In remote stations along China's vast hinterlands, far from the relative comfort of army barracks and modern amenities, soldier-and-wife teams embrace tough conditions and seclusion as frontier-defense members.

It may come as a surprise that a veteran soldier and his wife are superior to a team of soldiers, however, that's exactly what the army has realized.

Regimental commander Li Gang cited situations where soldiers simply lacked the self discipline to handle the isolation and monotony that's inherent in frontier duty.

According to Li, for certain areas of the frontier the typical assortment of soldiers is a waste of manpower, yet those areas still must be maintained and patrolled.

Li said one married couple can perform better under such conditions, and even called the duty station a "love nest."

Jia Zhanfeng and his wife Li laugh at the term love nest, but Jia admits that perhaps late-night patrols could be considered romantic at some level. He points out that he and his wife are a team, and he couldn't do his job without her.

"It's only the two of us, so we really rely on each other and have to be motivated, as we supervise ourselves," Jia said. "I consider it a regular life -- we get up early and do physical training. We listen to the radio in the morning and watch TV news in the evening to keep our minds attuned to society, because sometimes we feel detached, being so isolated like this."

Wan Xiaohong left her job as a school teacher in Sichuan Province to join her husband at his post in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. She confides that initially she regretted coming.

"I felt so out of place, lonely and utterly bored," Wan said.

At first she struggled with essential survival skills, such as building a fire.

"It was extremely cold, so I went to gather firewood and build a fire myself, but I didn't account for ventilation, and the house filled completely with smoke, so I had to put the fire out and nearly froze while waiting for my husband," Wan said.

Fortunately, Wan added, her fire-building skills improved quickly.

Chen Hongzhi, wife of post director Ma Junliang, said she knows she's not officially a soldier, yet she certainly feels like a soldier as she regularly conducts strict patrols and inspections at all hours.

"Honestly, sometimes I do feel quite scared, as the post is known to be dangerous at certain times, but it's my life and I won't run from it," Chen said.

The army hopes to gradually make life easier for the couples through technological enhancements such as digital satellite television, electronic tagging devices and information networks.

In a survey of soldier-wife, frontier-defense teams, the primary wish was for high-level education for their children, and replacements so they would be able to take some vacation now and then.