China News Service, Hangzhou, October 14 (Guo Qiyu, Chai Xiaorui) When the epidemic prevented 90-year-old volunteer veteran Sun Nianjie from meeting with his 84-year-old wife Huang Guoqi, Huang Guoqi wrote 46 "love letters" to Sun Nianjie in the ICU ward in order to appease his wife. Interpreted "hold your hand, grow old with your son".
Chongyang Festival every year, now it is Chongyang Festival again.
Looking back at the correspondence between Sun Nianjie and Huang Guoqi for more than 60 years, it mirrors the struggle between the family and the country for half a century, and the 50-year golden wedding customs.
Huang Guoqi wrote to his wife.
Photo by Chai Xiaorui
"Let’s work together to reach a hundred years old"
Both Sun Nianjie and Huang Guoqi are from Shandong and grew up in the same village.
When she was five or six years old, Huang Guoqi went to school with her cousin, where she met Sun Nianjie who was studying.
In 1947, Sun Nianjie joined the army and became a soldier of the 9th Column of the East China Field Army.
In 1955, 19-year-old elementary school teachers Huang Guoqi and Sun Nianjie became lovers when they were acquainted with each other.
After that, the two young people in different places began to communicate through letters.
Huang Guoqi and Sun Nianjie talked about the changes in the country house, interesting stories about her educating students, and the little things in life.
Sun Nianjie and Huang Guoqi talked about the heroic stories of their comrades on the battlefield, their life in the army, and their new cultural knowledge.
Sun Nianjie read the letter written by his wife.
Photo by Chai Xiaorui
These letters are still cherished by Huang Guoqi and Sun Nianjie.
In 1959, the two of them who had communicated in different places for 5 years finally met and got married.
The fuzzy memories of childhood overlapped with the photographs in the letters, becoming clearer and clearer, becoming the appearance of love.
Write 46 "love letters" in isolation for 55 days
In 2017, after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, Sun Nianjie gradually became aphasia. In 2019, he was admitted to the ICU and the critical illness notice was issued several times.
Huang Guoqi was also admitted to the geriatrics department on the 13th floor of the same hospital due to respiratory diseases.
Over the past few years, Huang Guoqi has come to visit his wife every day, and every time he brings his favorite kiwi fruit and steamed egg, and feeds him bite by bite.
Sun Nianjie's illness also miraculously stabilized.
After the outbreak of the epidemic in 2020, the hospital implemented no cross management. Two elderly people who lived in the same hospital but separated on different floors began a 55-day quarantine.
Ninety-year-old Sun Nianjie lives in an ICU ward. Suddenly, he couldn't see his wife. He became irritable and often made a fuss about leaving.
He repeatedly wrote on the paper: "I want to go back with my wife!" In order to appease Sun Nianjie, Huang Guoqi began to write a "love letter" and handed over the prepared kiwi fruit to the medical staff to his wife.
In 55 days, Huang Guoqi wrote 46 such "love letters".
"Let's work together to reach a hundred years old!" This is an agreement between Huang Guoqi and his wife.
Seeing the letter from his wife, Sun Nianjie's mood gradually calmed down.
When writing a reply, he occasionally tells his wife in the tone of a nurse, "Comrade Huang Guoqi on the 13th floor, your letter has been received. Your wife is very good with us, please rest assured, he just misses you and hopes you Can see him."
But more often, Sun Nianjie called "My wife Guoqi" or "Dear Guoqimei" in his letter, just as he did when he was young 60 years ago.
Sun Nianjie and Huang Guoqi took a group photo when they were young.
Photo courtesy of the interviewee
"The more difficult we face, the heavier our responsibility."
Later, according to work arrangements, Sun Nianjie was transferred to the Production and Construction Corps, the predecessor of Zhejiang Province No. 4 Prison.
In 1971, Huang Guoqi also followed her husband to work in the Corps.
At that time, it was the second time to start a business.
Huang Guoqi has always adhered to the front-line position, transporting, pulling carts, assembling, grinding wheel polishing... wherever there is a shortage of people, he will support him.
"The more difficulties we face, the heavier our responsibilities." Huang Guoqi and Sun Nianjie reached a consensus.
Once, the unit organized a movie. Huang Guoqi took the children to see the movie in the evening. After 9 o'clock in the evening, another person went to the pickling room and was busy until midnight.
With more than 300 parts, each weighing more than 5 kg, she immersed the parts one by one in the sulfuric acid pool.
Go home and rest for a while, get up again at three or four in the morning, and then fish out the parts one by one for cleaning. When everyone is at work, all the parts can go to the next process.
"The unit has to resume production from a state where production has basically stopped and is almost paralyzed. Countless people have made extraordinary efforts." In 1979, Huang Guoqi was named a model worker in Hangzhou and won the honor of National March 8th Red Banner Bearer. .
Letters spanning more than sixty years record a pair of ordinary couples who work diligently and live earnestly.
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