Qian Zhongshu and Yang Jiang are not only a literary couple, but also a rare couple in the world. The two of them were inseparable for 65 years, until after Qian Zhongshu’s death, Yang Jiang still missed ‘The Three of Us’ alone. (The three of us are a memoir written by Mr. Yang Jiang, which mainly records the life of Qian Zhongshu, Yang Jiang, and Qian Yuan’s family of three for more than half a century, full of Yang Jiang’s passionate love for Qian Zhongshu and her daughter Qian Yuan.)
Modern people often say that children are their own good, and wives are their good. A wife complained, ‘Other people’s husbands have never disappointed us.’ If you knew the story of Qian Zhongshu and Yang Jiang, those who have read ‘The Three of Us’ would never have such a sigh again.
Qian Zhongshu once wrote such a sentence in the preface of the book “Human Ghosts and Beasts”, which is still fresh in my memory. As a gift to Yang Jikang, it is a unique combination of three incompatible elements: wife, lover, and friend. “As a scholar, Qian Zhongshu once wrote many love words to his wife Yang Jiang. Before I met her, I never thought of getting married; I have been married to her for decades and have never regretted marrying her
Qian Zhongshu and Yang Jiang had only one daughter in their entire lives. Yang Jiang said, “Because he didn’t want me to suffer the pain of having a child again.” But what moved the world the most was this sentence, “You are the most virtuous wife, the most talented woman.” Yang Jiang lived up to Qian Zhongshu’s words of advice, and I believe few people can question her talent.
Yang Jiang comes from a prestigious family and is a famous Chinese writer, playwright, and translator. Her translation of Don Quixote is widely recognized as the best translation work, with over 700000 copies published; Her book ‘Lao Wang’ was selected as a junior high school textbook; The most commendable thing is that she lived to be 105 years old. At the age of 90, she wrote a book called ‘The Three of Us’, which was published in over a million copies. This book was ranked first among the’ Top Ten Good Books’ in 2003. This is Yang Jiang, the most talented woman in Qian Zhongshu’s mouth.
As for the ‘most virtuous wife’, those who have read ‘The Three of Us’ know how Yang Jiang and Qian Zhongshu’s marriage lasted for more than half a century.
When Qian Zhongshu was young, he went abroad to study, and Yang Jiang accompanied him. There is a song that sings well, ‘There are half of you and half of me on the Military Merit Medal.’ To some extent, it can be said that Yang Jiang accomplished Qian Zhongshu, allowing him to focus on his studies without worrying about the complexities of the mundane world.
As Yang Jiang said, Qian Zhongshu is like a child. He can’t tie a bow, can’t distinguish between left and right feet, and grabs chopsticks like a child. During his study abroad, Qian Zhongshu couldn’t get used to eating foreign food, so Yang Jiang cooked for him herself. In fact, at that time, Yang Jiang was just a foreign student in her twenties who didn’t know how to cook, but she was willing to work hard for Qian Zhongshu. As she said, “Abroad, the two of us are companions and can only rely on each other for survival
In terms of literary creation, Qian Zhongshu and Yang Jiang complement each other and complement each other.
There is an interesting story about Zhong Shu happily telling Yang Jiang when “The Compilation of the Condor Heroes” and “Don Quixote” were about to be published: “The Compilation of the Condor Heroes” and “Don Quixote” are our last books. You write me a three character signature, and I will write you a four character signature. Let’s exchange
Yang Jiang said, “You’re really at a loss. Can my handwriting be seen by people?” Qian Zhongshu said, “Leave it as a souvenir, it’s fun. You can write it whatever you want, anyway you don’t have to put your name on it.” Only with a deep understanding can we appreciate, attract, support, and encourage each other, and have a mutual affection. Matching social status and other factors are not important.
