Author (left) and Dr. Phung

Seeing that the surgical team was small, I also fetched water and chopped firewood to help the military feeding department; then I went to cut bamboo to make beds, repair huts, repair trenches, repair the path down to the stream... whatever was needed, I did. Perhaps that was why the doctors and nurses in the team and the wounded soldiers all loved me.

Doctor Phung, the head of the surgical team, was about ten years older than me. He was gentle, patient, and very hard-working. As the station chief, he was willing to do anything the wounded soldiers asked of him.

During the time I was there, I never saw him get angry or speak harshly to anyone. All the brothers in the surgical team as well as the wounded soldiers trusted and loved him very much. It seemed like he was born to be a doctor. He also loved me very much. In the evening, after finishing his work, he went down to the wounded soldiers' hut to sleep with me. That day, the rainy season had begun, so the evening was a bit cold. He said, "Come down and lie down with me to keep warm." The two brothers hugged each other and told each other all kinds of stories. He and the brothers in the surgical team at that time were the most vivid examples of the saying "A good doctor is like a mother." For the life and health of the wounded soldiers, they did everything, without hesitation.

After nearly a month of treatment, I felt completely healthy and could go back to the station. However, there was a difficulty: Where to go, where to return? I was wounded on the march, I didn't know where my unit had gone; now if I went to look for him, I wouldn't know where to find him. The battlefield was vast, bombs and bullets were everywhere, all units had to keep their positions secret, especially tanks, how could I find him alone? If I was careless, I would be suspected of being a spy or a commando, which would be difficult.

Mr. Phung told me: "Stay here, the surgical team will soon go to the North, so go with them and then find the Armored Command." I hesitated. If I went to the North, I would fall into a situation of "the truth is false" because I had no documents to prove that I was injured, and could easily be accused of "B quay" (desertion).

At that moment, I heard rumors that there was a tank unit at km 108, about 40 minutes walk along the stream from the route (that location is now in Huong Phong, A Luoi 4). I was half-believing, half-doubting. Luckily, at that time, there were 2 engineer soldiers whose unit was at km 103 coming to operate. They confirmed: "It seems that there is a new tank unit coming and stationed at km 108". That was even more certain. So, from here to there was about 40 km. That distance is not much compared to now, but at that time, we were on the battlefield so it seemed endless. After a night of intense thinking, I decided: "I will go find the unit. In case I don't see it, I will return to the operation team and go to the North with Mr. Phung".

After the first night of hitchhiking to the northern end of A Luoi airport, two engineers and I started walking. A Luoi airport had been completely transformed and turned into a series of bomb craters. It had rained so every crater was filled with water, looking like small ponds. Luckily, there were two local guides to guide me so I didn’t get lost in that maze. There was also OV10 who occasionally turned around to look around. We had broken off a tree branch to provide shade and camouflage, but when it swooped down, we still had to stop and hide. Therefore, our marching speed was very slow. It took us the whole morning to cover about 4km, and it was almost noon before we passed A Luoi airport to km 91 (Bot Do intersection).

After a short rest, we set off again. Since we had passed the main attack point, the road from here on was much easier. At km 97, I saw three people resting on the roof of a roadside bunker. The closer I got, the more familiar they seemed. I walked up and looked closely. Oh, that’s right! It was Chu, the deputy political commissar , Cam, and gunner Phan, who else? I shouted and ran back to my comrades. So my journey back to my unit had reached its destination!

When I returned to my unit, I learned that my company, along with XT4 Company equipped with T59 tanks, had formed the 408th Tank Battalion under the Tri Thien Front (B4). The opportunity to be the spearhead of the attack on Hue had passed and we had to wait until the spring of 1975 to realize our dream of liberating Hue, then liberating Da Nang and Saigon.

After the country was reunified, I went to officer training and continued to serve in the army. Those were the years when our country was facing great difficulties due to the economic crisis, and at the same time, we had to carry out the war to protect the Fatherland at both ends of the country. However, amidst the hustle and bustle of work, I always remembered the affection and gratitude that Doctor Phung and the frontline surgical team had given me and still had the intention of meeting him again when I had the chance. Because I remembered that he said he was from Vinh Phu, I went to Military Hospital 109 many times to ask and ask for help from the doctors there. However, all my efforts were like looking for a needle in a haystack. I even asked the brothers at Hoi Truong Son to help me find him but he was not found.

When the internet became popular in Vietnam, I went online to tell my story and asked for help from everyone. And God did not disappoint those who worked hard. After many years of perseverance, in 2018, I found Dr. Nguyen Van Phung after nearly 50 years of separation. It turned out that his hometown was right in Me Linh, not far from my house. Previously, this place belonged to Vinh Phu but later moved to Hanoi, while I kept looking in Phu Tho, how could I find him?

As soon as I met him again, I recognized him immediately. He was still a simple man with a gentle and approachable smile. As for him, at first he did not recognize me. After listening to my story for a while, he vaguely remembered the tank driver that year. He said that in 1973, he went to study more and was retained as a lecturer at the Military Medical University (now the Military Medical Academy) until his retirement. Since his retirement, with his high level of expertise and many years of treatment experience, he has collaborated with several nursing homes and recently returned to his hometown to open a clinic for the people of his hometown. The special thing is that he did all this work completely free of charge. Just as I thought from the day he saved my life and treated me at the forward operating station in the past: Nguyen Van Phung is truly a true physician, always devoted to his patients. I wish him good health to fulfill his wishes!

Colonel Nguyen Khac Nguyet

Source: https://huengaynay.vn/chinh-tri-xa-hoi/tram-phau-tien-phuong-dia-dau-a-luoi-ky-2-hanh-trinh-tim-lai-don-vi-157004.html