Chapter 61 Shi Yanhua: Another Ambassador, Another Ambassador's Wife

As the saying goes, fate determines three lives.In the early years, Shi Yanhua, a top student of "Northern Foreign Language School" who was known as the "beauty in the south of the Yangtze River", almost followed Wu Jianmin's footsteps to the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Although they have missed each other countless times, the God of Love still binds them tightly. Shi Yanhua's ancestral home is Zhenhai, Zhejiang. She was admitted to the English Department of BFSU one year before Wu Jianmin graduated. Five years later, she got her wish and was admitted to BFSU as a graduate student, where she studied under famous professors such as Zhou Jueliang, Xu Guozhang, and Wang Zuoliang. In the spring of 1965, she came to the Translation Office of the Department of Education of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as an intern, and was soon seconded to the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League to participate in the preparations for the World Youth Federation.At this time, Wu Jianmin was transferred back to Beijing by Chen Yi's order, and Wu Jianmin, who was still in the League Central Committee, met Shi Yanhua unexpectedly.

Not long after Wu Jianmin came to the Translation Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Shi Yanhua was officially assigned to the Translation Office of the Education Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as an English interpreter.A few months later, Wu Jianmin became the Secretary of the Youth League Branch of the Translation Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Shi Yanhua became the Deputy Secretary of the Youth League Branch. The two had more and more contacts, and the seeds of love gradually germinated. In 1967, Wu Jianmin and Shi Yanhua became husband and wife. Shi Yanhua is the leading English interpreter of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has served as the interpreter for Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Deng Xiaoping, Deng Yingchao and other leaders. In the 1970s, he made important contributions to the work of the United States.She not only participated in the reception work of Nixon, Kissinger, Ford, Reagan, Carter and other American dignitaries, but also participated in the drafting of the "Communication on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and the United States" and the "August 19 Communiqué between China and the United States".

Ji Chaozhu, a famous translator who accompanied Deng Xiaoping on his visit to the United States in 1979, was over 50 years old, and after returning to China, he was replaced from the first-line interpretation and translation work and transferred to the Department of American Affairs as Deputy Director. Shi Yanhua took over the work of Ji Chaozhu , Ji Chaozhu called Shi Yanhua "an excellent interpreter". The famous Italian female journalist Farage interviewed Deng Xiaoping twice on August 21 and 23, 1980, and Shi Yanhua acted as the English interpreter for these two conversations.

Known as the "mother of political interviews", Farage is famous for his sharp questions and quick thinking. He has interviewed Kissinger, Sharon and other world political figures.Because she is good at asking many strange questions and is merciless, it is easy to bring difficulties to the translation work.Shi Yanhua fulfilled her mission and accurately expressed the thoughts and views of both sides.After the contents of the two interviews were made public, they aroused great attention from politicians around the world. Shi Yanhua still remembers the unusual opening speech between them:

"Tomorrow is your birthday!" Farage said when he saw Deng Xiaoping. "My birthday? Is my birthday tomorrow?" Deng Xiaoping was a little surprised. "Yes, Mr. Deng Xiaoping, I know it from your biography." "Since you say so, let it be! I never know when my birthday is. Even if it is my birthday tomorrow, you shouldn't congratulate me! I am 76 years old, and 76 years old is the age of decline! " Farage was a little embarrassed: "Mr. Deng Xiaoping, my father is also 76 years old. If I told him that is a declining age, he would give me a slap in the face!"

"He did the right thing. You wouldn't say that to your father, would you?" Deng Xiaoping smiled. In 1991, Shi Yanhua served as the director of the translation office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and at this time Wu Jianmin also became the tenth director of the Information Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.They became the first couple of director-level officials since the establishment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Three years later, Shi Yanhua was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, becoming the 17th female ambassador in 19 years since 1979.Not long before, Wu Jianmin was also appointed by Jiang Zemin as the Chinese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Netherlands, thus the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs had the first couple ambassadors in history.

A diplomatic couple separated from each other for the country's diplomatic career. It was not until 1998 that they were reunited in Geneva. At the beginning of 1996, Wu Jianmin was sent to Geneva by President Jiang Zemin as the Chinese ambassador to the United Nations Office in Geneva.Two years later, Shi Yanhua resigned from the post of ambassador to Luxembourg and also came to Geneva to become the minister of the Chinese delegation.Before Wu Jianmin became the Chinese ambassador to France in 1998, the leaders of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had asked Wu Jianmin for his opinion: Should Shi Yanhua continue to be an ambassador to other countries, or should he go to France as the ambassador's wife?Wu Jianmin said that he was very busy in France, and that Shi Yanhua was not around, so it was not easy.So the husband and wife came to Paris together to officially end the days of "separation of labor and swallow".