The founding general returned to his hometown and was warmly welcomed by his relatives;In contrast, the founding lieutenant general Bao Xianzhi returned to his hometown but angrily reprimanded his people, his heart was full of anger, and he never returned home. Bao Xianzhi, a native of Macheng, Hubei, was once Wang Jinshan's close partner. During the Anti-Japanese War, Wang Jinshan served as the head of the 769 Regiment, while Bao Xianzhi served as the political commissar of the regiment. They fought side by side many times in the battle, Wang Jinshan is like Li Yunlong in "Bright Sword", brave and fearless, while Bao Xianzhi is like Zhao Gang, steady and old, and can restrain Li Yunlong at critical moments. Bao Xianzhi grew up in poverty, lost his mother in childhood, lost his father in his youth, and grew up with his uncle and grandfather. This harsh reality inspired him to join the children's team at the age of 15, and also served as chairman of the village Soviet, and officially joined the Red Army in 1930. Bao Xianzhi was married and his wife was pregnant, when he left home. For the sake of the revolutionary cause, he ignored his family and never returned. In the Red Fourth Front Army, the 129th Division and Liu Deng's army, Bao Xianzhi served as a general. In 1949, the 11th Army was established, Zeng Shaoshan served as the commander, and Bao Xianzhi became the military political commissar. As a regular general, he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general in 1955 along with Zeng Shaoshan, Wang Jinshan and others.
In 1954, three old comrades-in-arms took a group photo in Beihai Park in Beijing, which is a precious group photo. However, in November 1949, Bao Xianzhi returned to his hometown of Baojiawan in Macheng, only to find that the old house was in ruins, and the whereabouts of his wife and children were unknown. After inquiry, I learned that Bao Xianzhi's family life was extremely difficult after joining the Red Army. His adoptive father died, and his wife, Yu Fengqing, was unable to sustain with a baby. The patriarch Bao Jishui single-handedly planned and sold Yu Fengqing's mother and son to Guojiagang, which was more than 200 miles away from home. This patriarch is not a well-wisher, but a cruel human trafficker. Since then, the clansmen have never heard from Yu Fengqing's mother and son. After listening to the clansmen's story, Bao Xianzhi was furious and reprimanded:"You ignorant family members!I can't put into words the anger I felt at treating my loved ones with such callousness. From now on, I will no longer regard you as my relatives, and I will never return to this place where I no longer have a home!"Bao Xianzhi's heart is full of complex emotions. In a fit of rage, he went to retrieve his son Bao Shengsu, who had been betrayed by the patriarch, and took him with him ever since.
Bao Shengsu, the prototype of Pan Dongzi, the protagonist of the movie "Shining Red Star", experienced twists and turns when he was young. Since then, Bao Xianzhi has been full of love and hatred for his people and his hometown, and he never returned to his hometown until the general's death in 1988. However, there was not only resentment in his heart, but also other emotions. Bao Xianzhi's children all know that their hometown is Chengmagang in Macheng, Hubei Province, because Bao Xianzhi often recites this sentence, indicating that he still has a deep affection for his hometown. There is more love than hate. Whenever someone from his hometown came to visit, Bao Xianzhi always asked people to go to the street to buy a lot of things. There are dozens of pairs of liberation shoes alone, as well as military coats. The children didn't understand, but Bao Xianzhi said that there are many relatives in his hometown, and the economic conditions are not rich, so we can't forget them, we can help as much as we can, and we must try our best to help each other no matter how much. In 1986, Bao Xianzhi was hospitalized with cancer, and people from his hometown mentioned a river in the town that cut off the traffic on both sides of the river, saying that it was very inconvenient for the people to go out to do business, and the township had long wanted to build a bridge, but suffered from a lack of funds.
Bao Xianzhi cherished his hometown, and despite being seriously ill, he personally wrote a letter to the Macheng Municipal Party Committee and the city, requesting funds to help the villagers in his hometown build bridges, and finally this matter was implemented. The old general's greatest wish in his later years was to lead the whole family back to his hometown again. However, due to being diagnosed with cancer, he had to be hospitalized for treatment**. In 1991, three years after Bao Xianzhi's death, the children sent his ashes back to Macheng, fulfilling his last wish, and with their father's last wish, they finally returned to Baojiawan, the place that Bao Xianzhi will never forget. Although the patriarch had coldly betrayed Bao Xianzhi's wife and children, and although he had a grudge against his clansmen, his hometown was always his hometown, and for Bao Xianzhi, that was his roots, and he had always loved his hometown. (Reference: "Centennial Chronicles" and "Biography of Bao Xianzhi").