Pay tribute to the veterans: Shanhai was lucky to have met ■ Zhang Rongyu, special reporter of PLA Daily Not long ago, a Guantong brigade of the navy of the eastern theater held a "new year tea party". In the lively atmosphere, New Year greetings from the families of officers and soldiers appeared on the big screen. Finally, Zou Wei and fan Zhengjun, two first-class sergeants who left the army not long ago, came to the end. Two people wearing military uniforms, with deep blessings on their faces. On the long coastline where the brigade was stationed, there was warm applause from all the barracks participating in the activity through video synchronization. How long is 30 years? It can be 10950 days and nights, 15768000 minutes, a person's youth, or the affectionate watch of two veterans. A few days ago, Zou Wei and fan Zhengjun met via video and chatted about the military in the past 30 years. The two soldiers of the same year in the same unit have met only a few times in the past 30 years. Two months before retirement, taking the opportunity of equipment inspection, the two made an appointment to meet on the island. Fan Zhengjun said they must take Zou Wei around the island. Unexpectedly, on the day Zou Wei went to the island, fan Zhengjun received a new task to leave the island. The two met in a hurry, leaving only a group photo. No cumbersome etiquette, no unnecessary words. Their love for the army, their dedication to their posts and their attachment to mountains and seas are like twin brothers. Over the past 30 years, although the two met a few times, they witnessed the transformation of muddy roads into broad roads in different places, handled the upgrading of equipment and experienced the molting and remodeling of the army. They have suffered the same hardships. Many people don't know the feeling of "five months of fog, four months of gale and three months of water shortage", but two Guantong veterans know. They have the same watch in their eyes. Whether it is high mountains or dark blue islands, where the five-star red flag is flying, there is the persistence of Chinese soldiers. Where people can see or can't see, they silently watch the lights of thousands of homes. Although the island is partial, the mission is a boat; Although the mountains are far away, faith opens the way. The 30-year military service of veterans is a long river of years, but a drop in the ocean is all they need. Veterans are not old, they will inherit the spirit, make a Book of experience, teach each other by mouth and pass it on by pen and pen. They know that there are always recruits, veterans and people in the mountains and seas. Goodbye, veterans. I'm lucky to have met you. Zou Wei stood on the top of the mountain and gazed into the distance. Photo by Zhou Xin Fan Zhengjun stood beside the red painted stone carvings of his year and saluted solemnly. Photo by Zhao Mingli Beautiful island, my home. Photo by Fan Gang Thirty years of watching the sea—— I'm on this side of the mountain ■ Zhang Rongyu, special reporter of PLA Daily The young man who looked up to the hero in those days has now become an example for young people to look up to On the Lantern Festival, every family in the small town next to the Yalu River was jubilant. Zou Wei shuttled through the crowd and was suddenly attracted by a burst of gongs and drums. He stopped to have a look. It turned out that the gongs and drums team in the town was rehearsing. Listening to the noise of gongs and drums, Zou Wei's thoughts can't help floating back to 2021. In December 2021, at the top of the high mountains in Southern Fujian, the sound of gongs and drums suddenly rang out in the deep forest, which was originally silent. At the same time, accompanied by the sound that rang through the valley, the cry: "I'm in the battle position, please rest assured! I'm in the battle position, please rest assured!" The birds flew and circled around the mountain for a long time. On this day, Zou Wei will leave the mountain where he has been for 30 years. When the car drove away from the gate of the camp, there was a hoarse cry from his comrades in arms. His wife Li Xiu sat aside and held his hand tightly. Zou Wei remembered the scene when he went up the mountain for the first time. Zou Wei's grandfather was a veteran of the war of liberation, and his uncle was also a navy. Under the influence of his family, Zou Wei signed up for the army just when he was old enough to join the army. At 4 p.m. on September 14, 1992, Zou Wei, who had been in the army for less than a year, set foot on this mountain. This is a day he will never forget in his life. That day, the sky was drizzling and gray. The truck circled along the mountain road, so that he vomited out his bile. After arriving at the top of the mountain, Zou Wei's heart was half cooled when he looked at the shabby and shabby barracks and potholes in the dirt road. When he first arrived at Guantong station, Zou Wei was acclimatized and couldn't lift up his spirit in his work. The monitor kept chatting with him. Zou Wei likes to listen to stories. The monitor "likes him" and tells him the history of Guantong station. When hearing the heroic deeds of the first-class hero, monitor Mao Hanmin, Zou Wei's blood was boiling for a while, and an idea quietly buried the "seed": "I want to be such a hero to protect my country." With a goal, there is hope. Gradually, Zou Wei fell in love with the mountain. In his letter to his family, he wrote: "I'm very good here. The sky is my room, the ground is my bed, and the fog is my mosquito net." Zou Wei has been living in the mountains for 30 years. At the retirement ceremony held by the brigade, Zou Wei choked and said, "if the fog on the mountain blows when I close my eyes, I think I can smell it." A simple and simple sentence made the officers and soldiers of the whole brigade red in the eyes. In the historical materials room, Zou Wei's name, photos and deeds are now hanging high on the honor wall for everyone to visit and study. The young man who looked up to the hero in those days has now become an example for young people to look up to. Our eyesight has decreased so that the radar can see farther Remembering the past, Zou Wei rubbed some red eyes. Thirty years ago, Zou Wei's eyesight was 1.5 when he joined the army. Now his eyesight is 0.4. Staring at the radar screen all year round, eyesight damage is inevitable, but Zou Wei smiled and said: "our eyesight has decreased in order to see farther with the radar." In ordinary life, Zou Wei's dark face is always filled with a bright smile, but as soon as he sits in the duty room, he will become a "black faced judge". Over the past 30 years, Zou Wei has experienced the upgrading of various types of equipment. Every time, he is "the first person to eat crabs". That year, a new type of radar was installed in the brigade, and some comrades in arms were not used to it. Zou Weili issued a military order: the new radar forms combat effectiveness according to the time node! During that time, Zou Wei stayed in the tunnel for more than ten hours every day, repeatedly combing and comparing various targets, and carefully analyzing the echo changes of the size of rice grains on the fluorescent screen Later, the new equipment undertook the combat readiness task as scheduled, and the experience and practices summarized by Zou Wei were also popularized in Guantong army. Zou Wei said: "there are 41 steps on the road on duty, and 660 steps can enter the battle position." Behind the seemingly blurted out figures are decades of persistence and meticulous day by day. That year, Zou Wei participated in a certain type of radar seminar for the first time. More than 60 scholars, professors and engineers in the expert group were surprised to see Zou Wei carrying the rank of sergeant. When it came to the demonstration and discussion session, Zou Wei surprised them by his performance: combined with many years of practical experience, Zou Wei put forward a key problem existing in the system and directly pushed the system down and started over. After this "service", Zou Wei's name as a "military expert" was opened. Over the years, many manufacturers have a headache when they hear the name Zou Wei, because this soldier is too good at finding fault. However, the manufacturer is very willing to deal with him, because Zou Wei's "stubble" can be found accurately and well. Others admire Zou Wei for his hard work for decades and learn from him. Zou Wei's answer is: "I'm a soldier. I just want to do a good job and make the best of what a soldier does." "I miss my comrades in arms and my 'home'" Memories always make time fly. Looking up again, Zou Wei has walked to the door. When I opened the door, my lover was humming a tune to clean up, my elderly father was sitting on the sofa watching TV, and my son was doing his winter vacation homework... The years were quiet. If a soldier is a mountain, his family is a silent mountain supporting his backbone. Zou Wei and his lover Li Xiu met at the end of the 20th century. At that time, lovers still communicated through letters. At the mention of writing a letter, Li Xiu smiled and said, "the preface of his letter doesn't match the following words." Zou Wei was embarrassed to scratch his head and said, "it took me a few days to write those two pages." Such a person who can't write a letter to his lover has compiled more than 20 kinds of teaching materials and accumulated tens of thousands of words. Maybe Zou Wei doesn't know how to express love in love letters, but he knows how a soldier should perform his duties. In 2002, his son Zou dexuan was born, which not only brought joy to the family, but also brought a trace of sadness to the couple. Li Xiu not only has to take care of her elderly parents-in-law, but also her newborn child. She is the only one who has a headache in her family. One year after the child was born, Zou Wei was faced with leaving and staying again. His relatives and friends advised him: "come back. After spending so many years in the mountains, you have suffered a lot. Come back and live with your wife." Thinking of his wife's hard work, Zou Wei hesitated for a moment and called home to ask for advice. Li Xiu was silent for a full minute and said, "stay, I know you don't want your mountain." This stay, time flies for another 19 years. On the day Zou Wei retired, Li Xiu was invited to the mountain to witness the last glorious moment of her husband's military. Zou Wei is in a particularly happy mood these days. The wife knew that what pleased her husband most was the news from the army. This is not true. Yu Renxi, Zou Wei's apprentice, won the third class merit. He called him the first time. Put down the phone, he muttered to himself: "I miss my comrades in arms and 'home'..." The veteran thought of "home" and "home" was also concerned about him. At this time, Zou Wei's mobile phone rang again. It was originally a call from the Publicity Department of the unit. I wanted to ask the old monitor to help record a blessing video. Zou Wei, who put down the phone, was as excited as a child and immediately turned out his military uniform in the wardrobe and put it on. "Do you think I'm dressed up?" "You look most handsome in military uniform." 30 years of guarding the island—— I'm on the other side of the sea ■ Zhang Rongyu, special reporter of PLA Daily "The mountains are covered with clouds and the sea is around the reefs" At the beginning of the new year, fireworks and cooking incense wafted out of a residential house in Yiyang, Hunan Province. I saw the pepper in the pot emitting attractive color. Chef fan Zhengjun waved the spatula and gently hummed the song already engraved in his bones: "clouds are floating all over the mountains, and the sea is around the sea reefs..." His wife Tan Lijun listened to the song and smiled while choosing vegetables. This is the most relaxed moment in their 20 years of marriage - on this day, fan Zhengjun, who took off his military uniform, officially returned to his family. In 1991, Hunan wafan Zhengjun joined the army and became a glorious guard of the island. As the birthplace of the popular military song "the second hometown of soldiers", the island is well-known both inside and outside the army. After arriving on the island with full expectations, fan Zhengjun saw desolation in his eyes: in addition to stones and thatch, there was only a boundless sea. In those days, "it was common to turn on the electric blanket in summer and the flashlight during the day". There is a local saying on the island: "the pig is in a daze and the dog jumps into the sea." In six words, it tells the hard life of the island. On his first night on the island, fan Zhengjun stayed up all night, covered in a damp quilt and listening to the sea breeze whistling outside the window. He really couldn't connect the island with the word "Hometown". The more barren the soil, the more tenacious the seeds can be produced. On this island, in addition to the unyielding pride of soldiers, there are