47 years ago today, on March 7, 1978 (January 29, 1978 lunar calendar), our country implemented a system of combining conscripts and volunteers. On March 7, 1978, the first meeting of the Standing Committee of the Fifth National People's Congress discussed and approved the "Decision on the Military Service System". The decision pointed out that in order to accelerate the revolutionary and modernization of our army, it was decided to implement a military service system combining conscripts and volunteers. According to the needs of the troops and their own volunteers, some conscripts will be changed to volunteers, and the service life of conscripts will be appropriately extended. Since 1978, conscripts have served three years as soldiers in the Army, four years as soldiers in the Air Force, Marine Service, and Army Special Technical Forces, and five years as soldiers in the Navy Ship Unit and Army Ship Detachment.