From the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam that began on February 17, 1979, to the Two Mountains Round War in the 1980s, millions of Chinese soldiers fought the Sino-Vietnamese border, defending the country's territorial integrity and the safety of people's lives and property with blood and lives. Among them, tens of thousands of PLA fighters fell on the battlefield of southern Xinjiang, more than thirty years have passed, how many people still remember them?
On the 1,300-kilometer border in southern Xinjiang, there are 24 martyrs' cemeteries, where the bones of tens of thousands of heroes in the war against Vietnam are buried. Among them, the Pingxiang Nanshan Martyrs Cemetery, which was founded in March 1979, buried 653 martyrs, 5 of whom were awarded the honorary title of "Combat Heroes" by the Central Military Commission, which will forever be remembered in history.
Guangxi Pingxiang Nanshan Martyrs Cemetery, he Yuan (Yuan) Hai "martyr" tombstone
One day in 2016, an old man who was nearly the age of flower armor appeared in the Pingxiang Nanshan Martyrs Cemetery, he staggered to the tombstone No. 20 in the 11th row of the cemetery, placed a bottle of liquor in front of the tombstone, and looked at the inscription on the tombstone and couldn't help but burst into tears.
After 37 years, he finally came to the Martyrs' Cemetery after going through hardships, on the one hand, to meet those comrades who sacrificed, on the other hand, he was also "paying tribute" to himself. The tombstone in front of him is his own tombstone, and the tombstone "He Yuan (Yuan) Sea Martyr" on the tombstone is his name.
In the introduction of this tombstone, it is explained that He Yuanhai was killed in the war against Vietnam on March 2, 1979, at the age of 22, a living person, why does his name appear on the tombstone of the Martyrs' Cemetery?
Of course, He Yuanhai knew why. In fact, he not only has a tombstone in the martyrs' cemetery, but also in his hometown of Shawo Town, Ezhou, Hubei Province, near the Huangshan Primary School, where there is also a tombstone that belongs to him, but more than thirty years ago, the words on the tombstone could be worn off. Along with those who were "ground", there was also the title of first-class meritorious service awarded to He Yuanhai by the troops.
Why do first-class heroes and "martyrs" who fought against Vietnam appear in the martyrs' cemetery? What did he go through?
He Yuanhai
He had a miserable life and joined the army to serve the country
He Yuanhai was born in 1958 in Huangshan Village, Shawo Town, Ezhou, Hubei Province. Almost all the people born in that era experienced suffering, but He Yuanhai's life was even more unfortunate than most people.
He Yuanhai's family of four, in addition to his parents and an older brother. His mother was congenitally disabled and a mute, and his brother was mentally handicapped and stupid all day. Because there is only one labor force in the family, the family's life is very difficult, and hunger is often the case.
However, the roof leaked during the overnight rain, the hemp rope was specially picked and broken, and when He Yuanhai was only a few years old, his father became ill and died. From that day on, He Yuanhai's mute mother took up the burden of the family, working in the fields with the villagers during the day, sewing and repairing subsidies at night to supplement the family, and when it was most difficult, she had to beg along the street and give the food she had to collect to the two children to fill their hunger.
Platon soldiers before the war
It was an extremely difficult time, He Yuanhai looked at his mother who was running all day, and secretly resolved in his heart that in the future, he must rely on his own efforts to change the fate of the family and let his mother no longer suffer. At that time, for children born poor and had no chance to go to school, joining the army was the only way out. As long as he can become a soldier, he may be able to improve the situation at home, and if he can go to the battlefield and make great achievements, he can even honor his ancestors!
Therefore, when He Yuanhai became an adult, he signed up for the army, hoping to join the army. But despite his tall stature, the first two registrations were brushed off. Finally, in 1978, at the age of 21, he signed up for the third time and joined the army as he wished, entering the 7th squad of the 3rd Battalion, 7th Company, 481st Regiment of the 161st Division of the 54th Army. The company commander saw that he was tall and arranged for him to be a machine gunner.
He Yuanhai knew that this was the only chance to change the fate of himself and his family, so he trained very hard in the army, and when other fighters rested, he always secretly practiced and won a third-class merit.
In 1979, the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam began, and He Yuanhai finally waited for the opportunity to show his skills on the battlefield.
Fighting against Vietnam
Fighting against Vietnam, mistaken for "sacrifice"
Since the 1970s, vietnam, which is becoming increasingly fledgling, has repeatedly provoked incidents on the Sino-Vietnamese border, killing people on our border, attacking our border posts, and invading Cambodia in an attempt to dominate Southeast Asia. Under the unfavorable situation of the Soviet army in the north, Deng Xiaoping and the Central Military Commission decided to carry out a "disciplinary" operation against Vietnam to teach Vietnam a lesson, and the self-defense counterattack war against Vietnam was launched.
Under the instructions of the Central Military Commission, the 161st Division of the 54th Army, where He Yuanhai belonged, rushed to southern Xinjiang and entered a state of first-class combat readiness. At this time, He Yuanhai joined the army for only a year, he was still a new soldier, before the troops were pulled out, he also hesitated, he took on the heavy responsibility of the family, once sacrificed, what about his disabled mother and brother?
But on the day of departure, He Yuanhai figured it out: Although the family situation is special, his mother and brother can also take care of each other, although he is a poor boy born in the countryside, how can he stay out of the matter when the country is in danger, he does not go to the battlefield, does he let the unarmed people let the enemy oppress? Moreover, if he made great contributions on the front line, he could come back to Guangzong Yaozu, even if he sacrificed, he would sacrifice his life for the country, and there was nothing that could not be put down.
But at that time, He Yuanhai would not have thought that he would encounter a third possibility.
On February 17, 1979, the counterattack against Vietnam began, and the PLA troops attacked Vietnam from the directions of Guangxi and Yunnan in two directions, and soon achieved great results, and the army directly approached the Vietnamese capital Hanoi.
Ho Won Hoi's company arrived at the border on 26 February and launched a series of interspersed operations, penetrating directly into the hinterland of Vietnam. At the beginning, the attack mission of the 7 companies went very smoothly, eliminating many remnants of the enemy. However, by 2 March, as the troops approached Liangshan, they were suddenly ambushed by a large enemy force.
He Yuanhai followed the squad leader Xiang Yongwen and rushed to the forefront of the troops. However, at this moment, Xiang Yongwen was hit by a bullet from the enemy and fell to the ground on the spot, sacrificing himself heroically. Seeing that the squad leader, who usually took good care of himself, was sacrificed in front of him, He Yuanhai raised his machine gun and fired at the enemy, shouting: "If you kill my squad leader, I will kill you!" ”
Angry bullets erupted ferociously from the barrel of the gun, and the three enemies fell to the ground in response. Just as he was about to adjust his angle and continue to attack, a grenade exploded next to him, He Yuanhai could not dodge, was thrown to the ground by the air wave caused by the explosion, and passed out on the spot, and what happened after that was unknown.
After He Yuanhai fell, the 7 companies fought back desperately and finally defeated the enemy. When the soldiers cleaned up the battlefield, they touched He Yuanhai's neck and found that he had no life, so the soldiers tearfully put his "body" and the sacrificed comrades together, ready to return to the battlefield after the battle and bury the remains of their comrades.
Martyrs' tombstones
Resurrection from the dead, exchange captives and return home
However, when the soldiers of the 7th Company returned after the battle, they found that He Yuanhai's "body" was missing, and in desperation, they had to inform the troops that He Yuanhai had died. In order to commend He Yuanhai's heroic performance in battle, the troops specially asked the Central Military Commission why Yuanhai was posthumously awarded the First Class Meritorious Service Medal and posthumously recognized him as a "martyr" and built a tombstone in the Pingxiang Nanshan Martyrs' Cemetery.
The news of He Yuanhai's "sacrifice" reached Huangshan Village, and his mute mother lost her voice and cried bitterly and fainted on the spot. There was such a martyr in the small mountain village, and everyone felt even more proud and proud in addition to their grief, and the radio of the village committee continuously broadcast he Yuanhai's heroic deeds. In order to remember He Yuanhai, the village built a two-meter-high stone stele for him in a remote place in the back mountain, wrote "Revolutionary martyrs are immortal", and also set up a patriotic education base here, and organized students from Huangshan Primary School to hang in front of the stone stele.
However, two years later, He Yuanhai came back from the dead and miraculously returned to his hometown, and even caused the "dissatisfaction" of the villagers for a time, erasing the handwriting on the stone tablet.
captive
It turned out that after the battle on March 2, He Yuanhai was not dead. In the early hours of the next morning, He Yuanhai woke up from his coma and tried to move his body, but found that he could not move because of the severe pain. At this moment, a shout and a few dog barks came, and He Yuanhai immediately understood: this is not Chinese, it is Vietnamese.
He Yuanhai hurriedly closed his eyes, trying to escape the Vietnamese army. But a group of Vietnamese troops surrounded him, and one of them touched his neck, and found that there was still a pulse, so he carried him on a stretcher. Lying on a stretcher, He Yuanhai realized that he had become a prisoner of the Vietnamese army.
Before that, He Yuanhai had thought of many possibilities, he had thought about not being on the front line, thinking about receiving meritorious awards, thinking about Ma Ge's body wrapping, but he didn't think of being captured by the enemy. As a Chinese soldier, being a prisoner is the most unacceptable thing. He Yuanhai, 22 years old, lying on a stretcher and experiencing the most desperate moment of his life, wanted to die with the enemy, but there was no possibility.
Soon, Ho Wash Washi was taken to the Vietnam Military Hospital for treatment. During his hospitalization, he was ready to break free of the ivory tube and commit suicide, but when the Vietnamese army noticed his move, they immediately tied his hands with wire. Being able to capture a Chinese soldier was the most proud thing in Vietnam, so the local Vietnamese people rushed to the hospital and slapped him a few times to vent their anger when no one was there.
Former site of a Vietnamese prison
A few months later, the humiliated He Yuanhai was transferred to prison and held in custody. During that time, he thought about death countless times, and he hit the wall with his head, and when he hit his head, the blood flow did not stop until he pretended to be unconscious. When the Vietnamese army realized this, they woke him up again.
After a period of life or death, Ho was transferred to a prisoner-of-war camp, where he was told that the war against Vietnam was over and that China and Vietnam were negotiating an exchange of prisoners of war. Upon hearing this news, He Yuanhai was excited, and he rekindled the hope of survival, he wanted to return to the embrace of the motherland, to meet the comrades who fought side by side, as well as the dumb old woman who needed to be taken care of and the stupid brother.
In March 1981, He Yuanhai was repatriated to China as one of the last prisoners of war. The moment he stepped into the Friendship Pass, he burst into tears and shouted, "Motherland, I am back!" ”
Soon, however, He Yuanhai was sent to the detention center for a month-long review, and after the review, he was considered to have no problems and returned to his hometown, but when he returned to his hometown, he found that everything had changed.
He was repossessed with first-class merit and insisted on sweeping the grave for 36 years
He Yuanhai did not sacrifice himself on the battlefield, but became a prisoner, and the troops took this situation into consideration, so they cancelled his first-class meritorious honor and martyr title, assessed him as a third-class B-class cripple, and demobilized him back to his hometown. He Yuanhai had no opinion on this, but in order to prove that he had participated in the battle and shed blood, he did not hand over the first-class merit medal, but carefully kept it.
After returning to Huangshan Village, his mother saw that he could not speak for a long time and held him in tears. The fact that his son came back alive has given him the greatest comfort. But the villagers did not have such a good temper with He Yuanhai, and they insulted him as a "dog bear" in person. He Yuanhai was a hero when he was a "martyr", and when he was a prisoner, he became a "dog bear", how sad. Since then, the monument built for him by his hometown has not been paid to anymore, and the surrounding grass is overgrown, and even the words on the stone tablets have been scraped off.
Forced to make a living, He Yuanhai found a job in the local forest farm, and later changed to a job guarding fish ponds. No matter where he went, he had to endure the same eyes of others, and when a veteran asked him "are you He Yuanhai", he would always avoid it, sometimes saying lightly: "You recognize the wrong person." ”
He Yuanhai and Chen Xiaocheng were in front of the wordless monument
Later, He Yuanhai lost his job and lived on the monthly pension of 300 yuan for disabled soldiers. Whenever he felt bitter, he would come to the nameless monument, pour out to the stone monument, and silently persist for 36 years.
It was not until 2013 that He Yuanhai's fate ushered in a turnaround. Chen Xiaocheng, the commander of the 7th Company at that time, learned that He Yuanhai was still alive, and whenever he remembered the battle that year, he thought that if he had been more careful when inspecting the "remains", He Yuanhai would not have been captured and would not have been insulted. In order to open this knot, in the past thirty years, he inquired about the whereabouts of He Yuanhai through his comrades-in-arms and the media, and finally in 2013, he finally found he Yuanhai, an old comrade-in-arms whose life was in trouble. Since then, Chen Xiaocheng has been running for him and appealing for him to solve his practical difficulties. He Yuanhai's face gradually had a smile.
Later, He Yuanhai often participated in the gatherings of the old comrades of the 7th Company, and everyone hugged and wept, saying: "Although the 7th Company has existed for a short time, it is like a meteor, passing through the sky and burning out of the whole body." ”
In 2016, He Yuanhai came to the Pingxiang Nanshan Martyrs Cemetery and paid a long silence in front of his tombstone, he experienced glory and glory in the first half of his life, and also suffered grievances and humiliations, but he never regretted it. As he said in an interview with reporters: "I deserve to live, worthy of the motherland and the army, and worthy of my conscience!" ”