Civilians, who hadn’t yet died of starvation, begged for food on the streets. No grain of rice was to go to waste. Even old, moldy fruits were happily devoured. A piece of candy seemed like heaven to the children, and when families were lucky enough to get a few pieces of meat, they would feel blessed at dinner that night. Parents rounded up little boys and girls in an attempt to flee to safety. Even the previously wealthy now had few clothes and little money. This was life in China during the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party of China (CPC) took everything from innocent citizens.

My grandma, Yongzheng, was a loving nine year old daughter of a wealthy father and mother with two brothers and three sisters. The streets were lined with her father’s shops, and her house was large enough to be considered a mansion. But, in 1947, when the war became increasingly violent, everything crumbled before her twinkling, hopeful eyes. The CPC took all their money, and they couldn’t even get food because of a blockade. Yet the war also shaped Yongzheng into the hard working girl she became. Because she was ill at the time, my grandmother bravely agreed to stay home with her father while her mother and siblings all fled to a safer area. Yongzheng and her dad were doing alright; although they struggled to make even one proper meal a day, they still remained optimistic because they had each other. However, it was only a matter of time before one of them was bound to starve to death.

A mere two weeks later, Yongzheng woke up at 9:27 to find her dad still asleep. He always woke up early to prepare a meager breakfast for them, so she thought it was odd that he wasn’t up yet. The young girl decided to wake him up in an hour if he was still sleeping by then. Watching the clock tick by slowly, she waited patiently at his bedside. As the clock struck 10:27, she playfully told him “get up already, lazy!” He didn't move a muscle, so my grandmother shouted again. Her dad, whose skin was two shades paler than usual, was still frozen as if paralyzed in his sleep. The trembling girl shook him with all her skinny little arm strength. Her dad was still not waking up. Yongzheng suddenly got worried as the unbearable thought came to mind. She was a smart girl and remembered two good spots to check for a heartbeat. She placed two fingers on his neck. No beat. She tried putting her fingers on his wrist. No beat. She broke out into cold sweats, terrified at the thought of losing her only family member living with her. She hollered in his face, “Baba! Baba!,” waved her arms around, and tried pulling him up to see if there would be any type of reaction. To her horror, she realized he must have died in his sleep. Yongzheng’s shoulders sunk as her young mind thought through all the wonderful things her dad did for her--how he always saved the last few grains of rice for her, brought her leftover candies and bread when he previously owned a bakery, and sang her favorite song to lull her back to sleep when she had nightmares. Her face transformed from that of an excited, innocent child to that of a grave, strong woman in a matter of seconds. My grandma knew it was her duty to bury her own father. She mournfully called her family friend who helped her find a cemetery where they had their own little funeral for her father. Although Yongzheng felt a deep sorrow, she knew she didn’t have time to grieve. She never let out a single tear. Instead, she became a determined young adult. Yongzheng was taken in by her family friend and had many responsibilities and chores in the household. Although she missed her family and sometimes had the urge to just give up, she stayed positive and resilient through this period of suffering. Yongzheng did her chores early everyday and waited patiently but anxiously for the war to end, so her real family could return. She knew there was no way to flee on her own, and she had no communication with her family.

When the war ended in 1950, her sisters and mother returned to their home, and they were welcomed back with the loving arms, all tearful with joy. Yongzheng’s eyebrows scrunched as she looked around, confused when her brothers and one sister didn’t come in.

“Your brothers and sister didn’t make it,” her mom mumbled.

Yongzheng finally let out a river of bottled up tears when she found out half of her family was gone forever. Although it was a lot to handle for a child, Yongzheng grew from her losses and pushed back without giving up, always reminding herself that she had to prove what she could accomplish to make her father and siblings proud from heaven. When her first school year was coming up, she decided she was determined to go to school and be the best of her class, so when she grew up, she could be successful and support her poor family. The young girl was so excited to learn how to write and read, but her mother informed her that she had to work at a factory to make more money for the family. She was terribly dismal, but she knew she had to work for her family. Young Yongzheng was so determined to gain enough money back that her back began aching of chronic pains by the third week in, and her arms and legs were sore and worn out by the end of each day. By the end of the first month of school, Yongzheng’s teacher found out about her labor and was so touched that she used all her savings to pay for Yongzheng’s school supplies, and she even provided some extra money, so the little girl could stay in school. Her teacher discovered that Yongzheng was the most brilliant student in class. She actively listened, participated, and took detailed notes, her eyes constantly darting from her teacher to the blackboard to her notes. She made the most of every second at school, constantly working on homework, doing extra practice problems, and studying for tests because outside of school she was working at the factory almost all of the time. When Yongzheng was busy with her schoolwork, her two sisters helped her out and took over for her shift at the factory. My grandma and her sisters were all hard working, but she was the most diligent of the three. By the end of that school year, she was the leader of the household and the top student at her school at just 13 years old!
Years later, as Yongzheng began preparing for the college entrance exam, she reflected on her work from the past and teared up thinking about how much she had accomplished. All the best colleges in China offered her early admission scholarships to their schools just from her academic performance alone. My grandma was so excited about finally gaining a reward from all her hard work that she jumped up and down and squealed until her legs gave out and her throat was sore. She imagined how excited her father and siblings would have been, and she felt their presence at that moment, their excitement for her. She was so ambitious, accepting the top school of China (like the Harvard of China). Unfortunately, the government did not allow her to attend school there, because she had been wealthy when she was a child. There was a discrimination back then; the government gave unfair opportunities to the poor and the rich, favoring only those who had never been wealthy. She was so disappointed that she couldn’t go to her dream school, although in a way she had already achieved her dreams. All the schools wanted her and she had gained enough money to support her entire family. Instead of becoming furious and giving up on all her hard work, she thought of what her father would tell her to do if he was still alive and decided to go to a smaller college to continue her studies there. At college, she figured out what she wanted to pursue in life: fixing the transportation system of China.

After she learned everything she needed to know in college, she got a job at a transportation research center. There, she quickly escalated to vice president! She wrote many books and was passionate about her job. Yongzheng proposed the idea of long distance bus transportation in China. This idea was successful, and she became the first woman who successfully offered long distance bus transportation. She bought buses from other countries and brought them into China. All her hard work at the factory and at school finally paid off; she had a stable job, had two kids (my mom and uncle) and a family, and escaped poverty. She learned throughout the harsh years to be brave and persistent through whatever situation and eventually, after loads of hard work, she accomplished her goals and achieved a relaxed, stable life. The strength and positivity her father passed down to her has now been passed on to me, and I will forever carry on the bravery and optimism of my grandmother.