"One of my earliest memories of Nanjing is this deep rhythmic sound, like the heavy breathing of machinery, pounding into the earth to lay the foundations for what would be the Yangtze River Bridge," Shouhua Qi, author and professor, reminisces. "If I close my eyes, I can see it in my mind's eye. I can hear it deep in my consciousness. The bridge took so long to be built."

Shouhua Qi was born in Nanjing in 1957, the same year that China launched the Great Leap Forward Movement. The year after, in 1958, the construction of the Yangtze River Bridge was started and it would go on for the next decade. It is one of the events that has left a mark in Qi's mind.

Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province, prominent in its place among Chinese cities, is one of the Four Ancient Capitals. In fact, before the Communists took power in 1949, Nanjing was the capital city. "A beautiful city of culture and history," is how Qi describes it.

Places to visit

Qi's other memories include field trips to the city. "There are many beautiful sites in Nanjing. The most beautiful is Xuwuan Lake, which the foreigners would refer to as Lotus Lake. Located right outside the northeastern section of the city wall, it's a beautiful lake with five islets. You can row boats on the translucent lake water with the blue sky overhead with the city wall looming in the distance."

"Another place to go to was the Purple Mountain, of course. The mausoleum of Dr Sun Yat-sen, the father of modern China, is right at the foot of the Purple Mountain. I can still remember going up the mausoleum and counting the 392 steps leading up to the sky."

"And Rain Flower Terrace, right outside the southern gate of the city. This became a memorial site for revolutionary martyrs. A field trip to this site was part of the moral education, or the ideological indoctrination, depending on your perspective," Qi said.
Qi remembers climbing up the 392 steps to the mausoleum of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. (Image: Wikipedia)

A city scarred

But not all of Qi's memories about the city are idyllic. He also remembers listening to his father and grandfather recount events that took place before he was born, stories that would stay etched in his memory up to this day.

"When I was very young, before the Cultural Revolution, I would often listen to both my father and my grandfather talk. My father was the principal of the middle school and my grandfather was a devout Buddhist and old Confucian scholar. They told stories about the massacre of Nanjing. They described thousands upon thousands of refugees and former prisoners of war during those fatal days, the early days of December 1937, as they were being chased by the Japanese troops coming into the city."

There were about 6 divisions of Japanese troops that came into Nanjing, Qi was told. "The Chinese prisoners of war being chased would jump into the Yangtze River. It's winter time, extremely cold, and they would jump into the river with boards, doors, anything they could grab that could get them across to the other side."

Qi also recalled stories about how the Japanese gunboats plowed into these human forms struggling in the muddy water, pushing these bodies and how the river itself turned red with blood, with corpses drifting everywhere.

"It was etched into my memory as I grew up. I don't think I was alone. In that city, it's a collective memory. For those millions of people living in Nanjing, it's part of the collective historical narrative that has been told so many times. That's why they still live with that memory even today."

Seeds of a novel

Qi started writing the novel "When the Purple Mountain Burns" during the winter break beginning 2002. By then, his career as a college professor had advanced to a point where he had written more than ten books, mostly academic literature and non-fiction. Qi was looking for a new direction to channel his energy. One of his colleagues suggested that he write fiction.

"It didn't take me long to think of what to write about because I thought it was just so natural. Here is this big collective historical narrative that has been so etched in my memory. The Rape of Nanking, as it is known in the West, has been told in many non-fiction books but there was not one fiction book dealing with the subject."

The cover of Dr. Qi's first novel (Image: Long River Press)

Qi credits the years he had spent in the United States with giving him a unique perspective on the events that happened almost 70 years ago. "Someone from inside China can write the same story, but they might not have the western perspective that I have developed since I came to the States in 1989. Plus, some of key players are western. I think I have the geographical, cultural and emotional perspective."

Qi came to the United States in 1989 on a fellowship. He already had a master's degree but wanted to pursue his doctoral degree. "In my first semester at Illinois State University, the tragic events of Tian'anmen Square took place. Eventually, the US Congress passed a legislation inviting Chinese students to stay in the country."

Today, Qi holds an Associate Professorship in Western Connecticut State University, teaching Literature and Creative Writing to undergraduate and graduate students.

Changes in China

Qi tries to come back to China once a year, and every time he is amazed at the changes that have taken place. "In 1989, when I left China, everything was the same as it had been for ten or twenty years. In 1995, when I first returned to the country, change was in the air but the city itself was the same-- grey, dusty, the same old buildings. Visually, it took some very difficult adjustment for my eyes to accept that this was my hometown. I was glad to be home, but I still thought that there were so many places that time has left behind despite its richness in culture."

"But on every trip after that, I noticed dramatic changes upon dramatic changes. The whole cityscape has changed so much-- whole alleys, whole sections, whole blocks were being replaced with new highrises, new buildings, everywhere."

Qi said that the opening up of China has in a way improved the living standards of people. "When I visit the homes of my friends and relatives, I can't believe how they have renovated their homes and made them such nice places to live in."

"On the other hand, I have mixed feelings. A year or two ago, when I was leaving for the States via Shanghai, my brother-in-law was driving me in his brand new Buick mini-van. As we approached Shanghai from the highway the sun was setting and you see this forest of highrises, made of glass, glistening under the sky. It was so alien, almost scary. You can see the emergence of China being captured in that visual. It was a strange experience."