The most important thing about borders is home and country
——Memory printed in the Pamirs
The officers and soldiers of the Sanjiaoshan post saluted the five-star red flag.
The officers and soldiers of a certain post in Changbai Mountain colored the five-star red flag.
The officers and soldiers at the Gambara radar station raised the national flag against the rising sun.
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When the fifteenth moon rose from the Pamirs, the commander of the Khunjerab border guard company Ding agreed, and the franchised soldiers took turns to look at the moon with high-powered telescopes.
It was really a wonderful moon appreciation.
The warrior Hou Xiaorong put his eyes on the observation mirror, good fellow, the oversized moon instantly jumped in front of him.
He observed intently. First he saw the moon's light spots, shadows, and craters, and then he saw the smiling faces of his father, mother and younger brother in a daze.
What is the mystery hidden in this?
Running on the border line, I seem to have found the answer.
Putting on the military uniform is equivalent to signing the next contract with the country. Once the young man is armed, he gives himself to the country.
Amidst the wind and snow at the border, and under the scorching sun on the plateau, they completed an important life transition: from farmers’ sons, workers’ sons, teachers’ sons, cadres’ sons, businessmen’s sons... to grow into a nation. Son.
It's National Day again, and Mid-Autumn Festival.
It is a coincidence that the two festivals of this year are on the same day. The patriotism and the deep homesickness are entwined, and my thoughts suddenly jump to the border.
(One)
Today, 19 years ago, October 1, 2001, was also the overlap between National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival. Highland soldiers stationed in southern Xinjiang were patrolling, performing duties, and preparing for the festival.
When the fifteenth moon rose from the Pamirs, the commander of the Khunjerab border company Ding agreed, and the franchised soldiers took turns to look at the moon with high-powered telescopes.
It was really a wonderful moon appreciation.
The warrior Hou Xiaorong put his eyes on the observation mirror, good fellow, the oversized moon instantly jumped in front of him.
He observed intently. First he saw the moon's light spots, shadows, and craters, and then he saw the smiling faces of his father, mother and younger brother in a daze.
Ding Xintong told me that Xiaorong and his family opened a restaurant and life was pretty good.
Hou Xiaorong explained: "It can't be counted as a restaurant, it's just a small restaurant with more than a dozen dining tables, and you can earn tens of thousands of yuan a year. You can live a life, right?"
Looking at the moon with the same telescope, monitor He Hui seemed to see his sister in college.
He and his sister usually communicate the most, with more than 100 letters coming and going.
My sister loves to listen to him telling stories about the border, including the feeling of high altitude, what I learned from the patrol, and what else I must drink a bowl of hot ginger soup, eat a hot meal every time I return from the patrol, and do not go to bed at night without soaking my feet , Do not apply plateau skin cream in the morning, not let out, etc., all make this college student feel novel and envious, and often write letters to encourage his brother to be at ease.
Chinese traditional culture values the family and upholds family affection.
Just as "a soldier serves as a soldier, the whole family is glorious", every soldier carries the expectations of the family more or less.
Li Bo, a soldier of a certain regiment, came to the Pamirs with the trust of his family.
The young man grew up in a traditional three-generation family.
Grandpa had a dream of joining the army when he was young, but he did not encounter a chance. There were 7 brothers and sisters in his father’s generation, and none of them were soldiers. So, grandpa put the hope of serving as a soldier and serving the country on his grandchildren, hoping to have someone in his grandchildren. Can help him realize his dreams.
Li Bo is a filial son, and he is reluctant to leave his grandfather and mother.
Especially when the mother got a strange disease, in order to cure the disease, her wealthy family became in debt.
After failing the college entrance examination, Li Bo took care of his mother while repeating the exam. He massaged and fed his mother every day, but there was no improvement in his studies.
For this, parents and grandpa are very anxious.
Grandpa said: "Go as a soldier, even if it's a wish of Grandpa."
Mother said: "Go as a soldier, don't delay your career just to take care of me."
Unable to withstand the persuasion of his family, Li Bo enlisted in the army and soon fell in love with the united and tense collective of the army.
He is a sunny youth, loves to sing, talks about cross talk, acts in sketches, and gets along well with his comrades, but his physique is weak. He was very embarrassed when he started running 5 kilometers. He was dragged in front by the squad leader with a backpack rope, and pushed by the veteran Later, I gradually got used to it. All subjects of military training were qualified.
During that time, he was happy all day, writing to his father was also full of excitement, saying that he had listened to his grandfather's words, and this soldier was worthy.
What he didn't know was that the family suffered successive misfortunes this year, and sorrow was overwhelmed: first the grandfather passed away, and his mother died two months later.
But in order not to affect his service, the family kept hiding from him, and it was not until more than half a year later that his father wrote to him to confide the truth.
My father is a village cadre in his hometown, knows everything, and he repeatedly urged in the letter: A good man is in all directions, loyalty and filial piety cannot achieve both. I hope you can be a strong soldier and a rational soldier, turn grief into strength, and work harder. Go forward step by step and enter life steadily.
Later, in order to educate the entire company and allow the officers and soldiers to repay the expectations of their relatives with healthy growth, the instructor obtained the consent of Li Bo and read a letter from Li Bo's father at the military assembly, which greatly shocked the entire company.
Li Bo said frankly to his comrades: "I cherish the experience of serving as a soldier in Pamir. It taught me a truth: the motherland is the mother, and if you love your mother, you must love the motherland; the mother is also the motherland, and loving the motherland is like loving your mother."
Later, Li Boyin was promoted to deputy squad leader for his outstanding performance, and became the first soldier to join the party in the same year in the FireWire party.
(two)
For parents, the mark of a child's growth is the beginning of sensibility, understanding, and knowledge of right and wrong; for the army, the mark of the growth of soldiers is the establishment of collectivism, heroism, and patriotism.
During the interview in the Pamirs, I have seen many annual personal summaries written by soldiers.
Among them, soldier Jimin described the feeling of hypoxia and severe cold:
"Just on the plateau, don’t talk about training, just speak louder and walk faster, it will be like a dry fish opening its mouth to ask for water. Later, under the guidance of the monitor, I finally got used to it. In the winter of 2001, it was cold. The wind is piercing and the snow is flying. We are on duty in the icy and snowy field at -30℃. Sometimes the wind reaches around 7-8. Wearing a thick sheepskin coat is like a single coat. It cannot withstand the biting cold wind. In a moment, our face, hands and feet , My body is almost freezing, but I persevered."
What is the strength that will sustain him?
He went on to write: "At that time, I had only one belief in my heart, which was to stand up to my squad and let my comrades in arms, family members, and the people of the whole country sleep peacefully."
Like Jimin, many fighters connect everything they do with the country and the people.
Some say that the difficult environment taught me to care for others because I also grew up under the care of others.
Some say that the arduous task has taught me that people can't live for themselves. Everything we do is to make others and people happier.
Some say that the sacred mission has made me realize that when soldiers fight for the motherland, our value is reflected in the security of the country and the happiness of the people.
A soldier named Xu Hong put it more vividly: "Now, I really understand the meaning of the phrase'soldier is a front door for mother'."
The cuteness of the soldiers does not lie in how much pain they have endured, but in their ability to consciously put the weight of youth on the side of the national interest when personal interests conflict with national interests.
Yes, they are all ordinary, it is difficult to leave more traces in history, but it is these ordinary people who used countless ordinary things to build an indestructible iron wall on the long border of the Republic. Copper wall.
Before joining the army, most of the highland soldiers I met were farm children and young students. Their ancestors lived in a mountain village, a plain, or a small town for generations. Although they all know the concept of the country, they may not be aware of their connection with the country.
However, once they put on the military uniform, they are like a different person. They seem to have grown up and matured overnight, becoming the watchers of peaceful life and the guardians of national security.
What is the mystery hidden in this?
Running on the border line, I seem to have found the answer.
Putting on the military uniform is equivalent to signing the next contract with the country. Once the young man is armed, he gives himself to the country.
Amidst the wind and snow at the border, and under the scorching sun on the plateau, they completed an important life transition: from farmers’ sons, workers’ sons, teachers’ sons, cadres’ sons, businessmen’s sons... to grow into a nation. Son.
Facing the boundary rivers, boundary mountains, and boundary markers, the concept of a country is no longer abstract. The basic elements of the country, such as territory, sovereignty, and people, are really unfolding before their eyes. People often talk about patriotism. Doctrine here is specifically defined as anti-crossing border, anti-infiltration, anti-sneak attack, anti-aggression and other military duties, which are integrated into daily patrols, duties, standing guards, training and other tasks.
All of this has accelerated their growth cycle invisibly and cultivated their home and country feelings.
I once participated in a farewell and welcome event at the "First West Outpost" Smhana Border Defense Company: When the first ray of sunshine in the new century entered the company, officers and soldiers boarded the cliffs of the station and dug up a pack. Shell fossils.
The vicissitudes of life, these fossils prove that the Pamirs were also a sea in ancient times.
Subsequently, the officers and soldiers of the entire company signed one by one on a five-star red flag. When it was the turn of the platoon leader, Yang Lei, he specially wrote two lines of poem: "Since ancient times, the border has been important, and my generation should not be light."
The company sent the signed national flag and ancient fossils into parcels and sent them to a distant place-it was a border company that was separated from their motherland and was stationed at the junction of Heilongjiang and Wusuli River in the northeast. The location was close to east longitude 135. °, so it is called "the first sentry in the east".
In this way, the two comrades in the “first sentry” shook hands and encouraged each other, passing the sonorous oath of jointly guarding the country.
In the peaceful age, it is hard to see beacon smoke in the frontier fortress.
Under the clear sky of peace, it is inseparable from the enthusiasm of the camp and the silent dedication of generations of soldiers.
China has a vast territory, urban and rural areas, east and west, inland and border areas, and the imbalance in development is an objective existence.
Those who can hold on to the "bottom" of the imbalance may not be the leader of the trend of the times, but they are definitely the backbone of the nation worthy of respect.
(three)
On one occasion, the head of the Xinjiang Military Region visited Khunjerab to inspect the situation on the border and visit frontline officers and soldiers.
The chief shook the hand of Wang Qiang, a soldier in the outpost, and asked him whether he was struggling to perform duties and whether he was tired from patrolling.
Wang Qiang replied resoundingly: "Chief, we are indeed suffering and tired, but we are willing to suffer no matter how much we suffer and no matter how tired we are!"
What Wang Qiang said was the truth.
In December 1999, he enlisted in the army from a college in Beijing.
According to the design of ordinary people, Wang Qiang has several choices after graduation: either stay in Beijing to apply for a job, or start his own business, or return to northern Shaanxi to help his parents run their own electrical appliance business.
To the surprise of his classmates and family, his ambition was to carry a pen and come to Pamir from Beijing.
In a combat readiness operation, Wang Qiangrong made first-class merit and participated in the deeds report group organized by the Southern Xinjiang Military Region as a representative of college student soldiers.
He remembered that after finishing a report on a certain brigade, the brigade commander said: Our brigade has also allocated some college students in recent years. Can you talk to them?
Wang Qiang readily agreed.
Both college students have similar ambitions and concerns.
In the forum, they discussed with Wang Qiang about contemporary youth's life topics such as optimism and values: In such a desolate place, do you have a fulfilling life every day?
Of course fulfilling.
why?
Because every day has value.
What is the value?
Wang Qiang told them that serving as a soldier at the Khunjerab Port not only appreciates the relationship between the sentry and the country and the people, but also feels the connection between China and the world, including witnessing the role of a big country.
One day, the company received a notification from its superiors that a batch of Chinese foreign aid materials would leave the Khunjerab Port and requested the border defense company and outposts to step up observation and alert.
Company deputy instructor Xiang Xintong led the team to perform this task.
Although there was mental preparation beforehand, when the convoy drove over, the officers and soldiers still burst into tears.
They saw that on the container of the first truck, a white banner on a red background was particularly eye-catching: "Humanitarian aid supplies for the People's Republic of China."
Seeing all the domestically produced heavy trucks, they couldn't help but boil with enthusiasm. They straightened their waists subconsciously, always maintaining the posture of soldiers facing the convoy with guns and salute.
The drivers kept waving and honking their horns to thank the officers and soldiers.
The convoy drove slowly past the outpost post at an altitude of 4733 meters and crossed the national gate into Pakistan.
On the other side of the country gate, United Nations personnel drove vehicles marked with UN letters to welcome them at the gate, and lined up to pick them up with Pakistani personnel.
Xiang Xintong said: "You don't know what a wonderful feeling it is to experience the strength of the motherland firsthand, and when you realize that this strength also contains your contribution, you will feel more sacred and more proud."
I asked: "At that moment, do you still miss home?"
"Of course I do." He smiled slightly: "However, we can carry everyone's home."
This incident gave the officers and soldiers of the entire company a deeper understanding of the connotations of the terms "nation," "mission," and "responsibility."
They said that where there is a country, there is a border, and where there is a border, there is defense.
For the prosperity and safety of our country, the plateau on which we are stationed has not only a daunting altitude, but also a life height worth climbing.
(four)
The moon wanes and the moon is full, year after year.
The officers and soldiers on the plateau changed from one crop to another, and their loyalty to the party and the country passed on from generation to generation.
The border defense company of Khunjerab is still taken as an example.
In June 2004, the Central Military Commission awarded the company the honorary title of "Model Company for Defending the Country and Defending Borders".
More than ten years later, I walked into this company again, and saw from the new generation of officers and soldiers the figures of those who guarded the border.
Yang Yingwei, the company commander at the time, was a native of Yancheng, Jiangsu. He joined the army in 2007. From the coast of the East China Sea to the Pamirs, the road went farther and the mountains climbed higher.
He said: Senior soldiers created the Khunjerab spirit of "rooting Pamir and loyal to the border"; now we are engaged in the Belt and Road Initiative and guarding the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, and we must carry forward this spirit.
Military doctor Yang Shanwen graduated from Shihezi University.
He joined the Pamirs because he read a series of national defense students in the university, which contains an introduction to the plateau border troops, which is both mysterious and inspirational.
Before graduation, he made a special trip to Lhasa, Tibet to experience it during his vacation, feeling that he could adapt to the plateau.
Later, he worked as a soldier in the army and saw the deeds of Liu Zhongyin, the "Top Ten Outstanding Youth in Xinjiang" and the military doctor of the border defense company of Khunjerab.
Squad leader Yang Jiangang has excellent military quality, so he has also been on TV, and his gun salute shots are passed on in his hometown.
He visited his home that year and was just in time for the conscription season. At the invitation of the leaders of the People's Armed Forces Department, he wrote a letter to the youths of the county on the theme of the mission and dedication of the plateau soldiers.
He remembered that once the company commander led them to patrol a spot at an altitude of 5,283 meters. Along the way, the company commander was in front and the old squad leader was behind the house. When passing a snowy field of unknown depth, they used ropes to string people together, pulling the ropes one by one. Walked, I only traveled 5 kilometers in 4 hours, the clothes were soaked, and they were all ice ball.
When I got under the glacier, I saw cracks on it. I didn't even dare to speak loudly. One by one passed silently. When the old squad leader finally went up, the ice steps hewed in front were about to be smoothed.
This is the normal defense of highland soldiers for decades.
Living in such a collective, Yang Jiangang feels full of motivation.
He said: "If I am not a soldier, I will not feel the weight of national responsibility and collective honor. Over the years, it is this sense of responsibility and honor that has supported me to move forward."
Ding Xintong, the former frontier company commander, is now the head of the Karasu border talks and meeting station and a diplomat in military uniform.
On the occasion of the two festivals this year, a border defense regiment asked him to return to the old army to have a collective heart-to-heart talk with today's border guards.
To this end, he specially sorted out his own "30 Years of Wind and Snow Borders". He shed tears as he wrote, and many scenes seemed to be yesterday.
He said that there is no small matter at the border.
Regardless of the remoteness and arduousness of the Pamirs, our work is very "high and lofty", because we represent the image of the country and the army, defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and cannot underestimate our responsibilities at any time.
His words reminded me of a slogan I saw at a high-altitude outpost. It was six characters inlaid with stones on the mountain by the soldiers: "An inch of earth and an inch of gold".
This is a group of pictures from the front line of the border and coastal defense of the motherland.
The mountains and rivers are speechless, always remember the perseverance and dedication of the soldiers.
Picture ①: Facing the morning sun, officers and soldiers of a border defense company of the Southern Xinjiang Military Region patrolled the snow line at an altitude of 5000 meters; Picture ②: Yun Zheng Xiawei, a soldier of a Tibet Military Region overhauled the route; Picture ③: The setting sun, an army baby and his The fathers of the radar soldiers are together; Picture ④: South China Sea islands and reefs, guards standing upright; Picture ⑤: Arriving at the point, a soldier from a certain unit of the Tibet Military Command affectionately portrays the word "China"; Picture ⑥: Above the glacier, Xinjiang The officers and soldiers of a border defense regiment of the military region trek hard; picture ⑦: deep in the East China Sea, officers and men of a coastal defense brigade of the Eastern Theater Army struggled to climb; picture ⑧: officers and men of a border defense company of the Army in the southern theater have light feet after returning from patrol.
Photo report by Liu Xiaodong, Ji Wenzhi, Qi Yonghui, Qiao Yufei, Wang Tianhao, He Yong, Wei Qiwei, Sun Lu, Liu Bo, Li Xuehui, Yang Zhijie
Sun Xiaoqing