Regarding his own life experience, Liu Zhonghe said that according to his father and the local elderly, this baby was left behind when an army from Cao Xian, Shandong Province passed through Daliu Township in the autumn of 1943. No one knows which regiment it is. It was in the middle of the night in that eventful autumn.
Liu Hongqing took the baby home, and after seeking medical treatment everywhere, Liu Zhonghe finally recovered from a serious illness. Liu Hongqing firmly believes that if a disaster survives, there will be a blessing. The charitable mother often holds Liu Zhonghe, who is running happily in the yard, in her arms, stroking the head of his "teapot lid" and said to the ignorant Liu Zhonghe, "People say that our ancestral grave has good feng shui and will be a big official in the future!"
Young Liu Zhonghe is gifted, smart and lovely. He and his friends are running around everywhere in the village surrounded by green trees along the old road of the Yellow River. The songs of childhood are always accompanied by birds in spring, cicadas in summer, insects in autumn and wind in winter, floating back and forth in the village. What impressed Liu Zhonghe most was "protecting autumn" with friends. In the fields, the bright moon is in the sky, autumn insects are whispering, and the endless green gauze curtains in my hometown are filled with the fragrance of grains in the moonlight, which has triggered countless reverie and dreams.
1949 At the beginning of the year, 7-year-old Liu Zhong and his friends sang the song "Come, let's go to school together" in the "rumbling" sound of the liberation war and happily entered the rural school. The school at that time was the South Mansion founded by Shanxi people in the local area before liberation. Until now, Liu Zhonghe still clearly remembers that there is a mottled "blue sky and white day" flag on the wall facing the school gate.
Daliu Township is located at the junction of Henan, Shandong and Hebei provinces, and is known as the "three provinces where chickens crow and smell". At that time, Daliu Township was a big market town, where merchants gathered and were very lively. Father Liu Hongqing is an uneducated farmer, but smart and unwilling to be poor. After many efforts, he and others opened a grocery store in Daliu Township. In Liu Zhonghe's memory, the grocery store was always busy. Father seldom cares about him. The grocery store also hired a few guys, running around, busy. When buying cotton every autumn, the cotton in the yard piles up like a hill. Although my father goes out early and comes back late every day, he works hard, but in the end he just barely makes ends meet.
Soon, my mother died unfortunately. Liu Zhonghe, who lost her maternal love, came to Shangqiu with her father. Father still runs a grocery store in partnership with others. Father sent Liu Zhonghe to Shangqiu No.2 Middle School (then called Erwan Primary School, now Huimin Primary School) to learn from 1955. During this period, Liu Zhonghe experienced the most painful experience in his life.
Stepmother often mistreats Liu Zhonghe and doesn't let him eat enough. Every day after school, the stepmother takes out the white lamb belly towel and belt woven at home and lets Liu Zhonghe sell it in the street. My father gave me 1 minute for meals every day, which is a bit harsh for Liu Zhonghe who is growing up. Liu Zhonghe, muscular and full of intestines, walked into the busy railway station square with a towel in his hand and a belt on his shoulder. After returning home, he was always looked down upon by his stepmother.
Liu Zhonghe is full of respect and gratitude to his father. In the evening, Liu Zhonghe often goes to the grocery store to accompany his father. Lying under the covers, he lovingly watched his father lying under the dim oil lamp, making an abacus, and vowed to repay his father in the future.
Late at night in winter, the cold wind blows hard, and Liu Zhonghe, who woke up from the cold, ran out of the house shaking. In the biting cold wind, Liu Zhonghe tightened his neck, wrapped his coat and ran along the dusty road. He found a restaurant, squatted down, leaned against the stove and slept all night. Sometimes, I run to the corner of the ticket office of the railway station and curl up for one night.