Chapter 124 Ode to "A Ball of Fire"

Comrade Zhang Binggui and I signed diagonally and sat opposite each other on a couch.The electric fan behind him made a rhythmic sound, blowing a cool breeze all over the room.I picked up a pen and a small notebook, and looked up at Comrade Zhang Binggui who was sitting across from me. He was also looking at me with such kind and waiting eyes, as if I could ask a question, and he could answer dozens of sentences. !He wants to use the fire in his heart to pass through me to the people of all ethnic groups in the country on all fronts, so that everyone will hold up the torch of "serving the people wholeheartedly" and march forward at the highest speed. Run quickly on the broad road of the four modernizations.

I want to write about the advanced deeds of Comrade Zhang Binggui, not during the National Conference on Finance and Trade Studies in Daqing and Dazhai, it was already at the end of last year.At that time, the young people in the editorial department of "People's Literature" asked me to write some reportage, and appointed me to write about Comrade Zhang Binggui.I read "Standing the Counter for the Revolution" written by Comrade Zhang Binggui himself and several articles by reporters and commentators in the "Beijing Daily" at that time, and I found them extremely moving.During the meeting of the Fifth National People's Congress, I found Comrade Zhang Binggui's seat on the presidium's seat list. During the rest time, I went to ask him to have a talk with me.Of course, that time was very short, and it was inconvenient for me to take out my notebook and do interview work.What he talked to me was not much different from what he wrote and what the reporter wrote, but I remembered one sentence, that is, he said that before liberation, he worked as a salesman in the Dechanghou Food Store next to the Dahua Cinema in Dongcheng, Beijing. .

I was in Japan at that time, but my son and eldest daughter were staying at the home of my eldest sister-in-law, which was Xinkailu.Dechanghou Food Store is on the street at the west entrance of Xinkai Road Hutong.At this time, I suddenly remembered that on a Sunday in the early spring of this year, my sons and daughters were at the dinner table talking enthusiastically about the notice issued by the Ministry of Finance and Trade of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China to seriously study the advanced deeds of Comrade Zhang Binggui, and said to me with a smile: "You I know that Comrade Zhang Binggui, a model worker and advanced worker, is the Master Zhang we used to tell you when we were young! At that time, we only went to buy candy for five cents and popsicles for three cents, but Master Zhang treated us Lovely...we just want to learn from him the spirit of 'a ball of fire'..." They also said that every time they went to the department store, they would see people surrounded by the counter of the candy department, Therefore, they did not dare to go over to greet him, nor did they write to him, for fear of wasting his precious time.

This time, I entrusted the young people in the editorial department of our "People's Literature" to ask for letters written by some young people to Comrade Zhang Binggui to read.I read dozens of them in one go, and the more I read, the more I was moved, and the more I read, the more it seemed that there was a burning fire in my heart!I feel that this fire that keeps the fire burning in us is not falling from the sky!The fire of love for the new society in people's hearts cannot be ignited without overthrowing the iceberg of the old society that weighs on people's hearts.No one understands this truth better than those of us who have been transferred from the old society!

In Master Zhang's speech at the Finance and Trade Conference, what moved me the most was this paragraph: "In the old society, I worked as a child laborer at the age of ten, and as an apprentice in a store at the age of seventeen. At that time, I stood at the counter for the capitalists in order to make a living. I had no status in politics, I was exploited economically, and I was humiliated in personality. We are humbled and fearful. Those bureaucratic lords, ladies, and soldiers come to buy things. If we don’t like them, we will be scolded. If we offend these people, the capitalists will tell us to "pack up" and walk on "landmines" all day long. 'Working...'

At this time, I picked up my pen and said to Comrade Zhang Binggui with a smile: "I know you are a busy person. I want to ask you two questions today. The first is: Please tell me about your life before liberation, so that you I'm kind of emotional." Comrade Zhang Binggui also smiled, looked at me with eyes full of memories, and said: "I am from Beijing, and my father is also a salesman who works in Jinshan Soda Company. We have six brothers and sisters, and I am the fourth. A family of eight living on my father’s salary of 6 yuan a month. My mother said sadly, “You children also earn your own living.” My eldest brother went to a grocery store selling cigarettes and kerosene in 15 rooms I went to be an apprentice. At that time we lived in the East Blacksmith Camp outside Yongdingmen. I went out to collect firewood and wild vegetables since I was seven years old. Those wild vegetables were fed to birds. You can’t write the name! We We eat those wild vegetables every day. We also rely on an 'old friend', an old lady in the neighborhood who sells sweet potatoes. She gives us the leftover sweet potatoes and sweet potato whiskers every day. I went to 'beating' when I was eight years old Deacon', that is, when there are weddings, weddings, funerals, and weddings, I will wear a red tasseled cap, a big gown, and carry a snare drum. In the old society, this is done by people who really have no choice. "Ah, but I'm still afraid that people think I'm too young and don't want me. I go out before dawn and come back after sunset. I only earn two coppers a day. At this time, my mother will bring me a piece of pancake with me. I don’t want to take more, because there is not enough food at home! Once I tucked this precious piece of pancake tightly into the wide band of my coat, but I lost it on the road! When I came back at night, my mother asked me, “One piece of pancake is enough. Not enough?" When I lowered my head and told her that I had lost the pancake, she cried. Not only did she love the pancake, but she also loved me! When I was ten years old, my third brother and I went to a school in Tianjin. I went to work as an apprentice in a carpet workshop. My father was working as a gatekeeper for a capitalist in Tianjin, but he lost his job. I defected to my uncle in Tianjin, and gave the workshop a big and light "calf bag". I can't afford any "heavy gift" either. The cattail bag contains only a couple of catties of "paichaer" - a kind of fried dough. In the workshop, seven of us sleep on a small kang, crowded Everyone has to sleep on their sides. There is no light in this room, so there are too many bedbugs on the kang, and there is a pool of blood when you wipe it. When the weather is warmer, sleep on the ground. When it rains, there is a river in front of the door! At that time, I first learned how to wind woolen yarn. The woolen yarn was strangled in my hands, and it bled and hurt, so I had to wrap my hands with paper before winding. The capitalists scolded when they saw it: You are winding woolen wool. The ball! He kicked me and kicked me out.

"When I returned to Beijing, I went to Chongwenmenwai Jinju Weaving Factory as an apprentice. By the end of the second year, I had learned how to weave simple white cloth. According to the rules, the factory operates from the 26th day of the twelfth lunar month to the fifth day of the first month of the new year. , It was a ten-day holiday. Our apprentices also said that we would go to the Tianqiao to stroll around during the holiday. Unexpectedly, on the night of the twenty-fifth day, the factory caught fire! Running from the machine room, I suddenly thought of going into the The house went to grab the bedding, but the door couldn't be opened!

"On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, a master from a factory came to me and said, 'Xiao Bingguier, come with me to become an apprentice at Ganxiangrui Weaving Factory in Lamkan City.' Every day in the middle of the night, I come out of the locker room with a big belly, shouting 'toot-what', saying that it was the booming crow, which woke us up. This time is an hour earlier than ringing the bell for work. ! "I stayed there for more than two years, earning 20 cents for a piece of cloth. The factory only needs people in February and August, and people are 'dispersed' in winter and summer, because the business is sluggish at that time, and the cloth cannot be sold. Get out. How about "capitalists eat apprentices"! I think I've grown up a bit, why don't I find a "buying place" so as not to be unemployed. At the age of seventeen, I went to find a job at the Yanshou Temple Yuxing Tobacco Company The clerk's elder brother introduced me to work as a clerk at the Dechanghou Food Store on Mishi Street. From 1936 to 1955, I didn't work for 19 years... "After that, I went to the department store. You know it all.These things in the past have tortured me so much that I will never forget the bitterness of the old society. It is true: there are two worlds in the old and new societies, one is bitter and the other is sweet! "

Having said that, he stopped, and I looked up at his calm and quiet smiling face, with infinite admiration in my heart! When I was listening to his words in my ears and remembering his words in my pen, I still had bursts of waves of waves rushing towards me in my mind.There are Chairman Mao's earnest teachings in this sea tide sound, there are also words that Master Zhang himself said, and there are words in the letters from those young people who pay tribute to him and learn from him.For more than 20 years, he has stood upright as the master of the new society and the salesman of the people, standing at the counter of the revolution and receiving nearly two million customers.With his words and actions full of warm and friendly class feelings, he made customers feel warm as soon as they entered the store, and their hearts were still warm after returning to work, and the more they worked on socialism, the more vigorous they were.He used the three-foot revolutionary counter as a platform to promote Mao Zedong Thought, so that many young people who had not experienced the hardships of the old society were convinced to worship him as a teacher and to be his revolutionary successor!

As early as 1957, Chairman Mao taught us in his book "On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People": "Among intellectuals and young students, ideological and political work has weakened in recent times. In the eyes of some people, it seems that there is no need to care about politics, the future of the motherland, or the ideal of mankind... The establishment of the socialist system has opened up a road for us to reach the ideal state, and the ideal The realization of the realm depends on our hard work. Some young people think that everything should be fine when they arrive in a socialist society, and they can enjoy a ready-made happy life without any effort. This is an unrealistic idea.”

In the old society, Master Zhang was a person who kept his voice low and worried all day long, and stepped on the "land mines" to stand up for the capitalists. He deeply knew that it is necessary to do ideological work for those young people who think that they can enjoy happiness without effort!An older customer of the People's Liberation Army also said to him: "We are all old, we must pay attention to leading the young people, and do a good job in teaching and mentoring." Master Zhang Binggui uses his words and deeds to do a good job in mentoring and mentoring.Let's take a look at the passionate letters from these young people: Very rare.How I wish there were salesmen like you scattered all over the world. I hope that your spirit can change millions of salespeople, so that people can work and study with peace of mind, and make full use of their precious time.A Beijing high school graduate is fresh.After smashing the "Gang of Four", the Party Central Committee led hundreds of millions of people to march forward courageously along the revolutionary course opened by Chairman Mao. In just a few months, a series of historic conferences were held. Steaming!What should I do in this situation?This question often swirls in my mind, but many times, I often do not have a clear concept and lack confidence in a job... You have stood at the counter for decades and worked hard for the revolution. I have only worked for a few years. Get bored with your job.You work tirelessly all day long and serve the people with deep feelings, but I regard the work of the party as expensive and cheap.After reading your deeds, I feel very ashamed, feel sorry for the party and the people, and let down the expectations of the older generation... I am still very young, and I need the advice of the older generation like you, Master Zhang, in all aspects... Workers in the dyeing and weaving factory of the Production and Construction Corps of the Xinjiang Military Region lacked awareness of the importance of sexuality and did not firmly establish the idea of ​​serving the people. Customers are sarcastic, and the idea of ​​changing careers often occurs.After the "Gang of Four" was smashed, a new situation emerged in all walks of life, and the service style of the business sector has also been continuously improved... This great situation often excites me, especially after hearing your speech on the radio, I can't calm down. I thought a lot... If in the old society, a poor peasant child like me without a father would have died of cold and starvation, how would he be today?After much deliberation, I am ashamed. Compared with you, Master Zhang, I am so inferior.I am determined to learn from you, learn your good ideas and good style, and devote my whole life to the cause of revolution... I hope that you will not only take good care of the apprentices around you, but also accept me as an apprentice from afar.Although we are separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, Chairman Mao's revolutionary line has tightly bound our hearts together! A salesperson in the candy department of a grocery store in Suihua County is strong. The salesperson is so tired that his waist is sore and his legs hurt, and he has to accompany him with a smiling face.This line of work is simply serving people, and I don’t want to do this line of work even if I say nothing!But since I saw your deeds, the more I work, the more I realize the great significance of the saying "There is no inferior work, only inferior thoughts"!I am determined to be a salesperson forever!Be your apprentice, measure yourself with your spirit of fire, and be a diligent salesman who is not afraid of fatigue and trouble.For more than a year, a Red Guard from Beijing Normal School had to quarrel with customers every day, either hard or cold.After smashing the "Gang of Four", I realized that it was the "Gang of Four" who said that "a good service attitude will lead to revisionism", which confused our thinking! I gave three lectures on my erroneous thoughts, and at the same time I made great progress in the service work, which was well received by customers. I also wrote a letter of determination, expressing that I want to learn from you honestly, learn your good ideas and good style, and hope that you will accept me as an apprentice...a salesman in a department store in the city center of Shacheng.I want to learn from your spirit of fire, to have fire-like enthusiasm for workers, peasants and soldiers, to be diligent and diligent without fear of fatigue and trouble, to always be loyal to the party's propaganda work, and to be a person who is beneficial to the people forever! Dear old comrades, let us unite under the banner of the Party Central Committee to grasp the principles and govern the country, and burn the fire of "serving the people wholeheartedly" even more vigorously! A worker of the Beijing Farm Film Team, I was a young worker who just started working last year. Because of work needs, the leader assigned me to cook in the cafeteria.But I don't feel at ease about work, I feel poor and think that after studying for twelve years, now I am doing cooking, I am inferior and worthless.After seeing your advanced deeds, it touched me a lot.You say: "In our socialist motherland, there are only inferior thoughts, and there is absolutely no inferior work." I feel that if I continue to develop like this, how can I reassure you?There are tens of thousands of revolutionary works, and each of them needs a revolutionary successor.I am determined to love my work as much as you do, and contribute my fiery youth to the grand goals of the four modernizations... A warehouse worker of the Beijing Life Management Office passed the three-foot counter.You have brilliantly practiced the beneficial maxims taught to us by our revolutionary predecessors, and it has blown warm spring breezes all over the world... We say that the old world must perish, because the new fashion and new ideas of mutual care and respect have long been the people's desire Longing for life and good hope... two workers from Beijing Internal Combustion Engine General Factory, like you, closely link our words and deeds with the realization of the four modernizations, and take over the proletarian revolutionary cause of the older generation!The fire spirit of the five Beijing Xiaweidian Power Station workers made me, a young man, understand that I serve the people in the same way in every position, and made me fill in my graduation and university volunteer books. "Serving the people is my only wish."These letters from a student in the second grade of a Beijing middle school are just a few dozen of the hundreds of letters that Comrade Zhang Binggui has received, and what I have transcribed are only seven or eight of the dozens of letters I have read. seal up.I think there are still many letters that haven't been written or sent to Comrade Zhang Binggui. Like my sons and daughters, they thought about it but didn't write it, and wrote it but didn't send it. I'm afraid that Comrade Zhang Binggui's precious time was wasted. The letters I have seen are almost all written by young people, and they are all private letters to Master Zhang. They review him, swear to him, pay tribute to him, and learn from him...how cute young people!What a sincere and warm words!I am not familiar with these youths who are in their prime and full of vigor. Our contact is only inside and outside the counter. Between buying and selling, we have no time to talk, and they will not open their hearts to me!After reading these dozens of letters, I feel that every three-foot counter has a torch from Comrade Zhang Binggui, which warms and illuminates the hearts of everyone standing outside the counter! Comrade Zhang Binggui was still looking at me with a smile—I was just thinking about it and forgot to ask a question!At this time, I recalled that the last paragraph of Comrade Zhang Binggui’s speech at the Finance and Trade Conference was, “Comrades, let our more than 12 million financial and trade troops follow the Party Central Committee, ride the wind and waves, and embark on a new Long March!” I quickly laughed Question: "My second question is, how many comrades are there in this 12 million-plus financial and trade army?" He smiled and said, "About eight million!" it is good!Eight million salesmen, 12 million financial and trade troops, and the star-studded clusters of flames all over the sky will illuminate our new journey of thousands of miles so brightly and brilliantly! Let's all take this fire! Let us all celebrate this fire! July 13, 1978. (This article was originally published in the 8th issue of "People's Literature" in 1978.)