To work, to work,
My father went out to work, and so I may,
My son will also go to work someday.
It is the tide of times, they say.
To work, to work,
Our tile-roofed bungalow; a house with a telephone it became,
My sister married; she got a picture frame,
You see, working makes one rich; they proclaim.
To work, to work,
The times are laden with our drifting youth,
Every day we eat cold fast food,
And sleep on mats bought from night market booths.
A day starts in the factory, and ends under a dorm roof.
To work, to work,
To our ailing parents we cannot attend,
Even our children do not recognize us in the end,
In the village some get cancer, whilst infants get calculi,
Our absence is a sorrow that does not mend.
— "To Work" by Yan Jun
The Son: "Now that I have come to the city, I will not go back."
It is the end of the Year of the Ox. New Year's Eve is only a week away.
To the west side of Sijiqing Bridge, Auchan Supermarket is a boiling cauldron of noisy customers and frenzied activity. Sales people use every trick in the book to secure their final sales of the year.
In the fitness equipment department on the northwest side of the first floor, a young man is loudly calling out, "Only 198 yuan! It's just like hiring your own personal masseuse! Only 198 yuan! It's like hiring your own personal masseuse!"
He is dressed in red overalls with five black characters printed on the back. They read, "health preserving foot spa" .
Three customers from Northeast China are attracted by his loud voice. Seeing this, the young man hurries to introduce his product with enthusiasm, "You need only spend 198 yuan to have your own personal masseuse! You need not feed it and you can request its service whenever you want. Your parents will like it, and your wife certainly won't find fault with it."
Unable to resist the young man's persuasive speech, a customer takes off his shoes and puts his feet in the tub. The young man presses the switch. After a while, the customer smiles, "Hey, you're right, it's just like being massaged by a real masseuse!"
The young man jumped at his chance, "We like to call it 'soaking the feet whilst warming the heart'. This high-tech foot spa can cure illness and preserve health and well-being. Let me ask you, what is twenty-first century China most lacking? Not talent, but comfort."
The customer is amused, "Look pal, you really do know how to mess with a guy, don't you? If you can cure diseases for 198 yuan, then why do we need hospitals?"
The young man hurries to explain, "Of course, this foot spa cannot cure every disease. But tell me, how do people get sick? First, because of weakened immunity. How does immunity weaken? Because you don't get enough sleep. But if you use a foot spa before going to sleep, then you will sleep soundly and your immune system will be stronger. Isn't that the same as preventing and curing disease?"
One customer is apparently tempted, "Lately my wife has been complaining about not being able to sleep; maybe I should buy one for her to try?"
But the young man waves his hand, "I think you should buy two. One for you and your wife, and one to give to your friends or relatives. It'll soon be New Year. It will cost you at least 300 yuan to give your relatives two bottles of wine when you visit, but it won't look as good as this. And you will even save money!"
I had been observing this smart and humorous young man with the Beijing accent for a while. After each of the three customers bought two foot spas, he then turned to me, "Sorry for not having time to attend to you just now, sir. You should buy one, too. Will it be a gift or for your personal use?"
"I'm not here to buy anything," I said, "I was just admiring your speech! Are you from Beijing?"
He smiled, "From Beijing? I'm actually from the 'outer suburbs' of Beijing—Hong'an County of Hubei Province."
Hong'an? My heart missed a beat. "You're from Hong'an County?"
"Yes. You've been there?"
"Yes! But it was twenty years ago."
"Back there people are all poor. They must have been even poorer when you were there!"
Twenty years ago, I had been on a trip to Dabie Mountain area to write a report on the Hope Project, during which I passed by Hong'an County. It was a blessed and respectable land: two presidents of new China, Dong Biwu and Li Xiannian, were born there. When the army commissioned its officers for the first time in 1955, more than 200 generals were registered in Hong'an. Among them, two had been vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, four had been the vice premier of the State Council, ten had been minister/vice minister of the Central Party Committee, twelve had been commander or political commissar of a PLA military area, and more than 180 had held official leadership posts whether at ministerial, provincial or military level.
Furthermore, Hong'an also paid a great price and made a great contribution to the victories of the great revolution in China: the flame of war had scorched its land, and a "no man's land" stretched from the north of the county all the way to the south. During the continuous war that lasted for more than twenty years, 10,000 civilians died, and over 2,200 martyrs were recorded. In the Long March, one out of four Red Army soldiers who gave their lives was from Hong'an.