Taiwanese collector Xu Boyi: Family documents on both sides of the Taiwan Strait testify to the family ties that are thicker than water

　　China News Service, Beijing, January 27th: Title: Taiwanese collector Xu Boyi: Family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait testify to the family ties that are thicker than water.

　　China News Service reporter Ying Ni

　　Xu Boyi, who is nearly eighty years old, looked relieved when he received the collection certificate from Wang Chunfa, director of the National Museum of China.

　　Xu Boyi is a well-known artist and collector in Taiwan. His ancestral home is Quanzhou. He has long been committed to the dissemination of Chinese culture. In early 2023, he handed over a batch of letters collected over the years to the National Museum of China and expressed his willingness to donate them free of charge.

　　In an exclusive interview with a reporter from China News Service, Xu Boyi said that family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait are witnesses of a special history and how relatives separated in the two places convey their emotions through writing. "No matter where you are, your hometown will always be the place where compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait dream about." During the collection process, he was not only moved by the family affection between the lines, but also deeply felt that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family. The two sides of the Taiwan Strait are connected by blood, and blood is thicker than water. community.

Some of the family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait donated by Xu Boyi. Photo by China News Service reporter Ying Ni

　　"I remember one of them was a letter sent from Shandong to relatives in Taiwan. Although they had not seen each other for 50 years and both parties had already started their own families, the letter writer expressed that he was very happy to know that the other party was still alive and looked forward to the opportunity to meet. ." Speaking of this, Xu Boyi's eyes turned red. He said that although the writer of the letter was not his relative, he could see the family affection in this letter from both sides of the Taiwan Strait, which was very warm. "This proves that we on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family."

　　After sorting, the letters donated by Xu Boyi to the National Museum of China totaled 6,265 sets, including 3,559 sets of letters exchanged between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, spanning from 1920 to 2018. It mainly records the daily exchanges between people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, etc., reflecting the continuous and inseparable close ties between the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.

　　Why collect family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait? "Just to remember it," Xu Boyi answered very directly. He started collecting family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait 40 years ago. "No one would pay attention to these in that era. Many letters were treated as waste, or even burned in a fire. There were not so many left, so we must cherish them."

Some of the family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait donated by Xu Boyi. Photo by China News Service reporter Ying Ni

　　Previously, Xu Boyi donated his collection of 97 letters between Sun Shangjie, a native of Fuzhou, and his son Sun Shihang in Taiwan, which spanned nearly 30 years, to the Fujian-Taiwan Historical and Cultural Research Institute.

　　"Hang'er understands that after you leave, call three times to find out everything..." This is the first letter written by Sun Shangjie to his son Sun Shihang. In 1946, Sun Shihang went to Taiwan to work. At that time, the father and son thought it was just a short separation. Unexpectedly, the two sides of the Taiwan Strait later entered a period of isolation. With the suspension of shipping and mail, even the simplest greetings became a luxury. In those days, if you wanted to send a letter, you had to go through Hong Kong first, and then transfer to Taiwan. The whole process was so troublesome, but the father and son were able to maintain an exchange of letters for nearly 30 years. Although they were all writing reports on family affairs, family expenses and other life reports, it was still impressive. Moved.

　　Xu Boyi has a large collection of letters home from Taiwanese veterans to their wives in mainland China. Many of the veterans eventually chose to marry and have children in Taiwan because they had no way to return to the mainland. "In the letters exchanged between them and their mainland wives, I read more understanding: Although it is helpless and regretful to be forced to cut off contact, but Life has to go on. Some veterans will report their marriage status to their mainland wives in letters, and tell her that they can remarry if there is a suitable person; and the wife's reply contains both nostalgia and blessings after relief."

　　In his opinion, family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait tell the touching stories of the joys and sorrows of the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, carry the collective memory of the compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait who share weal and woe, and bear witness to the unstoppable exchange process between the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. They are witnesses of a special era, so they have Collection and research value. He does not collect family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait for the purpose of auctioning them, but hopes to do his best to preserve these precious letters. When he encounters units or museums that are interested in this part of history, he is happy to donate the collection, because in their On the platform, family letters from both sides of the Taiwan Strait can attract more people's attention and be better presented.

　　"I saw a lot of people in the National Museum of China." He was as excited as a child. He couldn't help but begin to look forward to the public exhibition of these family letters. "The more people see it, the better!" (End)