It is in everyday life that a mother’s deepest love resides.
It was the travel money saved by ordering only half‑portions of food; it was the warmth of winter clothes sewn from scraps of fabric; it was the comforting words from the other end of the line… The love of Qi Xin, the mother, profoundly influenced Xi Jinping in subtle and gradual ways.
In January 1969, when he was not yet sixteen, Xi Jinping took his bag and left Beijing to settle in Liangjiahe village in northern Shaanxi, where he began working as a farmer. His mother, Qi Xin, made him a sewing kit on which she embroidered three characters: “mother’s heart.”
Throughout his seven years as a young educated youth, this small sewing kit remained Xi Jinping’s constant companion, bearing witness to his journey and progress.
While Xi Jinping was in Liangjiahe, his mother Qi Xin worked on a farm in Henan province with her youngest son, while her two daughters worked in the Army’s Production and Construction Corps.
The whole family was scattered across the country, separated from one another. Qi Xin thought of one child while worrying about the others. Whenever she had the chance, she took time to visit her children.
Qi Xin traveled to Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Inner Mongolia, spending most of her modest salary on these trips. At that time, trains were slow and overcrowded; she often had to stand for the entire journey.
For years, Xi Jinping and his mother were apart, and reunions were rare. Yet, despite the distance, the “mother’s heart” remained by his side, never leaving him.
In northern Shaanxi, Xi Jinping had to overcome life’s hardships: flea infestations, hunger, harsh living conditions, physical labor, and trials of the spirit. Each challenge made him grow. On this yellow earth, he fully integrated with the people, tempered his will, and reset the course of his life. Thus, he anchored within himself his original commitment and mission to dedicate his life to serving the people and the nation.
Qi Xin was a caring mother but also a revolutionary fighter who endured the trials of war. She worked for many years at the grassroots level in rural areas of the Shaanxi‑Gansu‑Ningxia border region, forging deep ties with the population.
Colleagues of Xi Zhongxun described Qi Xin as “a simple person in daily life who never lagged behind in her work.”
The lessons given by his mother, both in words and deeds, deeply influenced Xi Jinping.
From northern Shaanxi to Zhengding, Xi Jinping always kept with him a patched mattress.
This mattress was made from more than a hundred scraps of fabric, cut and sewn together by Qi Xin from old clothes. Officials at the Zhengding County Party Committee office wanted to buy new fabric to make him a new one, but Xi Jinping replied: “That’s not necessary. This mattress suits me very well.”
Xi Jinping takes great pride in being born into a revolutionary family, one characterized by a strict tradition of revolutionary education.
He recalls that at five or six years old, his mother told him the story of Yue Fei, whose mother tattooed on his back the words: “Devote yourself wholly to the motherland.” “I said: ‘But getting tattooed must hurt a lot!’ My mother replied: ‘Yes, it is painful, but that is how you engrave things in your heart so you never forget them.’ Those words ‘Devote yourself wholly to the motherland’ I have kept since that day, and they became my life’s goal.”
Raised in a household steeped in virtuous family traditions and having journeyed from the loess lands, Xi Jinping has always placed the people at the center of his concerns. For decades, with unwavering consistency, he has upheld the principle that “bringing benefits to the people constitutes the greatest political achievement,” striving to “love the people as one loves one’s own parents, safeguard their best interests, and lead them toward a better life.”
After Xi Jinping assumed leadership positions, Qi Xin often wrote him letters, warning that “at the top of the mountain, one is more exposed to the cold,” and reminding him to be highly demanding of himself.
Once, in the presence of her sons and daughters, Qi Xin said: “Small worries at home must not affect work.” No sooner had she spoken than Xi Zhongxun added sternly: “Big worries must not affect work either!”
“Work well, study well, manage everything as best as possible” was Qi Xin’s motto, and it is what she expected of her children.
During the Spring Festival of 2001, Xi Jinping, then governor of Fujian province, could not return home to celebrate with his parents due to professional obligations. His mother’s words over the phone were simple but deeply comforting:
“My son, you have so much work to do. I am very happy to hear that. Whether you come home or not, as long as you do your work well, you show the greatest filial piety toward us. I support you with all my heart.”
The deepest love is found in that small sewing kit, and in the affection one holds for those far away.