December 10, 1999, Lahore, overnight in Ava

i Laho

e hostel

A short distance east of Lahore is India. Now that Pakistan and India are in the midst of the worst military standoff, and the two countries are conducting nuclear tests against each other, the world is sweating, what will their borders look like?

Originally, it was just a small curiosity, but who expected to face the real wonders of the world.

As we approached the border, we gradually felt that something was wrong, how could it suddenly be so tidy when it was still dusty and messy? It's like entering a well-thought-out national park, with flowers and trees, fountains and lawns, and the road leading to the border is getting smoother and brighter. When we finally arrived at the border, there were many sentry posts, the gates were heavy, and we were blocked and could only stand on the lawn and watch. What to see? After saying an hour, there was a flag-lowering ceremony. Let's see that the time is a quarter past three in the afternoon, so let's wait, and take a little bit of a shot of the flag being lowered on the border line, which may be a little interesting.

Only then did it become clear that there were three gates at the border. There is a red door on this side, which belongs to Pakistan; There is a white gate on the other side, which belongs to India; There is a yellow door in the middle of the red door and the white door, which is very exquisitely made, and a national flag is inserted on the left and right door posts, the Pakistan flag on the left and the Indian flag on the right, the same height and size, and it is the gate shared by the two countries. The door is hollowed out, and at a glance, the Indian side is also full of flowers and trees, fountain lawns, and it is just as beautiful. I think it is because of the image of the country, as long as the other party does something, the other side must catch up, and it will not settle until there is a draw.

The soldiers on both sides are tall young men over 1.9 meters. Pakistani black robe and black trousers, a wool black pullover on the upper body, a red belt, a red turban, red and black, very eye-catching; The Indian side has a yellow military uniform, white stockings, and a towering cockscomb hat on its head, which is a little brighter than that of the Pakistani side. Just as we looked at the soldiers on both sides, we found that groups of students and citizens had gathered around us, and they seemed to have come to watch the flag-lowering ceremony. Surprisingly, the Indian side also gathered, and the number and composition were basically the same.

At four o'clock, a loud and long password sounded, as if there was an echo, and if I listened carefully, it turned out that the Indian side was also shouting the password, the same loud, the same tone. They are enemy countries, of course, they will not discuss these details, but they compare and go every day, and no one wants to lose to anyone, and the result is exactly the same as a point.

There was still a little distance from here where the command sounded, and the ceremonial troops who lowered the flag were gathering, and after they had assembled, they were walking towards here. Since India and Pakistan have to walk to the common gate at the same time, the distance they are walking must be the same. More importantly, the posture, every step is related to the national prestige, there can be no sloppiness, the soldiers on both sides are the same exaggerated, the same powerful, the same tiger and vitality.

There were cheers at every step, and only then did I realize that the students and citizens had come to visit not by themselves, but by the organization. It's the same in India, where the military competition brings out the popular competition. We stood in front of us, surrounded by crowded citizens.

The guard of honor had already walked up to us, and suddenly stopped, and the soldier at the head saluted a middle-aged officer with a large movement, I suppose to indicate that he was ready to wait for instructions; The middle-aged officer had a reserved expression, turned around suddenly, ran a few steps, and came to a young baby-faced officer, saluted him, and asked for instructions, it turned out that this baby-faced officer was of a higher rank. Suddenly remembering that this baby-faced officer had hinted at his identity before the ceremony began, he walked up to Li Zhaobo, the tallest driver standing in the outermost of our line, stretched out his hand and clasped it, and said a long speech, thinking that Li Zhaobo standing on his head must be the leader of our group.

Zhaobo was also full of smiles, shaking hands and greeting him for a long time, and from a distance, he really hated to see each other late and talked happily. But I had heard the baby-faced officer speak the local Urdu dialect, which none of us understood, and Zhao Bo was speaking in Shandong, with the demeanor of a diplomat: "I don't understand, how do I know what you're muttering?" ”

After he left, Zhaobo asked me, "What is he talking about?" I immediately translated: "He said, I don't know that your old man has come to our country, and you have time to sit in the humble house, so you don't have to bring too many gifts." At that time, everyone laughed, but he was young and had a big official position, and he commanded the national guards.

We were looking at him differently, and I didn't expect something strange to come to me. After accepting the middle-aged officer's salute and instructions, the baby-faced officer turned around and played some complicated movements, and then took a few steps towards me, and actually saluted and asked me respectfully! I panicked for a while, and I didn't know what to do, so I turned my head from side to side, only to find that behind me, there was a short young man in an old blue suit, crowded in the middle of the crowd, and nodded to the baby-faced officer, alas, this is the real leader here. He noticed that we were all paying attention to him, smiled shyly, and disappeared into the crowd again.

After the baby-faced officer receives the order to approve the lowering of the flag, the ceremony reaches its climax. Looking up, the Indian side is also strong.

Here a soldier walked out of the honor guard, using Chinese opera to walk around the circle on this border avenue, the speed can be described by the word "flying on the grass", after turning, back to the team, there is a soldier with extremely exaggerated footsteps to the border gate. To what extent? He bent his knees to his chest as he walked, and after a few steps, he flicked his leg and kicked it over his head. What's even more amazing is the weight of each step when it lands, it is like gritting your teeth to crush your shoes on the spot and break your joints on the spot. Walking towards India with such a pace seems to have to step on India; The other side also sent a soldier, and the weight of his steps was like trying to flatten Pakistan.

The two of them finally got closer and closer, and their eyes were full of anger and they didn't give in to each other, which made us nervous for a while, because from the posture, we were both going to eat each other. However, at the moment when their limbs met, the distance between their hands and feet was less than half an inch, and they suddenly turned and walked towards their own flags, which made us breathe a sigh of relief.

As soon as one stood under the national flag, the second soldier walked out of the honor guard, and repeated the actions of the first one exactly, to smash the leather shoes, to stomp off the joints, to flatten the enemy country, to eat the other party, and then suddenly turned around in half an inch...... At this time, we were not nervous, the photographer Yuan Bai couldn't help but laugh while carrying the camera, and I couldn't change the habit of watching old plays, and blurted out hello every time they held their strength once. The atmosphere on both sides is so solemn that only our group of Chinese have been covering their mouths for fear of laughing out loud.

Well, now the five on each side were full, and each of them stomped their feet fiercely with their chests and stomachs closed, and then one soldier from each took out a trumpet and blew it. What is incomprehensible is that it is actually the same song, and I hurriedly pulled people to ask about it, saying that it was a flag-lowering song. The two flags descend diagonally along the tune, and the bases of the diagonal line meet. The honor guards on both sides retrieved their national flags and walked back to the barracks with their hands in hand.

With a bang, the country was closed.

After watching this ceremony, I was asked by a friend on the way how I felt about it, and I said: complete convergence in confrontation, just like secret hostility in intimacy, is worth playing.