After years of delays, Yang Yong, one of the many heroes of the battle against the snow disaster early this year, was finally married at a ceremony at a People's Liberation Army (PLA) base in Henan province on Sunday.

Yang, a 28-year-old sergeant in the PLA Second Artillery Forces in Luoyang, had returned to his hometown in Shanxi province on Feb 1 to prepare to be wed to Pei Shufang on Feb 9. The big day had already been postponed several times over the years because Yang had had to answer the call of duty.

The invitation cards had been sent out and the wedding dinners prepared. However, an unexpected emergency call on Feb 4 threw all of the plans into the air. Yang's superiors called him to say he and his unit would be sent to Chenzhou, Hunan province, to carry out emergency repairs on the power grid. Yang was ordered to return to base as soon as possible.

It was snowing heavily that night, and the roads were completely blocked. He tried to hire a taxi but no one wanted to travel so far in the darkness. Meanwhile, his family did not want him to leave, and his fiance tearfully implored him to stay until the next day. But he was determined to return at once. As one of the few key technicians able to work on high-tension lines, Yang knew he had a job to do.

He finally hired a driver willing to make the trip after offering to pay him 1,470 yuan. They crossed the mountains and traveled more than 400 km throughout the night. He finally rejoined his comrades-in-arms and they loaded onto a plane for Chenzhou on the afternoon of Feb 5.

On reaching Chenzhou, Yang sent Pei a message to describe the scene. In a stab at levity, he said: "The snow storm not only tested the PLA, but also our love!"

Her response put his mind at ease and filled him with joy: "Yang Yong: I will support you, and I'll wait for your triumphant return!"

In Chenzhou, Yang's group took charge of examining the transmission and distribution lines, which meant hours of backbreaking work. They had to lay cable, raise pylons and carry equipment. On the lunar New Year's Eve, the troops fought a decisive battle at Chengqianling, where the power lines handled half the city's power supply. To save the city from complete darkness, the troops had to rush to repair several downed towers.

Yang spent the whole day lugging equipment. The soldiers' efforts finally paid off at 5 pm that night when power was returned to the city.

Over the ensuing 12 days, Yang wore out 35 pairs of gloves and five camouflage coats. He and his comrades-in-arms dug 7,500 m of pipe trench, set up 17 poles and lay nearly 10,000 m of cables.

In recognition of his outstanding performance, Yang was given a commendation and received a third-class merit.

Yang was invited to attend a national public talk last week about his outstanding performance. As he returned to his base, he was happy to find his lovely bride waiting for him.

(China Daily April 2, 2008)