On a secluded side street in Baoding, Hebei Province, there is a three-story courtyard, which is a cultural media company. Every day during commuting hours, you can see a disabled person in his early fifties in a wheelchair entering and leaving, he is the head of this company - Liu Zhuang, a demining hero who became famous throughout the country from the Laoshan front line thirty-two years ago. At that time, Liu Zhuang was as well-known as Du Fuguo, a hero of mine clearance today.
△ Liu Zhuang and the author took a photo at the door of the company
Liu Zhuang is a native of Kangbao County, Zhangjiakou, joined the army in November 1984, and came to the engineer battalion of a division of our army's famous "Long Live Army" to become a sapper. After enlisting in the army, Liu Zhuang was very interested in his profession, and he studied the professional knowledge of sappers with great enthusiasm and received good results, especially in every mine blasting theory and practical examination, his results were excellent. Less than a year after joining the army, the diligent Liu Zhuang became the class leader.
At the beginning of 1986, several triumphant heroes from the old mountain front came to the auditorium of the division organ to make reports for the officers and men, and Liu Zhuang listened to the heroes' reports as the backbone of the sappers. What touched Liu Zhuang the most was the deeds of Hu Guoqiao, a first-class meritorious hero and college student platoon leader, who was a young talent who served the country with the ideal of serving the country with the ideal of serving the country with the military when he graduated from a local university. When he graduated from the military academy, he also actively asked to go to southern Xinjiang to participate in the war, sticking to the position with the most dangerous and harsh environment, and the eight wounds on his body could not reach the line of fire, encouraging and leading the soldiers to kill the enemy bravely.
△ Hu Guoqiao, a college student platoon leader who was awarded the first class of battle merit
After listening to the report, Liu Zhuang thought to himself, If I have the opportunity to go to the front, I must be as brave and fearless as Captain Hu platoon, and be a hero like him.
A few months later, Liu Zhuang's idea of going to the front line to kill the enemy and make meritorious contributions became a reality, and the group army set up a "Flying Tiger" reconnaissance brigade to participate in the war in southern Xinjiang, which needed engineers to be assigned. Liu Zhuang and a number of other backbone engineers actively applied to participate in the war, and after the selection and approval of the leaders of the unit, an engineer squad headed by Liu Zhuang was assigned to the Yang Zirong Hero Reconnaissance Company, which was about to go to the front.
△ Liu Zhuang (middle of the back row) took a photo with his comrades-in-arms before entering the war
On October 28, 1986, Liu Zhuang's reconnaissance brigade entered the front line of The Yin Mountains to carry out reconnaissance operations in this area. The task of the engineering squad is to ensure the smooth implementation of reconnaissance and capture operations by the reconnaissance detachment, to open up a passage for each combat operation, to clear mines and break obstacles, to prevent the enemy from pursuing when withdrawing, and then to close the passage according to the terrain.
As the squad leader of the engineering squad, Liu Zhuang rushed to the forefront of every action after entering the war zone, and while carefully detecting mines, he instructed his comrades-in-arms behind him to do a good job of review, pay attention to the enemy situation around him, and ensure the safety of the operation. In the early stage of many reconnaissance operations, Liu Zhuang completed the task of clearing mines and breaking obstacles well each time.
In the early morning of December 8, the reconnaissance detachment carried out another combat mission, and Liu Zhuang led the engineer squad to open a passage on The 16th Height. In the demining operation, Liu Zhuang alone removed 21 mines. It was not until about 4 p.m. on the 9th that we finally reached the top of the highland. This was an abandoned position by the enemy, and Liu Zhuang looked at the high ground and found that there were many circular fortifications and trenches. He thought that if there were circumstances, these trenches could become a cover for the scouts' capture operations, and if there were mines inside, the scouts' actions would be very dangerous. He immediately asked the commander of the detachment, and after agreeing, Liu Zhuang took his comrade-in-arms Zhao Bin and jumped down the trench to continue clearing mines. At this time, Liu Zhuang found that the trenches that had been abandoned for a long time were hoarded with thick dust and debris, and he dragged Zhao Bin backwards: "You go to the back!" Let me come...". Liu Zhuang took a half-kneeling position and carefully stretched out the mine detector. Just at this moment, there was a sudden loud noise, and the flames and air waves flipped Liu Zhuang and Zhao Bin behind him into the air, and fell heavily into the trench. It was Liu Zhuang's kneeling right knee that pressed a mine, and the mine severely damaged his legs. In order to prevent being discovered by the enemy, the comrades in arms of the engineering squad carried the wounded Liu Zhuang on their backs, picked up the slightly injured Zhao Bin, and quickly retreated under the leadership of the detachment leader. Along the way, Liu Zhuang was conscious, he gritted his teeth tenaciously, did not shout a pain, in order not to expose the target, he did not even hum. Due to the complex terrain, the retreat took seven or eight hours, and when Liu Zhuang was sent to the operating room of the field ambulance center, he had fallen into a severe coma after losing too much blood.
△ Liu Zhuang after the amputation of the legs high
Due to repeated infection of the wound, Liu Zhuang underwent four amputations, and the last operation saved the hero's life, but Liu Zhuang, who was originally one meter eight tall, became one meter and eight! The doctor told Liu Zhuang that he might lie in bed forever in his life. In order to be able to stand up, he endured the severe pain of tearing his heart and lungs, exercised his arm strength and physical strength day and night, and spent more than two months, and finally he could sit (stand) in a wheelchair by himself.
After Liu Zhuang's bravery and strength were reported by many media such as military newspapers, his deeds quickly spread throughout the country, touching the north and south of the river, and many enthusiastic people wrote enthusiastic letters of condolence, some with gifts rushed thousands of miles to the hospital to visit Liu Zhuang, and more female college students who were willing to marry heroes...
△ Liu Zhuang when attending the all-army heroic model conference
On the eve of the Founding Day in 1987, Liu Zhuang was elected as a deputy to the All-Army Heroic Model Congress, and went to Beijing to attend the All-Army Heroic Model Congress together with Shi Guangzhu, Zhang Maozhong, and other combat heroes, and was cordially received by the party and state leaders.
Liu Zhuang's fiancée in his hometown was named Zhao Runlian, a kind and simple girl, and after Liu Zhuang was injured, Zhao Runlian rushed to the military hospital in Kunming to take care of Liu Zhuang. Liu Zhuang did not want to drag this kind girl down, and repeatedly advised her to marry someone else. But Zhao Runlian said resolutely: "I have followed you in this life, I have confessed my fate, you have no legs, I will be your legs in the future, I want to be your crutch for a lifetime!" After attending the Heroic Model Conference, Liu Zhuang, who had just received the order of Tigan, bravely walked into the palace of marriage hand in hand with his fiancée Zhao Runlian.
△ Liu Zhuang and his fiancée Zhao Runlian in Kunming
After marriage, Liu Zhuang actively exercised the function of the upper limbs and strived to do what he could in life. He learned to use calligraphy and writing to improve his cultural literacy, and to cultivate his sentiments.
In order to leave the promotion opportunity to able-bodied young people, in the spring of 1999, Liu Zhuang, who was already a lieutenant colonel, voluntarily withdrew from active duty. Overcoming the difficulties of physical disability, he has sold clothes with his lover, set up stalls, opened small restaurants, and owed hundreds of thousands of yuan in foreign debt. In the efforts and opportunities, Liu Zhuang and his lover finally achieved success through honest management.
△ Liu Zhuang recently won the commemorative medal issued by the state for the hero
Today, Liu Zhuang's son is already a deputy battalion officer in the heroic unit, and seeing his son busy in the army every day, and as tall and handsome as before he was injured, the 52-year-old hero smiled happily and smiled brightly.
Written by: Li Minglei
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