Chapter 36 Homecoming Miscellaneous Notes-1

Dear children: Last winter, I went back to my hometown - Fujian - for more than a month. This beautiful and majestic province in the hilly area, facing the mountains and the sea, faces Kinmen Taiwan, and stands at the forefront of national defense.The thirteen million people who live in this most excited and alert land are calmly, silently, sweating and sweating, bowing their heads and toiling.They are splitting mountains, they are reclamating seas, they are building unprecedented great and arduous projects for the liberation of Taiwan and the consolidation of national defense.They built railways, reservoirs, factories, and power stations in the deep mountains and dense forests... They built workers' sanatoriums, museums, and children's palaces on the mountains by the lake...the sirens kept ringing The sound and the enemy's artillery fire did not disrupt their schedules and plans. They and the hundreds of millions of people in all corners of the motherland are carrying out socialist construction and transformation side by side in the same pulse!

Everything I saw and heard in my hometown surprised me, made me proud, excited me, made me happy, made me want to sing loudly, made me want to catch everyone, excitedly and quietly to him Said: "Friends, do you know? Although there is little publicity in the newspapers, and people don't say it easily, my hometown, those smart and brave people in Fujian, are doing a lot for the liberation of Taiwan and the socialist construction of the motherland. There are so many great things that you can't imagine! Just wait, one day, these miracles will appear in front of everyone, causing hundreds of millions of people to cheer and praise!"

Dear children, if I cannot catch everyone, at least I would like to report to you some things that I can tell you now, and things that will interest you.Let me start with our journey.It was mid-November in 1955 from Beijing to Fuzhou. The leaves in Beijing were already yellow and the wind was blowing.We took the train from north to south, passing through six provinces, namely: Hebei, Shandong, Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi are getting warmer and warmer along the way.When we arrived in Shangrao, Jiangxi Province, we changed cars, and in the light rain at dawn, we went up to Ziji Ridge until Fenshui Pass; this hill is where Jiangxi and Fujian border. Land up!

My parents are both Fujianese, but I have only been to Fujian once in my life, and that was more than forty years ago, and I traveled by water.At that time, I walked from the Bohai Sea in Shandong to the Minjiang River in Fujian, and I felt that the river water was much quieter and gentler than the sea water!I once mentioned the scene at that time in a short poem: white mist; it was the weather in the south of the Yangtze River, and the rain was coming-I only knew that there was a blue sea, but it turned out that there was a green river. This is my parents' hometown! This time I took the mountain road.My heart is full of warm memories of my childhood, carefully admiring my "hometown of parents" in the midst of thousands of mountains.What a tall mountain, what a lush forest, what a flat road!People say that this is the best and most beautiful road in the country. It is paved with fine red clay, smooth as a wipe, and dust-free.This road is a thousand miles long, winding and undulating among the high mountains and deep trees and dense forests, like a bright red blood vessel, closely connecting Fujian with the heart of the motherland.The wheels rustled softly, passing peaks one by one before our eyes.The dense forest, like a dark green tent, surrounded us.

The gurgling spring water flows from the mountain stream.There are winding terraced fields in the valley. Our industrious and brave people do not want to waste an inch of arable land in the motherland. On the road, male and female migrant workers were constantly seen, some of them were beating stones with hammers, some were sweeping fine sand with big bamboo brooms, and some children were sitting beside their mothers, picking stones and picking wild flowers with a smile.On the opposite side, large trucks continued to drive one after another, with a red cloth slogan "Driving Safely ×× Ten Thousand Kilometers" hung across the front of the vehicle.This road, this bright red blood vessel, is kept connected by our lovely and respectable migrant workers and drivers.They insist on making it flow unimpeded, day and night, sending fresh blood to the forefront of national defense!

People who have lived in the north of the motherland for a long time, especially from the endless pale yellow plains in winter to the green mountains pierced by clouds, always have an indescribably fresh and happy feeling.We climbed three precipitous mountains, Shengchangling, Dafuling, and Tiaoling, among which Tiaoling was the tallest at 1,246 meters.The twists and turns along the way up the mountain reminded me of the famous saying of the ancients: "The mountain rises from the face of the man, and the cloud grows next to the horse's head." Because the mountain is steep, when the mountain road turns, it seems that the mountain wall in front of you is pressing against you; because the mountain is high, So the clouds and mist are swarming in front of the horses and chariots.It is difficult for those who have not traveled on high mountains to appreciate the beauty of these two lines of poetry.

Except for the pines and cypresses, I can't name the big hugging trees in this forest.But there must be maple trees inside, and it is also winter in the southern country at this time, so one or two bright red leaf trees will appear from time to time among the green bushes, which are very vivid.On the wet mountain wall, wild flowers of various colors bloom in disorder, bright yellow and deep purple, embellished picturesquely! After passing Gutian, we turned over three lower mountains and walked with the river all the way.The countryside in Fujian is full of white walls and black tiles, and waterwheels are parked beside the streams.There are clumps of lychee trees, longan trees, olive trees and orange trees along the roadside of the village.This is when the oranges are ripe, and there seem to be golden balls hanging on the tree, one piece of orange, very dazzling.

Walking through Baisha, the river is wide, the distant mountains are light green, and the white river is dotted with fishing sails, which is the most beautiful part of the journey. After this, it was almost the city of Fuzhou, and there was an endless stream of barefoot rural women carrying vegetable loads on the road. They wore colorful fleeces on their shoulder poles, talking and laughing with each other along the way, walking like flying.Seeing them, my heart was filled with a feeling of kindness and pride!Fujian women were famous all over the country in terms of agricultural production, especially in southern Fujian, western Fujian and the suburbs of Fuzhou City. Many women have consistently participated in the main agricultural labor.After liberation, the feudal shackles were lifted, and women's enthusiasm for production became even higher. Now, in agricultural cooperatives, women's labor has become the decisive force to ensure production.

Entering Fuzhou City, it was just the beginning of light rain and clear sky. The former gray city walls disappeared, the river running through the city disappeared, and the narrow stone roads also disappeared.What emerged in front of my eyes were wide roads, tall buildings, and tidy shops.It was Sunday, and the road was flooded with crowds of laughing people with their children.The bus is also full of people. Fuzhou is originally a city with mountains, water and hot springs, and the green leaves never fall in four seasons, and the flowers are constantly blooming.When foreign guests came, they all praised Fuzhou as a garden in surprise.Young Shipyard The first time I had contact with children from Fuzhou was on the afternoon of November 25, when I attended the opening ceremony of the Junior Shipyard Primary School for the Children of Fuzhou Aviation Administration Bureau.

The children know that I have always been very interested in everything on the water, especially when I heard that the children are going to set up a shipyard by themselves, I am eager to visit it.That day I rushed back from the south bank of the Minjiang River, and when I arrived in front of the primary school for the children of the Aviation Administration Bureau, I saw flags and colorful decorations hanging at the gate, and children wearing snow-white shirts and bright red scarves were coming and going like a shuttle.There are many young students in the square at the gate, dancing and singing in a circle.In the midst of joy, we walked into the venue and sat down.The back seat of the venue was already full of guests, and there were many slogans on the wall: "Study hard to learn advanced shipbuilding experience from father and brother", "Learn skills to inherit the great cause of father and brother", and so on.

The ceremony started, the drum sounded, and a whole team of forty-five "little workers" entered the arena, sitting in the front seats of the venue, all of them were full of energy, and their little faces were shining with excitement.After the Director General of Air Traffic Management and their chief engineer Comrade Lin Shihua made their speeches, they were presented with red scarves from the Fuzhou Youth Home, and the students from our school presented them with flowers.The following is the most tense stage: the small director of the young shipyard, announcing the establishment of the shipyard.The smiling principal stepped forward and read out the school's order from the shipyard.I was taken aback!There are: one large ship, one full-bodied ship, three small ferries, and twenty tug barges (four in the first batch and sixteen in the second batch), and delivery is required before December 25 .At this time, the small factory manager got up again and read out the work rules. The young workers were all gearing up and smiling at each other. Behind the stage, the door of the factory workshop was slowly pushed open, and the young workers stood up one after another and rushed in, and we followed suit.This is the workshop for carpentry, bamboo and paper, and the materials and tools have been neatly put aside.The small workers took up axes, hammers, knives, and scissors extremely skillfully, and nervously operated them on the long tables and benches.After looking around in a hurry, I dragged their chief counselor and chief engineer to the classroom next to the mechanical workshop upstairs to talk. Amidst the sound of steam engines in the workshop next door, the counselor said loudly to me: The fathers and brothers of my classmates in this elementary school are mostly people living on the Minjiang River. Before liberation, they had been discriminated against by the reactionary ruling class.Not only did they not have the opportunity to read and write, they were not even allowed to live ashore, so they could only make a living by fishing and sailing.After liberation, they turned over and settled on land. They were allocated fields during the land reform, and their children went to school.Some of them planted their own gardens, and some still worked on the boats on the water.The students of the staff primary school are very familiar with and love the business of their father and brother; during the Young Pioneers activities, they visited the ship repairing factory of the Navigation Administration Bureau; After Uncle's report—about his own twenty-five years of sailing experience on the water—their enthusiasm increased, and first a boat-building group was organized during the weekly crafting time.This scale is far from enough to satisfy them. Finally, with the enthusiastic help of the Young Pioneers, the school, and fathers and brothers, this young shipyard, which is "small but complete", was officially established today! The organization of this small factory: there are four workshops: chief and deputy factory director, carpenter, machinist, bamboo worker, and paper worker.This quiet and amiable designer with a pipe in his mouth looks like a university professor, and he is the people of the water.More than 20 years of hard experience and gratitude after liberation made him love his career even more. He wants to pass on his own inventions and full-copy skills to the next generation of the lively people on the water! The conversation is over, an hour has passed, and the factory is closed.When we hurried downstairs to look at it again, the big table in front of the factory was filled with the results of this hour, surrounded by applauding guests.It turned out that on the first day of construction, the workshops had overfulfilled their tasks, several hulls had been cut, and other paper blanks, bamboo tents, etc. had also been displayed.I immediately felt relieved, and if I continue to work like this, the first batch of deliveries before December 25th will not be a problem! Three weeks later, before I left Fujian, I heard that the boy's shipyard had expanded again.The number of workers has increased to more than one hundred, and a sail workshop has been added, which is full of small female workers. I often miss this factory.A few days ago, I saw the Soviet film "The Zhurbin Family", and I thought very fondly of the young workers in the shipyard and their parents.Little worker!Study hard and work hard. In the future, the majestic and beautiful ships on the Minjiang River, the East China Sea, and the Pacific Ocean will be built by your skilled and flexible hands! Children's gymnastics, recitation and puppet show performances On November 27, I participated in several activities for children in Fuzhou. In the morning, we participated in the Fujian Provincial Sports Conference.After the opening ceremony, there will be juvenile radio gymnastics and group word performances.Under the bright sunshine, amidst the surrounding mountains, the square was filled with colorful flags fluttering, and thousands of heads were thronging. 1,200 young pioneers came out from the opposite side of the reviewing stand.The team was laid out, and under the clear and loud slogans, they moved neatly and softly.After a while the neat team spread out, forming several circles, and suddenly they all sat down with their knees hugged and lowered their heads neatly, and the four big characters of "Long Live Peace" clearly appeared in the square like countless small cotton balls connected together. , there are a few doves of peace with red eyes shining on it.Looking carefully, the red eyes of the peace dove turned out to be the red fleeces worn by the children. At some point, the children with dove eyes took off their white shirts with lightning-fast movements, revealing the red fleeces.A piece of snow-white, dotted with these few red dots, it looks extraordinarily bright.Both the gymnastics and the grouping of words received thunderous applause.The middle school students' health exercises and word formation were also praised by the audience.Their combination of characters is relatively complicated, representing the strong determination of the people of the whole province and the whole country to "plant the red flag all over Taiwan". In the evening, I participated in the poetry reading party of the Fuzhou Youth Home. The Children's Home in Fuzhou temporarily rented private houses before the Children's Palace was built.The party was held in the hall downstairs.There are four big characters of "We Love Poetry" cut out of paper on the curtain, five-color paper tapes are hung in the hall, and there are densely packed children sitting on the small benches, which are tightly packed.After the counselor gave a speech, the recitation program began, with several people recitation together, and one person recited alone.I listened quietly, and the more I listened, the more amazed I became!I found that they not only have a relaxed attitude and expressive expressions, but also their pronunciation of Beijing dialect is very accurate except for a few difficult words. I remember that when I returned to Fuzhou for the first time more than 40 years ago, I was not used to speaking the local accent, and I was very envious of the children in my hometown who could speak such a good Fuzhou dialect. Now that I am used to Beijing dialect, I also I admire the children in my hometown who can speak Beijing dialect so well. After liberation, people's social life changed, and domestic traffic became more frequent. For communication, for social struggle and development, it is absolutely necessary to learn a standardized language.But Chinese dialects are very different, especially between Fuzhou dialect and Beijing dialect.I deeply know that the excellent results of the children in Fuzhou in learning Beijing phonetics are inseparable from the persuasive teaching of their teachers and their own continuous efforts. Finally, the children performed a puppet show for me - the story of the yellow crane.The story goes like this: There was an old farmer couple who had a very good painting of a yellow crane hidden in their home. A county magistrate saw this good painting and forced the old man to hand it over. The painting was snatched back to the yamen, but the yellow crane flew away from the painting. I sat at the front with great excitement and watched carefully.The small stage is only three or four feet long and two or three feet wide.In the hanging curtain under the stage, the bulging was wriggling, and someone could be heard talking softly.After a while, the curtain on the stage opened, and behind it was a very delicate and small set, several puppets in ancient costumes, old man, old woman, county magistrate, yamen servant... Nodding and waving, they came out and went in very quickly It was flexible and the lines were clear, which aroused the laughter of the audience. The puppet show in Quanzhou, Fujian Province is famous all over the country. The performers are very skilled at pulling strings.Another advantage of puppet show is that although the stage is small, it can perform some scenes that cannot be shown in drama.A few days ago, I watched a short play satirizing the Kuomintang performed by the Quanzhou Puppet Experimental Troupe.In the sound of "March of the People's Liberation Army", jet planes, warships, landing craft and amphibious tanks all marched towards Yijiangshan Island; colorful parachutes sprinkled down like flower petals; The infantry and marines, under the cover of the air force, landed in one fell swoop, and the bright red flag fluttered on the highest peak of Yijiangshan Island! Fuzhou children's puppet show interest groups often have the opportunity to learn from adult puppet shows, and the children cherish this opportunity very much.I think the art form of puppet show is very useful and suitable for cultivating and developing children's language ability, imagination and thinking ability.Children's favorite fairy tales are written into scripts and performed on the stage of a puppet show, which is much easier than on the stage of a drama.For example, flowers, plants, birds, and animals can talk; the big bad wolf can immediately become a grandmother, etc. The rich and lively imagination of the children can be freely and endlessly displayed in script creation, stage design, and performance. Come out; I warmly hope that the children who performed for us that night, and all the children who are interested in puppet shows, will work harder!Youth Farm The news of the establishment of the Youth Farm in Houyu Township No. 2 Central Primary School, Gushan District, Fuzhou, aroused great interest when I read it in Beijing newspapers.On the afternoon of December 2nd, I officially visited this small farm. At the foot of the beautiful Gushan Mountain, in front of the gate of the office of Zhengyim Agricultural Production Cooperative in Houyu Township, I sat on a stone bench with the head of the small farm, the head of the Young Pioneers, and their chief counselor. . They told me: Most of the students in Houyu Township Primary School are the children of farmers. Therefore, after the establishment of the team in May 1953, the young pioneers felt the greatest interest in the planting activities in the activities of the team. It is also the most active.However, the children are still not satisfied with the planting of the fragments, and they are eager to obtain a complete set of agricultural production knowledge.The counselors also believe that the research on agricultural knowledge in production according to different seasons is of great help to the teaching of "nature" and the connection with reality.So after visiting the Fujian farm, the children's own farm was organized. There are all kinds of staff in various departments of the small farm, such as: field chief, deputy field chief, secretary, accountant, cashier, production team leader, technician... All in all, this is a "specific and micro" well-organized farm. Compared with large farms, It's just a few sizes smaller from the workers to the land! The production scope is divided into five areas: Grass, Vegetable, Seedling, Root and Animal Feeding, and each area has a teacher as an instructor.The land of the farm has a total of three acres and four quarters, including the motorized field in the village, the open space in the school, and the garbage land reclaimed by the children themselves.There are 220 small workers, who are selected from among the team members who signed up.Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday afternoons are farm activities (extracurricular activities), all workers participate, and the content is production, observation, or visits.In addition, there are on-duty staff every day for a week to handle the work that should be done every day... The small field leader and the team leader kept brushing their short hair blowing in front of their foreheads, talking to me in good Mandarin with flushed faces Watching the situation of their activities: what is the opening of the workers' meeting, the meeting of the production team, how many students insisted on joining, and they can't stop talking!I couldn't wait, so I said: "Let's go to the farm, let's talk as we go, okay?" They immediately stood up, smiled and took my hand, and walked to the farm together. What a beautiful field!Surrounded by verdant mountains, in the middle is a neat green field.The stream was gurgling, and three or two women in red velvet coats were leaning on the water wheel, talking and laughing while driving the water. Crossing the road, we first went to the Heben area of ​​the Juvenile Farm.Walking up the high and narrow field ridges, there are mud and water on both sides.The field chief ran fast in front barefoot.The captain held my hand tightly, leaned over, walked slowly, and said: "It's okay if you hold my hand. People who are not used to walking in this field are a little nervous." I laughed and said: "You take me step by step to the socialist society!" He turned around and smiled. Wheat is planted on this one-fifth of an acre.In the field, there were seven or eight small workers wearing red scarves, their trousers rolled up to their thighs, and they were busy tidying up the ridges of the field and putting them into the stream, the sound of water and laughter merged into one.The farm manager pointed out to me: "The wheat in this field is planted using the 'drill sowing method'. If the planting is successful and the harvest is good, the 'drill sowing' method will also be used in the large cooperatives instead of the 'on-demand' method." We walked into the village and visited the vegetable field reclaimed from garbage land. There were also four or five small workers carrying buckets, watering and fertilizing.Finally, we went to the primary school campus and visited the nursery area.Eucalyptus microphyllum, philodendron and neem are planted in the seedling border, both of which are landscape trees.The children told me that these saplings are going to be used to build a juvenile forest in the future.In addition, there are banana trees and papaya trees, which will bear fruit next year; they invited me to eat new fruits next year, and I thanked them first with a smile. We entered a small courtyard, which is the animal breeding area. There are a few geese caged in the wooden fence, stretching their necks and hooting.The pigsty is still empty, and a British Vickers piglet will move in soon.Under the pigsty is a very flat cement floor, surrounded by cement channels, which are used to guide the pigs' urine into the vat and keep it as fertilizer. The small field manager also held out a box, which contained several large, emerald green and transparent Indian castor silkworms.It is said that these silkworms only eat castor leaves and grow very fast. Ten thousand silkworms can produce five catties of silk. There are several pairs of shoulder poles and wooden barrels in the farm tool storage room. They said with apologetic smiles that due to limited funds, those more expensive farm tools, such as hoes and rakes, had to be borrowed by each worker from their own homes for the time being.I asked about the source of the funds, and they said that first the team headquarters sold the vegetables they grew for more than ten yuan.During the autumn harvest, the team members picked up more than 1,500 catties of grain ears. Apart from keeping 200 catties as animal feed, the rest of the grain ears were sold for more than 90 yuan.They used the money to buy saplings, seeds, animals and farm tools, leaving thirty or forty yuan as the farm fund.In the office of the juvenile farm, I met the little accountant. He opened the locked drawer and showed me the farm's account book.Income and expenditure are neat and tidy, and all specifications are exactly the same as the new-style ledgers of large farms and agricultural production cooperatives! It was getting late, and I reluctantly bid farewell to the farm staff.Children sitting in small circles on the playground, holding "China Youth Daily" in their hands, are still discussing their five-year plans enthusiastically.We didn't dare to disturb them and walked gently by.There are already many children gathered at the school gate, vying to shake hands with us and say "goodbye". On the way back in the car, I looked back frequently. The cottages, fields, and children waving their hands were getting smaller and smaller, so that I couldn’t see them.But as I lay in bed excitedly thinking about it that night, the images just got bigger and bigger!Scattered cottages have turned into neat buildings.The fields of one row after another have been connected into a piece of green.Those small workers have also become tall, loud, and capable collective farm cadres.It's not my fantasy, it's a fact of course ten years later!Youth Gardening Field On December 3rd, we visited Eel Zhang Township. Eel Zhang is a beautiful mountain village.Guling is like a long, tall, green wall standing in the north.The stream and waterfall rushed down from the mountain stream, dividing the people here into two villages, the front stream and the back stream. According to the counselor, Houxi Primary School has developed from a private school with only 60 students before liberation to a complete primary school with more than 300 students.On June 1, 1955, they established the Young Pioneers with 120 members.During the summer vacation, the team members helped the lieutenants to do the work of eliminating pests, and they were very active. They killed more than 1,900 mice and caught tens of thousands of borers.During the autumn harvest activities, they picked up more than 860 catties of grain ears and sold them for more than 60 yuan. They are preparing to set up a gardening field for young people. Everything has not been arranged yet, but the wheat and vegetables in the field have been planted. It's okay to go and have a look... We happily walked out of the village hand in hand, and looked up to see the White Horse Temple on the middle of the mountain. It is said that the White Horse King is the third son of the former Yue King Ying - Baima Sanlang.He once shot a giant eel hiding in a deep pool on the mountain in this place.Therefore, the original name of this township was Eel Creek.Eel Zhang was established in the temple of this scenic spot since he was a child. We climbed hundreds of layers of stone steps in a zigzag way. Not far from the school gate, on the slopes on both sides of the mountain road, we saw two green and neat fields with many signs inserted. They were the workers of the juvenile garden. turnips, cabbage and wheat. There are two large camphor trees at the gate of the school, which are said to be very ancient.The school is very clean.The auditorium converted from the main hall is bright and spacious.In the room on the left side of the auditorium, there is a wooden eel head carved on the wall, and there is an inscription next to it, because it was late, I didn't read it down. In the twilight, we left the school and went to the mountain to see the eel pond.In winter, the water is dry, and countless large and small stones are piled up in the mountain stream.It must be very interesting to sit on this big rock and watch the water enjoy the coolness when the water is heavy in summer. There are also several large water mill wheels along the stream, turning slowly in the gaps between the trees, which are the places where people in the village pound rice.We crossed the Banqiao and went up to an open field with dozens of layers of large stone slabs. Under the shaved rock wall, we saw the "Xiatan". It was a very wide and deep pool surrounded by tall rocks and dense trees. The scenery is very beautiful. When going down the mountain, the 12-year-old team representative Chen Minxiu suddenly took my hand, raised his head and asked with a smile, "You are from Beijing. Is Chairman Mao healthy? How far is his old man from our place?" At this time The sun has set behind Guling, and the sky is red as fire!I turned my head and pointed at this glorious mountain, and said with a smile: "Chairman Mao lives in the city of Beijing thousands of miles away behind this mountain. He is in very good health, and he is always concerned about your growth." She He smiled happily and said, "We know that Chairman Mao cares about us, otherwise, why would he send you to see us?" After returning to Beijing, I often miss this juvenile garden and these innocent little gardeners.A few days ago, I received a letter from them, which said: Mai... Everyone hopes that it will grow fast and grow well, and we will tell you the good results.Now the cabbage is about to be harvested, and we will supply it to the uncle workers who work in Dengyun Reservoir.Turnips are also doing well.Drilled wheat grows very quickly and is more than a foot high.If I have the opportunity, I will take two small photos of them and send them to you, so that you will be happy to see the fruits of our labor... I didn't get their strange photos, because I haven't replied to their letters.But the day before yesterday I read in the newspaper the reliable news that "Fujian Province has generally had a good harvest of barley, wheat and other crops". Time to get busy with other planting activities.Warm emotions welled up in my heart!These jumping and running children who love to work, they will never know how to rest.The awarding ceremony of the Fujian Military Region, December 15, 1955, was the most memorable day in my life!