Heartfelt love journey
What is love? Love is selfless devotion, a steadfast commitment that lasts a lifetime!
In the past, people only heard of peach blossom gardens by the water, where the residents didn’t know the days and months. However, in modern society, there are still people unaware of the passage of time. When explorers discovered this modern-day version of a “couple of legend” in 20xx, the old man’s first question was, “Is Chairman Mao still well?”
Fifty years ago, Liu Guojiang from Jiangjin, Chongqing, fell in love with Xu Zhaoqing, who was ten years older than him. To escape societal judgment, they eloped to a dense forest at an altitude of 1500 meters. To ensure his wife’s safety, Liu Guojiang spent half a century carving over 6,000 steps into a cliff, creating what is known as the “Ladder of Love.”
When he was six years old, the sixteen-year-old Xu Zhaoqing became someone else’s bride, and her beauty sparked his first feelings of love. When he was sixteen, she, now twenty-six and a widow, filled him with compassion.
Their love attracted gossip, leading them to flee into the remote mountains at an altitude of 1500 meters, far from modern civilization. They called each other “young man” and “old lady.” Though “old lady” rarely descended the mountain in her lifetime, “young man” spent his life busy carving stone steps on the cliffs to connect to the outside world. He chiseled for fifty years, creating over 6,000 steps of the “Ladder of Love.”
For fifty years, Liu Guojiang wore out more than twenty iron shovels, painstakingly carving the steps with his own hands. He ensured that each step remained free of moss by wiping them down after every rain, preventing them from becoming slippery. Over time, he transformed from a young man into an old one.
When this story was revealed and reported by the media in 20xx, it caused a sensation nationwide. The elderly couple was named one of the Top Ten Moving Figures of Chongqing in 20xx and was also recognized as one of China’s Top Ten Classic Love Stories that same year. The 6,000-plus steps of the “Ladder of Love” in the dense forest became a pilgrimage site for couples.
After the “young man” passed away in 20xx, the “old lady” often gazed at the Ladder of Love, waiting for her husband’s return. It is said that her prolonged longing for her husband led to her depression.
Five years later, she peacefully joined him. The 6,000 steps of the Ladder of Love became a testament to their love, an enduring symbol carved into the mountains. Although they passed away, their hearts, full of love for each other, never ceased. This pure love ultimately transformed into a “Ladder of Love” to heaven, becoming eternal.
Their children said that since Liu Guojiang’s death in 20xx, Xu Zhaoqing had constantly missed him. She often said she felt guilty that “young man” had worked hard for her all his life and left before her, hoping he would come to take her away.
Liu Guojiang spent his lifetime creating over 6,000 steps for love, a path to true love in heaven, a perfect and pure love without any material desires. How could this not make the world envious?
Love is just between two people, regardless of age, status, or wealth. As long as you love me and I love you, that’s enough. Growing old together means aging side by side, not fearing hardships or simplicity. If you stay by my side, I will stand by you through life and death. Happiness is silently staying together for a lifetime, even in the deep mountains or with nothing but each other. Wherever you are, I will be there.
True love is never an empty promise.
Half a lifetime of wind and rain, loving in harmony, enduring hardships together in a humble home. Growing old together in a dream of three lifetimes, the 6,000-plus steps of the Ladder of Love is a lifelong commitment to love.
They are the classic interpretation of “holding hands and growing old together.” May they be united in heaven and continue their love story in the next life! In truth, love is very simple, as Liu Guojiang’s secret indicates – “just follow your conscience.”
Let us pray for this timeless love story, hoping that the Ladder of Love will reunite these two elders in heaven, never to be separated again.
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
