Cui Zengqi: Hometown Trip (3) - Nanjing Trip (Photos)

Cui Zengqi: Hometown Trip (3) - Nanjing (Photos) I remember that it took a whole day by train from Shanghai to Nanjing in the 1940s. After the 1960s, express trains took a whole day...

I remember that it took a whole day by train from Shanghai to Nanjing in the 1940s. After the 1960s, it took about six hours by express train. In the 1990s, the speed of trains was shortened to three or four hours. Now with high-speed rail, the journey is only one hour. How much change has the progress of science and technology brought to our lives! Our tour group took a large car. An eight-lane expressway has been built from Shanghai to Nanjing, and the journey took three and a half hours. If it weren't for the continuous reminder of the Qin bricks and Han tiles on both sides of the road, I would have thought I was driving on US Route 10. The changes in the houses on both sides of the road are clear evidence of the changes and development of China's rural areas. In the early days of liberation, the farmland was dotted with dilapidated thatched houses. In the 1950s, about 50% of households built brick bungalows. Since the 1980s, a number of two- and three-story private residences have been built. Today, such villa-style buildings have been connected together, and there are also some high-rise buildings with more than ten floors standing among them. This is a true portrayal of the 60 years of changes in China's most affluent rural area in Jiangnan. It can be said that the living standards of farmers here are no worse than those in the city. On the way from Shanghai to Nanjing, the tour guide took the time to introduce himself. He is a child from a rural area in the mountainous areas of Hubei Province. He is the superborn child of this family. His parents were fined 250 yuan for giving birth to him. His parents worked hard and saved money to support him in school. He lived up to the expectations of his family and became the only college student in the village. After graduation, he came to Shanghai alone to create a world and became a qualified tour guide. He knew that everything he had today was hard-won. When he was in college, he went home during the summer vacation and wanted to help his parents with something. He got up at three in the morning, picked a pick of vegetables from the vegetable field and sold them in the city. He only earned three yuan and forty cents in one day, which was not enough for his daily living expenses. So, he decided to march into the city. During the winter vacation, he went to work in Shenzhen and earned a thousand yuan, which determined his determination to enter the big city. Now, he has been in Shanghai for seven years. He got married in Shanghai, bought a house with a loan, and brought his parents from the countryside to live in Shanghai, becoming a new generation of Shanghai residents. Since the reform and opening up, Shanghai has become a Shanghai for people all over the country. "Shanghai people" are no longer Shanghainese in the traditional sense of the past. Seventy to eighty percent are foreigners. Shanghai men are no longer such obedient little men who love to do housework. When arriving in Nanjing, the car drives directly to the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, which is the resting place of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The appearance of Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum remains the same, standing majestically at the southern foot of Purple Mountain, adjacent to Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum in the west and Linggu Temple in the east. The entire building complex rises layer by layer along the mountain, solemn and solemn. Start from the mausoleum gate with the word "fraternity" written on it, and climb 392 steps to reach the memorial hall. Dr. Sun Yat-sen's body is buried under his lying statue. Our tour guide in Nanjing is a teacher who once taught history at a university. I asked him whether the body of Dr. Sun Yat-sen was placed here, and the answer was yes. Mr. Sun Yat-sen passed away in Beijing on March 12, 1925. Because the crystal coffin ordered from the Soviet Union did not arrive in time, his body was first placed in a Western-style glass-covered wooden coffin and placed in the stone tower of Biyun Temple in Xishan, Beijing. In May 1929, the Nationalist Government appointed He Yingqin as the commander-in-chief of the coffin ceremony. Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s coffin arrived in Nanjing on May 28. There was a three-day public memorial ceremony. The fiberglass coffin shipped from the Soviet Union was later placed in the Xishan Buddhist Temple in Beijing as the tomb of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The enshrinement ceremony was very solemn, and the places where the remains passed were renamed "Zhongshan". As a result, Nanjing has Zhongshan Pier, Zhongshan South Road, Zhongshan East Road, Zhongshan Bridge, Zhongshan Gate, and all the way to the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum. . Before the People's Liberation Army crossed the Yangtze River, someone in the Nationalist Government proposed to move the body of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and asked Vice President Sun Ke for instructions. Sun analyzed the Communist Party's attitude towards Sun Yat-sen and made the correct decision not to move it. Later, there was also an interesting talk about the National Army and the Communist Army jointly guarding the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum.

The majestic Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum

The reclining statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen

Nanjing is one of the four famous furnaces in China, but the foothills of Purple Mountain, covered with green pines and cypresses and dense forests, are a good place to escape the summer heat. When I was a kid, my cousins ​​and I often came here to play during summer vacations. We ran all over the mountain trails here and took a sip of mountain spring water when we were thirsty. It still tastes sweet when I think about it. At that time, I was innocent and thought that everything in the world was beautiful. I just wanted to have fun and not feel tired even the whole day in the jungle and streams. Today, when I set foot on the steps of Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum again after more than 60 years, I climbed up the steps and thought about the dignified Chinese history of the past century. Every step I took was very heavy. Mr. Sun Yat-sen fought all his life to overthrow the Qing feudal dynasty and is a leader respected by the Chinese people. In 1940, the Nationalist Government issued an order to the whole country to respect him as the Father of the Nation, and the People's Government also respected him as a revolutionary pioneer. His portrait has been placed in the center of Tiananmen Square facing Mao Zedong's portrait. In 2011, both sides of the Taiwan Strait solemnly celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Revolution of 1911 that overthrew the Qing Dynasty. Regardless of their differences in ideas, they all respect Dr. Sun Yat-sen in the same way. Looking at the long history of China and looking beyond the partisan concept to look at the history of China in the past 100 years, the Kuomintang and the Communist Party were originally one family. Later, due to differences in the philosophy of governing the country and the struggle for power, brothers fought against each other. The Japanese took advantage of the situation, and foreign forces also rushed to occupy the territory. As a result, lives were lost and the people suffered. In the end, today the two sides of the Taiwan Strait have to sit down and jointly seek a way to cooperate and unify. After 100 years, they have come full circle and are back to the starting point. Mr. Sun Yat-sen proposed that nation, civil rights, and people's livelihood are still the goals pursued by governments on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, but the meanings and formulations given are slightly different. Revitalizing and developing the Chinese national spirit is still the common goal of both sides of the Taiwan Strait; continuously improving the people's power to govern the country is a commitment that governments on both sides of the Strait are working hard; improving people's lives and seeking benefits for the people is a practical thing that governments on both sides of the Strait are doing. This is the solid foundation for cross-Strait cooperation and reunification. This is just the answer I got from a mortal using a simple analysis method that transcends politics. The actual situation is of course much more complicated. I suddenly thought of something about our overseas Chinese community. Last year, there was a disagreement between the Hualian Association of Alberta. During this period, many knowledgeable people came out to mediate but failed. In the end, two organizations were formed, the "Hualian" and the "Hua Zong", which made it difficult for the consulate to handle. In the end, the people suffered. Originally, the consulate relied on Hualian to come to Phoenix every year to provide passport services for local Chinese. Because we had a split, we had to ask a travel agency in Hawaii to help. As a result, there was a controversy about overcharging us by US$80. When it comes to National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival, two organizations organized two celebrations with almost the same content, leaving us ‘people’ at a loss as to what to do. It’s really unpleasant to have a National Day broken in half! I hope I won’t repeat the same old drama this year. The two organizations can each carry out their own activities, but they must cooperate on important activities such as National Day and passport applications. I hope that everyone will adhere to the spirit of "the world is for the common good" advocated by Dr. Sun Yat-sen and his favorite word "fraternity" to resolve the "contradictions among the people", which is much simpler than the cross-strait issue. A page of history has been turned. Sincerity and concession are the prerequisites for cooperation. I hope everyone can show some courage and promote the harmony of the overseas Chinese community with the temperament and demeanor of a leader (overseas Chinese leader). (to be continued)