With shoulder-length hair, the girl skillfully clipped it with a hair clip also in the same blue color. That is teacher Lu Thi Xe, the newlywed wife of Senior Lieutenant Phu Gia Po, Team Leader of the Anti-Drug and Crime Team, Pa U Border Guard Post (Lai Chau Provincial Border Guard).

Like many beautiful love stories of young people on the Lai Chau border, the love between border guard Phu Gia Po and village teacher Lu Thi Xe is always full of hope for the future. In 2018, after graduating from the Border Guard Academy, Phu Gia Po met Lu Thi Xe, a pure, simple, and gentle Giay ethnic girl, a final-year student at Lai Chau Community College. From that first meeting, their feelings blossomed in their hearts, each text message conveying a deep longing. In love, they also understood the hardships of the professions they had both chosen.

Lieutenant Phu Gia Po and his wife, teacher Lu Thi Xe. Photo provided by the subjects.

Lu Thi Xe didn't understand the specific daily work of her lover, only that he always possessed an "iron" resolve, ready to face any risk when fighting dangerous drug criminals for the peace of the people. Phu Gia Po, on the other hand, felt compassion for the young, determined woman who had been alone at the Thao Giang Pho school for two years, without electricity, phone signal, or running water, caring for the young children of the mountains and forests. Over four years of long-distance love, they could count the number of times they met on one hand, because the road from the border guard post to the school was about 300km, a long and arduous journey.

However, teacher Lu Thi Xe always trusted and was grateful to her boyfriend for his warm feelings, concern, visits, and care for her family. During Tet in 2019, Lu Thi Xe's brother unfortunately had a traffic accident, suffering serious injuries and requiring hospitalization. Her family was small, and her parents were elderly. Lieutenant Phu Gia Po spent his precious Tet holiday days at the hospital with her, helping her with medication and treatment for her brother.

The young couple planned their wedding three times, and their families met and discussed the matter, but each time they decided to postpone it for the sake of their shared duty. One year, Lieutenant Phu Gia Po was sent to study by his superiors; another year, the Covid-19 pandemic struck unexpectedly, and he and his comrades were assigned to man checkpoints along the border, preventing illegal entry and exit...

Wherever she went, teacher Lu Thi Xe always carried the simple, small gifts her lover gave her: a backpack, hair clips, or a green army-style face mask, so that "it felt like he was always by my side"... In November 2022, two kindred spirits, understanding each other, tied the knot with the blessings of family and comrades... The wish of the young couple and their parents was to soon become parents, grandparents, so that every time they reunited, their home would be filled with the laughter of children and overflowing with love.

NGUYET MINH