In the early years, he was discriminated against as an “aborigine boy” in the Han Chinese society. Despite being bullied, he did not give up on himself but endured the hardships and worked harder in learning.
He finished senior high school education at the age of 38 and enrolled in TransWorld University at the age of 59.

Before completing his military service, he obtained a hydroelectric license and was hired as the first-session General Manager of Mudanwan Villa and the anchorman of Taiwan Indigenous Television (TITV).

Ying-Yong life is as exciting as a drama. After completing the military service, he studied in a vocational continuation school. After seeing a severe outflow of the population in his hometown, the declining traditional industry, and the elimination crisis of indigenous language and cultures, he returned home and converted his house into a B&B, organized an indigenous orchestra, and trained narrators to promote tribal sightseeing.

Integrates sightseeing to inherit the indigenous cultures
He is most concerned about the promotion and spiritual inheritance of tribal cultures by developing the “Ten Scenes of Mudan.” The purposes are to allow visitors to understand the tribal cultures, know about the spiritual civilization of the indigenous people, call back the glory of the tribal people, drive the young people that there is hope when you work hard, and promote understanding and respect between the indigenous people and Han Chinese.

Ying-Yong’s growth experience has gone through poverty, suffering, and low self-esteem. So he is well aware that a person needs to have someone to support, care about, and lead a helping hand when he or she is very distressed and desperate. Now that he has the ability, he is willing to help people at any time.

Ying-Yong currently serves as an elder of Shihmen Church, a cultural history worker and a lecturer in psychological counseling among the tribes. He always dedicates himself to driving the indigenous youngsters, benefiting the tribal people, promoting harmony between the indigenous people and the Han Chinese, and leading the tribal tourism to inherit the indigenous cultures. He deserves to be praised as the “Paiwan Elder,” and stood out among 2,723 recommended candidates from all over the world and earned him the “22nd Fervent Global Love of Lives Award 2019” from Taiwan’s Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation.

The Foundation welcomes all walks of life around the world at any time to recommend candidates of life warriors who possess the contexts of endeavors, love, braveness, and achievement.
 
The Fervent Global Love of Lives Medal - Chou Ta-Kuan Cultural and Educational Foundation, Taiwan
Recommended hotline: 886-2-29178770
Fax: 886-2-29178768
Address: 3F, No. 52, Mingde Road, Xindien District, New Taipei City 231, Taiwan
Website: http://www.ta.org.tw
Email: ta88ms17@gmail.com

The Son of the Sun promotes ethnic harmony and creativity
A well-known church elder of Mudan Township, Pingtung County, Ying-Yong had once served as a stationed singer, anchorman, narrator, and the General Manager of a high-class villa. Although he leads a vibrant and exciting life, he always believes that the deep indigenous cultural spirit is rarely clearly understood by the Han Chinese. He spent nearly a year to write a lifelong experience with writer Song Fang Qi and chose to publish the autobiography “The Son of the Sun” on the 228 Peace Memorial Day in 2017, hoping to clarify the spirit of ethnic harmony through words.

Ying-Yong’s life experience is very respectful among the indigenous people and the Han Chinese. However, as a native of Paiwan, he is relatively worried about the elimination and misunderstanding of the indigenous cultures. The narrations of many indigenous images and characteristics have been too shallow and lack of a cultural level of traditional spirit. He believes that it is significantly related to a lack of written records of the indigenous people, thus prompting him to publish a book.

Ying-Yong, who graduated from Chi Cheng Vocational Continuation School was once a well-known narrator in Mudan Township, and hired as the first-session General Manager of Mudanwan Villa and an anchorman of Taiwan Indigenous Television (TITV). He once sung in The Masalu Band that he formed earlier for 18 years in the Caesar Park Hotel Kenting. He is still suffering from discrimination in the Han Chinese society only due to a lack of understanding in the cultures and ethnic groups.

Ying-Yong said that the indigenous cultures had suffered a similar problem of the recent dull tourism industry in Kenting. They are a severe duplication of a lack in their unique characteristics. Taiwan and Kenting are encountering an issue of “not well-developed.” The only solution to break through the present situation is to find out the market segments that are different from others through their unique cultural heritage.

“You can’t get rich from culture, but you can live safely and in dignity.” Ying-Yong said that a lack of indigenous written records had prompted him to decide writing the indigenous issues that he has experienced and seen. The purpose of “The Son of the Sun” written by writer Song Fang Xi is to let more people understand the tribal spirit, the tribal young people to pay more attention to their own cultures, and promote understanding and respect between the indigenous people and the Han Chinese through the book media.

Natural classroom of the tribal life
Ying-Yong was born in a farmer family.
His parents gave birth to ten children, but only three boys and five girls survived.
His tribal home was not big, with 10 family members living in a small tattered wooden house and squeezing on a smashed thorny bamboo bed laid with jute sacks.
During the busy season, his father, mother, and brothers would live in a house in the mountain. Ying-Yong stayed in the tribe to serve as the “junior father” for his two younger sisters.
Ying-Yong was responsible for cleaning the house, bathing his younger sisters, and washing the clothes.
When they were hungry, Ying-Yong would go into the wild to look for food with his younger sisters, such as wild fruits, wild vegetables, snakes, frogs, fish in the creek, snails, etc.
Ying-Yong was quite familiar with the tribal environment, so he knew where to find the food.

Sometimes during the harvest season, Ying-Yong would go to other people’s fields to pick small and ugly sweet potatoes and peanuts that are still scarcely clinging on the roots with his younger sisters. They would also occasionally find snakes, edible frogs, and fished for frogs.

Ying-Yong and his younger sisters often went without food intermittently, but they had accustomed to such living without complaints.
Ying-Yong was regarded as an “underachiever” child in school. Although he had registered in the school, he spent most of his time at home instead.
Ying-Yong’s parents did not want him to go to school because there was nobody to look after the youngster sisters if he did.
However, due to the government’s “Nine-Year Compulsory Education,” Ying-Yong’s parents still had to let him register in school.
Sometimes, when he skipped school for too long, the school teacher would look for him at his house. So Ying-Yong’s parents had to let him go to school occasionally.

Eagers to learn to change fate
Ying-Yong was eager to learn some skills.
Sometimes, he begged his father, but he often got the response that: “It’s useless to go to school. You can’t fight hunger with books. You follow Dad up to the mountain. Dad will teach you how to farm and build a house. In the future, you’ll have the abilities to support your wife and children.”
However, Ying-Yong understood that his parents have been farming in the mountain for their whole life, and yet, the family still could not get enough needs in daily life. Only by reading and learning new knowledge could he change his destiny.

For the sake of going to school, Ying-Yong would even cry in front of his mother to gain sympathy.
With great difficulty, Ying-Yong got his mother’s approval. He bravely ran more than 10km for more than one hour on the rugged mountain trail barefooted and went straight in Mudan Junior High School breathlessly.
Ying-Yong did not register in the school despite that it had already opened for more than one month. With a burst of energy, he walked into the first-year 3^rd classroom where his primary school classmate Hong Sui Mu was studying and said firmly to the teacher who was teaching then: “I’m coming to study.”

Teacher: “The first monthly exam is over. Will you come back in the next semester?”
Ying-Yong stood still and full of determination.
He thought he had fought very hard to convince his mother, once stepping out of the classroom, he would not have any chance to study again.

Ying-Yong made up his mind not to leave. Could not bear to refuse Ying-Yong whose eyes were in tears, the teacher let him share a table with Hong Sui Mu to attend the class. That was how he officially became a student of Mudan Junior High School and began his junior high school life.
Although Ying-Yong was keen to learn, the situations at home made him often absent from school, such to grazing the cows, doing household chores, and looking after his younger sisters.
Ying-Yong knew that he has gone through a tough time before graduating from primary school and junior high school, so he has little chance to continue schooling.

Therefore, he decided to leave the tribe earlier and work as an apprentice in the city, learn a skill, and hope to improve the family life in the future.
During the second year in junior high school, a teacher summoned Ying-Yong and another classmate and asked them: “I know that you’ve no intention to pursue further study, it happens that an electrical appliance boss in Kaohsiung is looking for apprentices. Do you like to apply?”

Ying-Yong showed a sign of happiness and agreed instantly.
Under the teacher’s introduction, Ying-Yong and his classmate left their hometown together and worked as the apprentices in Kaohsiung.
The owner of the electrical appliance is a kind person with a disability and was willing to teach them.
The boss provided them with free food and lodging but no salary, but only gave them NT$500 each as an allowance every month.
Couldn’t bear being separated from the family, Ying-Yong’s classmate left and went home two weeks later.
Ying-Yong was left alone struggling in Kaohsiung.
Although Ying-Yong’s inner heart was also homesick, to help out with his family economy, he told himself: “I can’t go home, I must learn some skills.”

Endured humiliation and heavy burden to find another way out
One day, while the boss was dispatching Ying-Yong to deliver the goods, he took the opportunity to look for another job.
Ying-Yong found another job as a septic tank digger. He was paid for $600 for digging a septic tank of dimensions 5(L) x 5(W) x 6(D) feet.
Due to poverty, the muscular Ying-Yong could dig several septic tanks a day, hoping to earn more money to send home.
Although he could earn more by digging the septic tanks, he often ended up with a filthy body.

As Ying-Yong is a clean-living person, he often thought then: “Don’t tell me I’ll dig the septic tanks throughout my entire life?”
At the construction site, some figures often caught Ying-Yong’s attention.
They always wear a construction helmet on their head, a costume full of pockets, and a wide belt on their waist hung with several hand tools.

Later, Ying-Yong knew that they were hydroelectric technicians.
“I also want to be one of them.” A voice rang from Ying-Yong’s heart.
When the third-grade junior high school students were graduating, Ying-Yong ended the septic tank digging job and returned to the tribe to participate in the graduation ceremony.
After graduating from junior high school, Ying-Yong once again left the tribe and went to the city to look for a way out.
Through the introduction of a technician, Ying-Yong went to Xinxing District of ​​Kaohsiung City to look for Master Chen, a hydroelectric technician.
When Master Chen was worrying that he could not find an apprentice, Ying-Yong was immediately hired upon showing up.
Master Chen is a bad temper guy who cared less about his apprentice.

He let Ying-Yong lived in a makeshift squatter at the vegetable garden surrounded by a few wooden planks and the roof covered with canvas. When it rained, the holes of the canvas would leak.
As Master Chen’s business was thriving, he worked busily every day. Ying-Yong followed him everywhere to work on one project after another.
Master Chen never taught Ying-Yong about the hydroelectric technology but only summoned him to run errands. Sometimes when Ying-Yong took the wrong things accidentally, Master Chen would scold him fiercely.

Ying-Yong could only bear the scolding silently.
Ying-Yong told himself: “To learn the technology, I must endure all sufferings.”
Besides busy working during the working hours, he had no time to spare after work either.
When Ying-Yong returned to the hydroelectric shop, he had to help take care of Master Chen’s five children.
His wife was used to treat Ying-Yong as a male servant, letting him do the family chores.
After finished doing the master’s family chores, he further had to help his parents do the harvesting work after returning to the vegetable garden.
His parents planted some vegetables in the vegetable garden that needed to be harvested and sorted accordingly in the dark evening.

Ying-Yong had to wake up at five o’clock in the morning when the sky was still dark, pulled the cart loaded with vegetables and delivered them to the vegetable vendors at Xinxing market before going back to do the hydroelectric works.
Ying-Yong did not like Master Chen due to his bad temper who always liked to scold in bad languages, making him feel very uncomfortable.
Master Chen had no intention of teaching his apprentice. Ying-Yong could only watch how Master Chen connect the wires, install the plugs, and weld the water pipes while standing and passing the tools alongside.

Ying-Yong could only look and remember in his head, and then drew diagrams after returning to his squatter.
Despite a lack of formal learning, he had learned about the hydroelectric technology after observing for one to two years.
During his apprenticeship, Ying-Yong often had a negative suicidal thought, with an urge of jumping off the tall building at the construction site several times.

The most pathetic and desperate things were not the busy and hard work but in the working circle of the Han Chinese where Ying-Yong had to face with mocking and humiliate speeches every day.
While lying in bed at night and looking at the holes on the ceiling, Ying-Yong would think about his home on the mountain.
Although his home on the mountain is broken and crowded, he would feel warm with mom and dad by his side, even if he is lying on the straw bed with an empty stomach.

The reason for Ying-Yong to leave the tribe and struggle in Kaohsiung was to learn some skills, hoping to earn more money to improve his family’s life in the future. Seeing that the mountain people were treated as second-class people by others, in several occasions, Ying-Yong was very desperate while standing the eighth floor of the construction site and looking down on the people walking to and fro like ants
Ying-Yong had an urge to end his life.

“Son, if only you behave well and work hard, you’ll have a good life in the future.” Dad’s voice sounded in time in Ying-Yong’s ear.
Ying-Yong thought that his parent’s only hope is to see their children leading a happy life after working hard for a lifetime.
If he just ended his life, his mom and dad would be heartbroken.
For Ying-Yong who has a strong personality, even though his soul was blocked by black clouds sometimes, he would still struggle to erase the shadows away and let a ray of light to shine into his heart.

Enlightened and sang for 18 years
After staying in Master Chen’s place for three years and five months, Ying-Yong finally heard him said: “Little Gu, you’ve finished your apprenticeship.”
After becoming a hydroelectric technician, Ying-Yong was fortunate enough to receive a national residence project. Since then, Ying-Yong’s hydroelectric industry has developed smoothly.
After working outside for many years, he finally returned to his hometown with a wife he has just married.

Ying-Yong’s wife is a nurse. After having a child, Ying-Yong often had to piggyback his child while working at the construction site because his wife could not take their child to work in the hospital.

Such work pattern had been going on after they have a second daughter. To convince his wife to stay at home and look after their children, Ying-Yong opened a floral studio to let her work in her favorite career of flower arrangement.

Mudan Floral Shop was the first flower shop in Mudan Township. Its business was unexpectedly thriving. To help his wife running the flower shop, Ying-Yong handed over the hydroelectric work to his apprentice and concentrated on taking care of the flower shop.

It happened that while delivering the flower arrangements to a restaurant around the Hengchun area, he met the Manager of Caesar Hotel. Under his invitation, Ying-Yong used the evening free time to sing in the Caesar Hotel for up to 18 years.

Promotes tribal tourism to inherit the cultures of the indigenous people
Mudan, the hometown of Ying-Yong is a wonderful tribe full of beautiful mountains and good waters, legends and ruins, natural ecology, and cultural landscapes.
Most people don’t even know the existence of beautiful Mudan. Visitors often only visit Sihjhongsi hot spring or head straight to Syuhai.

After returning to the tribe, Ying-Yong found that there were little employment opportunities in the tribe.
Most youngsters would go outside to work elsewhere.
Ying-Yong repeatedly thought in his heart on how to develop tribal cultures and create employment opportunities in the tribe?
Ying-Yong spent five years doing field research and visiting the tribe elders.
He drew up an ideal tour package by linking up the tribal history and cultures consisting of ecology, humanities, sightseeing, and other activities.
Ying-Yong also explored the natural features and ruins of Mudan Township, hoping to bring tourists into the tribe.

However, he thought that if the tourists just come in and look at the mountains and waters, they still don’t understand about the tribal cultures and how to improve understanding between the “indigenous people and Han Chinese.”
Then, Ying-Yong used the back garden of his house as a classroom to teach the tribal youngsters about the tribal cultures and trained them as narrators.

Ying-Yong has planned ten scenic spots of Mudan - Shihmen ancient battlefield, wetland aquatic grassland, people-eating trees, husband-and-wife tree, 18 forest class ecological river, Sihlinge Monument, Syuhai grassland, 1600-year-old autumn maple tree, CacevaKan Old Ruins. The last scene in the ten scenic spots is visiting the ancient elder - Gu, Ying-Yong.

To most people, the general stereotype concept of indigenous people is their fond of drinking wine.
However, when they chat with Ying-Yong, they would realize that: “This indigenous person talking in front of us does not like drinking. It’s wrong to say he doesn’t drink at all, but he knows the culture of drinking and knows the beauty of drinking.”

Ying-Yong believes that such interaction and understanding would allow the other party to see the highlights in us and realize the beauty of the indigenous cultures. Such exchanges will enable them to gain deeper connotations.

From indigenous General Manager to TV anchorman
Ying-Yong’s deep understanding of the tribal cultures is deeply valued by Yan Chang-Shou and Zeng Zhong-Xin, and hired him as the first-session General Manager of Mudanwan Villa.
Bringing in the tribal cultures into the recreational hotel has become the characteristic of Mudanwan Villa. The daily ten-minute “Elder’s Story” has become the most anticipated time for the villa guests.

The Villa’s business went into full swing while Ying-Yong was working there for more than two years.
At that time, TITV invited Ying-Yong to work as an anchorman.
It is also the hope of Ying-Yong to promote the mother tongue of the tribe through the media as more and more youngsters don’t know how to speak their indigenous language.
The mother tongue is the most beautiful and precious gift that the ancestors gave to the tribal people.
Ying-Yong hopes that the younger generation will not forget the gifts of their ancestors.

As Ying-Yong had to go north and often needed to spend three days a week at somewhere else, he quit the hotel job for fear of affecting the hotel’s business.
Ying-Yong has a principle of doing one thing right once at a time.

During his time as an anchorman, Ying-Yong’s 92-year-old mother was sick in bed. After his mother has become ill, Ying-Yong always stays by her side to feed her with soup and medication.

Although his wife and elder sister would look after his mother when Ying-Yong was not at home, he would always miss his mother, and his mother would also miss him too.
His mother would stare at the clock on the wall the moment when Ying-Yong leaves the house until he steps into the house.
As Ying-Yong could not bear to see the grief-stricken mother, he also quit the anchorman job in TITV after working for more than a year.

Spreading the tribal hopes and creating the glory of the indigenous people
Working as a hydroelectric technician after returning to the tribe, Ying-Yong often visits the schools, including Mudan Junior High School to do hydroelectric maintenance. There he might meet some problem students.
As he was also an “underachiever” child while studying in junior high school and could not attend school every day, he always fell behind the lessons and schoolwork.
Deeply understanding that some children may feel a sense of inferiority due to poor grades, he often talked with the students who dislike studying and often absent from school.

Finally, he has even become a school counselor to lead those lost kids.
As Ying-Yong has undergone the growth experience of poverty, bitterness, and inferiority, he would feel distressed for those who are suffering and understand that a person would yearn to be supported, cared and led a helping hand when he or she stumbles on the road.

Now that Ying-Yong is a capable man, he has a high interest to extend his hands to help people at any time.
Being unable to attend school properly when he was young, Ying-Yong has a hidden dream in his heart to study earnestly.
Throughout his growth, he had not been able to study smoothly in primary school and junior high school. When his classmates had continued to attend senior high school, he had already left his hometown and fought hard in the city.

When he returned to the tribe then, he had a sense of inferiority in his heart and afraid he would bump into his classmates. He envied to see people with an intellectual appearance, wearing the uniform and a cap, and yet afraid that his classmates would ask about his achievements.
At the age of 38, Ying-Yong finally had the opportunity to study in senior high school and completed his high school education.
He was encouraged by an advertisement that the Private Zhicheng Vocation Continuation School was recruiting students, thus igniting his deep-rooted desire to engage in further study.

After three years of studying in the vocational continuation school, he has achieved many successes, including the championship in on-campus/off-campus singing competition, 1^st place in Social Group Chinese Language Speech Competition in Mudan Township and 4^th place in the county, 1^st place in the School Citizenship Training Talent Competition, a representative of high school model student, and even the first-session outstanding alumni of Mudan Junior High School, and the model youth of Mudan Township.
At the age of 59, under the circumstances of being able to look after both his family and the tribal cultures, Ying-Yong enrolled in TransWorld University to become a senior student.

The happiness in studying has enriched Ying-Yong’s life with colors.
Ying-Yong’s vision is broad, selfless, and wise, and dedicated to upholding the tribal cultures. He has become a spiritual model of tribal youths.
Reluctant to bow to destiny and determination has let Ying-Yong bravely face challenges and changes.
The suffering life experience has become the nutrients of Ying-Yong’s life.
Ying-Yong is a Christian. He is grateful for the love of God. Although he has experienced difficulties, these tests have enriched Ying-Yong’s life and fulfilled the lives of so many tribal people. He is spreading hopes for the tribe and creating the glory of the indigenous people continuously.

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