Crossing over three thousand kilometers, they brought a flag that had flown in Xisha to Tiananmen.

On the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea, the five-star red flag rises day after day against the sea breeze. Generations of island-defending soldiers have taken root in this territory surrounded by the sea, enduring high temperatures and salinity on the isolated islands, responding with steadfastness. On the eve of National Day, outstanding soldier representatives from six reefs, including Yongxing Island, Zhongjian Island, Chenhang Island, and Shankou Island, brought the national flag that once flew over the reefs, crossing more than 3,000 kilometers of mountains and seas to Beijing's Tiananmen Square to witness the flag-raising ceremony. A flag that has been soaked in sea breeze and weathered storms carries the unique youth and faith of the Xisha soldiers.

In the morning light at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, thousands of people stand solemnly waiting for the moment of raising the national flag. Nine naval soldiers from Xisha stand in neat rows, their postures upright, witnessing this solemn moment together.

Shen Jiayong, a member of the flag-raising team from Xisha, is in the ranks. In 2019, during the military parade celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China, he marched through Tiananmen Square as a member of the naval formation, receiving the inspection of the Party and the people. Now, as a sentinel at the ends of the earth, he stands in Tiananmen Square, gazing up at the national flag rising slowly.

After the flag-raising ceremony, Shen Jiayong and his comrades brought the national flag that once flew over the Xisha reefs to the flag guard team, completing a special flag handover ceremony.

Shen Jiayong, Navy Xisha Unit: Because Xisha is under high temperature, high salinity, and high humidity climate conditions year-round, it has already frayed within a week. It symbolizes the daily steadfastness and dedication of our Xisha soldiers and witnesses our solemn vow that "wherever the person is, the island is, and the flag is."

On the 11th, the Xisha soldiers organized the flag-raising ceremony as usual. Before each flag-raising, Shen Jiayong and his comrades carefully check the flag ropes, calibrate the flagpole, and repeatedly arrange the national flag. For the soldiers, raising the flag day after day has long ceased to be just a task; it has become a daily companionship with the national flag.

Shen Jiayong, Navy Xisha Unit: When raising the flag in Xisha, we are accompanied only by the beach and the sea, but every morning when I see the national flag rising slowly in the sky of Xisha, fluttering in the sea breeze, I feel particularly at ease in my heart.

Located at the southernmost tip of the Xisha Islands, Zhongjian Island is less than 1.2 square kilometers, and during high tide, it is only the size of a basketball court. "Without seven parts of heroism, do not step onto Zhongjian's white sand beach," these 14 characters succinctly express the desolation and danger of this sea desert. In the 1970s, the first seven soldiers landed on the island, establishing a flagpole and erecting boundary markers on the barren white sand, firmly guarding the blue territory of the motherland.

Zhang Xiaowei, Navy Xisha Unit: When they first arrived on Zhongjian Island, it was a vast expanse of white sand, with nothing there. The first thing they did upon landing was to raise a five-star red flag at the highest point of the island, while also erecting a sign on both the east and west sides of the island, inscribed with the nine characters "Territory of the People's Republic of China."

In 2006, while waiting for supplies on Chenhang Island, Zhang Xiaowei discovered the resilient seagrass. After several difficulties, they managed to bring seedlings to Zhongjian Island. Freshwater is extremely scarce on the island, and comrades collected waste water from washing rice and personal hygiene to carefully water the seagrass, finally allowing it to take root in the vast expanse of white sand. This grass is sun-resistant and salt-resistant, and under the scorching sun, its stems and leaves turn a bright red. The soldiers used this natural phenomenon to paint the sincere colors of the motherland on the desolate island using grass as ink and sand as paper.

Zhang Xiaowei, Navy Xisha Unit: Through everyone's efforts, we have grown the Party flag and the national flag, covering an area of over 5,800 square meters, and beneath the Party flag and the national flag, we also planted eight large characters with seagrass: "The Party Emblem Shines Forever" and "Long Live the Motherland." From then on, the Party emblem shines forever and "Long Live the Motherland" glows brilliantly in the rosy light.

Now, every new recruit who arrives on the island must salute in front of the red pattern to report; veterans who retire must also come to salute and bid farewell.

Zhang Xiaowei, Navy Xisha Unit: Our planting of trees and grass on the island is not just for beautifying the environment; the deeper meaning should be to plant trees and grass for faith, to build houses, towers, and fortifications, to fight against the heavens, the earth, and the wind and waves, to guard the island, the reefs, and the homeland, which is a spirit passed down through generations of Xisha soldiers.

As the tides rise and fall, Shen Jiayong guards the national flag day and night; on the white sand, Zhang Xiaowei uses grass and trees as torches and steadfastness as a promise, cultivating an everlasting red faith; generations of border-defending soldiers, like seagrass, take root in the barren land, tempered by the wind and waves, and grow towards the sun.

Zhang Xiaowei, Navy Xisha Unit: Every grain of sand on the island is, for us soldiers, the motherland; every inch of sea is home; every section of the embankment on the island is the Great Wall. Stationed on Zhongjian Island is not just about guarding this small island; the more important significance is to guard our southern gate.