Chapter 504

What are the things you must do when you come to Beijing?

Visiting the Forbidden City, climbing the Great Wall, and paying homage to great men are among the top things to do.

The memorial hall has set opening hours, and many people from all over the country visit it, so you have to go early to queue up.

Since we have to get up early, we might as well get up even earlier and go to Tiananmen to watch the flag-raising ceremony.

Su Yuanzheng felt really embarrassed to ask Jiayin and Ziyi to get up early. Since he had already bought a bicycle, he could just take his daughter there tomorrow morning.

I heard Ziyi say before that this is not far from the Forbidden City, which means it is not far from Tiananmen Square either.

He asked them for directions, and they both said they didn't like to sleep in and could come and pick them up.

Su Miao said: "Sister Jiayin, Brother Ziyi, you have worked hard these past two days. You really don't need to lead us. Just tell us the route.

We woke up early this morning and need to take a nap. How about you take us to climb the Great Wall in the afternoon?"

Seeing that the father and daughter said so, the two of them no longer insisted and directly took paper and pen to draw out the route.

It’s indeed only three or four kilometers away and can be reached in about ten minutes.

"Go along Chaoyangmen South Street to Jianguomen Inner Street, then go west, west, and west again until you reach Chang'an Avenue. It's not far, about ten minutes by bike. Just pay attention to both sides of the street.

The flag-raising time in September is between 5:30 and 6:00. I didn't pay attention to the exact time. You should go out a little earlier."

In fact, Su Miao knew the way, but she still listened very carefully to Jiayin's instructions.

The next day, Su Yuanzheng got up at four o'clock to cook breakfast. At half past four, the father and daughter had washed up and had white porridge and scrambled eggs with bitter melon, accompanied by shredded papaya and stir-fried sour bamboo shoots.

The simple breakfast made Su Yuanzheng particularly satisfied. He breathed a sigh of relief and said:

"My stomach in Yongcheng still needs porridge to feel better."

"Me too, Dad. Actually, people in Beijing also drink porridge, but they prefer thicker porridge, such as millet porridge."

"I see. We don't drink millet porridge very often. We mainly grow rice and produce rice. Millet shipped from outside is quite expensive in Yongcheng. Next time I'll try making millet porridge."

At five o'clock, the father and daughter went out. The night had not yet dissipated, and a thin layer of fog filled the streets. There were very few vehicles and pedestrians, and it was very quiet.

Su Yuan was riding a tricycle and Su Miao was sitting in the bed. The cool wind blowing across their cheeks made the two people who got up early feel particularly clear-headed.

As the wheels rolled, the street lights flashed one after another, and the dim lights shone through the mist, casting hazy shadows on the ground.

Su Miao's eyes swept across the buildings on the street. The old alleys and mottled walls seemed to be telling the history of this city.

Su Miao couldn't help but think of the development of the flag-raising ceremony, which also underwent many changes and eventually attracted the attention of people across the country.

In 1949, the great man pressed the button at the founding ceremony of the People's Republic of China and raised the first five-star red flag.

This red flag flying high represents that the people have truly stood up, and from now on the great Eastern country will stand at the top.

From the second day after the ceremony, the task of raising the flag was taken over by the master of the power supply station.

Two electricians were responsible for this task. Among them, Master Hu has been responsible for raising and lowering the red flag for 25 years and is the flag-raiser with the longest flag-raising time in the square.

In the era when Master Hu was the only one raising the flag, the red flag was not raised every day.

The flag is only raised in the morning and lowered in the evening during important holidays, major meetings and major foreign affairs activities. The time is not strict.

After 1976, the task of raising the flag was officially handed over to the armed police soldiers, and now two people are responsible for raising the flag every day.

This flag-raising ceremony, which had no music and no precise time, did not attract much attention from the public.

At most, they would take a few glances when passing by, and then leave on their own, sometimes without even giving way to other vehicles.

Su Miao came to Beijing in her previous life in 1992. The flag-raising ceremony at that time was even more solemn and grand. She and her classmates would come to watch the flag-raising ceremony every month. The exciting flag-raising ceremony was their spiritual pillar in the arduous sea of study.

Because after several reforms, starting from 1991, the new flag-raising ceremony divided the flag-raising ceremony into two forms: "holidays" and "weekdays".

The national anthem is performed live by the Armed Police Military Band during the "Festival Flag Raising" period, while a recording is played at other times.

The flag-raising ceremony on Labor Day that year was particularly grand. The "Tianmen National Flag Guard", which stood out from tens of thousands of soldiers, held a new flag-raising ceremony for the first time.

Su Miao, who was still preparing for the college entrance examination at the time, crowded in front of the TV in the cafeteria with his classmates to watch the broadcast of the new flag-raising ceremony.

Su Miao still remembers the scene he saw during the broadcast.

On the square is the newly built red flagpole base, and tens of thousands of spectators gathered from all over the country.

Among them were people of all ages, from different professions and representatives of the masses from different regions of the country. They were looking forward to the city gate tower before dawn.

Amid the stirring military music "Singing the Motherland", the bright red flag led the way, and 36 officers and soldiers of the national flag guard in neat military uniforms stood in agile postures.

Together with 62 officers and soldiers from the armed police military band, they stepped out of the central archway of the Tiananmen Gate Tower in an orderly manner.

They walked with firm and powerful steps, crossed the Jinshui Bridge in a heroic manner, and crossed Chang'an Avenue calmly and orderly. Their uniform marching steps set a heart-stirring rhythm as they moved steadily towards the base of the flagpole.

After arriving at the base, they were neatly gathered around the flagpole base, like a group of resolute statues.

"salute!"

The leading police officer's loud command resounded throughout the square like a huge bell.

In an instant, the military band played the passionate national anthem, and the bright five-star red flag slowly rose to the solemn and majestic national anthem.

At this moment, everyone in the square followed the red flag closely and saluted it, their eyes full of awe and love.

As the red flag rose with the sun and stopped at the highest point of the flagpole, the last note of the national anthem just ended.

The whole square was boiling in an instant, with cheers and applause intertwined together, like a surging wave that lasted for a long time.

Su Miao and his classmates who were watching this scene in front of the TV were also deeply moved, with tears in their eyes and their hearts filled with love and pride for their motherland.

For a long time after this flag-raising ceremony, the school would use related content as writing topics. Su Miao remembered that he had written many articles, but did not leave any manuscripts.

In the long years that followed, no matter how fierce the wind and frost were, how heavy the rain and snow were, no matter how biting the cold was, or how unbearable the heat was.

Day after day, year after year, the Tiananmen Red Flag Guards use their loyalty and perseverance to defend the five-star red flag that represents the dignity of the motherland, allowing the five-star red flag to fly high above the square and shine brightly.