Zhao Wei shares stories about her grandfather Zhao Shuman. [Photo provided to gojilin.gov.cn]

During the New Year holiday, Zhao Wei received an unexpected phone call. On the other end was Hou Zhendong, a 99-year-old veteran and former comrade-in-arms of her grandfather, Zhao Shuman. "Have you come home for the holiday?" he asked gently. "If you have time, come and visit me."

Zhao Shuman had been a People's Liberation Army soldier who fought in the battles to liberate Northeast China, earning one special-class merit citation, four major merits, and one minor merit.

As a child, Zhao Wei had always been fascinated by a red box kept on her grandfather's heated brick bed. Inside lay a medal polished smooth by time – the only object she was never allowed to touch. She later learned it was the Mao Zedong Medal, awarded for extraordinary battlefield bravery.

Veteran Hou recalled Zhao Shuman's courage during the Siping Campaign. Assigned to a demolition unit, Zhao charged forward with 17 comrades, destroying enemy bunkers and cutting through barbed wire. After most of the team was killed and he himself was wounded three times, he volunteered for a second assault, blowing up a key enemy stronghold and opening a vital route into the city. He earned two major merits and joined the Communist Party of China.

After demobilizing in 1952, Zhao Shuman returned to Tongyu county in Jilin province, where he quietly worked as a gatekeeper for decades. It was only in 1983, when the central government investigated wartime heroes, that his story came to light after over 30 years of silence.

His legacy lives on. Zhao Shuman sent his sons to join the army, urging them to learn skills and defend the country. A great-grandson also served in uniform. Inspired by her grandfather, Zhao Wei now volunteers as a guide at a revolutionary site in Baicheng, ensuring that these red stories are heard and remembered by future generations.