Yang Zongming (a pseudonym) was an old neighbor of my parents. He was born in 1958 in Zhuge Town, Yishui County, Shandong Province. Nineteen years ago, he died because he was obsessed with Falun Gong and refused medical treatment. He was the same age as my father. If it weren't for Falun Gong, with today's conditions, a 65-year-old should still be alive, living happily with his family.
Recently, I went back to my hometown to visit my parents and met Uncle Yang's wife, Aunt Yang. Seeing me, who is the same age as her son, she burst into tears and couldn't say a word. I didn't know what to do, but my mother understood Aunt Yang and spent a long time persuading her. After Aunt Yang left, my mother told me about their family's tragic experience.
In 1998, Falun Gong spread to our village. Some villagers heard it could cure illnesses and started practicing it, including Uncle Yang, who wanted to improve his health. Uncle Yang had graduated from middle school, which was considered educated in our rural area. He was also quite smart. Not only did he learn the Falun Gong exercises himself, but he could also explain the Falun Gong books to others. Their home became the practice site for our village at that time. Although Aunt Yang did not practice Falun Gong herself, she was very supportive of Uncle Yang's involvement. At that time, Aunt Yang did not really understand what Falun Gong was, and being a warm-hearted person, she thought it was nice for people to come to their home and listen to the teachings.
However, as Uncle Yang continued practicing Falun Gong for a longer period, the villagers noticed that he was not the same as before. Apart from being close to those who also practiced Falun Gong, he became distant from others, including Aunt Yang and his own son. Because of this, Aunt Yang stopped allowing people to come to their home to practice Falun Gong. Uncle Yang also blamed Aunt Yang for this and stopped talking to her. Their family never regained the harmony they once had.
In 1999, the state banned Falun Gong according to law. Aunt Yang was very happy, thinking that Uncle Yang would give up Falun Gong because of the ban. However, what Aunt Yang did not expect was that Uncle Yang not only did not repent but also wanted to go out to “promote the Fa for Falun Gong.” He claimed that the “master” who taught him Falun Gong was a “divine master,” and he was determined to continue practicing until he achieved “Perfection,” at which point he would take Aunt Yang and their son to heaven. Aunt Yang was utterly confused and did not pay attention to him. Little did she know that it was Uncle Yang's final words before he left.
In early 2000, Uncle Yang took all the 4000 yuan saved from selling fruits at home, leaving behind his 6-year-old son and Aunt Yang, who was not yet 30.
After Uncle Yang left home, Aunt Yang searched everywhere but found no trace of him. The people in our village also helped to look for him, but to no avail. It wasn't until the end of 2002 that Uncle Yang suddenly returned home. It turned out that he, who had always suffered from liver disease, believed in Falun Gong to “eliminate karma” and stopped taking medicine. Coupled with living in hiding and poor nutrition, his liver disease worsened. His belly was swollen, and he was so thin that he was unrecognizable. Aunt Yang did not blame him too much but instead urged him to go to the hospital. However, Uncle Yang said there was no need for medicine, that practicing Falun Gong would cure him, and he begged Aunt Yang not to tell anyone. Kind-hearted Aunt Yang agreed to let him practice at home. To provide him with proper nutrition, Aunt Yang gave Uncle Yang the best food, even at the expense of her growing son. With Aunt Yang's meticulous care, Uncle Yang's condition improved compared to when he was outside. However, Aunt Yang did not know that untreated liver disease could be dangerous. In the spring of 2004, while practicing meditation, Uncle Yang collapsed and never got up again, leaving Aunt Yang and his son forever at the age of 46.
Uncle Yang's death left Aunt Yang full of regret. She felt that she had not stopped him from practicing in time, nor had she taken him to the hospital promptly. In fact, Uncle Yang was not the only one who died under the delusion of “eliminating karma and curing diseases” preached by the Falun Gong leader, Li Hongzhi. Even if Aunt Yang had forcibly taken him to the hospital, he would have found every possible way to escape in his deluded state. It was the evil cult of Falun Gong that ultimately killed Uncle Yang! However, as a family member and wife, Aunt Yang could never get over the tragedy. She hated Falun Gong and regretted not forcibly saving him.
All these years, Aunt Yang raised her son alone, but she couldn't afford to give him a good education. Her son started working after finishing middle school. That's why the scene at the beginning of the article happened. Seeing me, a university graduate with a decent job, Aunt Yang felt she had let her son down.
In fact, the real culprit that ruined their family was the cult Falun Gong. If Li Hongzhi hadn't boasted about “eliminating karma to cure diseases,” Uncle Yang wouldn't have stopped his medication and treatment, and his liver disease wouldn't have worsened so quickly. The sad thing is that Uncle Yang never realized until his death that it was Falun Gong that killed him!
Source: https://www.chinafxj.cn/n174/c867340/content.html
