As the annual Qingming Festival, China’s traditional occasion for honoring deceased loved ones and fallen heroes, approaches, a 92-year-old veteran of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army (CPVA) has moved the nation with a solemn visit to a martyr’s cemetery in Shenyang, Liaoning province.
Dressed in his well-preserved original military uniform, every medal pinned to Jin Donghui’s chest tells a silent story of decades-old sacrifice and service. The aged veteran walked slowly through the rows of tombstones at the CPVA Martyrs’ Cemetery, his unsteady steps still carrying the rigid, upright discipline of a lifelong soldier.
Seventy-plus years ago, when the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea broke out in 1950, Jin was just a young man when he crossed the Yalu River into Korea to serve alongside his comrades as an military translator. For two years and nine months, he survived brutal frontline combat that claimed the lives of many of the brothers-in-arms he fought alongside. Now, decades later, he has returned to the memorial that holds the legacy of those who never came home.
Standing among the silent tombstones, Jin reaffirmed the enduring legacy of the CPVA’s sacrifice: “The heroic spirit of the volunteer army is immortal. Heroes have never truly left, and their spirit is passed down from generation to generation.” His visit serves as a poignant reminder of the cost of peace and the responsibility of current generations to carry forward the courage and patriotism of those who gave their lives for their country.