Detained as "Xinjiang Independence"

Six years ago, I drove to Xinjiang by myself, starting from Chengdu, which lasted a month and traveled 10,000 kilometers. From Chengdu to Gannan, then to Lanzhou, through the entire Hexi Corridor and into Hami, I have traveled nearly 3,000 kilometers, only to find that, ah, I didn't bring my driver's license.

The reason why he was able to find it was because he was stopped by the traffic police on the border between Gansu and Xinjiang. Before that, I was walking around and playing for about ten days, and the traffic police didn't bother me at all.

I lied to the traffic police, saying that I just arrived yesterday and my driver's license was left at the hotel, please let me go. The police saw my Sichuan A's license plate and believed it. There is no reason not to believe it, who would have thought that someone would be so stupid to drive all the way from Chengdu without a driver's license. This is better than the situation in Sichuan. Once I went to Junlian County, Yibin City, and was stopped for forgetting to bring my driver’s license. I begged my grandfather to tell my grandmother to get the maximum tolerance: no points will be deducted, but a fine of 50 yuan will be issued.

When Wang Wei said goodbye to his friends back then, he frightened them by saying that "there is no old man out of Yangguan", not only Yuan Er, but it should have frightened a lot of people. Before I set off, my friends kept scaring me: Xinjiang is very chaotic, you are very dangerous by yourself, it is best not to go. But at that time, when I was misdiagnosed as a RP patient, I thought that I might become blind in the future, and I felt that the days when I could see the scenery were precious, and I insisted on going west.

But I have a better relationship than Yuan and two. There are still old friends outside Yangguan, and the old friends are in Hami City. An old friend said that without a driver's license and ID card in Xinjiang, it is impossible to do anything, and every administrative division must be checked. What to do then? I had no choice but to park the car at the deceased's house and go with my backpack. After driving 3,000 kilometers, I feel somewhat tired. One person has one bag, so there is no need to worry about the problem of the car, and no need to think about finding a parking space. That kind of freedom, I yearn for it.

But Xinjiang is so big that you can't go anywhere without a car, everyone says so. The backpack continued westward to Turpan, and I met a few friends at the youth hostel, one of whom suggested driving with me. Fortunately, at that time, my last relationship was not completely over, there was someone at home, and the driver's license was mailed to Hami a few days later, and everything could continue normally.

The old man was right. In the next 20 days or so, the number of driver's license and ID card checks will not be less than the number of days. Cross-border, refueling, and hotel accommodation are all essential. As a Han Chinese, the procedure is fairly simple, just look at the ID card and driver's license, and let it go. If you are of other races, you have to get out of the car and go to the small house to register, and you have to see the trunk. In addition, every hotel in Xinjiang has a security gate, like an airport.

The trip that month was particularly safe, except for being embarrassed by the traffic police once or twice. Once, the traffic light and the zebra crossing were too far apart to see the red light and crossed the crossing. The Uyghur policeman was so vicious, he took away my driver's license, turned around and left without listening to the plea, and handed it over to the traffic police brigade. We got there and got all the good words before we got our driver's license back. Just like Tang monks, customs clearance ultimatum is needed everywhere. Now that I think about it, as a tourist from the mainland, I should be highly regarded by the police, just like the Chinese police look at foreign guests. The real people in Xinjiang, even Han people, will not be easily let go if they violate the rules. Like I was in Junlian.

Suddenly remembering this experience, it is naturally because today is turbulent, and all of China is supporting Xinjiang cotton. What's wrong with cotton, what does it know?

Went for a massage at noon yesterday, a new young man came to the blind massage shop and spoke Mandarin. This is an uncommon thing in Chengdu. Both of us are strangers, and the relationship between the two of us has become closer in an instant. I learned from the chat that he had just come from Changji. Because of stability maintenance, anti-terrorism drills are required every day. The whistle will sound, and each store must report one person to participate in the drill. He is the only one in his shop, and because of these things, he often has to close the shop and make ends meet, so he has to leave his hometown and go to Chengdu to find another way out. Luckily, the store expanded and I quickly found a job.

I asked him, "Are you still mainly Uighurs there?"

"No, there are almost no Uyghurs, and most of them are from the mainland." For some reason, he talked about language again. He said that there are no Uyghur language classes in schools now, and all Chinese are taught.

Since then, my heart has not felt very well, and I remembered a text when I was a child, "The Last Lesson". France was defeated by the German Empire in the Franco-Prussian War, and Alsace and Lorraine were therefore placed under the German Empire. The German Empire forbade the teaching of French in schools in the region and converted to German. That text tells the story of the author in first person, taking his last French class. How could I understand that when I was a child, the only thing I remember is the phrase "French is the most beautiful language in the world". After watching a French movie, I would wonder: this is the most beautiful place, it is far worse than Chinese, isn't it?

Until yesterday, I finally understood the emotion that I couldn't understand back then. Whose language is the most beautiful, just like whose children are the cutest.

Coincidentally, there was a collective boycott of Xinjiang cotton by foreign brands at night. Hey, isn't this called Banmen getting an axe? We have always been the only one resisting others, and the first time someone resisted, who could stand it? As a result, the Internet in Jianzhong was surging in an instant.

In the days when there was no Great Firewall, I also quarreled with foreigners because they said that the Chinese government treated Tibetans unfairly. Later, he boycotted Japanese goods because Koizumi always visited the Yasukuni Shrine. I don’t know which day, what opportunity, these opposing emotions dissipated, and Japan turned to be the country I most want to go to. Fortunately, before the epidemic, I fulfilled my wish for a trip to Japan. Looking back, it was fortunate that I stopped boycotting, otherwise I would have missed a lot of beauty!

Before going to bed last night, I posted a Weibo, insinuatingly expressing my sympathy for those who are about to lose their national language and cultural history. What shocked me is that friends who have not blocked each other for many years left a message saying: Change Angle, common language, less barriers. In order not to respond as violently as it seems, I posted another article, to the effect that if Japan successfully occupied China back then, it would only be allowed to learn Japanese and not Chinese, would it be understandable?

My friend didn't reply anymore, but because of this article, I was labeled as a Xinjiang independent.

Compared with Fu Lei, who was labeled a rightist back then, being abused by the patriotic masses in the air is not worth anything. So, I have a very good temper today, and I didn't say anything back. It is understandable to see the famous stars who have terminated their contracts with the brand one after another. I have only been scolded a few times, they will lose their jobs. Once lost, it may be like Fu Lei's past, lacking food and clothing, relying on all directions to help, and it is also very pitiful.

A hat, not enough weight.

When the universe changed, it was unforgettable.

This is a line from Jia Fugui in the TV series "Nine Nine Returns to One". The original sentence is "One newspaper is less than two pounds. Once the world changes, it is unforgettable." Play a pawn scene in the pawnshop to express the pride in your chest. I have watched the TV series for nearly 20 years, and most of them have forgotten, but this sentence has never been forgotten, probably because it is not only a big historical node, but also carries too many indescribable personal memories.

I wrote this down for future aliens to see.