The spirit of fearing neither hardship nor fatigue demonstrated by the Red Army during the Long March continues to inspire people today, according to Wang Guokang, deputy secretary of the CPC Branch of Jiajinshan Village, who said he hopes to do as much as he can for the well-being of local residents.
His remarks come as China marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March, a perilous, epic journey by the Chinese Red Army that was crucial to the founding of the People's Republic of China.
In June 1935, after their daring assault across the Dadu River in Sichuan Province, the soldiers confronted another obstacle: a 4,000-meter-high, snow-capped mountain.
Jiajin Mountain in southwest China's Sichuan Province was the first snow mountain that the Red Army crossed during the Long March. In Tibetan, "Jiajin" means "very high and very steep." The Red Army had to climb from about 2,200 meters to the mountain pass, at 4,114 meters above sea level.
Local Tibetans who live in the village at the foot of the mountain served as guides. According to Wang, chilies were very important for the Red Army during their crossing of the mountain.
"In June, the weather was highly unpredictable. It snowed on the mountain. The local people gave the Red Army chilies they had grown to help them keep warm," Wang said.
This was also stated in some of the soldiers' journals. A journal written in 1936 by Deng Fa, an early leader of the Communist Party of China, says, "As a result, the only thing we could do was to have each company boil some chili water and each soldier drank a bowl before climbing the mountain."
Another more deadly challenge was the high altitude. The troops were already short of food and clothing, and they had just a day to climb almost 2,000 meters to the 4,000-meter mountain pass.
"When they climbed the mountain, some soldiers couldn't hold on. The elderly said that some fell and never got up again," Wang said.
At around 3,300 meters above sea level, the journey became the most difficult part because of the high altitude. When the Red Army was there, the mountain was covered with snow, making the climb much harder. The weather from that point on was highly unpredictable.
Renowned CPC revolutionary Yang Chengwu recalled, "As we neared the mountain pass, a sudden hailstorm broke out. Walnut-sized hailstones pelted down on us, beating our faces until they were swollen and sore. We had no choice but to cover our heads with our hands and keep moving forward."
But the harsh weather didn't defeat the Red Army. On June 18, 1935, the entire central Red Army crossed over the mountain after seven days.
The spirit has inspired the official.
"For me, I need to take this spirit of fearing neither hardship nor fatigue as my motivation. I hope to do as much as I can for the well-being of the local people," said Wang.
Spirit of Red Army still inspires 90 years after Long March: Jiajin Mountain official
