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Chongqing veteran recalls his life with Lei Feng

2010-03-08 16:11 BJT

"There is a reason my father concealed the secret for many years," said Hu Xianzhong, Hu's eldest son. He and his younger brother did not learn of the story until their father gave a lesson in the school attached to the mining area when they were teenagers.

"A leader hoped I could teach a lesson to the children and I could not refuse him." Hu spoke of this with reluctance.

In his daily life, however, Hu has always kept it in mind that he was a comrade of Lei Feng's. "I cannot disgrace the spirit of Lei Feng."

Working in the mine during the 1970s, a worker was allocated 1.5 jin of meat tickets and 1.5 jin of alcohol tickets. Hu had a work mate named Zhang Fucai who was very poor and could not live on only 1.5 jin of meat a month. So Hu gave his own meat and alcohol tickets to him and ate sweet potatoes for that month himself.

"He always helps me, not just that time. I thought he's a warm-hearted person, but didn't know he was Lei Feng's comrade. He never mentioned Lei Feng to us," said Zhang Fucai, who has been retired for a long time.

In 1983, when the mine was adjusting worker's salaries, Hu had a salary of grade 2, which was only just over 30 yuan per month. The mine was considering raising his pay to grade 3, so that he would earn 10 more per month. That would mean a lot for Hu who had a family with two kids to feed. But he refused straightaway, "I immediately remembered that I was Lei Feng's comrade and I was going to give this opportunity to the others."

Hu is getting old now, but walking in the streets he always goes up and helps those who cannot carry heavy burdens on their backs. Seeing that he is an old man himself, some people do not feel comfortable letting him help, but he says, "I used to be a soldier, and I am in good health."

When he travelled downtown by bus last year, he saw a pregnant woman getting on board with all the seats occupied; he immediately stood up without hesitation and offered her his seat. The woman was quite embarrassed by his act, realizing that he was already an old man. Then he said "staying seated makes me feel boring, I'd like to stand up."

Every year on March 5, Hu strolls the streets to see if he can offer anyone help, or to join those volunteers like the Lei Feng followers to offer help to seniors, children, the sick and the disabled.

"What I've done is not something worth putting on the table, not even enough to match Lei Feng," said Hu, who has been retired from the military for 49 years, and is always inspired by the spirit of Lei Feng.

Hu's family lives in a nest-like home, but he will never go to his superior to ask for help.

Hu and his spouse live in a home that is in such poor condition that it makes one feel sad. It is a small room less than 20 square meters, with a shared kitchen and bathroom. After he watched the TV drama titled "Dwelling in a Narrow Space," he began joking with himself that his home is a nest-like home.

The room is simply furnished with an old bed, a big wardrobe and an old TV set, and some other miscellaneous things occupy the empty space. His two sons who were married long ago live on the same floor in similar conditions.

Hu's pension is 1400 RMB; his wife does not have a job. Despite the poor condition his body is in, the 69 year-old Hu often takes 20 minutes to carry back groceries such as beer, mineral water, tobacco, etc. in order to earn extra money to support his wife.

Li Qinglan, Hu's wife, said "He is honest, never asking for anything from his superiors. We have been married for 50 years. I didn't know he was the comrade of Lei Feng until years after we had been married." Suffering from bronchitis, he is in poor condition, but he is always ready to help others before taking care of himself. He always keeps the public restrooms clean. Sometimes he uses his own money to buy lightbulbs and pipes that were broken.

His identity has been put into the spotlight by the leaders of his unit.