Ba Jin once expressed dissatisfaction with his longevity. In his later years, he had more than once proposed wanting to die, but was opposed by his family and he was very angry. In his 90s, he even said this sentence: “Long life is torture to me. Long life and longevity are considered satisfactory by many people, but Ba Jin regards them as torture. Is it because his body suffered from the pain of illness in his later years? It’s definitely not like that. The main reason Ba Jin feels this way is because he has a lot to do with his wife Xiao Shan.
Whenever a person wants to return home like an arrow, there are usually two reasons. The first is to feel that the world makes them feel too painful. The second is that the world he wants has the people he wants to see. Ba Jin’s return is like an arrow, wanting to meet his wife who has been dead for 30 years. The days without a true love for more than 30 years were too long for Ba Jin, to the point where he felt that life was a torment, and his love for his wife remained unchanged for more than 30 years.
Their love story dates back to the 1930s. At that time, Ba Jin was a famous writer, and with the publication of his works, more and more letters from readers came out. One day, he found a photo sliding out of the letter, which was a cute little girl with a message on the back to leave a memorial for my beloved husband. Ba Jin was attracted by the cute girl on the photo, which was his later wife Xiao Shan.
Afterwards, Ba Jin replied to her letter, and the two of them had been communicating through pen pals. At that time, Ba Jin took root with a seed called love under the warmth of Xiao Shan. After half a year of correspondence, Xiao Shan requested to meet. In this era, it took a lot of courage for women to ask men to meet. Ba Jin was moved by Xiao Shan’s courage and made a decision to meet her.
After their first meeting, their relationship took a step closer, but Ba Jin never confessed. He still had concerns in his heart, mainly because of the age difference between the two of them, as Xiao Shan was 13 years younger than him. Two people who love each other have always been separated by a layer of film, which makes them almost miss out forever.
Xiao Shan’s father found her a wealthy family and made a marriage agreement with her. Xiao Shan told Ba Jin about this matter. Xiao Shan thought that Ba Jin would confess to her and rebel against the marriage together. Unexpectedly, Ba Jin said that this matter was for her to decide and consider. Upon receiving Ba Jin’s reply, Xiao Shan froze and fled from Ba Jin’s residence. Ba Jin finally revealed her true thoughts when she saw her crying.
The two of them began their romance, but how could it be so easy in that era of war? They began to completely lose contact. During that uncertain period, Ba Jin had many suitors around him, but Ba Jin refused all of them. Finally, on the eve of the victory in the battle, they reunited. From then on, they were not separated, only separated by death.
In these eight years, they experienced hardships and finally entered the palace of marriage. In this year, Ba Jin was 40 years old, and Xiao Shan was also 27 years old. After marriage, the two of them had a peaceful and beautiful life. Ba Jin wrote a manuscript and Xiao Shan kept the house, and they also gave birth to a pair of lovely children.
In the 33rd year of Xiao Shan’s death, Ba Jin passed away at the age of 101. Before his death, he repeatedly warned his descendants to mix his ashes with Xiao Shan’s ashes and scatter them into the sea. His and his wife’s ashes were mixed together, accompanied by rose petals drifting towards the East China Sea near Changxing Island in Shanghai. After a long wait, they reunited again, and there was no reason to separate them after reuniting.