40年前，邓公恢复高考，40年前，570万考生的命运被改变……

Forty years ago China reinstated its all-important college entrance exam after a gap of more than a decade. More than five million people sat the exams in the hope of securing a university place. The BBC’s Yuwen Wu describes what it was like to be among them.

四十年前，中国时隔十余年恢复了其非常重要的高考。逾五百万人参加了此次考试，希望在大学保有一席之地。BBC的吴玉文（音译）描述他们当时的情景。

On 10 December 1977, I took a bus to No 35 Middle School in the West City District of Beijing to do something young people in China hadn’t done for more than 12 years.

1977年12月10日，我乘坐公交车到北京的西城区第35中学，做中国青年已有12余年未做的事情。

I was taking part in the first college entrance examination since 1965.

当时，我参加了1965年以来的首场高考。

There was subdued yet palpable excitement and expectation in the cold winter air, because for the first time in years we had our destiny in our own hands. In my pocket I clutched a bar of chocolate from my father. It was his way of supporting me - I’d never tasted chocolate before.

寒冷的冬天空气里弥散着被克制、但可感知的兴奋和期待，因为十几年来第一次，我们的命运掌握在了我们自己的手里。我紧握着父亲给我的一块巧克力。这是他支持我的方式——此前，我从未吃过巧克力。

During the Cultural Revolution, normal learning at schools and universities was interrupted, teachers and intellectuals found themselves publicly humiliated and beaten; some were driven to suicide. It was not a good time for those who valued a formal education.

文革期间，学校和大学的正常学习被打断，老师和知识分子公开受辱和被殴；一些人被迫自杀。对于那些重视正式教育的人而言，这并不是一段美好时光。

It turned out that Deng Xiaoping, purged by Mao Zedong during the Cultural Revolution and rehabilitated as vice premier in 1977, had decided to tackle education as his priority.

最终，邓小平决定将处理教育问题作为他的首要工作，他曾在文革期间被毛泽东肃清，于1977年恢复副总理一职。

He called a meeting in August 1977 to discuss the possibility of restoring college entrance exams. Many were in favour, but others were not sure, the main obstacle being that Chairman Mao had endorsed selecting college students from workers, peasants and soldiers’ backgrounds and there was little time to prepare for the switch.

1977年8月，他召开了一次会议，讨论恢复高考的可能性。很多人表示支持，但其他人不确定，主要障碍是毛主席曾赞同从工人、农民和士兵的背景中挑选大学生，准备这一转变的时间很少。

But Mr Deng made the historic decision to start the new system that year, which sent a ripple of excitement up and down the country.

但是，邓小平做出了历史性决定，那年开始新的体系，这激起了举国上下的兴奋。

College examinations were suspended in 1966 when Mao’s Cultural Revolution swept the country. Students were mobilised to take part in the revolution, so formal schooling was interrupted.

1966年，高考被暂停，当时毛的文革席卷全国。学生被动员参与革命，因此正常教学被中断。

From 1968, millions of young people were sent to the countryside to be re-educated by "peasants".

自1968年起，数百万年轻人被派至农村，接受“农民”的再次教育 。

From the early 1970s, universities and colleges started to take in students again, from workers, peasants and soldiers’ backgrounds, and they were mostly recommended for good political behaviour rather than through open competition.

20世纪70年代开始，各大高校开始从工人、农民和士兵的背景中再次接收学生，他们被推荐的理由主要为良好的政治行为，而非通过公开竞争。

Some 5.7 million people took part in the college entrance examinations in 1977 and 273,000 got places, an admission rate of 4.8% - the lowest in history.

1977年，约570万人参加了那场高考，273000人被录取，录取率为4.8%——史上最低。