A Long March of One

Author: Zou Yulin
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: The revolutionary history of countless martyrs who shed blood and sacrificed should never be forgotten. A 26-month trek to explore the history of the Chinese Revolution, covering 22 provinces, 368 counties, and over a thousand villages. A journey where the feet and the heart unite is an enviable realm of travel. Walking with belief. This is a collection of prose works, including the birthplace of the Chinese Soviet Republic—Red Capital Ruijin; the enthusiastic Grandma Li Mahuo; secret transportation lines; and revisiting the Battle of Sanheba. This is an ordinary job: a rural mail carrier; this is an ordinary task: delivering mail. Yet on this ordinary post, Ma Ban Mail Route rural mail carrier Wang Shunyou achieved extraordinary deeds and portrayed a magnificent life. For 20 years, he traversed the towering mountains and ridges. From the county town to Baidiao Township, from Baidiao Township to Sanjueya Township, and from Sanjueya Township to Lopopo Township—back and forth, it’s 360 kilometers! This journey has spanned 20 years, 260,000 kilometers, equivalent to circling the equator 6.5 times and retracing the Long March 21 times! There were no wide asphalt roads or modern cars and motorcycles—only rugged mountain paths, aging donkeys, boundless solitude, and constant dangers. What force made him so tenacious? What spirit sustained him in creating miracles on an ordinary post? Following the winding mountain paths walked by Wang Shunyou, we are immersed in deep contemplation. In Wang Shunyou, we see unwavering belief. Comrade Mao Zedong once said, "People must have some spirit." Without a life belief to support them, few can complete such a monotonous task. However, as we attempt to find Wang Shunyou’s "spirit highlights," we are somewhat disappointed to discover that he is such a down-to-earth person, never having uttered any grand pronouncements and never having sought media coverage for himself. In his mountain-like plain chest, there was only a more humble belief—to walk every path well and deliver every piece of mail well, because he understood: in the eyes of the villagers, Wang Shunyou was the world beyond the mountains, the warmth of the Party. As long as the villagers in the remote mountain villages saw his figure, they could truly feel what a Communist and the Party’s cause were. It was this seemingly ordinary belief that supported him for 20 years and will continue to support him on the life path he has chosen. Some compare Wang Shunyou’s work to a "long march of one person," which vividly and accurately captures the hardships and tragedies involved. The Ma Ban Mail Route is not a leisurely "wild travel group" or a trendy "expansion training camp," but a heavy-duty cause that requires immense courage and perseverance to dedicate oneself to. It’s not hard for one to do good deeds occasionally, but it’s difficult to do good deeds all one’s life. Wang Shunyou is just such a Communist who silently does good deeds on an ordinary post. In Wang Shunyou, we see great responsibility and dedication. The Ma Ban Mail Route is a difficult path. It doesn’t need to be said that it’s common to go days without seeing a soul, eating a piece of tsampa when hungry, drinking a mouthful of mountain spring water when thirsty, or curling up under a tree or in a cave when tired. It also doesn’t need to be said that he once had his intestines kicked by a donkey, fell from a Yalong River cableway, or was robbed by bandits—such hardships are countless. Let alone the unbearable loneliness and solitude, which no ordinary person can endure. Wang Shunyou’s life was undoubtedly very hard. How much could a rural mail carrier earn? We didn’t even need to guess. It wasn’t that Wang Shunyou didn’t need money—his sick wife needed money for treatment, and his children needed money for school. But in Wang Shunyou’s dictionary, the word "money" was written very small, while the word "person" was written very large. This "person" was not others, but "my parents and villagers who raised me!" With heartfelt songs, he expressed his responsibility to the people, measured his life with firm steps, and fulfilled his sacred mission with infinite loyalty. Countless stars accompanied his lonely figure, the long road witnessed his arduous steps, the clear mountain spring reflected his resolute face, and the soaring eagle was his true. To say it, Wang Shunyou didn’t achieve any earth-shattering deeds, but he created greatness in the ordinary, expressed loyalty in simplicity, and moved countless ordinary laborers with his deeds. "Learn from stones that stand for a thousand years, don’t learn from those who drop their sandals halfway." He sang this, and he lived this. In his eyes, practicing the "Three Represents" was not an empty slogan but practical actions, one step at a time. For 20 years, he never missed a single post and never lost a single piece of mail, with a 100% delivery accuracy. He regarded the mailbag as more precious than his life, "Mail is the treasure of the country, it can’t be wet or dirty." To prevent the mail from being damaged or lost, he would sleep with the mailbag as his pillow. Only then could he sleep peacefully and soundly. Once, to deliver cataract surgery notices to the villagers, he set out despite severe stomach pain, enduring excruciating pain without eating properly or sleeping well, and finally completed the task three days early. The villagers received surgery and regained their sight, while Wang Shunyou was carried to the rural hospital. He was like this, serving the people day after day, silently and persistently fulfilling his loyalty to the Party and the people. In Wang Shunyou, we see our own shortcomings. In the great historical process of developing a socialist market economy and building a moderately prosperous society, how much do we need comrades like Wang Shunyou, how much do we need this spirit of down-to-earth dedication and selfless contribution in the new era!