If you were traveling around the world alone in a boat, and if you could only take one thing with you for your own entertainment, which would you choose? A beautiful picture, an interesting book, a box of playing cards, a hundred note box, or a harmonica ......
It seems a difficult choice to make.
If you asked me, I would answer without hesitation, "I would choose a book."
A book! I've heard some people exclaim: If you traveled around the world on a boat, you could read it a hundred times on that trip, and eventually you'd be able to recite it by heart.
To which I reply: yes, I would read it a hundred times, and I would read it to the point of memorization. What does it matter? You wouldn't want to see your friends again just because you've seen them before, would you? You don't abandon your home because you're familiar with it, do you? You love books like a friend, like your home. You've met your friend a hundred times, but the one hundred and tenth time you see them again, you still say, "I can't believe you know this!" You go home every day, but no matter how many years go by, you'll still say, "How did I never notice how the light shines in that corner and how the light is so beautiful!"
You always find something new in a book, no matter how many times you've read it.
So I would sit in my boat and read that book over and over again. First I would think about why the people in the story did what they did and why the writer wrote the story. Then I would continue to weave the story together in my head, going back and savoring some of the moments I appreciated the most and asking myself why I liked them. I'd also re-read other parts and find things in them that I'd overlooked before. After I've done that, I'll make a list of what I learned from the book. Finally, I would imagine what the author was like and what kind of life experiences he would have had ...... It's really like traveling in the same boat as another person.
A book you love is a friend and a place you can visit whenever you want. In a sense, it's your own thing, because no two people in the world will read the same book in the same way.
Lesson 21
The destruction of the Yuanmingyuan is an incalculable loss in the cultural history of the motherland, and an incalculable loss in the cultural history of the world!
Yuanmingyuan, in the northwest suburbs of Beijing, is a world-famous royal garden. It consists of Yuanmingyuan, Wanchunyuan and Changchunyuan, also known as the Yuanming Three Gardens. In addition, there are many small gardens, distributed in the Yuanmingyuan east, west and south. The stars surround the Yuanmingyuan like a moon.
Yuanmingyuan, there are brilliant halls, there are also exquisite pavilions; there is a symbol of the bustling market, "Buy and Sell Street", there is also a symbol of the rural landscape of the countryside and the village. Many scenes in the garden are modeled after famous places, such as Anlan Garden in Haining, Lion Grove in Suzhou, Pinghu Autumn Moon and Leifeng Sunset in West Lake in Hangzhou, and many scenes are built according to the poems of ancient poets, such as Penglai Yaotai and Wuling Spring. There are not only ethnic buildings in the garden, but also Western landscapes. Walking in the garden, like roaming in the south and north of the sky, full of Chinese and foreign scenic spots; linger in the middle, as if in the realm of fantasy.
Yuanmingyuan is not only a magnificent building, but also a collection of the most precious historical relics. From the pre-Qin era of bronze rituals, down to the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties of celebrities painting and calligraphy and a variety of rare and exotic treasures, so it was the world's largest museum, art gallery.
October 6, 1860, the British and French forces invaded Beijing, broke into the Yuanmingyuan. They took the garden wherever they could take things, all looted; can not take, with a large car or livestock carrying; really can not transport, on the arbitrary destruction, destroyed. In order to destroy the evidence, October 18 and 19, more than three thousand invaders were ordered to set fire to the garden. The fire burned for three days, the smoke cloud covered the entire city of Beijing. China's garden art of this treasure, the essence of the art of architecture, so turned into a piece of ash.
Lesson 22
In the fall of 1941, the Japanese invaders (kòu) concentrated their troops and attacked our base in Jinchahi. At that time, the seventh company was ordered to adhere to the guerrilla war in the Wolf Tooth Mountain area. After more than a month of heroic fighting, the seventh company decided to transfer to Longwangmiao, giving the task of covering the masses and the company's transfer to the sixth class.
In order to stall the enemy, the five soldiers of the Sixth Class of the Seventh Company, while fighting bitterly against the pursuing enemy, systematically led a large number of the enemy up to the Wolf Tooth Mountain. They took advantage of the treacherous terrain and beat down the onrushing enemies again and again. Squad leader Ma Baoyu calmly commanded the battle, letting the enemy come closer before giving the order to hit hard. Ge Zhenlin, the deputy squad leader, yelled (hǒu) when he fired a shot, as if the tiny muzzle of his gun could not finish his full rage. Soldier Song Xueyi always throws a grenade by swinging his arm in a circle, so that he can exert all his strength. Hu Delin and Hu Fucai, two small soldiers, put their faces taut (běng) tightly, focused on aiming at the enemy to shoot. The enemy was never able to take a step forward. On the rugged mountain road, there were many enemy corpses (shī) lying all over the place.
The five warriors completed their covering mission victoriously and prepared to move. There are two roads in front of them: one leads to the direction of the main force transfer, this road can quickly catch up with the company, but the enemy is close behind; the other leads to the top of the Wolf Tooth Mountain, Guipantao (tuó), where there are cliffs on three sides. Which way to go? In order to prevent the enemy from discovering the masses and the company's main force, the squad leader Ma Baoyu said "Go!" with a firm and resolute voice. He led the way toward Chess Pan Tao. Soldiers were hot blooded and followed closely behind the squad leader. They knew that the squad leader was going to lead the enemy to a dead end.
The five warriors climbed to the top while relying on trees and rocks to shoot at the enemy. Many more enemy bodies were left on the mountain path. Many enemies fell into the mountain stream and were shattered. Squad leader Ma Baoyu was wounded, all the bullets were finished, only Hu Fucai had one grenade left in his hand. He was just about to unscrew the cap, Ma Baoyu grabbed a step forward, snatched the grenade and inserted it in his waist, he fiercely raised a stone as big as a millstone and shouted, "Comrades! Stones!" At once, the stone was like hail, carrying the determination of the five stalwarts and the hatred of the Chinese people, and smashing down on the enemy's head. A gibbering cry came from the hillside, and the enemy tumbled down into the deep valley.
Another group of enemies pounced. Ma Baoyu whoosh (sōu) sound pulled out the grenade, unscrewed the cap, and threw it at the enemy with all his strength. With a loud bang, the grenade blossomed in the enemy group.
The five stalwarts stood on the summit of Wolf Tooth Mountain, looking out over the crowd and the main force of the army in the faraway direction. They looked back at the enemy still climbing upward, their faces showing the joy of victory. Ma Baoyu, the squad leader, said excitedly, "Comrades, our mission has been triumphantly accomplished!" Saying this, he smashed the gun that he had taken from the enemy, then walked to the edge of the cliff and, like every time he launched a charge, was the first to jump down into the deep valley. The warriors also held their heads high and jumped down from the cliff one after another. Wolfsbane Mountain resounded with the sound of their magnificent and heroic slogan:
"Down with Japanese imperialism!"
"Long live the Chinese ****production party (dǎng)!"
This is the strong and unyielding voice of the heroic Chinese people! This voice is astounding and powerful!
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Lesson 19: "Wonderful" and "Terrible"
I remember writing my first poem when I was seven or eight years old. As soon as my mother read it, her eyes lit up and she excitedly exclaimed, "Buddy, did you write this? What a beautiful poem! Wonderful!" She put her arms around me and couldn't stop praising. Both coy and triumphant, I nodded my head and told her that I had indeed written the poem. She was so happy that she hugged me again.
"Mommy, when is Daddy coming home?" I asked, blushing. I kind of couldn't wait to show my father the poem I wrote right away. "He'll be back at seven o'clock in the evening." My mother said with a smile as she stroked my head.
I waited with a sense of pride all afternoon for my father to return. I had carefully transcribed the poem in beautiful flowery script, and had drawn a lace around it with colored pens. Nearly seven o'clock, I quietly went into the dining room and confidently placed it flat and neatly on my father's place at the table.
Seven o'clock. A quarter past seven. Half past seven. Father had not returned. I just couldn't wait. I admire my father. He's an important figure in a movie company and has written many plays. He would have appreciated my wonderful poem more than my mother.
It was almost eight o'clock when my father finally returned. He entered the dining room and his eyes were drawn to the poem on the table. I tensed.
"What's this?" He reached out and picked up my poem.
"Honey, something wonderful has happened. Buddy wrote a poem that is wonderful ......" my mother said as she stepped forward.
"I'm sorry, I'll judge for myself." Father began to read the poem.
I buried my head low. The poem was only ten lines long, but I felt like he read for a long time.
"I think this poem is terrible." My father put the poem back down.
My eyes were moist and my head was too heavy to lift.
"Honey, I really don't understand what you mean by this!" My mother yelled, "This isn't in your company. Buddy's a kid, and this is the first poem he's ever written. He needs encouragement."
"I don't understand," the father didn't back down, "Aren't there enough bad poems in the world? What law says Buddy has to be a poet?"
I couldn't take it anymore. I stormed out of the dining room, ran into my room, and flung myself onto my bed and cried bitterly. In the dining room, my parents were still arguing about the poem.
A few years later, when I pulled out that poem and read it again, I had to admit that my father was right. It was indeed a terrible poem. But as always, my mother encouraged me, so I kept writing. Once I got up the courage to show my father a short story I had written. "It's not well written, but it's not hopeless." Based on my father's critique, I learned to make revisions, when I was not yet 12 years old.
Now, I have written many works, published and distributed a novel, plays and screenplays. I realize more and more how lucky I was in the beginning. I have a doting mother who often says to me, "Buddy, did you write this? Wonderful." I also had a serious father who always frowned and said, "This sucks." A writer, and I should say everyone in life, needs strength from their mother, and that power of love is a source of inspiration and creativity. But having that alone is incomplete; it can lead one astray. So there is also a need for the power of warning to balance it out, for someone to remind you from time to time, "Be careful, pay attention, summarize, improve."
These two voices I heard as a teenager have been intertwined over the years: 'Wonderful', 'Awful'; 'Wonderful'. "Awful" ...... They keep blowing at me like two winds. I carefully grasp the boat of life so that it is not blown over by either wind. I know from the bottom of my heart that whether it is "wonderful" or "terrible", these two extreme assertions have the same starting point - love. In the love of inspiration, I try to drive forward.
Lesson 26: The Founding Ceremony
On October 1, 1949, the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) was established in a ceremony held in the capital city of Beijing. The Founding Ceremony was attended by the Chairman, Vice-Chairmen and members of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China, all the delegates of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, workers, peasants, teachers and students of schools, staff of organizations, and troops of the city defense, a total of 300,000 people. There were also foreign guests on the observation platform.
The venue was Tiananmen Square. The square is d-shaped. D-shaped a horizontal north is a river, the river side by side with five white stone bridges; and then north of the city wall, the center of the wall towers Tiananmen Square. D-shaped vertical to the south of the vertical does not give the China Gate. South of the intersection of the three horizontal and one vertical, the field stood up an electric flagpole.
The podium is located on the Tiananmen Square Citadel. Under the eaves of the citadel, eight large red palace lanterns hang on either side. Against the stone railings on the left and right sides of the citadel, eight red flags fluttered in the wind.
The square in the shape of a dotted line gathered the masses from all directions. From six o'clock in the morning, a procession of the masses entered. Some of the people were carrying red flags and some were carrying red lamps. After entering the venue, they arranged themselves according to the prescribed places. Among the procession of workers were railroad workers from as far away as Changxindian, Fengtai, and Tongxian, who arrived early in the morning at the Beijing station and went straight to the meeting place as soon as they got off the train. The peasants from the suburbs woke up in the dark at five o'clock and walked forty or fifty miles to get here. By midday, Tiananmen Square had become a sea of people, with red flags fluttering like waves on the sea.
At 3:00 p.m. sharp, a mountain of applause erupted from the venue, and Mao Zedong, chairman of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China*** and the State Council of the People's Republic of China, appeared on the rostrum to meet the crowd. The gazes of 300,000 people turned to the podium in unison.
Lin Boqu, secretary-general of the Central People's Government, declared the ceremony open. The chairman, vice-chairman and members of the Central People's Government took their places. The orchestra played the national anthem of the Chinese People's **** and State - the March of the Volunteer Army. It was the sound of this battle that had inspired the Chinese people to fight for the birth of a new China. Then, Chairman Mao Zedong announced, "The Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China*** and the State of China is established today!"
This solemn declaration, this majestic voice, so that the whole thirty people cheered together. This solemn announcement, this majestic voice, through the radio broadcast, spread to the Great Wall inside and outside, spread to the north and south of the Yangtze River, so that the hearts of all the people of China jumped up together.
Next, raise the national flag. Chairman Mao personally pressed the electric button connected to the electric flagpole, the new China's national flag - the five-star red flag rose slowly, 300,000 people took off their hats and stood at attention, raised their heads and admired the bright red flag. The five-star red flag has been raised, indicating that the Chinese people have stood up since then.
When the flag was raised, a salute was fired. Every sound is 54 cannons fired, a ****28 sound. At first, the whole place was silent, only heard the sound of the cannons, only heard the sound of the national flag and many flags fluttering, to later, after each sound of the cannons, the whole place resounded with a burst of thunderous applause.
Then Chairman Mao read the proclamation of the Central People's Government amidst burst after burst of applause from the crowd. In powerful tones, he sounded the voice of the new China to the world. When he read "Mao Zedong has been elected chairman of the Central People's Government," the people in the square's love for their leader melted into a loud cheer. A round of applause erupted from the observation platform at the same time.
After Chairman Mao finished reading the announcement, the parade began. The People's Liberation Army Commander-in-Chief Zhu De was the commander of the parade, General Nie Rongzhen was the commander-in-chief of the parade, Commander-in-Chief Zhu and General Nie rode in the same car, first reviewing the troops, then Commander-in-Chief Zhu returned to the podium to read the orders of the People's Liberation Army Headquarters. The troops on parade were then led by General Nie, and slowly entered the field from east to west to the sound of the "March of the Chinese People's Liberation Army".
Beginning the parade were two platoons of the navy, with snow-white caps and blue uniforms the color of the ocean. Then came a division of infantry, marching in company formation, in unison. Then came a division of artillery, field guns, mountain guns, howitzers, rockets, all kinds of guns, all marching in a single horizontal line. Then came a division of chariots, all kinds of armored cars and tanks in rows of two or three, marching in neat rows; the soldiers stood on their chariots with their chests out, like giants of steel. Next came a division of cavalry, the "Red Horse Company" with red horses of one color, the "White Horse Company" with white horses of one color, and five horses in parallel, with their legs moving in perfect unison. All these troops passed in front of the podium at equal distances and at the same speed. As the chariot troops passed by, the airplanes of the People's Air Force also flew through the sky in herringbone formation. Chairman Mao was the first to wave into the air. When the crowd saw this, they threw hats on their heads, newspapers and other things in their hands into the sky, cheering to drown out the rumbling of the planes.
The two-and-a-half-hour parade was a crescendo of cheers and applause in the square. The crowd almost shouted their voices mute, the palms of their hands are clapping numb, but still do not feel able to express the joy and flow of their hearts.
The parade was over, and it was already evening. The lanterns and torches on Tiananmen Square were all lit up, and 10,000 fireworks were shot into the sky one after another. The sky is full of colorful sparks, and the ground is full of millions of lights. The mass procession started at this time. The procession set off in two directions, east and west, holding lamps and torches and chanting "Long live the Chinese People's ****ing Party!" "Long live the People's Republic of China!" "Long live the Central People's Government!" They went in order, walking across the White Stone Bridge facing Tiananmen Square, raising their lanterns and torches, and shouting "Long live Chairman Mao!" "Long live Chairman Mao!" Chairman Mao, in front of the podium on the Citadel, leaned forward, waving his hand to the crowd and shouting "Long live the people!" "Long live the comrades!"
9:30 p.m., the parade only completely out of the venue. The two "red streams" split to the east and west of the city streets, the light filled the entire city of Beijing.