Wang Quanying, believed to be China's last living female veteran of the Long March, celebrated her 105th birthday on Saturday by receiving two recreated portraits depicting her as a teenage Red Army soldier.

Photo: CCTV

The portraits, created by teachers and students from the National University of Defense Technology and Zhejiang University of Media and Communications, recreate Wang at the age of 14, when she joined the Red Army in 1935, and 16, after she became separated from her unit during the Long March. Seeing the portraits, Wang smiled and gave them a thumbs-up.

A recreated portrait shows Wang Quanying at the age of 14, when she joined the Red Army in 1935.

A recreated portrait depicts Wang Quanying at the age of 16, after she became separated from her unit during the Long March in 1936.

Born in 1921 in Jinchuan county, Sichuan Province, Wang joined the Red Army at the age of 14 and served as a nurse and logistics assistant with the Fourth Front Army. She endured extreme hardships during the Long March, including severe frostbite while crossing snow-covered mountains.

In 1936, Wang became separated from her unit during military operations and eventually settled in Wenchuan, Sichuan Province, where she lived quietly for decades without revealing her Long March experience. In 1984, authorities confirmed her identity as a former Red Army member and granted her official veteran status.

This year marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March. Earlier this month, soldiers from the PLA Army visited Wang at her home in Dujiangyan, Sichuan Province. Wearing her Red Army uniform, the 105-year-old veteran saluted the company's battle flag, paying tribute to the comrades she never forgot.