In the series of articles “Dien Bien Memories” recently published by Quang Nam Newspaper on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory (May 7, 1954 - May 7, 2024), we mentioned the character Tran Ngoc Que (94 years old, An Lau village, Tam Lanh commune, Phu Ninh) - a soldier of Battalion 19 (Regiment 108, Inter-zone V) who was mobilized to the North to support the Dien Bien Phu front. During our conversation with him, we also heard about the days when he was close to Uncle Ho and was taught many things by him.
Intact memories of times close to Uncle Ho
Mr. Que recalled that in October 1954, nearly 5 months after we won the Dien Bien Phu battle, Battalion 19 was entrusted with the task of returning to Hanoi to participate in taking over the capital; suppressing bad elements in society, ensuring security and order. At the same time, participating in cleaning up the French Indochina Governor-General's Palace (today's Presidential Palace) to serve as the working headquarters of Uncle Ho and the Party and State leaders.
In 1955, Uncle Ho returned to Hanoi from the Northwest to the welcome of many cadres and people. At that time, the young soldier Tran Ngoc Que, who was on duty to maintain security on the street, tried to look towards the convoy to see Uncle Ho more clearly. The image of Uncle Ho that day was exactly as Mr. Que had heard - a leader dressed simply, with a gentle smile, waving in response to everyone's affection.
“When Uncle Ho came to work in the Presidential Palace, we were assigned to protect security in this area. During that time, we learned many good things from Uncle Ho. First of all, his working style was very serious, each hour had its own task. Even when his sister from Nghe An came to visit after many years apart, Uncle Ho only arranged to meet after work. Following Uncle Ho's example, we focused on our work, not being negligent at all,” Mr. Que said.
According to Mr. Que, Uncle Ho was always close to, regularly visited, and encouraged the cadres and soldiers working with him. One memory Mr. Que always remembers is that one time while working, Uncle Ho saw soldier Tran Ngoc Que sweating profusely, so he called him back to ask his name and hometown. Mr. Que replied: "My name is Tran Xuan Ky (alias - party member's name), from Tam Ky, Quang Nam".
He asked: "Why don't you take the name Tam Ky?"
Mr. Que replied: “Yes, “Xuan” is my father’s alias, he was also a party member and participated in the revolution before 1930. I want to follow my father’s example and always serve the revolution.”
Uncle Ho was pleased, smiled, and encouraged Mr. Que to continue to uphold the revolutionary tradition and become a loyal and talented soldier. From that day on, Uncle Ho remembered his name and when necessary, he often called "Xuan Ky" to give instructions...
In 1956, the people of the South sent a star apple tree to the Presidential Palace. Uncle Ho assigned Mr. Que and the guards to plant the tree. Every afternoon, after work, Uncle Ho would go out to take care of and water the tree. One day, while Uncle Ho was taking care of the tree, a leaf fell to the ground. Uncle Ho picked it up, straightened it, and arranged it neatly. Uncle Ho's eyes kept looking into the distance. Although he was wondering, Mr. Que only dared to ask Uncle Ho's Secretary, Vu Ky.
According to comrade Vu Ky, Uncle Ho called those leaves “the children of the South who left their mother’s breast to go on a mission”. Uncle Ho’s heart was not at peace during those years when the two regions were still divided, and the people of the South fought bravely day and night against the enemy. Hearing that, Mr. Que admired Uncle Ho’s heart of always worrying and thinking about the people.
Remember Uncle Ho's teachings
In 1960, Battalion 19 was mobilized to return to the South. Mr. Que recalled that before returning to the South, Uncle Ho had a meeting to encourage and say goodbye to the soldiers. Mr. Que was sitting in the back row when comrade Ta Dinh De (Uncle Ho's bodyguard) called him up to give him some instructions. Soldier Tran Ngoc Que hurriedly ran up and solemnly saluted Uncle Ho. From the podium, Uncle Ho came down and patted his shoulder and asked: "Do you still remember what I told you?"
Mr. Que said: "I remember everything you taught me!"
Uncle Ho said: “You must always remember the lesson about the head - ears - eyes - mouth and heart. Your head carries the policies of the Party and the State. Your ears are used to listen to the people, comrades and teammates speak. Your mouth is used to answer the questions of the people, comrades and teammates. Your eyes must look far and wide. And your heart must always be pure.”
Soldier Tran Ngoc Que nodded in agreement, promising to remember Uncle Ho's words carefully. Then Uncle Ho instructed the entire unit: "Tomorrow when you return to the South, on the way, do not lose any leaves of the people." At first, Mr. Que was startled, a little worried, but then he understood that Uncle Ho wanted to remind Battalion 19 to absolutely not take anything from the people!
Returning to the South, Mr. Que was assigned to work at the Central Political Department of the Southern Liberation Front stationed in Ben Tre (1960). Then he returned to Military Region 5 to work as Political Commissar of Company 3, Battalion 60, Regiment 1; Political Commissar of Company 14 (stationed in Nam Tam Ky - Nui Thanh today) from 1961 to 1975. After 1975, Mr. Que was assigned to educate prisoners at General Camp 2 (stationed in Tam Lanh, Phu Ninh) and teach politics and do ideological work for localities in Quang Nam - Da Nang. In 1980, Mr. Que retired.
Mr. Que said that throughout his journey of serving the revolution and the people, he always took Uncle Ho's teachings as a guideline for all actions and took revolutionary morality as the foundation. He was not afraid of difficulties or hardships, and strived to complete all assigned tasks. Mr. Que also shared with many people the lessons of "Head - ears - eyes - mouth and heart" that Uncle Ho taught in the capital that year.
A few days ago, Mr. Que “boasted” to me about his return to Uncle Ho’s Mausoleum during an event commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu Victory organized by the Central Veterans Association. Today, many things have changed, but the image of Uncle Ho and his instructions still shine brightly in the hearts of the Dien Bien soldiers of the past.
Source
Comment (0)