Today, before Tiananmen Square, the solemn strains of military music and the resolute cadence of marching footsteps marked a grand military parade—both a heartfelt reflection on that era of bloody struggle and a solemn declaration to the world of China’s unwavering resolve to safeguard peace. Patriotic fervor surged and reverberated in the hearts of every citizen.

Eighty years ago, when the Chinese nation, at the cost of 35 million compatriots’ lives, finally drove the invaders from its homeland, the triumphant clarion call echoed not only with the unyielding spirit of our forebears—“better to shatter like jade than remain intact as broken pottery”—but also bore the indomitable resolve of a people rising from despair. Eighty years have passed, and the smoke of war has long since cleared; yet that chapter of shattered mountains and rivers, of blood‑soaked struggle, remains a spiritual torch illuminating our path forward, reminding every Chinese person that self‑strengthening is the finest tribute to history—and the strongest foundation for the future.

Looking back on the fourteen years of bloody, heroic struggle—from General Yang Jingyu’s steadfastness, with only bark and grass roots in his stomach, to Zhao Shangzhi leading his troops in guerrilla warfare through the white mountains and black waters; from the Eight Hundred Heroes of the Sihang Warehouse shouting “We shall hold this position as long as we live,” to the Yunnan‑Western Expeditionary Force resolutely pressing forward across the Wild Man Mountain—countless ordinary Chinese people forged, with their flesh and blood, a national backbone stronger than the Great Wall. They may not have accomplished earth‑shaking feats, yet with the sincere devotion of “I offer my blood to honor the Yellow Emperor,” they embodied the profound weight of “unceasing self‑improvement.” When every member of a nation refuses to become a slave of a conquered land, and when the conviction of “to live or die for the good of the country” runs deep in one’s very being, even the most formidable aggressor will ultimately be dragged into the vast ocean of people’s war.

Eighty years on, the scars of war have faded, yet the call to “strive for self-improvement” has never been more urgent. In the past, our backwardness in industry and technology turned the lesson “to be backward is to be beaten” into a bitter reality. Today, as undercurrents of international competition swirl and we face technological blockades that seek to choke off our progress, the wisdom forged at the cost of countless lives remains as relevant as ever: true security is never a gift from others, but the product of our own efforts. From the meteoric rise of the “Two Bombs, One Satellite” program to the groundbreaking achievements of the Chang’e lunar missions and the Tianwen Mars exploration; from the comprehensive victory in the battle against poverty to the growing autonomy and resilience of our industrial and supply chains—generation after generation of Chinese people has continued to write a new chapter of self-reliance. This is the most powerful response to the history of eighty years ago: we are no longer a nation at the mercy of others. With our strength, we have shown the world that the Chinese nation is capable of standing firm amid the tides of our times.

“The baton of history will ultimately be passed to the next generation.” Standing at this 80th‑anniversary juncture, our generation’s pursuit of self‑strengthening may no longer confront the hail of bullets and bombs, yet it must still rise to the challenges of our times. It is the sleepless nights in the lab, burning with determination for technological breakthroughs; the sweat shed in the fields, safeguarding food security; the unwavering dedication on the job, turning “Made in China” into “Smart Made in China”; and, above all, the steadfast commitment, day in and day out, to the twin ideals of “family” and “country.” Just as our forebears proved—with their struggle—that “the Chinese are not to be trifled with,” we, too, must demonstrate through hard work that “the Chinese are truly remarkable”—not as a mere slogan, but as an everyday way of life: cherishing every opportunity to learn, honing every skill, shouldering every responsibility, and ensuring that personal growth resonates in harmony with the nation’s rejuvenation.

We must strive for self-improvement—not as an empty pledge, but as a conviction etched deep in our very being. It means remembering the sacrifices of our forebears and, even more importantly, living up to the aspirations they left unfinished; it means honoring the weight of history and transforming that burden into the driving force that propels us forward. Eighty years later, let us take self‑reliance as our pen and struggle as our ink, inscribing on the grand canvas of national rejuvenation the answer that belongs to our generation—only then will we pay the most profound tribute to the victory of eighty years ago, and offer the finest farewell to the words “the Chinese nation has reached its most perilous moment.”