Revelations from Wang Ji's Advanced Deeds | Only Love Can Drive One to the Ends of the Earth
Only Love Can Drive One to the Ends of the Earth
— Interpreting the Loyal Character of "Model of the Era" Wang Ji
■ Zhang Di, Yang Heng
"A person's greatest happiness is nothing more than having one's entire life bound together with one's country."
Savoring this personal reflection from Wang Ji, we cannot help but ask many searching questions of the soul: Why is Wang Ji's steadfast commitment to and practice of loyalty as clear and pure as the smile on his face — free of even a trace of self-interest? As resolute and tenacious as his charge forward from a wheelchair — undaunted by any storm or trial? And as enduring and lasting as the cause he so deeply loves — never wavering from the course set by his lifelong original aspiration (初心)?
Loyalty to the Party begins with love and is rooted in faith. Wang Ji often said: "Putting on the uniform is a lifelong matter — once you put it on, it is hard to take off." This love, etched into his very bones, runs through the entire arc of his life. Pursuing his dream of national defense, studying and joining the military, taking root in the fertile soil of "Galaxy" (银河) and cultivating the front lines of scientific research — he regarded wearing the uniform as a lifelong honor and the cause of strengthening the military as his life's pursuit. In Wang Ji's heart, the uniform is the mark of faith, and scientific research is the battlefield for serving the nation. Through decades of unceasing effort, he proved that loyalty is not a momentary impulse, but a firm conviction and unwavering pursuit — once in uniform, forever pledged to the Party and the nation.
Wang Ji's loyalty was never a slogan. It was a constant remembrance throughout the long years of military service, and an unwavering constancy even after injury and disability plunged him into his darkest hour. An old professor who knew and worked alongside Wang Ji for more than forty years said: "Because of his original aspiration, he always remembered the road he came from; because of his steadfastness, he was able to firmly 'stand up' after falling down; because of his persistence, he held on longer than others. In Wang Ji, he turned faith into daily life." Wang Ji's loyalty is the focused concentration with which he raced to read papers between dialysis sessions; the enthusiasm with which he revised his students' papers word by word from a hospital bed; the rushing about to catch the earliest flight at five in the morning for a business trip… Countless netizens have reflected that while legs can hold a body upright, loyalty and faith can keep a person's spiritual backbone straight. Wang Ji's deeds instruct us: the loyalty of Party members and cadres is measured not only by what they say, but even more by what they do; not only by how they press forward in favorable circumstances, but even more by whether they can remain steadfast in adversity. The small contributions of ordinary daily life, the quiet, day-after-day cultivation — this is the most plain and most pure form of loyalty.
Thirty-five years ago, Wang Ji wrote in his application to join the Party: "Only by linking one's entire life to the Party's cause, to the nation's future, and to the people's interests can one's life be more fulfilling and more meaningful." Faced with national strategic requirements and national defense security needs, Wang Ji plunged headlong into the niche track of high-assurance software (高可信软件) research, using his wheelchair as a battle vehicle and code as a forged shield, running a breathtaking acceleration on the journey of strengthening the military through science and technology. "As long as my mind works and my hands can still be used, I will not stop." His actions confirm that loyalty depends on the sustained resolve of long-term effort (久久为功); only by merging personal ideals into the needs of the Party and the nation, and watering one's original aspiration with a lifetime of love, can one transcend the storms of the years and fulfill the mission of strengthening the military.
An original aspiration is easy to hold at the start but hard to keep to the end; a mission is easy to understand but arduous to carry through to the distance. Chairman Xi has profoundly pointed out: "Our Party has come a long way, experiencing countless dangers and hardships, yet no difficulty has crushed us and no enemy has defeated us — this is because of the loyalty of tens of millions of Party members." Loyalty to the Party is the foremost political quality of a Communist, and the fundamental cornerstone upon which a revolutionary soldier stands and performs his duties. Disease took Wang Ji's legs, but it could not take his faith in charging toward the heights of scientific research. Wang Ji has, through his actions, erected for us a benchmark of the era for tempering political character and upholding the true colors of loyalty.
On the journey of building a strong nation and a strong military, why are there always those willing to do what others are unwilling to do, and daring to do what others dare not do? Only because their love for this land and for this military runs deep. For them, undertaking work and building a cause is both contribution and dedication, and also love and belonging. Where the will tends, no distance is too far; only love can drive one to the ends of the earth (志之所趋，无远弗届；唯有热爱，可赴山海). We should, like Wang Ji, establish a "high-assurance" (高可信) loyalty and faith, shoulder our mission and responsibility, and ensure that when the Party has a need, we answer the call; when the nation has an expectation, we must act; when the military has a hope, I will move forward.