# Xu Zelin

From Knife Wounds to Military Merits: The Xu Family’s Two-Generation Tale of Heroism in China’s Armed Forces

Xu Honggang, hailed as a civic hero after a violent 1993 encounter, has seen his legacy carried on by his son, Xu Zelin, who joined the National University of Defense Technology and the PLA and was recently awarded a third-class meritorious service citation. The family’s story is being used to highlight intergenerational duty and to support China’s broader push to professionalize and politically consolidate its armed forces.