The Pine, the oldest pine in Saihanba

In this book， Zhang Xiuchao and her daughter Sui Mingzhao narrated the Saihanba’s past and present for children readers by recalling what they saw and felt during their childhood in Saihanba from the perspective of two generations. Saihanba’s Children writes about big themes with small events and great sentiments with small stories， leading children readers to explore the models in the development process of China’s ecological civilization.

Zhang Xiuchao

Zhang Xiuchao， a member of the China Writers Association， has won the Bing Xin Prose Award， the Excellent Key Work Award of Beijing Literature， and other awards.

Sui Mingzhao

Sui Mingzhao， graduated with a Master’s degree in Journalism and Communication， is a member of the Chinese Prose Society. Her works have been published in China Youth Daily， Sichuan Literature， Xi’an Evening News， and other newspapers.

Saihanba’s Children

Zhang Xiuchao， Sui Mingzhao

Juvenile amp; Children’s Publishing House

January 2023

48.00 （CNY）

On Sunday， Da Tou took Hua’er， Xiao Ya and me to see our tree. We decided to see the Pine， the oldest pine in Saihanba.

The Pine was on a high windy hillock. We watched its branches and leaves swaying in the wind on the top of the distant hillock. From afar， it looked as if it was a man standing there with his hand on a pergola， looking into the distance.

When we were young， we always came to see it. We often went to the high ground to send supplies to our fellow-townsmen who planted trees here， and we loved to rest under the shade of the old pine. We also went there to collect medicines and pick vegetables and mushrooms. We put them into white pockets and wooden baskets and placed the pockets and baskets under the old pine， where it could serve as a shelter from the wind and rain. We went to seek mountain products with the wooden boxes， ran back with the boxes full of mountain products and put them in the pockets and baskets under the Pine， and then went on to look for more. We sat under the old pine to eat field rations when we got hungry from running， and we would rest under the old pine when tired. Whenever we left the old pine， we would hug it as if we were saying goodbye to someone we love.

The trunk of the old pine was dark green， but the dried-and-cracked bark was dark black with many hard and thick layers. A light touch would get the bark off， just like scraping fish scales with a knife. Every time I hugged the old pine， I could always get a few pieces of black bark from it. I wouldn’t throw them away. I would put them in my clothes pocket and keep them in my pencil case when I got home. The bark emitted a faint scent， the scent of pine.

Grandpa Rong Jun often rested under the old pine. Every time Grandpa Rong Jun came to the old pine， he would always take out a tobacco pipe， light it， and smoke it while looking up to observe the old pine closely. We asked him what he was checking， and he said， “I want to see if it’s hurt.”

We asked Grandpa Rong Jun how old the tree was. He stroked his beard and said he had asked his grandpa when he was young， but his grandpa did not have an exact answer， except to say that the old pine had been on the mountain for a long time. It is said that this old pine has been growing for 200 years.

After smoking， Grandpa Rong Jun would stand up and walk around the old pine for a few rounds. He slightly touched the old pine and told us， “The Pine has gone through the harsh weather in summers and winters. If you see this with your own eyes， you will know what a great thing it is.” Grandpa Rong Jun told us that the old pine was growing on the windy 1，000-meter Saihanba Plateau， where the wind and the snow whistled and roared in winter， like a group of monsters pouncing on the old pine， trying to uproot it. The branches of the old pine had once been blown off by the wind; lightning would always strike around the old pine in summers. One summer， a thunderclap and a large fireball struck the Pine from the sky， and half of its trunk was burnt. For years， the Pine has suffered from strong wind， freezing snow， destructive thunder and lightning， leaving many scars on its trunk. However， the old pine had been standing still on top of the hillock， just like an old warrior guarding the battlefield.

This old pine was not very tall and had a rough trunk. Da Tou， who liked to climb trees， always thought of climbing to the top of the pine. Grandpa Rong Jun would not allow Da Tou to climb the Pine and warned him， “Never climb the Pine！ It is the Merit Tree of Saihanba’s people！”

Grandpa Rong Jun said that when the New China was founded， Saihanba had long been a desolate desert without a single tree. Later， they decided to improve this desert and plant trees here. However， people were very doubtful at that time whether they could make the trees survive in this desert. Several people rode on horses and spent several days in Saihanba， and finally found this old pine in the desert. Looking at the aged pine， people were so excited and moved. There was only one old pine living in the vast desert， therefore， people called it “the Pine.” The Pine was like a sign， which gave people hope that they could plant pine trees in the desert of Saihanba. People then built thatched cottages in Saihanba and started to open up the dessert for tree planting.

However， after two years of planting， very few trees survived. Therefore， people were very worried. People wondered whether the cold weather in Saihanba was suitable for pine trees to grow. Such doubts lingered in people’s hearts， but whenever they were depressed， just by looking at the Pine and seeing it standing upright in the wilderness， people gained confidence again. After all， if the Pine can survive in the Saihanba wilderness， so can other pine trees.

With such a belief， the planters cheered up again and decided to continue planting pine trees in Saihanba. Later， people found that because the pine saplings shipped from outside Saihanba did not adapt to the weather here， the planted saplings did not survive. Later on， the planters put the pine seeds in the snow to make them adapt to the cold weather here. Finally， those small pine saplings all survived.

In the early spring of that year， when the weather was still very cold， a group of young people planted small pine saplings that they had cultivated in the land of Saihanba. A spring rain came and the pine saplings began to sprout， with their buds turning green. Finally， the saplings survived.

The wind of the desert was as joyful as a man， running through the desert and spreading the good news： the pine saplings had survived.

Those young planters ran to the Pine， dancing and singing around it as they happily announced， “The small pine trees we planted are living！”

Since then， people started to plant pine trees in the desert of Saihanba， right around the Pine. The Pine gave people the confidence to plant thousands of pine trees on various mountains and hillocks， turning Saihanba into an oasis. Without the Pine， there would not be today’s Saihanba， so people named it the Merit Tree.

We walked around the Pine like we did when we were children. The canopy of the old pine was not that beautiful， and its branches were not exquisite. Its appearance was quite common， but people who traveled to see the scenery in Saihanba from all over the country would come to see the Pine. In order to protect this old pine， people wrapped its lower trunk with layers of red clothes and built a circle of stones around its roots.

Saihanba’s mountains were very high up and foggy， and people who went into the mountains often got lost， but when they saw the red color from afar， they could find the Pine and their way home. In this way， the Pine became a beacon for the mountain people.

The locals were appreciative of the Pine， and whenever they had good news， they would hang a red cloth strip on the trunk of the Pine as a way to spread the good news. Nowadays， carrying a lot of good news from Saihanba’s families， the Pine always has some red clothes on its verdant branches， making it look cheerful.

Whenever we saw the old pine， we would think of Grandpa Rong Jun. Grandpa Rong Jun loved the old pine. Before he died， he came here with us to have a last look at the old tree. He told us if we missed him， we could come here and see the Pine. After his decease， he rested here with his beloved one.

We four put a handful of flowers under the Pine. After that， we bowed to the old pine and sent our most sincere greetings to those who spent their lives here planting trees.