No Choice but to Part on Valentine’s Day

By Xia Yu, Zhang Yan, Li Manying & Xu Ying

The pronunciation of “2020” in Chinese, “er ling er ling,” is similar to “love you, love you.” However, the year 2020 got off to a rocky start amid the COVID-19 which made this year’s Valentine’s Day a very special one. Though movies were postponed, train tickets canceled, and weddings delayed, the epidemic could never stop love.

Different people have different ways to express love, but on this Valentine ’s Day the lovers had a common wish in their mind:

All of us shall be safe and sound. When the spring arrives, I’ll hold you tight.

Once the epidemic is over, I’ll come and hold you

Zhou Hongdong and his wife got their marriage registered 周红东夫妻领取结婚证书

Narrator: Zhou Hongdong, branch deputy manager of Wuhan First Metallurgical Steel Structure Company. His wife Peng Ye is a doctor in the Laboratory Department of Wuhan No. 9 Hospital.

On the early morning of February 5, my wife and I met at the door of the hotel where she is under quarantine. She handed me some just-incase medicine, and then quickly took two big steps back, for fear that she would spread the virus to me. From January 28 till now, that was the first time we had met. I left her a WeChat message, “Please take good care of yourself. Both of us must stay strong!” And then I set off for the Leishan Hospital in Ezhou (Ezhou version of “Xiaotangshan Hospital”).

Shortly after we got married on January 2, I planned to take my wife back to my hometown in Shandong Province for the Chinese New Year. We planned to have a baby soon. Now the plan has been postponed due to the outbreak of the epidemic.

2020，意味着“爱你爱你”，可被疫情冲击的2020年，一开头就这么苦涩。然而，这场疫情却让今年的情人节注定特别难忘。撤档的电影，取消的车票，不得不推迟的婚期，无法实现的拥抱……然而，疫情阻隔不了爱的表达。

爱，100个人有100种表达方式，但这一次，有情人的心愿却出奇地一致：

我们都要好好的，等到春暖花开，我要紧紧地拥抱你。

胜利会合后，

我想第一时间拥抱你

口述者：周红东，一冶钢构压容分公司副经理，其妻彭烨为武汉市第九医院检验科医生

2月5日一大早，我和老婆在她住的隔离酒店门口见了面。她递来一些日常药品，让我备用，然后赶紧往后退了两大步，担心万一自己感染了把病毒传给我。从1月28日到今天，那次见面是我们唯一的一次。分开后我给她微信留言：“你一定要注意安全，我们都要加油！”之后我就出发去鄂州的雷山医院项目（鄂州版“小汤山”）了。

我们刚结婚不久，按原定计划，1月2日摆完婚宴后，我带老婆回山东老家过年。还想着我们老大不小了，结了婚就生个孩子。现在，因为疫情，计划延期。

老婆很早就搬进了单位安排的酒店。她上班是四班倒，有时候上凌晨2 点的夜班，就不得不独自步行20 多分钟夜路从酒店去医院。

记得她第一次下夜班，大概早上8 点多，给我打来电话，哭了。我完全能感受到她的身心承受着巨大的压力。但我不能崩了，那样她会更没有安全感，所以我只能安慰她。之后，我要来她的工作排班表，什么时候上夜班，何时下白班，我都必须掌握。他们上班不能把手机带进科室，我就掐着点发语音留言，等着她下班回酒店听，缓解她的孤单与害怕。

每天关注新闻，我也会害怕。我第一天去鄂州，当天晚上8 点上夜班做活动板房，淋了夜雨，第二天我的嗓子就发炎并开始咳嗽。我没敢跟老婆说。幸运的是，睡了两个小时后感觉身体好了很多，看到温度计上的数字，顿时就没有心理负担了。

昨天凌晨，我突然收到老婆的微信：“老公，我想你了。”

我也想她，给她回了一个拥抱的表情。我很愧疚，平时工作很忙，谈恋爱时就不能常常陪着她。疫情结束我们胜利会合后，我要结结实实地抱抱她。然后，再给她买一个她喜欢的包包吧！

等到春暖花开，

我带你做最美的发型

口述者：庞骞，湖北崇阳县供电公司高枧电工组负责人，其妻汪耀萍为湖北崇阳县人民医院重症监护室护士

唉唉呀，你不说情人节，我都差点忘了，那我跟老婆发个红包呗，肯定是520 呀！

以前情人节基本都是在一起过的，记得去年，我和老婆特地带着两个儿子，一家人开开心心去看了一场电影。

Wang Yaoping cheers on her husband Pang Qian 汪耀萍给丈夫庞骞打气

我这会儿在崇阳县高枧镇石咀村的防控疫情值守点，保障供电，有时也跟村干部一起防守路口。老婆在医院重症监护室。从大年初一到今天，我们快有20 天没见面了。

初三晚上，老婆在微信告诉我，她所在科室已收治新冠肺炎确诊患者。她有些忧伤和担心地说：“明天起，我不能回家了，看样子要一个月后才能见面了，我的内心有些难受……”

我也有一些担心。但我还是给她打出一行字，鼓励她：“为了国家的需要，为了人民的健康，你是我的骄傲，我的爱人，我永远支持你！”

我也挺难受。春节前，我准备回县城与家人团聚过年的，但现在一家人四口，分处三地。两个儿子放在我父母家里。12 号那天，12岁的大儿子特意还发了一张4 岁小儿子的照片给我和老婆看，照片上小儿子拿着一张纸，上面写着：“爸爸妈妈，您们辛苦了，加油。”把我跟老婆看得鼻子一酸。

我跟老婆当初认识挺浪漫的。我没有QQ，一个同学就给了我一个，因为我老婆也在这个号的好友列表中，所以后来我开玩笑说，这等于还送了一个老婆给我嘛。我们偶尔聊天，又没想到我一个同事居然跟她是亲戚。同事便撮合我们见面。

My wife moved into the hotel arranged by the hospital where she works. She works on four shifts in turn, and sometimes the night shift starts at 2 am, so she had to walk more than 20 minutes alone in the midnight from her hotel to the hospital.

I remember her first night shift. It was about 8 o’clock in the morning when she was off work. She phoned me and wept. I could easily feel the pressure on her. I tried to keep calm and make her feel more secured—a few words of comfort was all I could offer at the moment. After that, I asked for her work schedule so that I could get to know her shifts. She was not allowed to bring a cellphone to work, so I always left a voice message which could help to relieve her loneliness and fear right after she returned to the hotel for rest.

I would get scared, too, especially when watching the news on TV every day. The first day I went to Ezhou, I helped to build prefab houses on a night shift. Sadly, I got caught in the rain and the next day my throat got inflamed and I started coughing. I didn’t dare to tell my wife. Thankfully, after two hours of sleep, I felt much better. When I saw a normal temperature on the thermometer, I felt relaxed.

Yesterday, I received my wife’s WeChat message in the deep night, “Honey, I miss you.”

“I miss you too,” I responded and sent her an emoji hug. I felt bad that I was so busy with my work that I couldn’t spend more time with her. I promised when the epidemic was over we would reunite in a delightful triumph. At that time, I would hold her tight, and then buy her a new purse!

When flowers bloom in spring, I’ll take you to have the most beautiful hairstyle

Narrator: Pang Qian, head electrician of Gaojian team, Hubei Chongyang Power Supply Company. His wife Wang Yaoping is an ICU nurse of People’s Hospital of Chongyang County, Hubei Province.

Ooooh! I almost forgot the Valentine’s Day if you hadn’t mentioned it. I’ll send my wife a red envelope. It must be 520 yuan, which indicates I love you! This is our first Valentine’s Day apart. Last year my wife and I went to see a movie with our two sons on this day.

I’m now in charge of power supply in Shizui Village, Gaojian Town of Chongyang County, Hubei. Sometimes I also work at the checkpoints with the village officials. My wife works in the ICU of a hospital. We haven’t seen each other for nearly 20 days.

On the evening of the third day of the lunar year, my wife told me on WeChat that her hospital had admitted patients with confirmed COVID-19. She was a bit worried, “From tomorrow on, I can’t go home. It looks like we’re not going to see each other for the coming month or more and I feel sad.”

I was a little worried, too. But I needed to encourage her, “You are protecting the country and people’s lives. I am proud of you and I love you. I’ll always have your back.”

It was a difficult time for the family. Before the Spring Festival, I was going to return to my hometown to spend the New Year with my family, but now my family of four are in three different places. The two boys are at my parents’ home. On February 12, my 12-year-old son sent a photo of our 4-year-old son to my wife and me. The photo was of our little son holding a piece of paper with the following words: “Mom and Dad, thank you for your hard work. Cheer up!” On seeing it, both my wife and I felt tears welling up.

I still remember the first time I met my wife. At that time, I did not have a QQ number. A classmate of mine offered me one in which my wife was on the friends’ list. I joked later that my wife was given over by my friend. Since then, we chatted online occasionally. Then we found that one of my colleagues was her relative, who then encouraged us to have a date.

Pang Qian cheers on his wife 庞骞给老婆打气

PangQian,s little son encouraging his parents 庞骞小儿子鼓励爸妈加油

嘿嘿，这一见面，我们就对上眼了。结婚14年了。在我眼里，她是天下最好的老婆。

这一二十天，我和老婆都很忙。她更辛苦，一般下午或晚上，我才能和她用微信聊聊天。她每天都要上八九个小时的班，为了不上厕所，不敢喝水。视频中，我看她就跟电视上播出的那些医护人员一样，脸上都是戴口罩和护目镜勒出来的印子，神情也显得很疲劳，我好心疼。

初二那天，她把头发剪了。她一直很爱臭美，这一回为了工作忍痛割爱，把那么长的头发说剪就剪了，说实话我挺佩服她的。

今年情人节只能发红包了，但我告诉过她：“春暖花开的时候，我带你去做最美的发型。”说到做到！

老婆你一定不要害怕，

我一直在陪着你

口述者：余平，武汉市第三医院急诊科医生，其妻李叶子为武汉市第三医院急诊科护士

老婆，今天是情人节，也是我们这么多年来，第一次不在一起过情人节。在这个特别的日子里，我有一些心里话想跟你说。

2011年，我到急诊认识你。2014年，我们结婚。2015年，我们有了第一个宝贝。2018年，我们有了第二个小宝贝……

我是从农村出来的，是你在武汉给我了一个新家，还给了我一儿一女。而且，你的爸爸妈妈还主动提出帮我们带小孩，因为我们一个急诊医生、一个急诊护士，平时都太忙了。对于这一切，我除了感激还是感激。

这次新冠肺炎来了之后，我没有征得你的同意，就加入到抗疫一线。你不但没有怪我，自己还主动提出要加入抗疫一线，把父母和两个孩子都送回老家，让我们没有后顾之忧，全心投入战斗。

急诊是这次疫情的重灾区，好多同事都倒下了，但我们从没想过退缩。为保证安全，我们相互隔离，只是在每天交接班时，才相互鼓励：注意防护，注意休息，加强营养。有时轮到一起上班，穿着隔离衣不好认，我们也要相互寻找半天。即使面对面，我们也只能相视而笑，相互鼓励。两个小朋友从未离开过我们，每次视频都会哭。都在问：“爸爸妈妈，你们什么时候打败病毒？”我看你哭过好多次。当疫情越来越严重时，我看到了你眼中的恐惧，我自己也时常走到崩溃边缘，但我们一直相互加油鼓气。相信我们，一定会取得最后的胜利。到那时，我们可以再也不用戴口罩穿隔离衣，我们可以听到孩子们在耳边戏闹、叫爸爸妈妈，我可以陪你一起逛街购物吃东西……相信一切都会好起来的！

老婆，我们都要好好的。你也一定不要害怕，因为有我一直在陪着你。我相信，现在只是黎明前的黑暗，我们一定一定会战胜病毒的。

在这个特殊的日子，我想跟你说：“老婆，我爱你，谢谢你。待到疫散花开时，我们一起回家！”

Yu Ping and his wife余平夫妇工作照

We fell in love with each other at first sight. After 14 years’ marriage, she is still the best wife in the world in my eye.

In the last ten or twenty days, my wife and I have both been very busy with our work. She is busier than I am, and mostly works at night. Usually in the afternoon or evening, we have time to chat with each other through WeChat. She would normally work for eight or nine hours a day and to avoid using the toilet frequently, she dares not drink water. In the video, I saw her goggle-imprinted face, just like those medics on TV. She looked so fatigued that I felt extremely worried about her.

On the second day of the New Year, she got her hair cut. She always loves getting a nice style. This time, she had her long hair cut short without any hesitation just for the convenience of work. To be honest, I admire her.

On this Valentine’s Day I could only send her an online red envelope, but I told her, “When flowers bloom in spring, I’ll take you to have the most beautiful hairdo.” I promise!

My sweet, don’t be afraid, I am always here for you

Narrator: Yu Ping, a doctor of Emergency Department from Wuhan No. 3 Hospital To his wife Li Yezi, a nurse of Emergency Department from Wuhan No. 3 Hospital

My dear, today is Valentine’s Day, and it’s the first time we couldn’t spend the festival together. On this special day, I have something to tell you.

In 2011, I met you in the Emergency Department of our hospital. In 2014, we got married. In 2015, we had our first baby. In 2018, we had a second baby.

I came from the countryside. You gave me a new home in Wuhan as well as a son and a daughter. Moreover, your parents helped us look after our kids, because we both work in the Emergency Department and are usually as busy as bees. For all this, I’m more than grateful.

When COVID-19 started, I joined the fight against the epidemic without asking for your opinion. You didn’t blame me and you also volunteered to join the fight. You sent your parents and two children back to your hometown, so that we didn’t have to worry about them and could commit ourselves to our work.The emergency department was one of the most-afflicted places during the outbreak and many of our colleagues were infected, but we never thought about retreating. Though isolated from each other, we could encourage each other when we took over shifts every day: take care of ourselves, have enough rest, and eat well. Sometimes it’s our turn to go to work together. It’s not easy for us to recognize each other in gowns. We also had to look for each other for a long time. Even when face to face, we could only smile and try to cheer each other up. Our two children have always been with us and would sob every time we video chatted.

They kept asking: “Mom and Dad, when will you defeat the virus?” I’ve seen you weep many times. When the epidemic became more and more serious, I saw the fear in your eyes and I would be often on the verge of breakdown, but we have been supporting each other. Believe us, we’ll definitely win the final victory. By that time we will not have to wear masks or protective gowns. We can hear children playing around and calling us mom and dad. I can go shopping and eat out with you. And I believe everything will be better!

My dear, we must take care of ourselves. You don’t need to be afraid, because I’m with you all the time. I believe it’s just the darkness before dawn now, and we’ll definitely defeat the virus.

On this special day, I want to tell you, my sweet, I love you and thank you. When the pandemic disappears and the flowers bloom, we’ll go home together!

We’ve made the right decision of postponing the important visit

Narrator: Xu Xiaoke (pseudonym), a salesman. His girlfriend Xu Xiaoli (pseudonym) is an office clerk.

I’ve been dating my girlfriend for three and a half years. We enjoy keeping up with the new movies, visiting popular restaurants from the web, and traveling together.

As our relationship is stable, we are planning on getting married.

Before the Spring Festival, we went back to the hometown in Luotian County of Huanggang together. My parents had been looking forward to the “lucky day” for a long time. They were going to invite my girlfriend and her parents to “visit” on the fourth day of the first lunar month.

In my hometown, “visiting parents” is a big step before marriage. When the girl “pays a visit” with her family, the boy’s family should serve a banquet and throw a party with his relatives and friends so that the girl’s parents know more about the boy’s family.

As the epidemic was getting worse day by day, I advised my parents to postpone their meeting for the time being. My parents didn’t understand it at first, thinking it was hardly justifiable to change the schedule. But as I insisted, my parents had no choice but to agree.

I also told my girlfriend’s family about my decision. They showed their understanding and agreed to meet my family after the epidemic.

We learned later that during the epidemic, many young lovers who were going to get married delayed their weddings. We are delighted that we have made the right decision. I look forward to the day when we get married after the pandemic!

(Translation: Qing Run)

取消“上门”，

我们庆幸做了正确的选择

口述者：徐小可（化名），公司销售，其女友徐小丽 （化名）为公司职员

我和女朋友谈了3年半，喜欢在一起追电影、打卡网红餐厅、一起旅游。

随着感情日益稳定，谈婚论嫁提上了日程。

春节前，我们一起从武汉回到罗田老家。我父母老早就看好了“日子”，准备正月初四，请我女朋友和她父母一起来家“上门”。

在老家，“上门”是走向婚姻中的一道郑重的程序。女方“上门”时，男方家里要摆酒，将男方家的亲友都召集在一起，热闹热闹，也让女方家里了解男方的家庭情况。

眼看着疫情越来越严重，我向我父母提出，暂时取消“上门”。我父母开始不理解，认为这个时候改“日子”，说不过去。由于我坚持，父母只好同意了。

我跟女朋友家里也说了我的想法，他们表示了理解，也同意等疫情过去之后再欢聚。

后来，我们才知道，疫情期间，许多准备结婚的人纷纷改期，庆幸我们做出了正确的选择。我期待疫情过去后，我们迎来婚期的那一天！