By day they plant trees, by night they fish.

By day he planted trees, by night he fished. That's the hero Nguyen Xuan Truong, currently living in Ky Lac commune, Ky Anh district, Ha Tinh province. His story of fighting is little known.

In February 1968, Nguyen Xuan Truong, a worker at the Nghe Tinh lime factory, enlisted in the army at the age of 20. After training in Thanh Hoa, he was assigned to K10 Special Forces (later the 10th Special Forces Battalion, disbanded after reunification), under the command of the Tri Thien Military Region (now Military Region 4), and fought in the Quang Tri battlefield.

In March 1969, he was wounded for the first time. In January 1970, he was wounded a second time and had to be sent to the North for treatment. After nearly a year in the hospital, in early January 1972, he was assigned as deputy company commander of Regiment 127, Left Bank Military Region (now Military Region 3), specializing in building roads, bridges, trenches, and fortifications along the Vietnam-China border in Quang Ninh province. At the end of May 1976, the Left Bank and Right Bank Military Regions were merged into Military Region 3, and Lieutenant Nguyen Xuan Truong became deputy company commander of Battalion 4, 46th Infantry Regiment, Military Region 3.

A moment of quiet reflection, as hero Nguyen Xuan Truong turns over his mementos.

In late July 1978, with the border situation becoming increasingly tense, the Chief of Staff of the Vietnam People's Army established the 326th Combat Infantry Division of Military Region 2 (based on several units of Military Region 3) to defend the Lai Chau province (now the two provinces of Dien Bien and Lai Chau).

"After five years as deputy commander, I was promoted to company commander. My first task was to urge the soldiers who were building the road to load onto trucks and march for several days from Quang Ninh to Dien Bien town, Dien Bien district of Lai Chau province (now Dien Bien Phu city, Dien Bien province)," Hero Nguyen Xuan Truong recalled, clearly stating: "As soon as we got off the trucks, we were given new weapons and ammunition. The regimental commander ordered: Start training immediately, a big battle is coming."

The joy of being with children, grandchildren, and family.

Standing firm on the battlefield

On the morning of February 17, 1979, the Chinese side launched a simultaneous attack on our border provinces. In Lai Chau, the enemy divided their forces into several attack directions, intending to capture Pa Tan commune (Sin Ho district) as a base to concentrate troops and then attack other targets along National Highway 12.

Blocking the enemy's advance was Hill 551 (currently a rubber plantation hill to the right of the road from Pa Tan to Huoi Luong, next to the residential area of ​​Ho Thau 2 village, Huoi Luong commune, Phong Tho district, Lai Chau province), and the task of "holding Hill 551 at all costs, preventing the enemy from reaching the Nam Na riverbank and Pa Tan" was assigned to the 1st Infantry Battalion, 193rd Regiment, Lai Chau Provincial Local Forces.

After five days and nights of tenacious defending, repelling 35 enemy attacks and capturing numerous weapons and equipment, Battalion 1 was ordered to hand over the battlefield to Battalion 2, Regiment 46, Division 326.

Hero Nguyen Xuan Truong casts his net to catch fish on the Rao Tro River.

Lieutenant Colonel Le Khac Tam (former Deputy Political Commissar of Regiment 193, currently retired in Cua Lo town, Nghe An province) recounted: From the night of February 18, 1979, Division 326 marched by mechanized units to reinforce the Sin Ho - Phong Tho front. On the morning of February 19, the first unit of Division 326 to arrive at Pa Tan was Company 5 (Regiment 46), commanded by Company Commander Nguyen Xuan Truong. Without time to rest, this unit marched to reinforce 551, and in the early afternoon of February 19, Battalion 1 and Company 5 coordinated closely to attack and retake the hilltop position occupied by the enemy, maintaining the status quo of the 551 stronghold.

Recalling the events of 45 years ago, hero Nguyen Xuan Truong mused: "The regimental commander ordered us to march quickly, to attack immediately upon arrival, because 'the company commander had combat experience and was familiar with the tactics of special forces.' We left in a hurry, without time to bring food and drink, and when we reached Pa Tan, communication was cut off, so everything had to be decided by ourselves."

Telling stories of battles to his grandson.

"In the entire unit, only I had combat experience, so initially many of the men were scared. I had to constantly encourage them, telling them to fire first when it came to fighting, run first when it came to movement, and to be the first to do everything, so that they would feel secure," Mr. Truong said, laughing. "The superiors told us to go immediately, that there would be supplies of weapons, ammunition, food, and water up there. But we lost contact at Pa Tan. The unit recaptured and held the high ground, but everyone was hungry and thirsty. The men found every way possible to hold out..."

For three consecutive days afterward, Company 5, under the command of Lieutenant Nguyen Xuan Truong, bravely held its ground and repelled the invading forces. He himself was wounded, but only left the battlefield when a neighboring unit arrived to replace him. "Of the 80 men in the company, 30 were killed, but we managed to bring all the bodies of our comrades back; no one was left behind," he recounted, his voice trembling.

Pa Tan Market (Phong Tho, Lai Chau), one of the locations protected by the armed forces, in February 1979.

Struggling with everyday life

Regarding the rear lines, he was airlifted from Dien Bien Phu airport to the Central Military Hospital 108 for treatment. At the time he was awarded the title of hero, he was still in a hospital bed. "The performance report was written by my comrades in the unit. When I received the news that I had been awarded the title of hero, I thought they had made a mistake," Mr. Truong chuckled.

In May 1982, Lieutenant Nguyen Xuan Truong retired due to disability. Despite having a 61% disability rating, he was classified as a disabled veteran, not a wounded soldier, because "he was a few months short of completing 15 years of military service and the years spent as a worker were not counted."

With a backpack, he returned to the remote mountainous village of Ky Lac (Ky Anh District) in western Nghe An province, starting his "business" with a few acres of rice paddies and clearing land to grow crops. A few years later, the province reclaimed the land to build the Lac Tien dam, part of the Vung Ang Economic Zone water supply project. With only two acres of land left on the hillside where he grew cassava, he poured his efforts into cultivating all kinds of vegetables and fruits in the barren, dry soil.

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Truong went fishing with his nets, and the children followed him.

In 2006, the People's Committee of Ky Lac commune allocated him 2 hectares of land for reforestation in the Ngan Cho forest, deep within the Ke Go Nature Reserve, nearly 20 km from his home through the forest, a half-day walk away. He then diligently cleared and cultivated the land, building a hut and staying there for sometimes a whole week. "When I started working there, many other villagers who were allocated land also followed suit," he said with a smile.

Children of farmers

"In 1982, he resigned, partly due to his injuries, and partly because of the children's hardships and the family's difficult circumstances," recalled Mrs. Tran Thi Sung (71 years old, former women's affairs officer of Ky Lac commune, wife of hero Nguyen Xuan Truong).

Mrs. Sung recounted: In 1974, Mr. Truong came home on leave and met her, and in mid-1976, they held their wedding ceremony. In 1980, they had their first son, Nguyen Van Hao, followed by four more children: Nguyen Van Hung (1980), Nguyen Thi Ha (1985), Nguyen Thi Hai (1988), and the youngest, Nguyen Van Hung (1991). Of these, only their daughter, Nguyen Thi Hai, is currently working for the government.

The story of the daughter of the hero Nguyen Xuan Truong is also very interesting: In 2007, Nguyen Thi Hai graduated from high school and packed her bags to work as a factory worker in Dong Nai. In March 2008, Hai decided to apply to study at the Hai Duong Teacher Training College, graduating in 2010.

At that time, finding a job in the teaching profession in Ha Tinh was very difficult. Seeing his daughter struggling and wasting away trying to find a job, hero Nguyen Xuan Truong boldly went to Ha Tinh City and met with Mr. Vo Kim Cu (then Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Committee of Ha Tinh province) to ask for his daughter to be allowed to work.

Knowing that Mr. Truong was a hero, Mr. Cu immediately directed the relevant authorities and local government to arrange work for him, and to this day, teacher Nguyen Thi Hai has worked for 13 years at Ky Thuong Primary School, Ky Anh District, Ha Tinh Province.

Reporter from Thanh Nien Newspaper presents gifts to hero Nguyen Xuan Truong.

One afternoon in Ky Lac, hero Nguyen Xuan Truong invited us to the Rao Tro River behind the village to collect our fishing nets. He said, "The only time in my life I declared myself a hero was when I helped Hai get a job. The others, who work far and wide, all did it themselves; they didn't rely on me to give them titles."

His children, when talking to me, all laughed and said, "With all the hardships and difficulties, the fact that our parents managed to raise five healthy children is truly heroic!"

The greatest dream of hero Nguyen Xuan Truong, which his children are preparing to fulfill, is to bring him back to Pa Tan - Huoi Luong to revisit the 551 high point so that he can light incense for the 30 comrades under his command who fell on the battlefield defending the Fatherland years ago…

Hoa An District Martyrs' Cemetery, Cao Bang Province

The soldierly demeanor of the district police chief.

Hero Hoang Van Quan (born 1928, Tay ethnic group, from Nam Tuan commune, Hoa An district, Cao Bang province). In 1942, at the age of 14, he joined the Viet Minh. In 1953, he joined the Cao Bang Public Security force; by 1977, Major Hoang Van Quan was the Chief of Public Security of Hoa An district.

In February 1979, as the battle to defend the Fatherland raged along the entire northern border, Major Hoang Xuan Quan commanded the forces monitoring the local security situation and proactively proposed to the district leadership the urgent evacuation of civilians and the protection of documents and assets of agencies to the Lam Son rear base area.

Portrait of hero Hoang Van Quan

On the morning of February 18, 1979, enemy tanks appeared in the district town. As the Deputy Head of the Unified Military Command of the district, Major Hoang Xuan Quan calmly handled all matters, arranged for officers and soldiers to protect the leaders, and mobilized the people to transport 20 tons of food and supplies to the safe rear base.

On the morning of February 19, 1979, upon discovering the enemy advancing into the Lam Son rear base area, Major Quan informed the local people to take precautions against the enemy and quickly set up a battle position at Vam Dong slope, about 1 km from the rear base.

On the morning of February 20, 1979, Major Quan led a detachment to reinforce the rear base area of ​​Lung Vai, Hong Viet commune, and coordinated with friendly units to intercept and attack the enemy.

On the evening of February 20, 1979, Major Quan commanded the combat forces that intercepted the enemy's attack on Nguom Boc cave (Lung Vai, Hong Viet commune), protecting hundreds of cadres, staff, civilians, and wounded soldiers who were being evacuated.

On December 20, 1979, Major Hoang Van Quan, Chief of Police of Hoa An District, was awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces.

After retiring, hero Hoang Van Quan was elected as the Standing Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Nuoc Hai town, and he passed away in 2003. His successors were his son, Hoang Van Tuyen (who, upon retirement, was a Major and a police officer in Hoa An District), and his grandson, Hoang Van Tu, currently a Major and Chief of Police of Nuoc Hai town (Hoa An District, Cao Bang Province).

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