Chi Zhiqiang, a 1980s famous Chinese actor, was jailed for 4 years on a repealed crime, later found peace after setbacks.
Chi Zhiqiang had just received the National Outstanding Young Actor Award and was still basking in the afterglow of standing side by side with Liu Xiaoqing and Tang Guoqiang on the podium when he was suddenly taken into custody across provincial lines and ultimately sentenced to four years in prison for hooliganism.
Most longtime employees at the
Changchun Film Studio remember that when Chi Zhiqiang joined the studio’s trainee program at the age of 14, carrying only a bundle of bedding on his back, he was able to use his natural talent to solidify his scenes with co-stars—even when playing minor, background roles.Within a few years, he had become Changchun Film Studio’s top leading man. His name frequently appeared alongside Liu Xiaoqing and Tang Guoqiang on the covers of film magazines, and he had amassed several boxes full of various awards, making him a household name and the hottest young leading man of the 1980s.
No one could have predicted that,that in late autumn of 1982, after seeing Liu Xiaoqing off at Beijing Station, he was invited by some local youths he knew to a small restaurant in an alley for a drink. The following year, the “Strict Crackdown” campaign began, and that ordinary gathering was labeled an “indecent act,” bringing his burgeoning acting career to an abrupt halt.He hadn’t even had time to process what was happening when the handcuffs were slipped onto his wrists. The man who had been rushing to film his scenes on set just the day before became a prisoner overnight.
No one can fully describe the specific hardships of his
four years behind bars; by the time he was released, there was no longer a place for him in the entertainment industry.
Later, he recorded several songs reflecting on his experiences in prison, which unexpectedly made him a nationwide sensation once again. However, the ensuing public debate gradually pushed him out of the public eye.
He later started a family with Chi Daiying. They scrimped and saved to help their son, Chi Xunan, gain admission to Southwest University of Political Science and Law. On the day he watched his son don the lawyer’s robe, he clutched his son’s diploma and was speechless for a long while.Later, upon hearing that his son had successfully overturned the conviction of an elderly man whose circumstances resembled his own in his early years, he sat staring at the television screen for half the night.
Many years have passed. The charge of “hooliganism” that led to his conviction back then has long since been removed from the Criminal Code, and Liu Xiaoqing has gone on to achieve even greater success in her acting career. Since that farewell at Beijing Station, the two have never had another opportunity to meet in public.Nowadays, Chi Zhiqiang occasionally makes cameo appearances in TV dramas, playing minor, unremarkable roles. He has lost the youthful edge he once had, retaining only the calmness that comes with life experience.
In life, the pitfalls we stumble into in our youth ultimately become the imprints that shape our path forward.Maintaining composure when in the eye of the storm is the key to steady progress and a long-lasting future.
If you, too, have had unforgettable experiences of stumbling in your early years, feel free to share them in the comments section to offer a word of caution to the younger generation.
