This is a magical team looking for water. Northern Shaanxi, which was once short of water and drought, has changed its appearance.

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At that moment, the universe was too silent.

In the spring of life, the sour bitterness is always wading through the thick loess, making you unable to spit out these life-saving tears no matter how bitter you are.

Loess is deep and sacred. Loess is the spleen and stomach of life, nourishing everything we have.

For people living on the Loess Plateau, the loess is more like a great mother body, magnificent and shocking. Facing it seems to be facing an eternal emotion.

In February 1936, the year after Comrade Mao Zedong arrived in northern Shaanxi, facing the magnificent Loess Plateau, he recited "Spring Snow in Qinyuan" in a cave dwelling in Wayaobao.

This poem, which later shocked China and foreign countries and went down in history, praised the loess plateau in winter with the image of "silver snakes dancing in the mountains, wax figures riding in the mountains"!

At that time, the snow must have been very deep and very sacred.

The snow on the Loess Plateau, the spirit of snow, also stirred up the revolutionary passion of the poet Mao Zedong!

But what is after the heavy snow, for this land, is a lonely yellow!

Yellow, also known as earth color, is the key color of the Loess Plateau.

"The Book of Changes" says: "The sky is mysterious and the earth is yellow." Liu Zongyuan's "Tian Shuo" says: "What is yellow above is called heaven; what is yellow below is called land."

It can be seen that among the ancients, yellow was the color of the earth.

What is the earth?

In addition to the visible earth, there is also the invisible matrix of philosophy, which is the root of our Chinese nation!

In this land, it grows all wisdom and power.

One of the "humanistic ancestors" of the Chinese nation was therefore also dubbed "the auspicious person of native virtue, so he was named the Yellow Emperor."

For thousands of years, the feudal regimes of all dynasties in China have used yellow Symbolizes imperial power. The Chinese nation calls itself the descendant of Yan and Huang, and the Chinese are classified as a yellow race. The Loess Plateau is the great matrix of all this yellowness.

The northern Shaanxi region is the central part of China's Loess Plateau.

In the northern part of Shaanxi Province, the terrain is high in the northwest and low in the southeast, with a total area of ??more than 90,000 square kilometers. It is a plateau surface formed on the basis of the ancient terrain composed of Mesozoic bedrock, covered with Cenozoic red soil and a very thick loess layer, and then cut by flowing water and soil erosion.

Yellow is the key color in northern Shaanxi.

The loess here is the yellowest, and the loess here is the thickest. Everything related to the greenness of life is constantly washed away by the years, and it is this thick loess that has become silent.

Northern Shaanxi, a northern Shaanxi that is a symbol of immortal spirit, a northern Shaanxi that is an eternal epic. As a humanistic and historical geographical name, it has influenced China's great and far-reaching historical process, embodies the soul of the nation, and nurtured a great era that changed China's destiny. As a concept of the geological history of the earth, it deduces a myth of the geological history of the earth.

The description of the Loess Plateau can be traced back to the earliest Chinese geographical masterpiece "Yu Gong", which said that "the soil in Yongzhou is only yellow soil." This is the earliest written record of loess in the world.

What is interesting is that the "Book of Han" written by Ban Gu of the Han Dynasty records that in Yinchen in April 32 BC, "a strong wind started from the west, and the clouds were red and yellow, covering the world in all directions, and it fell to the ground all day and night. Loess is also dust."

Sinologists in their few words coincide with the origin of loess that is similar to the modern theory of loess accumulation by wind. In contrast, I prefer the vivid and vivid metaphor of the Loess Plateau in northern Shaanxi by Edgar Snow, the author of "A Journey to the West": In his mind, the Loess Plateau turned out to be "a world created by a mad god."

Also shocked by Edgar Snow’s metaphor was Ma Sijin, the young captain of the 908 Hydrogeology Team! In his mind, in his theory and practice of searching for water in northern Shaanxi, he pondered the same magical words of Edgar Snow countless times.

This is the most difficult place to climb and the most challenging to people’s ability to survive.

One of the most resounding names in China’s modern revolutionary history came from here—Yan’an!

Yes, it is Yan'an, not another place. In the heart of the Loess Plateau, Yan'an actually nurtured and strengthened the Chinese revolution!

What is the Yan'an Spirit? In the final analysis, it is the spirit of hard struggle, the spirit of living tenaciously no matter how hard, tired and struggling you are. The 908 Hydrogeological Team was originally stationed in Yan'an and has a deep understanding of the Yan'an spirit.

In recent decades, the people of northern Shaanxi have worked hard to cover this yellow matrix with a green harmonious color that symbolizes life and vitality. In addition, it has become the holy land of modern Chinese revolution and national rejuvenation, the Loess Plateau. It has formed a majestic picture of "light is covered by four surfaces and gridded from top to bottom".

As the scroll unfolded one by one, the clarity gradually became clear. Under the clear blue sky, there were a few faint white clouds. The rolling Yanhe water continues to move towards the depths of life.

However, in such a magnificent picture, there is another kind of pain and suffering, another kind of glory and respect, another kind of struggle and arrival.

The reason is simply that there is a lack of water here!

The Loess Plateau in northern Shaanxi is the core component of the Loess Plateau in China. It is the area with the most complete loess layer and the most developed loess milk. The yellow sky and thick soil are the home of the people of northern Shaanxi, and there are countless sufferings in their home. There is no potable water in it, which is a problem.

The poor living conditions have also been woven into folk songs and sung by the wind:

A fur without face can be worn all year round and will not be thrown away. There is no need for gauze and gauze. It is difficult to keep a brown shirt for a long time. The trouser legs are wide and thick, and they are just about in tatters. There are no felt sheets to cover the body, so the silk and satin are hooked up.

When the guest arrives and stays for a long time, he offers a cup of Naizi Ao tea, noodles with green onion soup and vinegar, pot helmet with garlic, salt and leeks, cow hooves and sheep head, swallowing the hair in his mouth, and then letting go after eating with wind and residual clouds, so he gives a handful of delicacies from the mountains and seas. Pen hook.

The song "Seven Strokes of Hook" profoundly and vividly depicts the poor living conditions of people in northern Shaanxi in history.

Qi Yinghong, deputy director of the Wuqi County Mineral Resources Management Bureau, who shares Ma Sijin's love for water, said that Wuqi County has experienced nine droughts in ten years, and the water shortage area accounts for more than 60% of the county's total area.

In Dongbei Gou Village, Xinzhai Township, Wuqi County, next to a small dam where yellow muddy water flowing down from the ravine gathers, people gathered around to collect water, carry water, and use donkeys to dehydrate the water. Since this water source supplies drinking water to people with a radius of more than 10 kilometers, it often takes 7 or 8 hours to get the water once plus queuing time. People here say they would rather be short of oil than water!

Fuxian County, located on the bank of the Luo River, has an urban area of ??30,000 to 40,000 people and only relies on four shallow wells for water supply. Every summer and around the Spring Festival, the contradiction between supply and demand becomes more acute, and residents have to travel four to five miles away. People lined up in the ravine to pull out the seepage water at the bottom of the ravine. It takes 5-6 hours to pick up a load of water.

He Anxue, head of Qianer Township, Fu County, said: "We have a total of 9,535 people in the township, and currently 1,630 people and more than 1,200 large livestock are facing serious threats to their drinking water."

Farmer Wang Cuiying said : "Due to lack of water, some young men in their village who are 28 or 9 years old cannot find wives."

In Fugu, northern Shaanxi, most of the mountains and ravines are deep and transportation is inconvenient, and most of them are remote. In deep mountain ravine areas, the geological structure is very complex, the environment is harsh, and the climate is abnormal. In areas with severe water shortages in loess ravine areas, young girls have to run more than ten miles of mountain roads to fetch water for the family's food, and their feet are worn out and crushed. His shoulders were broken;

An old man in his sixties or seventies, dragging his frail body, lay beside an almost dry well and struggled to fetch water, and finally collapsed on the platform of the well from exhaustion;

Bai The old lady with little feet would take out the pots and pans from the house when it rained, and wash her face and hands with the rainwater dripping from the eaves. The water turned black and she was reluctant to throw it away.

……

These unforgettable scenes also deeply imprinted the mark of water on the hearts of the people of the 908 Geological Team, strengthening their belief that they will not give up until they find water. .

What shocked Ma Sijin was the objective reality that there was no water to eat in the mountainous areas and there was water in the beach areas.

The surface of Baiyu Mountain is fragmented, with sparse vegetation and few rivers. There are only the sources of Jing and Luo rivers, and the flow is small, the water quality is poor, the mineralization is high, and humans and animals cannot drink it.

Specific natural, geographical, and geological conditions have caused long-term difficulties in drinking water for humans and animals in the Baiyu Mountains. Historically, local people have mainly relied on making mud and paste water cellars and digging earth and fishing ponds to collect rain and snow water to solve the problem of drinking water for humans and animals. Drinking water issues.

Reading the ancient county annals of Dingbian, it was said: "There is little water in the mountainous countryside, but the taste is very salty. Even if we dig wells, there will be no sweet taste. Each family will set up a kiln to store summer rain and winter snow. Although it is mixed with filth, But there is nothing else to do but water." This is an objective and true record.

Due to lack of water, the lives of people in mountainous areas have fallen into extreme difficulties. The role of half a basin of turbid rainwater is huge in a family of five or six people. First, the family washes their faces in sequence around the basin, then washes their clothes. After washing their clothes, they feed the pigs or drink the sheep.

What is even more pitiful are the children in mountainous areas. The school only allows each student to fetch one bowl of water for drinking throughout the day and night.

According to legend, a middle school in a mountainous area did not provide students with washing water for more than a week after encountering a water shortage. The principal reluctantly "instructed" the students to wait until they returned home on Sunday before washing!

Such a helpless situation, as a "public unit", the school still cherishes water like gold. How can those poor farmers have abundant water?

When drought occurs and cellars dry up, people in mountainous areas have no choice but to buy water at a high price or travel dozens of miles to deep valleys with people and animals to find some brackish water or high-fluoride water to make ends meet.

When encountering extreme drought, farmers have no choice but to let their livestock "escape", moving their livestock to places with water outside the mountainous areas for foster care or selling them, until they return to their homes after it rains in the mountainous areas...

Wuqi, Zhidan, Dingbian and Jingbian in Yan'an City are located in the Baiyu Mountains of the Loess Plateau in northern Shaanxi. They are the most serious water shortage areas in Shaanxi and even the country.

Water shortage not only affects the normal life of local people, but also greatly restricts the development of local economy. Solving the problem of drinking water for people and animals in old areas has become an urgent local need and a top priority for leaders at all levels.

"The key to beautiful mountains and rivers lies in water. When there is water, everything is green, and when there is no water, everything is yellow." The former Minister of Land and Resources said with great emotion when he inspected northern Shaanxi at the beginning of the new century.

Continuous mountains and ravines have cut Zhidan County into pieces. The vegetation here is sparse, the soil is barren, and soil erosion is serious. It is one of the typical poverty-stricken counties.

How many years have passed, the folks living on this land have always dreamed of water!

Dreaming about water is actually dreaming about hope and happiness!

"Divert underground sweet springs, quench the thirst of the western region, and benefit the old areas!" This is the collective oath of a geological team called 908 to find water. It is a team that is a little unfamiliar in China but is famous in Shaanxi A team with great reputation in the North.

After the establishment of the "Groundwater Exploration Demonstration Project in Severe Water Shortage Areas in the West", the China Geological Survey listed Wuqi, Fu County and Zhidan County in Yan'an City, Shaanxi Province in June 2001 as the first serious water shortage area. The emergency exploration area was approved, and the project was assigned to the Shaanxi Provincial Geological Survey Institute and implemented by the 908 Hydrogeological Brigade of the Shaanxi Provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources.

They are a professional team that studies national hydrogeology. Under normal circumstances, their research deals with ores and soil. The purpose of their research is to prospect for minerals and develop local resources. Who would have thought that one day they would be responsible for it? Looking for water.

But the thick yellow land needs him, the thirsty people of northern Shaanxi need him, and the economy of the poor old areas needs him.

They have long been integrated into this earth-yellow land and rivers, and have become members of the 908 Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology Brigade with earth-yellow skin. They have long accumulated the eternal entrepreneurial passion of ancient Chinese culture and the creation of the geological work of the older generation. The "Three Glory" spiritual temperament is everywhere, waiting and looking for opportunities to serve the people of the old areas of northern Shaanxi.

What is gratifying is that the groundwater exploration demonstration project was successfully implemented in Wuqi, Fuxian, Zhidan and other areas with serious water shortages, which has enabled some people here to completely rewrite the history of suffering from drinking water for humans and animals.

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The water in our mouths, the water that nourishes life, is the God in our hearts in this suffering land!

In the Baiyu Mountain area in northern Shaanxi with deep ravines, on November 4, 2002, the Ganlu Spring monument erected by all the villagers of Tangbaqu Village stood under the blue sky and white clouds, and looked forward to yesterday and tomorrow. Praising the merits of the "Water God".

The front of the black stone stele is engraved with five large Chinese characters in Wei style: "The Stele of Manlu Spring", and behind it is a eloquent inscription:

My ancestors have lived here for generations, from young to old. There is no clean etiquette in marrying a girl. "There are three ways to govern virtuously: one is to make the people safe; the other is to win the hearts and minds of the people; and the third is to obey the will of the people. Although the ancient government was prosperous during the Han and Tang Dynasties, it was a pity that there was no way to survive in the world, and its demise was also rapid. , its prosperity also declines. Therefore, the great road is rebellious, and its virtue is not far away. Regretful? He said, "A drink of water is enough." A passerby saw this scene and asked, "How can we store it if there is no water?" The passers-by looked at the water and dung in the cellar and sighed, "If our livestock don't drink it, how can people drink it?" He also asked, "What if there is no rain or snow in the sky? We are all speechless." , Really palpitating!

When virtue is flourishing, there must be actions to be close to the people; when political affairs are in full swing, it will definitely be good for the people. It was cloudy in the evening. Thanks to the attention of the township government, the support of the county water conservancy bureau, and the generous support from the provincial government, we raised millions of dollars to drill and dig the well. The crowd was excited and cheered, and we joined the provincial Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources. The members of the 908 Hydrological Engineering Geology Brigade worked together for more than 60 days and nights, and finally found a clear spring at a depth of 820 meters. This completely solved the problem of drinking water for 440 households, more than 2,000 people, and more than 5,000 livestock in Wusan Village. The merits of the sun and the moon are blessings for all generations! We are grateful beyond words, so we call this well the "Hot Dew Spring" and mark it on the stone, which will never be forgotten.

Bai Hu! The tangible world in the mountains and the love for the Loess Plateau not only show the way of ancient governance, but also show the true intention of serving the people. Although the Han Dynasty was powerful and distant, it was not as good as the people in this world; although the Tang Dynasty was rich, it was not as good as my love for the people. This article praises the kindness and will be engraved in our hearts for generations to come!

What an interesting inscription! Man Buzhi has its own spirit running through it, paying tribute to our heroes!

The 908 Hydrological Engineering Geology Brigade seemed to have a flash of inspiration after thinking hard: that specific area does not have the conditions for survival! In a vast area in northern Shaanxi, "water", the source of life, is so scarce and precious. Finding "water" that can be drank by humans and animals has special political and economic significance in addition to its life value. < /p>

So, they walked step by step towards the realm of mythology at any cost.

To be more precise, they sacrificed their youth, blood, and even their lives for that realm.

I have been on the road to find this magical water-seeking team many times to see how they fight against the drought demon and how they turn water into gold.

Responsibility. Yang Liugang, leader of the 908 Hydrogeology Brigade, who is responsible for groundwater exploration and construction tasks in Wuqi, Zhidan, Fuxian, Jingbian and Dingbian of Yan'an City, the first batch of emergency exploration areas of the "Groundwater Exploration Demonstration Project in Severe Water Shortage Areas in the West", said: "Northern Shaanxi In the loess hilly and gully areas, the river valleys cut deep into the bedrock, and fissures are not developed, making it impossible to form a relatively complete aquifer, making it extremely difficult to find water. No matter how difficult it is, Team 908 is determined to find water for the people in the old area. ”

Such rhetoric came from the first commander Pei Hengxi, the second commander Jiang Chaozong, and then the leaders of the 908 team Liu Zongran, Pang Guozhi, Tan Boying, Li Yixiang, Yang Liugang, Wang Li, and Ma Sijin Waiting, with strong family affection and affection, our determination to find water for the people in the old areas of northern Shaanxi becomes stronger and we take greater steps.

One day at the end of December 2001, in the twelfth lunar month of winter, the north wind was biting, and the whistling sound did not stop the people in the old areas of northern Shaanxi from their desire to welcome the New Year and a new life. They had long awaited the arrival of the 908 Hydrogeological Brigade. Two drilling rigs started drilling solemnly in Tiebian Town, Wuqi County and Huangcaowan Village, Shunning Town, Zhidan County...

The sun sets in the west, twilight falls, and the dazzling lights on the drilling tower are accompanied by the rumbling sound. The sound of drilling rigs broke the tranquility of the Loess Plateau. One meter, two meters, five meters, ten meters... As sections of rock cores were brought to the ground, the people in the old areas who were desperate for water had hope and saw hope...

The great success of groundwater exploration and seepage well projects in Wuqi, Fuxian and Zhidan areas with severe water shortages in Shaanxi Province has pointed out the direction for promoting the "Groundwater Exploration Demonstration Project in Severe Water Shortage Areas in the West".

On March 28, 2002, Fu County Party Committee Secretary Zhou Dexi personally presented a banner embroidered with "Implementing special water search to benefit the people of Fu County" to Yang Liugang, captain of the 908 Hydrogeology Brigade. He represented Fu County The people said affectionately: “Team 908 found groundwater in a water-poor area like our Fuxian County, and combined with the survey to build a seepage project with a daily mining volume of 3,200 cubic meters, it not only solved the current production and production of 340,000 to 40,000 people in our county in one fell swoop. The domestic water problem has also solved the mid-term water supply needs of Fu County, injecting vitality into the development of our county. Drinking water remembers its source. You have indeed done a great thing and a good thing for the people of Fu County and our future generations..."

Early in the morning on April 25, 2002, Dinggou Village in Tongchuan City was in a state of excitement. Team 908 presented them with a festive gift. A high-quality water well with a daily water output of 2,000 cubic meters was completed and put into use.

On the day of project acceptance, the Dinggou Village Village Committee sent an enthusiastic letter of thanks to Team 908. The letter said: "The Dinggou Village drinking water project for humans and animals is under construction. Due to our difficulty in raising funds, The production funds could not be provided in time. Team 908 took the overall situation into consideration, tried every means to solve the problems of the people, and overcame various adverse factors, overcame difficulties and obstacles, completed the drilling task safely and successfully, and was worthy of its excellent technology and rigorous management. A team that can fight. On the day of the project completion celebration, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the 908 team who contributed to the development and construction of Dinggou Village."

July 30, 2003, Luochuan, northern Shaanxi. Ganshi Village in the county has completely overcome the difficulty of water shortage.

Ganshi Village is located in the loess remnant plateau area at the foot of Lanke Mountain. The plateau has high plateaus, steep slopes, and deep ravines.

Local people have been drinking cellar water for generations. When there was a severe drought, they had to carry water from deep ditches a few miles away.

Even for a strong laborer, it would take most of a day to carry a load of water. In order to solve the water problem, the village raised funds to hire several survey and construction teams, and five wells were drilled here, but most of them were dry wells.

After accepting this task, the 908 team relied on their solid basic skills in finding water to organize elite soldiers and generals to enter Ganshi Village. After a month of intense construction, they actually dug a high-quality water well.

At the grand completion acceptance meeting, villagers came from all directions, beat gongs and drums, fired firecrackers, and happily erected a stone sign that said "Drinking Water Remembers Its Source".

When the gate was opened to release water, people rushed to the wellhead to drink from the sweet spring.

Water, you were once our dried tears, now we laugh and cry for you.

Wang Li held the plaque given by the local government and silently chanted the words "Scientifically looking for water and essence for construction, drinking the sweet spring now has a stronger feeling", and his eyes couldn't help but moisten.

Today, in the ravine behind Yan'an Zaoyuan, on the stone tablet standing in front of Zhang Side's tomb, the five characters "Serve the People" written by Comrade Mao Zedong are still clearly visible.

Finding water for the people of northern Shaanxi and serving the people in the old areas have long been the motto and code of conduct of the 908 Hydrogeological Brigade.

This team has been carrying out universal water search on the loess land of northern Shaanxi since 1974. The story of the majority of party members, cadres and technicians "advancing with the times to seek welfare and scientifically searching for water for old areas" has long been It is praised in the old revolutionary areas of northern Shaanxi, the Loess Plateau, and the ancient border city of Yulin.

I wandered through the nearly 40-year long history of the 908 Team;

Looking for the place where the 908 Team first set up camp in the revolutionary holy land of Yan'an;

In They resolutely moved away from their "virgin land" and "married" to Lintong. Now Team 908 is roaming in their harmonious and happy homeland.

Especially when I stopped in front of the pile of thick award certificates and banners.

These may be the highlights that record the history of the 908 team, and are the moments that show the glory that the 908 team once had. Perhaps these are not comprehensive.

But as if I had found a treasure, I very religiously and gently brushed away the thick layer of dust, and carefully unfolded the certificates one by one, and the red banners that had faded one by one.

Those still handsome and elegant words of praise and praise in regular script or official script turned out to be like long-lost friends, resolutely surrounding me, and finally condensed into a line of words that I never expected, and that made me savour. : "A world created by a mad god" suddenly stands a monument to the "Water God" of northern Shaanxi!

About the author: Qin Feng

Wu Guozhu, pen name Qin Feng. Member of the National Committee of the China Land and Resources Writers Association and member of the Shaanxi Provincial Writers Association. Worked for Shaanxi Provincial Bureau of Geology and Minerals and Shaanxi Geology and Minerals Group Company. He has successively published reportages such as "Yikangyuan Story", "Little Qinling Gold Seeker", "The Soul of District Diao", "Northern Shaanxi "Water God"", "The Mystery of Yuanshan in Qinling Mountains". "Little Qinling Gold Seeker" won the 5th Gemstone Literature Award. The collection of essays "Promised Dreams" was published in 2011. Many of his essays including "Impression of Taipei" and "Overnight at Xiaohua Mountain" have won awards.