The teacher, visibly moved, recited a farewell poem to his exceptional student, Nguyen Phu Trong.

The poem coincides with the thoughts and lifestyle of the General Secretary.

Professor Son was a student in the first cohort of the Faculty of Literature at Hanoi University. He was a lecturer assigned to accompany the 8th cohort of Literature students, including Nguyen Phu Trong, who were evacuated to Dai Tu district, Bac Thai province (now Thai Nguyen) in 1965.

Teacher Nguyen Ngoc Son, former teacher of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (Photo: Minh Nhan).

He shared emotionally, "I haven't slept for several nights. Last night I stayed awake all night too, feeling sorry for my student Nguyen Phu Trong."

For months, Mr. Son had been closely monitoring the General Secretary's health. Whenever he saw his student absent from a meeting, the teacher would become restless and anxious.

“When I heard the news of my student's passing, I was shocked. Today, I went with my students from the 8th grade literature class to bid farewell to Mr. Trong. We have lost a dear friend and student,” said teacher Nguyen Ngoc Son.

Teacher Nguyen Ngoc Son shared many fond memories with the Literature class of cohort 8 (K8) and General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong from that time.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's K8 class was large in number, strong in quality, and enthusiastic in participating in academic and extracurricular activities. Nguyen Phu Trong's student at that time was the Secretary of the Youth Union branch.

During the evacuation to Thai Nguyen , whenever there was a need to mobilize students to participate in local activities, Professor Nguyen Ngoc Son would primarily enlist the class of the General Secretary.

According to teacher Nguyen Ngoc Son, the Literature class of K8, where General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong studied, was as close as a family with his fellow teachers. In Mr. Son's eyes, the General Secretary was a down-to-earth, kind person, someone who lived a very sincere and pure life.

Every year, when the K8 Literature class holds a reunion, Mr. Son and several other teachers are often invited to join in the festivities with their students.

People register to pay their respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on the morning of July 25 (Photo: Pham Hong Hanh).

During a class reunion, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong shared his thoughts and feelings about human relationships, friendship, comradeship, collegial relationships, and the teacher-student relationship.

“At that time, I said to Mr. Trong: “Since you mentioned the word ‘Love,’ I’ll give you a Sino-Vietnamese poem I recently collected: ‘In this world, all things are but bubbles and illusions / After a thousand lifetimes, only one thing remains: love, the love of life, the love of people.’”

After listening, Mr. Trong commented, "The poem is wonderful, teacher, it perfectly matches my thoughts and lifestyle," recounted teacher Nguyen Van Son.

Recalling memories with his students outside the funeral home, teacher Nguyen Ngoc Son choked up, saying, "My heart is filled with sorrow. I bid farewell to you, a great personality – Comrade General Secretary – a man who always deeply valued the teacher-student relationship."

"I only knew the General Secretary through television, but I have great respect for him."

On the morning of July 25th, a large crowd of people gathered outside the National Funeral Home early in the morning to wait to pay their respects to the General Secretary.

Traveling over 30km, Ms. Dinh Thi Hue (66 years old, Nghiem Xuyen commune, Thuong Tin district, Hanoi) arrived on Lo Duc street heading towards the National Funeral Home at 5 Tran Thanh Tong Street early in the morning.

Ms. Hue recounted that she tossed and turned the night before, constantly looking forward to morning so she could go pay her respects to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

The woman left home at 5 a.m., initially planning to take two bus rides. When she reached the old National Highway 1A, she met someone going to the doctor, so she asked for a ride to the funeral home.

Ms. Hue expressed her deep gratitude for the sacrifices and contributions of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (Photo: Minh Nhan).

Ms. Hue recalled that a week earlier, her daughter had read information on social media about the death of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. She said she was "very shocked," and asked her daughter, "Is that accurate?"

"It wasn't until evening, when the news of the General Secretary's passing was broadcast on television, that I accepted the truth. I felt so sorry for the General Secretary," Ms. Hue said.

The 66-year-old woman said that upon hearing the news of the General Secretary's passing, she felt "like she had lost a family member."

Ms. Hue said she had never met General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, but she "always cherishes the integrity and simplicity of the leader." In recent days, every time she looks at pictures of the General Secretary, she is on the verge of tears.

People waited outside the funeral home, eagerly anticipating the moment to pay their respects to the General Secretary (Photo: Pham Hong Hanh).

"I just wanted to pay my respects to express my gratitude to the General Secretary for his dedication to the people and the country. In the past few days, when the TV announced that people were allowed to pay their respects to the General Secretary, I arranged my work and came very early today. I will wait until evening to pay my respects," Ms. Hue said.

The memorial service for General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong will be held simultaneously from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM on July 25th and from 7:00 AM to 1:00 PM on July 26th at the National Funeral Home, No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong Street, Hanoi; the Thong Nhat Hall, Ho Chi Minh City; and his hometown, Dong Hoi Commune, Dong Anh District, Hanoi.

Dantri.com.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/doi-song/thay-giao-xuc-dong-doc-tho-tien-biet-hoc-tro-dac-biet-nguyen-phu-trong-20240725081412472.htm