It’s time for another year of military recruitment

A good iron must be hammered into nails, and a good man must be a soldier.

——Chinese proverb

Whenever I see advertisements about military recruitment hung on the street, published in newspapers, broadcast on TV, or received on my mobile phone, Then I knew that the annual recruitment process had begun again. Whenever this happens, I will spontaneously relive my history as a soldier.

In July 1985, I graduated from high school and took the college entrance examination, but failed. So, with disappointment, pain and worry, I went back to my alma mater to study again, hoping to take the exam again next year. However, at that time, some of the better teachers at my alma mater were transferred away. If I failed to get into college a year later, it would be a waste of my parents' money and my life's time and energy. Considering the above reasons, coupled with my admiration for soldiers and my yearning for green military camps since childhood, after more than a month of tutoring, I decided to give up the opportunity to continue studying for the college entrance examination, sign up for the draft, and join the army. That winter, I put on my military uniform and went to serve in the border garrison in Jingxi, Guangxi. From then on, my 15 years of military life began.

The recruit training is strict and arduous; it is tense and serious; it is busy and tiring. It was the first time for us recruits to be away from our parents, our hometown, and our friends, so many of our new comrades-in-arms cried. However, I shed no tears. Because I think that no matter how hard and tiring the road to joining the army is, even if it requires bloodshed and sacrifice, it is my choice. I have no regrets, and crying can only show my cowardice. Just like Qiu Jin said, "Jin'ou is short and must be replenished. I dare to sacrifice my life for the country." Even if I have to sacrifice my precious life, I will not hesitate. In order to complete the transition from ordinary people to soldiers and take the first step in military life, I often tell myself to study hard and train hard, from the three steps of the queue to individual soldier tactics; from learning doctrines and regulations to learning to sing military songs Song: From speech and behavior to every aspect of cultivation, we have strict requirements for everything, not afraid of hardship and fatigue, and unwilling to lag behind. At the end of the training camp, I received a commendation from the recruit company. After a month of recruit training, I was assigned to the two-watt communications class at the battalion headquarters. I carried the silicon two-watt radio, translated code words, and became a messenger. Quick response and standard Mandarin are two important conditions for being a good messenger. I grew up speaking Cantonese, and my innate inability to pronounce Mandarin is my biggest weakness. In order to overcome this shortcoming, on the one hand, I humbly asked my comrades for advice; on the other hand, I paid attention to learning the pronunciation of the radio announcer. After unremitting efforts, in a communication training organized by the regiment, I correctly translated a hundred sets of secret words in 1 minute and 02 seconds, and won the second place in the training team.

In order to realize my dream of attending a military academy, I took every little time to review cultural classes after training, and never rested during holidays. Hard work pays off, and I got what I wanted. In September 1987, I packed my bags, said goodbye to my comrades, to the border defense, and to Guangxi, and headed to Xuzhou, a battleground for military strategists since ancient times, to study at the Engineering Corps Command College. While in school, each of us must achieve two major transformations from a soldier to a student, and from a student to a commander. Therefore, as soon as we register for school, we must undergo three months of formal training. Only after passing the exam can we become formal students and obtain student status. Otherwise, you will be eliminated. In order to enable us to quickly adapt to college life in terms of thinking, learning, training, style, discipline, and cultivation, we were organized to watch a video introducing the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the first class. What I still remember is that the management of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point is very strict, almost harsh. Students are not allowed to say much when facing their superiors. They can only say "Yes, sir"; "No, sir"; "No, sir" in response to different situations. "Sir, please forgive me." One of these three sentences clearly expresses the requirement that soldiers obey orders as their bounden duty. Our captain also asked us to do the same. His strict management is famous among several student teams.

When we go to the classroom for class, he will sit behind and watch who is napping; when we go to field operations, he will follow to see which district or team is not well organized; when we organize queue training, he will stand aside to watch who His movements are irregular; when we organize password training, he will check to see whose voice is not loud enough; when we go for long-distance running, he will ride his bicycle to follow who is taking the alley to be lazy; when we start to go to bed, he will listen in the corridor to see who is still lazy. He pays close attention to everything from whispering to dressing, wearing hats, walking and talking, personal hygiene, etc. Once he catches us, he will severely criticize us at least, and we will be punished at worst. At that time, many of our students didn't understand why we had to be so strict. Some even complained or complained about him in private. It was only in the days after graduation that I slowly understood and learned how to be grateful for the good intentions of our captain. Because, without his strict requirements, I would not have been able to run a good time of 18 minutes and 30 seconds in the five-kilometer long-distance run; I would not have been able to squeeze into the top 20 in the 1988 spring mountaineering competition participated by more than 300 students in the college. Winning the winning prize makes it impossible for me to maintain good physical fitness today more than 20 years later. What makes me regretful is that among the more than 100 cadets in our team, one cadet was eliminated and ultimately failed to become an officer and change his life destiny.

In July 1989, I graduated and was assigned to Hainan, a land of coconut shadows and coconut breeze. Serve as platoon leader in the regiment's engineer company. In my job as a platoon leader, I set an example, loved the soldiers, knew and loved the soldiers, cared about and cared for the growth of the soldiers, and often tutored the soldiers in cultural classes. Two soldiers in the platoon were admitted to the military academy, and five soldiers obtained two Use the Talent Graduation Certificate. At the same time, I spent a lot of my spare time reading works by famous writers such as Xu Zhimo, Qiong Yao, and San Mao. In early 1991, I was transferred to work in the Youth League and started writing in my spare time. I successively published essays on Hainan Radio's "Baicao Garden" program and in newspapers such as "Southern Weekend" and "Hainan Youth Daily". What is particularly unforgettable is that after some of my works were broadcast on Hainan Radio's "Baicao Garden" program, I continued to receive letters from listeners and fans, mainly from college and middle school students. Sometimes I received more than 10 letters a day. I remember one of the girls wrote to me and asked me to meet in Haikou. I can’t remember the reason, but I didn’t go to her appointment. I hope this girl, who looked slightly melancholy in the words in the letter, will live a safe and happy life now. It is a pity that all these letters were later lost. During the years when I worked in the Youth League, some colleagues often went to the county town after dinner or on holidays, went shopping on the streets, and even played slot machines and gambled. Because I love reading and writing, I rarely go out in my free time. For this reason, the political commissar of the Youth League has praised me many times at cadre meetings. When I was promoted to the position of deputy company, he talked to me and asked for my opinion. He asked me whether I would like to be an assistant in the barracks unit or a director in the publicity unit. I replied that I would like to work in the publicity department because it would allow me to better utilize my strengths. Afterwards, he said in front of individual cadres: "There are very few stupid cadres like Jiang Jinhua now." Because everyone knows that the barracks department has "oil and water", but the propaganda department is the Qingshui Yamen. Precisely because of this, the regiment thought that I had a future, so they asked me to take the cadre entrance examination, which gave me a good opportunity to rewrite my life again.

In September 1993, I was admitted to Xi'an Political College to continue my studies. In this ancient capital with a strong cultural atmosphere, through two years of study, my cultural literacy has been strengthened; my knowledge structure has been improved; my personal experience has been enriched; and my life horizons have been expanded. While completing my study tasks, I never forget to write. I often share my works with Teacher Xu, who teaches our college Chinese class, and ask for her guidance. She once wrote this after an essay in my composition book: "Actually, not long after class, I discovered your uniqueness. You are confident, good at thinking and studious. You have very good perception and understanding. , and you have a very good foundation. As long as you don’t give up your pursuit, you will definitely make achievements in the field of writing.” I still keep that composition book, just like I cherish the unforgettable friendship between her and me. Give birth to friendship.

Two years later, in July 1995, I was fortunate enough to be selected into the army stationed in Hong Kong. At 6 o'clock in the morning on July 1, 1997 AD, at that great and sacred moment, I personally experienced the peaceful entry that shocked the world:

"There was no gunfire, no gunpowder, no gunpowder along the way. The horses neighed, but no blood was shed.

Military vehicles and floats walked together, military songs and joyful songs were sung, and whistles and drums sounded.

? "Along the way, the national flag, regional flag, and bauhinia flowers compete with each other; joy, calmness, peace, sacredness-harmony and unity."

October 2001 It has been more than ten years since I changed my career to work locally in March. Looking back on the past, I am still proud of my 15 years of service as a soldier, because these 15 years of experience as a soldier have become an inexhaustible treasure in my life.