In October 2009, Long Mei and Yurong, the “Little Sisters of Grassland Heroes”, one of the 100 “People Who Have Moved China” since the founding of the Communist Party of China, attended the “China Touching People Award” in Beijing. “For the past 45 years, the Communist Party’s “Little Sisters” spirit of collectivism has been instilled in the minds of Chinese people through various means, but the truth of the matter is far from it.
Frostbite from chasing sheep on a snowy night
In the morning of February 9, 1964, snowflakes were falling on the grasslands of the United Banner of Dalhan Maomingan, and 11-year-old Longmei and 9-year-old Yurong went out to herd cattle on behalf of their father. It was almost noon when the weather suddenly changed. The northwest wind swept up the snow and danced wildly. The sheep fled desperately along with the wind, but the sisters could not stop them and had to run farther and farther away from the sheep. Extremely tired, the two sisters fell asleep in the snow and ice. In the middle of the night, Long Mei woke up and saw that the sheep and her sister were gone. She got up, walked and shouted all the way, and walked for two or three miles before she found Yurong and the sheep. The two sisters followed the sheep and continued on their way. After battling the snowstorm for one day and one night, they had walked more than 70 miles.
The next day at dawn, they were not far from Baiyun Ebo station. At that time, Yurong lost a felt boot and her left foot was bare. My sister was about to take off her felt boot and put it on, but Yurong trembled and urged: “The sheep are far away again, I’ll wait here, go and stop them. At this time, Long Mei also froze, she struggled to get up and staggered to the station.
At Baiyun Ebo train station, Wang Fuchen, the road wrencher who came out to greet the train, saw Longmei and brought her into the boardwalk room, rubbing her hands with snow. Long Mei gradually warmed up a little, intermittently spat a few words: “My sister, under the stone slope, has no boots ……” Zhang Renzhen immediately called the duty officer, and then the railroad workers went around to look for the child. Zhang Renzhen and Wang Zhenshan crossed two snow slopes, not far from the rocky slope found a small Yurong lying in the snow. They hurriedly took turns carrying Yurong on their backs and ran back to the station. They were then taken to the mining hospital for first aid.
After a rescue, the two finally woke up. Due to severe frostbite, Long Mei lost her left umph toe, and Yurong was amputated below the right knee and below the left ankle. At that time, Long Mei reportedly immediately asked the secretary of the mine’s party committee, “Is my sheep still there?” The clerk replied, “The sheep are fine, don’t worry.”
Become a Hero
At midnight on March 12, the official media of the Chinese Communist Party broadcasted the article “One Day and Night in the Blizzard” to the national media, and many newspapers and broadcasts reprinted it in the People’s Daily on the same day. Since then, Long Mei and Yurong have been known as the “Little Sisters of the Grasslands Heroes,” and their story has not only been reported in various reports and elementary school textbooks, but has also been turned into a Peking Opera, dance drama, and cartoon.
Their lives changed as Long Mei became the Chairman of the Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) of Donghe District, Baotou City, Inner Mongolia, and Yurong became the Deputy Secretary General of the CPPCC of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Frozen Truth
However, the truth of the matter is not as it is reported. In fact, Long Mei and Yu Rong’s father went out to drink that day and gave the sheep to the two children, which caused the tragedy of the children being crippled by cold.
In addition, the sister Long Mei’s real name was Wu Longyi and the sister Yurong’s real name was Wu Yurong. Both of their parents were of Mongolian descent. The sisters are the second and third oldest of six siblings, respectively. They have an older brother, Wu Baolong, a younger brother, Wu Baoan, and two younger sisters, Wu Yumei and Wu Yongmei. Sisters Longmei and Yurong thought that there might have been an error in translation, and the reporter then used the wrong name. The two later used the name Long Mei and Yu Rong to this day, and even used the name for their identity cards.
What Happened to the Man Who Saved My Life
Many years later, the whole story is retold in the book “Mongolian Writings” published by the Nationalities Publishing House. In the book, it is written that Long Mei and Yurong were rescued by none other than a herdsman, Khas Chaolu (who was originally an educated man, but became a “controller” in those days), and his son, Narimandua.
They had just returned from shopping for New Year’s goods and found a shivering flock of sheep. When they were about to drive the sheep to the main group, they found two dead sheep in the flock. Since it was difficult to bring the dead sheep back with them, Khaszhaolu decided to store them first and then have them picked up by the team. So, he carried one of them to the nearby wrenching room and asked his son to take care of the flock.
In a short time, Narendra spotted Longmei staggering and asked her about her sister, who was still in the mountains, before realizing that it was she who had herded the sheep. At that time, returning back, Haszhao Lu saw Long Mei, who was frozen and could not speak very well, realized the seriousness of the situation, and rushed her to the railroad track house to call for help. Then, he rushed out of the wrenching room, ran to the post and telecommunications bureau, and urgently hung up the phone to all levels of leadership to report the situation of the two little girls.
Long Mei, who was rescued at that time, also said some words of gratitude. It can be said that if the sisters hadn’t met Khassiaolu, it is unknown whether their lives would have been saved.
However, because Khassiaolu belonged to the “controllers,” Wang Fuchen, a railroad worker who witnessed the rescue, was credited as the one who saved the sisters, while Khassiaolu was given credit for the rescue and suggested that he not be praised. However, as the literati imagined and articulated the story of the Little Sisters of the Grasslands with its connotations of class struggle, Khassiaolu was elevated from an ordinary “controller” to a “sheep thief” and “attempted murderer” on the stage. “The heroes were, of course, the two sisters, the “reactionary shepherd Baiyin” (Baiyin, the Mongolian word for landlord, rich farmer, and boss).
During the Cultural Revolution, Hasz Chaolu was imprisoned for this. Long Mei even accused her savior in a meeting of ten thousand people, but Yurong felt ashamed to do so and chose to remain silent. At the time, those in the know were afraid to tell the truth for fear of being branded counter-revolutionary.
It was not until 1984 that the Organization Department, Propaganda Department, and District Youth League Committee of the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region recognized Haszhaolu as the first person to rescue the Little Sisters, and removed all the falsehoods imposed on him, suggesting that he be rewarded and honored.
In 2005, Khas Chaolu finished his rough life, and Yu Rong came to see him off. The Chinese government media reported that Long Mei and Yu Rong said that they did not know about what happened to Haszhao Lu until later. But do you believe that?
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