Every day, Xin Zongming combs the hair of Xin Lihong. Author: Yan Jun. Every day, Xin Zongming holds Xin Lihong in his arms to feed her. Author: Yan Jun.
At 8 o'clock on the morning of August 15th, according to reports from China News Service (reporters Guo Xiaoying, Yan Jun, and Yi Meiqiao), Xin Zongming, a Tujia man from Badong County, Hubei Province, lifted his adopted daughter Xin Lihong from her wheelchair and cradled her in his arms, carefully feeding her. With each bite, Xin Zongming gently blew on the food to make sure it wasn't too hot for Xin Lihong. As she lay in her father's arms, Xin Lihong looked at him with happiness in her eyes. This heartwarming scene has continued without interruption for 20 years.
Xin Lihong is the child that Xin Zongming adopted 20 years ago, who was born with cerebral palsy and is also partially mute. Despite having no blood relation to the child, Xin Zongming refused to listen to the advice of relatives and villagers, enduring great hardships while meticulously raising her for over 20 years.
On September 13, 1991, Xin Zongming found a newborn baby girl just a few days old outside the Chadianzi Tobacco Station in Badong County and named her Xin Lihong. Eight months later, little Xin Lihong was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, and the doctor told Xin Zongming that the child had only 5 or 6 years to live.
However, stubbornly, Xin Zongming took the child home, and under the careful care of both him and his wife, little Xin Lihong miraculously survived.
When Xin Lihong was 15 years old, Xin Zongming and his wife Li Guangying spent all their savings trying to cure Xin Lihong’s illness. To save money, Li Guangying let Xin Zongming work various jobs to earn money while she handled more than three acres of farmland and took care of Xin Lihong alone at home.
Five years ago, Li Guangying passed away due to illness. Xin Zongming told reporters that before she died, Li Guangying grabbed Xin Zongming's hand and asked him to take good care of Xin Lihong.
Xin Zongming and Xin Lihong live in a small house of only 30 square meters. Besides two beds and a cabinet, the most valuable item they own is a 14-inch black-and-white TV. Relatives and villagers have repeatedly advised Xin Zongming to give up on this child, but he simply cannot bear to part with her. "To abandon the child and send her away would be a sin!" Xin Zongming said.
The Civil Affairs Office of Chadianzi Town in Badong County has registered Xin Lihong as a member of the Five Guarantees Program, providing her with a monthly subsidy of 125 yuan, which barely covers the cost of medication. However, despite the financial difficulties, Xin Zongming always ensures that Xin Lihong is well-fed and warmly dressed.
Time flies, and nearing sixty years old, Xin Zongming doesn't know how much longer he can continue taking care of Xin Lihong, but his love for her remains steadfast and unrepentant. (End)
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