the 70-year-old veteran has remained true to his original aspiration and has been giving lectures on a voluntary basis for more than ten years
2024-09-10
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jingchu.com (hubei daily online) (reporters chang mengxing and he wenwen) he was born in 1947, joined the army in 1964, and taught at maopingchang town primary school in yuan'an county, yichang city for 32 years after retiring in 1969. at the age of 72, he still insisted on joining the party, running around every corner of zhaijialing in yuan'an county every day, and took the initiative to serve as a volunteer guide for the ancient village. his name is zhai weizhi.
zhai weizhi. photo provided by correspondent
joined the army at the age of 17, trained in the hottest days of summer and the coldest days of winter
"you can't enjoy yourself when you are in the army. the first thing you need to do is not to be afraid of hardship. you must train no matter how hot or cold it is."
at the age of 17, zhai weizhi applied to join the army, but was rejected because he was the only son in his family and did not meet the policy at the time. he did not give up and repeatedly begged the organization to give him a chance. the organization was moved by his determination and asked him to write an application. zhai weizhi was very excited. with the knowledge accumulated since childhood, the application for enlistment was soon submitted to the organization. the organization saw the true feelings and writing skills revealed in the application letter and agreed to zhai weizhi's enlistment.
once, the military camp organized two new soldiers to speak. zhai weizhi actively signed up and showed his speech to the instructor. the instructor immediately selected him as one of the speakers. on the day he was supposed to speak, he took a running start and took a big step to the podium. others took the script, but he did it without a script. he recited it three times and finally finished his speech without a script, which received applause from the audience.
in the army, digging holes, carrying steel bars and cement were zhai weizhi's daily routine. two people worked together in a team, drilling and digging, and he was always at the forefront. if his comrades couldn't carry cement, he would carry two bags, and if they couldn't lift steel bars, he would give himself the heavy end.
recalling his military career, he often thanked the army for helping him establish a firm belief in defending the motherland, training his strong willpower, and cultivating his love of labor and fearlessness of hardship. every step he took in the army became a valuable asset for him in the future.
zhai weizhi insists on reading books and studying. photo provided by the correspondent
giving back to my hometown, willing to be a stepping stone for others, where my roots are i am
"my students still come to visit me often."
after zhai weizhi retired in 1969, he returned to his hometown and stepped onto the podium. it has been 32 years since then. the school infrastructure was extremely backward, and his podium was made up of a wooden table and a wooden chair.
"it is common for classrooms to leak when it rains or is windy. when encountering such a situation, i ask students to read aloud. as long as they have faith in their hearts, nothing will be a problem," said zhai weizi.
his home was some distance away from the school where he taught, and the muddy dirt road made travel inconvenient. as soon as the rooster crowed, he would get up, pack up and walk along the mountain road to school early in the morning to prepare for lessons. he was always the first to arrive.
at that time, teachers had low incomes and it was common for them to not be able to afford rice and flour. however, zhai weizhi said, "the organization trained me, the army cultivated me, my roots are here, the children here are my children, i want them to take root and sprout, and grow into towering trees."
nowadays, he often buys clothes and candies for his students' children. there is a female student in her 40s who is disabled for life. he sends her books and newspapers twice a year. whenever there is a conflict in the female student's family, he is asked to mediate.
zhai weizhi insists on subscribing to books and newspapers for study.
70-year-old insists on joining the party, spiritual food continues
"i'm happy to be your introducer to the party." when the village party members learned that 70-year-old zhai weizhi had submitted an application to join the party organization, they all vied to be his introducer.
in 2017, 70-year-old zhai weizhi formally submitted an application to join the party. he had been working hard for many years to get to this day. he subscribed to books and newspapers at his own expense of 460 yuan every year for study. he would randomly flip through a page in a yellowed book, which was covered with his notes and circles. books such as "selected special topics on xi jinping's thought on socialism with chinese characteristics for a new era", "party member life", and "chinese militia" can be seen everywhere in his house.
"chairman mao said that we should learn until we live. if i don't read books and study, i will not be able to improve myself, keep up with the times, or keep up with the pace of the party," said zhai weizhi.
in june 2018, he became the oldest probationary member of the party in maoping town. in june 2019, he successfully became a full member and a glorious "old" party member.
"internet celebrity soldier tour guide", "living lei feng" in scenic spots
the ancient village of zhaijialing is located in jiulong village, maopingchang town, yuan'an county. it is sparsely populated. the oldest building there is more than 200 years old, and many of the original inhabitants have long moved away.
zhai weizhi has been giving lectures on a voluntary basis for more than 10 years. he said that the satisfaction and evaluation of the masses are the best yardsticks.
according to villagers, college students from prestigious universities such as central china normal university and huazhong university of science and technology have come to visit him, and people from other provinces such as qinghai and tibet have come here to listen to his explanations. "business is very good, and sometimes we have to make reservations by phone."
when he saw tourists coming, he would take the initiative to explain the cultural stories of zhaijialing or his own stories. when he was deeply moved, his tone was high and every word was inspiring. people who had listened to his explanations often came back to visit him.
"as a retired veteran, i have the obligation to publicize the good aspects of zhaijialing while i can still speak. i volunteer to explain it to you all here. if i don't speak out, more and more people will move out," said zhai weizi.
zhai weizhi is always restless and runs around every corner of zhaijialing. when the scenic spot was first built, he paid for himself and even paid for his own wages. he brought his own lunch box and went up the mountain for three days to cut waste branches. he was often seen hunched over, weeding and sweeping the ground. he was successively named "yichang good man" and "yuan'an county model of helping others".
it is understood that he has given lectures here more than 200 times. under his influence, this place has gradually become a popular check-in spot, driving local economic and cultural development and contributing the veterans' strength to the joint creation of a happy life in the local area.
