Guru of literary Translation Yang Xianyi passes away

Li added that he heard of Yang's death at about 9am on November 23 from Mrs. Yang Yi, translator of the Chinese version of Wuthering Heights.

Zhou Ting, author of Yang's biography, visited Yang in the hospital on November 22 before Yang unexpectedly passed away the next day. Han Jingqun, chief editor of the Beijing October Literature & Art Publishing House, told the reporter that Yang lived like a hermit and did not care much about his achievements. This is not the time to talk about Yang's achievements but the spirit of Yang and his contemporary intellectuals. Han added, "It is worth reflecting whether this generation of intellectuals including myself still have Yang’s spirit. Reviewing Yang's life, his influence on the era is impossible to erase."

A heart of gold will never change

Yang's life and knowledge were always inseparable with those of his wife Gladys Yang

Yang entered Oxford University after passing an admission test at the age of 21. In 1940, he became engaged to Gladys B. Tayler (She changed her name to Gladys Yang after marrying Yang), the daughter of a British missionary, and they decided to return to China and settle down there. Gladys was born in Beijing and had had a strong fascination and affection for China and Beijing since she was a child. She was Yang's classmate and friend when he studied in the UK. With similar tastes and interests, they became a confidant couple. When 21-year-old Gladys applied for a passport to go to China, a British official wondered, “Why would such a beautiful British girl want to head for war-torn China? However, Gladys said, "I want to go to China with my Chinese fiance."

Thus, the young couple started their life journey from Southampton with just 50 pounds in their pocket. After a long, adventurous journey via Shanghai, Hong Kong and other places, they finally arrived in Chongqing where Yang's family lived." Yang once said that they did take a risk returning to China during the War of Resistance against Japan.

Regardless of how hard Yang and Gladys's life was, they never separated. Their hearts were always closely intertwined both when Gladys married Yang in a Chinese-style silk, short sleeved Qipao dress, and their four years of prison life during the "Cultural Revolution". Yang remembered that he often interpreted Chinese classical works, while Gladys typed his dictation on a typewriter during the sweet days they spent together. Yang took care of Gladys both in the UK and in China, and often proactively spoke English at home, which was the source of an interesting joke: Gladys complained that her Chinese was not very fluent because her husband was too fluent in English.

In Yang's home there is a wedding photo depicting Gladys and Yang wearing traditional Chinese outfits. The words on the photo read, "Even if golden hair turns gray, a heart of gold will not change."