Old Chengdu: Hibiscus Autumn Dream

Author: Liu Shahe
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-03-01
Features: Chengdu is known as the City of Hibiscus, abbreviated as Rong. This flower changes its color three times a day—white in the morning, red at noon, and purple in the evening. It blooms in the morning and wilts by dusk, its glory fleeting, evoking a sense of melancholy. Perhaps this isn't a flower but a sorrowful dream of autumn? A man who has lived in Chengdu for seventy-two years has poured all his love into every character, writing a tale of the modern fate and past connections between an ancient city and an elderly man. This man is Liu Shahe. Born in Chengdu, he attended high school and university there. In December 1949, he cheered with his classmates as the People's Liberation Army entered the city in Chengdu. He began working in Chengdu and, after the poem incident in 1957, still lived in the suburbs of Chengdu. After his comeback, he wrote poems in Chengdu. Now retired, he still resides in Chengdu. Truly a native of Chengdu.