Sangsang Town in August, at an altitude of 4,700 meters. The wind here is not like that in the interior; it is like a sharpened ice blade, carrying the gravel of the plateau, lashing at the face and instantly taking away all warmth. The newly laid water supply pipeline is the only stubborn silver-bright arc on this vast grassland. Opening the worn, dog-eared work log on Lu Weidong's desk, the dense handwriting is the annual rings carved by eleven years of wind and snow. Over three thousand days and nights, in a "life exclusion zone" with less than half the oxygen of the plains, the perseverance of a Communist Party member must be fulfilled with every labored breath.

First Entry onto the Plateau: Safety Is Life

In 2014, Lu Weidong first set foot in Tibet. Beneath the beautiful scenery lies a silent test at an altitude of 4,000 meters: the thin air makes every step feel like carrying a load, the scorching ultraviolet rays easily pierce sunscreen, and violent heartbeats and dull headaches are the body's first warnings. As director of the safety department of the Yalong Reservoir Project, on the title page of the safety diary he carries with him, the eight characters "Plateau construction, safety is life" are a motto written through life experience.

On an evening in September 2015, a rainstorm suddenly struck the Yalong Reservoir construction site. During his inspection, Lu Weidong keenly spotted a fine crack on the slope of the diversion tunnel—on the plateau, rainstorms and soft geology are often the prelude to disaster. He immediately roared into the walkie-talkie: "All personnel inside the tunnel stop work and evacuate within five minutes!" His voice was firm as iron in the wind and rain. When the last worker stumbled back to the safe area, the slope had already begun to shed gravel under the wash of the rain. That night, he led the crew in emergency rescue in the mud until three in the morning; after eliminating the danger, sweat, rain and mud had nearly frozen him stiff.

Tunneling Hope in a Land of Extremes

In July 2024, Lu Weidong moved to the water supply project in Sangsang Town, Ngamring County. At 4,700 meters, this is the "highest point" of his career. The air here is even thinner; one breath seems to draw in only half a breath. Extreme winter temperatures of minus 30 degrees Celsius can instantly frostbite exposed skin, and machinery and equipment often "go on strike." Transportation is inconvenient, and material transport is a long wait; communications are intermittent, and contact with the outside world depends entirely on luck. Faced with extreme challenges, the drive to overcome difficulties in Lu Weidong's bones was instead fully ignited.

The challenges at the peak of the project were unprecedented: a 17-kilometer water supply pipeline had to cross nearly 10 kilometers of plateau permafrost, with an average thickness of 1.8 meters, as hard as rock. Here, an iron pick striking down leaves only a white spot. Lu Weidong innovatively launched a "Party building + technology" assault model and personally shouldered the heavy burden of drafting the construction plan. Again and again he knelt on the frozen soil to observe, again and again he huddled with technicians in crude work sheds to discuss, and the plan was repeatedly revised and optimized in the cold plateau wind. Every collision of ideas was not only a challenge to the limits of technology but also a struggle against rapidly depleting physical strength and willpower.

Warming Herders' Hearts with Frozen Hands

Once the plan was implemented, Lu Weidong's figure sank even deeper into the construction site. Before dawn, he set out against the biting cold wind. At the pipeline laying site, he pried open gaps in the insulation layer with his bare hands; his fingers were so cold they would not obey him, yet he still insisted: "Here, add two more layers of cold-proof cotton. At minus thirty degrees, we must ensure the water pipes do not freeze and the herders' water vats are not empty." To him, what was buried here was not just pipelines but a "lifeline" connecting thousands of households.

When Tibetan compatriots came to ask about progress, he would take the initiative to hold their hands—his palms covered with hard calluses and the backs of his hands crisscrossed with cracks. He said firmly: "Rest assured! We guarantee you safe drinking water!" When leaders of the local water resources bureau saw him, his work shoes were so covered in mud that their original color could not be seen, and his face was branded with deep sunspots by the plateau sun, yet he knew every detail of the project by heart. What people saw was a figure sculpted by the wind and frost of 4,700 meters, and even more, a responsibility measured out with footsteps.

Passing the Torch of Mission in a Land of Bitter Cold

Lu Weidong well understands the importance of the team. As project leader, he cares about the growth of young technicians, and during breaks at work he often exchanges and shares with everyone. He organizes technical seminars, leading everyone to study safety and quality policies and delve into professional knowledge. Under his leadership, the project department's learning atmosphere has grown stronger and the team's combat effectiveness has improved. "One person's strength is limited; only when everyone progresses together can we win this tough battle." This is what he often says.

During this period, he also summarized practical experience in plateau permafrost construction, high-altitude connection techniques, and safety protection in extreme weather, and published multiple safety technology papers, providing reference for plateau water conservancy project construction.

"Though the plateau is bitter, the mission is glorious; though far from home, the original aspiration remains unchanged." Behind these plain words are eleven years of sacrifice and dedication, day after day. From 4,000 meters to 4,700 meters, his footsteps have climbed higher and the environment has grown harsher,but the original aspiration to dedicate himself to plateau water conservancy has remained consistent throughout.