At 22:09 on January 19, train G1228 slowly stopped at Shenyang North Station, the terminal station.
When the last passenger left safely with his suitcase, Zhao Peng, who was in charge of adding the train, also finished his work for the day.
Walking out of the platform, looking at the white "bullet" under the light, he said that this is the most relaxing moment of the day.
Zhao Peng is an instructor of the No. 2 bullet train team of the Shenyang Passenger Transport Section, and is also the fourth generation railway man in his family.
Time flies. For more than 80 years, this family has experienced from steam locomotives to "Fuxing" high-speed trains, and the riding environment has changed from "dirty and messy" to "clean and beautiful"... Four generations have witnessed the stories of Spring Festival travel in different eras , It also witnessed the historical changes of China's railways.
Speed, from "80" to "300"
The high-speed trains managed by Zhao Peng can reach a top speed of more than 300 kilometers per hour. Such a speed was unimaginable more than 80 years ago.
Zhao Peng's great-grandfather, Zhao Rongjun, used to be a car guard at Shenyang Station and started working in 1940.
During the holidays, Zhao Peng often listened to his grandfather Zhao Zhenru tell stories about his great-grandfather.
"At that time, the railway workers were doing the hardest and most tiring work, and they relied on a little income to support their families." Zhao Zhenru said that in his memory, his father went to work before dawn as usual during the Spring Festival. Add firewood and coal, the car is full of smoke and dust, and the whole body is covered in soot.
Zhao Zhenru said that the trains at that time were "caravans" with a maximum speed of only 80 kilometers per hour. The carriages were dark, the seats were made of wood, and the locomotives were made in Japan, the United States, and the Soviet Union.
Zhao Rongjun's greatest wish is that China's railways be in charge of the Chinese.
He wrote in his autobiography: "During the Puppet Manchukuo period, I was oppressed by the Japanese devils, who treated people like cows and horses, and beat or scolded them. Japan was overthrown in 1945. I just wanted to restore peace and live a peaceful life. In less than a few months, warlords came again... ..."
The founding of New China opened a new page in the development of the railway industry.
In 1960, Zhao Zhenru, who was deeply influenced by his father, went to work in the railway as he wished, and traveled with China Railway for nearly 20 years.
"At the end of the 1970s, the 'Dongfanghong 3' diesel locomotive rolled out of the station, with a speed of up to 120 kilometers per hour. At that time, I felt very proud. This is a train designed by the Chinese themselves!" Zhao Zhenru said At that moment, he thought of his father's unfulfilled wish becoming a reality, and tears filled his eyes.
Zhao Peng's father, Zhao Zeqiang, is the third generation of the Zhao family. He used to be the train conductor for the 198 trips from Shenyang to Shanghai Zhenru, which took more than 50 hours each way.
Today, Zhao Peng only needs 10 hours to get there from Shenyang to Shanghai.
In 2012, after Zhao Peng was transferred from the army, he chose his own job and became a railway worker.
Under the admiring and envious eyes of my grandfather and father, I embarked on a brand-new job: the carriages that are like spring all the year round, the handsome and energetic work clothes, the convenient and practical suitcases, and the nutritionally balanced boxed lunches...all of these were decades ago. unimaginable.
At present, China's railway operating mileage has increased from 98,000 kilometers in 2012 to 155,000 kilometers in 2022, of which high-speed rail has increased from 9,000 kilometers to 42,000 kilometers, ranking first in the world.
By the end of 2021, the national high-speed rail network has covered 94.7% of cities with a population of more than 1 million.
On the way home, from hectic to calm
Spring Festival travel is the most memorable work scene in Zhao Zeqiang's more than 40 years of career.
From the earliest green leather cars, to the later air-conditioned cars, to the later bullet trains, to the current high-speed rail.
People on the way home became more and more calm.
After the reform and opening up, the vitality of the society burst out, and the flow of people increased.
During the Spring Festival travel season in 1979, the number of railway passengers exceeded 100 million for the first time.
Zhao Zeqiang recalled that at that time, almost every carriage was "overcrowded", causing passengers to be unable to get on the train, and some people shed tears on the platform as they watched the train leave.
"Some passengers climbed in through the windows, and I climbed too."
In the era of green leather cars, going to the bathroom is very troublesome.
"In a small bathroom of less than three square meters, five or six people can stand or sit." Zhao Zeqiang said.
Lao Zhao recalled that the conductors needed to remove the luggage of passengers one by one when cleaning, moving one piece to sweep a place.
Everyone gave this a name: "moving method".
Compared with the crowds during the Spring Festival travel, summer is the most difficult. The temperature inside the train is as high as 40 degrees Celsius, just like a steamer.
"It's useless to turn on the small electric fan hanging on the roof at full power." Zhao Zeqiang said, "I couldn't bear it anymore, so I got some ice cubes from Nanjing, Jinan and other big stations, wrapped them in a towel, and slept in my arms. "
In the 1990s, China began to use air-conditioned trains in large numbers.
The condition of the train that Zhao Zeqiang took has undergone a qualitative change.
Today, the high-speed train where Zhao Peng works has sufficient air-conditioning and modern facilities in the bathroom to make the passenger experience better.
"When I was a flight attendant, the first thing I did was to practice zama step. At that time, only three or four of the dozen or so cars in the whole train had tea rooms. We took thermos bottles to fetch water and deliver water to passengers. The cars shook violently, and people There are too many, you have to be fastened, or you will be burned." Zhao Zeqiang, who loves to talk and laugh, jokingly recalled the situation back then.
"Nowadays, on our high-speed rail, even if you set up a coin, it won't fall." Zhao Peng looked at his father and said proudly.
Inheritance, from the past to the future
A few years ago, a short film called "Three Minutes" went viral on the Internet.
In the film, the mother of a train conductor can only rely on the three minutes when the train stops at the station to get together with her son during the Chinese New Year.
Zhao Peng was deeply touched by this short film.
"I don't see my father very much throughout the year. When the Chinese New Year comes, I ask my mother why other people's families have a family reunion during the Chinese New Year, but ours is deserted?" Zhao Peng said.
Zhao Zeqiang felt a little guilty about his son and his family: "There is no way. Our family's work and rest rhythm has always been 'reversed' from other families. When others are on holiday, we are the busiest." Zhao Zeqiang said.
In 2012, Zhao Peng also became a train conductor, and he gradually understood his father's work.
"Thousands of families are looking forward to reunion. It is impossible for us to be at home at this time. It is not normal to be at home." Zhao Peng said.
Over the years, the Zhao family has formed a rule to cook a table of "New Year's Eve dinner" before the festival when everyone is here, and "Celebrate the New Year" in advance.
After the family exchanged New Year blessings, the father and son split up and devoted themselves to their respective Spring Festival travel work.
Every Spring Festival, the train is full of returnees, and the work intensity is two or three times that of usual.
Zhao Peng does not find it hard. In his opinion, the train runs through mountains, rivers, fields, and bustling cities. Whenever he sees the fireworks rising in the sky and the lights of reunion of thousands of families, he feels that his job is very meaningful. : "In the lights of this reunion, we have a small contribution."
Xinhua Daily Telegraph reporters Sun Renbin, Ding Feibai, Huang Zechen