Today and yesterday in Shihezi

After Wang Zhen dismounted, he waved his whip and pointed to the snowy Nanshan in the distance. He said to Tao Zhiyue and others, "Look, Tianshan Mountain is a treasure house. The snow on the top of the mountain is an inexhaustible natural solid reservoir. The fertile land at the foot of the mountain is a good place for us to get married. We must not only build Shihezi into a production command center, but also build it into a modern new city! "

Despite the hot weather, several generals walked and chatted in the wasteland of Shihezi, and their interest became stronger and stronger. Wang Zhen remembered "Farewell to Yun Ge Volcano" written by Cen Can, a frontier poet in the Tang Dynasty. Before he could speak, Tao Zhiyue blurted out: "The fire clouds are all over the mountain, and the birds dare not come." Although Wang Zhen was born into a family of workers and peasants, he was always full of romance and liked poetry. He said excitedly, "Yes, yes, that's it. However, we must change it now! You see, how about changing these two sentences to' melons and fruits are blooming everywhere, and the train is coming'? " Tao Zhiyue and Zhang cheered in unison, and cheerful laughter rang out from the wasteland.

Wang Zhen and Tao Zhiyue took the lead, and all the officers and men of the Corps were full of energy. "Indiana Jones went to the border village, and the spring breeze passed Yumen Pass. General He Yongrong, joking, refers to Tianshan Mountain. "

Wang Zhen is not only good at directing war, but also good at directing construction. Under his unified command, a planning and design team with the participation of famous Shanghai architectural experts was quickly established, and a draft of "Urban Construction Planning of Shihezi City, Xinjiang" was quickly produced. He actively participated in the discussion and pointed out with great foresight: "We should use a modern vision to build modern cities and farms. Today's ideas, decades later, will still make people feel fresh. "

Zhang is an intellectual-born Lao Ba Lu. At that time, he personally drew a sketch of urban planning with great enthusiasm, and advocated that urban roads should be designed wider, but some people objected that he was divorced from reality and ambitious. Later, when discussing urban planning, Wang Zhen said to the participants, "I think it can be further widened as long as two cars can run side by side. We should not only look at the present, but also think that the population of Shihezi will increase greatly in a few decades. At that time, we will be torn down and dug up, and people will blame us entrepreneurs for being short-sighted. " In addition, Wang Zhen suggested that more universities should be reserved in the planning and design drawings.

After repeated discussions, the urban planning and design scheme of Shihezi was finally determined. Shihezi has been designated as the headquarters of the leading organs of the 22nd Corps, and the urban organs, industry, commerce, culture and education, health protection, residential areas, gymnasiums, parks, roads and forest belts have all been scientifically laid out and demarcated. The design of urban roads is wide, the traffic trunk lines are neat and reasonable, and trees and flowers are planted, which creates conditions and lays a scientific foundation for the later construction of green this beautiful city.

Three months later, the brigade of the 22nd Corps Command moved to Shihezi, a deserted place. The engineering department headed by Zhao Xiguang and Zhang, the head of the Corps, quickly gave orders to mobilize a large number of troops to fight, and selected skilled craftsmen from all directions to participate in urban construction.

Military site selection, military design and military construction are rare in the history of urban construction in China. When the officers and men of the Corps heard that they were going to build a city in Xinjiang, they were all full of energy and enthusiasm. At the moment, the Gobi Desert is crowded with people, cars are running, people are enjoying the Ma Si, and it is boiling.