In the dense forests of Inner Mongolia's Daxinganling Mountains, there is a cultural tourist attraction that is so crowded and congested that the state has named it the "Busuli Northern Border Military Cultural Tourism Area".
There are many monumental and precious objects and various amusement facilities in the tourist area.
Today, Busuri is not only a tourist attraction, but also an important gathering place for patriotic education for local high school students, institutions and various social groups.
What is less known, however, is that a decade or so ago, this used to be the most mysterious storage base for military supplies in northern China.
It was built by thousands of army soldiers who spent nearly 30 years hollowing out the entire mountain. In addition, the state also spared a full 2.7 billion yuan to invest in this place, and the fortress houses many battle maps and old photos of generals and soldiers.
These precious items are truly awe-inspiring and remind visitors of the time of the war, but also allow them to experience the long years of construction.
01、Construction years
Why would China hollow out an entire mountain, spend $2.7 billion, and spend 30 years building a military fortress?
This incident also goes back to the spring of 1967, when it was a time of war and the peaceful life of the local people on Jumbo Island was seriously disrupted.
Gradually, the officers began to realize that if there was not a storage area for supplies in the vicinity, China would likely be in a disadvantageous position when it was invaded again.
Thus, in the summer of 1969, the Shenyang Military Region opened this extremely great national defense project in the Busuli belt of the Daxinganling Mountains.
In order to prevent being sabotaged secretly, the military district did strict secrecy, and after several discussions, the army clearly stipulated that the construction could only be done in secret, so that even the common people at that time did not know about the existence of this plan.
Because of the secret construction project, the soldiers simply could not mobilize large mechanical equipment with great fanfare, they could only choose to use small shovels to cut the mountain, hollowing out the interior of the mountain.
The ground was hard, but it didn't affect the soldiers' mood to work in any way.
Turning the yellowed page of history, we can clearly see that the right side of the mountain is squatting a young soldier full of energy, due to excessive force, the soil under his feet suddenly like a volcanic eruption, splashed all over his body. He smiled uncomplainingly and wiped the dust on his head roughly with his sleeve.
"Brother, is everything okay?" The veteran next to him greeted while smiling as he handed over a glass of white water.
He politely took the colorless, odorless water in the veteran's hand with his hand.
These hands, long lost the elasticity of youth, the wrinkles on the back of the hand is so dense, the palm of the hand is also branded with hard calluses, there are a few bruises on the elbow, unusually rough.
He opened his mouth wide and willingly smothered the bowl of white water in one gulp. A few drops of white water leaking from his mouth were interspersed with beads of sweat, flowing continuously down the corners of his mouth and into his neck.
The old soldier waved his right arm and gathered many soldiers around the right side of the mountain and said in a serious tone, "We have all heard of the matter of Yugong Yishan, a 90-year-old man has the will to shake the mountain, not to mention that we now have so many people to share the trouble together!"
"Come on, there will always be difficulties, but as long as we are united, we can stand out sooner or later!"
Indeed, whether it was the Red Army's Long March or the hollowing out of the mountains today, it has been proven that the Chinese people have the fine gene of being able to bear hardship engraved in their bones.
Despite how unattainable the goal may seem to outsiders, they will all persevere, unite and look forward without fear of hardship.
The veteran's words lifted many of those present, and they all spread their tanned arms and threw their arms around each other's shoulders as they shouted together for China. The sound, powerful and majestic, touched China and shook the mountains.
After their morale was boosted, they began to work harder, starting to cut the mountain every morning and not finishing until late at night.
During the period also encountered a number of landslides, bad weather and other difficulties, they have survived one by one, most of the soldiers' hands have long been bruised.
Even so, these soldiers did not easily retreat, they not only did not ask their superiors for leave to leave Busouri, but also volunteered to participate in a series of tedious tasks such as draining smoke, transporting medicine, and cleaning up debris.
With their efforts night and day, the mountain was thus hollowed out little by little.
In addition, the soldiers also adopted the designer's advice, in the cave before and after the construction of nine caves of different sizes, respectively, used to store ammunition, military rations, weapons, uniforms and other very important materials.
According to the officer who built it at the time, the cave had enough of these stocks to last the troops fighting the war for more than two years.
From 1967 to 1998, these soldiers held this place for nearly 30 years, and under their careful construction, this originally empty and barren mountain has long been stuffed with valuable military supplies.
Due to the good secrecy, it became the most mysterious military fortress in China, and no one except the soldiers who built it and the higher state leaders even understood what mysteries were hidden in the cave.
Military fortress has always been a country's most solid backing, in the fortress of Busouri has been a constant logistical support, China's weapons and equipment, rations and other supplies in a continuous flow.
This not only puts our army in a strong position in wartime, but also plays a deterrent role, which is not only the crystallization of Chinese labor, but also the crystallization of Chinese wisdom.
02、The fortress features of the underground oil depot
Whether in the old war years or today in the 21st century, the most noteworthy thing about the Busuri military fortress for outsiders is not only the powerful weapons and sufficient rations, but also the constant supply of fuel.
In one of the caves of Busouri Fortress, there is a huge underground oil depot hidden which is rare in the world.
As we all know, oil has always been very expensive in any age, so this amazing oil storage can even be said to be the core of the entire Busouri military fortress.
In the summer of 1967, official figures show that the depot was then stocked with seven oil tanks with a capacity size of about 2,224.37 tons, equivalent to the storage of more than 200 trains of oil.
In addition to the breathtaking amount of oil storage, I have to say that these oils are really very versatile. In terms of environmental considerations, whether in the hot summer or in the cold winter, the cave has always been incredibly humid, and the presence of these oils has precisely a good moisture-proof effect, which can properly reduce the moisture in the cave.
More noteworthy is that these oils can also constantly provide energy for fighter jets and other types of powerful military equipment. After all, even if the most advanced equipment, once the lack of oil, it is a virtual nullity, simply can not operate.
And China has such a large capacity underground oil depot, once the war is fought in the vicinity, at least in terms of equipment operation can be guaranteed for two years without worry.
However, it was not useful just to ensure that there was enough oil in the Busouri Strip; there was also the possibility of war elsewhere at any time, and in those troubled times there was no particularly advanced delivery equipment.
If transported by land alone, it is likely to be attacked by enemy forces, and if transported by water, the speed will be very slow, and it will not be able to supply the battlefield needs in time.
At the critical moment, these Chinese soldiers had a brainstorm and made a decisive decision to weld pipes that would transport oil to all directions.
They agreed that the only way to transport underground through the pipeline would not be easily discovered and destroyed by enemy forces, an idea that could be described as unprecedented and extremely daring.
Since most of the male soldiers were assigned to work in several other caves at the time, very few were able to stay behind to complete the welding work.
If some male soldiers are forcibly drafted back, the construction and storage work in the cave will not be completed as scheduled.
Surprisingly, in this dilemma, many women in the engineering department volunteered to come to the cave to weld the pipes of the underground oil depot.
That summer, even though it was hot outside, the temperature in the cave was only 3 degrees. A cold air wrapped around them mercilessly, like thousands of silver needles in their bodies, making them all painful.
Even so, the women continued to come to the depot meticulously to complete the welding work, and it was not until three years later that they were able to complete the task of welding the pipes as they had hoped.
But unfortunately, due to such a cold working environment for a long time, the female soldiers' bodies have collapsed and even suffered from the evil disease of infertility.
For women, the inability to reproduce is a painful thing, and may even leave them with no one to turn to for the rest of their lives and end up alone.
After learning that they were suffering from a terminal illness, the women soldiers were not depressed, but rather slightly subdued, and even had smiles of relief on their faces.
After all, they saw with their own eyes that these already-welded pipes were acting like railroad tunnels in all directions and were sending huge amounts of oil across the country.
Wherever there is a war, oil is transported by pipeline to the station to ensure the efficiency of the army equipment.
Born in a troubled world, even if life is like a mole, but there are still hearts to the light, even though they are already in the dark, but they see the light of victory through these pipes.
In their eyes, they are firstly daughters of the motherland and secondly ordinary women who give birth to children.
The underground oil depot is such an amazing place, which not only holds sufficient amount of oil, but also buries the transportation pipeline in all directions to provide military supplies for all places.
The Chinese people are like this: they think of danger in peace, take into account the overall situation, but also do not forget to sacrifice themselves for others, they can do what ordinary people dare not do, think what ordinary people dare not think.
03、Status of the fortress
For decades, the underground oil depot in Busouri helped the country to overcome one crisis after another with its ample storage of supplies until 1999, when the soldiers stationed there all year round withdrew from the fortress base.
In order to honor the memory of those soldiers who had died in the construction process, the country decided to make this military fortress base public and make it a full-scale 4A tourist attraction for visitors from all over the world.
It is officially named "Busuli Northern Border Military Cultural Tourism Zone". In addition to the underground oil depot where oil is stored, ammunition is stored, and the kiln headquarters of the military industry, there are also many unique sights here.
Into the Busuli tourist area, we can first see a stone monument, engraved with "the first post in the North" five big words, the big words are also engraved with a bright red five-pointed star below.
This is an inscription written by Lin Biao, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, in recognition of the veterans who have stood by their posts for decades.
This monument stands tall, as if we can see the heroic stance of those soldiers in the cold wind, which is really touching.
As the years have passed, they are the ones who have used their weak bodies to support the future of Busouri.
Walking straight ahead from the monument, you can see the exhibition hall, which has the words "Unity, Tension, Seriousness, Lively" engraved on the outside wall.
The museum displays more than 3,000 tools and supplies left behind by the builders of the Busuli military fortress, as well as operational maps, weapons and equipment used by the commanders during the war.
Walk straight to the right side of the exhibition hall and you will arrive at the famous Marshal's Building, where you can see the big words "Serving the People" from afar.
This marshal building, which is hidden in the greenery, has pure white walls, light red roof tiles, brown vintage style doors and windows, all bathed in this rose-red sunset, which looks extraordinarily moving.
Inside the building, a picture frame comes into view, which depicts the ups and downs of Marshal Ye Jianying's life. At the far side, there is a narrow flight of steps, carefully walking upwards, you can clearly see the bedroom where the Marshal once lived.
The house is dimly lit, there is only a table, a chair, a bed, simple and simple, indifferent and quiet.
Next to the bed there is a small balcony with a railing, perhaps because of its age, has long been tilted, a large handful of paint is also stripped clean and slightly old.
In addition to Marshal Ye Jianying, this humble house has also housed successive generations of police officers and successive leaders of the Shenyang Military District.
What really moves the heart is always something simple and unpretentious, it is never flashy, but can take root in people's hearts, buried very deep, I have to say, simplicity is the ultimate beauty, is the rarest quality.
These marshals, police officers, although they are in high positions, but life is incomparably simple, perhaps they work tirelessly every day to deal with the size of affairs, loyalty to the country, simply do not have time to decorate the room.
In addition to the underground oil depot, kiln command, stone monument, exhibition hall, marshal building, these attractions rich in humanistic feelings, in order to let tourists from all directions not to be in vain, feel the pleasure of the tour, the state also transformed the military lake in the tourist area.
The military lake is located at the very center of the whole Busuri cultural tourism scenic area, where the martyrs used to sit on the ground and warm themselves by bonfire, telling the great feelings of patriotism to each other.
There the lake is full of water, in the warm shine of the sunset, the waves like a naughty child jumping uncertainly, the water surface mapped out colorful light, as if like a fairy tale in the big treasure mirror.
This is not only a mirror that records the beautiful scenery of Busuri tourist area, but also a precious ancient mirror that has accompanied the ancestors through all the difficulties to cut deep into the mountain for more than 30 years.
Around the lake, equipped with many recreational facilities, where people row, design and ride bicycles, people peacefully enjoy the unique comfort and ease of this era.
There are also many modern carts near the military lake, which used to send off many tourists who were reluctant to leave this tourist area and who, upon their return, praised the Busouri military fortress.
Concluding remarks
Until now, there are more and more tourists who choose to visit Busuli Northern Border Military Cultural Tourism Zone in their leisure time.
Whether it is the underground oil depot, the Marshal Building, the military lake and other attractions, they all carry a heavy military culture and the patriotic sentiment of generations of Chinese people.
In those days, the soldiers, thinking of danger, chose to build military fortresses as a way to stockpile military resources, and even though the road to the mountain was dangerous, they still went ahead and were even willing to die.
From a plain and unexceptional mountain to a military cultural base attraction today, the country has spent 2.7 billion and nearly 30 years to repair it, which is full of the hard work and sweat of our forefathers and the wisdom of countless Chinese people.
These national people had used their own modest efforts to push open the door to the miracle step by step with great difficulty. It is because of their persistence that the military cultural tourism area, which is so lofty and spectacular today, has been created.
There is no such thing as a quiet year, but someone is carrying the weight for you. As Chinese in the new era, we must understand that all the good life now is created by these great people.
If the people are strong, the country is strong. We should be grateful and diligent, after all, there are more unknown wonders in China that need to be explored step by step by future generations.
Reference.
1. Knowing that the feasibility study of Busuli Northern Border Military Culture Tourism Project 2015; Master's thesis, Inner Mongolia University; Bai Kun
2, China News Network "Visiting Bussuri Military Tourism Scenic Area in Inner Mongolia
