On that day in May 1994, in front of a tomb in Nanyimafang Village, Shishan Town, Liaoning Province, an old man who was over his prime. He knelt down on his knees in front of the tombstone, gently brushed the dust off the tombstone, took out a glass of wine, poured it in front of the tombstone, looked at the tombstone solemnly, and then whispered eight words.
I've come to see you in place of your son! Although his pronunciation was not perfect, his hot tears rolled down, but dozens of old people behind him could not help but shed tears.
In this quiet cemetery, lies Zhang Zuolin, a king of the Northeast who was once all the rage in the twenties and thirties. At this moment, an old man, who was almost old, was kneeling in front of his grave and weeping bitterly.
This old man is Zhang Zuolin's own grandson, Zhang Lulin, the youngest son of the young marshal Zhang Xueliang. Behind him, there were dozens of generals and orphans of the young marshal back then.
Zhang Lulin didn't know his life story until he was in his old age, and he didn't return to his homeland for the first time at the age of 64, and the emotions in his heart were difficult to calm. He worked hard to deeply engrave the mountains and rivers around him in his heart, and tried to recall the scenes of more than 60 years ago.
At that time, his parents were still by his side, and the family was laughing and happy. However, living in turbulent times, having a father with status means that his life is full of twists and turns and challenges.
On November 28, 1930, in a small mansion in Tianjin, Zhang Lulin was born. He is the crystallization of the love between Miss Zhao Si and Zhang Xueliang, although at that time, Zhao Yidi had not yet received an official identity, but Zhang Xueliang's original wife Yu Fengzhi acquiesced in this relationship and allowed his birth.
At that time, the Japanese were eyeing Northeast China, intending to turn it into their colony, and at the same time, the threat of warlord forces from all sides also put Zhang Xueliang, a young and promising young marshal who held great power in Northeast China, into a crisis.
Zhang Xueliang, full of enthusiasm for the reunification of the motherland, in the face of the obstruction and coercion of the Japanese, he resolutely chose to obey the people and was willing to pursue the Three People's Principles.
However, he was deceived by Chiang Kai-shek and ended up on his back"Do not resist the generals"infamy. However, even in a difficult situation, he still cared about the country, and for the sake of national righteousness, he launched a military admonition on the birthday of his 7-year-old son, successfully promoted the cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, and sounded the clarion call of the War of Resistance against Japan.
Although his small family was affected, he lost his freedom, and he also lost the joy of family life with his beloved son, he still made great contributions to the reunification of the motherland and national unity.
As soon as he arrived in Nanjing, Zhang Xueliang's original partner Yu Fengzhi considered that Zhang Lulin was still young and needed to be taken care of, and Zhang Xueliang was under house arrest, and the mother and son would not be suitable for Zhang Xueliang's side, so they refused to go to Nanjing.
In desperation, Zhao Yidi had no choice but to place Zhang Lulin in Shanghai. However, Shanghai was soon attacked by the Japanese army, and in order to ensure the safety of his son, Zhao Yidi took Zhang Lulin to Hong Kong again.
By 1940, Zhang Lulin had been living in Hong Kong for three years, and he was 10 years old at that time.
Zhao Yidi learned that Zhang Xueliang was about to be transferred to Guizhou to continue house arrest, and Zhang Xueliang's original wife Yu Fengzhi suffered from breast cancer and needed ** and could not take care of Zhang Xueliang, so she had a plan to go to Guizhou.
But she was worried that her son would follow her, and the husband and wife would become a weakness, so in order to ensure her son's safety and take better care of her husband, she could only entrust Zhang Lulin to her friend Igoya and his wife in the United States.
Zhang Lulin's childhood life was full of upheavals, and at the age of 10, he could only say goodbye to his parents in tears and go to a foreign country alone. 16 years later, if it weren't for the arrival of his father's old general, Dong Xianguang, Zhang Lulin would have almost forgotten those years of hardship and his heroic father.
At this time, Iag stood up, he was not only Zhang Lulin's quartermaster, but also Zhang Xueliang's friend. After accepting Zhang Xueliang's invitation to take care of the orphan, Yiag took over this responsibility without hesitation, and in the next 16 years, he carefully nurtured and took care of Zhang Lulin.
In order to protect Zhang Lulin and his father, Iag declared him his son and named him Kerr.
In the process of Zhang Lulin's growth, Zhang Xueliang and Yu Fengzhi's three sons suffered misfortunes one after another, the eldest son Zhang Luxun died of sepsis, the second son Zhang Luyu died in a car accident, and the third son Zhang Luqi died of tuberculosis at the age of 12, making Zhang Lulin the only son of Zhang Xueliang.
This news made the Iago couple more cautious, and it became their responsibility to protect the young marshal's only blood. They originally lived in the Chinese ghetto of San Francisco, but in order not to attract attention, Iag did not let Zhang Lulin speak Chinese and moved to Los Angeles.
Since then, Zhang Lulin's living environment has undergone earth-shaking changes, his adoptive parents communicate with him in English, and the schools he attends are also pure English teaching, and there is not a single yellow** black-haired compatriot around.
As time passed, Zhang Lulin gradually forgot the childhood of the war, and also forgot the name of her father Zhang Xueliang.
Under the "careful" protection of her British parents, Zhang Lulin stayed away from her relatives and the motherland, lived a life without waves, and achieved great success in her career, becoming an aerospace engineering expert, and also met her beloved, living a full and peaceful life.
However, his peaceful life was shattered by the arrival of Dong Xianguang in 1955. Dong Xianguang is an important figure in the history of modern Chinese journalism, who introduced the advanced concept of Western newspapers and periodicals to China, and also founded well-known newspapers in China.
In 1954, he was invited by Soong Meiling to teach English to important figures in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, only to learn that his student was Zhang Lulin.
He decided to teach English to Zhang Xueliang, who had been imprisoned by Chiang Kai-shek for nine years. No one knew Chiang Kai-shek's purpose, and Soong Meiling only said that he should come here. Despite this, Dong Xianguang still taught seriously and became friends with Zhang Xueliang and his wife.
When they were close to each other, Zhang Xueliang and his wife's thoughts about their young son Zhang Lulin deeply touched Dong Xianguang. However, Zhang Xueliang was unable to communicate with his young son. Dong Xianguang was deeply touched and determined to find Zhang Lulin.
But since 16 years have passed, the only information Zhao can provide is the address she corresponded with when she was in Hong Kong. But Iago has moved away, and the address used to be a fire, and now it's something else.
Dong Xianguang, as a journalist, directly asked for help from the United States*** After many inquiries and investigations, he finally contacted Zhang Lulin. However, to his surprise, Zhang Lulin, who was standing in front of him, had a face very similar to Zhang Xueliang, but he could not speak Chinese.
On the occasion of the reunion, Dong Xianguang described to Zhang Lulin the appearance of his parents and the scene of China, and the Iag couple finally admitted that he was the only son of Zhang Xueliang and Zhao Yidi.
At this time, Zhang Lulin realized that he was ** dark, his hair was black, and his body was flowing with the blood of Chinese. He knew that his father turned out to be a hero full of blood.
In 1956, Zhang Lulin finally found an opportunity to visit his parents in Taiwan. When his son, who had not seen him for 16 years, appeared in front of him, Zhang Xueliang was so excited that he burst into tears, but seeing that his son could not speak a word of Chinese, and the father and son could only rely on translation to communicate, which made Zhang Xueliang feel very uncomfortable in his heart.
Despite the challenges in her life, Zhang Lulin's family beliefs remain the same. In 1959, he looked forward to the end of Zhang Xueliang's confinement, but Chiang Kai-shek's change of fortune prevented him from doing so.
He tried countless methods, but Zhang Xueliang remained confined for many years. It was not until Chiang Ching-kuo's death in 1988 that the family saw hope of reunion. After taking over in power in 1990, Zhang Xueliang finally gained complete freedom.
However, due to the long period of confinement and advanced age, Zhang Xueliang and his wife's physical condition deteriorated day by day. In this case, Zhang Lulin decided to take her parents to Hawaii, USA to recuperate.
In 1994, when Zhang Xueliang was still alive, Zhang Lulin received an invitation letter from Beijing, hoping that he would participate in an aerospace scientific research exchange meeting as a Chinese scientist.
After Zhang Xueliang heard the news, he was very eager to ask his son to go to Beijing to attend the exchange meeting immediately. After the meeting, he went back to the northeast to see his father's hometown in Shenyang, and went to his grandfather's empty tomb outside Fushun to pay tribute to a glass of wine.
So, in May 1994, Zhang Lulin set off from Los Angeles and finally arrived in the Northeast after a long journey, where he visited many of Zhang Xueliang's old subordinates on behalf of his father, and sent them a message with Zhang Xueliang's own inscription.
The crane returns to the nest, and the cloud has no heart. These ten words seem to have exhausted all the thoughts of this century-old man. Accompanied by the young marshal's old subordinates, Zhang Lulin finally arrived at Zhang Zuolin's tomb and fulfilled his father's last wish.
Influenced by her father, Zhang Lulin went all out to contribute to the scientific research of the motherland. His eldest son also became a professor at Northeastern University, and they served their country in their own ways.
Now, Zhang Lulin has also become an old man, and Zhang Xueliang's deep love for the motherland has been reproduced in him. He often looked for opportunities to return to China, to visit his hometown in the northeast, to see where his father lived, and even to the place where the Xi'an incident took place.
In this hot land where his ancestors have lived, loved and fought for generations, he seems to have returned to his father's beacon years. Zhang Xueliang once said that his life was only 21 to 36 years old, because this period was the time when he struggled for his ideals, which was the most meaningful and valuable to him.
And Zhang Lulin's life, why is it not like this?
Displaced by war, life is like an unfinished script. Before the age of 26, he was thousands of miles away from his biological parents, which made him forget his mother tongue and blur his blood relationship.
But when that day came and he found his father, his life really found meaning and value. At that time, he understood where he came from and knew where he belonged, although the language was a little rusty, but in his heart, the once lost Chinese heart had found a home.
Isn't this a kind of fulfillment of life?