 |
Ming Jing (right) went out of prison to visit relatives for the New Year.
 |
Pay homage to mother
Chengdu Women’s Prison, Sichuan Province, has carried out the largest assistance and education activities over the years, and chartered 15 prisoners to leave the prison to visit relatives this Spring Festival.
On the eve of the Spring Festival in 2008, Chengdu Women’s Prison in Sichuan Province organized the largest educational assistance activity over the years-chartered 15 prisoners with good behavior to leave the prison to visit their relatives for the New Year. Among them, the oldest is 54 years old and the youngest is 31 years old. It is reported that all the 15 female prisoners who went home for the New Year reported their whereabouts to the prison every day according to the regulations. When they returned to prison on the third day of the New Year’s Eve, all of them arrived on time before 5 pm.
This Spring Festival, the reporter of this newspaper (note: Chengdu Business Daily) witnessed her special trip home with Ming Jing (a pseudonym), a female accessory in a transnational drug trafficking case …
She has three wishes to go home for the New Year.
The first time I saw Ming Jing was at 3 pm on February 3. Through the two heavily guarded iron gates of Chengdu Women’s Prison in Sichuan Province, in the office of the supervision area, 37-year-old Ming Jing is of medium height, with ear-length short hair, and she was not aware of it during the conversation. She used to be a female accessory in a transnational drug trafficking case.
Fifteen years ago, Ming Jing met her boyfriend in Guangzhou, who led her to ruin-a man with several years of drug trafficking experience. Through this man and the 16-member transnational drug trafficking gang he directly participated in, drugs were transported from abroad to China. In 1992, the case was solved by Chengdu police. Mingjing’s boyfriend was arrested together with the other nine principals, and was brought to justice around 1994. Ming Jing, who collaborated with others in drug trafficking, and the other five people were sentenced to different prison terms such as suspended death. In the past 16 years, Ming Jing has been commuted five times because of her good transformation and outstanding performance. On May 7 this year, she will soon be free.
On January 29, Ming Jing was working in the production plant. When the policewoman in the prison told her that she could go home for the New Year, she cried on the spot. Ming Jing, who was sentenced to a suspended death sentence in 1992, lost her father very early and has been living alone with her mother. In 1993, her mother couldn’t stand the blow of her imprisonment and died unfortunately, and her son, who was born out of wedlock with her boyfriend, failed to take good care of him. Ming Jing was jailed. Over the years, Ming Jing has relied on his uncle, aunt and other relatives to take care of his son outside. His son is almost 16 years old now. Over the years, his family has always told his children that his mother is in the field and she is very busy at work and can’t go home to take care of him.
When talking about the wish to go home this time, Ming Jing choked up and said that when she went home this time, she especially wanted to thank her uncle and aunt. The other two wishes were to see her son and visit her mother. "My son is now at his grandmother’s house in Guangzhou. It’s hard to buy a ticket recently, and he may not be able to come back."
Some regretful Ming Jing told reporters that he was about to get out of prison anyway, and it doesn’t matter if he didn’t see his son this time. The days ahead are long. She said, "I must go to my mother’s grave. I haven’t seen her old man’s house for so many years. I really miss her …" Ming Jing’s tears came down as she spoke.
Dreaming on the eve of going home is doing housework.
At 9: 20 a.m. on February 5th, in front of the mental health center in the prison area, the sun shone on the huge characters "You will be reborn from here", and the female prisoners who came from the prison areas lined up one after another. Fifteen lucky women selected from the 2,000 prisoners in the prison all wore new clothes ready to go home for the New Year-red coats and red down jackets instead of their usual prison clothes, and everyone dressed up carefully.
At 9: 40, 15 people were called into a conference room for a short meeting. Before the warden arrived, they began to inquire about their holiday arrangements happily and easily. In the face of this rare winter sun, a female prisoner said with mixed feelings: "We can have such good weather when we go home today, which is really called seeing the rainbow after the storm!" Everyone talked about the old Chengdu in their hearts with great interest. Chunxi Road, Kejia Lane and Qingnian Road are still the same as yesterday in their memories.
After the meeting, Ming Jing told reporters that she couldn’t sleep well these nights after learning that she could go home for the New Year. The night before, she had mixed feelings and couldn’t sleep. When she closed her eyes in a daze, she kept dreaming. In her dreams, her family was smiling at her, but she kept washing clothes, even though the water in winter was so cold.
At 10: 15, Ming Jing followed a policewoman along the long corridor, and the policewoman sent her to the entrance of the building, saying, "All right, you can go that way …" Before she finished, Ming Jing ran out, saying "Good, Good" while running, and the small ramp that might not have been walked once for so many years was finished by Ming Jing in three steps and two steps. Just after turning the green belt, an anxious aunt and uncle appeared outside the prison gate, and Mingjing quickly waved and ran up.
After a year’s absence, my family stood in front of me, and Ming Jing just shouted, "Aunt, uncle …" Her eyes turned red. In order to meet Ming Jing, the family specially found a van. After a few simple greetings, at 10: 20 in the morning, Ming Jing finally followed her uncle and aunt all the way home.
Tears stream down my mother’s grave.
February 6, light rain. At about 11: 30 in the morning, at the foot of Zhuwangshan Cemetery, Mingjing and his family were walking along the hillside to his mother’s grave. For the first time in 15 years, Mingjing was so close to his mother, her eyes were red and her face was sad. Mingjing’s mother’s cemetery is located on the west slope of the cemetery. "Thinking about coming to see my mother today, I didn’t sleep well all night yesterday …" Looking at the path ahead, Ming Jing’s eyes were empty and lost in thought.
Sixteen years ago, when Ming Jing walked into the high wall, her mother’s eyes were tearful, and the expression of disappointment was still printed in her mind. Sixteen years later, after doing well in prison, she got the opportunity to spend the New Year with her relatives, but the loving mother who missed her day and night had already turned into a handful of loess. After Ming Jing was imprisoned for one year, her mother died because she couldn’t bear the blow. "What I want most is what should I say when I see my mother?" Can she forgive me under the grave? "
On the path leading to mother’s graveyard, Mingjing took her aunt’s hand and followed her family. Occasionally, several people took a few words and walked forward step by step. The closer we get to the top of the mountain, the less quiet we talk. She bit her lip and held Huang Juhua’s right hand, shaking a little. A few petals shook off, drifted with the cold wind and scattered on the winding mountain road.
"This is your mother’s grave." My uncle pointed to a tomb. In front of the cold tombstone, the little pine planted that year was already chest high. "Elder sister, Xiao Jing came to see you. She is much more lovely now …" My aunt pushed Ming Jing to her mother’s grave. The once 21-year-old daughter, who was in her prime, has now entered middle age, and fine lines have appeared in her eyes. Ming Jing wait for a while stood quietly in front of her mother’s tombstone, without saying a word. Her mother, who was with her day and night 16 years ago, was lying quietly in the ground for 16 years. Goodbye was already separated by Yin and Yang. My uncle sighed: "Your mother missed you so much …" Ming Jing’s two lines of tears suddenly flowed down: "Mom, I was wrong, I came to see you …" His hands trembled and lit the candle. Ming Jing knelt in front of the grave and couldn’t help sobbing.
With the help of family members, fruits and incense sticks were placed in front of my mother’s grave, and Ming Jing sobbed and lit the candles. After giving her a wick of incense, she was sobbing and tears fell on the ground in front of the grave. "Mom, I know I’m wrong. After I die, I’ll be buried with you and accompany you …" Ming Jing sobbed repeatedly, tears and rain blurred her face. In the hillside, a gust of cold wind blew. "Mom, you can forgive me, just let this paper blow away." The mountain wind rolled the ashes of paper money and drifted away, and the quiet tears burst out again.
Family return to accept her who had lost her way.
After 16 years, Ming Jing needs more time to get to know the city again. On the afternoon of New Year’s Eve, Ming Jing accompanied her aunt to visit Wal-Mart. Through the bustling crowd in JaeHee, she held her aunt’s hand tightly, somewhat embarrassed and excited. Along the way, she looked around and talked nonstop. Carrying the shoes and clothes that her aunt bought for her, Mingjing walked out of the supermarket door with big bags. She couldn’t help looking back, pointing to the people waiting in line to pay, and asked inexplicably, "Why do so many people buy things?"
I heard that Chunxi Road in my impression has changed a lot. Mingjing said that although she really wants to see it, she wants to spend more time at home and spend time with her family. Cleaning, cooking and washing clothes have done a lot of work, and Mingjing’s heart is also a lot more solid. Seeing the niece, aunt and uncle who are busy outside, they also feel gratified.
Aunt told reporters that at the beginning, there was a lot of resentment against this ignorant and misguided niece, but they found many reasons to accept this niece again. After entering the prison, Ming Jing’s prison moved twice, and no matter how far it was, they insisted on visiting Ming Jing every month. On February 1st, when they learned that Mingjing was going home for the Spring Festival, they prepared new quilts several days in advance, waiting for their niece to come home.
"My younger brothers and sisters say that I have gained weight." Ming Jing told reporters with a happy face that her cousin, who came home from other places for the New Year, surrounded her as soon as she saw her and asked for help. Cousin also dragged her to the barber shop downstairs to have her hair cut. In the evening, the family sat together and talked about home. Ming Jing also expressed his thoughts after he was released from prison in May: "I got a college diploma in prison and learned the technology of garment making. When I come back, I can make a living in a garment factory." She planned to make money to honor her uncle and aunt. During the conversation, Ming Jing turned her back several times and quietly wiped her tears and reunited with her family. She looked forward to it for 16 years.
In the eyes of her family, she looks like a different person
On the third day of the New Year’s Day, at 3 pm, there are still two hours before the scheduled time for returning to prison. The reporters waiting at the gate of Chengdu Women’s Prison in Sichuan Province saw that many female prisoners who have returned home have returned one after another, greeting the reporters affectionately, and their faces are full of satisfaction and relaxation. Ming Jing called and said that they were on their way and would be at the prison gate soon. At 3: 20, Ming Jing and her aunt came back in the van that they went home four days ago. Mingjing has dyed her hair black and looks radiant.
"She’s a completely different person!" My aunt removed the things bought for Mingjing from the van: shoes, clothes, and two boxes of fragrant pears. While telling reporters that in the past few days, Ming Jing has been getting up at 6 o’clock, cooking breakfast, cleaning up, and cleaning up the house, which is completely different from the image of the former "king of cutting hands".
Mingjing is carrying clothes, and her aunt is carrying fruit. The front is the iron gate of the prison area, and it’s time to leave. The two were reluctant, but they were not sad. Mingjing was still smiling and chattering: "Aunt, I still have to study hard in the past few months before I can adapt to the society. Chengdu has changed too much." My aunt nodded her approval. After completing the formalities, she handed the fruit to Mingjing and watched her step by step into the iron gate. (Reporter Gong Rui Lan Lan Zhang Jian Wang Qiang Photography)
Editor: Yin Wei