The rolling green hills have not forgotten
2024-08-25
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Original title: 60 years after the railway troops entered the Greater Khingan Range, the Veterans Affairs Department helped 98 martyrs buried in the northernmost part of the motherland to find their relatives (lead)
The rolling green hills have not been forgotten (theme)
Workers' Daily - China Workers' Network reporter Zhang Shiguang intern Yuan Wenlong
The Red Posthouse of Mohe Arctic Village, the Party Education Base of Qianshao Forest Farm of Mohe Forestry Bureau, and the Posthouse Museum of Eighteen Ancient Post Roads in Daxinganling. Although these three places are all in the Daxinganling area of Heilongjiang Province, it takes two or three hours to drive between the two nearest places. However, when making the historical context display boards, these three places all mentioned the same group - the Railway Corps.
In the second half of 1964, 80,000 soldiers from the 3rd, 6th and 9th Divisions of the Railway Corps were ordered to advance into the Greater Khingan Range. Their main task was to build the Nenlin Railway that runs through the hinterland of the Greater Khingan Range, laying an important foundation for the development and construction of the Greater Khingan Range. Twenty years later, on January 1, 1984, the Railway Corps was collectively demobilized.
In 2024, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the development of the Greater Khingan Range area, the Greater Khingan Range Veterans Affairs Bureau launched the "Relative Search" campaign for the second time to find the long-lost relatives of the railway soldiers martyrs who are buried in the northernmost part of the motherland, paying tribute to them in this special way: the green mountains have not forgotten.
Advance into "Xilini"
"Xilini" means "a place of death where it is difficult to survive" in the Oroqen language. The normal temperature in the Xilini area of Daxinganling in winter is between -40 degrees Celsius and -50 degrees Celsius.
In 1955 and 1958, there were two related projects to develop the Greater Khingan Range, but they were stranded twice due to the weather of "snow in May and frost in July". The development of the Greater Khingan Range requires a railway.
In the second half of 1964, 80,000 officers and soldiers of the Railway Corps were ordered to advance into the Greater Khingan Range, which marked the beginning of the miracle of human settlement in the uninhabited restricted area. From 1964 to 1984, the Railway Corps built 792 kilometers of railways, 124 bridges, and 14 tunnels. Due to the extremely harsh conditions, more than 300 officers and soldiers died here. In order to lay the railway to the northernmost section of the motherland, an average of one soldier died every two kilometers.
At that time, due to the remote location and poor information flow, most martyrs were buried on the spot after their death. After the transformation of the Railway Corps, there were many changes in units and personnel, and the information of some martyrs was incomplete. In addition, the names and affiliations of some places changed due to the adjustment of the divisions in some areas, and many relatives of martyrs were still not contacted. The Daxinganling Veterans Affairs Bureau once jointly carried out a martyr search with the local media in Heilongjiang.
"This is a race against time, a rescue job." Yi Guoyou, director of the Daxinganling Regional Veterans Affairs Bureau, told reporters that many martyrs were only in their 20s when they died. More than half a century has passed. Some of their parents are no longer alive, and their brothers and sisters are gradually getting old. Most of the martyrs were too young when they died and have no offspring.
A total of 227 railway soldiers were buried in the Greater Khingan Range. In 2022, the Veterans Affairs Bureau of the Greater Khingan Range jointly launched a search for relatives of martyrs with local media in Heilongjiang, and held the province's first "Search for Martyrs' Relatives" collective memorial service for the relatives of railway soldiers martyrs in the Greater Khingan Range. By the end of 2023, the first round of search activities had found relatives for 85 martyrs buried in eight martyrs' cemeteries in the Greater Khingan Range.
This year, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the development and construction of the Greater Khingan Range, the local government once again promoted this work and released the names and information of 98 martyrs who have not yet been contacted by their relatives through their WeChat accounts. The first one is martyr Chen Chunshan, who is buried in the Mohe Martyrs Cemetery.
"Brother! We're here to see you!"
"Brother! We are here to see you!" Standing in front of the tomb of martyr Chen Chunshan, Chen Xiaomei, her two brothers and one sister were speechless and burst into tears. On August 9, the 50th anniversary of the martyr's death, the four siblings and their eldest brother Chen Chunshan finally met again.
Chen Chunshan, born in January 1949, was a native of Da'an, Jilin. He was the acting platoon leader of the 12th Regiment of the 3rd Division of the Railway Corps. He died in August 1974 while building a railway. "After my eldest brother died, the family didn't know where he was buried, and they searched for him several times but to no avail." In Chen Xiaomei's memory, after her eldest brother died, there was a cabinet in the house, and any child who touched it would be beaten by her mother. When she grew up, she realized that it was something her brother had used when he was alive, and "my mother kept it like a treasure."
"Every time after the New Year's Eve dinner, my father would walk outside alone for a long time, smoking and muttering to himself." Chen Xiaomei said that until his death at the age of 96, her father was still telling his children, "Your brother is by the railway."
In July this year, the information about finding relatives was forwarded to Chen Xiaomei's mobile phone by her eldest brother's former comrades-in-arms. After seeing the name, she immediately brought her 73-year-old second brother, 68-year-old third brother and 63-year-old second sister to Mohe. First from Changchun to Harbin, then from Harbin to Mohe. From Harbin to Mohe, the fastest train takes 17 hours and 53 minutes. "We came by train." Chen Xiaomei said that although her brothers and sisters are over 60 years old, they want to use this way to experience the railway that her eldest brother built and walked on.
"This is the railway that my eldest brother and his comrades built with their lives." Chen Xiaomei said that after getting off the train, the four siblings stood silently on the platform for a while. They all opened their arms. Although they didn't get anything, they wanted to give a hug to their eldest brother who had been away from home for half a century.
In front of the tomb of martyr Chen Chunshan, his brothers and sisters repainted the martyr's monument with red pen. Although the two brothers were old and had limited physical strength, they still insisted on tracing the red pen, even if it was just "one stroke". Chen Xiaomei did more of the tracing work. After more than an hour, she could no longer stand up.
Not only the family of martyr Chen Chunshan, but also many relatives of martyrs contacted the Daxinganling District Veterans Affairs Bureau according to the information of finding relatives this summer, and "reunited" with their long-lost relatives.
The 79-year-old third brother of martyr Hao Heshang, accompanied by his two sisters aged 76 and 64, drove more than 2,300 kilometers in three days from Baotou, Inner Mongolia to Tahe County, Heilongjiang Province, accompanied by their family members; the 68-year-old brother of martyr Liang Shicai, with his sister's thoughts, set out from Guizhou and changed multiple modes of transportation just to pay respects on the Qingming Festival; the younger brothers and nephews of martyr Yang Shifa set out from Qianjiang District, Chongqing, traveled more than 3,600 kilometers, and finally arrived at the tomb on August 1 after two days of sleepless nights...
As of August 2024, the second search for relatives has found relatives for 42 railway soldiers martyrs.
Restore the flesh and blood life with details
Pang Yingli is the chief of the Martyrs Commendation Section of the Daxinganling Veterans Affairs Bureau. Since she started the search for relatives, a stack of statistical tables on her desk has been repeatedly marked and smeared. "Generally, we are required to leave the contact information of two relatives, because we are afraid that once the contact person we have finally found loses contact, we will not be able to contact him again," said Pang Yingli.
Unlike the first round of family search, which only registered the contact information of relatives, this round of family search has added an item to the statistical table: the deeds of the martyrs and the stories behind them. "Each martyr is not just a name, but has a touching deeds and real life behind him. We have the obligation to record these stories and leave them to future generations," said Pang Yingli.
On August 7, on her way home from get off work, Pang Yingli received a call from a volunteer who was looking for relatives. The family of martyr Ren Guoquan, who had been searching for him for three years, had finally found him. Three years ago, during a forest fire inspection, the tombstone of martyr Ren Guoquan hidden deep in the woods was discovered. There was no unit number on the tombstone, only that the martyr was from Liuhe County, Jiangsu Province.
Since there was no information about the martyr Ren Guoquan in the list of all the units after the railway troops were reorganized, and Liuhe County at that time became Liuhe District, Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, it was not until three years later that volunteers finally found his family through multiple visits. It turned out that Ren Guoquan was not a railway soldier, but an employee of the power system. He worked with the railway soldiers to build the Greater Khingan Range, which is why there is no unit number on the tombstone. That night, Pang Yingli called the son of the martyr Ren Guoquan to learn about the martyr's story beyond his name and age.
"Martyr Leng Xiurong, female, was only 22 years old when she died. In order to make her look more beautiful when she passed away, her comrades took off their beloved red sweaters and tied a red hairband for the martyr..." There are many such details in Pang Yingli's notebook.
In Beishan Park of Jiamusi District in the Greater Khingan Range region stands a Railway Corps Monument, which was built in 1984. The main body of the monument is two railroad tracks extending from the ground into the air, 20 meters high, symbolizing that the Railway Corps soldiers have great ambitions and have built bridges and roads for the motherland for 20 years.
Yang Wenyou, who joined the 4th Company, 1st Battalion, 14th Regiment, 3rd Division of the Railway Corps in 1964, is 80 years old this year. After retiring, he worked in the Daxing'anling Statistics Bureau until his retirement. In July 2021, Yang Wenyou came here wearing the "50 Years of Glory in the Party" medal and took a photo with the monument. Now, the group photo has been enlarged and plastic-sealed and placed in the most conspicuous position in the living room. "I took the medal to take pictures on purpose, and I wanted those comrades who didn't see today to see our lives today." Yang Wenyou said.
The top of Beishan Park, where the Railway North Monument is located, is the highest point in the Jiagedaqi area. Standing next to the monument, you can overlook the scenery of the entire area.
60 years ago, this place was a life-forbidden zone covered with snow and sparsely populated; 60 years later, a railway paved with lives has brought here high-rise buildings and thousands of lights. In the distance, there are stretches of green mountains surrounding the city.
Source: China Workers Network-Workers Daily
