Call of the team

While watching TV, Mr. Hai saw Luyen, the eldest son of his youngest brother, running over. Before he could even enter the house, he was already chattering right in front of the door: "Uncle, come over to see how my father is doing, why does he insist on going?" "Where are we going? Where does my father want to go?" "To Vi Xuyen, uncle! With his weak legs and age, he's over sixty, how can he go? Uncle advised my father to stay home. If my father goes, my siblings and I won't be at ease!"

“Going to Vi Xuyen? What are you doing up there?” Mr. Hai asked in surprise. “Oh! So you don’t know anything? My father’s regiment organized a meeting with his comrades and visited the martyrs’ cemetery in Vi Xuyen, uncle.” “Really? I haven’t heard my father say anything yet?” Hai continued: “It’s been a dozen days, uncle! Ever since he received a phone call from his comrades in the unit, every night my father fumbles around taking out his old army uniform and looks absent-minded. I thought my father told you?” “No. I haven’t heard my father say anything,” Mr. Hai said with a sigh.

As the eldest brother in the family, a war invalid who lost his arm during the war against the US, Mr. Hai bears the responsibility of the whole family. His parents have five siblings, three boys and two girls, all over sixty years old. Uncle Huan, the youngest (Luyen's father), is also sixty-four. Of the three boys, two were soldiers against the US (he and Uncle Ha), and one was a soldier in the war to protect the northern border. Of the three brothers, only he and Uncle Huan returned, but both were war invalids. He left his right arm in Truong Son and Uncle Huan left his left leg in Vi Xuyen. That is still luckier than Uncle Ha and many other comrades. They heroically sacrificed on the battlefields, many of whose bodies were not found. Like his younger brother Uncle Ha, who sacrificed right at the gateway to Saigon during the General Offensive and Uprising in the Spring of 1975. It was not until 1980 that he and Uncle Huan found their graves. After that, Huan followed his two older brothers to join the army and march to the border.

Time flies, this year Mr. Hai is eighty years old. The old wound, especially the amputated arm, is getting more and more painful. He doesn't wait for the weather to change, whenever he feels like it, the wound will torment him again. The same goes for Mr. Huan. Before, he had a prosthetic leg to walk, but recently he uses a cane. He is diligent, hard-working, and always works hard. Even though he has a limp, he still helps his wife and children take care of the housework and the fields. When he first came back, he could still plow, of course only in shallow fields and sandbanks. His wife is foolish, his children are young, if they don't work, who will? Seeing him holding the plow, limping with one leg, one leg longer, following the buffalo, leaving round marks of his prosthetic leg on the fields and the fields, he feels very sorry for him.

Huan also built his own house with cinder blocks, raised cows and pigs. His herd of cows was the largest in the neighborhood. Rain or shine, Huan still hobbled along with the herd. When I advised him to do less work, Huan just smiled: "You try, when the kids grow up, you can gradually quit!". But he never quit. He was very greedy and worked hard. Thanks to that, his family's economy became more stable every day, he became a typical example of hunger eradication and poverty reduction in the commune, and then became a "model war invalid" in the district. He was very proud of his younger brother!

In recent years, like his grandfather, he had grandchildren, but his old injuries also began to torment him. How often did he wear a prosthetic leg to walk? Lately, he only saw him walking with his feet on his hands. "I walk with this to walk faster," Huan laughed and tapped his feet on his hands and told his grandfather. But that was only for short distances, but for long distances… he would have to go all the way to Vi Xuyen. Where would he have the strength to walk? Luyen's brothers were right to be stubborn. We should advise him to measure his strength and stay home. What if something happened while he was out?

Since the day he received the phone call from the Veterans Association of the Vi Xuyen Front announcing a meeting to celebrate the traditional day, Mr. Huan has been feeling elated. With a few more calls from the old men in the same battalion from the past, he became even more restless. “Let’s go! This time it’s going to be big, crowded, even if you’re weak, try to go.” “You have to go. I miss you so much. Let’s see how old you are. It’s been decades.” “We all made an appointment to go. Let’s go to see if we can still recognize each other. We’re all old. Let’s go to pay our respects to Son Toac, Ly RPD, Tuyen Ly, Lung Coi, and Captain Cuong, your benefactor. We’ve all gathered at Vi Xuyen cemetery!” “You can’t be absent!” “We’ll send a car to your house to pick you up”… That’s it, you’re both old men and women, but you’re still talking to each other like you did when you were in the army.

Go, how can we not go. It was so much fun, so meaningful. Miss them, miss the unit, miss the days of fighting on the 1509 high point, then 772. The rocky mountains were like that, but they fired artillery continuously. "Meat grinder", "lime kiln of the century", "the three-way intersection of death". Huan's unit had to endure it. Hunger, thirst, lack of everything, lost contact, slow supply, our soldiers were exhausted. The enemy was as numerous as ants, with the "sharp head, long tail" tactic, after the artillery barrage, they rushed up to occupy the post. Our soldiers on the high ground held on to the post and fired. Corporal Son, Private First Class Ly and a few of Huan's comrades, even though wounded, were determined not to leave their positions. Hatred for the enemy was poured into the guns. Company Commander Cuong was in full command. He crept under the cliffs, the trenches, ran here and there to encourage his comrades to stay and fight. “Live clinging to the rocks to fight the enemy, die turning into immortal rocks, resolutely destroy the expansionist army, my friends.” His words still echo in Huan’s mind until now. It was Cuong who used his body to shield Huan, accepting death for Huan when an enemy grenade flew towards him. At that time, Huan was busy squinting to watch the enemy group lurking behind a rock on the mountainside when he suddenly felt himself falling down and someone pressing on top of him. Then there was a deafening explosion. Huan didn’t know anything anymore. Only when he was brought back to the rear did Huan know that Captain Cuong had sacrificed himself to save him. If it weren’t for him, Huan would have lost his body, let alone have his leg amputated. Huan will forever remember the gratitude for Cuong’s life-saving act. This time, Huan must definitely go to Vi Xuyen, back to the old battlefield to burn incense to pay respect to him and his fallen comrades. Captain Cuong! When I and my comrades return, we will come visit you. Our company, our battalion will meet again, my friend!

“What are you thinking about that you’re sitting there like that?” Mr. Huan was startled by his brother Hai’s question instead of a greeting. “Yes! You just came to visit. I’m remembering the day of the battle in Vi Xuyen, uncle. The thing is, my unit is going there to celebrate the regiment’s tradition day and visit the martyrs’ cemetery, uncle.” Mr. Huan said excitedly. “I know. Luyen just told me, but please consider carefully. With your health and injuries, can you go?” Mr. Hai said.

Knowing that his son had said something to Mr. Hai, Mr. Huan smiled and replied: “I can go, uncle! I’m going out with my teammates, not going to work, so don’t worry. Did Luyen say something to you?”. “It’s true that my nephew just came to tell me that you are going to visit the martyrs’ cemetery in Vi Xuyen with your teammates. He was worried that you wouldn’t be healthy enough to join the trip. He told me to advise you to stay home. Honestly, I think what he said is right, uncle. Think carefully,” Mr. Hai confided. As he spoke, he looked at Mr. Huan probingly.

Mr. Huan let out a sigh, sat there, and looked into the distance. Then he lowered his voice as if whispering his wishes to Mr. Hai. He recounted memories of his military service, especially the fierce years on the northern border battlefield. In particular, the battle to retake Hill 772 on July 12, 1984, in which Captain Cuong used his body to protect him from death from a grenade thrown by the enemy. After a day and night of fierce fighting, he and more than 1,000 officers and soldiers of the division heroically sacrificed themselves. That day became the anniversary of the Vi Xuyen battle of the division. He was able to return alive thanks to him.

“You said it was so sacred, so deep, so meaningful, how could I not go? I had to go up there to burn incense for Cuong and his comrades, to meet my old unit brothers and chat. My health is getting weaker by the day, if I don’t go now, who knows if I’ll be able to go later? It was the same with you before. Every year you went to meet your comrades, traveled all the way to the South to visit Uncle Ha. It was several times farther to the South than to the North, and you could still go. Now, even if you wanted to, you couldn’t go. So, just let me go on this trip. I can choose my strength.”

Mr. Huan begged. He admitted that he was right. In the past, when he was his age, he was also very enthusiastic. The call of comradeship was truly sacred. Now he could accept it, but he was one-armed and could still walk, but he was one-leged like that… He was still worried. If he were still healthy, he would take him to Vi Xuyen with him. His comrades were also his comrades.

“If you decide to go, I will take you,” Luyen’s voice rang out. Both Hai and Luyen turned to look at Luyen. “When did you come back?” Hai asked. “You’ve been back for a while. I stood on the porch and listened to your father’s story. The other day, your father told me about Uncle Cuong and that fierce battle. I thought that the elders were just going on a normal trip. If you go because of comradeship, you should go, uncle. In a few years, when your father is weak, he won’t be able to go. I will go with you.”

“Good! What a great idea! But you didn’t think of it.” Mr. Hai exclaimed. Mr. Huan’s face relaxed. Looking at his son, he said emotionally: “You’re going with me? What about the work at home? Your mother is far away looking after her grandchildren. Your wife is working in the fields. Who will leave the children with?”. “Oh! Did you forget that it’s summer vacation? I’ll take you for a few days, not a long time, so why worry?”. “Luyên is right. Just let him escort you. Getting in and out of the car, going to the cemetery, climbing the steps to the checkpoint… he’ll even help you. Your comrades are all old, how can they help?”, Mr. Hai encouraged.

Mr. Hai analyzed for a while, Luyen also added, and finally Mr. Huan agreed. In his mind appeared the scene of meeting his old comrades, everyone hugging each other, asking about all sorts of things, then gathering the team neatly on the anniversary of the battle, solemnly organizing the memorial service for the heroic martyrs. Then, to the solemn sound of the "Chieu hon tu si" music, he, his son and his comrades visited the graves, placed flowers, and burned incense for their comrades. And Captain Cuong! This time I'm going with my son! I let him go so that he can know the benefactor who saved his father's life, so that he can have the opportunity to show gratitude to his brother and our comrades who fell, keeping the country peaceful.

Just thinking about it, Mr. Huan's eyes were red. Looking deeply into his brother's eyes, Mr. Hai asked: "Hey! Why are you crying?". "No. Are you so happy, uncle?". "Okay, that's enough. The car will pick you up the day after tomorrow, right? Go up there and help me light incense for Uncle Cuong and the martyrs." Mr. Hai patted his brother's shoulder and told Luyen a few more things. In his head, he heard the passionate, loving call of his comrades. It was truly a month of deep gratitude and affection...