aeeble

Nestled atop the hillside village of Chingfan, Shanhai Family resembles an unremarkable white-tinged building at first glance, yet its walls silently encase the poignant and turbulent history of Xiju Island. In 1949, over 4,200 fighters from the Minhai region formed a guerrilla unit to defend this area. However, the Ministry of National Defense at the time had allocated rations and funds for merely 1,257 personnel. Facing such hardship, the guerrillas largely sustained themselves through self-reliance, launching several surprise attacks across the strait at considerable cost, suffering the loss of more than 2,000 comrades—sacrifices that were profoundly tragic. In 1950, with the outbreak of the Korean War, U.S. military intelligence, codenamed "Western Company," established itself here to train East Sea Forces in behind-the-lines intelligence and guerrilla operations against mainland China. The original headquarters of both the "Western Company" and the East Sea Forces command was precisely within the walls of this building now gradually transformed into a café. Over six decades after its construction, as aging survivors dwindle and eventually vanish, the once-vibrant Shanhai Family quietly endures on Chingfan's hillside, bearing silent witness to those war-torn years interwoven with blood and tears.