"In that crevice in the cliff, Doctor Song and I did everything we could, but we still couldn't save the man's life.
As he lay dying, he solemnly entrusted the 'mission' to us, then told us not to take his body or anything else he had on him out of there."
"He said he had to let those people believe that, like his colleagues, he had been buried underground without a trace.
Doctor Song and I bid him farewell and honored his last wishes, burying him right there in that cold mountain crevice.
But we were already trapped in a fissure in the mountain. Perhaps the reservoir's dam collapse had destabilized it, because before we could get out, the mountainside began to slide.
Fortunately, the fissure wasn't buried, but the entire section of the mountain we were in shifted...
Worst of all, the spot where we'd anchored our ropes collapsed!
Both ropes we'd left above fell down in the landslide. We were trapped in a cliff crevice more than ten meters deep, with no way out!
We finally made it through the night. Looking up at that sliver of sky overhead, we tried everything we could to save ourselves, but nothing worked!
The cliff was too steep to climb with our bare hands.
We shouted for help until our voices went hoarse, but no one answered.
Doctor Song and I had very little food with us. For the first two days, we each carefully rationed ourselves to a couple of bites.
But on the third day, Doctor Song began refusing to eat even a single bite.
He not only left me everything he had that was edible, but also gave me the only medicine he had in his bag to prevent infection, telling me to take two pills every day.
He said that one of us had to get out alive.
I couldn't just watch him sacrifice himself so that I alone could survive.
I begged him to hang on with me.
But Doctor Song refused.
Given our situation, even getting one of us out alive was uncertain.
He said he had once been a soldier, too. Since we'd accepted this 'mission,' we had to take responsibility for it. We couldn't both die here before we'd even begun.
We had to honor our promise.
He said he was already old and there wasn't much he could do anyway. He was pinning all his hopes on me, and he told me I had to keep going!
The 'mission' couldn't fail before it even began!
The disaster zone was a scene of utter devastation then, and the rescue workers were all run off their feet.
Doctor Song belonged to a medical team that had been hastily assembled. Its members were scattered all over the area, so no one would notice his absence right away.
Our squad did conduct head counts, but the landslide had shifted our location. Even if my comrades searched for us, they might not find us here.
By the fifth day, Doctor Song was very weak. He kept his distance from me and refused to let me come near him.
He was afraid he might have contracted an infectious disease and would pass it on to me.
That day, before he fell unconscious, he told me he had no other worries, except for a granddaughter he couldn't stop worrying about!
If I made it out, he hoped I could help look after her.
I was the one who offered! Through my tears, I made that promise to Doctor Song willingly, from the bottom of my heart!
I said that if I got out, I would marry you! I would take care of you for the rest of your life!
Doctor Song smiled and agreed!
He said that, in that case, he had nothing left to worry about!
By then, even though Doctor Song had left me all his food, I'd already run out!
Doctor Song encouraged me, saying that if he died first, I had to find a way to hold on!
It wasn't until the sixth day, when I was on the verge of despair, that I heard shouting from above. My comrades had finally found us.
Doctor Song was already in a deep coma when they brought him up.
I received nutrient injections for two days. Only on the third day could I stand steadily.
When I found Doctor Song, he still hadn't woken up. The doctor told me that he was not only extremely weak, but had also contracted infectious diseases.
The official death toll from that flood was over twenty thousand, but the actual number was far higher.
And an even greater concern than the disaster itself was the spread of disease.
There were sources of contamination everywhere.
Encephalitis and pneumonia were two of the most common infectious diseases at the time.
Doctor Song had both.
Later, Doctor Song woke up, but his health had deteriorated badly. The coughing and headaches would stay with him.
Even the doctor treating him could only sigh silently.
By then, we all knew that even if Doctor Song survived, his health would never recover.
Despite his stern refusal, I still submitted a request to my unit and spent half a month taking care of him.
But every time I saw him, he insisted that I wear a mask and gloves and keep my distance.
Our unit withdrew in mid-September. I was among the last to leave.
When I said goodbye to Doctor Song, I reaffirmed my promise to marry you.
You were only sixteen that year. I told him that when you turned eighteen, I would go to Hunan Province and marry you.
After returning to my unit, I kept corresponding with Doctor Song.
We'd already discussed many ideas and possibilities for how to carry out the 'mission.'
The 'Blue Tears' Doctor Song had mentioned before his death were essential to completing the mission.
We had to find the 'Blue Tears' first. Only then would we have a chance of completing it.
But he was too old, and I was too junior.
And this had to be done in secret. We couldn't enlist anyone else's help.
So our first step was to improve our capabilities.
Doctor Song said my height and build gave me no advantage in the military. If I followed the usual career path, I'd have little chance of getting anywhere. He advised me to learn technical skills and find another way forward.
So I studied hard. After weighing my options, I passed the entrance exam for the Communications Company at the end of 1975 and became a communications soldier.
In 1976, I became a squad leader.
Taking advantage of the resources available in the Communications Company, I spared no effort in seeking information about the 'Blue Tears.'
But I made no progress.
From the beginning of 1977, I stopped receiving letters from Doctor Song.
Deep down, I knew... he was probably gone.
I was devastated.
Not only because he'd given me the chance to live when things were at their most desperate.
But also because I'd lost my most important-and only-comrade in this 'mission.'
From then on... I would have to walk this road alone."
At this point, Lu Changqing choked up...
Song Ning sat silently beside him, not interrupting.
Only after he had recovered did Lu Changqing continue...
"Doctor Song told me your birthday was in June.
In June 1977, you would turn eighteen.
I'd originally planned to go to Hunan Province and marry you at the end of 1977.
But that June, the Communications Company was going to select a few outstanding trainees for six months of advanced training at the General Military District.
I hadn't... served long enough to qualify, but through a fortunate turn of events, I managed to secure a place.
It was a rare opportunity.
I decided that once I returned from the training... I would go to Hunan Province.
But while I was training in Capital City, I learned something.
A large-scale military communications exercise was going to be held along our country's border with Annam.
I didn't want to miss that exercise.
By the time the training ended, it was January 1978. As soon as I returned to Rong City, I submitted a request to take part in the communications exercise along the border.
The process was... a little complicated. I won't go into the details.
In short, I managed to secure a place again.
Before you continue