People's Daily - February 20, 2026

Family Reunions Seen Through Three Family Photos (New Year Visits to the Grassroots)

By: 本报记者 张帅祯

The days of reunion always bring some heartwarming scenes.

On the snowy border, a military spouse travels thousands of miles with her children for a reunion; on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, a family works together on the snowy railway; in a bustling city, a ride-hailing driver picks up his mother and they reunite in a free reunion housing unit.

Three family portraits, different scenes, same reunion.

One is in front of the national gate, where the country is safe and sound, and the small family can be reunited; one is beside the railway track, where the wheels move forward, representing the progress of the times; one is in the city, where the lights of thousands of homes reflect the warmth of "all work is for the people."

The Chen Fujun (陈富军) family, border guard soldier—

"You guard the country, I guard you"

"Mom, when can I see Dad?"

At Arxan Station (阿尔山站) in Inner Mongolia, 5-year-old Chen Shuying (陈姝颖) is wrapped in a thick pink cotton coat, her face flushed by the wind on the platform.

"Soon!" Her mother, Yan Liyun (闫丽云), and her two daughters traveled more than 1,400 kilometers from their hometown in Shanxi, changing trains and buses, taking more than 40 hours.

The car picking them up drove towards the Sanjiaoshan (三角山)哨所. The scenery outside the window gradually turned into a vast white wilderness—closer and closer to the national gate!

In the distance, they saw several horses standing in the snow. The people on horseback were wearing camouflage uniforms. Yan Liyun's husband, Chen Fujun (陈富军), a first-class sergeant of the Sanjiaoshan (三角山) Border Defense Company of an army brigade, was among them.

"Dad! It's Dad!"

The two daughters jumped up from their seats and shouted, clinging to the car window. As soon as the car stopped, the children ran over, stepping deep and shallow in the snow.

Chen Fujun (陈富军) dismounted and strode forward. The two daughters rushed into his arms one after the other, and he squatted down and hugged them tightly.

In the camp, big red lanterns have already been hung up. In front of the national gate and beside the boundary marker, the family took a family portrait, capturing a warm moment.

Late at night, the cold wind of Sanjiaoshan (三角山) was still biting. Chen Fujun (陈富军) tucked the quilt corners for his two daughters and tiptoed out. At the sentry post, he took the rifle and stood straight.

Soon, the crunch of footsteps in the snow came from behind. Yan Liyun (闫丽云), draped in a coat, stood not far away: "You guard the country, I guard you."

At the border, two figures stood silently. At this moment, thousands of homes are reunited.

The Yang Wenjie (杨文杰) family, railway flaw detector—

"Grandpa carried a pickaxe to build the road, and I continue to protect the road"

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Qinghai Xining Station (青海西宁站). The first train to Lhasa (拉萨), Tibet, in the Year of the Horse is ready to depart.

On the platform, Yang Wenjie (杨文杰), a flaw detector on the Lhasa-Linzhi Railway (拉林铁路), straightened his collar, with his parents and wife standing beside him. The family specially came here to capture an unforgettable family portrait.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the full opening of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路). Yang Wenjie's (杨文杰) grandfather was a builder of this "sky road." They sweated and overcame difficulties on the high-altitude permafrost, and stubbornly laid the steel artery on the roof of the world.

"Grandpa didn't live to see the day when the train went to Lhasa (拉萨)," said Yang Wenjie (杨文杰). "Today, our family is sending this train off, which is the best memorial to Grandpa."

His father, Yang Qisen (杨其森), gently stroked the green train beside him. He worked on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路) for 20 years as a train attendant. "When it first opened, everyone thought it was a miracle that the train could go to Lhasa (拉萨)!" His words were full of pride.

In 2021, the Lhasa-Linzhi Railway (拉林铁路) opened, and the Fuxing (复兴) bullet train ran on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (青藏高原) for the first time. Yang Wenjie (杨文杰) volunteered to become a flaw detector on the Lhasa-Linzhi Railway (拉林铁路).

"Grandpa carried a pickaxe to build the road, and I continue to protect the road. Our family continues to guard the same sky road." This road, from nothing to something, from slow to fast, not only witnessed the tremendous changes in transportation on the snowy plateau, but also engraved a country's courageous steps forward, writing the perseverance and inheritance of generations.

At about 11 o'clock, the train slowly started, traveling through thousands of mountains and rivers to the distance.

On the platform, his wife, Liu Guanwen (刘官雯), gently stroked her bulging belly, her eyes full of anticipation—a new life is being conceived. The story of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路) will continue to be written on this magnificent snowy plateau.

The Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) family, ride-hailing driver—

"Free reunion housing fulfills my wish"

Shenzhen East Station (深圳东站), Guangdong (广东). Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) stood at the exit, tiptoeing to look inside.

From taxi to ride-hailing, he has participated in ensuring the Spring Festival travel season for nearly 20 years, sending countless people home for reunions, but this is the first time he has waited here for his mother to come for a reunion.

In the crowd, his 90-year-old mother sat in a wheelchair, pushed out of the station by his older brother and sister-in-law. Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) walked forward quickly, gently hugged his mother, and expressed his longing.

His mother's hand reached into her cloth bag, took out a bag of peanuts, and stuffed it into his hand: "You like to eat them, Mom remembers."

Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗), whose hometown is in Henan (河南), is a member of the Communist Party. In recent years, he has actively joined the "Party Member Driver Spring Festival Transport Guardian Team." While others are rushing home, he is running outside.

"I always wanted to bring my mother to Shenzhen (深圳) for the New Year. But the house is small and can't accommodate her. Renting a house, my mother thinks it's a waste and refuses to come." Cai Hongqi's (蔡红旗) wish for a reunion has been delayed year after year.

Just as he was worrying, a message popped up in the ride-hailing driver WeChat group: Shenzhen (深圳) provides "free Spring Festival reunion housing" for new employment groups, which can be lived in for free for 15 days.

Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) immediately signed up and applied with a try-it-out mentality. In less than 24 hours, a two-bedroom apartment in Anju Gaoxin Garden (安居高新花园) in Nanshan District (南山区) was approved. "This place is very expensive, I really didn't expect to be able to live here," said Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗).

On New Year's Eve, the reunion housing was filled with joy. His mother rolled out dumpling wrappers, her eyebrows curved, smiling like a child.

Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) leaned over and sat next to his mother: "Mom, tomorrow I will take you to Shennan Avenue (深南大道) for a walk." He wanted to let his mother see how beautiful and warm the city he was working in was.

When the dumplings were on the table, the family talked and laughed. The shutter was pressed, and this family portrait, which had been waited for for many years, was finally taken. "Free reunion housing fulfills my wish," said Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗).

Outside the window is the continuous pulse of the city, and inside the window is the steaming beauty of the world—in which there are countless figures of "Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗)".

(Our reporters Li Longyi (李龙伊), Xu Yuyao (徐驭尧), Cheng Yuanzhou (程远州), Li Xiaojian (李小健), and Long Xitao (龙喜涛) participated in the writing)

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Three Spring Couplets Reflect a New Atmosphere (Grassroots Visits During the Spring Festival)

By: 本报记者 赵 政

Spring couplets are a unique cultural memory and heritage of the Chinese people. Between the red paper and the ink, they are the taste of the New Year hanging on the door, and also the people's hearts written on the paper; they record the reunion and joy of thousands of families, and also show the distinct imprint of the times moving forward.

During the Spring Festival, reporters walked the front lines, feeling the new trends of development from the couplets on the doors. Through three spring couplets, we observe the new atmosphere of family traditions, rural customs, and the Party's work style and political integrity.

Upright Conduct Reflects Family Values

Upper scroll: Righteousness fills the door, spring is vast
Lower scroll: Benevolence and righteousness are passed down through generations, and blessings are long-lasting
Horizontal scroll: The virtues of the year are all new

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Wan Xinyi (万昕怡), a teacher at Ge'ao Township Central Primary School in Yudu (于都), Jiangxi (江西), returned to her hometown on the banks of the Gongjiang River (贡江河).

Pushing open the courtyard door, Wan Gengzhi (万更志), 100 years old, was sitting in a bamboo chair drinking tea at the entrance of the main room, with his son Wan Jianguo (万建国) accompanying him.

"Grandpa, Dad, I'm back." Walking up the steps, Wan Xinyi saw a spring couplet hanging straight on the door of the main room.

Wan Gengzhi put down his teacup, beckoned Wan Xinyi to sit beside him, and pointed to the spring couplet: "When pasting spring couplets, the left and right sides must be aligned and not crooked. Just like being a person, you must be upright."

"Being upright" is a family tradition that the old man has practiced throughout his life.

Wan Gengzhi joined the Eighth Route Army in 1945. Later, he followed Liu Deng's (刘邓) army into the Dabie Mountains (大别山), and also participated in the Huaihai Campaign (淮海战役) and the Crossing the Yangtze River Campaign (渡江战役)... In 1963, he responded to the call and settled in Yudu (于都).

"Just after being transferred to the County Civil Affairs Bureau, someone came with gifts, wanting to be 'taken care of' in terms of compensation," Wan Gengzhi said slowly, "I resolutely refused. What shouldn't be taken, not a penny is allowed. Discipline was life on the battlefield, and in peacetime, this string cannot be loosened."

Wan Jianguo took over the conversation and said to his daughter: "Your grandfather often said that in a tunnel on Shangganling (上甘岭), a dozen people took turns moistening their mouths with a pot of water, and no one drank an extra sip. Yudu (于都) is the assembly and departure point of the Central Red Army's Long March, and the Red Army won victory by relying on strict discipline. We must pass on this spirit."

"I often tell my students about my grandfather's stories," Wan Xinyi said. "My grandfather defended the country, and my father was selfless and devoted to public service. My job is to cultivate morality and nurture people, and I want to let good family traditions guide children to be upright people."

The warm sun flowed over the eaves and sprinkled down, making the spring couplets even more vivid.

Civilized and Simple Rural Customs

Upper scroll: Etiquette is warm in simplicity
Lower scroll: Customs are rich in the new year
Horizontal scroll: Flavor in simplicity

"This spring couplet is good, it expresses everyone's aspirations!"

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, in Xianfeng Village (先锋村), Huaxi Street (花溪街道), Banan District (巴南区), Chongqing (重庆), Liu Dengxiu (刘登秀), a 72-year-old Party member, was leading the waist drum team members to watch the new spring couplet at the entrance of the village committee.

A spring couplet, writing out the new changes in Xianfeng Village (先锋村) in changing customs. "Holding joyous events simply and in new ways, and resisting extravagance and waste are village rules, and we must have a refreshing New Year," said Liu Dengxiu.

This year, Liu Dengxiu's family did not invite guests or accept gifts. After eating the reunion dinner, they rushed to participate in the "Village Evening." Villagers gathered together, which was both lively and did not require any family to handle it alone.

"The bamboo clappers strike the sky, a few of us step onto the stage. What are we talking about on stage today? Let's talk about the new changes in Xianfeng..." On the stage of the "Village Evening," Liu Dengxiu led everyone to beat the bamboo clappers crisply and loudly; under the stage, the villagers listened with relish.

Speaking of the past, Liu Dengxiu waved her hands repeatedly - buying vegetables, hiring chefs, being busy for several days during the New Year, just afraid of being said to be stingy by relatives. "In the end, we set up 7 tables, spent a lot of money, ate leftovers for several days, and were so tired that our backs couldn't straighten up."

In recent years, Xianfeng Village (先锋村) has strengthened Party building leadership, given full play to the role of the grassroots Party organization as a fighting fortress and the exemplary role of Party members, organized villagers' meetings to change customs, advocated civilized new customs such as friendly neighborhood and abiding by etiquette and laws, and also organized 6 cultural and artistic teams such as waist drum teams and choirs. Liu Dengxiu has become a backbone force. "Weddings and funerals are handled simply, extravagance and waste should be abandoned. Neighborhood help is warm, and the old, weak, sick and disabled are helped more." She uses forms such as allegro and lotus flute, and leads the team members to write and perform programs themselves, which are about the things around them that change customs.

"There are new programs for the Lantern Festival, and we have to hurry up and arrange the dances and gongs and drums to sing the civilized new customs into the hearts of the villagers," Liu Dengxiu said with a smile.

Honest and People-Oriented Party Conduct and Political Integrity

Upper scroll: Correcting the root and clearing the source, always keeping a clean heart and clarifying the ambition
Lower scroll: The original intention leads to the distance, and healthy service nourishes thousands of families
Horizontal scroll: Wonderful skills and benevolent heart

In the office of the Health and Health Bureau of Zhanhua District (沾化区), Binzhou (滨州), Shandong (山东), several long tables are put together to form a temporary desk, red paper is spread out, the fragrance of ink is overflowing, and an employee rolls up his sleeves, picks up a pen and dips it in ink, and each stroke falls on the paper.

"It's written! How about this one?"

Just as he was saying this, Bo Zunqin (薄尊芹), deputy secretary of the Party Group of the Bureau, came back from visiting the grassroots health center, with a chill still on her coat. "The couplets are well written, and we have to put the things written in the couplets into practice one by one."

Everyone in the room laughed. In the laughter, there is the taste of the New Year, and also the drive.

"The upper scroll talks about the construction of a clean and honest health and health system." Li Dong (李东), Secretary of the Party Group and Director of the Bureau, said, focusing on key links such as drug procurement, "Strengthen the construction of Party conduct and clean government, and internalize the word 'integrity' in our hearts and externalize it in our actions."

The lower scroll is a portrayal of bringing medical services down to the grassroots level.

Let the numbers speak: Last year, the Zhanhua District (沾化区) Health and Health Bureau organized 56 free clinics, serving more than 11,000 people; measures such as "treatment first, payment later" have been implemented and have benefited a total of more than 210,000 people.

What is special about the horizontal scroll "Wonderful Skills and Benevolent Heart"?

"Wonderful skills are strength, and benevolent heart is warmth." Li Dong said that on the one hand, we should strengthen disciplines and upgrade equipment, and the ability to treat critical and severe illnesses has been greatly improved; on the other hand, we should strictly control medical expenses and optimize the medical process, "so that the masses can not only see a doctor well, but also spend less money and run fewer errands."

While speaking, staff member Li Guoqing (李国庆) strode through the hall with a free clinic schedule in his hand. He was busy finalizing the experts for the free clinic in the village next week, "Run a few more steps and ask a few more questions, and the masses can run one less trip and worry less."

"Consolidating and expanding the results of in-depth implementation of the spirit of the Central Eight-Point Regulation in study and education, we must persevere in changing our work style and establishing new styles, and do more practical things for the masses," Li Dong said.

Several employees stepped on high stools and helped to straighten and paste the spring couplets - the red paper and black characters were particularly eye-catching in the sun.

"This is not just a spring couplet. Every time we go in and out, we have to look in the mirror and measure it with a ruler - what is reflected is the original intention, what is measured is the clean heart, what is reflected is the Party's work style and political integrity, and where the pen falls is the happiness, well-being and peace of the masses," Li Dong said.

(Reporters Yang Yanfei (杨颜菲), Wang Xinyue (王欣悦), and Li Rui (李蕊) participated in the writing of this report)

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Continuously consolidate the foundation for achieving high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology.

By: 本报记者 刘诗瑶 徐 靖 李 蕊

Strengthening basic research is an urgent requirement for achieving high-level self-reliance in science and technology, and it is the only way to build a world-class science and technology power.

Xi Jinping (习近平), General Secretary, recently made important instructions on the work of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, emphasizing the need to "strengthen the strategic, forward-looking, and systematic layout of basic research" and "support the vast number of scientific researchers to bravely climb the peak of science and produce more original achievements."

The "artificial sun" EAST created a world record of "one hundred million degrees for a thousand seconds"; the thorium-based molten salt reactor was built, and China's nuclear energy technology achieved a breakthrough; "Beinao No. 1" completed the first batch of wireless human full implantation... Among the top ten scientific and technological advances in China in 2025 selected by academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, more than half came from basic research.

Since the new era, under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping (习近平) at its core, China has embarked on a path of high-quality development of basic research. The overall level of basic research has reached a new level, the foundation for high-level self-reliance in science and technology has been continuously consolidated, and solid steps have been taken in building a strong science and technology power.

Adhering to the "Four Orientations" and Serving National Strategic Needs

Basic research is the source of the entire scientific system and the general organ of all technical problems.

Xi Jinping (习近平) pointed out that "we must adhere to the 'Four Orientations,' adhere to the 'two-pronged approach' of goal-oriented and free exploration, combine the forefront of world science and technology with major national strategic needs and economic and social development goals, and coordinate the frontier problems proposed by following the laws of scientific development and the theoretical problems abstracted from major applied research, and condense the key scientific problems of basic research."

In the Origin Quantum Laboratory, the dilution refrigerator continues to hum, maintaining an extremely low temperature environment close to absolute zero for the core quantum chip of China's third-generation independent superconducting quantum computer "Origin Wukong." To date, this quantum computer has completed more than 760,000 quantum computing tasks worldwide, with more than 42 million visits.

"The development of quantum computing in China started from the most basic and arduous basic problems," said Guo Guoping (郭国平), professor at the University of Science and Technology of China and chief scientist of Origin Quantum. "Achieving high-precision control of quantum bits, allowing large-scale quantum bit systems to operate stably without errors... Every step is full of challenges and requires long-term investment."

Overcoming a number of basic research problems, the successful development of independent quantum computers such as "Origin Wukong" marks that China has initially possessed the ability to provide quantum computing solutions for energy, medicine, and other fields. At present, quantum computers have shown accelerated advantages in high-dimensional medical data processing, supporting scientific research in the field of life and health.

The practice of quantum computing fully proves that strengthening basic research, adhering to the "two-pronged approach," and promoting the close integration of cutting-edge technology and national strategic needs are the inevitable path to achieving high-level self-reliance in science and technology.

Basic research is not only the theoretical cornerstone of technological breakthroughs but also the underlying driving force of industrial change.

In the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone in the Shenzhen River (深圳河), Bi Zhongnan (毕中南), head of the Steel Research International New Materials Innovation Center Laboratory affiliated to China Iron & Steel Research Institute Group (中国钢研), is discussing the optimized operation plan of the material "data factory" with his team.

The research and development of key equipment such as controllable nuclear fusion, green hydrogen, and aerospace all require higher-performance special metal materials. In the past, relying on traditional methods to develop new varieties often required trial and error in the permutation and combination of more than a dozen alloy elements, like **大海捞针** (dà hǎi lāo zhēn - "search for a needle in the ocean," to search for something that is very difficult to find). If key materials cannot be upgraded, industrial upgrading is out of the question.

Based on the new concept of high-throughput automatic laboratory combined with artificial intelligence autonomous iterative model, the team designed and built a metal material "data factory," which increased the experimental efficiency by 100 times.

Giving Play to the Innovative Role of Enterprises and Building a Basic Research Pattern with Active Participation and Coordination of Multiple Entities

Xi Jinping (习近平) emphasized that "we should encourage scientific research institutions and universities to carry out joint research with enterprises."

Zhang Minghui (张明会), R&D director and vice president of Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药), connected to a video conference with scientific research institutions of universities as scheduled. "Regarding the binding of that specific biological target, we have a new plan..." At both ends of the screen, everyone expressed their opinions and the discussion went straight to the point.

For Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药), the importance of basic research is particularly prominent. "To make high-quality domestic good medicines, we must deeply understand the mechanism behind the drugs, such as why they work and how they work," Zhang Minghui (张明会) explained. From following to running side by side to leading, every step of innovative drugs requires the support of underlying scientific principles. "If we want to develop completely original 'global new' drugs and explore targets and mechanisms that no one has touched, basic research is a necessary path."

Basic research requires large investment, long cycles, and high risks. How to solve the problem? Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) took the initiative to deeply integrate with the national strategic scientific and technological forces.

In the summer of 2025, the National Natural Science Foundation of China piloted the establishment of a joint fund for innovative development of private enterprises with private enterprises. Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药), Hengrui Medicine (恒瑞医药), Mindray Medical (迈瑞医疗), and Xiehe Medical (协合医疗) were among the first four private enterprises to join, marking the first time that private enterprises systematically participated in the national basic research system as "question setters."

"This is not a simple sponsorship, but the construction of a collaborative innovation mechanism of 'enterprises setting questions, the scientific community answering questions, and the market grading papers,'" Zhang Minghui (张明会) introduced. The company will submit the core scientific problems about the prevention and treatment of major diseases summarized from the front line of drug research and development, and "post the list" to the top scientific research teams in the country, inviting them to "take the lead."

"Taking the lead," how to balance the scientific frontier and industrial feasibility? Zhang Minghui (张明会) introduced that in the "question setting" stage, the company will start internal selection half a year in advance, focusing on the truly "bottleneck" technologies and frontier targets, and strictly demonstrate their scientific frontier and industrial feasibility to ensure that the topics not only lead the direction but also can eventually be implemented. The final "grading" right is handed over to clinical value and industrial achievements to see whether high-quality good medicines that patients can use and afford can be developed.

Through deep integration with the National Natural Science Foundation of China, top hospitals, and scientific research institutions, Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) is opening up the complete chain from laboratory discovery to clinical application.

Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) is not an isolated case. In Hanyu Golden Valley (汉峪金谷) in Jinan (济南), Shandong (山东) Province, Shandong Guangming Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (山东广明生物科技有限公司) is also a busy scene, with merchants coming to negotiate the "Guangming No. 2" white-feathered broiler breeder chickens. The excellent variety performance stems from the company's deep understanding of the genetic breeding of white-feathered broilers.

Since 2014, the Guangming Biological (广明生物) scientific research team has joined forces with the team of the Beijing Livestock and Veterinary Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (中国农业科学院北京畜牧兽医研究所) to invest more than 1 billion yuan to continuously tackle the core technology of seed sources. Through technologies such as genomic selection, scientists and enterprise technicians closely cooperated to deeply study the genetic mechanisms of growth performance, reproductive capacity, meat quality, disease resistance, etc., and finally successfully selected and bred the "Guangming No. 2," which broke the long-term foreign monopoly.

"Mastering the genetic code of white-feathered broilers has become an important foundation for us to continuously optimize varieties," said Liu Dawei (刘大伟), general manager of Guangming Biology (广明生物).

Leading enterprises take the initiative to take responsibility and focus on innovation, which is inseparable from the good innovation ecosystem created by government departments.

In recent years, the National Natural Science Foundation of China has taken serving national strategic needs as the traction, established joint funds for enterprise innovation and development and joint funds for private enterprise innovation and development, included leading technology enterprises in the scope of scientific fund funding, and guided enterprises to increase investment in basic research. At present, 34 local governments, 36 central enterprises, 14 industry departments, and 4 technology-based private enterprises have joined the joint fund, becoming an important channel for local governments, enterprises, and industries to invest in basic research.

Dou Xiankang (窦贤康), director of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, said that it is necessary to give full play to the main role of enterprises in scientific and technological innovation and build a basic research pattern with active participation and coordination of multiple entities such as national laboratories, universities, scientific research institutes, enterprises, and new research and development institutions.

Strengthening High-Level Talent Training and Supporting Young Talents to Take the Lead and Play the Leading Role

Xi Jinping (习近平) emphasized that "we must put the policy focus of cultivating national strategic talent forces on young scientific and technological talents, give young talents more trust, better help, and more powerful support, and support young talents to take the lead and play the leading role."

In recent years, through institutionalized and continuous support, China has continuously increased its support for young talents in the field of basic research.

"I am engaged in research in cutting-edge interdisciplinary fields such as organic semiconductors and bioelectronics, which usually requires earlier and greater support," said Lei Ting (雷霆), professor at the School of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking University (北京大学).

After leaving the postdoctoral station, Lei Ting (雷霆) joined Peking University (北京大学). Because the research direction was relatively cutting-edge, he was once worried about not being valued and supported. Unexpectedly, both the National Natural Science Foundation of China and Peking University (北京大学) gave strong support to Lei Ting's (雷霆) research field.

In 2024, Lei Ting (雷霆), who was only 37 years old, received funding from the Youth Science Fund Project (Category A) and in 2025 received support from the Innovation Research Group Project (Category B) established by the National Natural Science Foundation of China for the first time for young researchers under the age of 40. Peking University (北京大学) also provided him with sufficient scientific research start-up funds and gave him a high degree of autonomy in platform construction and graduate student training.

Lei Ting (雷霆) said: "In my opinion, strengthening basic research and focusing on the cultivation of young talents, and giving top-level support to young scientific researchers at an earlier stage, will help young scientists form a stable research direction and academic judgment as early as possible."

Liu Xing (刘行), professor at the Key Laboratory of Cell Dynamics of the Ministry of Education, University of Science and Technology of China (中国科学技术大学), also deeply felt: "My research direction is the regulation of the cell proliferation cycle, trying to explore the most essential and underlying logic of life growth. This is a long scientific research road. Without the strong support of the country and the school, it is impossible to carry out."

Liu Xing (刘行) introduced that she has successively received precise support from a series of scientific fund projects. In particular, the pioneering funding mechanism of the National Natural Science Foundation of China for innovative research group projects (Category B) not only provided her with funding support but also promoted young scientific and technological talents under the age of 40, including her, to carry out multidisciplinary joint research and explore the frontier research direction of common scientific problems of matter and life through "organized scientific research."

Among the projects approved for funding by the National Natural Science Foundation of China in 2025, the proportion of those led by researchers aged 45 and under accounted for about 83.27%; the Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院) and the Ministry of Finance (财政部) jointly organized and carried out "stable support for young teams in the field of basic research," focusing on accelerating the seizure of scientific and technological commanding heights, carrying out institutionalized and directional basic research, and actively cultivating outstanding young scientific and technological talents...

As the main channel for funding basic research in China, the National Natural Science Foundation has funded 880,000 scientific research projects with a funding of 460.8 billion yuan in the past 40 years, producing a large number of basic and original achievements in the fields of basic science, engineering materials, information science, and life and health.

"Only with a solid foundation can the building of scientific and technological undertakings be built high." Seizing the historical opportunity of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, creating strong basic research and original innovation capabilities, and supporting the vast number of scientific researchers to continuously produce major original and disruptive scientific and technological achievements will make greater contributions to promoting high-level self-reliance in science and technology and building a strong science and technology power.

(Our reporter Yu Sinan (喻思南) participated in writing)

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Ning Zhongyan breaks Olympic record to win gold

This newspaper's Milan dispatch on February 19th (Reporters Liu Shuoyang (刘硕阳) and Ji Fang (季芳)) Local time, February 19th afternoon, in the Milan Winter Olympics speed skating men's 1500m competition, Chinese athlete Ning Zhongyan (宁忠岩) won the championship with a time of 1 minute 41.98 seconds, winning the third gold medal for the Chinese sports delegation at the Milan Winter Olympics, and significantly breaking the Winter Olympics record for the event.

In this competition, Ning Zhongyan (宁忠岩) and two-time Winter Olympics champion, Dutch star Nuis, were in the same group, the thirteenth group. After the starting gun fired, Nuis took the lead in the first half, Ning Zhongyan (宁忠岩) strove to catch up, and completed the overtake after 1000 meters, finally crossing the finish line first.

This is the first speed skating men's 1500m gold medal in the history of the Chinese sports delegation at the Winter Olympics, and also the first gold medal won by the Chinese speed skating team at this Winter Olympics.

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The Media Should Always Be Innovative, Glory Lies Ahead (Today's Talk)

By: 李飞哲

On February 19, 2016, General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) presided over a symposium on the Party's news and public opinion work and delivered an important speech, setting the direction and inspiring the news front.

Over the past 10 years, mainstream media have upheld integrity and pursued innovation, embraced change, turned challenges into opportunities, reshaped the landscape of influence, given positive energy stronger dissemination power, and enabled the main theme to reap greater appeal.

At this moment, from city streets to fields and even border posts, the vast number of journalists are practicing the "four forces," going to the grassroots during the Spring Festival, launching diverse and varied news masterpieces, and outlining the vibrant landscape of China.

Currently, the media landscape and communication environment are undergoing even more profound changes. From "promoting the systematic reform of mainstream media" to "deepening the systematic reform of mainstream media," the Party Central Committee has made major strategic deployments for the development of mainstream media. Taking the reform of writing style as a starting point, focusing on promoting ideological innovation, new thinking, technological innovation, and team renewal, and creating new mainstream media forms, with more actions in setting the tone, shaping, and leading public opinion, can the Party's voice be spread more widely, broadly, and deeply.

Focusing on the center, serving the overall situation, standing at the forefront of the times, and issuing the first voice of public opinion, news media will continue to respond to challenges and deepen reforms, and will surely continue their glory. 守正创新 (shǒu zhèng chuàng xīn - "maintain integrity innovate," uphold the correct direction while pursuing innovation).

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Photo Story

During the Spring Festival holiday, various regions held a wide range of colorful activities, creating a festive and peaceful atmosphere. People shared joy and gains during their travels, and experienced a strong festive atmosphere in cultural activities.

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This letter conveys warmth and hope.

By: 本报记者 李志伟

On February 16th, Chinese President Xi Jinping (习近平) replied to a letter from friends in Iowa, USA, and sent a New Year card with festive greetings, hoping that they would continue to promote friendship between the two peoples, encourage more American youth to become inheritors of China-U.S. friendship and promoters of peace and friendship, and make greater contributions to the development of China-U.S. relations. American friends said in interviews with reporters from this newspaper that they are willing to work hard to promote people-to-people friendship between the United States and China and contribute to the development of relations between the two countries.

"This sincere friendship that has lasted for decades is deeply heartwarming"

President Xi Jinping (习近平) said in his reply that he visited Iowa 41 years ago and was warmly received by you, and those wonderful memories are still fresh in his mind.

"We are jointly ushering in the beautiful Year of the Horse, and we were very surprised to receive President Xi Jinping's (习近平) reply." Sarah Lande, a friend from Iowa, USA, said that she was very honored to receive President Xi Jinping's (习近平) reply and very grateful for President Xi Jinping's (习近平) care and support for our friendship. She said: "This friendship is trustworthy. We are deeply grateful and will continue to work tirelessly for this friendship."

"We are deeply honored that President Xi Jinping (习近平) was able to take the time to reply to me and old and new friends in Iowa." said Luca Berrone, a member of the board of directors of the Iowa Friendship Committee. "I am grateful that President Xi Jinping (习近平) still remembers the wonderful time he spent in Iowa in 1985. Nothing could be more meaningful than receiving President Xi Jinping's (习近平) blessings at the beginning of the Chinese Lunar New Year."

Ambassador Kenneth M. Quinn, President Emeritus of the World Food Prize Foundation, was also pleased to receive President Xi Jinping's (习近平) letter: "I first visited China in 1979, and later, as a staff member of then-Iowa Governor Robert Ray, I participated in the establishment of the Iowa-Hebei Province sister-state relationship. Since then, I have realized the importance of exchanges in promoting bilateral relations."

"Old friends in Iowa are all sincerely happy, and this sincere friendship that has lasted for decades is deeply heartwarming." said Gary Dvorchak, Executive Director of the Muscatine China-U.S. Friendship House in Iowa and son of the Dvorchak couple. The people of the United States and China share common values of loving family, working hard, and caring for others, and no matter how the situation changes, the desire of the people of the two countries to exchange and cooperate will not change.

"This letter conveys warmth and hope." said Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Chairman of the Kuhn Foundation in the United States. The reply reflects President Xi Jinping's (习近平) consistent emphasis on people-to-people exchanges. People-to-people exchanges are an important ballast for maintaining the stability of U.S.-China relations, which is not only crucial to the people of the United States and China, but also to the world.

"'50,000 in 5 Years' Initiative Demonstrates Profound Humanitarian Concern"

President Xi Jinping (习近平) said that the hope of China-U.S. relations lies in the people, the foundation lies in the grassroots, the future lies in the youth, and the vitality lies in the local areas. No matter how the situation changes, the desire of the people of China and the United States to exchange and cooperate will not change, and the friendship between the youth of the two countries will not change.

In November 2023, President Xi Jinping (习近平) announced during his visit to the United States that China is willing to invite 50,000 American youth to China for exchanges and study in the next five years. More than 40,000 American youth have actively participated in the initiative in the two years since its launch, including many students from Iowa.

"President Xi Jinping (习近平) has a broad vision, and the '50,000 in 5 Years' initiative demonstrates profound humanitarian concern. When the people of the two countries know and love each other through exchanges and trust each other, they can promote the continuous development of relations between the two countries. True friendship lies in understanding each other's culture and learning to live in harmony." Lande said that through exchanges, the youth of the two countries discover their commonalities and also face up to their differences, and they will form a new understanding of the world and of U.S.-China relations. After experiencing another culture, they will gain wisdom and better move towards the future.

"A few days ago, I drove six hours to Muscatine, Iowa, to attend a reception hosted by the Chinese Consulate General in Chicago. There were 100 middle school students from Beijing (北京) at the event, who were in the United States for an exchange visit. These types of exchanges bring positive and far-reaching friendly feelings." Quinn said that he is willing to continue to support U.S.-China exchange programs, especially youth exchange programs. "From the perspective of the guests at the reception, I believe that all sectors of the United States are willing to support exchanges and cooperation between the two countries."

In Berrone's view, youth exchange is one of the most fundamental measures to invest in the future of U.S.-China relations, and the "50,000 in 5 Years" initiative promotes the improvement and development of U.S.-China relations. "Our students are deeply impressed by their experiences after returning from the exchange, and are full of enthusiasm for the knowledge they have learned and the new friends they have made. The feedback is very good, which is an extremely gratifying development." Berrone said that he sincerely hopes that people-to-people exchanges and exchanges between the United States and China can continue and deepen, and he is willing to work to promote this process. He firmly believes that strengthening youth exchanges is the foundation for building a better U.S.-China bilateral relationship, which can forge friendship and achieve long-term cooperation and mutual benefit.

"Consolidate the Foundation of Friendship, Hope that Friendship will be Passed on"

President Xi Jinping (习近平) said that he hopes that you will continue to devote yourselves to promoting friendship between the two peoples, encourage more American youth to become inheritors of China-U.S. friendship and promoters of peace and friendship, and make greater contributions to the development of China-U.S. relations.

Lande said that the goal of promoting the development of U.S.-China relations inspires all of us to work harder and go further, to create opportunities for more people, and to let more Americans understand China, the Chinese people, and Chinese culture. "We are consolidating the foundation of friendship, hoping that friendship will be passed on, and promoting closer relations between the two countries in the fields of economy, trade, science and technology, culture and art, and sports." Lande said.

Berrone said that he will firmly support and work hard to promote friendly exchanges between the United States and China, continue to promote personnel exchanges and mutual visits between the United States and China, and welcome more Chinese friends to visit the United States to share friendship and deepen friendship with American friends. "We need to conduct exchanges more openly, respect each other's culture more, and constantly consolidate and develop bilateral relations." Berrone said.

"When you truly contact the Chinese people, hear about the exchange experiences of children, feel Chinese culture and art up close like children, and see the modernization of Chinese cities, you will form a new understanding of China and think deeply about how to promote U.S.-China cooperation." Lande said that her community has opened Chinese classes, and now more than 100 children are learning Chinese. "This is very basic, but it is of great significance."

"I have been committed to promoting U.S.-China cooperation for more than 40 years. In the Year of the Horse, I will serve as the co-chair of the World Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Conference held in Beijing (北京) and continue to be committed to promoting cooperation between the two countries." Quinn said.

Gary Dvorchak has been involved in the cause of friendship between the people of the United States and China for many years, actively promoting youth exchanges between the two countries. He said that youth exchange is an important way of U.S.-China cooperation and is crucial to consolidating relations between the two countries. After returning from their visits to China, the youth of Iowa have changed their views. They are full of enthusiasm and hope to deepen their friendship with their newly acquainted Chinese friends. "People-to-people exchanges are an effective way for the people of the United States and China to enhance mutual understanding and enhance feelings, and it is also a solid foundation for the sound development of relations between the two countries. The U.S.-China Friendship House is raising funds and plans to send more young people to China in the future to further promote friendship and promote the development of relations between the two countries."

(Washington, D.C., February 19th, this newspaper)

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Sends a congratulatory message to the Chinese sports delegation

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, February 19th - Chinese athletes Su Yiming (苏翊鸣) and Xu Mengtao (徐梦桃) won the gold medals in the men's snowboard slopestyle and women's freestyle skiing aerials events, respectively, at the Milan Winter Olympics on the 18th local time. State Councilor Chen Yiqin (谌贻琴) sent a congratulatory message on behalf of the Party Central Committee and the State Council to the Chinese sports delegation. The full text is as follows:

To the Chinese Sports Delegation:

During the Spring Festival, we are delighted to learn that our athletes Su Yiming (苏翊鸣) bravely won the gold medal in the men's snowboard slopestyle competition at the 25th Winter Olympics, and Xu Mengtao (徐梦桃) successfully defended her title in the women's freestyle skiing aerials event, demonstrating a spirit of tenacious struggle and striving for the first place, and winning honor for the motherland and the people. On behalf of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, I would like to express my warm congratulations to the award-winning athletes and the Chinese sports delegation!

It is hoped that the Chinese sports delegation will vigorously promote the Chinese sports spirit, the Beijing Winter Olympics spirit, and the Olympic spirit, 再接再厉 (zài jiē zài lì - "make persistent efforts," to continue to put in more effort) and strive for even better results, fully demonstrate the demeanor of ice and snow athletes in the new era, and strive to contribute to building a strong sports nation and promoting Chinese-style modernization.

I wish the Chinese sports delegation a complete success in completing all competition tasks and achieving a double harvest of sports achievements and spiritual civilization!

Chen Yiqin (谌贻琴)
February 19, 2026

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Galloping Forward, China and Denmark Jointly Compose a New Chapter (Ambassador's Notes)

By: 王雪峰

As the Spring Festival of the Year of the Horse approaches, Denmark, far away in Northern Europe, is also filled with a strong Chinese New Year atmosphere. The "Happy Chinese New Year" series of events, which have been held in many parts of Denmark for more than 10 consecutive years, has grandly kicked off. The Confederation of Danish Industry office building in the center of Copenhagen (哥本哈根) has once again lit up "China Red" to celebrate the Spring Festival. Overseas Chinese and Chinese in Copenhagen (哥本哈根), Aarhus (奥胡斯) and other major cities have a series of cultural activities to celebrate the Spring Festival. Many Danish friends actively participate, vying to experience the joyful atmosphere and cultural charm of the Chinese Spring Festival. The Chinese Embassy in Denmark and the Copenhagen (哥本哈根) Chinese Cultural Center jointly held a Spring Festival reception. Hundreds of Danish friends from all walks of life, heads of diplomatic missions in Denmark, overseas Chinese, Chinese-funded enterprises, and representatives of international students gathered together to watch dragon and lion dances, taste Chinese food, and admire the Year of the Horse zodiac theme exhibition, celebrating the joyful and peaceful Chinese New Year.

Although China and Denmark are far apart, the friendship between the two countries has a long history. In May 1950, the People's Republic of China and the Kingdom of Denmark officially established diplomatic relations. Denmark became one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with the new China. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, China and Denmark have adhered to mutual respect, equal treatment, mutual benefit and win-win results, established a comprehensive strategic partnership, and continuously created a new situation in friendly exchanges and cooperation. In 2025, the two countries will jointly celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Under the strategic guidance of the leaders of the two countries, the connotation of the China-Denmark comprehensive strategic partnership has been further enriched, pragmatic cooperation in various fields has continued to achieve new results, and the friendship between the people has become even stronger.

For many consecutive years, China has been Denmark's largest trading partner in Asia. At present, more than 500 Danish companies have invested in more than 1,300 projects in China, and nearly half of Danish companies regard China as their largest or second largest market in the world. In May last year, President Xi Jinping (习近平) replied to the person in charge of the China-Denmark Chamber of Commerce, encouraging the China-Denmark Chamber of Commerce and its member companies to make new contributions to enhancing China-Denmark and China-Europe friendship and deepening mutually beneficial cooperation. In 2025, the value of China-Denmark trade in goods exceeded US$18 billion, a year-on-year increase of 16.8%, reaching a record high. The 24th meeting of the China-Denmark Joint Economic and Trade Committee was successfully held, and Denmark served as the guest of honor at the 2025 China-Nordic Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum. Two-way investment has been steady and progressive. The world's largest Legoland opened in Shanghai (上海), Danfoss built its first global carbon-neutral factory in Nanjing (南京), and Novo Nordisk launched an expansion project for its quality testing laboratory in Tianjin (天津). China Eastern Airlines opened a new route from Shanghai (上海) to Copenhagen (哥本哈根), and the market share of Chinese new energy vehicles in Denmark has steadily increased. Denmark has participated in the China International Import Expo for eight consecutive years. In the past year, several Danish cabinet ministers have visited China one after another and signed a number of cooperation documents with China. Relevant meetings of the China-Denmark Science and Technology Cooperation Joint Committee and the "China-Denmark Green Innovation Day" and other activities were successfully held. The two countries took the opportunity of implementing the "China-Denmark Green Joint Work Plan" to jointly fulfill the "Green Agreement" and contribute important forces to global climate change response and green transition.

The people of China and Denmark are both humble, friendly, peace-loving, and open and inclusive, and are attracted by each other's excellent cultures. Denmark is a unique and charming "kingdom of fairy tales" in the hearts of the Chinese people, and Andersen's fairy tales are well known in China. On the streets of Danish cities, you can often meet Danish friends who greet or even talk to us in Chinese. The "star" giant pandas "Mao Sun" (毛笋) and "Xing Er" (星二) at the Copenhagen (哥本哈根) Zoo are very popular among the Danish people. Chinese cultural and creative brands are very popular in the Danish market. The "Tea and the World: Elegant Gathering" series of activities, the "Hello! China" ice and snow tourism promotion conference, the "Lanting Elegant Gathering" Chinese calligraphy exhibition, the Copenhagen (哥本哈根) International Dragon Boat Culture Festival and other Chinese-characteristic cultural activities attract a large number of Danish people to actively participate. Since China implemented a visa-free policy for Denmark in November 2024, more and more Danish friends have embarked on a "just go" trip to China. After returning to Denmark, they shared their wonderful and unforgettable trips to China with relish.

2026 is the first year of the "15th Five-Year Plan". China will continue to promote high-quality development, expand high-level opening up, and deepen and expand broader cooperation prospects with Denmark. I sincerely wish that in the hopeful and dynamic Year of the Horse, the China-Denmark comprehensive strategic partnership will move forward with 马不停蹄 (mǎ bù tíng tí - "horse no stop hoof," non-stop pace) and 策马奔腾 (cè mǎ bēn téng - "whip horse gallop," to gallop forward), and 马到成功 (mǎ dào chéng gōng - "horse arrive success," achieve immediate success), and write a more magnificent new chapter.

(The author is the Chinese Ambassador to Denmark)

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The core of Spring Festival is people, affection, and family.

By: 本报记者 章念生

During the Spring Festival, Kuala Lumpur (吉隆坡), the capital of Malaysia (马来西亚), landmarks are lit up with Spring Festival-themed lights, shopping malls are decorated with Year of the Horse decorations, and streets are adorned with red lanterns, creating a rich festive atmosphere. Our reporter had a conversation with Malaysian Chinese writer Dai Xiaohua (戴小华), discussing everything from the ink fragrance of Spring Festival couplets to cross-cultural resonance, and delving from the warmth of family reunions to reflections on mutual learning among civilizations.

Dai Xiaohua (戴小华) said that the strongest festive atmosphere never lies in grand scenes, but is contained in red Spring Festival couplets, red envelopes filled with lucky money, New Year's Eve dinners, and simple greetings of "Happy New Year" and "Happiness and good health." "These moments filled with human touch are the most authentic characteristics of the Spring Festival, and they also remind us that the core of the Spring Festival is people, emotions, and family."

Dai Xiaohua (戴小华) has long been engaged in Chinese writing and served as the third president of the Overseas Chinese Women Writers Association. She has a unique understanding of the successful application of the Spring Festival for UNESCO intangible cultural heritage status. "This is not just an honor, but also a solemn recognition of the value of Chinese civilization by the international community." She said that the Spring Festival's application for UNESCO status has special significance for overseas Chinese, "It strengthens the cultural identity and sense of belonging of overseas Chinese, allowing the younger generation to have more confidence in inheriting and upholding traditions." She believes that for overseas Chinese, the Spring Festival has become an important bridge connecting their homeland, communicating with the world, and inheriting civilization.

In Dai Xiaohua's (戴小华) interactions with Chinese writers and scholars, the Spring Festival is the most natural cultural bond. "No matter where you are, a simple 'Happy New Year' can instantly shorten the distance." She said, "Even if separated by thousands of miles, Chinese culture has already written the recognition of 'roots' into our shared emotions."

Dai Xiaohua (戴小华) believes that the concept of "harmony without uniformity, harmonious coexistence" (**和而不同、和合共生** - hé ér bù tóng, hé hé gòng shēng - "harmony without uniformity, harmonious coexistence," embracing diversity while seeking common ground), which is inherent in the Spring Festival, is precisely the sublimation from family harmony to universal harmony. Customs such as "reunion," "revering ancestors," and "praying for blessings," as well as the meaning of "renewal of all things," are essentially manifestations of "harmony": reunion is the harmony of family, revering ancestors is the harmony of bloodlines and history, praying for blessings is the harmony of people with heaven, earth, and society, and renewal is the harmony of bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new. She said: "The Spring Festival teaches us to settle ourselves, settle our families, and settle our relatives, and then extend this to others, treating others with tolerance, respect, and kindness. True harmony is not being exactly the same, but each being beautiful in its own way and sharing beauty together—this is the deepest wisdom of Chinese civilization."

Living in Malaysia (马来西亚), a society where multiple ethnic groups and cultures coexist, Dai Xiaohua (戴小华) has a personal understanding of exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations. She believes that the Spring Festival and the Malay Eid al-Fitr have commonalities, both valuing reunion, gratitude, sharing, and prayer. "Different civilizations have different customs, habits, and festival rituals, but they express the same human warmth: attachment to home, expectation of peace, and blessings for the future." She said that civilizations may be different, but people's hearts can be connected, "Respecting each other's festivals is respecting each other's lives and emotions."

In response to some erroneous logic that promotes civilizational division or even civilizational confrontation, Dai Xiaohua (戴小华) believes that the civilizational wisdom embodied in the Spring Festival culture can provide some positive insights: emphasizing reunion and human touch shows that the most fundamental need of mankind is to love and stay together; respecting heaven and earth and remembering ancestors teaches people to be humble, grateful, and not to forget where they came from; bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new, and having hope in our hearts, always believing that tomorrow will be better... Dai Xiaohua (戴小华) said: "The Spring Festival uses the most simple New Year customs to tell us that civilizations are not superior or inferior, but should exchange and learn from each other, making people warmer and the world more peaceful. This is the gift that Chinese civilization offers to the world."

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Photo Report

On the evening of February 16th, local time, the "Chinese New Year in Moscow" series of cultural events officially kicked off at Manezhnaya Square in the heart of Moscow (Москва) , the Russian capital. The event will last until March 1st, during which activities will be held in more than 60 major venues in the city, including Tverskaya Square (Тверская площадь), the All-Russia Exhibition Center (ВДНХ), the Moscow Zoo (Московский зоопарк), and the Moscow China Trade Center (Московский китайский торговый центр). The picture shows Moscow (Москва) citizens taking photos in front of the Spring Festival-themed decorations at the event site.

People's Daily reporter Xiao Xinxin (肖新新) photographed.

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Family Reunions Seen Through Three Family Photos (New Year Visits to the Grassroots)

By: 本报记者 张帅祯

The days of reunion always bring some heartwarming scenes.

In the snowy borderlands, a military wife travels thousands of miles with her child for a reunion; on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, a family works together on the snowy railway; in a bustling city, a ride-hailing driver picks up his mother and they reunite in a free reunion housing unit.

Three family portraits, different scenes, the same reunion.

One is in front of the national gate, where the country is safe and sound, and the small family can be reunited; one is by the railway track, where the wheels move forward, representing the pace of the times; one is in the city, where thousands of lights reflect the warmth of "all work is for the people."

The Chen Fujun (陈富军) family, border guard soldier—

"You guard the country, and I guard you."

"Mom, when can I see Dad?"

At Arxan Station (阿尔山站) in Inner Mongolia (内蒙古), 5-year-old Chen Shuying (陈姝颖) is wrapped in a thick pink cotton coat, her face flushed by the wind on the platform.

"Soon!" Her mother, Yan Liyun (闫丽云), and her two daughters traveled more than 1,400 kilometers from their hometown in Shanxi (山西), changing trains and buses, taking more than 40 hours.

The car picking them up drove towards the Sanjiaoshan (三角山)哨所 outpost. The scenery outside the window gradually turned into a vast white wilderness—closer and closer to the national gate!

In the distance, they saw several horses standing in the snow. The people on horseback were wearing camouflage uniforms. Yan Liyun's husband, Chen Fujun (陈富军), a first-class sergeant of the Sanjiaoshan (三角山) Border Defense Company of an army brigade, was among them.

"Dad! It's Dad!"

The two daughters jumped up from their seats and shouted, clinging to the car window. As soon as the car stopped, the children ran through the snow, one foot deep, one foot shallow.

Chen Fujun (陈富军) dismounted and strode forward. The two daughters rushed into his arms one after the other, and he squatted down and hugged them tightly.

In the camp, big red lanterns had already been hung up. In front of the national gate and beside the boundary marker, the family took a family portrait, capturing a warm moment.

Late at night, the cold wind of Sanjiaoshan (三角山) was still biting. Chen Fujun (陈富军) tucked the quilt corners for his two daughters and tiptoed out of the door. At the sentry post, he took the rifle and stood upright.

Soon, the crunch of footsteps in the snow came from behind. Yan Liyun (闫丽云), draped in a coat, stood not far away: "You guard the country, and I guard you."

At the border, two figures stood silently. At this moment, thousands of families are reunited.

The Yang Wenjie (杨文杰) family, railway flaw detector—

"Grandpa carried a hoe to build roads, and I continue to protect them."

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, at Xining Station (西宁站) in Qinghai (青海). The first train to Lhasa (拉萨), Tibet (西藏), in the Year of the Horse is ready to depart.

On the platform, Yang Wenjie (杨文杰), a flaw detector for the Lhasa-Nyingchi Railway (拉林铁路), straightened his collar, with his parents and wife standing beside him. The family came here specifically to capture an unforgettable family portrait.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the full opening of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路). Yang Wenjie's (杨文杰) grandfather was a builder of this "sky road." They sweated and overcame difficulties on the high-altitude permafrost, and stubbornly laid the steel artery on the roof of the world.

"Grandpa didn't live to see the day when the train went to Lhasa (拉萨)," Yang Wenjie (杨文杰) said. "Today, our family is sending this train off, which is the best memorial to Grandpa."

His father, Yang Qisen (杨其森), gently stroked the green train beside him. He worked on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路) for 20 years as a train attendant. "When it first opened, everyone thought it was a miracle that the train could reach Lhasa (拉萨)!" His words were full of pride.

In 2021, the Lhasa-Nyingchi Railway (拉林铁路) opened, and the Fuxing (复兴) bullet train ran on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (青藏高原) for the first time. Yang Wenjie (杨文杰) volunteered to become a flaw detector for the Lhasa-Nyingchi Railway (拉林铁路).

"Grandpa carried a hoe to build roads, and I continue to protect them. Our family continues to guard the same sky road." This road, from nothing to something, from slow to fast, not only witnessed the tremendous changes in transportation on the snowy plateau, but also engraved a country's **铿锵脚步** (kēng qiāng bù fá - "sonorous footsteps," a firm and determined pace) forward, writing the dedication and inheritance of generations.

At about 11 o'clock, the train slowly started, traveling through thousands of mountains and rivers, heading to distant places.

On the platform, his wife, Liu Guanwen (刘官雯), gently stroked her bulging belly, her eyes full of anticipation—a new life is being conceived. The story of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway (青藏铁路) will continue to write new chapters on this magnificent snowy plateau.

The Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) family, ride-hailing driver—

"Free reunion housing fulfills my wish."

At Shenzhen East Station (深圳东站) in Guangdong (广东), Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) stood at the exit, tiptoeing and looking inside.

From taxi to ride-hailing driver, he has participated in ensuring the Spring Festival travel rush for nearly 20 years, sending countless people home for reunions, but this is the first time he has waited here for his own mother to come for a reunion.

In the crowd, his 90-year-old mother sat in a wheelchair, pushed out of the station by his older brother and sister-in-law. Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) strode forward, gently hugged his mother, and expressed his longing.

His mother's hand reached into her cloth bag, took out a bag of peanuts, and stuffed it into his hand: "You like to eat them, Mom remembers."

Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗), whose hometown is in Henan (河南), is a member of the Communist Party. In recent years, he has actively joined the "Party Member Driver Spring Festival Guardian Fleet." While others are rushing home, he is running outside.

"I've always wanted to bring my mother to Shenzhen (深圳) for the New Year. But the house is small and can't accommodate her. If we rent a house, my mother thinks it's a waste and refuses to come." Cai Hongqi's (蔡红旗) reunion wish has been delayed year after year.

Just as he was worrying, a message popped up in the ride-hailing driver WeChat group: Shenzhen (深圳) provides "free reunion housing for new employment groups" during the Spring Festival, which can be lived in for free for 15 days.

Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) immediately signed up and applied with a try-it-out mentality. In less than 24 hours, a two-bedroom apartment in Anju Gaoxin Garden (安居高新花园) in Nanshan District (南山区) was approved. "This place is **寸土寸金** (cùn tǔ cùn jīn - "every inch of land is worth its weight in gold," land is extremely expensive), I really didn't expect to be able to live here," Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) said.

On New Year's Eve, the reunion housing was filled with joy. His mother rolled out dumpling wrappers with her sleeves rolled up, her eyebrows curved, smiling like a child.

Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) leaned over and sat next to his mother: "Mom, I'll take you to Shennan Avenue (深南大道) tomorrow." He wanted to show his mother how beautiful and warm the city he worked in was.

When the dumplings were on the table, the family talked and laughed. The shutter clicked, and this family portrait, which had been waited for for many years, was finally taken. "Free reunion housing fulfills my wish," Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗) said.

Outside the window is the continuous pulse of the city, and inside the window is the steaming beauty of the world—in it, there are countless figures of "Cai Hongqi (蔡红旗)".

(Our reporters Li Longyi (李龙伊), Xu Yuyou (徐驭尧), Cheng Yuanzhou (程远州), and Li Xiaojian (李小健) and Long Xitao (龙喜涛) participated in the writing)

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Three Spring Couplets Reflect a New Atmosphere (Grassroots Visits During Spring Festival)

By: 本报记者 赵 政

Spring couplets are a unique cultural memory and heritage of the Chinese people. Between the red paper and ink, they are the flavor of the New Year hanging on the door, and the hearts of the people written on the paper; they record the reunion and joy of thousands of families, and also show the distinct imprint of the times moving forward.

During the Spring Festival, reporters walked the front lines, feeling the new atmosphere of development from the couplets on the doors. Through three pairs of Spring Festival couplets, we observe the new atmosphere of family traditions, rural customs, and the Party's work style and government conduct.

Upright Conduct Reflects Family Values

Upper scroll: Righteousness fills the door, spring is vast.
Lower scroll: Benevolence and righteousness are passed down, and blessings are long-lasting.
Horizontal scroll: The virtues of the year are all new.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Wan Xinyi (万昕怡), a teacher at Ge'ao Township Central Primary School in Yudu (于都), Jiangxi (江西), returned to her hometown on the banks of the Gongjiang River (贡江河).

Pushing open the courtyard door, Wan Gengzhi (万更志), 100 years old, was sitting in a bamboo chair drinking tea at the entrance of the main room, with his son Wan Jianguo (万建国) accompanying him.

"Grandpa, Dad, I'm back." Climbing the steps, Wan Xinyi saw a pair of Spring Festival couplets neatly placed on the door of the main room.

Wan Gengzhi put down his teacup, beckoned Wan Xinyi to sit beside him, and pointed to the Spring Festival couplets: "When pasting Spring Festival couplets, the left and right sides must be aligned and not crooked. Just like being a person, you must be upright."

"Being an upright person" is a family tradition that the old man has practiced throughout his life.

Wan Gengzhi joined the Eighth Route Army in 1945. Later, he followed Liu Deng's (刘邓) army into the Dabie Mountains (大别山) and also participated in the Huaihai Campaign (淮海战役) and the Crossing the Yangtze River Campaign (渡江战役)... In 1963, he responded to the call and settled in Yudu (于都).

"When I was first transferred to the County Civil Affairs Bureau, someone came with gifts, wanting to be 'taken care of' in terms of compensation," Wan Gengzhi said slowly, "I resolutely refused. What shouldn't be taken, not a single cent is allowed. Discipline was life on the battlefield, and this principle cannot be relaxed in peacetime."

Wan Jianguo took over the conversation and said to his daughter: "Your grandfather often said that in a tunnel on Shangganling (上甘岭), a dozen people took turns moistening their mouths with a pot of water, and no one drank more than a sip. Yudu (于都) is the gathering and departure point of the Central Red Army's Long March, and the Red Army won victory by relying on strict discipline. We must pass on this spirit."

"I often tell my students about my grandfather's stories," Wan Xinyi said. "My grandfather defended his country, and my father was selfless and devoted to his duty. My job is to cultivate morality and nurture people, and I want to let good family traditions guide children to be upright people."

The warm sun flowed over the eaves and sprinkled down, making the Spring Festival couplets even more vivid.

Civilized and Simple Rural Customs

Upper scroll: Etiquette is simple, and human relationships are warm.
Lower scroll: Customs are new, and the year is prosperous.
Horizontal scroll: Flavor in simplicity.

"These Spring Festival couplets are good, they express everyone's aspirations!"

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Liu Dengxiu (刘登秀), a 72-year-old Party member in Xianfeng Village (先锋村), Huaxi Street (花溪街道), Banan District (巴南区), Chongqing (重庆), was leading the waist drum team members to look at the new Spring Festival couplets at the entrance of the village committee.

A pair of Spring Festival couplets expresses the new changes in Xianfeng Village's efforts to change customs and habits. "Holding happy events in a simple and new way and resisting extravagance and waste are village rules, and we must have a refreshing New Year," said Liu Dengxiu.

This year, Liu Dengxiu's family did not invite guests or accept gifts. After eating the reunion dinner, they rushed to participate in the "Village Evening." Villagers gathered together, which was both lively and did not require any family to handle it alone.

"The bamboo clappers sound to the sky, and a few of us go on stage. What are we talking about on stage today? Let's talk about the new changes in Xianfeng..." On the "Village Evening" stage, Liu Dengxiu led everyone to beat the bamboo clappers crisply and loudly; under the stage, the villagers listened with relish.

Speaking of the past, Liu Dengxiu waved her hands repeatedly - buying vegetables, hiring chefs, and being busy for several days during the New Year, just afraid of being said to be stingy by relatives. "In the end, we set up 7 tables, spent a lot of money, ate leftovers for several days, and were so tired that our backs couldn't straighten up."

In recent years, Xianfeng Village has strengthened Party building leadership, given full play to the fighting fortress role of grassroots Party organizations and the exemplary role of Party members, organized villagers' meetings to change customs and habits, advocated civilized new customs such as friendly neighborhood relations, civility, and law-abiding, and also organized 6 cultural and artistic teams such as waist drum teams and choirs. Liu Dengxiu has become a backbone force. "Happy events should be handled simply, and extravagance and waste should be abandoned. Neighbors should help each other with warmth, and the old, weak, sick, and disabled should be helped more." She uses forms such as快板 (kuài bǎn - "clapper talk," a form of rhythmic storytelling) and 莲箫 (lián xiāo - "lotus flute," a type of vertical flute), and leads the team members to create and perform programs that tell the stories of changing customs and habits around them.

"There will be new programs for the Lantern Festival, and we have to hurry up and choreograph the dances and gongs and drums to sing the civilized new customs into the hearts of the villagers," Liu Dengxiu said with a smile.

Honest and People-Oriented Party Conduct and Government Conduct

Upper scroll: Correcting the root and clearing the source, always guarding the honest heart and clarifying the lofty aspirations.
Lower scroll: The original intention leads to the distance, and healthy services nourish thousands of families.
Horizontal scroll: Wonderful skills and benevolent heart.

In the office of the Health and Health Bureau of Zhanhua District (沾化区), Binzhou (滨州), Shandong (山东), several long tables were put together to form a temporary desk, red paper was spread out, the fragrance of ink overflowed, and an employee rolled up his sleeves, picked up a pen and dipped it in ink, and each stroke fell on the paper.

"It's written! How about this one?"

Just as he was saying this, Bo Zunqin (薄尊芹), deputy secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the Bureau, returned from visiting a grassroots health center, with a chill still on her coat. "The couplets are well written, and we have to put the things written in the couplets into practice one by one."

A room full of people laughed. In the laughter, there was the flavor of the New Year, and there was also motivation.

"The upper scroll talks about the construction of a clean and honest health and health system." Li Dong (李东), secretary of the Party Leadership Group and director of the Bureau, said, focusing on key links such as drug procurement, "Strengthen the construction of Party conduct and integrity, and internalize the word 'integrity' in our hearts and externalize it in our actions."

The lower scroll is a portrayal of bringing medical services down to the grassroots level.

Let the numbers speak: Last year, the Zhanhua District Health and Health Bureau organized 56 free clinics, serving more than 11,000 people; measures such as "treating first and paying later" have been implemented and have benefited a total of more than 210,000 people.

What is the significance of the horizontal scroll "Wonderful Skills and Benevolent Heart"?

"Wonderful skills are strength, and a benevolent heart is warmth." Li Dong said, on the one hand, strengthening disciplines and upgrading equipment, the ability to treat critical and severe illnesses has been greatly improved; on the other hand, strictly controlling medical expenses and optimizing the medical treatment process, "so that the masses can not only see a doctor well, but also spend less money and run fewer errands."

In the meantime, staff member Li Guoqing (李国庆) hurried through the hall with a free clinic schedule in his hand. He was busy finalizing the experts for the village free clinic next week. "Running a few more steps and asking a few more questions will allow the masses to run one less trip and worry less."

"Consolidating and expanding the results of in-depth implementation of the spirit of the Central Eight-Point Regulation, we must persistently change our work style and establish a new style, and do more practical things for the masses," said Li Dong.

Several employees stepped on high stools and helped to put the Spring Festival couplets upright - the red paper and black characters were particularly eye-catching in the sun.

"This is not just a pair of Spring Festival couplets. Every time we go in and out, we have to look in the mirror and measure ourselves against it - what we are looking at is our original intention, what we are measuring is our honest heart, what is reflected is the Party's work style and government conduct, and where we put our pen is the happiness, peace, and well-being of the masses," said Li Dong.

(Reporters Yang Yanfei (杨颜菲), Wang Xinyue (王欣悦), and Li Rui (李蕊) of this newspaper participated in the writing)

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Moscow Winter Festival Kicks Off in Beijing

Beijing, February 19th (Reporter Shi Fang (施芳)) As one of the important components of the cultural exchange between the capitals of China and Russia, the Moscow Maslenitsa Festival kicked off on the 19th at Chaoyang Park (朝阳公园) in Beijing (北京). It will focus on showcasing Russia's traditional customs and festive culture of bidding farewell to winter and welcoming spring, bringing a spring cultural event full of exotic flavors to citizens and tourists in the capital. The event is co-sponsored by the Moscow City Government and the Russian Embassy in China, supported by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism (北京市文化和旅游局), the Foreign Affairs Office of the Beijing Municipal People's Government (北京市人民政府外事办公室), and the People's Government of Chaoyang District, Beijing (北京市朝阳区人民政府), and co-organized by the Russian Cultural Center in Beijing (北京俄罗斯文化中心), and undertaken by the Moscow City Tourism Committee.

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"The changes in Chixi Village are endless!" (A Spring Festival grassroots visit)

By: 人民网记者 林晓丽 李唯一

Distant mountains like dark green ink, clear streams winding around, and the crisp chirping of birds make the small village of Chixi (赤溪) in the deep mountains of eastern Fujian (闽东) seem even more tranquil.

Early in the morning, at the express delivery point of villager Wu Jingzao's (吴敬早) home in Chixi Village (赤溪村), Fuding City (福鼎市), Ningde (宁德), Fujian Province (福建省), many customers gathered.

"Lao Wu (老吴), please pack our village's white tea for me." "Don't worry, no problem!"

Registering orders, packing express deliveries... After finishing the packages at hand, Wu Jingzao hurriedly greeted the reporter: "The changes in Chixi Village (赤溪村) are endless!"

Home Prospering

Passing through the express delivery store, the back is Wu Jingzao's (吴敬早) restaurant and kitchen. On the stove, a pot of Fuding (福鼎) meat slices rolled in boiling water, steaming.

"The small pickup truck was replaced with a new energy vehicle, the homestay was opened, and I even bought an apartment in the city... In the blink of an eye, the children have grown up." Before the reporter could speak, Wu Jingzao (吴敬早) began to count the changes on his fingers.

"Today is February 19th, a very special day. 10 years ago today, General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) had a video connection with us on People's Daily Online (人民网) and cared very much about our village." At that time, Wu Jingzao's (吴敬早) daughter, Wu Feiling (吴妃灵), was on the scene.

Ten years have passed, and Wu Feiling (吴妃灵) has grown from an elementary school student in the video to the college student in front of her. "I was only in the third grade of elementary school at that time, and I was ignorant." She smiled shyly. Although the title of "China's First Poverty Alleviation Village" (中国扶贫第一村) is well-known, she didn't understand its meaning until high school.

"There was a question about poverty alleviation in high school that mentioned our village. When the teacher was explaining the question, he said that Chixi Village (赤溪村) has a very important significance in the history of poverty alleviation in China. I really felt for the first time that my hometown was so special." Wu Feiling (吴妃灵) said.

Village Beautiful

"After seeing the 'small home,' let's look at the 'big home.' The changes in the village are huge!" Wu Jingzao (吴敬早) invited the reporter to get into his new energy vehicle and became a tour guide.

"This is the village elementary school, now the Chixi Campus (赤溪校区) of Fuding City Experimental Elementary School (福鼎市实验小学), where the children go to school."

"This is the largest and most functional village-level hospital in Fuding City (福鼎市). You don't have to run to the city for minor illnesses."

"That's the newly built covered bridge, and we also built a cultural square."

…………

With the income of the masses increasing and the living standards rising, shouldn't we do things to satisfy the people? Shouldn't the infrastructure be upgraded from "sufficient" to "good"? This is what the Chixi Village (赤溪村) village committee cadres often ponder together.

"Take our village elementary school as an example. The conditions were poor and the student outflow was serious. In 2023, the city sent a rural revitalization instructor who asked what was the most urgent matter in Chixi Village (赤溪村) on the first day. Our village party branch secretary mentioned the difficulties of the village elementary school. In the same year, the start of the school season facilitated the joint construction with the best elementary school in the city. That year, the number of elementary school students in each grade in the village increased from more than 60 to more than 100." Wu Jingzao (吴敬早) said.

Walking, watching, and thinking along the way, once "weak birds fly first," now "peng birds spread their wings."

Following Wu Jingzao's (吴敬早) "voice navigation," a new building in the She ethnic style stands in front of you - the "China Poverty Alleviation Chixi Exhibition Hall" (中国扶贫赤溪展示馆).

Seeing tourists coming to visit, villager Yang Yuyan (杨玉燕) stepped forward to be a guide, telling the story of Chixi Village's (赤溪村) 10 years of "blood transfusion" poverty alleviation, 10 years of "blood exchange" poverty alleviation, and 10 years of "blood creation" poverty alleviation. In front of the last exhibition board, the latest data has not been updated yet, Yang Yuyan (杨玉燕) added: "In the past 10 years, the per capita disposable income of villagers has increased from 15,696 yuan to 41,856 yuan."

What do the villagers rely on to increase their income? "Adapt to local conditions, and see the news always say that everyone recognizes this 'principle.'" Wu Jingzao (吴敬早) said.

Industry Thriving

During the interview, it happened to coincide with the village's wealthy people and villagers gathering together to discuss what to do in the new year.

"How are the homestays in the village recently?" Wu Yiguo (吴贻国), Secretary of the Party Branch of Chixi Village (赤溪村), first inquired about the situation.

"During the Spring Festival holiday, it was difficult to find a room in the village." Wu Jingzao (吴敬早) said while picking up his mobile phone and operating it, "These days, my homestay is fully booked, and I have to temporarily turn off the 'reservation' function on the platform."

"Our village started rafting and building boardwalks a few years ago. In the past two years, rural tourism has become popular, and our path is right." Wu Yiguo (吴贻国) took over the conversation, "Next, we have to enrich the business format, such as innovating research and study tourism, so that more and more tourists will come."

Opening homestays, running restaurants, planting white tea, raising freshwater fish... Relying on good mountains and good water, Chixi Village (赤溪村) develops tourism on the one hand and enriches characteristic agriculture on the other.

Bearing in mind General Secretary's Xi Jinping's (习近平) earnest instructions that "poverty alleviation work should adapt to local conditions and focus on precision," Chixi Village (赤溪村) established Chixi Tourism Investment Company (赤溪旅游投资公司), introduced tourism companies, developed projects such as bamboo rafting and outdoor expansion, and also guided villagers to engage in agritainment and characteristic homestays and other supporting service industries, and the income of villagers has increased a lot at once. In order to stabilize the income of villagers, the village also registered the "Happy Chixi" (幸福赤溪) trademark, specializing in creating its own tea brand in Chixi Village (赤溪村), extending the white tea industry from planting to processing and sales, and becoming one of the first batch of provincial rural revitalization demonstration villages.

In recent years, the village has become increasingly aware that industrial development cannot be too single, and must adapt to local conditions, promote strengths and avoid weaknesses, and "**多点开花**" (duō diǎn kāi huā - "more points bloom," to develop in multiple directions simultaneously). The richer the village's business format, the fuller the villagers' pockets will be.

"Last year, edible mushroom cultivation solved a lot of surplus labor in our village, and we can promote it again this year." A villager said.

"Last year, several of us jointly planted more than 50 acres of jasmine. The yield was not high in the first year, but the quality was very good, and the company successfully repurchased it." Another villager continued, "When I make money, I will take everyone to do it together."

…………

Everyone spoke one after another, the scene was lively, and the development prospects gradually emerged. "We have to work harder to find a path of green development and ecological prosperity for the people." Wu Yiguo (吴贻国) said.

As dusk fell, the reporter prepared to return, and the enthusiastic villagers accompanied them to the entrance of the village. Along the way, Wu Yiguo's (吴贻国) phone calls came one after another. "There are many projects in the village, and I am busy settling accounts." He smiled apologetically, "Come back in a while, and I guarantee there will be great changes."

Not far away, the lanterns on the covered bridge lit up, and the mountain village was immersed in the atmosphere of the New Year, ushering in a new year of transformation...

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"The Great Wall Behind Us Is Doing Just Fine" (Spring Festival Grassroots Visits)

By: 本报记者 葛 燊

The weather is fine. In Shixia Village (石峡村), Yanqing District (延庆区), Beijing (北京市), the "Fu" character pasted on the wooden door of a homestay exudes joy, and the winding Great Wall is clearly visible on the distant mountain ridge.

At 8 a.m., Liu Hongyan (刘红岩), a Great Wall protector in Shixia Village (石峡村), straightened his red vest, took his hiking stick and trash picker, and set off with his backpack for patrol. "Protecting the Great Wall is something we can't 松劲儿 (sōng jìnr - "relax," to slack off or ease up) for even a day," said Liu Hongyan (刘红岩). "We patrol at least 5 days a week, and the Spring Festival is no exception."

Starting from Shixia Village (石峡村), through the mountains and forests, up the Great Wall, passing Luoguo City (罗锅城) all the way to the southeast... the round trip is nearly 20 kilometers and takes 6 hours. Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) has walked this road for 6 years. Monitoring dangers, cleaning stone steps, picking up garbage, and dissuading uncivilized behavior are all daily tasks of Great Wall protectors. They seem simple, but they actually test physical strength, endurance, and professional competence.

The Shixia (石峡) section of the Great Wall is located around Shixia Village (石峡村), Badaling Town (八达岭镇), and is an important section of the Great Wall northwest of Juyongguan (居庸关). The patrol is not only long, but the road is also difficult to walk. In the process of crossing high relics, going uphill requires both hands and feet; when going downhill, you need to take one step at a time, making sure each step is firmly planted before taking the next, and sometimes you have to slide down with both hands supporting you.

Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) missed a step and staggered. "I'm fine. Look, this brick is cracked. It must be because it's been too long and it's been stepped on too much."

Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) put the broken brick back in place and pieced it together, but there is still a conspicuous crack in the middle. "Every time we patrol, we have to photograph the cracked bricks, and sometimes we have to use a ruler to measure the size of the cracks, accurate to the millimeter." Arriving at a crenel, Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) opened the patrol-specific APP, took a photo of the brick seam and uploaded it.

"Photos from different periods can show the changes in the brick seams and report on the 'health status' of the Great Wall," Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) explained. "Relevant departments will formulate Great Wall protection and restoration plans based on this, which will be more targeted."

Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) followed his uncle, Mei Jingtian (梅景田), on the path of Great Wall protection. "My uncle is 82 years old this year and still often goes up the mountain to patrol. Everyone's enthusiasm for protecting the Great Wall is getting higher and higher, and now the team in the village has grown to more than 60 people."

Shixia Village (石峡村) was built along the Great Wall and has changed because of the Great Wall. Since 2024, the village has gradually built walkways and viewing platforms. "Now homestays are being set up, and everyone is getting richer," Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) said with a smile.

"I grew up by the Great Wall, and guarding the Great Wall is like guarding my home," said Liu Hongyan (刘红岩). "My biggest wish is to encourage more people to understand the Great Wall, protect the Great Wall, and pass this precious wealth down from generation to generation."

Talking about his plans for the future, Liu Hongyan (刘红岩) plans to shoot a video in a few days. "We just want to tell everyone that the Great Wall behind us is doing well!"

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The good days for Sanhe Village are yet to come (New Year grassroots visits)

By: 本报记者 刘博通

Under the blue sky and white clouds, surrounded by mountains, hardened roads undulate along the continuous mountain ranges. This is the remote mountainous area of ​​Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture (凉山彝族自治州), Sichuan Province (四川省). After traversing mountains and ridges, Sanhe Village (三河村) in Sanchahe Town (三岔河镇), Zhaojue County (昭觉县) comes into view.

Arriving at the entrance of the village, rows of orange brick houses are clean and tidy. Many villagers have hung red lanterns on their homes, and the vegetables in the vegetable gardens surrounded by bamboo fences are growing well.

Not far from the new village, climbing up a mountain stone road, is the old site of Sanhe Village (三河村). During the winter vacation, a study tour team was welcomed here. "Mud walls, dark tiled houses, a large family squeezed into one room, it is hard to imagine that the villagers were still living in such an environment eight years ago." Walking into the old residence of the villagers, Liu Guofu (刘国富), the first secretary of Sanhe Village (三河村), who is responsible for the explanation, couldn't help but sigh, "Sanhe Village (三河村) used to be a typical deeply impoverished village. It is precisely because of the Party's good policies that the 'poor den' in the mountain ditch can be turned into a 'golden den' where people can live and work in peace and contentment."

In Liu Guofu's (刘国富) view, the current Sanhe Village (三河村) not only has greatly improved living conditions, but more importantly, people have changed. "Everyone is more motivated and is thinking of ways to increase income. The good days of Sanhe Village (三河村) are yet to come." This year, Sanhe Village (三河村) was named a national model unit for ethnic unity and progress by the State Ethnic Affairs Commission (国家民委). The atmosphere of mutual assistance and concerted efforts among all ethnic groups is becoming stronger and stronger.

Yi (彝族) man Jihao Yeqiu (吉好也求) used to guard the thin fields in the mountains, planting potatoes and buckwheat, relying on the weather for a living. Now he and his wife, Mahai Ziga (马海子呷), have both achieved employment at their doorstep. "I am a forest ranger, and my child's mother works at the tourist service center." Raising cattle can be sold for money, land transfer has income, and there is also village collective dividends at the end of the year... Jihao Yeqiu (吉好也求) counted the income items on his fingers, unable to hide the smile in the corners of his eyes.

The mobile phone of Logu Youge (洛古有格), the secretary of the Party branch of Sanhe Village (三河村), also kept ringing. "The cooperative's beef cattle need to expand sales channels to Zhejiang (浙江) and other places. We also invited experts to come to the orchard in the spring to teach technology, and the tourist routes have to be optimized." Logu Youge (洛古有格) joked that he wished he could use one second as two seconds.

While enriching their pockets, deeper changes are also taking place - paying attention to education has now become a consensus among villagers. In the living room of Jihao Yeqiu's (吉好也求) home, the children's certificates of merit and honorary certificates are posted in rows.

"In the past few years, many children have been admitted to well-known universities. Last year, one person was admitted to the graduate school of Renmin University of China (中国人民大学)." Logu Youge (洛古有格) said proudly, "Going out of the mountains to learn skills, and then returning to the mountains to build their hometown, has become the wish of many mountain children."

As the sun sets, the children chase and play in the sun. In the depths of Daliangshan (大凉山), the spring is just right and the scenery is infinite.

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Three Photos Show Caoxi River Becoming More and More Beautiful (New Year Visits to the Grassroots)

By: 本报记者 周 欢

"Click, click..."
In the afternoon, Liu Meiqing (刘美清) and her family leisurely strolled along the Caoxi River (草溪河) in Zhangshu (樟树) city, Jiangxi (江西) province, occasionally taking out their phones to take selfies. In the photos, the family members smiled happily, with the shimmering water behind them.

Liu Meiqing's (刘美清) family has lived near the Caoxi River (草溪河) for more than 30 years. "In previous years, the Caoxi River (草溪河) was not like this at all. The river channel accumulated more and more silt, and the river water gradually turned black and smelly," Liu Meiqing (刘美清) recalled.

In 2023, the systematic treatment of the Caoxi River (草溪河) was launched. The photos taken by Liu Meiqing (刘美清) and her family recorded the process of the treatment and the results of the transformation. "Three photos show the Caoxi River (草溪河) becoming more and more beautiful," said Liu Meiqing (刘美清).

Photo 1: September 23, 2023, pipeline renovation, enclosure construction.

The problem is in the water, but the root cause is on the shore.

"We must block sewage from the source!" said Luo Haiqun (罗海群), director of the Zhangshu (樟树) Water Resources Bureau, laying 28 kilometers of new pipelines along the river, carrying out rain and sewage diversion改造 in 87 old residential areas, 11 urban villages, and 21 municipal roads, and strengthening supervision of key sewage discharge places such as restaurants.

"I heard about water treatment, but no one said anything about road construction. Why is a good road being enclosed? It's so inconvenient!" Liu Meiqing's (刘美清) mother, Wu Jinxiang (邬金香), couldn't help but take a photo and complain to her family and friends.

Photo 2: January 31, 2024, river channel renovation, silt removal and dredging.

After the "inner" treatment was completed, the "surface" projects such as silt removal and water system connection began.

Taking advantage of the low water level in the river in winter, the Caoxi River (草溪河) "River Cleaning Action" was launched before the Spring Festival in 2024: in the river channel, silt, floating garbage, and water hyacinths were cleaned up; on the shore, messy vegetable gardens and waste were cleaned up. At the same time, water conservancy diversion projects were built to introduce living water from the Gan River (赣江) and promote water system connectivity.

Photo 3: November 20, 2025, optimization and upgrading, planting greenery and creating scenery.

The creation of the shoreline makes ecological dividends more perceptible and accessible.

"Last year, staff often asked us for our opinions on further treatment and upgrading of the Caoxi River (草溪河). Some suggested greening and building walkways, some hoped to add leisure seats, and others proposed creating a parent-child recreation area..." Wu Jinxiang (邬金香) said, "In the second half of the year, I watched these opinions and suggestions being adopted one by one!"

Wu Jinxiang (邬金香) took out the photos and showed them to reporters—camphor trees and metasequoia trees were planted in rows, and workers were planting turf and crape myrtle flowers on the leveled embankments. "During that time, the Caoxi River (草溪河) changed very quickly!"

With clear water, green banks, beautiful scenery, and harmonious people, the people's sense of gain and happiness born from water is constantly increasing.

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Spring Festival Gala's human touch brings warmth

By: 何天平

It was another Lunar New Year's Eve, and the China Media Group (CMG) Spring Festival Gala (春晚) for the Year of the Horse arrived as scheduled. This "cultural New Year's Eve dinner," based on the theme of "joyful and auspicious, festive and joyous," not only exudes a familiar New Year's flavor but also overflows with warmth and vibrant vitality. When the stage spotlights are deeply focused on those ordinary life scenes, simple human emotions, and resilient striving figures, the Spring Festival Gala becomes more than just an audio-visual feast; it becomes a long scroll of life immersed in the atmosphere of everyday life, presenting the genuine daily lives of the people, carrying the deepest concerns in people's hearts, and conveying the confidence and strength of the era to forge ahead.

The progress and happiness of ordinary people have laid the warmest foundation for this year's Spring Festival Gala. The "I'll Announce for the Spring Festival Gala" segment is a vivid portrayal of this concept. Academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, foreign friends, winners of the WorldSkills Competition, flower breeding experts... Announcers from all walks of life took to the stage. They are participants in the Spring Festival Gala and storytellers of China. When "Every Ray of Light" pays tribute to the extraordinary dedication in ordinary positions, "Come and Sun the Autumn Harvest" sings the sincere joy of harvest for farmers, and "I'm Here at My Post" surges with the determination of young soldiers to stick to their posts, the Spring Festival Gala paints a full portrait of strivers, allowing those who silently support the operation of society and promote the progress of the times to be seen and remembered, becoming the most moving echo of the Spring Festival Gala.

Emotion is always the most powerful force of the Spring Festival Gala, penetrating the screen and reaching people's hearts directly. "Mom Has a Cinema" transforms the mother's memories into warm film, chanting the warmth of bidirectional efforts in family affection. In the skit "Grandma's Favorite," the appearance of the robot "grandson" and the bionic "grandma," while showcasing the integration of technology into daily life, also reminds people that technology may simulate companionship, but it can never replace the warmth of people and the power of real interaction. "Whose Dish" uses a chance encounter in front of a vegetable stall to express that "sincerity is the best craftsmanship," depicting the most precious part of human interaction. "Small Family Year After Year" uses the melodious rhythm of Suzhou Pingtan (苏州评弹) to carefully weave together the stability of the "small family" and the expectations of "year after year," outlining the ordinary but great life aspirations in the hearts of the people. These works use emotion as the warp and weft, allowing the Spring Festival Gala to settle down a moving feeling that can be savored for a long time in addition to the jubilation.

The Spring Festival Gala is also a mirror for observing the times, caring about reality in laughter, conveying thoughts in relaxation, and settling the soul in melody. The skit "Here It Comes Again" uses humorous strokes to reflect on formalism and the style of shirking responsibility; "We Guarantee Your Satisfaction" depicts the harmonious picture of community co-construction through the warm interaction between property management and owners. Facing the information wave brought by mobile internet, "You're Sure to Like It" presents a slice of life under the recommendation of the digital age in a comedic way, guiding the audience to think about the social proposition of "technology for good." These light-hearted expressions are a microcosm of the Spring Festival Gala's sincere dialogue with contemporary life. Songs such as "Human Resonance," "A Moment We Experienced," "Dreaming of Mountains and Seas," and "Hope You've Been Well" either respond to social emotions or comfort life's difficulties, arousing people's cherishment of common experiences and the hope they always hold for the future, completing a gentle and profound social empathy.

The four sub-venues set up for this year's Spring Festival Gala explore different expressions of the New Year's flavor and cleverly integrate the grand narrative of the times into the local fabric and the daily lives of the people. Harbin (哈尔滨) turns "ice and snow" into "gold and silver mountains" that benefit people's livelihoods; Yiwu's (义乌) transformation from "chicken feathers for sugar" to "world supermarket" reflects a unique pioneering spirit and open mind; Hefei (合肥) interprets the vigorous atmosphere of traditional and modern, cultural and technological "harmony" and symbiosis; Yibin's (宜宾) "invitation to spring wine" flows with the wisdom of cultural inheritance and ecological protection. These regional paintings with different styles together constitute a contemporary China that is both profound and agile, rooted in the land and looking up at the stars, becoming a vivid footnote to national development, technological prosperity, cultural prosperity, and people's happiness.

On the stage of the Spring Festival Gala, we truly see that no matter how technology evolves or how the times change, what is most heartwarming is always the fireworks in ordinary days, the true feelings flowing between people, and the process of every ordinary person striving to shine and illuminate each other on their respective tracks. It sings of labor, pays tribute to struggle, cherishes family affection, guards kindness, and expects development, seeing moving light in subtle daily life, and accumulating the energy of the times in solid progress; what it presents is never just a gala, but a spiritual "New Year's Eve dinner" full of the flavor of life, human touch, and Chinese flavor. This may be the reason why the Spring Festival Gala has enduring charm through the years—it always stands with the broadest masses of the people, resonates with the same frequency, is full of confidence, and goes to spring together.

(The author is the Deputy Director of the Audiovisual Communication Department of the School of Journalism, Renmin University of China (中国人民大学))

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Continuously consolidate the foundation for achieving high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology.

By: 本报记者 刘诗瑶 徐 靖 李 蕊

Strengthening basic research is an urgent requirement for achieving high-level self-reliance in science and technology, and it is the only way to build a world-class science and technology power.

Xi Jinping (习近平), General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, recently made important instructions on the work of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, emphasizing the need to "strengthen the strategic, forward-looking, and systematic layout of basic research" and "support the vast number of scientific researchers to bravely climb the peak of science and produce more original achievements."

The "artificial sun" EAST created a world record of "one hundred million degrees for a thousand seconds"; the thorium-based molten salt reactor was built, and China's nuclear energy technology achieved a breakthrough; "Beinao No. 1" completed the first batch of wireless human full implantation... Among the top ten scientific and technological advances in China in 2025 selected by academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, more than half came from basic research.

Since the new era, under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping (习近平) at its core, China has embarked on a path of high-quality development of basic research. The overall level of basic research has reached a new level, the foundation for high-level self-reliance in science and technology has been continuously consolidated, and solid steps have been taken in building a strong science and technology power.

Adhere to the "Four Orientations" and Serve National Strategic Needs

Basic research is the source of the entire scientific system and the general mechanism for all technical problems.

Xi Jinping (习近平) pointed out that "we must adhere to the 'Four Orientations,' adhere to the 'two-pronged approach' of goal-oriented and free exploration, combine the forefront of world science and technology with the country's major strategic needs and economic and social development goals, and coordinate the frontier problems proposed by following the laws of scientific development and the theoretical problems abstracted from major applied research, and condense the key scientific problems of basic research."

In the Origin Quantum Laboratory, the dilution refrigerator continues to hum, maintaining an extremely low temperature environment close to absolute zero for the core quantum chip of China's third-generation independent superconducting quantum computer "Origin Wukong." To date, this quantum computer has completed more than 760,000 quantum computing tasks worldwide, with more than 42 million visits.

"The development of quantum computing in China started from the most basic and arduous basic problems." Guo Guoping (郭国平), professor at the University of Science and Technology of China and chief scientist of Origin Quantum, said, "Achieving high-precision control of quantum bits, allowing large-scale quantum bit systems to operate stably without errors... Every step is full of challenges and requires long-term investment."

Overcoming a number of basic research problems, the successful development of independent quantum computers such as "Origin Wukong" marks that China has initially possessed the ability to provide quantum computing solutions for energy, medicine, and other fields. At present, quantum computers have shown accelerated advantages in high-dimensional medical data processing, supporting scientific research in the field of life and health.

The practice of quantum computing fully proves that strengthening basic research, adhering to the "two-pronged approach," and promoting the close integration of cutting-edge technology and national strategic needs are the inevitable paths to achieve high-level self-reliance in science and technology.

Basic research is not only the theoretical cornerstone of technological breakthroughs, but also the underlying driving force of industrial change.

In the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone in Shenzhen, in the laboratory of the Steel Research International New Materials Innovation Center, which belongs to China Iron & Steel Research Institute Group (中国钢研), Bi Zhongnan (毕中南), the person in charge, is discussing the optimized operation plan of the material "data factory" with his team.

The research and development of key equipment such as controlled nuclear fusion, green hydrogen, and aerospace requires special metal materials with higher performance. In the past, relying on traditional methods to develop new varieties often required trial and error in the permutation and combination of more than a dozen alloy elements, like 大海捞针 (dà hǎi lāo zhēn - "fishing for a needle in the sea," to find a needle in a haystack; to search for something that is very difficult to find). If key materials cannot be upgraded, industrial upgrading is out of the question.

Based on the new concept of a high-throughput automatic laboratory combined with an artificial intelligence autonomous iterative model, the team designed and built a metal material "data factory," which increased the experimental efficiency by 100 times.

Give Play to the Innovative Role of Enterprises, and Build a Basic Research Pattern with the Active Participation and Coordination of Multiple Entities

Xi Jinping (习近平) emphasized that "we should encourage scientific research institutions and universities to carry out joint research with enterprises."

Zhang Minghui (张明会), head of R&D at Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) and vice president of the group, connected to a video conference with university research institutions as scheduled. "Regarding the binding of that specific biological target, we have a new plan..." At both ends of the screen, everyone expressed their opinions and the discussion went straight to the point.

For Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药), the importance of basic research is particularly prominent. "To make high-quality domestic good medicines, we must deeply understand the mechanism behind the drugs, such as why they work and how they work." Zhang Minghui (张明会) explained that from following to running alongside and leading, every step of innovative drugs requires the support of underlying scientific principles. "If you want to develop completely original 'global new' drugs and explore targets and mechanisms that no one has ever touched, basic research is an essential path."

Basic research requires large investment, long cycles, and high risks. How to solve the problem? Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) took the initiative to deeply integrate with the national strategic scientific and technological forces.

In the summer of 2025, the National Natural Science Foundation of China piloted the establishment of a joint fund for the innovation and development of private enterprises with private enterprises. Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药), Hengrui Medicine (恒瑞医药), Mindray Medical (迈瑞医疗), and Xiehe Medical (协合医疗) were among the first four private enterprises to join, marking the first time that private enterprises systematically participated in the national basic research system as "question setters."

"This is not a simple sponsorship, but the construction of a collaborative innovation mechanism of 'enterprises setting questions, the scientific community answering questions, and the market grading papers.'" Zhang Minghui (张明会) introduced that the company will submit the core scientific problems about the prevention and treatment of major diseases summarized from the front line of drug research and development, and "post the list" to the top scientific research teams in the country, inviting them to "take the lead."

"Taking the lead," how to balance the scientific frontier and industrial feasibility? Zhang Minghui (张明会) introduced that in the "question setting" stage, the enterprise will start internal selection half a year in advance, focusing on the truly "bottleneck" technologies and frontier targets, and strictly demonstrate their scientific frontier and industrial feasibility to ensure that the topics not only lead the direction but also can eventually be implemented. The final "grading" right is given to clinical value and industrial achievements, to see whether high-quality good medicines that patients can use and afford can be developed.

Through in-depth integration with the National Natural Science Foundation of China, top hospitals, and scientific research institutions, Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) is opening up the complete chain from laboratory discovery to clinical application.

Qilu Pharmaceutical (齐鲁制药) is not an isolated case. In Hanyu Golden Valley in Jinan (济南), Shandong (山东) Province, Shandong Guangming Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (山东广明生物科技有限公司) is also a busy scene, with merchants coming to negotiate the "Guangming No. 2" white-feathered broiler breeder chickens. The excellent variety performance stems from the company's deep understanding of the genetic breeding of white-feathered broilers.

Since 2014, the Guangming Biotechnology (广明生物) scientific research team has joined forces with the team of the Beijing Institute of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (中国农业科学院北京畜牧兽医研究所) to invest more than 1 billion yuan to continuously tackle core seed source technologies. Through technologies such as genomic selection, scientists and enterprise technicians closely cooperated to deeply study the genetic mechanisms of growth performance, reproductive capacity, meat quality, and disease resistance, and finally successfully selected and bred the "Guangming No. 2," which broke the long-term foreign monopoly.

"Mastering the genetic code of white-feathered broilers has become an important foundation for us to continuously optimize varieties." Said Liu Dawei (刘大伟), general manager of Guangming Biotechnology (广明生物).

Leading enterprises take the initiative to take responsibility and focus on innovation, which is inseparable from the good innovation ecology created by government departments.

In recent years, the National Natural Science Foundation of China has taken serving the country's strategic needs as the traction, established joint funds for enterprise innovation and development and joint funds for private enterprise innovation and development, included leading technology enterprises in the scope of scientific fund funding, and guided enterprises to increase investment in basic research. At present, 34 local governments, 36 central enterprises, 14 industry departments, and 4 technology-based private enterprises have joined the joint fund, becoming an important channel for local governments, enterprises, and industries to invest in basic research.

Dou Xiankang (窦贤康), director of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, said that it is necessary to give full play to the main role of enterprises in scientific and technological innovation, and build a basic research pattern with the active participation and coordination of multiple entities such as national laboratories, universities, scientific research institutes, enterprises, and new research and development institutions.

Strengthen High-Level Talent Training and Support Young Talents to Take the Lead and Play the Leading Role

Xi Jinping (习近平) emphasized that "we must place the policy focus of cultivating national strategic talent strength on young scientific and technological talents, give young talents more trust, better help, and more powerful support, and support young talents to take the lead and play the leading role."

In recent years, through institutionalized and continuous support, China has continued to increase its support for young talents in the field of basic research.

"I am engaged in research in cutting-edge interdisciplinary fields such as organic semiconductors and bioelectronics, which usually requires earlier and greater support." Said Lei Ting (雷霆), professor at the School of Materials Science and Engineering, Peking University (北京大学).

After completing his postdoctoral studies, Lei Ting (雷霆) joined Peking University (北京大学). Because his research direction was relatively cutting-edge, he was once worried that he would not receive attention and support. Unexpectedly, both the National Natural Science Foundation of China and Peking University (北京大学) gave strong support to Lei Ting's (雷霆) research field.

In 2024, Lei Ting (雷霆), who was only 37 years old, received funding from the Youth Science Fund Project (Category A), and in 2025, he received support from the Innovation Research Group Project (Category B) established by the National Natural Science Foundation of China for the first time for young scientific researchers under the age of 40. Peking University (北京大学) also provided him with sufficient scientific research start-up funds and gave him a high degree of autonomy in platform construction and graduate student training.

Lei Ting (雷霆) said: "In my opinion, strengthening basic research and focusing on the cultivation of young talents, and giving young scientific researchers top-level support at an earlier stage, will help young scientists form stable research directions and academic judgment as soon as possible."

Liu Xing (刘行), professor at the Key Laboratory of Cell Dynamics of the Ministry of Education of the University of Science and Technology of China (中国科学技术大学), also deeply felt this: "My research direction is the regulation of the cell proliferation cycle, trying to explore the most essential and underlying logic of life growth. This is a long scientific research road. Without the strong support of the country and the school, it would not be possible to carry it out at all."

Liu Xing (刘行) introduced that she has successively received precise support from a series of scientific fund projects. In particular, the pioneering funding mechanism of the National Natural Science Foundation of China's Innovation Research Group Project (Category B) not only provided her with financial support, but also promoted young scientific and technological talents under the age of 40, including her, to carry out multi-disciplinary joint research and tackle key problems through "organized scientific research," and to explore the frontier research directions of common scientific problems of matter and life.

Among the projects approved for funding by the National Natural Science Foundation of China in 2025, about 83.27% were led by scientific researchers aged 45 and under; the Chinese Academy of Sciences (中国科学院) and the Ministry of Finance jointly organized and carried out "stable support for young teams in the field of basic research," focusing on accelerating the seizure of the commanding heights of science and technology, carrying out institutionalized and directional basic research, and actively cultivating outstanding young scientific and technological talents...

As the main channel for funding basic research in China, the National Natural Science Foundation has funded 880,000 scientific research projects in the past 40 years, with a funding amount of 460.8 billion yuan, and has produced a large number of basic and original achievements in the fields of basic science, engineering materials, information science, and life and health.

"Only when the foundation is solid can the building of science and technology be built high." Seize the historical opportunity of the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, create strong basic research and original innovation capabilities, support the vast number of scientific researchers to continuously produce major original and disruptive scientific and technological achievements, and make greater contributions to promoting high-level self-reliance in science and technology and building a strong science and technology power.

(Reporter Yu Sinan (喻思南) of this newspaper participated in the writing)

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The State Council's Safety Committee to Supervise the Investigation and Handling of the Explosion Accident at a Fireworks Retail Store in Yicheng City, Hubei Province

This newspaper reports from Beijing on February 19th (Reporter Liu Wenxin (刘温馨)): On February 18th, a deflagration accident occurred at a fireworks retail store in Zhengji Town (郑集镇), Yicheng City (宜城市), Xiangyang City (襄阳市), Hubei Province (湖北省), resulting in 12 deaths.

In accordance with the "Supervision Methods for Handling and Listing Major Accidents," the State Council Safety Committee (国务院安委会) has decided to list the investigation and handling of this major accident for supervision. The Office of the State Council Safety Committee (国务院安委会办公室) and the Ministry of Emergency Management (应急管理部), together with the Ministry of Public Security (公安部) and the National Fire and Rescue Administration (国家消防救援局), have formed an on-site supervision team to provide full supervision of the accident investigation.

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Page 1 Editors: Xu Nuo, Yang Xiaoyu, Zhao Zheng; Page 2 Editors: Han Xiaoming, Zhou Zhou, Li Anqi; Page 3 Editors: Bai Zhiyu, Gao Ji, Zhang Xueyan

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Immediate Exercise, Swift and Joyful Trend

Polo
The Fusion of Riding and Ball Striking
People's Daily Reporter Shang Rongzheng (尚嵘峥)
On the grasslands of the Pamir Plateau, players hold the reins in their left hands, lean their bodies forward and to the right, galloping on horseback, holding mallets in their right hands, swinging and hitting the ball, raising clouds of yellow dust. This is a polo match held in Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County (塔什库尔干塔吉克自治县), Kashgar Prefecture (喀什地区), Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (新疆维吾尔自治区). This ancient sport, which has lasted for thousands of years, still makes people's blood boil.
Polo is a sport in which players ride horses and use mallets to hit a ball into a goal. In ancient times, it was also known as "jiju" (击鞠), "jiqiu" (击毬), or "daqiu" (打毬). It originated in the Han Dynasty and flourished in the Tang Dynasty. It was a popular activity for court entertainment and leisure, military training, and cultural exchange. The Tang poem "Responding to the Imperial Order to Watch Polo at Liyuan Pavilion" vividly records the excitement and intensity of polo matches.
In Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County (塔什库尔干塔吉克自治县), Tajik polo is the most representative. "Polo is one of the oldest sports of our Tajik people. I have played polo all my life, and I continue to teach young people to play after I retire," said Reheman Kuli Alifu Xia (热合曼库力·阿力甫夏), who is in his 80s and has been involved in polo since the 1960s. In 2008, Tajik polo was included in the national intangible cultural heritage list, and Reheman Kuli Alifu Xia (热合曼库力·阿力甫夏) became a representative inheritor.
"The rules of Tajik polo are similar to those of soccer. Two teams of 12 players compete, with positions such as forwards, defenders, and goalkeepers. The game lasts 40 minutes and is divided into two halves," Reheman Kuli Alifu Xia (热合曼库力·阿力甫夏) explained.
Today, Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County (塔什库尔干塔吉克自治县) regularly organizes polo matches, and various townships have also formed polo teams, with players from all walks of life. Jumabai Mirzhmamaiti (居玛巴依·米尔孜买买提), a local resident, is a taxi driver who learned to play polo from his father as a child. Every weekend, he takes the time to play a game, and he becomes an invincible player on the field.
On this plateau with an average altitude of more than 4,000 meters, horses gallop and polo balls roll, and the sport of polo is enduring and constantly renewed.

Grassland Horse Racing
A Contest of Endurance and Skill
People's Daily Reporter Zhang Cheng (张 枨)
Young riders wearing Mongolian robes, riding strong and sturdy horses, come through the snow, their manes flying...
In Xilinhot City (锡林浩特市), Xilingol League (锡林郭勒盟), Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (内蒙古自治区) in winter, the sound of horses' hooves echoes across the silver-clad grasslands. The finals of the 3rd Xilingol League (锡林郭勒盟) Winter Mongolian Horse Super League were recently held. This league includes events such as a 15-kilometer endurance race and a 10-kilometer 3-person team relay race.
Horse racing is a sport centered on competing for the speed of horses, and it appeared as early as the Spring and Autumn Period. On the grasslands, the history of horse racing is even longer. During festivals, herders from all directions gather together to celebrate the holidays through horse racing.
"Grassland horse racing is mainly endurance racing. The race is very long, generally dozens of kilometers, and encounters terrain such as gravel and rivers, which not only tests the coordination between the rider and the horse, but also tests endurance and skill," said Jia Meiyang (贾美洋), vice president of the Inner Mongolia Equestrian Association (内蒙古自治区马术协会). In recent years, as grassland horse racing has gradually improved, various events have divided different race distances according to the age of the horses. "Horses generally mature at 6 years old. The race distance for 2-year-old foals is usually within 10 kilometers, 3 years old is 15 to 20 kilometers, 4 years old is within 25 kilometers, and adult horses are over 30 kilometers," said Jia Meiyang (贾美洋).
In horse races, most of the participating riders are young riders aged 8 to 18. The young people on the grasslands have lived with horses since they were young, and they are naturally familiar with them. Nowadays, there are more and more horse races on the grasslands. Xilingol League (锡林郭勒盟) has more than 2,000 horse races of all sizes every year, with as few as dozens and as many as hundreds of horses participating. In 2023, Xilingol League (锡林郭勒盟) held the first Mongolian Horse Super League, which has since been held in many places. "In addition to horse racing, during the Super League, the organizing committee also incorporates some traditional skill competitions to enhance the event's viewing and participation, attracting more riders of all ages to sign up," said Jia Meiyang (贾美洋).

Modern Equestrianism
A Tacit Understanding Between Humans and Horses
People's Daily Reporter Yang Yanfei (杨颜菲)
In China, the history of humans and horses being together has been long. As early as the Zhou Dynasty, riding horses had become an important skill. In 1900, equestrian show jumping became an official Olympic event. Internationally recognized modern equestrian competitions mainly include dressage, show jumping, etc.
In the afternoon, at Tan Lun Equestrian Town (谭纶马术小镇) in Yihuang County (宜黄县), Fuzhou City (抚州市), Jiangxi Province (江西省), a modern equestrian training class is in progress. Students wearing equestrian attire ride on horseback and move forward slowly according to the coach's instructions. "Steady the rhythm, don't rush," coach Nong Xincai (农欣彩) reminded from the side. The students control the horses to change from a slow walk to a trot, take off, and land, with smooth movements.
"Equestrianism is not a one-way command, but a mutual cooperation," said Nong Xincai (农欣彩). Riders need to establish stable communication with the horses through changes in the center of gravity, leg strength, and rein signals to achieve tacit cooperation. "Horses can feel the rhythm and emotions of people."
In Yihuang (宜黄), equestrianism is entering the lives of more young people through vocational education. Yihuang County Vocational Education Center (宜黄县职业教育中心) opened an equestrian and management major in 2015, exploring the formation of a "classroom + horse farm" training model. Students complete cultural and theoretical courses at the school and receive long-term practical training at Tan Lun Equestrian Town (谭纶马术小镇), systematically learning riding skills, horse care, and safety regulations.
Wu Qingde (吴庆德), the person in charge of the major, introduced that the major adopts a school-enterprise cooperation model, relying on the professional venues, horses, and coaching team of Tan Lun Equestrian Town (谭纶马术小镇) to carry out practical teaching. "Training not only exercises skills, but also shapes character," said Wu Qingde (吴庆德). In the process of getting along with and training horses, students learn to focus and observe, and also learn to cooperate and communicate with their peers. At present, the major has trained more than 200 students, and graduates have entered equestrian clubs in Beijing (北京), Shanghai (上海), Zhejiang (浙江) and other places, engaged in rider, coach, or stable management work.
At the end of training, the horses slowly return to the stables, and the horse farm returns to quiet. On the sandy ground, hoof prints extend in a staggered manner, witnessing a new path from tradition to modernity, and from campus to a broader world.

Mounted Archery
Precise Competition Between Movement and Stillness
People's Daily Reporters Jiang Xiaodan (姜晓丹) and Wang Liang (王 亮)
Riding a horse like the wind, drawing a bow like lightning, hitting the target with arrows in a row in just over 10 seconds... Not long ago, the finals of the National Mounted Archery Tour and the Global Mounted Archery Masters were held in Shenzhen (深圳), Guangdong (广东), and the appearance of young riders on the scene won cheers from the audience.
Nowadays, more and more young people in Guangdong (广东) are falling in love with mounted archery. Li Yunyi (李云义), inheritor of Yunyi (云义) Intangible Cultural Heritage Mounted Archery Skills and Dean of Shenzhen Shangwu International Equestrian Mounted Archery Academy (深圳尚武国际马术骑射学院), introduced that although traditional concepts believe that the north has advantages in riding horses, Guangdong (广东) relies on convenient transportation and a diverse cultural tourism ecology to provide fertile ground for the promotion of mounted archery.
In recent years, the local area has both linked up with Hong Kong and Macao to attract mounted archery enthusiasts, and used the cluster advantages of equestrian clubs to build a complete system from youth enlightenment to professional events. "As an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage, I want to lead young people to understand the history of mounted archery and revitalize this sport," said Li Yunyi (李云义).
Mounted archery was popular in the Tang and Song dynasties, and its vitality continued into the Ming and Qing dynasties. In modern times, with changes in lifestyles, this skill once faded into the dust of history.
"Mounted archery is a fusion of movement and stillness. It used to be a skill on the battlefield, but now it is a carrier for cultivating the mind," said Li Yunyi (李云义), when talking about the difference between modern mounted archery and ancient mounted archery. Modern mounted archery pays more attention to competitive standardization and cultural dissemination, abandoning the actual combat attributes of ancient mounted archery and instead pursuing the precise fit between people and horses, and arrows and targets.
"Mounted archery is not only a competition, but also a flowing cultural symbol," said Wu Gangfang (吴钢芳), chairman of the Horse Culture and Sports Committee of the Chinese Ethnic Sports Association (中国少数民族体育协会马文化运动委员会). The Mounted Archery Sports Center of the Chinese Ethnic Sports Association (中国少数民族体育协会骑射运动中心) has successfully held the National Mounted Archery Championship, the National Mounted Archery Tour, etc. "These measures help to spread the culture of mounted archery and demonstrate the spirit of Chinese sports."
Inside the arena, the sound of war drums and the sound of horses' hooves are intertwined; beside the track, Hanfu and mounted archery armor shine together. Here, ancient skills are returning to contemporary life in a youthful posture.

Zouma (Ambling)
A Clever Balance Between Walking and Running
People's Daily Reporter Xu Yuyao (徐驭尧)
On the Tibetan Plateau in northern Tibet, with an average altitude of 4,500 meters, a sport that dances with horses is attracting more and more people to participate in it. This is Zouma (走马), or ambling.
Zouma (走马) competitions are not simply about competing to see who crosses the finish line first, but require horses to maintain a specific and stable posture during the process of moving forward. During the competition, the horse's four hooves cannot leave the ground at the same time, but it must increase its speed as much as possible, which especially tests the degree of cooperation between the rider and the horse.
In Nagqu City (那曲市), Tibet Autonomous Region (西藏自治区), Zouma (走马) has been integrated into the lives of local people. Whenever various Zouma (走马) competitions arrive as scheduled, the horse trainer Danbada (旦巴达) is at his busiest. On the field, Danbada (旦巴达) carefully controls the horse, controlling the speed while controlling the horse's walking posture, maintaining a clever balance between walking and running. Once the horse's movements are deformed, the referee on the sidelines will immediately determine that the competition result is invalid.
"The usual horse training is very important. As long as it is scientific and effective, it can stand out in the competition," said Danbada (旦巴达), who has been associated with horses since he was 9 years old and has been with them for decades. "Only experienced riders can grasp the relationship between speed and stability." Before each competition, the horses must go through multiple training sessions such as morning running, releasing the horses, and evening running. Danbada (旦巴达) has to live with the horses for nearly half a month, constantly improving their tacit understanding.
The emergence of Zouma (走马) is inseparable from the important role of horses in local social production and life. Traveling on horseback is a common way of traveling on the Tibetan Plateau in northern Tibet. The adults in the family ride horses, waving "Urdos" (乌尔朵) (local traditional tools for herding livestock) to drive yaks to migrate, which has become an unforgettable scene in Danbada's (旦巴达) memory. In recent years, the local area has inherited and promoted traditional folk sports, and Zouma (走马) competitions have become an increasingly popular event at horse racing festivals. In order to protect this precious tradition, Nagqu City (那曲市) actively applies for non-heritage protection funds, plans to build professional horse training venues, and train young inheritors, and traditional folk sports are constantly焕发新光彩 焕发新光彩 (huàn fā xīn guāng cǎi - "radiate new splendor," to regain vigor and vitality; to shine with renewed brilliance).

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Feel the Courage and Wisdom on Horseback

By: 高 佶

Speaking of horses in the Year of the Horse, one cannot leave out equestrian sports. The heroic horse racing, the spirited equestrian archery, the galloping polo, the elegant and exquisite equestrianism... Many of these sports have endured, not only showcasing the strength and beauty of the cooperation between humans and horses, but also containing the cultural heritage and sporting wisdom of the Chinese nation.

The tacit cooperation between humans and horses fills these sports with warmth amidst fierce competition. For riders, horses are not tools, but teammates and partners. Many riders and horses have "fought side by side" for many years. Before the race, a gentle stroke of the horse's neck and a few whispered words are enough for the steed to understand. In dressage, elegant steps are like a silent dialogue, and the rider and steed are like dancing confidants. These connections, stemming from mutual respect, allow people to see that competition is not only about speed and skill, but also about the warmth and composure that transcends species.

On horseback, the courage and collaboration of working together are inherited in the same vein. From the courage to move forward on the racetrack during the Spring and Autumn Period, to the competition for victory on the polo field in the Tang Dynasty, the spirit of unity, cooperation, and tenacious struggle has long been integrated into the blood of the Chinese nation, vividly demonstrating itself on the new era's playing field. In the venues of Guangdong (广东), Hong Kong (香港), and Macao (澳门) for the 15th National Games, the integration and connection fully demonstrate the power of collaboration. In the AFC U23 Asian Cup, the Chinese team players dared to fight and break through, not only creating the best historical result in the event, but also demonstrating the progress of China's football youth training. Every breakthrough on the field is the result of the Chinese people's unity and cooperation, and overcoming difficulties, and is a vivid expression of the Chinese sports spirit.

The sound of hooves urges people to forge ahead. On the new journey, we cannot do without the courage to **跃马扬鞭** (yuè mǎ yáng biān - "urge the horse forward with a whip," to spur on; to make great efforts), the vitality of **万马奔腾** (wàn mǎ bēn téng - "ten thousand horses galloping," a powerful and dynamic scene), and the **马不停蹄** (mǎ bù tíng tí - "horse doesn't stop its hooves," without stop; nonstop) drive. On the field, athletes take the lead and gallop in the wind; off the field, we also need the wisdom to drive forward. In the new year, let us invigorate the spirit of the dragon horse, strengthen our confidence, and stride forward.

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Editor in Charge for This Edition: Shi Zhe, Gao Ji, Wang Zhe

This issue coordinated by Lin Lin (林琳) and Gong Yuhua (巩育华).

Layout design by Cai Huawei (蔡华伟).

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A Thousand Years of Divine Steeds Riding the Wind (Cultural China Tour: Humanistic Observations)

By: 本报记者 王 珏

From the exquisite bronze chariots of the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor to the galloping horses on the Han Dynasty tombstone reliefs, from Emperor Taizong of Tang's Six Steeds of Zhaoling to the horse head statue of the Old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan) in the Qing Dynasty, the image of the horse runs through the history of Chinese civilization, becoming a symbol of strength, speed, and elegance, demonstrating the Chinese nation's spirit of striving forward and forging ahead.

In the New Year, let us follow the sound of horses' hooves, and between the exhibition halls and historical scrolls, trace the horses in cultural relics – the cultural imprint that has galloped for thousands of years.

Always Occupying an Important Position in Chinese History and Culture

Wearing a danglu (当卢) (ornamental forehead plate for horses) and with a high bun, behaving with courtesy in every gesture, it not only replicates the classic elements of ancient chariot and horse culture, but also conveys a vibrant and ambitious spirit, and embodies the New Year's blessing of "becoming a dark horse that breaks through oneself." Once released, "Qiqi," the mascot of the 2026 China Central Television (CCTV) Spring Festival Gala, was loved by many viewers. The design inspiration for "Qiqi" comes from the Western Zhou Dynasty "盠" bronze foal zun. This bronze artifact was unearthed in 1955 in Mei County (眉县), Shaanxi (陕西), with a height of 32 centimeters, and is the earliest known bronze foal-shaped vessel.

The foal zun is a wine vessel. The horse's abdomen is hollow, used to hold wine, with an opening on the back and a square lid. More importantly, its neck, chest, and the inside of the lid are cast with a 105-character inscription, recording the Zhou king's reward of two young foals to 盠 (Lí) in the Zhiju ceremony.

"In an instant, the true dragon emerges from the nine heavens, washing away the ordinariness of all horses for eternity." Throughout history, the horse has always occupied an important position in Chinese history and culture. China is one of the first countries in the world to domesticate horses, and horse bones have been found in multiple archaeological sites dating back 4,000 to 3,000 years. The character "马" (mǎ - horse) in oracle bone script is an epitome of a spirited and upright horse. In the course of historical development, the image of the horse has been integrated into China's ancient building bricks and tiles, artistic relics, and folk memories, constantly being passed down through the long river of time.

The Warring States chariots and horses of the Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng (曾侯乙墓) demonstrate the rich connotation of ancient horse culture. In the "Reading China Simply – Exhibition of Unearthed Bamboo Slips in China" held at the Hubei Provincial Museum (湖北省博物馆), the bamboo slips from the Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng record rich content about chariots and horses in the pre-Qin period. Traces of characters such as "车" (chē - chariot), "马" (mǎ - horse), and "乘" (chéng - ride) are faintly visible on the bamboo slips. "The Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng is currently the earliest tomb discovered in archaeological finds with the most recorded burial chariots and horses," said Xiao Shengzhong (萧圣中), a professor at the School of Liberal Arts of Wuhan University (武汉大学). Among them, the names of the horses are mostly distinguished and named according to the color of their coats. For example, "骐" (qí) refers to a horse with bluish-black spots, "犊骐" (dú qí) refers to a small horse with blue spots, "踦马" (qí mǎ) refers to a horse with a white left front foot... Various snow-white, dark-black, and yellow-haired horses seem to paint a picture of magnificent horses.

The bronze chariot array of the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (秦始皇陵) has stood silently for thousands of years, yet still exudes the majestic momentum of the Qin army's "thousands of chariots and tens of thousands of cavalry."

These horses have solid hooves and full muscles, and are painted all over with colorful patterns such as cloud patterns, geometric patterns, and kui dragon patterns, with rich and vibrant colors such as red, green, purple, and blue, vividly depicting the splendor and wealth of the Qin Dynasty's royal vehicles. Weng Huainan (翁淮南), director of the Library and Information Department of the National Museum of China (国家博物馆), said that the bronze chariot was assembled using various processes such as casting, inlaying, welding, mortise-and-tenon joint connection, and hinged connection. It is the largest, most complex in structure, and most complete ancient chariot and horse unearthed in Chinese archaeological history, and is known as the "Crown of Bronze."

The Tang Dynasty was the peak of Chinese horse art. Emperor Taizong of Tang (唐太宗) Li Shimin (李世民), in order to commend the six warhorses that accompanied him in battle, ordered the painter Yan Liben (阎立本) to first draw the images of the six steeds, and then the sculptor Yan Lide (阎立德) to replicate them in stone. The great calligrapher Ouyang Xun (欧阳询) then wrote the eulogies personally written by Emperor Taizong on the original stone, which were carved and placed on both sides of the altar at the northern foot of Zhaoling (昭陵). The six horses were named: Teqin Biao, Qingzhui, Shifa Chi, Saluzi, Quanmao Gua, and Baitiwu. Each of these stone carvings is 2.5 meters high and 3 meters wide, and uses high relief to vividly reproduce the six steeds on stone slabs. Three of them are standing, and three are galloping, with handsome postures, heroic charm, vivid shapes, and expressive eyes.

Yuan Jing (袁靖), a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (中国社会科学院考古研究所), said that these concise and clear shapes, skillful and profound techniques vividly highlight the personalities of the six steeds and their different encounters in battle, conveying spirit through form and combining form and spirit, fully demonstrating the bravery and fortitude of the six steeds, and expressing the highly realistic artistic style of the early Tang Dynasty.

In each cultural relic, the horses that span thousands of years not only showcase the aesthetic changes of different eras, but also carry rich historical and cultural information, becoming a living link connecting history and reality.

From Majestic Warhorses to Auspicious Symbols Carrying People's Good Wishes

"The horse made Di Lu fly so fast, the bow was like a thunderbolt, the string startled," in ancient times, the horse was a symbol of national strength. The "horse administration" of ancient China was an important indicator of measuring national strength. The "执驹礼" (zhí jū lǐ - "foal-holding ceremony") recorded in the inscription of the Western Zhou "盠" foal zun (that is, the ceremony in which the foal is trained to test-drive when it leaves its mother at the age of two to serve), is physical evidence of early horse administration management. During the Han Dynasty, dozens of official horse farms were established in the northwest region. A large number of Han Dynasty wooden slips unearthed in the Hexi Corridor (河西走廊) in Gansu (甘肃) contain detailed records of horse breeding, training, and allocation.

The Tang Dynasty even established the most complete horse administration system in history. These systems are reflected in cultural relics, such as various horse equipment and horse figurines unearthed from Tang Dynasty tombs, which are not only exquisite in craftsmanship but also uniform in specifications, reflecting the high level of maturity of systematic management at the national level.

The horse is also evidence of the integration of multi-ethnic cultures. The Tang Dynasty "Tricolor Hu People Leading Horses Figurine" in the Shaanxi History Museum (陕西历史博物馆) depicts the image of Hu people (胡人) with deep eyes and high noses. The horses they lead are tall and obviously have the characteristics of Western Region horse breeds. These cultural relics vividly reflect the personnel exchanges and species exchanges on the Silk Road during the Tang Dynasty.

With the successful application for World Heritage status for the Western Xia Mausoleums (西夏陵), the large stone horse housed in the Ningxia Museum (宁夏博物馆) has also attracted increasing attention. The large stone horse, which is 130 centimeters long, 38 centimeters wide, and 70 centimeters high, is carved from a whole piece of white sandstone using the technique of full round carving. The horse's head is slightly lowered, its neck is curved, its proportions are well-balanced, and its mane is neatly and smoothly draped over its neck, with rich layers and smooth and flowing lines, artistically reproducing the vivid image of the horse.

Wang Xiaojun (王效军), curator of the Ningxia Museum (宁夏博物馆), said that this large stone horse and the gilded bronze ox were unearthed in the same tomb and were designated as national first-class cultural relics. Archaeological team members discovered at the excavation site that the horse's head faced outward and the ox's head faced inward, reflecting the Dangxiang people's (党项人) belief that "horses go out to fight, and oxen come in to cultivate," demonstrating the close integration of warfare and farming in the Dangxiang ethnic group. "The burial of bronze oxen and stone horses not only reflects the Dangxiang people's worship of livestock such as horses and oxen, but also marks their transition from nomadic culture to agricultural culture," said Wang Xiaojun.

After the Song and Yuan dynasties, the image of the horse gradually moved from the temple to the folk. The woodblock New Year picture "Immediately Confer a Marquis" (马上封侯) has been popular for a long time. A steed carries a monkey and a bee on its back. "猴" (hóu - monkey) is a homophone for "侯" (hóu - marquis), and "蜂" (fēng - bee) is a homophone for "封" (fēng - confer), combining to form the auspicious meaning of "Immediately Confer a Marquis." The "Immediately Confer a Marquis" New Year picture is very popular during the Spring Festival and is posted in thousands of households.

In the exhibition hall of the Liaoning Provincial Museum (辽宁省博物馆), a Qing Dynasty white jade round carving of "Immediately Confer a Marquis" is quietly displayed. The entire piece has a warm and lustrous white jade texture, with delicate and smooth carving, vividly depicting a plump and sturdy steed, gently turning its head to gaze. A lively monkey on its back forms a clever echo with the horse's gaze, as if engaging in a silent dialogue. This classic combination is a concentrated embodiment of the integration of social aesthetics and jade carving craftsmanship in the Qing Dynasty, where "every picture must have a meaning, and every meaning must be auspicious."

"The spring breeze is proud, the horse's hooves are swift, and one day is enough to see all the flowers of Chang'an," the horse in cultural relics gradually permeated from the temple, battlefield, and Silk Road into people's daily life and collective psychology. The image of the horse has also transformed from a majestic warhorse into an auspicious symbol carrying people's good wishes, becoming approachable, enduring, and ever new.

Becoming a Spiritual Symbol of Striving Upward and Being Heroic and Enterprising

In the spiritual landscape of traditional Chinese culture, animals are not only simple descriptions of natural creatures, but are also endowed with rich and systematic symbolic meanings. The horse, with its long endurance and agile posture, has transformed from a means of transportation into a spiritual symbol, becoming a unique carrier connecting the material and the spiritual, the mundane and the ideal.

The Galloping Bronze Horse, with its head held high and neighing, three hooves in the air, and one hoof lightly treading on the back of a swallow – this Han Dynasty bronze artifact is not only a symbol of Chinese tourism, but also a clever interpretation of the beauty and power of the horse by ancient Chinese artists.

This bronze galloping horse, unearthed from the Leitai Han Tomb (雷台汉墓) in Wuwei (武威), Gansu (甘肃), is 34.5 centimeters high, 45 centimeters long, 13.1 centimeters wide, and weighs 7.3 kilograms. It is affectionately called "Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow" by later generations. It no longer adheres to static majesty, but captures the moment when the horse is galloping like lightning. The galloping horse lightly treads on a flying swallow with one hoof, and three hooves soar into the air. The flying bird looks back in surprise, further enhancing the galloping horse's momentum of rapid forward movement. The stress point of the galloping horse's entire body is concentrated on the one hoof that surpasses the flying bird, concretizing speed into a kind of ethereal beauty that transcends gravity. Yuan Jing said that the production process of "Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow" is very exquisite, with a robust and beautiful shape, displaying a heroic ambition of forging ahead.

The Qing Dynasty Lang Shining's "Ten Thousand Auspicious Horses" (郎世宁万吉骦轴) collected by the Palace Museum (故宫博物院) cleverly integrates Chinese and Western painting techniques. This Italian missionary used Chinese painting's silk and pigments, combined with Western perspective and chiaroscuro techniques, to depict a handsome white horse.

The painter used delicate brushstrokes to depict the horse's expression and the texture of its fur, supplemented by shadows and highlights, making the horse's muscles fully visible and full of strength. If you look closely at the horse's face, you can also find the marks of the reins on the white horse. This style of combining Chinese and Western elements is a vivid embodiment of the inclusiveness and innovation of Chinese civilization.

With the development of the times, the horse has also been endowed with increasingly rich personified qualities. The Book of Changes (周易) compares the Qian hexagram to a "dragon horse," taking its virtue of being strong, healthy, and upright; Confucius said: "A good horse is not praised for its strength, but for its virtue," turning the horse's external strength of muscles and bones to internal virtues such as loyalty, perseverance, and morality. "龙马精神" (lóng mǎ jīng shén - "dragon horse spirit," energetic and vigorous spirit) has also become a common term to describe a person's vigorous spirit and enterprising spirit.

Weng Huainan said that in the long historical evolution, the horse has become a unique symbol of Chinese civilization, demonstrating the great spirit of the Chinese people, and also showcasing the Chinese image and Chinese style.

Today, 成语 (chéng yǔ - "idiom") such as "马到成功" (mǎ dào chéng gōng - "success upon arrival of the horse," achieve immediate success), "一马当先" (yī mǎ dāng xiān - "one horse takes the lead," take the lead) and "龙马精神" (lóng mǎ jīng shén - "dragon horse spirit," energetic and vigorous spirit) have penetrated into daily life, entrusting people's expectations for career success and a happy life. From solemn national ceremonies to warm folk blessings, the spiritual connotation of the horse has completed the penetration from the "temple" to the "human world."

When we gaze at the horses in these cultural relics, we feel not only the artistic creation of the ancients, but also the spirit of the Chinese civilization striving upward and being heroic and enterprising.

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Facing Life, Spurring the Horse Forward (Humanities Tea House)

By: 辛柏青

The eponymous drama "Spring Dawn on Su Causeway (苏堤春晓)," jointly produced by the National Theatre of China (中国国家话剧院) and Hangzhou Performing Arts Group (杭州演艺集团), will be staged again this year. The drama vividly presents Su Shi's (苏轼) literary achievements, political aspirations, and life realm through rich dramatic conflicts and delicate character portrayals, showcasing Su Shi's "worldly detached" boldness and humor, and outlining Su Shi's "worldly engaged" ambition to benefit the world and his sense of responsibility. I am very fortunate to play Su Shi in this drama.

My connection with the role of Su Shi is, for me, a two-way journey of art and life. When I first read Su Shi's poems, I only felt the boldness and open-mindedness between the lines; after studying his life in depth, I read the weight of a thousand pounds behind that free and detached spirit.

In the past, when playing Su Shi, I relied more on imagination and speculation, using the professional qualities of an actor to "control" the character's emotions and words. When the storms of life really came, and I stood on the stage again, the reality and the character's state of mind suddenly intertwined. The ups and downs in the play echoed the twists and turns of life, and I truly realized the impermanence and uncontrollability of life. It is precisely because of this that Su Shi's transcendence and open-mindedness in still laughing at the situation in the storms of life is even more valuable.

Su Shi's life was full of ups and downs. He was repeatedly demoted and experienced the pain of losing loved ones, but he was not overwhelmed by suffering. Instead, he was able to find the composure of "letting a straw cloak and misty rain drift through life" in adversity, and possess the broad state of mind of "my hometown is where my heart is at peace." This transcendence and sublimation after facing life injected soul into my performance.

My acting career is also a pursuit of continuous breakthroughs and climbing. When I first graduated from the drama academy, I played the leading role in "Raging Tide (狂飙)" at the National Theatre of China (国家话剧院). In the play, I played multiple roles, and my acting skills and aesthetics achieved the first leap. As my acting career entered a period of calm, I fell into confusion and filmed mechanically every day. It was not until I participated in the drama "Red Rose and White Rose (红玫瑰与白玫瑰)" that I found a "sense of play" on the stage - performance is not about being led by the character, but about standing at a higher dimension, talking to the character, and coexisting with the stage. Therefore, when playing a role, my heart began to carry a deep joy.

This perception has been continuously deepened in subsequent creations. When performing in the drama "Four Generations Under One Roof (四世同堂)," I took the initiative to collide ideas with the director and integrate my own understanding into the role; in the drama "Green Snake (青蛇)," I consciously tempered my own performance methods; in the movie "Legend of the Demon Cat (妖猫传)," I tried to interpret Li Bai's (李白) ultimate state of "sober in drunkenness"... Every exploration is an inward excavation. Until I met "Spring Dawn on Su Causeway (苏堤春晓)" and Su Shi (苏轼), I found that this "sense of play" in performance coincided with Su Shi's "effort is a mistake." The performance must find that delicate balance between "being the character" and "not being the character," and reach a natural state of relaxation after precipitation, practicing the Chinese-style acting concept of being both serious and humorous, seemingly right and wrong, jumping in and out.

Li Bai's (李白) unrestrainedness, Wang Yangming's (王阳明) clarity, Zhou Bingyi's (周秉义) perseverance... Each character has brought me different feelings. But Su Shi (苏轼), for me, has a particularly special meaning. He is not only a new breakthrough in my acting career, but also gives me the strength to face difficulties and becomes my life's "spiritual coordinate." He taught me that even if life is bumpy, we must live out a sense of open-mindedness and composure in the wind and rain.

For me, transforming into Su Shi (苏轼) again in "Spring Dawn on Su Causeway (苏堤春晓)" is not only an artistic challenge, but also a tribute to and a journey towards the spirit of Su Shi (苏轼). Su Shi's (苏轼) wisdom and realm continue to drive me to make breakthroughs in both artistic creation and personal life. In the new year, I hope that more people will feel the power of outstanding Chinese traditional culture and have the confidence to face life and the courage to spur their horses forward.

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Editor in charge of this page: Wang Jue

Layout design: Cai Huawei (蔡华伟)

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Drum Music Celebrates Spring, Ancient Capital Teems with Spring Vigor (Cultural China Tour: Chinese New Year Flavor, Era's Vigor)

By: 本报记者 张丹华

Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum and Terracotta Army Pits (秦始皇陵及兵马俑坑), the Weiyang Palace Site of Han Chang'an City (汉长安城未央宫遗址), Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔), Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔), the Daming Palace Site of Tang Chang'an City (唐长安城大明宫遗址)... As a rich gathering place of world cultural heritage, Xi'an (西安) is a "museum without walls."

When the big red lanterns illuminate the ancient pagodas that have stood for thousands of years, when the passionate drumbeats awaken the sleeping palaces, when the laughter from all over the world intertwines at the starting point of the Silk Road—the ancient heritage injects a profound cultural foundation into the "Year," and the fiery "Year" awakens the prosperous elegance of the heritage. Let us walk into this cultural fertile land together and touch the pulse of the times that the treasures of civilization are stirring up in the Bingwu New Year.
——Editor

Horse Dance Welcomes the New Year
Awakening the Thousand-Year Heritage of the Silk Road
In the Bingwu Year of the Horse (丙午马年) New Year, a cultural feast spanning time and space quietly debuted under the Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔), a World Cultural Heritage site.

The "Horse Dance Welcomes the New Year—Global Zodiac Culture Exhibition of the Bingwu Year of the Horse (马舞新春——丙午马年全球生肖文化大联展)," guided by the National Cultural Heritage Administration (国家文物局), opened at the Xi'an Museum (西安博物院). Different from traditional displays, the biggest highlight of this exhibition lies in the "scene"—as an architectural treasure included in the "World Heritage List" in 2014, the morning bell and evening drum of the Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔) added a unique sense of time and space to this exhibition. More than a hundred exhibition boards were placed under the shadow of the Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔), and more than 400 pieces/sets of horse-themed cultural relics and images constructed a visible and tangible cultural corridor.

"The Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔) itself is a living history and a flowing heritage. As an important symbol of Chang'an (长安) in the Tang Dynasty (唐代), it is a key node of the 'Silk Road: Chang'an—Tianshan Corridor Road Network (丝绸之路：长安—天山廊道路网),' and it inherently carries a thousand years of time and space heritage," said Chen Siwen (陈斯文), curator of the Xi'an Museum (西安博物院). "For example, when the audience sees the image of the painted clay dancing horse from the Tang Dynasty (唐代), they will associate it with the grand scene of dancing horse performances that may have taken place under the Small Wild Goose Pagoda (小雁塔) at that time, and that envoys from the Western Regions (西域) may have led fine horses along the Silk Road. This immersive emotional resonance is a rare experience."

The horse is a symbol of bravery, gallop, and auspiciousness in Chinese culture, and it is also a "civilization bond" of the ancient Silk Road. Since Zhang Qian (张骞) opened up the Western Regions (西域) in the Han Dynasty (汉代), strong horses have carried merchant teams, missions, and postal riders, traversing the Gobi grasslands and connecting Chang'an (长安) with distant lands. They are not only key pillars of transportation, military affairs, and trade, but also witnessed the Silk Road prosperity of "envoys looking at each other on the road, and merchants traveling endlessly," becoming a vivid carrier of material and cultural exchanges between the East and the West. This exhibition systematically sorted out the diverse images of horses in Chinese civilization and even the world from a cross-cultural perspective, profoundly demonstrating its unique charm of connecting China and foreign countries and integrating the world.

As the eastern starting point of the Silk Road, Shaanxi's (陕西) horse culture heritage can be called a vivid slice of Chinese civilization. The cavalry figurines and pottery horses in the Qin Shi Huang Mausoleum Terracotta Army Pits (秦始皇陵兵马俑坑) are realistic in shape and strong in bones, exuding the majesty of the Qin (秦) military formation in silence; the Tang Dynasty (唐代) tri-color galloping horse treasured in the Xi'an Museum (西安博物院) has brilliant glaze colors and its four hooves are soaring into the air, and the rider is full of energy in Hu (胡) attire, showing the open-mindedness of the Tang Dynasty (唐代); the horse-riding figurines unearthed from the tomb of the Princess of Jinxiang County (金乡县主墓) delicately restore the life scenes of the Tang Dynasty (唐代) nobles traveling, hunting, and playing music; the "Six Steeds of Zhaoling (昭陵六骏)" stone carvings record great achievements with concise and vigorous lines, becoming a model of ancient Chinese stone carving art. "These precious cultural relics themselves embody the Chinese nation's spirit of openness, inclusiveness, and striving for progress," said Chen Siwen (陈斯文).

Continuing the mature model of "integrated planning, multi-party joint exhibition, and overall communication," this exhibition relies on international cooperation networks and will be launched simultaneously around the world during the Spring Festival. In conjunction with the exhibition, multilingual online display platforms and special documentaries such as "Animal Partners That Changed the World—Horses" will also be launched to promote the international communication project, making the zodiac culture, an emotional bond connecting Chinese people around the world, a distinctive carrier for promoting contemporary civilization exchanges and mutual learning.

Drumbeats Resound
Playing the Symphony of the Prosperous Tang Dynasty
On the eve of the Spring Festival, the drumbeats in the Ziyun Tower (紫云楼) of the Tang Paradise (大唐芙蓉园) in Xi'an (西安) were sonorous. Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰), the head of the Dongcang Drum Music Society (东仓鼓乐社) and a drummer, stood with a mallet in his hand. Every swing of his arm was powerful, injecting the passion and boldness of the prosperous Tang Dynasty (盛唐) into the drum sound. Like the past 20+ Spring Festivals, he is rehearsing for the performance during the Spring Festival.

Xi'an Drum Music (西安鼓乐) was listed as a "Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" by UNESCO in 2009. Drum music originated in the Sui (隋) and Tang Dynasties (唐朝). For more than a thousand years, it has been spread in the Guanzhong Plain (关中平原) area centered on Chang'an (长安), the capital of the Tang Dynasty (唐都), and is a typical representative of Chinese traditional instrumental music culture. It is known as the "living fossil of ancient Chinese music." Because of the large number of performers, including more than 20 kinds of percussion instruments, wind instruments, and plucked string instruments, it is known as the "Tang Dynasty Symphony."

"We have performed in the square of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔), a World Cultural Heritage site. As soon as the drums sounded, Chinese and foreign tourists stopped to watch. The ancient rhythms originating from the prosperous Tang Dynasty (盛唐) burst out with vigorous vitality, as if completing a civilization journey from 'human intangible heritage' to 'world sharing'," said Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰).

However, the road to inheritance of Xi'an Drum Music (西安鼓乐) is not smooth. Xi'an Drum Music (西安鼓乐) originated from the Tang Dynasty (唐代) court Yan music. During the Ming (明) and Qing Dynasties (清), it was prevalent in local urban and rural areas, and the grand scene of more than a hundred drum music societies competing on the same stage was passed down as a good story. But by the end of the 20th century, with the disappearance of the performance environment and the shrinking market, the drum music societies disbanded one after another, and the remaining 6 were struggling. The old artists of the Dongcang Drum Music Society (东仓鼓乐社) are getting older, and the inheritance of music scores relies entirely on oral transmission. Among the more than 3,000 existing music scores, only two or three hundred can actually be played.

In 2004, the Dongcang Drum Music Society (东仓鼓乐社) broke the thousand-year-old tradition and recruited students from the society for free. More than a hundred children signed up, and finally 18 persisted. Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰) is the leading figure in this new force.

"The master has always taught us to love the nation and love traditional culture." Recalling the mysterious symbols that looked like "tadpole script" when he first saw the Song Dynasty (宋代) vulgar script score 22 years ago, Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰) felt very magical.

Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰) knows that adhering to tradition is the foundation, but 墨守成规 (mò shǒu chéng guī - "stick to conventions," to be conservative and resistant to change) will only lead the drum music to extinction. "Simple sitting music performances can no longer meet the aesthetic needs of modern audiences," said Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰).

In 2021, an innovative stage play "Drum (鼓)," integrating Tang Dynasty (大唐) music and dance with Dongcang Drum Music (东仓鼓乐), came into being, allowing ancient rhythms to collide with modern technology and allowing the "thousand-year-old living fossil" to break away from the monotonous performance form.

In 2023, Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰) led the team to settle in the short video platform and started the live broadcast road. From adapting "Ode to the Great Tang (大唐礼赞)" to performing game and film and television interludes such as "Wind-like Warrior (风一样的勇士)," the team built a cultural bridge with the language of young people.

Today, this ancient "symphony orchestra" has more than 800,000 fans across the network, with a cumulative viewership of over 500 million. On the eve of this year's Spring Festival, major TV Spring Festival galas and documentary film crews came one after another. Qi Xingfeng (齐兴峰) and his team are letting this Tang Dynasty (大唐) legacy sound that has traveled through thousands of years perform new charm in the symphony of modern civilization.

Civilization Integration
Sharing Warm Chinese Stories
In the international student apartment of Xi'an University of Electronic Science and Technology (西安电子科技大学), Lusiyue (卢思玥), a student from Turkmenistan, and her brother and sister carefully decorated their residence early to welcome their mother who flew in from their hometown.

This family from a country along the Silk Road has forged a deep relationship with Xi'an (西安). The family of four will spend their third Chinese New Year in this Silk Road starting city.

Last year's Spring Festival, under the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔), in the light show of the Tang Paradise (大唐不夜城), and in the sound of gongs and drums of the lion dance performance, the mother kept exclaiming: "The Chinese New Year is so lively and festive!"

This year, in order to let her mother experience a deeper Xi'an (西安), Lusiyue (卢思玥) arranged for her to walk into the World Cultural Heritage sites of Xi'an (西安).

Walking into the Qin Shi Huang Terracotta Army Museum (秦始皇兵马俑博物馆), the mother asked Lusiyue (卢思玥) about the story of ancient Chinese civilization more than 2,000 years ago. Under the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔), Lusiyue (卢思玥) told her mother about Xuanzang's (玄奘) journey to the west to obtain Buddhist scriptures and translate them, and also introduced the significance of this ancient pagoda as an important witness to the civilization exchange of the Silk Road.

Standing in front of the Terracotta Army and the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔), Lusiyue (卢思玥) often has a feeling of "déjà vu." Turkmenistan is also an important country on the ancient Silk Road, and it has also left behind ancient city ruins, the imprint of caravan exchanges, and the history of the integration of diverse civilizations. Now in Xi'an (西安), when she sees tourists from all over the world, she truly feels that thousands of years ago, different civilizations met and understood each other through the Silk Road. The Silk Road is not only a trade road, but also a civilization road connecting people's hearts.

In addition to sightseeing, Lusiyue (卢思玥) also prepared a special "cultural New Year gift"—personally teaching her mother to write Chinese calligraphy. "After coming to China for 3 years, I have gone from not being able to hold a brush steadily to being able to write beautiful 'Fu (福)' characters and Spring Festival couplets. I know that this is not only practicing calligraphy, but also a unique ritual to feel the festive atmosphere."

In Lusiyue's (卢思玥) plan, she wants to share the cultural meaning behind it with her mother: the "Fu (福)" character carries the expectation of happiness and good luck, and sticking the "Fu (福)" character upside down is the ingenuity of "Fu (福) arriving at the door"; the Spring Festival couplets are neatly paired, hiding the blessings for a prosperous and smooth new year. She also plans to tell more Spring Festival customs: setting off firecrackers is to "bid farewell to the old and welcome the new," and giving red envelopes is to "suppress the year" and pray for blessings.

"I used to only read about these customs in books, but after actually being in China, I realized that this is the real lifestyle of every household," said Lusiyue (卢思玥).

For families, the core of the Spring Festival is always reunion. "For my mother, having her children by her side is the best New Year; for us, being able to reunite with our family in a foreign country is the most down-to-earth happiness," Lusiyue (卢思玥) sighed. In this ancient capital with thousands of years of history, witnessed by the World Cultural Heritage, the Spring Festival is no longer a simple "cultural experience" for her, but a warm "Chinese story" in the integration of civilizations.

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Beijing: Strong Lunar New Year Atmosphere Along Central Axis

By: 本报记者 施 芳

In 2024, the "Central Axis of Beijing (北京) - A Masterpiece of the Ideal Order of a Chinese Capital" was inscribed on the World Heritage List. During the Bingwu Spring Festival, diverse cultural activities were held along the Central Axis of Beijing (北京), creating a Spring Festival atmosphere that blends "New Year's flavor" and "Beijing (北京) flavor" for citizens and tourists.

Temple fairs have always been the most distinctive way to experience the New Year in Beijing (北京). This Spring Festival, the Ditan (地坛), Longtan (龙潭), and Changdian (厂甸) temple fairs, which hold memories for generations of Beijingers (北京人), arrived as scheduled. While maintaining their traditional characteristics, they added more live performances, including Quyi, Qinshu, Xiang Sheng, acrobatics, and martial arts, providing citizens and tourists with a rich and diverse experience.

During the Spring Festival, Beijing's (北京) theaters offered a continuous stream of excellent performances. Audiences could go to the Capital Theater (首都剧场) to see the Beijing People's Art Theater's (北京人艺) drama "Under the Red Banner," to the Chang'an Grand Theater (长安大戏院) to see the classic Peking Opera "The Lock Pouch," and to the Zhongshan Park (中山公园) Concert Hall to listen to the Beijing National Orchestra's (北京民族乐团) "Hundred Birds Paying Homage to the Phoenix, Ten Thousand Horses Welcoming Spring" New Year concert.

"Celebrating the New Year in Museums" is also a major highlight of the Spring Festival in Beijing (北京). This Spring Festival, various museums, art galleries, and exhibition halls in Beijing (北京) launched more than 150 exhibitions and cultural activities. Along the central axis, a series of exhibitions such as the National Museum of China's (中国国家博物馆) "Galloping Horses and Whips - New Year Culture Exhibition of the Year of the Horse" and the Palace Museum's (故宫博物院) "The Oneness of All Laws: The Great Exhibition of Sakya Monastery" feast the eyes of the audience. Major museums have also prepared a series of Spring Festival-themed cultural and creative products, allowing the audience to bring home the "New Year's flavor" contained in traditional Chinese culture.

In addition, the orchid exhibition in Zhongshan Park (中山公园) and the peony exhibition in Jingshan Park (景山公园), which have a long history, will bring a spring-like enjoyment to citizens and tourists.

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Hangzhou: West Lake Embraces the New Year with Song Dynasty Charm

By: 本报记者 江 南

In 2011, the "Hangzhou West Lake Cultural Landscape" (杭州西湖文化景观) was inscribed on the World Heritage List. This landscape, embodying generations of craftsmanship and traditional Chinese aesthetic thought, has always been the epitome of the Jiangnan (江南) charm. From the end of January to the beginning of March 2026, Hangzhou (杭州市), Zhejiang Province (浙江省), will meticulously prepare the "Hundred Horses Welcoming the New Year · 2026 'Song' (宋) Fortune Hangzhou Year" series of activities, presenting a rich Spring Festival cultural tourism "feast" to citizens and tourists.

The "West Lake Fortune Boat" (西湖福气船) shuttles across the water, becoming a lively symbol of the New Year's flavor. This exclusive Hangzhou (杭州) Spring Festival activity uses 30 West Lake (西湖) hand-rowed boats to carry Song Dynasty (宋朝) style horse lanterns. The horse lanterns take the flying horse as the core shape, embellished with Song Dynasty (宋朝) auspicious patterns and twining patterns, deeply integrating lantern art with traditional culture. Citizens and tourists can sign up to participate through the "Hangzhou Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Release" (杭州文广旅游发布) WeChat official account.

At night, at the Southern Song Dynasty Deshou Palace Relics Museum (南宋德寿宫遗址博物馆), not far from West Lake (西湖), the warm yellow halo outlines the palace silhouette, and a light and shadow spectacle called "Deshou Night Banquet" (德寿夜宴) is being staged wonderfully. "Etiquette officials" (礼官) dressed in Song Dynasty (宋朝) costumes greet visitors with smiles, leading them into the depths of history.

As a specialized museum built on the basis of the site itself, Deshou Palace (德寿宫) is not only an exhibition space for cultural relics, but also transforms Southern Song Dynasty (南宋) culture, urban customs, and craftsmanship elements into perceptible and participatory experiences through digital light and shadow, holographic projection, and naked-eye 3D technologies during the Spring Festival.

As a key project of Hangzhou's (杭州) "Song Charm and Modern Brilliance" (宋韵今辉) urban cultural strategy, "Deshou Night Banquet" (德寿夜宴) is not just a light show performance, but also a new attempt by Hangzhou (杭州) to expand cultural tourism consumption. The project is based on Southern Song Dynasty (南宋) culture for creative transformation, and through content creation and technological applications, the historical space is truly "brought to life" at night, which not only extends the opening hours of the museum and boosts the night economy, but also transforms cultural resources into products suitable for all ages to experience and consume.

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Yinchuan: Xixia Treasures Celebrate the New Year

By: 本报记者 张 文

In 2025, the "Western Xia Mausoleums" (西夏陵), located in Yinchuan (银川), Ningxia (宁夏), were successfully inscribed on the World Heritage List. During the first Spring Festival following the successful application, the Western Xia Mausoleums Museum fully utilized the public cultural service function of a World Heritage site, launching Spring Festival-themed activities such as high-quality exhibitions, folk customs experiences, and intangible cultural heritage displays, making spending the New Year in the museum a new custom.

"We focused on the Spring Festival theme, combining Western Xia cultural relics exhibitions with traditional Chinese solar terms culture, zodiac culture, and folk art," explained Wang Lin (王琳), a guide at the Western Xia Mausoleums Museum.

Innovative cultural and museum experiences are a major highlight of this Spring Festival event. During the Spring Festival, the museum launched horse-year auspicious beast keychains and bookmarks, cleverly combining the image of a steed with Western Xia cultural relics. In addition, the archaeological blind boxes developed by the museum allow Spring Festival tourists to experience the "joy of archaeology" – as the mini "Luoyang shovel" excavates layer by layer, replicas of cultural relics such as the Chiwen, sea lion, stone horse, and gilded bronze bull will vividly appear before your eyes, making historical culture within reach.

At the same time, the museum cleverly integrates traditional folk customs with trendy entertainment. The museum has traditional folk activities such as "skillfully cutting spring," "cultural and museum lucky bags," Western Xia character blessings, and movable type printing of Spring Festival couplets, as well as trendy leisure and entertainment methods such as the script killing game "Legend of Intangible Cultural Heritage" and the 4D movie "Return to Western Xia." The immersive performance project "Western Xia Music Collection," assisted by modern light and shadow technology, allows static historical relics and monuments to present dynamic effects, creating a rich atmosphere of ancient urban streets and alleys.

In order to promote Ningxia (宁夏) intangible cultural heritage, the museum will also invite several autonomous region-level and Yinchuan (银川) city-level intangible cultural heritage inheritors to display intangible cultural heritage skills in the museum during the Spring Festival, such as Helan Stone (贺兰石) seal carving techniques and wheat stalk handicraft production techniques, and hold flower lantern market fairs and blessing tours in the museum area, using flower lanterns to light up the museum's Spring Festival.

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Editor in Charge for This Edition: Meng Yang, Tang Zhongke, Liang Zeyu

Layout Design: Zhang Danfeng (张丹峰)

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A Sparkling "Pearl" at the Foot of the Taihang Mountains (A Journey of Chinese Culture: Exploring Traditional Villages)

By: 本报记者 郑洋洋

Since ancient times, "roads" have been an unavoidable theme under the Taihang Mountains.

The eight-hundred-li Taihang Mountains (太行山), like a giant dragon, stretch from north to south, forming a natural barrier between Shanxi (山西) and Hebei (河北) provinces. Within Pindging County (平定县), Yangquan City (阳泉市), Shanxi Province, the Taihang Mountains open up an east-west gap—the historically famous Jingxing Ancient Road (井陉古道), which has become an important passage through the mountains from ancient times to the present.

Around this transportation hub, 41 Chinese traditional villages are densely distributed. In recent years, the local area has used the "Taihang No. 1 Tourist Highway" (太行一号旅游公路) as a medium to implement the concentrated and contiguous protection and utilization of traditional villages, stringing together traditional villages like pearls. In 2022, Pingding County (平定县) was named a demonstration county for the concentrated and contiguous protection and utilization of traditional villages.

Blooming with the Charm of a Majestic Pass and Waterside Town

To find the ancient villages of Pingding (平定), one cannot bypass Niangziguan (娘子关).

Leaving Pingding County (平定县), heading northeast for more than 40 kilometers, following the "Taihang No. 1 Tourist Highway" (太行一号旅游公路), you will arrive at Niangziguan Village (娘子关村).

Niangziguan (娘子关), perched on a cliff, facing water, guards the eastern gateway of Shanxi (山西).

Stepping on the smooth bluestone and walking up the steep ancient post road, you will reach the Niangziguan South Gate Tower (娘子关南门楼) built in the Ming Dynasty. A huge plaque with the words "The Ninth Pass Under Heaven" (天下第九关) hangs on the pavilion, and the words "Jingji Barrier" (京畿藩屏) are engraved on the archway, which is particularly eye-catching. At the foot of the mountain, the Mian River (绵河) flows潺潺, together with the century-old iron bridge on the river, telling the vicissitudes of Niangziguan (娘子关). On both wings of the pass, the Great Wall follows the undulating ridges, like an eagle spreading its wings, and like a giant dragon rising, integrated with the city tower. Ascending to a high place and looking far away, the magnificent mountains and rivers can be seen at a glance.

The traditional village of Niangziguan Village (娘子关村), which prospered because of the pass, is located here. Following the terrain of the mountains and rivers, the outline of the village is like the Chinese character "人" (rén - "person"), divided into multiple street and lane areas. On the 150-meter-long Guancheng Street (关城街), there are gray brick and stone residences, remnants of ancient guard stables, barracks, and Guandi Temple (关帝庙).

While the majestic pass is famous, the true soul of Niangziguan (娘子关) lies in its tenderness and beauty.

"Although there are many famous passes in the world, there are few as beautiful as Niangziguan (娘子关)!" Tourists say so. Coming out of Guancheng Street (关城街), with steep cliffs on both sides, the iconic scenic spot of Niangziguan (娘子关)—Hanging Spring Waterfall (悬泉瀑布)—comes into view. "The emerald cliffs stand high, reaching the sky, and the flying springs roar like thunder on the rocks." The waterfall is like flying rain and beaded curtains, reflecting the verdant pines and cypresses on the cliff walls, endlessly jumping, roaring, and pouring down on the rugged rocks.

Only after passing the waterfall can you enter the depths of the village. Along the long canyon, you will first see the quiet and gentle Pingyang Lake (平阳湖). From the cliff beside the lake to the east is the village's Linquan Ancient Street (临泉古街), also known as "Waterside Homes."

The streets and alleys are crisscrossed, and the spring water is like a naughty child, popping out from who knows where. Water flows in front of every house, and clear waves are next to every stove, no less than the scenery of a waterside town in Jiangnan (江南).

Niangziguan Village (娘子关村) has abundant groundwater reserves and numerous springs. Villagers dug canals and ditches to gather the spring water into the canals, and built more than 20 water mills and water rollers in the area through which the water flows. Stone slabs are laid across the canals in many places for people to fetch water and wash clothes.

"In recent years, the village has restored the ancient buildings on Xinglong Street (兴隆街), built a glass plank road and a sea of flowers in the scenic area, and created cultural tourism art festivals, intangible cultural heritage exhibitions, and river lantern festivals, giving the ancient village a new fashion," said Yang Wenbao (杨文宝), secretary of the Niangziguan Village (娘子关村) Party Branch.

Awakening the Prosperity of the Ancient Village's Commercial Road

Starting from Niangziguan (娘子关) and heading west along the "Taihang No. 1 Tourist Highway" (太行一号旅游公路), a few kilometers away, you will reach Xiadongzhai Village (下董寨村) in Niangziguan Town (娘子关镇).

In ancient times, military travelers entering Jin (晋) often passed through Xiadongzhai Village (下董寨村). Coal and ironware transported from Shanxi (山西), and grain, oil, and cloth transported from the east, were carried by mules, horses, and camels in an endless stream. The village gradually prospered and became a commercial town. However, in modern times, the status of the commercial thoroughfare no longer existed, and the village gradually became desolate. On the ancient commercial street in the village, the deep and shallow ruts silently tell of the past commercial prosperity, and the mottled old courtyard walls solidify time and leave memories. There is a pavilion on each of the east and west sides of the village, and in the middle of the pavilions is the not-so-wide street. On both sides, there are more than 50 courtyards, of which nearly 20 are storefronts from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Holding a "good family fortune" but not knowing how to use it, Xiadongzhai Village (下董寨村) once suffered from weak industries, and villagers could only go far away to make a living.

In 2021, the Pingding County (平定县) Party Committee and County Government hired expert teams from Taiyuan University of Technology (太原理工大学) and other institutions to compile the Pingding County Traditional Village Concentrated and Contiguous Protection and Utilization Plan, and analyzed and evaluated the natural and humanistic characteristics of the local ancient villages. "We clearly proposed: taking the Great Wall pass culture as the lead, and the Jingxing Post Road (井陉驿路), Cliff Ancient Road (岩崖古道), and Camel Road Corridor (驼道走廊) three ancient road cultural clusters as the guide, focusing on building a concentrated and contiguous demonstration area in Niangziguan Town (娘子关镇) and Jucheng Town (巨城镇)," said Liang Hailiang (梁海亮), deputy director of the Pingding County (平定县) Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau.

In recent years, Xiadongzhai Village (下董寨村) has restored the ancient buildings in accordance with the principle of "restoring the old as before." At the same time, the village has also relied on the ancient commercial street to attract investment, and plans to introduce paper-cutting, root carving, Pingding stoneware (平定砂器), gourd pyrography, etc., so that tourists can feel the charm of Xiadongzhai Village (下董寨村) in static display and dynamic experience.

In recent years, the village has introduced social capital, integrated ancient buildings and Longtan Gorge (龙潭峡谷) resources, and promoted rural tourism with national intangible cultural heritage representative projects such as "Running Horse Row" (跑马排), attracting many tourists to visit ancient buildings and residences, experience canyon rafting, and feel the Spring Festival folk customs. Dong Wenjun (董文军), secretary of the Xiadongzhai Village (下董寨村) Party Branch, said: "In recent years, the village's cultural tourism industry has developed well, the living environment has become more and more beautiful, and the popularity has become more and more prosperous."

Unfolding a Landscape Painting of the Taihang Mountains

Every year, Pingding County (平定县) holds a "Niangziguan" (娘子关) half marathon.

Along the "Taihang No. 1 Tourist Highway" (太行一号旅游公路), stepping on the marks of the ancient commercial road, thousands of contestants start from Niangziguan (娘子关) and run through the Mian River (绵河) scenery, Niangziguan Railway Station (娘子关火车站), and a series of pastoral scenery and railway scenery, with the sound of birdsong echoing in their ears from time to time, enjoying the natural beauty while exercising.

At present, the local area is accelerating the development of the cultural tourism industry and creating a hundred-mile Taihang Mountain (太行山) landscape gallery project. On the tourist highway, there are observation decks, a lakeside starlight slow road, a Great Wall trail, and RV camps. If you are tired from walking, you can choose a traditional village nearby, and there may be surprises.

Yanhuai Village (岩会村), Jucheng Town (巨城镇), next to the tourist highway, is renovating a two-story old house from the Ming and Qing dynasties. "We are rescuing and restoring it to transform it into a characteristic homestay," introduced Zhai Baoping (翟宝平), secretary of the Yanhuai Village (岩会村) Party Branch. Some of the village's residences can be traced back to the Ming and Qing dynasties. The courtyards are mostly built of stone, and there are many well-preserved ancient trees, ancient pavilions, ancient temples, ancient opera stages, ancient tunnels, and ancient courtyards.

With the opening of the "Taihang No. 1 Tourist Highway" (太行一号旅游公路), tourists have been flocking to the originally remote mountain village, and the village's sweet potatoes, millet, pumpkins and other agricultural products have sold a lot. In 2024, Yanhuai Village (岩会村) introduced a local enterprise and built a water park at the entrance of the village. Every spring and summer, many parents bring their children to experience it.

"After these projects are completed and put into operation, they will not only solve the employment problem of villagers, but also drive the development of industries such as catering and the production and sales of characteristic agricultural products, injecting new impetus into the village's collective economy and farmers' income increase," said Zhai Baoping (翟宝平).

Coordinating funds to repair these ancient villages, ancient buildings, and ancient streets has become the focus of local work.

"Pingding County (平定县) coordinates the protection of traditional villages with the construction of beautiful villages, and comprehensively improves the infrastructure such as water, electricity, roads, gas, and heating in the contiguous demonstration area. At the same time, the traditional villages implement a 'one village, one file' and 'listing and code assignment' system. All 41 traditional villages in the county have been built into online boutique digital museums, and the protection archives have been improved," said Wang Junjie (王俊杰), Minister of the Propaganda Department of the Pingding County (平定县) Party Committee. Now, the 300-kilometer Pingding (平定) section of the "Taihang No. 1 Tourist Highway" (太行一号旅游公路) is fully open, connecting 8 A-level and above tourist attractions and 41 traditional villages in the county into a chain, and more and more traditional villages are ushering in a new look of development.

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Riding Swiftly on Horseback on the Sixteenth Day of the First Lunar Month

By: 本报记者 刘鑫焱 郑洋洋

Cheers erupted. On the backs of saddleless horses, riders gripped with their legs, reined in hand, and sped like the wind down the narrow, cobblestone streets. As they raced from one end of the street towards the finish line, the riders stretched out their arms and let out victorious cheers. The shouts, praises, applause, and hoofbeats of the surrounding audience mingled together, bringing the atmosphere to a climax.

This is "Running Horse Team" (跑马排), a distinctive folk custom activity in Xia Dongzhai Village (下董寨村), Niangziguan Town (娘子关镇), Pindin County (平定县), Shanxi Province (山西省), which was included in the extended list of the fifth batch of national intangible cultural heritage representative projects in 2021.

The folk customs of Xia Dongzhai Village (下董寨村) are rich and colorful. Shehuo (社火) and Dengguan (灯官) have been passed down to this day, with a profound influence on the folk customs of neighboring counties and cities. The "Running Horse Team" (跑马排) retains the customs and traditions of the military garrison culture in the pass areas of China, and is a folk performance with very distinctive regional characteristics. On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month every year, villagers from nearby areas, as well as tourists from home and abroad, make a special trip to Xia Dongzhai Village (下董寨村) to see the spectacle. "Streetsides, rooftops, walls, are all packed with people," said Dong Wenjun (董文军), Secretary of the Party Branch of Xia Dongzhai Village (下董寨村).

When did the "Running Horse Team" (跑马排) activity originate? According to legend, Xia Dongzhai Village (下董寨村) has a strategic location that is easy to defend and difficult to attack, and forms a mutual support with Niangziguan (娘子关). Messengers often traveled back and forth to deliver military information. As time passed, the delivery of military information gradually evolved into the "Running Horse Team" (跑马排), combined with the Shehuo (社火) performance of "Broadsword Breaking Spear" (大刀破矛) and "Barehanded Seizing Gun" (白手夺枪), showcasing the strong military garrison culture of Xia Dongzhai Village (下董寨村).

The biggest feature of the "Running Horse Team" (跑马排) activity is that there is neither a saddle nor stirrups on the horse's back. It all depends on the riders' skilled techniques, testing their courage and agility.

In the morning, when the first drumbeat sounds, each household along the street first lays furnace slag on the street to prevent the bluestone road from being slippery. Subsequently, two "Dengguan" (灯官) dressed in ancient costumes begin to patrol the streets - Dengguan (灯官) are villagers who are fully deliberated and selected by the villagers before the Spring Festival every year, and are responsible for arranging festival activities.

When the second drum sounds, the riders patrol the streets on horseback, each with a proud and triumphant look on their faces, frequently greeting the people on both sides.

The horse team waits at the square at the entrance of the alley. When the third drum is struck, it announces the start of the "Running Horse Team" (跑马排).

Tang! Tang! Tang! As soon as the opening gong sounds, seven horses fly out in succession in a 500-meter-long and about 4-meter-wide ancient bluestone alley. The horses raise their manes and flick their tails, their hooves soaring into the air, running west along the street like arrows leaving the string. Those skilled riders straighten up and wave their arms. The people watching on both sides keep cheering, and accompanied by deafening sounds, the entire street converges into a earth-shaking carnival ocean.

In the "Running Horse Team" (跑马排), there are also Shehuo (社火) teams with drums and gongs playing together and colorful flags fluttering. They wear ancient costumes, paint their faces, and perform demonstrative fights with weapons in the street.

At 10:00 a.m., the horse team takes to the streets again. The seven riders are all wrapped in headscarves and tied with short black clothes. The leader is wearing a fur coat inside out, carrying official documents and a wooden frame on his back. The official documents are written with words such as "Extremely Urgent, Report to the Capital Immediately" (十万火急，速报京师) and "Military Situation is Urgent, No Delay Allowed" (军情紧急，不得延误). The wooden frame is fitted with a bronze string bell, which makes a "ding-ling-ling" sound when running.

If the initial horse race was just for training, the appearance of the costumed riders now marks the beginning of the official activity. The seven riders run three laps amid cheers, and no one else is allowed to snatch or ride randomly. When the three laps are completed, it represents the end of the "Running Horse Team" (跑马排) activity.

Then, the lively Shehuo (社火) and other activities begin again.

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"Peng": From Two Strings of Cowry Shells to Like-Minded Companions (Talking About Cultural Relics: Chinese Characters in Cultural Relics)

By: 李晓阳

Confucius said: "Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters?" Today, when we talk about the word "friend" (朋), we often think of like-minded companions who walk hand in hand.

However, this word, full of warmth and companionship, was initially closely related to wealth and was even a unit of measurement for "hard currency."

In modern Chinese characters, many characters related to wealth, such as "wealth" (财), "goods" (货), and "loan" (贷), contain the radical "贝" (bèi - shell). The oracle bone script of "朋" (péng) often appears as two strings of cowrie shells arranged side by side. It is generally believed that five shells make a string, and two strings make a "朋" (péng), its original meaning being a unit of cowrie currency. The Shang Dynasty bronze vessel, the Shusizi Ding (戍嗣子鼎) (see Figure 1), now housed in the Yinxu Museum, is inscribed with the following: "On the day of Bingwu, the King rewarded Shusizi with twenty 朋 (péng) of cowrie shells at Lanzong, to be used to cast a precious ding vessel for his father Gui." In other words, the Shang king rewarded the family heir serving as a garrison officer with twenty 朋 (péng) of cowrie shells at the ancestral temple. Shusizi, honored by this favor, cast this precious ding vessel to commemorate his father Gui.

Natural shells first appeared as currency in the late Neolithic period, reaching their peak in the Shang and Zhou dynasties. Due to the rapid increase in usage, coupled with the limited production of natural sea shells, imitations such as stone shells and bone shells appeared in the mid-to-late Shang Dynasty, eventually developing into bronze-cast shell coins, becoming the earliest prototype of metal coinage in China.

As an important currency in the Shang Dynasty, shell coins served the functions of wealth storage, commendation, and reward. In 1976, more than 6,880 sea shells were unearthed from the tomb of Fu Hao (妇好) in Yinxu, Anyang, the largest burial of shell coins discovered to date, reflecting the tomb owner's high status. In addition to the story mentioned earlier of Shusizi using twenty 朋 (péng) of shell coins to cast a precious ding vessel, the inscription on the Western Zhou bronze vessel Wei He (卫盉) records that Ju Bo (矩伯) once used "ten tian" (十田), equivalent to "eighty 朋 (péng)" at the time, to exchange for a jade Zhang (玉璋). If calculated according to the Zhou system, where each tian (田) is approximately 31.2 mu (亩) in modern terms, the sea shells in Fu Hao's tomb were worth the equivalent of more than 2,600 mu (亩) of fertile land. Even in small civilian tombs in Yinxu, several shell coins were often found as burial objects. This shows that the monetary system centered on "贝" (bèi - shell) had permeated all levels of society.

Based on this socio-economic foundation, the meaning of the word "朋" (péng) underwent its first key evolution, gradually extending to mean "a group with common interests." The phrase "朋友" (péng yǒu - friends) often appears in the inscriptions on Western Zhou bronze vessels, likely referring to members of the clan. The Bo Kang Gui (伯康簋) states: "Bo Kang made this precious gui vessel to feast his friends and to offer sacrifices to his royal father and royal mother." Feasting friends is mentioned alongside ancestor worship, indicating the close relationship between nobles and their "friends."

With further changes in social structure, the meaning of "朋" (péng) gradually detached from the carrier of shell coins and the scope of kinship, turning to abstract interpersonal relationships. The "朋" (péng) in "有朋自远方来" (yǒu péng zì yuǎn fāng lái - "to have friends coming from afar") refers to "like-minded people." At the same time, the distinction between "朋" (péng) and "友" (yǒu) gradually blurred, gradually forming the modern Chinese meaning of "朋友" (péng yǒu - friend).

Looking at the evolution of the word "朋" (péng), it has transformed from cowrie shells strung together by rope to a bond connecting people's hearts; from a measure of material things to a coordinate marking emotions. It can be seen that a strong friendship is more valuable than money.

(The author is the Director of the Anyang Municipal Bureau of Cultural Relics, interviewed and compiled by Zhang Wenhao (张文豪), reporter of this newspaper)

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Editors of this page: Meng Yang, Tang Zhongke, Xu Yang

Layout Design: Shen Yiling (沈亦伶)

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Our Spring Festival: The Spirit of the Dragon-Horse

When lanterns are hung on the eaves, when blessings fly over mountains and rivers, when thousands of families joyfully reunite, there is a group of people who are still persevering and striving. They are like silent stars, guarding the brilliance of the world. They are the soldiers stationed at the border outposts, the drivers speeding on the railway lines, the couriers shuttling through the streets and alleys, and the angels in white busy in the emergency rooms... In seemingly ordinary positions, they interpret responsibility with sweat and annotate responsibility with struggle.

The Bingwu Year of the Horse is approaching. The spirit of the horse is not only the galloping of stepping on snow and chasing the wind, and moving forward bravely, but also the tenacity of being down-to-earth and carrying heavy burdens. These silently dedicated ordinary heroes remind people of the precious qualities flowing in the blood of the Chinese nation—the "Dragon Horse Spirit": high-spirited and galloping, striving endlessly, integrating personal running into the tide of the times, and writing the warmest footnote for struggle with solid footprints.

In this day of taking the lead and everything being renewed, let us pay tribute to these lovely people, draw strength from them to move upward and be kind, live up to our youth, 踔厉奋发 (chuō lì fèn fā - "energetically strive forward," to work hard and forge ahead), and jointly head towards a warmer and brighter spring.

——Editor

Plunging into the Wind and Snow of Antarctica
Xu Chen (许晨)

At the southernmost tip of the earth—Antarctica, heaven and earth are solidified together by an ancient, silent white, making it impossible to distinguish where the beginning and end are. Occasionally, a few penguins wearing "tailcoats" waddle back and forth, like mobile ink dots accidentally dropped on a huge blank space. The strong wind, carrying billions of years of cold and crushed snow, howls and sweeps across the ice sheet, as if to erase all traces of life. However, in this most rampant wind and snow, a bright red suddenly flashes.

That red is not an embellishment, but an eruption; not an existence, but a declaration. Between the lead-gray sky, the dark blue ice sea, and the vast snowfield, it is like a cluster of flames struggling out of the earth's core, burning and jumping. Closer, you can see that it is a few people, wrapped in bulky red polar work clothes, bending over and fiddling with scientific research instruments. The wind almost knocks them over, and the snow particles beat on their bodies with a rustling sound, but that touch of red is anchored there, heavy, warm, as if it can melt the surrounding cold.

This is the scene I recently saw in a WeChat video from a friend—the overwintering team of the Chinese fifth Antarctic research station, Qinling Station (秦岭站), who have been on duty for a year, are working in the field. Although it is summer in Antarctica at this time, it is still a world shrouded in white snow and silver ice. Suddenly, a figure appeared in the video. Although he was wearing a windproof hat and sunglasses, I recognized him at a glance—Wang Zhechao (王哲超), an engineer at the Chinese Polar Research Center (中国极地研究中心).

In 2024, I interviewed Wang Zhechao for writing the reportage "Dragon Dance in the North and South Poles." His face was plated with a deep ochre color by the polar sunlight, and when he smiled, the lines at the corners of his eyes were like fine cracks where ice and snow had been blown open by the wind. He talked about the difficulties of building Qinling Station in a blizzard, and the dizziness of being unable to fall asleep under the fluorescent light of the polar day, his tone as calm as if he were telling someone else's story. Only when he talked about the opening of Qinling Station did his voice fluctuate: "I personally raised the five-star red flag on the Ross Sea (罗斯海) in Antarctica. That day, General Secretary Xi Jinping (习近平) sent a congratulatory letter from Beijing (北京), and everyone's eyes were wet!"

Wang Zhechao has spent five Spring Festivals in Antarctica. On this festival engraved in the blood of the Chinese people, symbolizing reunion, he and his partners plunged into the wind and snow of Antarctica. After New Year's Day in 2026, the 42nd Chinese Antarctic expedition team came. To celebrate the "meeting in Antarctica," they specially hung red lanterns and pasted festive window decorations in the station.

I imagine such a night—on the sky where the storm has temporarily subsided, the Antarctic light is scattering unpredictable ghostly greens and pale purples, a beauty that is almost a miracle. Under this vast and cold sky, warm lights shine through the square windows of Qinling Station. I seem to see: Wang Zhechao and his teammates sitting around together, with the smiling faces of their families thousands of miles away on the screen in front of them. The sound may be delayed, and the image may be stuck, but it cannot cut off the deep concern in the "Happy New Year" greetings.

It is said that on New Year's Eve, some scientific expedition members video with their families and specially put on red scientific expedition uniforms, smoothing the national flag logo on their chests. They said: "We have to let our relatives see that we are in good spirits here, and we are 'prospering'." In traditional Chinese culture, red symbolizes auspiciousness, festivity, and liveliness, and in the snow-covered polar regions, this red is still a striking sign and a guarantee of safety. The scientific expedition members jokingly said that this suit can not only resist the physical cold, but also symbolizes spiritual struggle.

The wind and snow will continue to roar, and the footprints are often buried. But I know that as long as the lights in those square windows are still on, as long as the red figure is still jumping on the white snow, in the story of this ancient ice sheet, there will always be a warm chapter.

Dear friends, maybe you will never set foot on the Antarctic continent, but you can have the same qualities as the Antarctic scientific expedition members: perseverance in the face of difficulties, persistence in the pursuit of truth, and loyalty in serving the country. Your "Antarctica" may be overcoming a technical difficulty, sticking to an ordinary job, or achieving the ultimate in your field. In this way, no matter where you are, no matter what you are doing, you can become that "touch of red" that inspires the world...

Do Not Say the Border Mountains are Far, Galloping Thousands of Miles
Li Jianyong (李建永)

What is the "Dragon Horse Spirit"?

You know, I have actually done a little research on this topic. "Dragon Horse" is a mythical beast with the head of a dragon and the body of a horse in ancient legends. The Book of Documents · Gu Ming (《尚书·顾命》) records: "The celestial sphere, the Hetu (河图), is in the east sequence." Kong Anguo's (孔安国) commentary on the Book of Documents says: "When Fuxi (伏羲氏) ruled the world, the Dragon Horse came out of the river, and then he followed its pattern to draw the Eight Trigrams, which is called Hetu." And the term "Dragon Horse Spirit" comes directly from the poem "Presenting to Pei Jin Gong (上裴晋公)" by the Tang Dynasty poet Li Ying (李郢): "Worrying about the country for four dynasties, the temples have become silk, with the spirit of a dragon horse and the posture of a sea crane," describing the mental state of Pei Du (裴度), an outstanding politician and famous prime minister of the mid-Tang Dynasty, who was old but still strong. Later, "Dragon Horse Spirit" is also used to describe a person's vigorous spirit and striving upward.

Not only that. I think the "Dragon Horse Spirit" should also have a richer and more profound spiritual connotation. The Da Xiang Ci (大象辞) of the Qian (乾) and Kun (坤) hexagrams, the gateways of the Book of Changes (周易), one says "As heaven maintains vigor through movement, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-improvement (天行健，君子以自强不息)," and the other says "As earth's condition is receptive devotion, a gentleman should hold the outer world with broad mind (地势坤，君子以厚德载物)." The Qian hexagram takes the image of the dragon in "seeing the dragon in the field" and "flying dragon in the sky," and the Kun hexagram takes the image of the horse in "primal, penetrating, advantageous in steadfastness of the mare." As General Fubo (伏波将军) of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Ma Yuan (马援), said, "Nothing travels the sky like a dragon, and nothing travels the earth like a horse." I have transformed and summarized these meanings as: the dragon is the horse in the sky, and the horse is the dragon on the ground. The connotation of the "Dragon Horse Spirit" actually points to a spirit of self-improvement and unceasing struggle.

Looking at ancient and modern times, this spirit shines more brightly on those journeys that require long-term effort and in front of those seemingly insurmountable dangers. Zhang Qian's (张骞) opening up of the Western Regions (西域), that road full of wind and sand, was not only walked out by people, but also stepped out by horses' hooves. Every heavily loaded horse, with deep hoof prints, step by step persevered, and only then did the Silk Road legend, which has stretched for thousands of years, come into being. Saihanba (塞罕坝) used to be a place where "yellow sand covered the sky and the sun, and no birds perched on the trees." Three generations of afforestation workers led mules and horses to carry seedlings up the mountain, day after day for decades, and stubbornly turned the vast sandy land into millions of acres of forest. I once asked an old director: "Everyone was afraid that they would not survive in those years, how did you persevere?" He pointed to the birch trees beside the forest road and said: "This tree is good, like an 'iron horse', it will not break when the wind blows, and it will not bend when the snow presses." - He didn't talk about people, but the implication seemed to be about people.

Looking around us, even in many ordinary people, this spirit is shining brightly. Not to mention anything else, let's just talk about the Spring Festival holiday of family reunion in front of us. How many people are still struggling in their positions, guarding the lights of thousands of families with their silent dedication. I met a deliveryman in a hurry in the community. He often runs to our community, so we are familiar with each other. I asked him, don't you rest during the Spring Festival? The young man smiled brightly: "People still order takeout during the festival. As long as there is a need, we will leave people on duty." At that moment, I truly felt that not only deliverymen, but also people from all walks of life are so respectable and lovely. Of course, they will not claim to be "Dragon Horses," but that energy of "being able to reach thousands of miles" and "being able to create new situations" is clearly a vivid portrayal of the Dragon Horse Spirit.

The value of a horse lies not in its form, but in its spirit. What is "spirit"? It is the adherence to righteousness of "always following the right path, not following the wrong path," the perseverance of "striving to drive and ride, not tired or weary," the responsibility of "being able to do its best according to its weight," and even more the courage and determination to step out of the road where no one has set foot and to raise its mane and gallop forward when no one dares to go forward. It is no coincidence that the ancients mentioned dragons and horses together. The dragon travels in the sky, changing unpredictably, and is a projection of ideals; the horse gallops on the ground, steadfast and resolute, and is an embodiment of practice. The realm of ideals must be created with hard work, and the journey of hard work must be guided by ideals. This constitutes the unique dialectic of Chinese civilization: both looking up at the stars and being down-to-earth. May we all invigorate the "Dragon Horse Spirit" in the new year, and even if there are thousands of mountains and rivers, we can finally reach thousands of miles; even if there are thousands of difficulties and dangers, we can also create new situations.

Out on Patrol with My Master on New Year's Eve
Mi Ke (米可)

Because of the four-day rotation, "the masses celebrate the festival, and the police stand guard" is the norm for public security police.

On my first New Year's Eve after joining the police, I went with my master to a fishing village to arrest a criminal suspect. After fleeing for more than 20 years, the suspect "whitewashed" his identity, married and had children, and usually went out to sea to fish, only returning to shore to reunite during traditional festivals. It was not until after the reunion dinner that my master and I walked into his house and revealed our identities. He said that we had the wrong person. My master called out his nickname in his hometown accent, and he finally couldn't help but cry out, and his wife and children cried together.

As the police car drove out of the fishing village, he was still talking to himself: he often felt drifting and helpless at sea, but he couldn't sleep when he returned to shore, fearing that the police would come to his door. My master said that he would be at peace if he obeyed the law. He nodded and looked out the window. Outside the window, clusters of fireworks rose from the bay, crackling, adding a little warmth to the world.

After rushing around in the starry night, when we returned to the team, there were two buckets of hot and sour dumplings on the restaurant table. My master said that this was sent by your mistress. She must not want to delay our interrogation, so she put it here first. That was the first time I ate hot and sour dumplings. The first bite of sourness went straight to the top of my head, and then the warmth spread out, opening up the joints and limbs, turning up multiple flavors, and it was extremely comfortable.

My master is busy with work, and the burden of caring for the elderly and young falls on my mistress. Even so, my mistress still sends hot and sour dumplings to the unit during festivals, as if this is a ritual of family reunion. She also advises everyone to smoke less, stay up less late, and control blood pressure and blood lipids. However, blood pressure monitors and antihypertensive drugs are our standard equipment. While vowing to live a healthy life, everyone stays up the deepest nights in the midst of busyness.

But we are all fine, but my mistress fell ill. In the autumn of the year before last, my mistress had a brainstem hemorrhage. When she was sent to the hospital, she was already critically ill. My colleagues and I rushed to the hospital. On the way, I thought of some words to comfort my master, but when I saw my master crying with his face covered outside the intensive care unit, I became mute again.

Later, although my mistress's brainstem hemorrhage was controlled, she was paralyzed at a high level and her consciousness was blurred. My master settled her in a rehabilitation hospital near the unit and hired a caregiver to take care of her day and night, so that he could take care of both work and family. Because it was close, I often visited my mistress and helped with some things I could. Over the past year, my mistress has gained a lot of weight. When moving her from the wheelchair to the bed, it was difficult for my master and the caregiver to complete it together, so I stepped forward to help. Afterwards, my master gasped for breath and lamented that time waits for no one. I said that everyone is here. My master nodded and said that the most difficult time has passed.

Everything is getting better. My mistress is slowly waking up. Although she can't speak, she can respond to the outside world by blinking her eyes. The doctor said to talk to her more to help her regain consciousness. So, everyone told my mistress about the major and minor events of the unit.

Last year, I was not on duty during the Spring Festival, so I took my two-year-old son to the night market and unconsciously turned into the hospital again. My master was not there, and only my mistress and the caregiver were in the ward. I held my baby and came to the end of the bed and told my mistress that I was Xiao Mi (小米) and that I was holding Xiao Xiao Mi (小小小米). My mistress looked at me, her eyes did not move. After a moment, I said that I wanted to eat the hot and sour dumplings she made. My mistress blinked her eyes at this time, as if the past days had light in her eyes again.

When I left the hospital, a few clusters of New Year's fireworks bloomed, and I couldn't help but shed tears when I remembered the New Year's Eve when I went out on patrol with my master that year. Xiao Xiao Mi in my arms was puzzled. So I dipped a little tear with my finger and let him taste it. Xiao Xiao Mi stuck out his tongue. I said that there is parting and reunion, sadness and joy in these tears. You will only be able to understand the taste when you grow up and understand things. These few words, I muttered like a dream, were both spoken to Xiao Xiao Mi and seemed to be spoken to myself...

The Journey of a Drop of Water
He Nan (何南)

The wind is like tender shoots, awakening朵朵鳞浪
Instantly, my dream sets sail slowly with the spring light
A large ecological park is being built on the river
At this moment, I am shining on a bronze forehead
Once, I was a little starlight on the top of a snow mountain
Cherished by mythology, treasured for years
That day, the ancient ballad activated me
Since then, I have bid farewell to the high mountains and rushed to the distance
My memory is the pond in the field
Water plants sway dreams, and the morning sun jumps on the leaves
Inspired and encouraged by the sun
Joyfully, I merge into the golden yellow on the awns of wheat
Beside the Hongqilafu (红其拉甫)哨所
That piece of white attracted my attention
The moss and coral of Ren'ai Reef (仁爱礁) are my friends
We look at each other silently, letting the years converge into a vast ocean
I flow along an arc-like ridge
Accelerating through the scorching heat of time
The cheering desert resonates with the stubborn poplar
Behind the poplar, there is a surge of green ocean
All rivers are the darlings of nature
All water droplets hold the sun tightly
All sweat breeds scenery
All the high songs come from a broad chest
"The highest excellence is like that of water (上善若水)"
In front of the ancient praise, I am extremely panicked
Quietly withdrawing from the praise, the spring is like splashing
I admire those hands covered with thick calluses even more
When the legend comes true, when the blueprint is cast into a spine
I casually tore off a cloud as wings
I flew out of thousands of affectionate eyes
Galloping and moisturizing are my favorite looks

Gas Well Station Master
Wang Xiaoqun (王晓群)

At dawn, a few wild sparrows circled in the air, and then plunged into the sand ridge. This is the hinterland of the Taklamakan Desert (塔克拉玛干沙漠). The only big mountain in the desert, Mazhatag (麻扎塔格), is like a wall, intercepting all the flying sand that was originally going south to the Hotan (和田) oasis, and accumulating it into boundless sand mountains.

On the nearby sand ridge, there stands a person. Exhaling and inhaling, starting the posture, moving the hands, each move and style is quite skillful. After about a quarter of an hour, he finishes the posture and goes down the ridge. Closer, you can see his eyebrows and eyes clearly. He is not tall, has a straight figure, and has a head of black, shoulder-length hair.

"Dyed, dyed." He smiled, "I have been fascinated by martial arts since I was a child. When I chased 'Huo Yuanjia (霍元甲)' back then, I fell in love with Huo Yuanjia's hairstyle in the TV series." His name is Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全), the station master of the Ma8 Dehydration Gas Gathering Station of the Hetianhe (和田河) Gas Field of China National Petroleum Corporation (中国石油). This station has only him.

Ma8 Station has a total of 3 gas wells, producing 340,000 cubic meters of natural gas per day, mainly for production and living in Hotan and other places.

He lives in a living area made up of several prefabricated houses. Within a radius of nearly 60 kilometers, there is only this "family."

Xiao Jiquan turned out a "Fu (福)" character, turned around and brushed the sand off the iron door. The dust entered his throat, and he coughed a few times. After coughing, the world was quiet again. So, he pasted the "Fu" character on the door.

This is his second Spring Festival at Ma8 Station, and also his thirty-seventh year working in the desert.
For Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全), he has become accustomed to many things, including gatherings and partings, but he always feels guilty about his daughter. "I am a very unqualified father." Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全) said with a wry smile, "My daughter grows up so fast. I see her once a year, and she's different every time. Before I can really take a good look at her, she's already grown up." Now, his daughter is a wife and mother. Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全) always wants to find ways to make up for his debt to his daughter. He places orders online from time to time, one item after another. A few days ago, he bought his daughter a thermos cup, but she said she didn't need it and scolded him for wasting money.

He is also used to loneliness. Practicing boxing is a way to relieve boredom. Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全) sinks into a horse stance, steady. Just as he settles his breath, the walkie-talkie rings, calling him to check the liquid level at the wellhead. During the peak winter gas consumption period, Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全) dares not be negligent for a moment.

With a roar, the pickup truck starts and heads towards the gas well. The "Fu" (福) character, newly pasted, curls up at one corner in the wind.

The gas well is not far away, just over a slope. Safety reporting, static electricity elimination, liquid level inspection, data verification... Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全) has repeated these tasks countless times.

After the oilfield became intelligent, the well stations became unmanned. The so-called unmanned operation does not mean that no one is needed at all, but that the number of people has been reduced from five or six in the past to one. Running, leaking, dripping, and handling hidden dangers still require people.

He joined the army at the age of 18 and can endure any hardship. In the desert, he only fears one thing: getting sick. He said: "If I get sick, I have to transfer people over, and I am most afraid of troubling everyone."

As the sun sets, the wild sparrows return to their nests, and Xiao Jiquan (肖吉全) walks out of the gas gathering station. In the vast expanse of yellow, the world is so lonely, yet so magnificent. The scene before him reminds him of that familiar saying: Only the desert is desolate, not life.

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Editor in charge of this edition: Zhang Jian

This edition's email: dadi@peopledaily.cn
Layout design: Shen Yiling (沈亦伶)

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