Chapter 1616

Zhou Andong laughed heartily: "We got the certificate, but I've been too busy to hold the banquet, so I'm making up for it this year on the 11th."

"Oh!" Qiao Hui was enlightened: "You scared me."

"How about your wife?" Zhou Andong asked again: "Is she with you in the army or at home?"

"I was in Huangnan Prefecture before." Qiao Hui said: "My wife is from Huangnan Prefecture. After the defense change, she wanted to follow me to the army, but the child was still too young, especially since the natural environment here is much worse than in Huangnan, so she gave up that plan."

Zhou Andong nodded: "If you can get leave in October, go back and bring your wife and children."

"I haven't been home for over two years again." Qiao Hui was very tempted: "We'll see. If there are no missions, I should be able to go back."

Zhou Andong said: "You didn't go back for the New Year?"

"My wife brought the child here." A happy expression appeared on Qiao Hui's face: "I originally planned to go back after the 15th, but I didn't expect to be stuck here by the blizzard."

At this moment, the soldier driving honked the horn, and Qiao Hui looked and saw the three soldiers panting as they ran forward.

Qiao Hui looked at his watch and opened the car window: "Sun Zhen, Liu Jiahai, Zhang Gaoyun!"

"Here!" The three soldiers stopped and stood at attention.

"Get in the car." Qiao Hui said, then rolled up the window: "These little bastards, if I don't discipline them for a day, their skin gets itchy."

Zhou Andong looked out the window: "How much further is it to Shiquanhe?"

"Not much further." Qiao Hui said: "A little over two hundred."

"..."

Zhou Andong was speechless: "Two hundred kilometers, and a little over—is that 'not much further'?"

Qiao Hui said with a smile: "In the interior, two hundred kilometers is indeed very far, but here, you can't see anyone for three or four hundred kilometers. Do you still think two hundred kilometers is far?"

"That's true!" Zhou Andong had nothing to say.

"How about it." Qiao Hui asked: "Is the scenery along the way beautiful?"

Zhou Andong curled his lip and said: "It's just so-so, it'll do."

"I can't stand your hypocritical nature."

Qiao Hui mocked him, then looked out the car window.

"This place was originally a vast ocean, and through the changes of crustal movement, it transformed into the roof of the world. Look at that lake ahead; why is there green in the blue?"

"Because these lakes are saltwater lakes, and the water contains minerals." Zhou Andong looked at Qiao Hui with disdain: "Lake water containing copper turns green, and that containing lithium and magnesium turns blue.

The lake ahead should have a high content of all three minerals, so the water presents two colors."

Qiao Hui smacked his lips: "Alright, I'll count that as you being right."

"Right is right, what do you mean 'count that as me being right'?" Zhou Andong took revenge without delay: "I can't stand your stubborn nature."

The two of them bickered, belittling each other, as if they had returned to their student days.

The sky outside gradually darkened. Zhou Andong asked: "In such a bitter place, you could choose to transfer; why are you still guarding here?"

Qiao Hui took out a cigarette and threw one to Zhou Andong.

The soldier driving said: "Commander, give me one."

Qiao Hui lit the cigarette and leaned over to put it in the soldier's mouth.

"There are countless people in the world. Living in the land of fish and rice is enjoying life. Living in a barren desert is just enduring the days. Living on the frontier is called guarding the border and consolidating the land.

This place is located in the western part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the roof of the world, the ancestor of thousands of mountains and the source of ten thousand waters; it is the source of the Indus, Ganges, and Yarlung Tsangpo rivers. Located between West Asia and South Asia, its military position is very important.

There is a child in Wujiang Village named Jiayang Ciren. He is only thirteen years old, and he has been participating in border patrols since he was eight. Don't look at his young age; he is more familiar with every snow-capped mountain, every river, and even every blade of grass on the border line than anyone else.

The militia of Wujiang Village conducts border patrols every day. For a single militiaman, a round trip for one patrol is 200 kilometers. Even now with motorcycles, it is very difficult to return on the same day, and sleeping in the open at pastoral points is a common occurrence during patrols.

In addition to participating in border patrols, the Wujiang Village Party Branch, last October, when we were executing missions and transport capacity was tight, spared no cost and set no conditions, immediately organizing vehicles, mule and horse teams, and young and strong labor to form an assault support militia company.

They climbed arduously along mountain slopes at an altitude of over 5,000 meters, right under the noses of the Indian army, helping us transport logistics support supplies. Our regiment had already changed defense and withdrawn, but the company commander of this militia company was still holding his post during the mission and didn't even come back for the New Year.

And in the process of transporting support supplies, many militiamen were injured; some broke their arms, some sprained their ankles, but everyone stayed on the front line despite minor injuries.

Even if I gave orders, it wouldn't work. They said, 'Jinzhumami (the PLA) came to help us guard every blade of grass and every tree, so we have an obligation to assist them.'"

Speaking of this, Qiao Hui tilted his head and looked at Zhou Andong: "Ali is the red Great Wall of the frontier. Everyone living and working here is making contributions, holding their positions—how could I be a deserter?"

Zhou Andong was silent, smoking his cigarette the whole time, and it was a while before he said.

"Old classmate, I still underestimated you."

"Are you very impressed by me, worshiping me?" Qiao Hui laughed heartily and said smugly: "Come, call me brother."

"Get lost."

Zhou Andong scolded him with a smile, because such words were what he often said to Qiao Hui when they were in school.

Qiao Hui laughed happily again: "Tell me honestly, what is your birthday—the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, or the eleventh day of the ninth lunar month?"

Zhou Andong said helplessly: "When we were in school, you asked this question whenever you had nothing to do, and again whenever you had nothing to do. It's been over ten years, and you're still asking when we meet. I'll say it one last time: the ninth day of the ninth lunar month."

The two were born in the same year and month. Qiao Hui's birthday was the tenth day of the ninth lunar month, and Zhou Andong said his birthday was the ninth, so this kid had always acted as the big brother.

But Qiao Hui never believed it. Once, Xiaobei came to school to find Zhou Andong and happened to run into Qiao Hui, so he secretly asked.

Xiaobei didn't know what was going on and honestly told Qiao Hui that his big brother's birthday was the eleventh day of the ninth lunar month.

"Still lying to me?" Qiao Hui said dissatisfied: "Back then, Xiaobei told me that your birthday is the eleventh day of the ninth lunar month."

"How old was he back then? He didn't know anything." Zhou Andong snorted: "I still remember that he wasn't even as tall as a bicycle, yet he was bold enough to ride for over ten li to find me at school. If you hadn't stopped me, see if I wouldn't have beaten him up."

"Was Xiaobei eight or nine years old back then?" Qiao Hui said: "He wasn't that young. Just now I said that Jiayang Ciren participated in border patrols at eight."

"You said it yourself, he participated." Zhou Andong took a puff of his cigarette: "There were adults around him. Xiaobei back then rode his bike for over ten li all by himself, and he had just learned to ride 'under the crossbar'."

"Now that you mention it, that's true." Qiao Hui shook his head with a smile: "Xiaobei should be in college by now, right?"

"College my ass." Zhou Andong sighed: "I get angry just mentioning this. He stopped studying after junior high, and nothing I said worked."

"Hey!" Qiao Hui comforted him: "With you as his brother, is he going to go hungry? Just arrange some work for him, and he won't starve."

"That's right!"

Zhou Andong opened a crack in the car window, and the smoke inside the car was instantly sucked out by the wind.

"I arranged for him to do a little business."

"Is that so?" Qiao Hui asked curiously: "What kind of small business? No matter what he sells, if I have the chance to go back, I'll definitely go support him."

"365 Home Furnishings." Zhou Andong smoked his cigarette, his tone very light and airy: "It's just making furniture for people, earning a bit of hard-earned money."

"..."

Qiao Hui stared at Zhou Andong, his eyes looking very frightening.