Throughout history, stories of women campaigning in the Western Regions have been exceedingly rare. The only Han princesses sent to marry into the Wusun were Xijun and Jieyou, along with Jieyou’s maid Feng Liao. Their marriages helped secure the frontier, becoming legends for the ages.
In September 1949, Xinjiang was peacefully liberated. To ensure lasting stability on the border, two generals from Hunan, Wang Zhen and Tao Zhiyue, began playing modern-day matchmakers for their more than one hundred thousand unmarried older subordinates.
Drawing on a wealth of historical archives, this book explores the circumstances behind the decision to send female soldiers from Hunan and Shandong to Xinjiang. It recounts their love stories and marriages, both joyful and tragic, and celebrates the immense contributions they made to the republic through a lifetime of perseverance. With the bold spirit of “giving our youth, then our whole lives, and finally our descendants,” these women not only rewrote their own histories, but also ended the centuries-old tradition of border reclamation and defense lasting only a single generation, allowing women to realize their full potential.
The part about getting married was so uncomfortable. This is a scam.
It is a special period of history. It is difficult to use words to evaluate the life they experienced there. For them, at their age when entering this era, they are the best evaluators. For those who come later, everything they have experienced will not be forgotten, and the pain they experienced and their contributions will be remembered.