On this day, 40 years ago, on March 9, 1985 (January 18, 1985 in the lunar calendar), Chen Yongkang, a national model worker, passed away. On March 9, 1985, Chen Yongkang, a national model worker and vice president of the Jiangsu Province Academy of Agricultural Sciences, died in Nanjing at the age of 78. As early as the 1940s, Chen Yongkang bred the famous "Laolaiqing" late japonica rice seed. In the early 1950s, he first set a record of more than a thousand kilograms per mu of single-season late rice. After that, he collaborated with multi-disciplinary experts to establish a complete set of comprehensive rice cultivation technology systems, and creatively proposed the seedling diagnosis theory of rice "three yellows and three blacks". In the 1960s, Comrade Chen Yongkang devoted more energy to agricultural technical guidance. He has been stationed in rural areas for a long time, personally creating high-yield rice models, and also traveled to major rice areas in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River to teach technology and demonstrate operations, which has played a major role in improving the level of intensive cultivation of rice in large areas and achieving stable and high yields. After the 1970s, Comrade Chen Yongkang devoted himself to studying the high-yield laws and techniques of double-cropping rice, three-cropping system and hybrid rice, and created a yield of more than 3,000 kilograms per mu in the three-cropping system of wheat, rice, and rice in the experimental field he personally designed and operated. He also actively participated in the construction of a comprehensive scientific experimental base for agricultural modernization in the Taihu Lake area and explored ways to modernize my country's agriculture. On August 23, 1981, the People's Daily published an exclusive interview "Chen Yongkang's True Character" written by the newspaper's reporter Yan Shigui. The article wrote: One morning a few days later, I finally met him. He was wearing faded patches and patches, yellow sneakers, and no socks. His hair is gray but very strong, and he is a simple and weathered old farmer. It can be heard that he is not good at words, especially the clichés that people often say; But when you talk about the experience of high-yield rice, you can't help but admire it! "Farming is a science, and science is mastering laws." Lao Chen said with a strong accent from his hometown of Songjiang,"We talk about the growth of rice and the natural conditions such as soil, fertilizer, water, gas, light, and temperature related to the growth of rice. They all exist objectively and have their own laws. These rules cannot be violated by people. If you violate it, you will be punished. Of course, it does not mean that we are helpless in the face of laws; we can understand the laws, master the laws, and use them according to conditions." As he talked, he connected a past: "I remember in 1958, when I built two acres of high-yield rice fields, a leading comrade asked me to propose a high-yield target of 20,000 kilograms per mu, and set a technical measure to use 1,000 kilograms of bean cakes per mu as base fertilizer. I think that under the conditions at that time, it was impossible to produce 20,000 kilograms per mu; using 1,000 kilograms of bean cakes per mu as base fertilizer was firstly unnecessary, secondly, it could not be eaten, and thirdly, it was impractical, which was both a waste and a fertilizer hazard. I didn't accept it. I still followed the normal situation and the rice grew better. People often come to my field and say,'Lao Chen, your field is sure to yield 3,000 kilograms per mu.' I always say: 'No, it's a thousand kilograms.' The subsequent harvest was indeed thousands of kilograms. On the contrary, at that time, there were also a few people who didn't pay much attention to the conditions of customers and had the attitude of giving it a try. As a result, the rice grew wildly and did not reach 200 kilograms per mu. "Chen Yongkang stopped here and looked a little serious: " Of course, this is in the past. But we must not forget. I often think that if we engage in scientific farming, we must be honest, act in accordance with science, provide scientific experience, and must not cater to anything, talk nonsense, and mess around, then it will not be called science." Listening to Chen Yongkang's discussion, I remembered something introduced by his colleague. The three-crop system in southern Jiangsu has been controversial. One day in September 1980, a provincial party secretary came to the Academy of Agricultural Sciences and asked Chen Yongkang what percentage of the three-crop system was good when he went to see the ridge of the experimental field. Lao Chen replied: "You can't talk about proportion. When it comes to proportion, if you don't do it well, you will cut it all. There are large differences in agricultural production, and we need to investigate team by team. Mobilize seeds with conditions and suitable conditions; drop some seeds if conditions are not enough; Don't plant if there are really no conditions. Cultivate the land well and proceed from reality. Our country's population is getting bigger and bigger, and we can't do it without grasping food." The secretary nodded: "Your opinion is correct." "But now, scientific farming in some places is not yet solid, and there are still many problems." Lao Chen interrupted my thoughts,"Last year, when I was running down there, a county party committee secretary told me that some places are still cheating, and the output is not true and the output is increasing. How can this be achieved? "This is indeed something people should take seriously. Perhaps in the eyes of some people, Chen Yongkang is just an outstanding model worker, but I think he is a real scientist!