Chapter 7 〇Six Farmers and Martyrs——Record of Song Zhiyong, the Second National Moral Model

In the ancient land of Yanzhao, there is a place called "Yutian".Yutian is the country of endless sons in the Spring and Autumn Period.According to the Eastern Jin Dynasty novel "Sou Shen Ji": Yang Boyong's parents died, and there was no burial in Zhongshan.The mountain is eighty miles high, and there is no water on it.Yang Yiyi quenched the thirst of passers-by, and the gods gave him to plant jade, and he was blessed by planting jade.Because of this, the ancients changed "No End" to "Yade Field".This beautiful legend has been told for thousands of years by the kind-hearted Yutian people, and it has also encouraged generations of Yutian people to do more righteous deeds.

Song Zhiyong was from Yutian County, which now belongs to Tangshan City, Hebei Province. In "Sou Shen Ji", Yang Boyong has been doing righteousness for three years by himself, and "everyone who walks drinks it", which shows that there are many beneficiaries.And Song Zhiyong traveled thousands of miles in 2008, went to the south to fight against ice and snow, went to Sichuan to fight against the earthquake, and helped students in the disaster-stricken areas... His righteous deeds affected the whole county, the whole city, even the whole province and the whole country, and their significance far exceeded that of quenching the thirst of passersby .

Whether it is Yang Boyong in ancient times or Song Zhiyong today, they have all made special contributions to their country with their own modest efforts. This can't help but make us sigh: an ordinary citizen can serve the interests of the country and the people. What a noble personality and realm it is to decide one's own actions! Song Zhiyong was born in May 1973. In the 1970s, for most "post-70s", it was just a birth commemoration, and there was nothing special about it.But for the "post-70s" in Dongbalipu Village, Yutian County, Tangshan City, this era represented a catastrophe.

On July 28, 1976, at 3:42:54 AM Beijing time, an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 on the Richter scale occurred in Tangshan!In an instant, an industrial city with a population of one million was razed to the ground.The earthquake caused more than 242,000 deaths and more than 164,000 serious injuries; more than 7,200 families were killed, tens of thousands of families were disintegrated, and 4,204 people became orphans; 97% of the ground buildings and 55% of production equipment were destroyed; transportation, water supply, Power supply and communication were all interrupted; the direct economic loss was RMB 10 billion.Dongbalipu Village, which is close to Tianjin City, was not spared either.

Song Zhiyong was just 3 years old when the earthquake occurred. Although he has no memory of the earthquake, the impact of the earthquake left a deep impression on him during his growth. Song Zhiyong often heard her mother tell her that she was injured in the earthquake, and the medical staff from Shanghai cleaned and bandaged her, changed her dressing and took care of her. Under their careful care, she quickly recovered without suffering any harm.Xiao Zhiyong, who was frightened, got lobar pneumonia, continued to have a high fever, coughed continuously, and his little face turned red.The barefoot doctor in the village couldn't make a clear diagnosis, and he couldn't see it well anyway. There were only two baskets filled with empty medicine bottles.The family members put him in a car and took him to the Shanghai medical team, where he was cured within a week.My mother said: Both of our mothers' lives were saved by the doctor in Shanghai, but they didn't even drink a sip of water from us.At that time, there was nothing to sell at home, so I just kept saying thank you to others.You have to remember all this forever, and when you grow up, you must repay your kindness.It is the earnest advice from the elders that makes the younger generation of Tangshan people understand conscience, gratitude, morality and responsibility.

Song Zhiyong will never forget that when he was a child, he grew up wearing clothes donated by the people of the whole country and eating food relief from the country.Those clothes were colorful, long and short, and different sizes. Although they didn't fit so well, they were very satisfying to him.Originally, the family conditions were not very good, and the family after the earthquake was even poorer. It became a problem to eat, let alone wear clothes.With these donated clothes, Xiao Zhiyong, like other friends, finally stopped running around the village with bare buttocks; with these relief food, even if he was hit by a disaster, he could still eat.This also made him feel the true feelings and love of the country and people for the disaster area.He deeply knew that if it weren't for the donations from these well-meaning people, he would definitely be like a little beggar, wandering around in naked clothes, living a life of begging.I heard from the elders that it was a normal thing in the old society, and the only way to beg for food was to suffer a disaster.

Song Zhiyong was lucky, he didn't go begging, and he went to school.The primary and junior high schools are all in Dongbalipu Village, and the high school is in Yutian No. 1 Middle School.At that time, his academic performance was in the middle range, but because of migraines, he often rolled on the kang in pain, which affected his academic performance.I got more than 400 points in the college entrance examination, and I was admitted to university, but because my family's conditions were not very good, I didn't go in.After graduating from middle school, he worked in Jingtang Port for three years, and then returned to his hometown.

Song Zhiyong's father, Song Guifu, was born in 1946. He later joined the army and served in a certain section of the Zhangjiakou Artillery Corps.Later, in order to solve the separation between the two places, he was transferred to work at Shizhuang South Railway Station in Yutian County before retirement.My father is straight-tempered and has a big temper, but he never does anything annoying.He never spoke soft words, and people around him didn't like him very much. His mother's name is Wang Shuzhen, who is also from the village.At that time, my father was working in other places and my mother was at home. She was the only one responsible for the inside and outside work.She loves to grow vegetables, but because she is quick and easy-going, the vegetables she grows have become everyone's vegetable garden. No matter who she is, she never cares about cutting a handful of leeks or pulling out a head of garlic.

Song Zhiyong's wife is Zhang Ning, a shrewd and capable woman who grew up in Tangshan and later settled in Yutian County with her parents.Speaking of their love is legendary.Zhang Ning and Song Zhiyong were classmates in Yutian County No. 1 Middle School when they were in the first grade of senior high school. Unfortunately, neither of them went to college.Later, Zhang Ning relied on tenacious self-study, and was admitted to the Department of Clinical Medicine of North China Coal Medical College, and obtained a college diploma. After graduation, he worked in the County Family Planning Central Hospital.After returning to the village, Song Zhiyong first worked in a company for sales, and later tried to start a business by himself.One of the two is a doctor in the county with a superior family; the other is self-employed in the countryside, living a life of earning his own life.Although there is no world of difference, the distance between each other is obvious, and no one thought that they would come together.But the power of love is great. After being introduced by a matchmaker, Zhang Ning fell in love with Song Zhiyong wholeheartedly. Even though her parents clearly expressed their disapproval due to their different backgrounds, she would not compromise.She feels that Song Zhiyong respects his parents, is honest, empathetic, and tenacious, and is a good person who can be entrusted to him for life.At her insistence, in August 1998, they went to the summer resorts of Beidaihe and Nandaihe to hold a travel wedding which was quite fashionable at that time.A year later, they had the crystallization of love-the baby son Song Dachang.

At this time, Song Zhiyong married a wife, had children, started a family, and started a business. Like thousands of farmers in rural China, he lived an ordinary and happy life.He never imagined that a few years later his life would change drastically. The change started with the blizzard in 2008. At the beginning of 2008, some areas in southern my country experienced a historically rare snow and ice disaster. Until the eve of the New Year's Eve, there were still more than 2 million households and 5 counties that had not resumed power supply, especially in Chenzhou City, Hunan Province, where 500,000 People have been without electricity and water for 12 consecutive days.

The catastrophic ice and snow disasters have affected the hearts of the people across the country.In Tangshan, Hebei, which is 2,150 kilometers away, Song Zhiyong has been watching TV for the past two days until midnight. The scene of water and electricity cutoffs in the disaster area made him unable to sleep, and the eager eyes of the people in the disaster area made him burn with anxiety. "During the Tangshan earthquake 30 years ago, people all over the country supported us. Now that the south has been hit by a disaster, I will also go to support them." With this in mind, Song Zhiyong began to plan how to support.He once considered donating money, but he wanted to contribute money and effort to do something for the people in the disaster area.Only in this way, he felt at ease in his heart.But at this time, it has come to the end of the year, how can I tell my family? He specifically told his wife the scene of the disaster on TV, they are so pitiful, if only I could go there and help them.The wife didn't know the truth, and thought he was just talking casually, and said half-jokingly, if you really want to go, go, I can't be accused of being unreasonable.On the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Song Zhiyong made up his mind to go to Hunan, the hardest-hit province, to help with disaster relief at his own expense.He secretly asked a few brothers in the same family to find out, and everyone also expressed their support for him.So, he secretly prepared to deposit 30,000 yuan, and contacted a minibus. He wanted to rent a car with everyone to go to the disaster area. February 6th, the 30th day of the twelfth lunar month, is the last day of the old calendar year.On this day, people in the village would go to the graves to invite their deceased ancestors to go home for the New Year. Song Zhiyong decided to take this opportunity to reveal this matter to everyone in front of their ancestors, and called volunteers to go to the disaster area together. In the south of Balipu Village, walking across a flat crop field, there is an unobtrusive small river running from east to west, which the locals call Nuanquan River.Between the village and the Nuanquan River, there is a small square cemetery surrounded by crop fields. There are more than a dozen large and small graves arranged in the cemetery. This is a cemetery in Balipu Village.In the southwest corner of the cemetery stands the tombstone of Song Zhiyong's grandfather Song Changyin and grandmother Song Lishi, who were buried together. The tomb of Song Zhiyong's father Song Guifu is in the northeast corner of the cemetery. In front of the elder's cemetery, Song Zhiyong respectfully kowtowed four heads and prayed silently to his ancestors in his heart, hoping that their spirits in heaven would agree to this somewhat crazy decision and bless them on this trip to the south. At this time, more and more villagers came to visit the grave. Song Zhiyong stood in the middle of the cemetery and said to the villagers: "Don't leave, everyone, I will discuss something with you." His expression was very solemn, and the villagers came over by coincidence and asked curiously, "What's the matter?" He said: "I don't know if you are watching TV these days. The south has suffered a severe snowstorm. It is very serious! I want to go to the south to support the disaster relief. Are you going? Go, just bring some luggage! I will pay for the cost!" "Go!" The villagers present unanimously responded. "Looking at how uncomfortable he is, I've wanted to go for a long time, count me in." Someone signed up on the spot. A few people were gathered in the cemetery, but at least a dozen people were needed to make up a minibus.He said to the villagers who signed up, you go back and clean up first, and I will go to the village to find some people, and we will set off in the afternoon.In the cemetery, he took out his mobile phone and called his cousin Song Zhixian, who also agreed to go. Back in the village, Song Zhiyong first went to Song Jiufu to talk about Zhuang's relatives, and Song Jiufu called Song Zhiyong uncle.Song Zhiyong asked straight to the point: "Uncle is going to the south for disaster relief, will you go?" "Go!" Song Jiufu agreed without hesitation. Later, Song Zhiyong went to find Wang Baoguo, Yang Guoming, and Cao Xiujun.Yang Guoming grows a vegetable greenhouse and has a lot of work at home, but he can't take care of so much, and he also brought his son Yang Dong with him. Wang Jinlong, who was only 19 years old, signed up in the cemetery. When he returned home, he told his mother that the old man not only did not stop him, but also said distressedly: "You are too young, I am worried, I think I will let you two go. Well, it’s good to have someone to take care of.” In this way, Wang Jinlong’s father, Wang Deliang, also became one of them. Yin Fu heard the news by accident when he passed by Wang Jiaxiang's gate.Wang Jiaxiang came back from the cemetery and was discussing with his wife about going to the south in the yard, when Yin Fu who happened to pass by heard him.He rushed into the yard anxiously and asked Wang Jiaxiang, "Why didn't you call me?" Just as Song Zhiyong came over, he asked Song Zhiyong again. Song Zhiyong said: "There are enough people. You are so old." Yin Fu insisted on going.He felt that with so many people in the village going, he should not be left behind, he had to go.Although I am a little older, my work is not much worse than that of the young guy.Song Zhiyong had no choice but to agree. In this way, including Song Zhiyong, a total of 13 people got together. Among the 13 people, there are two pairs of brothers and a pair of father and son, which is exactly what the old saying goes, "Brothers fight in battle, father and son fight in battle." The preparations were almost done, and Song Zhiyong told his wife Zhang Ning about his decision. At that time, when Song Zhiyong said this, Zhang Ning's heart skipped a beat.The Chinese New Year is coming soon, and who doesn't want to have a family reunion to celebrate the New Year, of course she doesn't want her husband to travel far on the New Year's Eve. Song Zhiyong saw that his wife was not willing to let him go, so he quickly persuaded him. He cited the reason that people all over the country supported the Tangshan earthquake 30 years ago, and his wife stopped talking.My mother, Wang Shuzhen, also wanted to have a family reunion, but she thought that her illness was cured by the doctors of the Shanghai Medical Team during the earthquake, so she felt that she couldn't hold her back.The old man agreed, and Zhang Ning couldn't say anything more. She carefully helped Song Zhiyong pack his bags. The same story happened in the homes of 12 other villagers. On the afternoon of New Year's Eve, Song Zhiyong took more than 30,000 yuan from his family and a letter of introduction from the village, and drove into a rented van. Thirteen Tangshan men set off for Hunan. Before setting off, Song Zhiyong deliberately ran up to his 3-year-old son and asked him if he would support his father in going to the south for emergency rescue and disaster relief. After the naive son said he supported him, he got into the car with satisfaction. Tangshan "righteous man" moved China Among the 13 people, only Song Zhiyong can drive.Although the expressway has been opened to traffic, many road sections are not fast.However, the condition of the rented car was not good. The lights, battery and alternator failed one after another.But apart from eating and going to the bathroom, Song Zhiyong hardly rested. After 25 hours of long-distance travel, they arrived at the planned disaster relief destination in Changsha, Hunan Province in the afternoon of the first day of the Lunar New Year. After inquiring about several places, they finally found the Hunan Provincial Earthquake Relief Headquarters located in a hotel in the city.A staff member persuaded them: "The disaster situation in Changsha City has basically been lifted now. We accept your wishes. For those who celebrate Chinese New Year, let's go back and reunite with our families as soon as possible!" This was something they didn't expect, and a dozen people were a little confused at the time.It took so much effort to come all the way, should we just go back like this?Song Zhiyong was not reconciled.That night, he discussed with everyone: "You can't come in vain! We can't leave. Let's go to see where the disaster is serious." Everyone agreed. Later, they accidentally learned that the worst-hit place in Hunan is Chenzhou City, where the disaster is still raging.At 1 a.m. on the second day of the first lunar month, they got up early and drove to Chenzhou. At the Chenzhou Emergency Disaster Relief Coordination Meeting, the manager of Hunan Electric Power Installation Company was worried about the lack of manpower.As soon as the meeting was over, Song Zhiyong ran to the manager and reported his family name: "We are from Tangshan, doing disaster relief on a voluntary basis. We can't do technical work, but we have the strength to carry tools, transport materials and so on. problem, let's join in." This is really "sending charcoal in the snow"!The manager was overjoyed and immediately incorporated them into a disaster relief vanguard team composed of more than 40 people to help rebuild the local power grid that was almost paralyzed.So at the front line of rescue and relief in Chenzhou City, the most severely affected city in Hunan Province, there was a disaster relief team composed of 13 Tangshan farmers. Their main task is to go deep into the mountains and clear the snow on the mountain road leading to the electric tower on the top of the mountain.In addition, they mainly carried the equipment for rebuilding the tower up the mountain, and the damaged equipment had to be carried down from the mountain.In this way, on average, each person has to carry 20 to 30 kilograms each time, walk up a steep mountain road of 1,000 meters, and go back and forth in an hour. They spend most of their time working on the mountains in the wild. They get up at 5:30 every morning and work until 7:00 pm.Although it is no longer snowing and the temperature is not very low, the wind on the top of the mountain is very strong, which makes people feel chilled.Because the transportation on the top of the mountain is inconvenient, it often takes two o'clock in the afternoon to have lunch.But the 13 people are all authentic northern men, and they are not used to Hunan food at all.All the dishes in Hunan have to put chili peppers in it. They are so red that they choke and smoke in their throats. I didn't dare to chew carefully and swallowed it whole.Sometimes I can't stand it anymore, so I buy some instant noodles and ham sausage to satisfy my hunger.After a long time, some people couldn't bear it physically, and several people developed symptoms such as diarrhea, cold, and fever due to acclimatization. Song Zhiyong bought medicines and encouraged everyone to persevere.Some had frostbitten hands and punctured feet, but they gritted their teeth and refused to rest.During the 20 days in the disaster area, they moved to Yizhang, Guiyang and other places, and participated in the emergency repair work of more than a dozen power facilities. When they set off from their hometown, although they had thought carefully and brought picks, shovels, brooms, gloves, food, toilet paper, etc., and especially consciously brought two pairs of rubber rain boots, they still had problems with the shoes.Chenzhou's anti-snow and disaster relief site has a large temperature difference between day and night.It freezes in the morning and evening and melts at noon.At first, the rain boots were frozen like icicles, very hard and painful, and then filled with muddy water, which soaked the socks.In the end, I had no choice but to put a layer of plastic bags on the outside of the socks and continue to fight on the front line of snow relief. The most difficult thing is accommodation.As a northerner, I have seen wind and snow countless times, but the rare snow disasters in the south are far colder than in the north, and there is no heating in the south, so when it is late at night, the place where I live is almost like an icehouse, and I can only use plastic pots Hold some hot water and hold it tightly to your chest as a stove for warmth. In this way, they worked in obscurity until the ninth day of the first lunar month. When they went to the Changsha Electric Power Bureau to ask for a fight again, they were accidentally discovered by the local news media. On the tenth day of the first lunar month, Chenzhou TV station broadcast their deeds in the news program that night. Countless Chenzhou people were moved and shocked! He Qiang, a reporter from Chenzhou TV Station, said that since the program broadcast the deeds of the peasant disaster relief team, the hotline has been calling continuously, with at least hundreds of calls every day.Many citizens came to ask for the contact information of these 13 martyrs, and wanted to send some fruits to their residences.Some citizens heard that the 13 farmers were not used to eating spicy food, so they wanted to invite them to eat at home and cook some northern dishes without chili for them. People from all walks of life donated money to them. The 63-year-old Li Taizhi was suffering from terminal cancer. When he was dying, he saw the feats of 13 Yanzhao martyrs on TV. He immediately asked his daughter to inquire about Song Zhiyong's mobile phone and insisted on donating 2,000 yuan to him as a mobile phone fee to express his gratitude. Before he died, a little heart for the disaster relief heroes. On the 11th day of the first lunar month, Song Zhiyong made a special trip to Chenzhou City and decided to visit this veteran soldier whom he had never met.But unexpectedly, the old man had passed away.He immediately ran to the hospital and made a final farewell to the old soldier.Li Taizhi's wife put a red bag containing 2,000 yuan in his hand.The two strangers, who had never met before, embraced tightly and wept bitterly.He held hands with the old soldier's daughter and bowed three times in front of the old soldier's body. After leaving the hospital, he quietly rushed to the Chenzhou Red Cross Society and donated all the 2,000 yuan in the name of the veteran. They also donated more than 30,000 yuan from all walks of life to the welfare homes in the disaster area, and donated the remaining 1,000 yuan to the affected people. The 13 Yanzhao martyrs on the front line of disaster relief moved tens of thousands of people in Chenzhou with their acts of gratitude. "Spontaneous assistance to disaster-stricken areas has a lofty spirit, and voluntary protection of Chendian electricity is a great charity." This is a silk banner presented to 13 martyrs by a local company. On the ninth day of the first lunar month, Li Jianguo, member of the Standing Committee of the Chenzhou Municipal Party Committee and Minister of Propaganda, was entrusted by the Municipal Party Committee and the Municipal Government to visit 13 Yanzhao martyrs, and gave each of them 1,000 yuan in condolences.Facing the praise, the 13 simple farmers in Tangshan all blushed, because they felt that "this is too contrary to the original intention".Song Zhiyong immediately decided to donate the money to charities in Chenzhou.Unexpectedly, Minister Li felt sorry and planned to treat them to a meal.As a result, none of the 13 people was willing to go, and in the end the minister had to accompany the group of peasant brothers to have a boxed lunch. On the same day, in the hometown of 13 martyrs, the Tangshan City Charity Federation also sent condolences to their families, sending 500 yuan to each family.And the family members of these peasant brothers donated all the 6,500 yuan condolence money to the disaster area. "I came here to make donations to the disaster-stricken area, but won't the taste change after receiving money?" Song Zhiyong said.Although in just 8 days, the 30,000 yuan he brought was running out, but looking at the 20 iron towers he personally participated in the restoration, he was delighted to feel that this trip was not in vain.What makes him a little proud is that they are the only volunteer team in Chenzhou.No matter where they went, the common people were very grateful and kept saying thank you to them. Song Zhiyong and the villagers felt warm after hearing this, and worked harder. On the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, Song Zhiyong and other 13 martyrs finished their anti-snow disaster relief work in Chenzhou and embarked on the road back home.On behalf of the 6.4 million people of Chenzhou, the Chenzhou Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China and the city government specially sent them a silk banner, which read: Thank you Tangshan brothers!Chenzhou City also awarded them the title of "Honorary Citizens". Tens of thousands of Chenzhou citizens spontaneously came to see them off, some brought food, some brought native products, and the entire minibus almost couldn't hold it.More and more people were seeing off people, and it almost became a boiling sea, and the minibus could no longer move. On the 11th day of the first lunar month in 2009, the leaders of the Propaganda Department of the Chenzhou Municipal Committee of Hunan Province, the Electric Power Bureau, and the Radio, Film and Television Bureau came to Yutian, sent them congratulatory letters and cards, and invited them to "go home" to have a look.On behalf of the people of Chenzhou, they gave Song Zhiyong and other 13 peasant brothers a special gift - greeting cards.This greeting card is more than 10 meters long and more than 1 meter wide. It records the autographs of more than 400 electrical workers from the Chenzhou Electric Power Bureau and more than 400 blessings sent by them. In Chenzhou's 2008 poll of top ten news figures, Song Zhiyong and other 13 people topped the list.For this reason, Song Zhiyong won the 12th China Youth May 4th Medal, the Top Ten Outstanding Youths of Tangshan City in 2008, and honorary citizens of Chenzhou City.Their collective is called "13 people touched 1.3 billion people". In September 2009, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of New China, 11 departments including the Central Propaganda Department and the Central Organization Department jointly organized the "100 Heroes and Models who Made Outstanding Contributions to the Founding of New China and 100 New China The results of the selection of "People who moved China since its establishment" were officially announced. Song Zhiyong and other "Tangshan Thirteen Farmers" were selected as "100 People who moved China since the founding of New China".Subsequently, Song Zhiyong was selected as the 2009 National Moral Model. After returning from fighting the snow and ice disaster in Hunan, Song Zhiyong and 12 other farmers established the "Song Zhiyong Love Volunteer Squad", saying that in the future, whether it is disaster relief or other voluntary services, they will be obliged to contribute to the society.However, for the word "volunteer", Song Zhiyong admitted that he had no idea before. Perhaps God deliberately tested this volunteer team. On the afternoon of May 12, 2008, an earthquake measuring 8 on the Richter scale occurred in Wenchuan, Sichuan. Misfortunes never come singly!After hearing the news, Song Zhiyong immediately recalled the tragic scene of the Tangshan earthquake.He immediately made a decision: rush to the disaster area! "I'll go first, and you guys will follow." Before he had time to greet his companions, Song Zhiyong sent a text message to 12 other people before rushing to the disaster area on the night of the earthquake, and then hurried on the road. Song Zhiyong never imagined that the road to Sichuan would be so difficult. At 8 o'clock that night, Song Zhiyong took a taxi to Beijing.When he rushed to Beijing West Railway Station in a hurry, he found out after asking that the train ticket to Chengdu was no longer available.He had to stay overnight at the train station.The next morning he went to queue again, this time he only bought a train ticket to Zhengzhou.When he arrived in Zhengzhou, he went straight to Zhengzhou Airport.After buying a ticket to Chengdu, I waited in the waiting hall for nearly three hours, but the flight was cancelled. He returned to Zhengzhou Railway Station to buy a train ticket to Chengdu. It may be that the railway department couldn't buy a ticket to Chengdu for safety reasons.Time is passing by every minute and every second, Song Zhiyong is in a hurry, when will he be able to reach Sichuan if this continues?There can be no further delay.In desperation, he decided to take a taxi from Zhengzhou to Xi'an.The train ticket is 210 yuan, and the taxi fare is 1,700 yuan. The cost of the two is very different.Even so, the taxi drivers shook their heads repeatedly when they heard that they were going to the earthquake-stricken area. No one took the risk.After all, the journey is too long, and aftershocks continue, it is really unnecessary to make money if you are not able to make money, and you have to spend your life there.It wasn't until after 9 o'clock in the evening that he found a taxi driver after many twists and turns. Hearing that he was going to Sichuan to volunteer for earthquake relief, he made an exception and agreed to go.However, he put forward an additional condition. In addition to the taxi fare of 1,700 yuan to Xi'an, an 800 yuan bridge toll must be added, for a total of 2,500 yuan. This was obviously a scam, but Song Zhiyong was in a hurry to find a car, so he didn't have time to settle the details.There is only one thought in his mind: hurry, hurry, hurry to Sichuan!Fully agree to the driver's request.In this way, he embarked on a long journey to the disaster-stricken areas in Sichuan. After arriving in Xi'an, he changed to a taxi and rushed to Chengdu. On the way, he learned that Wenchuan could not go, and Mianyang was also severely affected, so he temporarily decided to participate in the disaster relief in Mianyang.He and the taxi driver took turns driving for 9 hours, and finally at 5 am on the 14th, Song Zhiyong arrived in Mianyang.Knowing that the disaster in Beichuan was severe and all transportation and communications were interrupted, Song Zhiyong decided to go to Beichuan, where the manpower was most needed.When he heard that he was going to Beichuan, the drivers unanimously advised him not to go because the road was interrupted and landslides could endanger his life at any time.Unable to get there by taxi, he rented a motorcycle for 150 yuan and ventured into the mountains. Braving the drizzle and avoiding the rolling rocks, Song Zhiyong and the driver of the "Mo De" trekked on the rugged mountain road with trepidation.Along the way, boulders weighing dozens of tons that fell from the earthquake-damaged mountains can be seen everywhere, and there is a danger of car crashes and deaths at any time.It took nearly 3 hours, and after 8 o'clock in the morning, he finally came to a place 6 kilometers away from Beichuan County.The road here has been completely blocked by landslides, and even motorcycles cannot pass.Song Zhiyong walked for more than an hour and finally arrived at the ruins of Beichuan County.In this way, he became the first group of volunteers from other provinces for emergency rescue and disaster relief in Beichuan County. Entering Beichuan County, Song Zhiyong was stunned by the tragic scene in front of him: collapsed mountains, collapsing buildings, ruins, rubble, and the remains of victims everywhere, and there were continuous calls for help.The disaster in Beichuan was worse than he imagined.Seeing this, he had no time to wipe away his tears and the fatigue of the long-distance travel, so he immediately joined the rescue and relief team. The first person he rescued was an old lady in her 60s.Her legs were caught in the rubble.When Song Zhiyong found her, the old man's expression was blank, and he was indifferent even in danger.It was raining heavily, and rubble and sundries from upstairs were falling down from time to time. He immediately ventured through the gaps in the ruins and quickly cleaned up the bricks and stones that hit the old lady. Within half an hour, the old lady was saved.After he took the old man out, he ran to the nearby transfer station for the wounded. At around 12:00 noon, Song Zhiyong was passing a collapsed residential building when he heard someone say, "There are voices under the building, and there are people inside!"Following the direction of the sound, Song Zhiyong and PLA soldiers started the rescue operation.Without tools, he moved bricks and dug soil with bare hands. The broken steel bars were as sharp as knives, and he continued to dig down with blood dripping from his hands.They start by hand-picking out the outermost trash to create a small hole.Then, the man jumped into the hole and continued to plan by hand.During the period, there were two aftershocks that were clearly felt, and their rescue work did not stop.Digging nearly two meters into the rescue hole, in the darkness, Song Zhiyong finally vaguely saw three girls hiding in an overturned car in a state of panic.When the soldiers carried the three children out of the cave and saw that the children were safe and sound, the seven-foot man Song Zhiyong burst into tears: "What can be more meaningful than saving lives!" That afternoon, when he learned that there were a lot of students buried in Beichuan Middle School, he didn't bother to apply medicine and bandages. He simply took care of the wound and immediately led his team to there.He boarded the ruins and dug down like crazy, and found 5 children under one floor...but they were all dead.But he was not discouraged, believing that the surviving child would be found, and desperately searched and rescued the ruins.In one day and night, together with the local rescue armed police officers and soldiers, he braved the frequent aftershocks and rescued 11 lives from the ruins of the earthquake. One wounded person after another was rescued from the collapsed building by Song Zhiyong. He felt a kind of relief that he had never felt before. Although his body was soaked in sweat, he never felt tired. There was only one thought in his mind: "Save one, save more One".Until ten o'clock in the evening, Song Zhiyong was exhausted. Thinking of the 11 people he had rescued, he cried with relief again.Without a tent or quilt, he found a big rock, put a brick on his head and fell asleep.The damp and cold of the night pulled him out of his dreams, and he lit a fire to keep warm. On the morning of May 15, 12 other members of the "Song Zhiyong Love Rescue Squad" also rushed to the rescue scene, joined Song Zhiyong, and put on the red vests of the team.These members also had a bumpy journey. They first flew to Chengdu because it was a long way from Beichuan, and they either traveled by car or on foot day and night. After the "Thirteen Martyrs of Tangshan" gathered together, they immediately worked with professional rescuers to move floors, dig bricks and stones, and clear roadblocks... They ignored the dangers posed by iron nails, glass shards, and dilapidated buildings that would collapse at any time in the ruins. He kept searching for life among the broken walls and ruins.Without equipment, they use the most primitive methods, such as smashing with hammers, prying with steel drills, planing with bare hands... wherever they are needed, they will go there.Together with the People's Liberation Army and the Armed Police, the Love Rescue Team rescued 25 survivors and exhumed the remains of nearly 60 victims. On top of the ruined walls, the red vests of the "Song Zhiyong Love Volunteer Squad" not only brought hope to the people in the disaster area, but also became a "love business card" to arouse forces from all directions. The "Song Zhiyong Phenomenon" took shape throughout China.Inspired by Song Zhiyong's team spirit, people from all over Tangshan acted quickly, and one after another volunteer teams like Song Zhiyong's team emerged, and 477 volunteers successively voluntarily supported the earthquake relief in the disaster-stricken area.A female white-collar worker in Beijing purchased a large amount of disaster relief supplies in Sichuan. After the distribution, she did not go home, but stayed to cook for Song Zhiyong's team.Volunteers kept coming to Song Zhiyong's squad and asked to join. People would come and leave at any time. At the most, he led 69 people. If it wasn't for controlling the scale, there might have been more than 300 people. According to the arrangement of the Earthquake Resisting Headquarters, they moved from Beichuan to Da'an County. He led the members of the volunteer service team to risk their lives and overcome many difficulties to fight the earthquake together with the local people, rescue troops, and PLA commanders and fighters.Every day we charge to the front line of disaster relief.If you’re hungry, eat some biscuits, if you don’t have drinking water, you’ll drink rainwater to quench your thirst, and occasionally having a meal of instant noodles soaked in boiled water is considered a luxury.Due to the heavy disaster relief tasks, they have to rush to the rescue site from 5:00 am every day, and they can only rest after 10:00 pm.When he moved to An County, the County Earthquake Relief Headquarters distributed a tent to the team, but it could only accommodate 10 people. Without saying a word, he took two other relatives and brothers to sleep outside.Some team members felt sorry for him, knowing that he had rheumatism, and let him sleep in a tent.He glared: "I'm the captain, you can stay where you are, what's the point!" It rained at night, and the quilt was wet.Early the next morning, with a strong nasal voice, he rubbed his knees and urged everyone to pack up their gear and set off quickly. From the 14th to the evening of the 17th, during the most critical three days after the Beichuan disaster, he led the commando to rescue a total of 25 survivors, and excavated and cleared the remains of more than 60 victims. On the 18th, Song Zhiyong's team was notified to withdraw from Beichuan quickly because of the danger of the barrier lake.In this way, their 35-member team was withdrawn from Beichuan and assigned to Xiaoba Township, An County, where they transferred the affected people, loaded and unloaded supplies, set up tents, disinfected and prevented epidemics, delivered water and food... whatever the disaster area needs, they will do!These jobs are much easier than saving people, but Song Zhiyong and his brothers still want to save people.Faced with the organization's arrangements, I was reluctant and could only obey. After all, I couldn't all save people, and no one would do these jobs. May 20, the eighth day after the Wenchuan Earthquake, was Song Zhiyong's 36th birthday.On this day, he bought daily necessities with more than 1,000 yuan that his lover planned to treat him to dinner, and donated them to more than 200 disaster-stricken children.In front of the collapsed rubble of Jia Dingkai and Kim Yongxiu, the victims of the disaster, everyone prepared a special birthday party for him.There are 4 tables not far from the front of the house. Jia Dingkai and his wife sat together with about 40 northerners, like a family.The menu is very simple: a plate of cold tomatoes, a plate of dried radish, a plate of preserved eggs, one egg and one cucumber per person.There is only one meat dish: bacon and sausages that survived the earthquake in Jia Dingkai and his wife's house.一切都非常简陋，但对于当天的“寿星”宋志永来说，这是自12日赴川抗震救灾以来吃过的最丰盛的一顿饭，他说，“这是我有生以来过得最有意义的生日。”金永秀老人从瓦砾中摘来一束盛开的野花，献给了宋志永，祝他生日快乐。宋志永顿时泪水盈盈。 在四川抗震救灾唐山临时党支部，他向党组织提出了入党申请。党组织根据他的表现一致同意宋志永火线入党。5月31日下午两点钟，在驻地前的草坪上，宋志永面对鲜红的党旗，庄重举行了入党宣誓仪式。场面虽然简单，但还是严格按照程序一项一项进行，一丝不苟，引来了周围的群众和驻地官兵，大家纷纷围拢过来，观看了他的入党宣誓仪式。 受四川省委的邀请，宋志永小分队的13名成员有幸到成都参加了四川省赈灾义演晚会。晚会结束后11点多钟，宋志永请队员们吃顿热饭。没想到有人认出他来，100多人都围过来送烟、敬酒、要签名，最后还有人偷偷地为他们结了账。 6月1日是国际儿童节，在安县晓坝镇“宋志永爱心服务队”的帐篷前，宋志永和他的队员们为灾区的孩子们发放了儿童节礼物。看到失去亲人的孩子们，宋志永几次都泪流满面，于是，他在笔记本上记下了那些孤儿的名字，要尽最大努力帮助他们。 听说有200多名孩子要去云南读书，他花10000多元钱买来文具送给他们。有孩子问他：“宋叔叔，我们可不可以到唐山读书？” 其实，宋志永早就这么想了。5月26日，他就给唐山市委书记打过一次报告，希望唐山市能够接收一部分灾区的孩子去读书，他表示只要能接收，“一切都由宋志永承担”！当天唐山市就专门召开紧急会议，会后，市委书记赵勇亲自给他打来电话，表示小学生有多少要多少，并承担孩子们的学习费用。 宋志永就开始在晓坝镇的帐篷外面接受报名。很多家长为了孩子的成长，也非常愿意送孩子去唐山读书。去唐山的消息，很快在灾区流传开来。茶坪、秀水、北川等外地的孩子，也跑来报名。有一个七岁的小男孩，自己单独从桑枣救助站跑到晓坝镇，询问入学的事。登记处经常被围得水泄不通，报名人数在急剧上升，想收都收不住，总共有800多个孩子报了名。面对这么多家长和孩子的信任，宋志永也很担心，要是走不了可就太让他们伤心了。 6月16日，宋志永带着6辆大巴车和1辆小车，亲自到四川把3个县8个乡镇的246个孩子接到了玉田。玉田银河中学为这些孩子专设了8个班，每班3位老师。为了解决课本差异问题，学校从四川紧急调集了当地的教材，并让老师专门备课进行教学。学校还在社会各界的帮助下新建了一座“爱心园”，30多间宿舍成为孩子们的集中生活区。宋志永则被银河中学聘为副校长，专门负责孩子们的生活，孩子们学习以外的一切费用，都要靠他想办法解决。另外，为了方便照顾孩子，宋志永还从灾区聘请了十几位家长，这些家长每人每月1000块钱的工资都由他来解决。为安全起见，他还给每名孩子和家长上了20万元的保险。 为了筹钱，宋志永费尽了心思。他拿出了自己打算装修房子的38万元，又向小分队里的一个兄弟借了3万元。香港凤凰卫视的主持人许戈辉也是唐山人，在赈灾晚会上听说了宋志永的事迹后，匆忙之中给他写了一封信，表达了对唐山老乡的由衷赞赏，并提出了一个建议：在银行开一个账户，账户的名字就叫“唐山义士助人为乐基金”，交由宋志永管理。为资助灾区的儿童上学，许戈辉先捐了5万元。著名演员濮存昕也要给5万元。有一次在机场，有两个大姐认出了他，听说他照顾孩子上学的事情后，两个人拿出了4000元钱，硬塞给了宋志永。可这点钱远远不够，很快就花光了，宋志永只好给赵勇书记打电话，赵书记表示全力支持，并批示财政、民政部门马上拨款，一共40多万元全部拨到了学校。到2009年7月16日，最后一批孩子送走，一共花了90万元，宋志永个人搭了十几万元。家里有一处房子卖了10万元，他把钱全拿了出来，连爱人的工资也都搭进去了。有时他去外地作报告，人家给点辛苦费，自己不肯要，全捐给了学校。对此，宋志永笑着说，自己是打肿了脸充胖子。 2009年春节，由于灾区重建工作还没完成，许多家庭还住在帐篷或临时搭建的简易板房里。这些从灾区来的孩子，有100人左右没法回家过年。对此，宋志永特别上心，“一定要让孩子们在唐山过好震后第一个春节”。他和学校制订了一套过年方案，放寒假之后就开始组织孩子们排练节目，开展文艺活动。他和爱心小分队成员也商量好，大年三十，到学校里和孩子们一起包饺子、吃年夜饭、看春晚，然后电话拜年、放鞭炮、看花灯……从正月初一开始，把孩子们接到他们各自家中过几天。13个人正好10家，10个孩子一家，今天这拨儿孩子在这家过，明天那拨儿孩子在那家过，孩子们特别高兴。 从灾区回来后，宋志永放弃了原有的生意，将全部心思都花在了公益事业上：照顾来唐山读书的四川孩子，创建“宋志永爱心网站”，启动“唐山市农民志愿者协会”工作，还担任了电视台一档公益节目的主持人……为帮助更多需要帮助的人，继续为灾区提供援助支持，宋志永倡议并组织成立了全国首家爱心志愿服务基金，专门鼓励和支持各类爱心志愿服务，并用于志愿者本身的各类保障。对于运作基金会，他也有着清醒的认识，邀请唐山市团委负责代管，同时找了一个有着良好能力的管理团队，他本人仅负责资金募集。 宋志永还在县特殊教育中心设立了爱心扶助基金，与19名残疾儿童签订了爱心扶助协议，承担了他们全部的生活费用，并出资5000多元为学校购置了15台缝纫机，用于残疾儿童进行缝纫学习，提高生活技能。爱心基金成立以来，共接受社会各项捐助121万元，除大部分用于四川在唐山学生的就学费用外，还救助了20多名困难群众，他们包括四川、东北，以及在唐山打工的困难农民工等。此外，宋志永还参与组织了各类主题捐助活动，为困难奶农、为患有白血病学生、为因失火致贫的农民等等。 宋志永的心里，已经不只是那240名孩子了。 “宋志永农民专业合作社”的诞生 抗雪灾回去之后，宋志永被邀请去作了40天的报告，他戏称这是“有家不能回”，对别人写好了稿子让他背，甚至找一个播音员教他发音的做法很烦。有一天，团中央又打电话给他，让他准备再去作报告，他说打死也不去了。“我们农民出名有啥用啊，还不是得回去种地？” 但宋志永种地也与别人不一样。他在2009年有四大心愿，其中之一就是组建“宋志永农民专业合作社”。对宋志永的理想，村民们大力支持。在村委会换届选举时，全村410人参加选举，他得了380票，别人最高的才280票。 他以绝对优势当选为新一任村委会主任。 自宋志永当上村主任后，他们东八里铺村被唐山市列为“科学发展示范村”，先后投资300多万元，修了路、安装了太阳能路灯。2009年11月5日，经过近一年的筹备，他的心愿终于实现了，宋志永农民专业合作社正式开业。合作社理事会成员就是一起抗震抗雪灾的13位农民兄弟。注册资金960万元，有土地近200亩，建筑面积15000多平方米。员工80多人，以无污染、全天候绿色养殖及农业为发展理念。这是一个集养殖、农业观光、采摘园林、餐饮、住宿、公益敬老院、志愿者服务基地于一体的大型综合性农业产业链条。目前产业园面积186亩，万头养猪场、苗木区等已初具规模。他还在产业园里建立了散养鸡、垂钓等项目，目的就是通过农家乐的形式，让收入水平偏低的老百姓也能玩得起。 宋志永农民专业合作社与其他合作社最大的不同就是融入了感恩思想，如设置感恩博爱大酒店、公益敬老院、志愿者服务基地等。公益敬老院拟接纳四五十位孤寡或儿女有疾病等特殊原因的老人，而志愿者服务基地则成为集培训、管理于一身的志愿者之家。合作社正式运营后，宋志永初步设想将其中50%的收入用于公益敬老院和志愿者基地。他希望通过这样的模式，带领村民共同致富，并做大做强公益事业。他已经把慈善当成这辈子的事业了。 目前，产业园已经为东八里铺村提供了约60个固定就业岗位，如果算上季节性临时用工，一年的总工时将超过几千个，这多少解决了周边村庄剩余劳动力的就业问题。 对于产业园的未来，宋志永信心十足，设想将来发展二期、三期工程，希望通过这种模式，影响周边村庄的发展。附近的一些村庄也非常愿意和他们搞合作，他们相信宋志永，因为他是一名义士，并且是13位义士之首。 现在，这名九州义士全身心地驾驭着专业合作社这辆希望之车，和他的农民兄弟们驶向共同幸福的道路。 一位记者把宋志永的义举称为“公民意识的伟大觉醒”，我深切地祝愿这位“觉醒”了的共和国公民一路走好，继续为自己的国家做点事情。