xia was born on 28 july 1923 in chongqing, sichuan. her grandfather, xia fengxun (夏风薰) had spent forty years as a teacher. her father, xia hongru (夏鸿儒), ran a school in jiangjin county, chongqing. her mother, huang xiaoyong (黄孝永), was a teacher at the jiangjin girls' middle school and headmistress of jiangjin girls' primary school.