Citizens inspired by CPC's centennial celebration
Bao Qi, former deputy chief of staff of PLA naval base in Shanghai, reviews the vows he made when joining the CPC along with other Party members at the Memorial of the Fourth National Congress of the CPC.
Retired People's Liberation Army soldiers, senior Party members and local model workers watched the live broadcast of the Communist Party of China's grand centennial celebration this morning.
They gathered at historical Party sites and neighborhoods as well as the North Bund waterfront to listen to the important speech delivered by President Xi Jinping at Tian'anmen Square in Beijing.
"I'm so thrilled and feel like returning to the battlefields of decades ago," said Bao Qi, former deputy chief of staff of PLA naval base in Shanghai, after watching the live broadcast at the Memorial of the Fourth National Congress of the CPC. "The celebration showcases to the world the greatness of the CPC, which led the Chinese people to make outstanding achievements in the last century."
The 97-year-old Shanghai native joined China's revolution in 1941, and fought in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-1945), the Liberation War (1946-1949) and the Korean War (1950-1953).
"I'm sure the Party will lead the Chinese people to another century of glory," Bao said.
He led other attendees at the memorial to review the vows they made when joining the Party, including many senior members who have recently been awarded commemorative medals to honor their five decades of Party membership.
Bao watches the live broadcast of the Communist Party of China's grand centennial celebration this morning with other Party members and model workers.
Zhou Weidong, one of the medal recipients, said he was greatly inspired by Xi's speech and pledged to keep fighting for the country's development goals for the next century.
"Under the leadership of the CPC, China has become a great country within seven decades, progress that took Western countries more than 200 years," said Zhou, 92.
He joined the New Fourth Army in the fight against the Japanese invasion in February 1945 and joined the CPC in December 1947. After retiring, he took an active role in community work in Hongkou's Jiangwan Town Subdistrict and often gave speeches to young people.
Dai Jiawei, a senior official with the Hongkou Fire Station and winner of the city's May Fourth Medal, said he must keep improving himself to safeguard the economic development and urban safety of Hongkou.
"The new round of development on the North Bund, known as Shanghai's 'world-class sitting room,' will be the best opportunity for young people's progress," Dai said.
In the nearby Hengfengli neighborhood, a heritage shikumen (stone-gate) community and historic Party site, residents set up a large television in the public space and watched the celebration together.
Hengfengli at Lanes 69 and 85 of Shanyin Road was built in the 1920s. It has nearly 100 three-story shikumen houses, which are listed as the city's heritage structures.
Residents of the historic Hengfengli neighborhood watch the live broadcast of the grand celebration.
The liaison office of the headquarters of the third uprising of local workers in 1927, led by the Communist Party of China against warlords occupying Shanghai, was based there. The Party School of the CPC's Central Committee and the CPC's Jiangsu Province Committee were also once located in the neighborhood.
The street was once home to literati and revolutionaries, including writers Lu Xun (1881-1936) and Mao Dun (1896-1931). It also housed Qu Qiubai (1899-1935), a leader of the CPC in the late 1920s, and Zeng Liansong (1917-1999), designer of China's national flag.
"Though I've been retired for many years, I still keep the vows I took and original aspirations I had when I joined the Party more than five decades ago," said Wu Yunqing, a Hengfengli resident and volunteer.
Chen Rongqing, Party chief of the Shanyi Neighborhood Committee of Hengfengli, said he will keep contributing to the homeland by serving the residents as a grassroots Party official.
"The Party history in the neighborhood will be protected while Party stories passed along for generations," Chen said.
The historical neighborhood has just completed a major renovation to restore its original appearance while improving the living conditions of residents. Exterior walls, rooftops and supporting structures have been repaired; wooden pillars and mortise-and-tenon supports have been fixed based on original blueprints; and some shared kitchens and toilets, as well as public areas, have been upgraded.
Hengfengli residents display their patriotism by waving Chinese flags.
