"For many years, teachers and students of the school have quietly cared for and offered incense to commemorate Hero Kieu Ngoc Luan on holidays and Tet, a sacred ritual that has become familiar," said Mr. Nguyen Trieu Thanh, Principal of Trieu Thanh Secondary School.

Hero Kieu Ngoc Luan. Photo archive

Going back in time, through the stories of veterans who were comrades of comrade Kieu Ngoc Luan and the traces of fierce battles such as Linh Chieu, Tri Buu, Bich La Dong..., the portrait of the outstanding son of his homeland Quang Ngai gradually emerged clearly. Kieu Ngoc Luan was born in 1942, in Binh Thuan commune, Binh Son district (now Van Tuong commune), Quang Ngai province, a dry land in the Central region but rich in revolutionary traditions. Kieu Ngoc Luan enlisted in the army in 1966. Right from the first days of his military service, the young soldier soon revealed his leadership qualities, quickly developing from a soldier to a platoon and company level commander. In any unit, he was respected by his comrades for his discipline, simple life, bravery and extremely courageous fighting. In the memories of his comrades in the same regiment, such as Major General Giang Van Thanh (former Captain of Company 6, Battalion 8, Regiment 64), comrade Kieu Ngoc Luan was "a commander respected by the entire regiment", a man who lived and fought as if he knew he would not return. Colonel Le Ngoc Son, former Chief of Politics of the Capital Military Region (former Political Commissar of Company 10, Battalion 9, Regiment 64) emotionally recounted: "Company 10 was the main unit that held hot spots such as Long Hung intersection, Tri Buu church gate. These were places where the enemy attacked day and night in an attempt to penetrate the Citadel. Luan was assigned to stick closely to my unit. He not only directly commanded and fought directly, but also paid attention to very specific matters, such as: Was there enough ammunition, had the wounded been taken to the banks of the Thach Han River, was there enough dry food...".

Colonel Le Ngoc Son clearly remembers the image of the former commander: “Mr. Luan is about 1.65m tall, has a square face, a kind face, and a strong body. He always combs his hair very smoothly even when he is in the middle of the battlefield. His demeanor is very calm. We look at him and feel secure, because we know that with Mr. Luan, this position can be kept”. During the time fighting in the Quang Nam and Quang Ngai battlefields from 1966 to 1968, Kieu Ngoc Luan and his comrades fought more than 50 large and small battles, killed more than 100 American soldiers, destroyed 3 tanks, and captured many weapons. In each battle, he was always the first and also the last to leave the battlefield. Not only brave, Kieu Ngoc Luan was also good at organizing and especially valued preserving the unit's forces. He was the type of commander that his comrades trusted with their lives on the battlefield.

Major General Giang Van Thanh (third from left) and his comrades visit the family of Hero Kieu Ngoc Luan's sister. Photo: VU VAN BINH

In 1969, Kieu Ngoc Luan was a representative of the Southern Liberation Army's Brave Soldiers to report to Uncle Ho. At that time, Kieu Ngoc Luan was awarded his badge by Uncle Ho. From 1969 to 1970, he was sent to study at the Right Bank Military Region Military School. From the end of June 1972, in the positions of Battalion Operations Assistant, Company Commander, Deputy Battalion Commander, he always stuck close to the unit, fought steadfastly, and held the position in Linh Chieu, Long Hung intersection, Tri Buu... There was a day when he commanded to repel 7 enemy attacks, and he personally killed 50 enemies. In the memories of his comrades, Kieu Ngoc Luan was always a brave and courageous commander, who maintained a calm, bold, and surprisingly confident command style amidst bomb explosions and artillery fire. “We heard of Luan from previous battles. When we met him, we were completely impressed. Just his presence gave us confidence and we fought to the end,” said Major General Giang Van Thanh.

The climax of those days of fighting was the attack on Bich La Dong village. From September 9, 1972, Luan commanded the force to penetrate deep, capture the Nha Bang area, the center of resistance at the school, repelling many enemy counterattacks. By September 18, Regiment 64 successfully completed the mission, annihilating 633 enemies, severely damaging 8 companies, capturing many weapons, making an important contribution to controlling and holding Bich La Dong village.

On September 12, 1972, Kieu Ngoc Luan heroically sacrificed himself while directly commanding the fight back against a large counterattack by the enemy. According to Colonel Le Ngoc Son, that day, after commanding the enemy to repel 2/3 of Bich La Dong village, Deputy Battalion Commander Kieu Ngoc Luan summoned a number of his comrades to discuss. While discussing the plan, an artillery shell suddenly hit. He and 4 other officers sacrificed themselves on the spot.

The monument to Hero Kieu Ngoc Luan is damaged and degraded. Photo: VU VAN BINH

Veteran Nguyen Thanh Luong, who was then a soldier of Company 10, was one of the two people assigned to bury him immediately afterwards. “I did not know Luan’s face. He died around 5-6 pm. About an hour later, when I arrived, I only saw a new mound of earth. Perhaps someone had buried his comrades, because the enemy was only about 50-100m away,” said Mr. Luong, at the same time affirming that the graves of martyr Kieu Ngoc Luan and his four comrades were still somewhere in Bich La Dong.

On September 23, 1973, martyr Captain Kieu Ngoc Luan was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces. That brave commander sacrificed his life at the age of 30, when he had no children. But his name lives forever in the memories of his comrades and future generations, as musician Nguyen Van Bang, a former soldier of Company 11, once sang in a memorial song about him: "Kieu Ngoc Luan is the faith of countless soldiers...".

It is from that sentiment that a small memorial built from gratitude, in memory of Hero and Martyr Kieu Ngoc Luan was built in the campus of Trieu Thanh Secondary School, where he fought and sacrificed. The small memorial, a stone stele with a brief biography, a symbolic grave, where students, people, and veterans come to visit and offer incense. Although not a massive project, it is the heart of the soldiers of Regiment 64. Many of them later became generals of the Vietnam People's Army, such as General Phung Quang Thanh (then Commander of Regiment 64), Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Huy Hieu (then Commander of Division 320B)... directly directed the construction of the monument while still in the army, along with veterans and their families, units, and businesses that wished to pay tribute to those who had fallen.

After a long time, the monument has begun to deteriorate. The stone stele is broken, the grave is low and sinking, the statue base is collapsing. The school and the locality do not have the resources to repair it. Last June, the Liaison Committee of Regiment 64 once again returned to the old place, meeting to discuss the plan to restore the memorial. It is expected that 13 items will be rebuilt from monolithic green stone, carved with CNC technology, with detailed designs from the Design Institute, General Department of Logistics and Engineering. The budget is about 1.2 billion VND, from voluntary donations from comrades, children, friends of veterans of Regiment 64 and agencies, units, and businesses.

Amidst the hustle and bustle of modern life, the image of hero Kieu Ngoc Luan lives forever in the way people talk about him: in the memories of his comrades, in the respectful eyes of his students, teachers and local people. He remains as a part of the character of Quang Tri , a land that once burned in the flames of war, that suffered to the end but also recorded heroes who live forever with time.

HOANG VIET

    Source: https://www.qdnd.vn/nuoi-duong-van-hoa-bo-doi-cu-ho/mot-tuong-dai-binh-di-than-thuoc-trong-long-trieu-phong-838827