Summary The author describes in plain language how an ordinary farm child who came out of the deep mountains of Guizhou, a poor and backward province in southwest China, finally became an outstanding researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences through his hard study and hard work. The author is knowledgeable and experienced, and his writing is clear and natural. The author also tells the thrilling process of narrowly escaping death due to surgical errors when suffering from cholecystitis; the author also dedicates a separate chapter to recall his mother with sincere and touching words.