Page 360 - Xuan Giap Thin 2024 FINAL 2

tenuous. A few days later, a man came down from the district, dressed in military

uniform, wearing a K54 rifle, without military rank, accompanied by an escort. During

the interrogation, they always accused me of illegally crossing the border. I still insist
that I went looking for him because the soldiers had lost news. They threatened, forced

to open the route to bring people across the border, the name of the organization, the
name of the guide. Eventually, they threatened to return me to the Vietnamese army for

settlement. I was apprehensive. In the hands of the Vietnamese Communists, there was

no hope of survival. Have to hide!

Looking west, Siso Phon market street sparkles with lights, located close to the border,

2 kilometers away. Close but hopeless! Along the border, there was fighting between
Vietnamese and Khmer Rouge troops. I could also go through the jungle to the west,

crossing the border into Thailand, but Vietnamese soldiers were strewn along the line,

mines trapped. The chances of escape are slim. Seeing freedom in such a short distance
without reaching it is deeply painful. In the cold house in the middle of the moor, father,

and son, I watched the moon rise, contemplating hiding. Suddenly, the sound of mines

exploding, human feet running, the chaotic screaming. A militia guarded nearby,
pushing my father and son into the basement next to the house. Gunshots rumbled.

Sitting in the dark cellar, dirt falling over my head, I feared for my safety. A certain idle
grenade was thrown into the bunker. That's it. Every faction hates the Vietnamese,

whether the Vietnamese take up arms or the Vietnamese cross the border. An hour later,

the situation calmed down. We got out of the cellar, and dust covered us. It turns out that
a landmine exploded, killing a nocturnal feeding dog. Near where I was locked up, there

was a newly built leafy house that served as a shelter for the militia leader. The family

had two children. The eldest daughter is six years old. The youngest son is only 12
months old. He's been in pain all week, no medicine. His parents had no money and no

means to take him to the doctor or buy medicine. They only know how to heal by bowing

to the gods. Every night, the couple burned incense and prayed for their child's speedy
recovery. Then, bring incense around the house as if to make a fire fence to block evil

spirits. I visited and saw the old man with no hope of passing. I gave his wife the half-
empty wind oil to shave the wind from it. By the afternoon, the child was slightly awake.

The happy mother fertilized the rice and force-fed it. It was midnight when suddenly a

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