting efforts, he not only made up for the knowledge he had missed before, but also ranked among the best among the students in his class. All this was seen by the head teacher Li Xintian.
Li Xintian admired the studious and motivated Xu Guang very much, so he took the initiative to talk to him.
After learning about his childhood experience, Li Xintian was so moved that he recorded his stories one by one.
Later, Li Xintian wrote a novella called "Shining Red Star", in which the story of Pan Dongzi was adapted from Xu Guang's deeds.
Later, the novel was remade into a movie of the same name. Since then, Pan Dongzi has become a familiar name to the older generation of Chinese, but I am afraid that few people know that his prototype is Xu Guang.
In 1958, Xu Guang became the first batch of naval officers with a bachelor's degree in New China.
It is worth mentioning that Xu Guang is low-key by nature. Except for discussing his life experience with Li Xintian, he has never revealed his family background. Teachers and students in major universities do not know the identity of his father.
It can be said that Xu Guang's achievements are due to his hard work. During his tenure as the captain of the North Sea Fleet, he made meritorious service six times. Xu Guang's personal ability is evident from this.
However, just when he was high-spirited and wanted to make a name for himself in the military, something happened that completely changed the trajectory of his life.
It turned out that after Xu Guang left home, his grandmother had been worried, so she traveled across mountains and rivers to Qingdao to visit.
But the old man was used to living in the countryside and could not adapt to city life. Xu Shiyou was busy with affairs and could not send him back, so he planned to let Xu Guang send his grandma home to fulfill his filial piety on his behalf.
Take root in your hometown and build your hometown
At first, Xu Shiyou was worried about whether his son would be happy. Unexpectedly, after learning about this, Xu Guang resigned from the military without saying a word.
Seeing that his child was so indifferent to fame and fortune, Xu Shiyou was deeply moved. Before leaving, he said with tears: "Hei Ya, you are my good boy."
Afterwards, Xu Guang took his grandma and boarded the train back home.
In July 1964, Xu Guang returned to his hometown and reported to the People's Armed Forces Department of Xin County - under the arrangement of the organization, he was appointed as a staff officer of the local Armed Forces Department.
At that time, Xu Guang received a warm welcome. The leader of the People's Armed Forces went to greet him in person. Faced with the enthusiasm of everyone, Xu Guang also showed a bright smile.
Later, Xu Guang took care of his grandmother while working conscientiously in the Ministry of Human Resources and Armed Forces. Half a year later, the old woman closed her eyes in peace.
It stands to reason that after the death of his grandmother, Xu Guang should return to the North Sea Fleet to continue serving. However, when Xu Shiyou wrote to him and invited him to return, he decisively refused.
It turns out that during his half-year stay in new county, Xu Guang saw the scene of the old revolutionary area and made up his mind to take root in his hometown and devote his youth to local construction.
In a reply to his father, Xu Guang said bluntly, "Who said that being a general is the only way to have a future? Contributing to rural development is also very honorable."
Seeing that his son was so determined, Xu Shiyou did not stop him. In this way, Xu Guang has always taken root in Xinxian and never left again.
For the people of Xinxian County, the name Xu Guang carries a heavy weight.
When people died of hunger on the road, he always donated generously; when erecting projects, he always took the lead in the work; when natural disasters occurred, he was the one on the front line.
In the first ten years in Xinxian County from 1964 to 1974, Xu Guang funded more than a hundred people living in difficulty, including a large number of descendants of the Red Army.
In addition, when dealing with a heavy rain crisis, Xu Guang drove there immediately. However, due to the strong current, the vehicle encountered an accident and he was knocked unconscious in the cockpit.
However, when he woke up, he did not stay in the ward for long. Instead, he rushed to the disaster relief scene non-stop and worked with the soldiers to carry the sacks that blocked the gap.
Living in poverty and having strict family rules
Xu Guang's contribution to the new county is seen by the local people, but the poverty of Xu Guang himself is remembered by the local people.
In 1965, after Xu Guang’s grandmother passed away, his two children were waiting for food and he had no savings at all, so Xu Guang borrowed more than 300 yuan from the local supply and marketing cooperative to pay for his grandmother’s funeral expenses.
Later, Xu Shiyou asked someone to send back 200 yuan, and Xu Guang paid off the remaining 100 yuan slowly by himself.
Not only has to pay off debts, but also help others. One can imagine the pressure Xu Guang faces.
Because of this, their family of six has been living in a small, cramped house with mottled walls, old furniture, and dim lights.
I’m afraid no one believes that this is the residence of the admiral’s descendants, but in such an environment, Xu Guang lived there for decades.
Of course, the organization always kept Xu Guang’s life in mind, but Xu Guang declined all subsidies offered by the local government. Not only did
not want the house assigned by his unit, he even refused to accept the opportunity to be promoted to the leadership of the Xinyang Military Division.
Xu Guang has equally strict requirements when it comes to his family.
After her youngest daughter Xu Daohai graduated from college, she could have gone to Henan Normal University for further study, but Xu Guang said that "there is a shortage of people in her hometown" and brought her back to Xinxian County to work.
Both sons had served in the army. When they were demobilized, they wanted their father to find connections to help them stay in the army, but Xu Guang also refused.
As for some relatives and friends who wanted Xu Guang to do things through the back door, he flatly refused.
At home, Xu Guang often said one sentence: "I have long taken off the hat of a high-ranking official, and you can't wear it."
Under his influence, several of his children have grown up to be honest, reliable, and non-selfish people. Therefore, Xu Guang cannot hide the pride on his face whenever he talks about his children.
In 1992, Xu Guang retired from the army and lived an ordinary life. In order to improve his living conditions, the local government planned to provide subsidies to buy him a small house with a yard.
However, when Xu Guang found out, he rarely got angry and insisted on giving the subsidies to the poorer people while he continued to live in the old house.
Not only that, he is very frugal in his daily life. He always mends a pair of cloth shoes and never wants to throw them away.
Summary
In 2013, after 20 years of peaceful retirement, Xu Guang passed away due to illness, and the scene we mentioned at the beginning occurred.
In his drawer, Xu Daokun found a will and a bankbook of 200,000 yuan. This money was Xu Guang's life savings.
However, he mentioned in his will that he would donate all the money to the local government and leave none to his children.
Xu Daokun knew his father's character well and had already expected that he would do this, but recalling his father's selfless life, he couldn't help but shed tears.
At the moment when he saw the will, Xu Daokun secretly made up his mind to take over his father's mantle and pass on the heroic soul of the Xu family forever.
The man has passed away, but his style will last forever. Just like the legendary story Xu Shiyou left on the battlefield, Xu Guang also used his silent life to show the ordinary but extraordinary value of the son of a famous general. This is also The best inheritance of the general's spirit.
