Seeing that the PLA's clothing was different from its own, the garrison was puzzled and asked, "Finally, someone has come to change his post! Have we changed our uniforms again? Why didn't anyone inform us? " When the PLA saw these troops, it was also surprised: "Are you the Kuomintang army? Why are clothes patched? "
After the exchange between the two sides, the People's Liberation Army learned that this detachment had been guarding the Seetula post for nearly four years, and its hearts could not help but rise with admiration.
Why didn't this unit follow the Kuomintang troops back to Taiwan Province Province? What on earth supported them to stay here for four years?
Seetula means "martyr" in Uygur language. According to legend, in the Tang Dynasty, monk Xuanzang led an ascetic monk to pass by this place on his way to India to learn Buddhist scriptures. However, due to difficult conditions, he died unfortunately and was buried here, so he was called "Seetula".
Seetula Town, the last residential area leading to Liecheng, is an important traffic hub of the ancient trade "Silk Road". At the same time, you can also get a glimpse of the inland of southern Xinjiang, so the British colonists have been eyeing this place. China government attaches great importance to this place, and has set up many garrisons to maintain peace on the western border of China.
Among them, Setula Post Station is the oldest post station in China, and its history can be traced back to the Qing Dynasty. In the third year of Guangxu, the left led the Qing army to recover Xinjiang. More than 0/00 officers and men of the Qing army/KLOC came to Seetula Town through difficulties and obstacles. With the help of local residents, they set up checkpoints in the fields 0/5 km away from the town/kloc-.
After the outbreak of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, the Northeast was trampled by the Japanese invaders, and many people did not want to be enslaved by the Japanese, so they embarked on a life of leaving their homes. They spontaneously formed volunteers and crossed the western regions from the northeast of the motherland. During the migration, the conditions were very difficult. After arriving in Xinjiang, they have decreased from more than 40,000 to more than 20,000.
Most of the people who lived here were Xibe people who were sent to the frontier during the Qing Dynasty. Following the orders of Emperor Qianlong, they came to Xinjiang from the northeast to enrich their local strength and have not returned to their hometown for many years. Now, seeing these people from their hometown, they all have tears in their eyes and warmly received the volunteers.
Considering the current chaotic situation, these volunteers may not be able to help themselves by returning to the mainland. Now Xinjiang is coveted by Russian, Indian and other neighboring countries. When it is time to build the army, they stayed here and reorganized with the local government to form a real army, which has made important contributions to China's national defense.
Later, during the reign of Nanjing government, Xinjiang chose to submit to Chiang Kai-shek's rule in order to get better protection. Chiang Kai-shek also sent troops to expand Xinjiang. Chiang Kai-shek's troops merged with the local border guards to form the border guards at Seetula Post. Since then, it has entered a new era of "defending the border and securing the defense".
Due to the small number of troops, Seetula Post is more than 400 kilometers away from Pishan County at the foot of the mountain, making it very inconvenient to travel. So the army shifts once a year. With the disintegration of Chiang Kai-shek's troops, most of them left, but the garrison of this Seetula post was almost isolated from the outside world because of its high terrain and no mailing address around it, and did not know that the weather had changed. They still stick to their posts and wait for the troops to come to the rescue.
It is located on the plateau, with thin air and strong ultraviolet rays. The guards patrol and keep watch every day, and they are all tanned. At the same time, because it is located in the frontier, the living conditions here are very difficult, and the temperature difference between day and night is very large. The sentry has no stove, so he can only burn cow dung to keep warm. At night, everyone snuggled up and huddled together to keep warm. Diet has great limitations, and corn paste is the best food.
However, even under such difficult conditions, they have never backed down and have been stationed here to defend the frontier of the motherland. Although it is called "Seetula Post", it actually contains many checkpoints, covering a vast area from south to north. If you want to do a complete patrol, it will take at least three months
1950, a certain unit of the Fifth Division of the China People's Liberation Army overcame all kinds of difficulties and obstacles and finally came here to station, only to find unexpectedly that an army was stationed here.
After entering the post, the PLA was even more surprised to see their flags and numbers. It turns out that they are an army of the Kuomintang. The sentry also saw the PLA team at the moment and thought it was to change the guard. He was very happy.
After the PLA explained its purpose to them, they could not recover from the shock for a long time. When they were stationed here, the Kuomintang army was very strong, with many advanced weapons and transfer equipment. Besides, at that time, there were many anti-* * forces abroad who secretly supported Chiang Kai-shek. At that time, the producer of * * * was still a small team of "millet plus rifle". How come after three or four years, the situation is reversed?
They are confused. The PLA proudly introduced to them the revolutionary concept of "serving the people wholeheartedly". In War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the war of liberation, they never paid more attention to the masses and the military and civilians. Chiang Kai-shek, on the other hand, has always been narrow-minded and only cares about the stability of his own regime. Does anyone want to oppose him? How can such a political party be the ruler of the people?
The PLA is also puzzled. Why didn't Chiang Kai-shek give you an order to retreat back to Taiwan Province Province? The Kuomintang sentry said gloomily that they had been stationed in Seetula post for nearly four years. It's deserted, with high altitude, poor signal and no road nearby. At first, someone contacted, and then no one came to ask them about standing guard. Fortunately, they take turns to stand guard every day, and there has never been an enemy crossing the border or a resident smuggling.
After hearing what they said, the People's Liberation Army understood that it was Chiang Kai-shek and others who lost to Taiwan Province Province and left in a hurry, and no one came to inform the frontier defense of the western regions. Chiang Kai-shek is now entrenched in Taiwan Province Province, China. In order to restore his strength, he reformed the army many times and changed his name and surname. The designation of this border guard no longer exists, and it is already an "supernumerary force of the Kuomintang".
However, this frontier force did not forget its mission because it was forgotten, nor did it give up its duties because of the difficult conditions. They have been patrolling and keeping watch every day for four years, defending every inch of the motherland and preventing outsiders from invading. In this neglected place, I silently paid the sweat and sacrificed my youth.
The PLA greatly appreciated their behavior and gave them a standard military salute. This Kuomintang veteran army was greatly moved to see the PLA's strict discipline and majestic momentum. They all expressed their willingness to hand over the Seetula post to the People's Liberation Army.
Subsequently, the PLA reported this "emergency" to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. The Central Military Commission was also very surprised to hear the news. I didn't expect that after fighting with the Kuomintang for so many years, there was actually a "fish that escaped the net."
195 1 year, PLA troops stationed in the border areas such as Shenxian Bay and Astronomical Point at the foot of Keke lachlan Mountain, and set up patrol troops. Considering social development and technology, some of the original posts here have been abandoned. At the same time, 1958, Shenxianwan Gang was added in the south of Pishan County, Xinjiang. With the gradual improvement of the PLA's work, the change cycle here has also been greatly shortened.
Most places here are above 5300 meters above sea level, and the annual average temperature is below zero degrees Celsius. Half of the year is in the cold winter, which is an out-and-out "plateau above the plateau". Physicians call it the "forbidden zone". You can imagine how bad the environment here is.
There are many graves around the abandoned Seetula post, where countless border guards are buried. Later, when the PLA was patrolling, it found a "frozen mummy" that was pecked beyond recognition by birds. After the identification of his clothes and weapons, it was finally determined that it was the body of a National Guard. However, due to his age and serious physical damage, his name is unrecognizable. After receiving instructions from their superiors, the frontier PLA soldiers buried the unknown soldiers properly.
However, it is in this "life forbidden zone" that PLA soldiers still stand on the most beautiful defense line in the frontier. Because of the high altitude and low air pressure, water boils when heated to 70-80 degrees, and border guards can only eat compressed food and drink "boiled water" of more than 70 degrees every day. The oxygen content in the air here is only half that of the plain, so the soldiers brought their own oxygen bottles from the mountains to overcome all kinds of difficulties.
Since the five-star red flag rose in the snowy grassland of Ran Ran, these PLA soldiers guarding the frontier of the motherland have felt more deeply the expectations of the motherland and people. They know that what they shoulder is the responsibility entrusted by the country and the people, and it is also an honor for soldiers.
They patrol every day, climb over snow-capped mountains, wade through glaciers and set foot on this barren plateau. High altitude hypoxia, if strenuous exercise, is easy to cause pulmonary edema and heart failure, which poses a threat to life. However, these soldiers stationed on the plateau still get up on time every morning in order to maintain good physical fitness. Since we can't do morning exercises, let's go quickly together and slowly improve our physical endurance.
Due to the long sunshine and dry air on the plateau, the faces of these soldiers guarding the border were tanned, and some even cracked. However, they don't stick to these "details". They insist on patrolling the border under harsh environmental conditions every day and are always alert to abnormal changes in the environment.
With their earnest and assiduous persistence, China's border areas have achieved long-term stability. 1982, the Central Military Commission awarded the honorary title of "Steel Post" to Shenxianwan Post.
They are conscientiously performing their military duties, and the country has not forgotten these people who have made contributions to the country and the people. In order to further protect the physical and mental health of border guards, the state mobilized huge funds and built oxygen stations to meet the oxygen demand of soldiers on the snowy mountains. In order to make the soldiers eat a balanced diet, the state sent a special motorcade to deliver materials to the post on the mountain. Soldiers here can eat eggs, milk and other foods every day, and the past hard environment has been improved to some extent.
Most of these soldiers are young people in their twenties. They gave up the comfortable life in the city and chose to contribute their youth to the barren land on this plateau. Adhering to the belief of "national territory, every inch of land is contested", they are stationed here, which constitutes the first line of defense of national borders.
In ancient times, there were "flying generals in Dragon City", but now there are national defense soldiers. It is these people who silently guard the frontiers of the motherland that have brought us a peaceful and stable life.
The majestic snow-capped mountains have witnessed the loyalty of generations of border guards to serve the country and pay tribute to them!