And Hsu said they no longer had to broadcast sarcastic pieces such as hungry mainlanders gulping down banana skins or two impoverished brothers wearing a single pair of trousers.

In 1979, the National People's Congress in Beijing issued a Message to Taiwan Compatriots, calling for a cease-fire and peaceful settlement of the Mainland-Taiwan issues. The unprecedented move effectively ended the decades-old duel of shelling between Xiamen and Kinmen.

But the frontline loudspeakers continued to blare, though the tone was different.

"Though we still urged 'Communist brothers' to defect and embrace freedom here, mostly we played pop songs and read Taiwan news," Hsu said.

She remembered Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng's songs were most popular.

"Even though we could not communicate with the audience directly, intelligence agents always told us how listeners on the mainland reacted."

With less workload, Hsu said she often walked out of her fortress studio to enjoy the tranquil sunrises and sunsets on the outlying islet of Dadan.

Hsu said if the sky was clear she could see a row of red-roofed buildings on the other side of the Strait.

"I knew that was Xiamen University. It seems it was my destiny. Now, at the age of 55, I am studying here," she told Xinhua in a cafeteria not far from the university.

She was enrolled to study Chinese medicine at the Medical College of Xiamen University in 2008. In the same year, she met Chen Feifei -- her war-time "foe" at a special gathering organized by a local radio station.

"We have become very close friends, maybe because we have so much in common," said Chen, who retired in 1987 -- four years before the frontline broadcasting stations were permanently closed.

In 2005, after Taiwan authorities partially lifted the ban on mainland tourists to Kinmen, Chen crossed the Strait to the island she "spoke to" for 32 years and yet had no chance to visit.