Li Qiushuang hopped onto a plane to meet her mother in Jinjiang, Fujian, before the pair flew back to their home town in Chongqing. - China Daily/ANN
BEIJING: The story of a university student from Chongqing who flew 1,600km to pick up her mother and take her back home for the upcoming Chinese New Year has gone viral in China, People’s Daily reported.
According to a video posted by Li Qiushuang, her parents went to work in Fujian province over 20 years ago. Every year before the Spring Festival, they would return to Chongqing together.
However in 2024, due to her grandmother’s illness, Li’s father returned to their home town early, leaving her mother alone in Jinjiang, Fujian, where she works at a shoe factory.
Over a video call, Li’s mother told her daughter that she would not be coming home for the festive period this year. On the one hand, her mother wanted to earn more money, and on the other hand, it might be difficult for her to travel alone as she was not familiar with public transport.
Thinking about her mother spending the Spring Festival alone away from home, Li immediately bought a plane ticket bound for Jinjiang to bring her mother home.
“Someone asked me why I had to go and pick her up myself. Why not just buy her a ticket so she could come home by herself?” Li said in the video.
“Because my mother rarely goes out while working away from home. For over 20 years, she has been working in the village. She doesn’t know how to take a taxi, ride a bus, or use navigation. As her daughter, I feel it is my responsibility to personally go and bring her back. How could I let her spend the Spring Festival alone in another place?”
Li kept the trip home a secret from her mother, hoping to surprise her. During the journey, she could not contain her excitement.
“The moment the plane took off, I seemed to understand the meaning of growing up. Although I can’t yet provide a better life for my parents, when my mother needs me, I will immediately rush to her side,” Li said.
On the evening of Jan 20, Li got off the plane and went directly to her mother’s home.
Standing quietly outside, she made a video call and found that her mother was eating dinner. After hanging up the phone, Li nervously knocked on the door. When her mother opened the door, she first looked surprised, then laughed before bursting into tears.
Many netizens have been deeply moved by the video.
Some netizens said: “I must go home this Spring Festival to visit my parents.”
Others made online “agreements” that if they encounter someone else’s parents in need while working away from home, they would lend a helping hand. - China Daily/ANN
