Rong poses inside the building of the Higher People's Court of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region in Hohhot in 2019. CHINA DAILY

Rong Ruxia takes after her great-grandfather, who was the first ethnic Mongolian member of the Party

Rong Ruxia could barely contain her excitement when she visited the old site of the National Mongolian and Tibetan School in Beijing on March 28.

The school holds special meaning for her because her great-grandfather Rong Yaoxian, the first ethnic Mongolian member of the Communist Party of China, was once a student there.

Rong Ruxia, a judge in the Higher People's Court of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, told China Daily that she is proud of her great-grandfather's revolutionary experience.

"If you could witness our happy life, you would be very relieved," she said, expressing what she would say if she could talk to him now.

Born in 1896 to a Mongolian family in Tumd Left Banner, Hohhot — which was called Guisui and was the capital of what was then Suiyuan province — Rong Yaoxian used to farm and herd in his teenage years.

His life changed in 1918 when he was sent to study at the National Mongolian and Tibetan School, where he often attended lectures by Li Dazhao (1889-1927) and Chen Duxiu (1879-1942), two of the founders of the CPC, with his classmates.

On May 4, 1919, he was elected one of the representatives of the school. He and 3,000 other students from 13 universities in Beijing participated in demonstrations against the warlord-led Beiyang government (1912-1928).

"When I was a child, my grandfather and father told me about his patriotism and how he got along with people. When I grew up, I gained more understanding about his experience from reading about him," Rong Ruxia said.

Rong Yaoxian joined the Party in 1923, making him the first member of the Mongolian ethnic group to do so.

In the summer, he returned to his hometown, which is now part of Inner Mongolia, as a representative of the school to recruit students.

Eventually, 39 went to study in Beijing. Many of them joined the CPC, and later became leaders and key members of the Inner Mongolia revolutionary movement.

In 1924, Rong Yaoxian was sent to study at the Huangpu Military Academy. Later, he joined the army and served as a battalion commander.

"I was very surprised when I found out that my great-grandfather made such a great contribution to the training of ethnic Mongolian officials," Rong Ruxia said.

Rong Ruxia (right) learns the history of the National Mongolian and Tibetan School while visiting the New Culture Movement Memorial of Beijing in April. CHINA DAILY

In April 1928, Rong Yaoxian's troops were surrounded by enemy forces, and he died in battle.

His efforts did not go unnoticed. On May 13, 1982, the Ministry of Civil Affairs recognized him as a revolutionary martyr.

Over the past 40 years, his descendants have visited his former residence in Tumd Left Banner and the Mount Daqing cemetery of revolutionary martyrs every Tomb-Sweeping Day.

"Inspired by my great-grandfather, I want to increase people's sense of happiness, fulfillment and security through my hard work. I firmly believe in the rule of law and serving people wholeheartedly," Rong Ruxia said.

In 2013, she went to Oroqen Autonomous Banner, Hulunbuir city, to hear a case about a graveyard dispute.

A piece of the graveyard, which had belonged to a family for 300 years, had been ceded as farmland to another family in a contract.

"It was autumn harvest season. To avoid delaying farmwork, we held a hearing in the fields," she recalled.

People from both parties were angry and quarreled with others. After hours of mediation, one side agreed to allow a path to the graveyard, and the other side promised to transfer some of their farmland as compensation.

"We never thought that Rong, the judge, would come to help us in the fields. We are satisfied with the land-for-land solution," a local farmer said.

Rong said the spirit of service embodied by her family was on her mind during the mediation, as it has been on other mediation trips she has taken.

"In times of spring plowing and autumn harvest, we should go to the grassroots to offer legal assistance. They will believe in the court, and many contradictions will be resolved," she said, adding she will always serve the people wholeheartedly.