Visiting Yang Gensi Martyrs Cemetery in Taixing, Listening to the Hero's Story

Years ago, I passed through Taixing City in Jiangsu by self-driving. It is a small northern Jiangsu town on the banks of the Yangtze River, facing the Changzhou Xinbei District on the southern bank across the river. The locals said to me: 'Our Taixing is a city of heroes. This is the hometown of combat hero Yang Gensi. You should visit the Yang Gensi Martyrs Cemetery.' So I drove to what is now Gensi Village, Gensi Township, Taixing City, only to find it closed for expansion. I waited until this late autumn to have the chance to step again onto the land of Gensi Township.

Gensi Township in Taixing City was originally called 'Yang Huolang Shop,' located in the northwest of Taixing City, bordering the famous Huangqiao Town. In the mid-1950s, because the combat hero Yang Gensi came from 'Yang Huolang Shop,' after Yang Gensi's death, the locals changed 'Yang Huolang Shop' to 'Gensi Commune' to commemorate their hometown's 'son.' It was not until 1983 that it was renamed 'Gensi Township.' Yang Gensi was born on November 6, 1922, into a poor peasant family in 'Yang Huolang Shop.' It is said that at the foot of the monument in the Yang Gensi Martyrs Cemetery lies the site of the Yang family's ancestral home.

Yang Gensi's original name was 'Yang Gengxi.' His father was named 'Yang Detang.' His mother's name is unknown; the villagers called her 'Liu Shi.' Yang Gensi also had an older brother, but his name is also unknown. When Yang Gensi was six, his father died of resentment on an empty barn floor due to landlord debt collection, and his mother Liu Shi passed away soon after. At eight, Yang Gensi worked as a cowherd for a landlord; at twelve, he followed his brother to Shanghai to work as a child laborer at the Linji Carpet Factory. In the spring of 1942, due to the factory's closure, Yang Gensi returned to his hometown of Yang Huolang Shop.

In the 1940s, the New Fourth Army led by the Communist Party was growing and strengthening in the anti-Japanese base areas of northern Jiangsu. After returning home, Yang Gensi voluntarily joined the local anti-Japanese militia. In February 1944, he officially joined the New Fourth Army, becoming a soldier in the 3rd Company of the 1st Battalion of the Old 1st Regiment. When registering, the staff asked his name. Yang Gensi said he was 'Yang Gengxi,' but the registrar heard it as 'Yang Gensi' and wrote 'Yang Gensi' on the roster. Since then, the name Yang Gensi has been used.

From the War of Resistance against Japan to the War of Liberation, Yang Gensi, as a soldier, always obeyed the Party's command. He served successively as deputy squad leader, squad leader, deputy platoon leader, and platoon leader in the 1st Division of the East China 1st Column, and as deputy company commander and company commander in the 172nd Regiment of the 58th Division of the 20th Army of the People's Liberation Army, earning multiple commendations. In 1950, as a representative of the National Conference of Heroes and Models, Yang Gensi, along with over 800 combat heroes and labor models, was warmly received by the Party and state leaders in Beijing.

In October 1950, Yang Gensi joined the Chinese People's Volunteers and went to Korea to fight. During the Korean War, he served as company commander of the 3rd Company, 172nd Regiment, 58th Division, 20th Army. In the famous Battle of Chosin Reservoir, Yang Gensi led the soldiers of the 3rd Platoon of the 3rd Company to hold the Y-shaped junction of Sinhung-ri, Hagaru-ri, and Yudam-ni, also referred to in some sources as Hill 1071.1. They repelled eight charges by the U.S. 1st Marine Division.

By then, only Yang Gensi and two wounded soldiers remained alive on the small hill, and all ammunition was exhausted. That morning, the U.S. forces launched a ninth counterattack. Yang Gensi ordered the two wounded soldiers to take the only heavy machine gun on the position and return to the rear company, while he stayed on the hill. When more than forty U.S. soldiers reached the hill, Yang Gensi picked up a 5-kilogram explosive charge, charged into the enemy, and blew up the attackers. The hero Yang Gensi was only 28 years old when he died.

Yang Gensi's deeds influenced and educated the entire Volunteer Army. Later, during the Battle of the Chongchon River (Linjin River), 38 heroes of Yang Gensi's type emerged. During the Battle of Triangle Hill, 68 heroes of Yang Gensi's type appeared, including Huang Jiguang. According to reports from Volunteer Army correspondents, after comrade Huang Jiguang sacrificed himself by blocking a machine gun embrasure, three comic books were found in his bag, the first of which was about Yang Gensi.

When news of Yang Gensi's martyrdom reached his hometown in Taixing, the villagers raised funds to build a 'Yang Gensi Martyrs' Shrine,' which initially covered only 120 square meters. In 1956, with approval from the Jiangsu Provincial People's Government, it was converted into the Yang Gensi Martyrs Memorial Shrine, with the addition of a monument, memorial hall, and exhibition room for his deeds. In 1980, the relevant authorities expanded the memorial shrine into the Yang Gensi Martyrs Cemetery, which is the place where people now go to honor Yang Gensi in Taixing.

The Yang Gensi Martyrs Cemetery is very simple, with only a monument, a memorial hall, a mourning hall, an exhibition hall, a giant sculpture, a memorial square, and a cenotaph. The inscription 'Yang Gensi Martyrs Stele' at the entrance of the square was written by Marshal Chen Yi. The words on the standing statue of Yang Gensi in the center of the square, however, use Yang Gensi's own signature style. This is his signature on the application form when he joined the Volunteer Army.

The small exhibition hall focuses on Yang Gensi's growth and life story, and displays extremely precious relics of the martyr, including 12 sets of third-level cultural relics: photos of Yang Gensi, drinking utensils, military preferential treatment certificate, personal seal, pen, cigarette case, silk fabric, handkerchief, scarf, merit award certificate, plastic raincoat, etc.

The 1964 domestic film 'Heroic Sons and Daughters' moved the entire nation. The protagonist 'Wang Cheng' in the film was based on the martyr Yang Gensi. In 2009, Yang Gensi was selected by the Central Propaganda Department, Central Organization Department, and 11 other departments as one of the 100 People Who Moved China since the founding of New China. Yang Gensi had a famous saying: 'I don't believe there are tasks that cannot be completed; I don't believe there are difficulties that cannot be overcome; I don't believe there are enemies that cannot be defeated.' It still holds great significance today.