Cai Xiaodong: A Heroic Anti-drug Officer

Xie Lixun and Zhang Tingyu

Thirty-eight， this number is too short to represent the length of life.

One second， this unit of time is too long to describe the speed of a bullet.

At 38-years-old， facing swarms of bullets，

You valiantly fell， and then you became a towering mountain on this border region.

While some people grow old， you never will. While some people leave， you'll still be with us.

The blood you shed along the border built a high wall， ensuring our safety in this world.

This was the award speech given by the 2022 Law Enforcement Personnel Organizing Committee to honor martyr Cai Xiaodong.

On December 10， 2022， the 2022 Law Enforcement Personnel Award Ceremony was held in Beijing. Cai's wife Xiao Juan accepted the award on his behalf.

At the Yunnan Entry-Exit Frontier Inspection Station's History Museum， a small wooden box contains a police badge engraved with the number 377083. The badge belonged to Cai， and is carefully preserved， serving as a permanent testament to his bravery and sacrifice.

December 4： Cai's heroic life left an eternal mark on history

Three meters， five meters， eight meters...despite sustaining three gunshot wounds， Cai continued to charge forward for a dozen meters before collapsing.

On November 26， 2021， the law enforcement and investigation team of the Xishuangbanna Border Control Division received information that drug traffickers with a large quantity of drugs from overseas were now hiding near the border in Mengla County. Imminent was the drug transaction.

Aware of the potential harm of these drugs once they made it into China， Cai and his colleagues decided to seize the hour.

Their round-the-clock search yielded a vital clue. Cai and his fellow officers then set up an ambush in Mengpeng Town， Mengla County， on December 4.

They concealed themselves in the hot， humid， and mosquito-infested jungle， waiting for the drug traffickers to arrive. When the suspects drew dearer and nearer， at precisely 13：57， they sprung to action， shouting： "Chinese police， Freeze！" Cai led the charge towards the suspects.

Hearing the shouts and warning shots， the desperate drug traffickers realized they were in a life or death situation： Possession of 30 kilograms of opium was enough for them to face multiple death sentences. As a result， they threw down their backpacks containing the drugs， turned and fired back at the police， all while frantically fleeing toward the border.

Cai， at the front leading his team， shouted a warning： "Watch out！ They have guns！" He even shielded his colleagues with his own body. Gunshots echoed through the dense rainforest. Although he was wearing body armor， Cai suffered extensive wounds to the right side of his chest， left armpit， and left inner thigh from the barrage of pellets. Despite this， he tenaciously continued rushing forward for more than ten meters before collapsing.

"Take care of my gun..." Cai put the safety on his handgun and handed it over to his fellow officers.

Weighed down by their heavy body armor， firearms， and equipment， and carrying the suspects' backpacks containing 30 kilograms of opium， the task force's exhausted officers took turns carrying the seriously injured Cai along the steep 3-kilometer mountain road for nearly an hour.

"Thank you， everyone..." These were Cai's last words to his fellow officers and his beloved homeland.

1609 kilograms of drugs seized： the result of his efforts in post

"Pursuing every possible clue， officer Cai works like a tireless machine，" said one of his colleagues. As a police officer， Cai risked his life to ensure security along the border. Inexhaustible and dauntless， Cai earned the nickname "permanent-moving-machine" among his colleagues.

In June 2017， Cai received a crucial tip from across the border regarding a notorious drug dealer known as "Lao San" in Mongla， Myanmar. Lao San was hoarding a large amount of drugs， and a massive drug deal was suspected to be in progress. To gather reliable information， Cai led his team of investigators working day and night for over three months. He personally made more than ten on-site investigations of suspicious areas， and spent nearly 20 hours going door-to-door to covertly canvass nearby residences.

On September 29， Cai and his fellow officers encountered their targets on a mountain road. The drug traffickers， in a frenzied attempt to escape， tried to break through the police roadblock. Undaunted， Cai and his colleagues pursued the suspects， cornering them with their vehicle. Even before the vehicle came to a complete stop， Cai leaped out with his gun and， along with two other officers， successfully apprehended the suspects.

This major drug trafficking case was successfully solved， resulting in the seizure of 169.7 kilograms of methamphetamine and preventing the drugs from crossing the border into China. In recognition of his outstanding work on this case， Cai was awarded a first-class personal merit.

"In all the hundreds of missions that he participated in， he was always the first to act without fear，" said one of the officers. They recognize him as a fearless and reliable partner on the anti-drug battlefield.

Through his 15 years of service， Cai investigated 247 drug cases and joined 358 special anti-drug operations. His efforts resulted in the arrest of 249 suspects and the seizure of 1609.56 kilograms of drugs.

December 19： a promise that was never fulfilled

When Cai was young， he never imagined that he would experience the same life as his father had： staying away from home for long periods， rushing back and forth to work， and missing family events from time to time.

His father， Cai Qiang， was also a border control police officer who was involved in criminal investigations and worked tirelessly in the fight against drugs. As a child， Cai seldom had the chance to spend time with his father， who was frequently away from home due to his job. During his youth， Cai resented the absence of his father because he did not understand the significance of being a "people's police officer".

As Cai grew older and followed in his father's footsteps to become a border anti-drug officer， he began to understand the challenges and sacrifices that his father had endured in his work. Working overtime and staying away all night on duty were all part of the job， and Cai developed a habit of being prepared to leave home for work at any time. He came to realize that certain responsibilities must be borne by someone， and he chose to shoulder this responsibility with determination and resolve.

Before this mission， which turned out to be the last one， Cai took half a day off and went to a park with his family. However， just as they arrived， his phone rang with another urgent mission. He felt guilty as he told his wife， "You go along with our son， I can't go with you." Aware of the special nature of his work， she silently watched him disappear in the distance. Neither of them knew at that moment that it would be their final farewell.

On December 4， when Cai's wife rushed to the hospital and saw her husband drenched in blood， she broke down. Their two-year-old son did not understand what had happened and cried out， "Daddy， hug me， hug me." The innocent and tender voice broke the hearts of those present.

December 19， the 16th day after Cai's death， was their 10th wedding anniversary. When they got married ten years before， they could only afford a very small ring， which Cai had always felt sad about. He explained that starting a family was not easy， and they had to scratch out a living. However， he promised his wife that on their tenth anniversary， he would buy her any gift she wished for. Unfortunately， he would never be able to fulfill that promise.

"However challenging a road may be， there will always be someone who walks it; and however dangerous a task may seem， there will always be someone who must face it." The Yunnan Entry-Exit Frontier Inspection Station， where Cai Xiaodong worked， is an exceptional team of courageous and dedicated individuals with a history of producing true heroes. Over the past 72 years， 185 people in this police force have sacrificed their lives in the fight against drugs. These individuals' blood tells their stories of unwavering loyalty to the Party and the people.

（The authors are employed at the Yunnan Entry-Exit Frontier Inspection Station）

（Translated by Wei Dong）

Personal Profile：

Cai Xiaodong， Hani ethnicity， from Jiangcheng County， Yunnan Province. Born in May 1983， Cai joined the Communist Party of China in April 2006， and became a police officer in June 2006. He died as Deputy Captain of the Law Enforcement Investigation Team at the Xishuangbanna Border Control Division within the Yunnan Entry-Exit Frontier Inspection Station. He had also previously served as a First Sergeant and a Third Lieutenant in the same division. On December 4， 2021， Cai bravely engaged in a gunfight with drug traffickers. Despite being shot he continued to pursue the suspects， but ultimately Cai died， at 38 years of age—a heroic sacrifice. Due to his exceptional contributions to the fight against drug trafficking， Cai had previously been awarded a first-class merit， second-class merit， and third-class merit on separate occasions. He was posthumously honored as a martyr and awarded the titles of First-Class Hero Model of the Chinese Public Security System.