Dedicate Everything to the Party - Patriotism Education Reader

Author: Wu Yunduo
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: The work bell rang for work, and the workshop buzzed with activity. I checked the oil tank of the engine, added kerosene, and started it by cranking the handle. Unbeknownst to me, the crank handle slipped, fell down, and scraped a small wound on my left ankle. In the factory, a few scrapes on the hands and feet meant nothing, and like always, I didn’t pay much attention. Half a month later, the wound still oozed yellow pus and ached faintly all the time. One morning, I went to Shantian Town to buy materials, trekking over mountains and hills, covering a total of fifty miles back and forth. That night, I returned and the comrades dragged me to the Maoling Pit for a late-night performance. During costume preparation, I took off the bandage on my leg, and the small wound had already swelled, with a feverish body. I endured the pain and performed the opera A Bamboo Pole Exchanges for a Rifle. Unsurprisingly, after the performance, I couldn’t stand up anymore. The comrades carried me onto a stretcher and sent me to the outpatient clinic of the rear headquarters. When the thermometer was checked, my temperature was 40°C. The doctor used a small knife to lance the wound, and black, pus-filled blood gushed out. It turned out that the wound had completely rotted inside. The next day, I was sent to the rear hospital of the military command, where the doctor had to remove the rotten muscle. He dug a crescent-shaped hole along the ankle bone, as large as half a vegetable bowl. I stayed in the hospital for over a month, but the wound didn’t heal, and I constantly worried about the factory. Every time I closed my eyes, it felt as if I heard the engine humming. Lying in bed all day, I felt restless and stifled. I couldn’t bear it anymore and asked the doctor for some ointment and bandages, along with two crutches, so I could hop back to the factory on one foot. Just halfway there, I met a stretcher sent by the factory to pick me up. Upon returning to the factory, I immediately threw myself into the tense yet joyful labor. At this time, the Kuomintang’s stubborn faction was plotting to surrender to Japanese imperialism, mobilizing over a hundred thousand troops to eliminate the New Fourth Army fighting in the rear of Jiangnan. The arsenal received an order to retreat and buried the machines overnight, following the non-combat units. The medical department and the arsenal followed the vanguard, but just as they left Maolin not far away, the stubborn faction’s troops ambushed them from the middle. Intense fighting broke out. My wound was still large, and with crutches, every time my left foot landed, I endured excruciating pain. I had to find a temporary stretcher and asked two peasant women to carry me as the troops retreated. In the evening, we retreated to the Xuan City area and set up camp in a large village. Everyone was busy preparing dinner: I took out the ointment and gauze and changed the dressing under the kitchen’s oil lamp. Suddenly, gunfire erupted outside the village, causing a commotion, and the villagers panicked and fled in all directions. The Kuomintang troops were chasing after them. The comrades quickly continued the retreat. Without a stretcher, they took turns supporting me. I clenched my teeth and followed the troops closely, the blood from my wound soaking through the gauze and bandages, seeping into the bottom of my straw sandals, and drenching my entire body in sweat. In the pitch-black night, it was impossible to distinguish the high and low points of the path. The pace of the retreat was accelerating, and my left foot suddenly kicked a large stone by the roadside, tearing half of my thumb’s nail off and causing it to bleed profusely. The pain felled me to the ground. The comrades took turns carrying me through the night. The movement became even more difficult. The stubborn faction of the Kuomintang, the Japanese, and the traitor Wang Jingwei were all in cahoots. They deployed regular troops and of spies, setting up a dense net to capture our comrades. P61-62