At the beginning of 1935, when the wind was cold at the mouth of the Yangpu River in Shanghai, a young man in a white suit looked quietly into the distance with expectant eyes.
is such a slightly lonely picture, which has just become the beginning of a love fairy tale of a century.
Today, when the world's view of love is becoming more and more open and free, transnational love is nothing new.
But just nearly a hundred years ago, the world's military situation was treacherous, many countries were in flames, and most ordinary people could not control their own destiny, and love was really an unattainable luxury.
As a result, the real love fairy tale is more touching and precious.
This is the story of Du Chengrong and Wagner, maybe after watching them, you will believe in love again.
"Marrying Du Chengrong is my happiness!"
The love story of the two began in 1931, when there was a gap between China and Austria in national strength, and Du Chengrong, a Chinese police officer, was ordered to come to Vienna, Austria to receive advanced police training.
After witnessing Austria's strength, he became more aware of the importance of absorbing advanced European military knowledge.
Du Chengrong's thirst for learning made Du Chengrong the most impressive Chinese student among the local instructors, and this became an important endorsement for him to win a transnational marriage in the future.
Speaking of the encounter between Du Chengrong and Wagner, it originated from the popular ice skating activities in Viana at that time, Du Chengrong often skated in his spare time from learning, and his delicate face that was different from the locals was noticed by Wagner after that.
As for the Austrian girl Wagner, her full name is Trude · Wagner, born in an ordinary family in Austria, coincidentally, her father is Du Chengrong's instructor, and the family lives near Du Chengrong's residence.
At that time, the two were in their youth, and it was always natural for a young girl and a humble son to have feelings for each other.
In the face of Wagner's love at first sight, Du Chengrong, a traditional Chinese young man, was extremely reserved and apprehensive at first.
But love came unstoppably, and through later contact and getting along, they also formalized the relationship between lovers.
Today, we can still understand this transnational love with impulse and tenderness, but in the social context of the time, their union seems a bit dazzling to some people.
Among them is Wagner's father, in his opinion, the best destination for his daughter is naturally to marry a native, in addition, Du Chengrong is also a poor boy from the Chinese countryside, whether Wagner can live a happy life is really unknown.
In fact, when Wagner's friends learned about this, most of them were also opposed, and they were also worried that Wagner would put his life in an embarrassing situation.
"No matter what you think, I'm going to marry him, and even if my parents are against it, I've decided to do it!"
Just when Wagner's father was trying to cut off the relationship on the grounds that "children must be signed by their guardians when they go abroad", a sentence from one person made him ponder: this person is his fellow instructor.
"I heard your daughter likes Du? This young Chinese man is really very good, I have two daughters myself, if any of them wants to marry Du, I will definitely support it! ”
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Perhaps this is more weighty, seeing that their father's original attitude of opposition has changed, the young lovers can't help but breathe a sigh of relief in their hearts.
But Du Chengrong also ushered in the day of returning to China, and before leaving, they met at the opera house to watch a touching romantic drama "Smiling Country".
It is this opera that interprets the loyal love of Austria aristocratic girls and the ambassador of the Qing Dynasty in China, which washes away the sorrow that floated in their hearts when they separated, and "You are the place of all my heart" has also become their vow when they part.
After returning to China, Du Chengrong found a decent job in Hangzhou, and he sent a telegram to Wagner as soon as he lived a stable life.
At this time, Wagner is about to become an adult, which also means that she can finally break free from all constraints and pursue the love of her life.
"I'll be back to see you in five years!"
In December 1934, when Wagner finally turned 18, she received a ticket from Du Chengrong to Shanghai, and the whole family knew that she would be going to China alone.
Although they know that Du Chengrong is down-to-earth, how many parents are really willing to marry their beloved daughters?
Before boarding the ship, Wagner said goodbye to his parents and three younger brothers, and in the face of her family's eyes full of blessings and worries, she left the phrase "I will come back to see you in five years".
But the whole family couldn't have imagined that this sentence became a luxury later.
After the passenger ship Rose left the dock, the ship passed through the Eastern Mediterranean, the India Ocean, the Strait of Malacca, and the Taiwan Strait, and spent 26 days adrift, just when Wagner saw the mouth of the Yangpu River, her sweetheart had been waiting here for a long time, which was the scene mentioned in the opening chapter.
It turned out that Du Chengrong calculated the approximate date of Wagner's arrival when he mailed the ferry ticket to his lover, and in order to be sure, he asked for leave in advance and bought a snow-white suit, just to receive his longing lover at the first time.
At the moment when the two embraced, all their previous thoughts fell into place.
In Wagner's old age, whenever she remembered this scene, she would always repeat a sentence with love in her eyes.
"My Du really didn't lie to me, he waited on the dock alone for 3 days and nights, and at that moment, I felt that all the efforts and hardships were worth it, and I was the happiest woman in the world!"
On February 24, 1935, the two held a wedding at the famous Beishan Road Xinxin Hotel in Hangzhou that year, and on the marriage certificate of the two, Wagner had his own Chinese name - Hua Zhiping, or Du Chengrong specially named it, meaning "Pingshui meets, life confidant".
After the wedding, the newlyweds returned to Du Chengrong's hometown of Dongyang.
Although Wagner knew nothing about the customs of the Chinese countryside, she happily put on the traditional Chinese women's costumes and put her hair in a bun, and worked hard to start a Chinese life for the two.
I even dream of one day returning to Austria to share my happiness with my family and friends.
Such a happy and peaceful life did not last long, and just as the Japanese invaded the land of China, Austria was also destroyed by Nazi Germany.
At the outbreak of World War II, Wagner had been separated from his family for four years.
On the way to escape, the couple experienced the joy of the birth of their child, and also suffered the pain of the death of their beloved son.
In the face of broken mountains and rivers and family longing, they named the four surviving children Qianghua, Xinghua, Lihua, and Shaohua, and Wagner also gave the children beautiful German names to express their homesickness.
In July 1946, when communication between China and Austria finally resumed, Wagner received the most difficult news for her to accept when she received a telegram from her younger brothers.
That is, the old father had died in 1945, and the old man could not wait for the moment when his daughter returned to her homeland.
And the trajectory of Wagner's fate has changed dramatically after the founding of the People's Republic of China.
"There's my home there, I'm going back!"
At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, because Du Chengrong had served in the Kuomintang camp, coupled with Wagner's special identity background, the couple decided to return to their hometown in Dongyang to farm.
In fact, Du Chengrong could have taken his wife and children to Taiwan back then, but his patriotism finally made the couple decide to stay on the mainland.
The simple and tiring rural life is no stranger to Du Chengrong, but it is completely different for Wagner, from cooking on the fire to raising livestock and other trivial things in life, she has to learn from scratch.
Even her mother-in-law couldn't help but feel distressed, but Wagner enjoyed it, even if her delicate hands were calloused, she was still happy that she was living such an ordinary life.
Like other hard-working traditional Chinese women at that time, she sewed her husband's and children's clothes and shoes with stitches and threads.
In the cold winter months, her hands are covered with frostbite, and the background of watching the oil lamp sewing and mending late at night is always unforgettable for the children.
Unfortunately, in 1969, Wagner received the news of her mother's death again, but the social atmosphere at that time was unsatisfactory, and she was not worried about leaving her husband and children in China, so she could only tearfully give up the idea of returning to her homeland.
In 1980, when Wagner had completely given up on the idea of returning to China, Du Chengrong made a surprising decision to prove with the villagers that his wife had never become a Chinese national, in other words, Wagner had always had Austria nationality.
This move also shows that Du Chengrong supports his wife's decision to return to China at all times.
On April 28, 1990, Du Chengrong died of illness, and a few months later, with the help of the Austrian-Chinese Friendship Association, the then mayor of Viana sent another invitation to Wagner, hoping that she could return to her homeland to have a look, and of course, hope that she could return to her hometown to spend her old age in peace.
Perhaps moved by the eager eyes of his husband when he died, and the homesickness that he never let go, Wagner finally decided to return to China to visit his family.
Her "five-year homecoming promise" was finally fulfilled, but her parents were gone at this time, and her younger brothers were all green and gray.
In her hometown of Vienna, Wagner was cordially welcomed by the Chinese people, and her love story with Du Chengrong has long been rumored to be a beautiful story.
At the same time, it was easy for her to stay, but she was as determined as she was when she was younger.
"I never regretted marrying him, I only loved him as a person, and it had nothing to do with the era, country, or environment. Now, my home is in China, where my husband and my children are buried, and I must go back. ”
In this way, three months after being reunited with his younger brothers, Wagner returned to China with his eldest daughter and continued his ordinary rural life.
Until 2003, the old man died of a sudden cerebral hemorrhage at home, so far, she has spent 68 years in China.
At her funeral, the deputy secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee sent a message of condolence, local leaders at all levels presented wreaths, and Ms. Weinberg of the Austria Consulate in Shanghai attended the funeral in person.
This transnational relationship, which has a beginning and an end, has finally become a love fairy tale that touches the world with their efforts.
In that year, China and Austria created the feature film "Fanny's Smile" based on their love story.
If you think about it carefully, there is really no story in this world that highlights the brilliance of human nature and the touching beauty of transnational love more than their love.
This is the story of Du Chengrong and Wagner, I hope you believe in love, and I wish you the best love and happiness!
Source: Baidu Encyclopedia Wagner