Xu Yingquan, center, shares his story about the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression in Rugao, Jiangsu province, June 13, 2015. [Photo: chinadaily.com.cn/by Liu Mengyang)
Again setting foot on the soil where he fought 70 years ago, wartime scenes came back to General Xu Yingquan, a 93-year-old veteran who took part in a series of battles during China's anti-fascist war.
16-year-old "company commander"
Influenced by his father who was a Red Army soldier, 16-year-old Xu joined the New Fourth Army (transformed from the Red Army's guerrillas in regions along the Yangtze River) in 1940 and soon became a member of the main force.
Twenty one days after Xu was appointed a platoon leader, the Huangqiao Campaign broke out.
During mobilization before battle, Huang Hualong, Xu's company commander, vowed to give his life to winning the fight and assigned Xu as his successor if he died. Huang was killed soon after the battle began and, facing such an urgent situation, Xu took charge and shouldered responsibility without hesitation, leading a successful fight. The calm and courage Xu showed in his first battle at such a young age won him acclaim among the army.
Appreciation from General Su Yu
Xu was sent to the anti-Japanese training school for further study after the Huangqiao battle. One day, he was notified that Su Yu, headmaster of the training school and commander of New Fourth Army First Division, wanted to talk to him. He would never forget his surprise and nervousness when being told.
"I was shocked and didn't know why Commander Su wanted me. My legs couldn't stop trembling on my way to his office." Xu recalled.
"Commander Su Yu asked me to sit down when he saw me, but I was so confused and kept standing. Sensing my uneasiness, he raised a question: 'Are you comfortable when you get seated after one day's walking?' I said yes. Then he kept on asking: 'Are you comfortable when you stand up and walk after one day's sitting?' I also replied yes and got what he meant. " Xu said. "He used the two questions as metaphor to exemplify the relationship between hardships and happiness."
Getting Su's point, Xu became relaxed and sat down. The commander shared his experiences during the Long March and encouraged Xu to seek happiness through hardship.
Being asked whether he was afraid of hardship, Xu said he was born poor and life in the army was much better than home. Su Yu gave credit to Xu's behavior in the battlefield and predicted that Xu would make great achievements one day. Recognition from the founding general made Xu's eyes fill with tears and ignited his passion for learning and fighting.
