Finding the heroes: both father and son sacrificed

We went to Lang Son and rented a car to drive nearly 70 km to the People's Committee of Dai Dong Commune, Trang Dinh District to find information about hero - martyr Le Minh Truong.

Ms. Nong Phuong Thao (Vice Chairman of Dai Dong Commune People's Committee) took me to work with the officer in charge of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs. After an hour of looking up documents and books, there were still no results. Then, a commune officer passed by, saw many people and asked questions and said: "I live in the same village, but the martyr's family moved to Hanoi a long time ago". Then he turned back to Hanoi to ask, and fortunately, he got information from an officer of the Border Guard Command: "The martyr's mother is still alive, living in Truc Bach, Ba Dinh". Knocking on the door of house number 164 Tran Vu (Truc Bach Ward, Ba Dinh District), a woman came out to greet: "I am Hong, Minh Truong's sister-in-law. My mother is at home". A tall, white-haired old woman leaned against the wall to greet: "I am Nong Thi Duyen, born in 1935, 89 years old this year, the mother of Le Minh Truong's son".

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 1. — *Mrs. Nong Thi Duyen and her three sons, 1968. Le Minh Truong in the middle*

At the end of April 2014, Nong Thi Duyen's mother was awarded the title of Heroic Vietnamese Mother. Nong Thi Duyen was born in Dai Dong commune, Trang Dinh district, Lang Son province. In 1950, when she was only 15 years old, she was sent from Bac Son base to China to study pedagogy. At the end of 1954, Ms. Duyen's class returned to the country and gathered at the Ministry of Education (which had just moved from Chiem Hoa, Tuyen Quang to Dai Tu, Thai Nguyen) to assign work. At that time, Quang Yen province (later merged into Quang Ninh province) under the Viet Bac Inter-zone (1949 - 1956) was in dire need of teachers, so the Ministry sent a number of young teachers there to teach. "In my class, everyone refused. Some said their wives had given birth, some said they had young children, some said their families were in difficult circumstances. I was single and a mountain native who was used to hardship, so I accepted to go instead of my classmates," Ms. Duyen recalled.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 2. — *Chairman of the State Council Vo Chi Cong visited Mrs. Nong Thi Duyen, January 25, 1990*

While teaching in Dong Trieu District (now Dong Trieu Town, Quang Ninh), Nong Thi Duyen met soldier Hong Minh Ky (birth name Le Thai, born and raised at No. 16, Son Tay Street, Dien Bien Ward, Ba Dinh, Hanoi), who worked at Regiment 244, Infantry Division 350 (now Military Region 3). In 1956, they got married and in 1958, gave birth to their first son, Le Hong Truong. Two years later (1960), Duyen gave birth to another son, Le Minh Truong, in Thai Nguyen, while studying at the teacher training college. Three years later (1963), she gave birth to her youngest son, Le Khanh Truong, while teaching in That Khe, Lang Son. "At that time, I was the only one who gave birth and raised three sons because he had transferred to Division 320, fighting in Quang Tri," Duyen recalled. On February 16, 1968, Captain Hong Minh Ky died in Huong Hoa (Quang Tri) during the Route 9 - Khe Sanh campaign. The death notice was sent to his parents' house, so Mrs. Duyen had to carry her three sons, aged 10, 8 and 5, from the Trang Dinh border (Lang Son) to her husband's house in Hanoi to hold a memorial service. In 1976, the eldest brother Le Hong Truong went to study at the Viet Bac University of Industrial Technology (now the University of Industrial Technology, part of Thai Nguyen University), with a monthly scholarship of 22 dong, but it was still not enough to eat, so Mrs. Duyen had to sell anything of value in the house to exchange for rice and food to send to Thai Nguyen for her children. "At that time, Le Minh Truong was the most disadvantaged. He had a pair of white plastic sandals, but he had to sell them to send money for his brother's education," Mrs. Duyen remembered.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 3. — *Portrait of hero and martyr Le Minh Truong (left) and his father, martyr Hong Minh Ky (Le Thai), on the family altar*

Mom, please let me join the army.

In early 1978, Le Minh Truong wrote a volunteer application and begged his mother to let him join the army. In July 1978, he joined the People's Armed Police of Cao Lang province. At the end of December 1978, Cao Lang province was divided and re-established into Cao Bang and Lang Son. Soldier Le Minh Truong belonged to Company 5, People's Armed Police of Lang Son province, stationed in Dong Dang town. From the time Minh Truong joined the army until his death, he had never returned home. Before the Lunar New Year of Ky Mui 1979, Mrs. Duyen cycled more than 50 km to Dong Dang to visit her son, bringing sticky rice, chicken, and banh chung for her son to celebrate Tet. Nearly a month later, on the morning of February 17, 1979, the Chinese army suddenly attacked 6 northern border provinces and Private Le Minh Truong sacrificed himself on the morning of February 17, 1979. History has recorded: On the morning of February 17, 1979, the invaders, supported by artillery and tanks, launched a massive attack on the position of Company 5 at Dong Dang fortress. Private First Class Le Minh Truong and his comrades fought back fiercely. Seeing 8 enemy tanks leading infantry charge forward, Le Minh Truong brought a B40 gun to approach the target, burned the leading tank, the others panicked and fled... After consolidating the formation, the enemy charged again. During the fight to protect the northern border, Private First Class Le Minh Truong moved flexibly, promptly blocking the enemy. When wounded, he bandaged himself and continued fighting until he heroically sacrificed himself. On December 19, 1979, martyr Le Minh Truong was posthumously awarded the title of hero.

Overcoming the pain of loss

After February 17, 1979, Nong Thi Duyen evacuated to her husband's house in Hanoi. When she heard that her son Le Minh Truong had died, she returned to Lang Son to look for news of her son in a fragile despair. February 17, 1980 was the first anniversary of martyr Le Minh Truong's death, exactly on the first day of the Lunar New Year of Canh Than 1980. "The villagers knew about it, and each family contributed a few handfuls of rice to cook sticky rice and make banh chung to worship him and his father," Ms. Duyen recalled. From the end of 1980, Nong Thi Duyen returned to Hanoi and lived with her husband. Her youngest son Le Khanh Truong joined the army. Because he was the son and brother of a martyr, he was transferred to the Border Guard Command (now at 4 Dinh Cong Trang, Hanoi) and after completing his military service, he was given priority to be sent to work in the former Democratic Republic of Germany. After completing his work term, he has remained in Germany until now. Losing her husband and children, and coming from the mountainous area of Lang Son, where the land was vast and mountainous, to Hanoi to live with her husband's family in a cramped house, Ms. Nong Thi Duyen suffered from depression after a while. Upon learning of the incident, Lieutenant General Dinh Van Tuy (Commander of the Border Guard from 1981 to 1990) directed the authorities in the Border Guard Command to lend a 20 m2 living room in the Border Guard dormitory at Gang Camp - Ngo Quynh (Thanh Nhan Ward, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi) for Ms. Duyen and her children to temporarily stay and to influence the Hanoi People's Committee to create favorable conditions for accommodation for families whose fathers were martyrs and whose children were heroes and martyrs.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 4. — *Ms. Nong Thi Duyen tells her family story to Thanh Nien Newspaper reporter*

In 1986, Hanoi City granted Ms. Duyen a house in Kim Giang. But in the middle of nowhere, the house had no electricity, no doors, and a dirt floor, Ms. Duyen asked to return it, intending to go back to Lang Son. In 1987, Hanoi City decided to grant Ms. Nong Thi Duyen an apartment at No. 101, Building A, Nam Trang Street, Truc Bach Ward, Ba Dinh District - which was originally an area for high-ranking officials of the city. "At that time, it was located next to the deserted Truc Bach Lake, the house was only 45 square meters, but I reclaimed the wasteland next to it for farming. Later, Hanoi City renovated the road around the lake, behind the house was the road, now number 164 Truc Bach"... In 1988, younger brother Le Khanh Truong went to the Cao Loc District Martyrs' Cemetery (Lang Son) to find the grave of his older brother Le Minh Truong, then discussed with his mother, and brought him back... In 2009, the family went to Huong Hoa (Quang Tri) to find the grave of martyr Hong Minh Ky. Currently, the father and son of martyr - Captain Hong Minh Ky (Le Thai) and the heroic martyr - Private First Class Le Xuan Truong lie next to each other in the Nhon Martyrs' Cemetery (Tay Tuu Commune, Tu Liem District, Hanoi City).

Don't let the enemy flood into Dong Dang

Private Tran Ngoc Son was born in 1958, in Truong Dinh Ward, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi. Enlisted in May 1978, after training, he joined the 16th Engineer Company of Regiment 12, Division 3, Military Region 1.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 5. — *Portrait of hero and martyr Tran Ngoc Son*

At dawn on February 17, 1979, China suddenly attacked the Lang Son border. The 16th Engineer Company stationed in the Ba Cua railway culvert area (Bao Lam commune, Cao Loc district), blocking the Huu Nghi border gate, fiercely blocked the enemy's advance. Tran Ngoc Son's squad defended in the northwest.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 6. — *Huu Nghi Border Gate (Lang Son)*

This squad was full of new soldiers but under the command of the deputy squad leader, Private First Class, they fought back the invaders. After 2 battles, the squad suffered 1/3 casualties and by the 5th enemy attack, only Son remained in the squad, who was also wounded in the right arm. After bandaging his wound, Son moved around the battlefield, using all weapons to fight back the enemy, preventing them from crossing the Ba Cua sluice to enter Dong Dang.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 7. — *Border marker No. 1116 at Huu Nghi border gate (Lang Son)*

"At 4:00 p.m. on February 17, 1979, Private Tran Ngoc Son was wounded in the leg again and had only one grenade left in his hand. Below, the enemy was screaming and rushing up. Son calmly threw the last grenade and an orange glow from the enemy's B40 shell covered his body," said Mr. Nguyen Van Sau, former Party Secretary of Bao Lam commune, who fought in the battlefield next door and witnessed Son's sacrifice.

Chief of Station Loc Vien Tai

Hero Loc Vien Tai was born in 1940, a Tay ethnic, from Vi Thuong commune, Bac Quang district, Ha Giang. At the time of his death, he was a lieutenant, chief of Station 155, Ha Tuyen People's Armed Police (now Son Vi Border Station, Ha Giang Border Guard).

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 8. — *Portrait of hero and martyr Loc Vien Tai*

Loc Vien Tai was a cadre who led the unit to many excellent battles, achieved high combat efficiency, held the position, and protected the people. On the morning of February 17, 1979, the invaders massively attacked Post 155. Loc Vien Tai encouraged the troops to fight with determination, breaking many enemy attacks.

Tìm lại những anh hùng: 2 bố con đều hy sinh - Ảnh 9. — *Grave of hero and martyr Loc Vien Tai at Meo Vac Martyrs Cemetery (Ha Giang)*

On March 5, 1979, the enemy concentrated their forces to capture Post 155 and Hill 1379, but were still repelled. Taking advantage of the fog, Loc Vien Tai organized an ambush force, cornering the enemy... When the enemy launched a new attack, Loc Vien Tai organized a long-range attack, dividing the enemy formation, and heroically sacrificed himself.