preface
In December 1973, in the history of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, an extraordinary thing happened, that is, the commanders of the eight major military regions of the country were transferred.
This year Chairman Mao was already 80 years old and his health was getting worse and worse, but despite this, he still worked day and night for the country, and it was at this time that Chairman Mao realized that in order to make the country long-term peace and stability, it was necessary to lay a good foundation for the next generation of leaders.
Under Chairman Mao's instructions, Ye Jianying, who was in charge of presiding over the work of the Central Military Commission, realized that in order to better manage the army, organizational adjustments must be made, and soon Chairman Mao convened a meeting on this issue and announced the order for the transfer.
General Xu Shiyou
Shortly after the transfer order came down, Xu Shiyou was ordered to leave Nanjing and go south to Guangzhou, and it was precisely for this reason that Sun Hongxian was able to become Xu Shiyou's secretary and accompany Xu Shiyou for three years.
Xu Shiyou: The secretary only needs Shandong people
Shortly after Xu Shiyou went to the Guangzhou Military Region, in order to let him work better, the military region decided to arrange a new secretary for Xu Shiyou.
After Xu Shiyou learned of this news, he put forward three requests to the military region to select a secretary:
The first is to be young and educated, with some writing level and work experience in the organs; the second is to be loyal and honest; the third point is that if the first two points can be satisfied, it is best to be Shandong people.
Xu Shiyou had worked in Shandong for a long time before, and during the war, he was mostly fighting in Shandong, and he was very familiar with Shandong, and with the getting along with Shandong people, xu Shiyou gradually had a preference for Shandong people, so he would put forward this request.
After the leaders of the military region learned of Xu Shiyou's conditions, they immediately began the work of selecting a secretary for Xu Shiyou. However, because the three conditions proposed by Xu Shiyou are somewhat harsh, it is difficult to choose the secretary candidate.
Under the unremitting efforts of the leaders of the military region, more than 300 people were selected in the military region for Xu Shiyou to choose, and in order not to delay Xu Shiyou's time, they reduced more than 300 people to more than 30 people after layers of screening, and then sorted out everyone's information and went to report to Xu Shiyou.
Xu Shiyou and the staff around him
At that time, Sun Hongxian had some knowledge because he was young and a Native of Shandong, so although he was not the best and most suitable one, the leaders of the military region still wrote his name on the first list.
When the comrade of the Military Region in charge of finding a secretary for Xu Shiyou came to report to Xu Shiyou, he took Sun Hongxian as the first person to be reported, and before the reporter could finish reporting to Xu Shiyou, Xu Shiyou hurriedly interrupted him, waved his hand, and said:
"Okay, no need to go on, it's him."
Considering that serving as a secretary to Xu Shiyou was an important task, the reporter could not make such a hasty decision, so he began to exhort:
"He has only been a soldier for more than 4 years, I don't know if he can do this job, and he is the first candidate, there are many more behind, I am still reporting to you about the situation of others, you are listening, choosing."
Xu Shiyou listened to the reporter's words and said:
"What can't work, whether he can be competent, I can see him, you don't have to talk about it anymore, this matter is so fixed."
The reporter saw that Xu Shiyou had sternly refused, and it was not good to say anything, so under Xu Shiyou's strong and resolute attitude, Sun Hongxian became Xu Shiyou's secretary.
Xu Shiyou was with the warriors
"Comrade Sun Hongxian, according to the decision of the organization, send you to serve as the secretary of Commander Xu Shiyou, and you will report on the same day, and your wedding leave must be postponed, your ticket will be refunded, and you will be ready to start a new revolutionary work..."
When Sun Hongxian stood in the office of Director Chen of the Political Department directly under the Military Region Headquarters, he heard the task arrangement from Director Chen, and the moment he heard it, he did not know whether he should be happy or sad, and for a moment he fell into deep meditation.
Director Chen saw that Sun Hongxian did not respond for half a day, so he called out to him, and after being awakened by Director Chen, Sun Hongxian said in a daze:
"I see"
Then he walked out of Director Chen's office.
In order to make himself realize that this matter was true, he squeezed himself with his hand after he walked out of the office, and the moment the intense pain struck, he finally accepted this fact.
Originally, before this task was issued, Sun Hongxian had already bought a homecoming ticket and was preparing to return to his hometown after 4 years of absence, to visit his parents and brothers, and of course, to complete his most important thing - to get married and enter another journey of his own.
He didn't expect to suddenly transfer himself to be Xu Shiyou's secretary at this time, he had heard Xu Shiyou's name in other people's mouths before and knew some things that Xu Shiyou had done, and he never thought that one day he, a recruit who had just come out of a mountain village, would be able to contact a general like Xu Shiyou.
He was very glad that he could have this opportunity, but when he thought that the family had prepared everything for him, he waited for him to go back to the wedding, and at this time proposed to postpone the wedding date, how his parents explained to the woman's family, when he thought of these follow-up problems, Sun Hongxian changed from his previous happiness and excitement to depression.
Then he thought that he was a soldier, that he was in the army, and that he must obey orders. Therefore, he had to tell the family about this matter, hoping that they could explain it to the woman's family, and after handling the family's affairs, Sun Hongxian began to prepare to report to Xu Shiyou.
On December 29, 1973, Sun Hongxian came to No. 7 Lingering Garden in Guangzhou to report to Xu Shiyou. On that day, Xu Shiyou was not there because he had to deal with some things, so Sun Hongxian did not see Xu Shiyou for the first time.
A ma secretary who came with Xu Shiyou from the Nanjing Military Region personally received Sun Hongxian after learning that he was a new secretary and introduced him to some basic information, and the two talked while waiting for Xu Shiyou to return.
Sun Hongxian had heard from his friends earlier that Xu Shiyou was a violent person, so he was very nervous before he came, and Secretary Ma saw that Sun Hongxian was a little nervous, and he also knew some rumors about his chief outside.
Therefore, he comforted Sun Hongxian and said:
"Don't look at Commander Xu who rarely sees his smiling face, in fact, he is a very humorous person, and his daily life is simple, you don't have to be nervous."
The two were chatting when they heard the sound of motors outside, and Secretary Ma said:
"The chief is back"
As soon as I finished speaking, the car drove in.
Subsequently, Xu Shiyou got out of the car, and Secretary Ma took Sun Hongxian to Xu Shiyou's side and introduced him to Xu Shiyou, Sun Hongxian stood in front of Xu Shiyou and gave him a military salute, and Xu Shiyou then returned him a salute.
Xu Shiyou, who has a hot temper
Sun Hongxian was very surprised and flattered to see Xu Shiyou pay him back, he did not expect xu Shiyou to actually pay him back, Xu Shiyou's practice made Sun Hongxian immediately abandon those "malicious" views of Xu Shiyou.
Subsequently, Xu Shiyou and Sun Hongxian had a casual chat in the vernacular around the junction of Yu and Hubei, Xu Shiyou asked a lot of sun Hongxian's basic information, the two talked about the situation in Shandong, Xu Shiyou told him about his experience of fighting in Shandong, the two only chatted for a while, Xu Shiyou instructed Secretary Ma to take care of Sun Hongxian, and then he went to his office.
Xu Shiyou made an exception and went downstairs to pick up customers, deeply remembering the people of Shandong
After Sun Hongxian came to Xu Shiyou's side, he spent all his energy on work, so he had long forgotten about his marriage, Xu Shiyou was very concerned about the situation of the people around him, after he learned the news that Sun Hongxian had postponed the marriage date because he wanted to stay with him, although he did not have any expression on his face, he still put this matter in his heart.
One day more than three months after Sun Hongxian came to Xu Shiyou's side, the two were walking outside the courtyard when Xu Shiyou suddenly said:
"Fat man, what are you doing with me, why don't you go home and marry your daughter-in-law?"
General Xu Shiyou (right)
Sun Hongxian was very surprised to hear this, he did not expect xu Shiyou to take the initiative to mention this matter to him, and could not help but start to wonder whether Xu Shiyou meant that he wanted him to go home and get married?
However, Xu Shiyou did not follow up after saying this sentence, and Sun Hongxian was not embarrassed to ask his guess, and both of them fell silent.
Soon after, Secretary Ma came to Sun Hongxian and told him that Xu Shiyou had asked him to go home and get married, and he learned that Xu Shiyou had mentioned that he wanted him to go home.
After getting Xu Shiyou's permission, Sun Hongxian immediately packed his bags and left for home, and soon after returning to his hometown for the wedding, Sun Hongxian returned to Guangzhou to continue his work.
When Sun Hongxian returned to the army, he remembered that Xu Shiyou had mentioned his affairs in Shandong before, and guessed that he must like Shandong's specialties, so when he returned, he specially brought some specialties from Shandong to Xu Shiyou, and expressed to him the thoughts and greetings of the people in his hometown.
Xu Shiyou was with the warriors
After Xu Shiyou received the specialties brought by Sun Hongxian, he loved it and said while holding it:
"Alas, I was eating these things to make a revolution!"
Subsequently, he asked Sun Hongxian to taste all these specialties to the staff around him.
In May 1974, Sun Hongxian returned to Guangzhou to work shortly after he got married, and his new wife, worried that he could not bear to delay his work, came to Guangzhou from his hometown to find Sun Hongxian.
During that time, Sun Hongxian and his wife lived in the temporary housing arranged for him outside the barracks by the barracks department, commuting early and returning late every day.
Sun Hongxian did not tell Xu Shiyou about this matter, Xu Shiyou has a habit, that is, he especially likes the people around him to dangle in front of his eyes, so that Sun Hongxian's absence is easily detected by Xu Shiyou.
When he saw that Sun Hongxian was not there, he asked the other staff members around him, and only then did he learn that Sun Hongxian's wife had come to Guangzhou to look for him.
Xu Shiyou instructed the staff around him to inform Sun Hongxian to come to No. 7 Lingering Garden with his new wife at noon, and then he personally came to the kitchen to explain to the master to fry a few more good dishes at noon.
Xu Shiyou and his staff (third from the right is Sun Hongxian)
At noon, Sun Hongxian came to The Lingering Garden No. 7 with his newlywed wife as promised, and as soon as the two entered the door, they saw Xu Shiyou personally greeting him downstairs, and Sun Hongxian was very surprised by this.
Xu Shiyou has always had his own set of rules for treating people and things, since 1955, every time a person who has been awarded the rank of general and marshal comes to Guangzhou, Xu Shiyou will personally take the initiative to visit.
As for visitors, Xu Shiyou once stipulated that all those with the rank of general or above will personally wait downstairs and accompany guests upstairs, if they are guests below lieutenant general, they are basically greeted by the staff at the door, and Xu Shiyou only waits upstairs.
Sun Hongxian really did not expect that Xu Shiyou not only personally arranged for him to have dinner with his wife, but also made an exception for them to come down to greet them, and at this moment Sun Hongxian understood Xu Shiyou's deep affection for the people of Shandong.
Xu Shiyou saw the two people come in, and immediately ordered the kitchen master to serve the dishes, and the three of them sat down at the table and chatted, and Xu Shiyou said:
"Child, you came from Shandong to Guangzhou, the south of China, and ran most of China, which is not simple. Is the old man in the family good? Are the crops good? After a few days in the car, tired or not? ”
Xu Shiyou is like a father who has not seen his daughter for a long time, pulling Sun Hongxian's wife to ask questions from the east and the west, showing kindness and patience that he has never had before.
Xu Shiyou
Before Sun Hongxian's wife could answer, Xu Shiyou looked at the meal in front of him and continued:
"Child, when we came here, it was like coming to our own home, when we fought the devils, we didn't eat less rice from Shandong, so we can be regarded as half a fellow countryman."
Xu Shiyou's kind language allowed Sun Hongxian's wife to slowly relax the initial tension, and she said in a thick accent:
"When you beat the devil, you still lived in my house, and my father fed you horses, and this time I came to let me bring you a good one."
When Xu Shiyou heard this, his emotions immediately rose and he asked:
"Which village are you from?"
"NanShen family."
Sun Hongxian's wife replied.
Xu Shiyou said happily:
"Oh, it turns out that you belonged to the Nanshen family, I know, I still remember that at that time, we fought with the main force of the Kuomintang diehard Zhao Baoyuan in Guocheng, so we set up the headquarters in your backyard."
Xu Shiyou became excited when he mentioned Shandong, and finally, he simply told the two about the battle of that year, and finally Xu Shiyou said with emotion:
"In Jiaodong, wherever the troops fought, they lived in the homes of their fellow villagers, and at that time they fought a lot of victorious battles, which is really thanks to those compatriots who were willing to take us in."
Xu Shiyou finished speaking and raised the wine glass in front of him and said to Sun Hongxian's wife:
"Girl, I toast your father with a glass of wine and say hello to his old man."
After eating, Xu Shiyou went back to his room and took out a photo of himself, signed his name with a pen on the back of the photo, and then handed it to Sun Hongxian's wife, saying:
"Child, send you this photo, bring it back to your father to see, by the way help me bring a word to say that I Xu Shiyou misses The fathers and fellow villagers in Jiaodong, thank them."
After Sun Hongxian came to Xu Shiyou's side, Xu Shiyou was very concerned about his living conditions and often provided him with some help, and Sun Hongxian also learned more and more about Xu Shiyou's personality.
With the two getting along for three years, Xu Shiyou also liked the responsible and careful secretary he personally selected.
Xu Shiyou died, and Sun Hongxian's offer to attend the funeral was refused
In August 1976, a transfer order broke the relationship between the two men, and Sun Hongxian had to leave Xu Shiyou and report to his new work unit.
Xu Shiyou and staff photo (third from right is Sun Hongxian)
Three years of time let the two understand each other and become friends in addition to work, and both of them are very reluctant to leave Sun Hongxian, but this is an order that the two cannot disobey, and can only accept it bitterly.
Before Sun Hongxian left, Xu Shiyou deliberately asked the two of them for an affectionate conversation, which was also the only formal conversation between the two.
On that day, Xu Shiyou changed the seriousness of his previous work, and his face was full of warmth and love, and he said to Sun Hongxian in a serious tone:
"Fat man, I'm not here for a long time, you are still very young, you should go to the army to exercise, or you can go to colleges and universities to study for further study."
Subsequently, Xu Shiyou continued:
"You have been around me for almost three years, the big mistake has not come out, the big love has not leaked, I am satisfied, just give you 80 points, after you leave, if there is any problem, you can come to me directly." 」
Sun Hongxian's eyes couldn't help but get wet when he heard Xu Shiyou's words, when he first came, he was a small soldier who didn't understand anything, he lacked life experience and didn't have much work experience, and he often made some mistakes after thinking about coming to Xu Shiyou's side, he didn't expect Xu Shiyou to have such a high evaluation of him.
Under the care of Xu Shiyou, Sun Hongxian came to the Guilin Military and Political Cadre School to study, and soon after, he was transferred back to the military region to work.
In 1985, after Sun Hongxian learned of Xu Shiyou's death on the radio, he immediately called and asked to go to Nanjing to attend Xu Shiyou's funeral.
The next day, Xu Shiyou's wife, Tian Pu, personally called Sun Hongxian after receiving a request from Sun Hongxian and refused Sun Hongxian's request to come to the funeral.
Tian Pu was very sorry to Sun Hongxian that he could not agree to this matter, and it was also Xu Shiyou's wish not to let him come to the funeral.
Before his death, Xu Shiyou mentioned when talking about the funeral after his death that extravagance and waste were not allowed, and for Xu Shiyou's friends and subordinates working in other places, they would only issue obituaries and did not need to come to Nanjing to attend the funeral in person.
After learning this news, Sun Hongxian burst into tears, as long as he remembered that he could not personally send off Xu Shiyou, Sun Hongxian's heart was very sad.
However, then he thought that this was Xu Shiyou's wish, so he did not want to do it according to Xu Shiyou's instructions.
In his later years, Sun Hongxian and his wife worshipped Xu Shiyou
Before xu Shiyou died, he had warned the staff around him to always put their work first, so Sun Hongxian turned his grief into strength and immediately put all his energy into work.
In 2008, Sun Hongxian, accompanied by his wife, went to Xu Shiyou's cemetery in Henan to visit his former old chief.
Xu Shiyou liked to drink Moutai wine the most before he died, and Sun Hongxian always remembered this, so when he came to see Xu Shiyou this time, he specially brought a bottle of Moutai wine.
After more than 20 years, Sun Hongxian finally made up for his regrets and came to Xu Shiyou's tomb, he looked at the 7 big characters on Xu Shiyou's tombstone and fell into endless thoughts...