Victory etched in time

In 1947, a memorial archway was erected in Zhijiang to commemorate the occasion, but it eventually faded into obscurity with the passage of time.

Things changed during the second national census of cultural relics in 1983, when census takers accidentally discovered half of a tablet in the house of a local family, who were using it as a mat for a water vat. The tablet documented the construction of the memorial arch, swiftly reigniting memories of the illustrious past. Local people immediately realized its value.

Two years later, in 1985, during the 40th anniversary of the victory, the memorial arch and the site where delegates negotiated the detailed issues were restored. They cover 8,000 square meters.

"The memorial arch is in the shape of the character 'blood' in Chinese, meaning the victory was hard-won with the sacrifice of more than 35 million Chinese people. This reminds us that even in a peaceful environment, we should not forget the lesson paid for with blood," says Wu.

Since then, every decade signified a major stride in the upgrading of memorial structures, says Zhang Zhiyong, former director of the general office overseeing the memorial halls.

During the 50th anniversary in 1995, a memorial hall commemorating the surrender was established in Zhijiang and opened to the public.

In 2005, a memorial hall for the Flying Tigers was also established.

In 2015, with the opening of a new memorial hall commemorating Hunan's role in the war, a memorial complex featuring a peace garden and three memorial halls covering 0.2 square kilometers was completed.