The troops finally reached the campsite.
Among the nearly ten thousand new recruits of the Xinjiang Corps of the Armed Police undergoing a camping training march, the "female soldiers' platoon" composed of 40 female soldiers stood out particularly. The oldest among them was 21 years old, the youngest just 18, and most were the only children in their families. Over a seven-day period, covering a total distance of more than 500 li and enduring harsh weather conditions, would these female soldiers hold out till the end? What would they experience along the march? What did this high-intensity training mean for them? A reporter used their camera lens to document every moment of the female soldiers' training journey.
"Carrying colorful dreams, we march to the ends of the earth; daughters at seventeen or eighteen gather under the sun..." On a dark winter day, amid the cold wind mixed with flying snow, 40 female soldiers, with 20-kilogram backpacks on their backs, trudged through the snow, singing loudly as they set off on the 260-kilometer training march alongside the male soldiers.
The female soldiers held hands and quickened their pace along the slippery mountain path. At this time, the temperature was minus 10 degrees Celsius, and the rising fog limited visibility to just 20 meters. Suddenly, a cry of surprise came from the ranks—a female soldier slipped and fell to the ground. Her comrades helped her up, and they continued marching forward.
The snowflakes dancing in the air seemed unmerciful to these post-95s girls. After four hours of marching and covering over 20 kilometers, sweat dripped down their cheeks, soaking the towels hanging around their necks. Gradually, the dry towels became wet, and the wet towels froze into "little popsicles."
Approaching noon, the female soldiers were severely physically exhausted, but Platoon Leader Ma Yue kept encouraging them time and again.
"There's a female soldier named Ren Xiaoxia. She’s an athlete, and we wanted to train her for the special operations platoon. This girl has an old injury in her leg, and we were worried about a recurrence during this training, so we advised her not to participate. But she wouldn’t listen. She told me that the female soldiers’ platoon is her home, and since everyone else in her family had gone, she couldn’t be absent."
Platoon Leader Ma Yue also told the reporter another story about a female soldier. "I was really worried she wouldn’t make it." The snowstorm continued, and night deepened. By 6 p.m., the female soldiers finally reached the campsite. They were utterly exhausted, bending over, propping themselves up with their hands on their knees, and slapping their legs, which had gone numb from fatigue.
"Fan Xiaohua"—"Present," "Bi Yan"—"Present"... At the front of the formation, Platoon Leader Ma Yue called out the names of the female soldiers one by one in a loud voice. "Ren Xiaoxia"—"Present." When the last female soldier answered, tears welled up in Platoon Leader Ma Yue’s eyes. All 40 female soldiers were accounted for.
The female soldiers helped each other into the campsite. They put aside the fatigue of the day and prepared for the next departure.