Dong Qiangqiang's Story of Leaving Germany

Chapter 1050 1050. Chinese Week (36)

Wang Shunan imagined that the Marx House, a landmark of Trier, should be very conspicuous. However, when he approached, he found that it was an inconspicuous three-story Baroque house with dark blue tiles, white walls and gray windows. At first glance, it was not very different from the houses on both sides. If it were not for the nameplate with Marx's head on the wall at the door, he would have walked past it without paying attention.

Dong Qiangqiang's first visit to Marx's former residence was last year after he entered school, when he came here to scout out the area for a tourist route. At that time, it was crowded with people, and most of them were Chinese. After all, it is the hometown of the Red Army and a place of pilgrimage. Unexpectedly, within a year, the place was deserted, with only a few foreigners stopping to visit the museum.

The tour guide thought the two were just ordinary Chinese tourists and recommended the Chinese tour guide service. Dong Qiangqiang and Wang Shunan smiled and expressed their gratitude in German, and the other party politely withdrew with a smile.

The originals in the collection are all cultural relics, and the most famous of all the cultural relics are undoubtedly "The Communist Manifesto" and "Das Kapital".

Wang Shunan read softly, and Dong Qiangqiang recited in Chinese: "A ghost, the ghost of communism, is wandering on the European continent. In order to carry out a sacred encirclement and exorcism of this ghost, all the corrupt forces in Europe, the Pope, the Tsar, Metternich, Guizot, the French radicals and the German police, have all united..."

"Great, you can recite this? I didn't realize it." Wang Shunan really thought that Dong Qiangqiang was going to continue reciting and couldn't help but praise him.

"I can only recite one paragraph now, and I can't recite the rest." Dong Qiangqiang honestly admitted that he had thought he might need it when leading a tour group, so he memorized the first five paragraphs, but as time passed, he soon forgot them.

The second and third floors of the former residence are mainly pictures, texts and portraits. They also display celebrities and patriots from all over the world who followed in Marx's footsteps. The first of them are naturally Marx's wife Jenny Marx and Marx's close comrade-in-arms Engels.

The guestbook is filled with heartfelt words from the Chinese people.

The two of them wandered around for nearly an hour before leaving. Dong Qiangqiang bought a mug with Marx's former residence printed on it as a gift for Wang Shunan.

Wang Shunan looked at the courtyard that he could see last Christmas and asked, "Is the scenery in winter completely different from now?"

"The climate here has four distinct seasons, which is very different from the north," Dong Qiangqiang explained.

The continuous rain for several days made the air on the hillside particularly fresh. Unlike the seaside, there was no sea breeze here, so there was no lingering salty smell invited by the sea breeze. Only the mixed fragrance of soil humus and fragrant wild flowers that had been soaked by rain for a long time in late spring and early summer lingered around the two of them. Compared with the entire backyard, the area of ​​the pond was not large, but it made the whole yard retain a certain aura. The chickens walked lazily and clumsily on the grass, setting off the graceful postures of the geese and ducks on the pond, as if they were all part of a living painting. Their heads were a few centimeters above the water surface, as if they were observing the reflection of the heavy clouds above their heads on the water surface, or gazing at the fairy-like goldfish under the round lotus leaves through the reflection.

The sunlight above my head was sometimes bright and sometimes dim, and the forest mist was diffused outside the fence. Looking far into the distance, the long strip of clouds on the ridge that seemed within reach were moving quickly, and the ridgeline like a dinosaur's back was looming.

"Did you do all this yourself or were they always there?" Wang Shunan asked, feeling the vitality brought by the green all around him, pointing at the flowers and plants in the yard that were in full bloom but whose names he could not name. "Only this pond was dug after the poultry house was attacked by wild boars, so the lotus flowers and lotus leaves you see have not yet bloomed." Dong Qiangqiang squatted by the pond and gently touched the small lotus leaf closest to him with his fingers. A small golden cat jumped out from under the lotus leaf next to it and swam towards the lotus leaf he touched with caution and curiosity.

"I also have a yard in my hometown, and I also raise lotus and goldfish." Wang Shunan was moved by the scene and couldn't help but fall into memories of the past. "It's a pity that there is an apple tree next to the pond. It would be perfect if it was a banyan tree."

"There are banyan trees and cicadas," Dong Qiangqiang asked seriously, "Is it your childhood or Mr. Luo's?"

The two of them stood in the yard for a long time. The sun had completely emerged from the clouds. Although the temperature of the sunlight was blocked by the thick clouds, it was still somewhat hot on their faces. Following Dong Qiangqiang's suggestion, the two of them walked towards the ridge along the winding mountain road outside the yard.

Before coming to Trier, Wang Shunan always felt weak and her lungs were scarred by the damp and cold seaside air, but she had no medicine to take. Although there were herbal medicines in Germany, they were very different from those in China. But while walking on the foothills, her mind was completely immersed in the vast space of the picturesque countryside, enjoying the healing of nature. Although she was physically tired, she could feel the power of the blood surging in her body, and the recovery speed of her mental strength seemed to be much faster than that of her body.

It took the two of them an hour to walk and talk while looking at the nearby ridge. It was the first time that Dong Qiangqiang realized the truth of "looking at the mountain as if it is too big a goal". When the vague clouds gradually sank from above their heads to behind them, they realized that the wind on the ridge was as chilly as that at the seaside. Their jackets were bulging like hot air balloons filled with hot air.

Wang Shunan listened quietly to the sound of the wind surging wildly on the earth, looked at the silent Moselle River in the distance, and wondered how long it had been since she had gathered with friends and talked freely like today, how long it had been since she enjoyed a fine and romantic meal with fine wine, and how long it had been since she had such a relaxing and pleasant walk outdoors. What she had were endless books on the list, every night she sat alone in the library to study until closing, the winter nights with howling sea breezes and turbid waves, wavering between being too sleepy to open her eyes and shivering and unable to sleep because she couldn't turn on the heating, the sadness of having to rely on eating chocolate to support herself, the pain of hair loss and insomnia caused by failing, the embarrassment and awkwardness of not being able to find a job and having to ask for money with a smug face, every minute and every second she was away from the carefree days, and the self-reliance of forcing herself to start over under pressure and nightmares.

And finally she passed all the make-up exams, and only she knew what she had been through.

As heaven moves forward, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-improvement.

In the dim sunlight, in front of Dong Qiangqiang's surprised gaze, Wang Shunan suddenly leaned on his arms and burst into tears without any warning. Before in the restaurant, she thought she had reconciled with herself, let go and let it go, but it was only after talking to Dong Qiangqiang for more than an hour that she really released all her emotions without reservation. The pain, grievances, helplessness, depression and disappointment that she had been carrying for a long time, trickled down her face and dripped into the deep ground under her feet. Even the fierce mountain wind seemed to be moved by her sadness, and stopped whistling, and gradually became gentle.

Other hikers heard the crying and looked towards Dong Qiangqiang. He had to pretend nothing had happened and look into the distance, waiting for Wang Shunan to calm down after venting her feelings before asking her the question he had been thinking about for the whole afternoon.

Smelling the faint lemon fragrance, Wang Shunan raised his tearful eyes, only to see a plain yellow tissue handed to him.

"Wipe it first. There is a question you haven't answered for me yet." Dong Qiangqiang said softly.