Chapter 22 Chapter 21: Defeat in Qilian Mountains

The Xi'an Incident changed the situation of the Northern Shaanxi Central Committee and the Red Army.But for the West Route Army, it made things worse. After the defeat in the Battle of Gulang, the West Route Army continued to advance westward, reaching Yongchang and Shandan.After fighting a month-long war of attrition with the Ma's army in Yongchang, the situation of the West Route Army deteriorated day by day.In an environment where the weather, location, and people were all at a disadvantage, although the Red Army had achieved some victories and killed many enemies, the Ma's army had a rear, and personnel, weapons, and ammunition could be continuously replenished.However, the Red Army had no bases, one soldier was wounded and one less, and ammunition became less and less.The Red Army wanted to capture bullets from Ma's army during the battle, but the enemy was also very cunning, and they charged with very few bullets, and went back to replenish them after they were shot.During the offensive and defensive battle of Yongchang City, the Red Army suffered heavy casualties, and the temples and vacant houses in the city were full of wounded.There was no basis for revolutionary activities in the Hexi area, and most of the people fled before the arrival of the Red Army.The work of establishing base areas could not be carried out, and the leather and cotton clothes necessary for winter were not available.The Hexi Corridor area is already covered with ice and snow, and the wind is howling.The temperature in the morning was minus 16 degrees Celsius, and it was only minus 2 degrees Celsius in the afternoon.The Red Army from Hubei, Henan, Anhui and Tongnanba had not yet experienced the severe cold in the northwest. The desolate Hexi Corridor was a bare and chilling scene. There were only large rocks in the desert and the Gobi Desert, very few trees, and it was difficult to find firewood.Many people in the Red Army were ragged and unkempt, enduring the suffering of cold and hunger.

The environment here is not suitable for the Red Army to fight.Red Army soldier Li Xinguo recalled: "When the 9th Red Army arrived in Yongchang, the 30th Army had already advanced to Shandan, leaving only the 88th Division, and the 5th Red Army had also entered Shandan. At this time, the deployment of the West Route Army formed a long snake It stretches for more than 100 kilometers from Yongchang to Shandan. This is a long and narrow area, which is exactly the waist of the Hexi Corridor. It is only more than 40 kilometers wide from north to south; Longshou Mountain is the endless desert area outside the Great Wall. The terrain is very unfavorable for our infantry activities." The Majiajun cavalry came and went like the wind, and they could attack the weak positions of the Red Army at any time.They rode horses, the Red Army walked, suffered losses in hand-to-hand combat, and were unable to catch up in pursuit.It is really incomparable with when I was in the Soviet area.

There are even more troublesome things: in the battle of Gulang, "because the enemy cavalry rushed into the streets of Gulang County and ravaged them wantonly, the organizations directly under the General Command of the West Route Army suffered the most. There were many casualties, and the reconnaissance radio and other communication equipment were completely lost. This simply caused the West Route Army to lose the indispensable hearing, vision and part of the nervous system."When they arrived in Yongchang, each army had only one radio station to communicate with the headquarters. The lack of radio stations had disastrous consequences for the West Route Army's subsequent operations.

The attrition war of the West Route Army in Yongchang made Xu and Chen feel that it was not an option to go on like this. On December 6, 1936, Chen Changhao, Li Zhuoran, etc. sent a telegram to the Central Committee asking for instructions: "Give time here to spend the winter and respond to the main force in a timely manner. If the main force does not come, we will move the main force to Ganzhou. We must always strive to be in Ganzhou ( State), Yong (Chang) and Liang (zhou) lines for the winter." This telegram did not have Xu Xiangqian's signature, which shows that the leaders of the West Route Army did not have a unified opinion.

When the news of the "Xi'an Incident" reached Yongchang, the soldiers of the West Route Army cheered and their morale was at an all-time high.But Ma Jiajun was dumbfounded, not knowing what to do.The Red Army shouted to the Ma's Army's position: "Your master Chiang Kai-shek has been captured by us. Stop fighting. Let's stop the civil war and unite to fight against Japan!" The Ma's Army only sneered at the Red Army, but they stopped attacking the Red Army. How to use the favorable opportunity of the Xi'an Incident to get rid of passivity and seek new development, the leaders of the West Route Army launched a heated discussion. On December 18, the Presidium of the Military Commission sent instructions:

The situation after the Xi'an Incident changed rapidly. Just as the leaders of the West Route Army were discussing the issue of advancing westward, on December 22, the Central Committee sent another telegram telling the West Route Army to return eastward.Because at this time the Nanjing government mobilized soldiers to advance to Xi'an, Zhang Yang wanted to join forces with the Red Army to fight. In order to ensure the safety of Lanzhou in the west, he contained Hu Zong's south and planned to transfer the West Route Army to support him.However, at the leadership meeting of the West Route Army, most people including Xu Xiangqian opposed going east and insisted on going west to open up the international route.Xu Xiangqian and others thought: "Compared with marching eastward and marching westward, the former is more difficult. Because the main force of the Ma family army is concentrated in the east, and the west army marches eastward, it is bound to fight the enemy decisively. It is nearly a thousand miles from Shandan and Yongchang to Lanzhou. There are many forts along the way, lack of supplies, and the temperature at night is below minus 20 degrees Celsius. There are many sick people in the West Route Army, about 2,000, and it is inconvenient to place them on the spot, and it will increase the difficulty of marching and fighting. According to this, the eastward march will win It is not very sure. Moreover, abandoning the Hexi Corridor, the rear base of the Anti-Japanese War, will be disadvantageous in terms of supporting the Xi'an Battle, opening up the Soviet Union, and creating a situation of anti-Japanese resistance in the Northwest." Chen Changhao advocated unconditional implementation of the Central Committee's instructions and went to Hedong .Despite the quarrels, the idea of ​​advancing westward still prevailed.Chen Changhao combined two opinions and reported to the central government:

After the central government received the telegram, it replied to Xu Chen on the 24th, saying: "From the perspective of the overall strategic policy, it is advantageous for the West Route Army to advance eastward. As long as it reaches the Jingning and Longde areas within 20 to 30 days, it will be ready." Cooperating with Yu Xuezhong and Wang Yizhe's eight divisions can at least restrain Hu, Mao, Zeng, and Guan, and help our main force fight freely in the east. Zhang Xueliang is very much looking forward to your coming, and promises to replenish bullets and quilts in Lanzhou." On the same day Mao Zedong also called Zhou Enlai in Xi'an, notifying him of the West Route Army's request, and asked Zhou to "discuss with Zhang (Xueliang) to send four regiments to attack Yongdeng, Gulang to support Xu Chen, and prepare cotton 15,000 coats, 18,000 pairs of shoes and socks, 15,000 bullet belts, and 150,000 additional bullets. Is it feasible? Hope to reply."But Yu Xuezhong was too busy to take care of himself in Lanzhou, how could he have the strength to support the West Route Army?Mao Zedong's request could not be fulfilled at all.

Why did Xu Chen not want to go back east?Xu Xiangqian stated some of the reasons in his memoirs.But many years later, when Chen Changhao talked about this matter, he expressed some inner thoughts: "The central government called us to instruct us to consider whether it is better to go west or east. At that time, we considered that there were troops from the Ma family and Chiang Kai-shek's troops, the enemy is powerful. There are only Ma's troops in the west, so the reply is that the central government should continue westward rather than eastward. In fact, they were still afraid of Chiang Kai-shek's troops at that time. Still going west, it is still necessary to open up the international The route is unacceptable. As a result, there is neither supplement nor mass base, and the hope is getting smaller and smaller.”

Now that the central government had issued the order to advance eastward, Xu Chen began to gather troops to prepare to return.At this time, the Xi'an Incident was resolved peacefully. On December 27, the Military Commission sent another extremely optimistic telegram: "The Xi'an Incident was resolved peacefully, and the future is very good. The West Route Army is still carrying out its westward mission to occupy Ganzhou and Suzhou. It is up to you to decide when to start the westward march and how to fight according to the situation.” Xu Xiangqian said: “It can be seen from this that the central government was not willing to give up the plan to open up the Soviet Union. It's just an emergency consideration at the critical juncture of the situation in Hedong. When the situation eases, it will naturally allow the West Route Army to continue to complete the task of opening up the international route."

After the West Route Army crossed the river, the central government did not allow the West Route Army to rush to Xinjiang, but instead asked the West Route Army to establish a base on the spot.Many years later, Xu Xiangqian understood the mystery: "The Xi'an Incident was resolved peacefully, and negotiations between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party began. A reasonable settlement of the Red Army's garrison was one of the substantive issues in the negotiations. From a strategic point of view, the Red Army urgently needed a densely populated and materially rich , a strategic base that is close to the Soviet Union and is conducive to maneuvering, so as to replenish energy, expand strength, and undertake the great task of the anti-Japanese struggle. The central government agreed that this base should be based on Lanzhou, Liangzhou, Ganzhou, Suzhou, and Ningxia west of the Yellow River. The area is the most ideal. The West Route Army controls the Hexi Corridor and enters Ganxi. It is self-evident that it is our party who justifiably bargained with Chiang Kai-shek and asked for capital in the Hexi area.”

At that time, Xu Chenyuan was thousands of miles away and had no news. He did not know the attitude of the Communist International towards the Xi'an Incident and its support for Chiang Kai-shek.But the central government knew in its heart that instead of letting the West Route Army advance westward, it would be better to stick to it on the spot and support each other with the Red Army in Hedong.In case northern Shaanxi cannot stay, the Hexi Corridor can be regarded as a way out.This is what Mao Zedong said at the meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee on November 13. At the end of December, the West Route Army opened the way with the 5th Army, the 9th Army and the headquarters were in the middle, and the 30th Army marched towards Gaotai and Linze behind the hall.In order to avoid the cavalry of the Ma family army, the Red Army marched at night every day, braved the severe cold of minus 20 degrees Celsius, and endured great pain to advance silently. On January 1, 1937, Dong Zhentang, commander of the 5th Red Army, and Yang Keming, director of the Political Department, led two regiments, four companies of the headquarters special service regiment and two companies of cavalry, totaling more than 3,000 people, and conquered Gaotai County in one fell swoop.More than a thousand civilian regiments defending the city surrendered and were incorporated by the Red Army.Xu Chen saw that there was a lot of food in this area, so he planned to rest for a period of time before leaving.Chen Changhao heard that the journey to the west of Gaotai was very desolate and difficult to travel, and he had doubts. He asked the Central Military Commission for instructions on January 4: "The east of Gaotai is rich in food and food, but the west is very desolate. There are few and far away strongholds. It is very cold. If the main force advances, they will advance together, and roads, food, housing, and enemy cavalry are not allowed; if they fight, they will fight together, and they can only sit and wait for consumption." He suggested to the Military Commission: "How to help me with external force or use diplomatic force to stop the two horses; or Let the 31st Army and the 4th Army cross the river to cooperate, then my losses will be less and the task will be easier to complete. Or we will all fight the enemy on a high platform, and it is also necessary to send materials from afar with external force." But he said: "The West Route Army With the utmost determination to overcome unprecedented difficulties, not afraid of sacrifice, complete the task according to the previous instructions." On January 5, Mao Zedong sent a telegram to the West Route Army in the name of the Military Commission: "Assembly in the Gaotai and Linze areas, do not go west for now. The whole army must gather at two or three points, train vigorously, and wait for the opportunity to destroy the enemy." But did not mention And the westward cooperation of the 4th Army and the 31st Army. Xu Chen sent a telegram to the Central Committee again, still hoping that the 4th Army and the 31st Army could come to help the West Route Army.However, the Central Military Commission sent a telegram on January 7 rejecting the request of the leaders of the West Route Army. The next day, Xu Chen received another telegram from Zhang Guotao himself: Since the West Route Army crossed the Yellow River, Zhang Guotao rarely gave instructions to Xu Chen in his own name.After he arrived in Baoan, Lin Yuying had a long talk with him, asking him to obey the correct leadership of the central government.Zhang Guotao realized the seriousness of his mistake of setting up a separate central government, and made a review to Lin Yuying.Since then, a series of instructions to the West Route Army have been issued in the name of the Presidium of the Military Commission.When the leaders of the West Route Army disagreed with the Central Committee, Zhang Guotao suddenly called in his own name, and mentioned the political issues in the past. Xu Chen could figure out the importance of it. The West Route Army occupied Gaotai and Linze and rested on the spot, causing Ma Buqing and Ma Bufang to panic.After the Xi'an Incident, they blocked the news and nervously watched the changes in the current situation.They supported Chiang Kai-shek and were hostile to the Communist Party and the Red Army. On December 15, they sent a telegram of allegiance to Nanjing, saying: "Surprised to learn that the incident in Xi'an, Zhang Yang hijacked the committee seat. The expansion of the Lanzhou rebels....Although Qinghai is in a difficult environment surrounded by bandits and enemies, Fang and others only know that they are loyal to the country, and he has nothing to do except to serve the commission." This shows that their primary goal is to keep their own territory. Never make peace with the Red Army and form a united front.When in Yongchang, the Red Army radio station intercepted a telegram from Ma Buqing to Ma Bufang. The general idea was: If the Red Army does not stop and walk, it is not necessary to fight; if it stops and does not leave, it will fight!Now that the Red Army has stopped and will not leave, it is undoubtedly a serious threat to the two horses.Er Ma did not hesitate to spend his capital, and assembled five cavalry brigades, two infantry brigades, artillery regiments, and militia regiments, a total of more than 20,000 people. swallow. At the beginning of January 1937, after learning that the 5th Red Army had occupied Gaotai, Xu Chen led the various agencies of the West Route Army Command and the 9th Army to leave Shandan and march westward.Ganjun Fort in the southwest of Ganzhou (now Zhangye City) was suddenly besieged by Ma's army.The team was dispersed during the breakout and suffered a big loss.According to Ouyang Yi, the security director of the 5th Army, in a report to the Central Committee later: "This breakthrough was indeed a great loss and a great shame. It gave the West Route Army a great mental depression. The morale of the enemy was even worse. Improvement.... The main lessons of this breakout are that the terrain, route, and direction were not clearly reconnaissance, the guides were not prepared, the cadres did not control the troops, and some troops did not follow the departure time." Li Jukui also said: "Ganjun Fort breakout When attacked by the enemy, the main reason is that the cadres panic, waver, and command is inconsistent. If the vanguard has not yet dispatched (delayed time), the direct subordinate team of the general headquarters will rush forward by itself. As a result, combat troops and non-combat troops are mixed together, and gunshots As soon as there was a sound, they ran around in a mess. Knowing that the enemy passed only 300 meters away from the left and right, they must be detected, and they did not send powerful cover troops to occupy the position in advance, and dispatched capable search troops from the front and flanks to search closely Drive out the enemy's ambush troops and let my main force pass safely." Xu Chen reported in a telegram to the Military Commission on January 9, 1937: "The guard broke out from Ganjun Fort, and the secret copy has arrived. None of the main cadres have been lost, only one of the administrative personnel and the color patient have been lost. About two About 100. All eight machines have arrived, two radios of the second bureau were lost, ten telegraph receivers were destroyed, and most of the batteries, gasoline and mechanical parts stored in the third bureau were lost. The equipment will not last long in the future, that is, the small-scale two It is also difficult to resume the work of the Bureau, and we hope that the Military Commission will provide us with materials." This shows that the defeat of Ganjun Fort has greatly damaged the communication system of the West Route Army Command.In the subsequent Battle of Gaotai, communication failure became the fatal cause of ruining the 5th Red Army. The Central Committee believed that the West Route Army had suffered little loss, so it instructed the West Route Army on January 16, 1937: "It is agreed that the West Route Army will take a rest at the site for a period of time, concentrate on taking the opportunity to fight the enemy eastward, and strive to advance westward with a part of the army in the future." , and greatly expand the Ganbei base to the east.” The West Route Army has reached a critical juncture, why does the Central Committee divide the West Route Army to move east?It turned out that when Chiang Kai-shek returned to Nanjing, Zhang Xueliang was detained.The Kuomintang army is eyeing it like a tiger, and the situation in Xi'an and northern Shaanxi is tense again. On January 21, Mao Zedong and Zhang Wentian explained the central government’s next plan in their telegrams to Zhou Enlai and Bogu in Xi’an: "C. Regardless of peace or war, the main force of the Red Army should still go out of southern Shaanxi according to the previous plan, and be located between Sichuan and Shaanxi. Except for the second army staying in Weibei, the rest should be ready to move south within a few days. Please investigate Shanyang, Zhashui, Zhen'an, Xunyang, Ankang, Chaishui, Hanyin, Shiquan and other cities' garrison situation, and asked Yang (Hucheng) to agree to cede the counties." "The Ding and Xilu armies are advancing eastward. Xu Chendian's morale is still strong, and they can reach Gulang in ten days. If the army no longer suffers setbacks, it will be located in the civil, military and Chengkang areas. In this way, my main force will be in southern Shaanxi and southern Gansu, and we can destroy Nanjing. A plan to trap the Allied forces north of the Wei River." At this time, the central government made plans to abandon the base area in northern Shaanxi, and also wanted the West Route Army to advance eastward to cooperate with the operation.Chiang Kai-shek's return to Nanjing made Qinghai Erma very happy.They expressed their allegiance to Chiang Kai-shek, and at the same time concentrated all their forces, preparing to block the West Route Army with all their strength, determined to wipe out the Red Army in the Hexi Corridor. From January 12, 1937, the Ma's Army used part of its troops to contain the Red 9th Army and the 30th Army, and most of its troops detoured westward to besiege Gaotai County where the Red 5th Army was stationed.At that time, Dong Zhentang, commander of the army, Yang Keming, director of the political department, and the 44th regiment, 45th regiment, cavalry regiment and spy company of the 5th Red Army were in the city, totaling more than 3,000 people. Huang Chao, political commissar of the 5th Army, stationed in Linze County with the only communication station of the 5th Army.After Ma's army surrounded Gaotai, the city lost contact with the West Route Army headquarters.The Ma family army first attacked the two outer bunkers outside the city. The Red Army defending the forts fought desperately with the enemy, repelling the enemy's charge again and again.In the end, due to the exhaustion of ammunition, there were too many casualties, and the peripheral bunkers fell.Gaotai City is like a big earth enclosure. The city wall is made of earth, less than two feet high, and the top is very narrow, so it is not easy to hide.After the outer perimeter was lost, Commander Dong ordered all the boxes and cabinets in the city that could hold soil to be filled with soil to raise the city wall.At the same time, they sent people to contact Linze to prepare to break out.At this time, I suddenly received a letter from Linze from Huang Chao, the political commissar, to the effect: "Mr. Dong, according to the order of the headquarters, the high platform is the military focus of opening up the international route. If you lose it, your commander will be killed." The next morning, the last battalion-level cadre meeting was held in the Catholic Church in the city. Dong Zhentang read out the letter with a heavy heart, asking everyone to resolutely guard the high platform and live and die with the high platform. On January 20, the Ma family army began to attack the city.Facing the perilous situation of fighting alone, Dong Zhentang did not waver, brandishing a broadsword on the city wall and commanding the Red Army soldiers to fight to the death with the Ma's army.The enemy climbed up with ladders, and the Red Army beat the enemy with bayonets and bricks.Beat the enemy down the city again and again.The fierce fighting continued for several hours.Unexpectedly, the original Gaotai militia guarding the west city suddenly turned against them, opened the city gate, and the enemy troops rushed in.The situation suddenly deteriorated, and the Red Army organized a counterattack, but lacked ammunition and relied on hand-to-hand combat.There are more and more enemies and street fighting with the Red Army.Commander Dong retreated to the northeast corner of the city and persisted. Wearing a ragged sweater, he shot and killed several enemies with a pistol. In the end, he was wounded in his leg and sacrificed heroically because he was outnumbered.Along with Commander Dong, Yang Keming, Director of the Political Department of the Army, and Ye Chongben, Commander of the 13th Division, were also killed. Except for a few of the more than 3,000 Red Army soldiers who were captured, most of them died in the battle in Gaotai City.Ma Jiajun found the remains of Dong and Yang while cleaning the battlefield, cut off their heads cruelly, soaked them in wine and sent them to Ma Bufang in Xining. During the battle at Gaotai, the West Route Army Headquarters had no news at all.It wasn't until the Red Army Radio Station deciphered Ma Jiajun's telegram on January 23 that Xu Xiangqian knew that Gaotai was in danger.He quickly sent the only cavalry division Xingye to reinforce.But on the way, they were surrounded by Majia cavalry with superior forces.The cavalry division of the Red Army has just been formed, and most of the horses are not war horses, and their combat effectiveness is not strong.After a bloody battle, most of the cavalry division of the Red Army suffered casualties. The division commander Dong Junyan and political commissar Qin Daoxian all died heroically. When the news of Gaotai's failure came, the soldiers of the West Route Army were extremely shocked and saddened.Cheng Shicai, the commander of the 30th Red Army, summed up the lessons of failure in three points: "(1) In terms of tactical guidance, one should not fight to the death for the gains and losses of a city. (2) The defenders of Gaotai have no radio communication. We didn't know it after two days of fighting. We failed to find a way to help them earlier. (3) The hundreds of militia groups that were won over were not reformed, and they were safe to use others. As a result, they collided with the enemy internally and externally and crashed." After learning the news of the failure of Gaotai and the elimination of the cavalry division, Xu Xiangqian immediately ordered Huang Chao, who was stationed in Linze County (Fuyi City), to lead the rest of the 5th Army to concentrate on Xidongbao.At that time, there were two regiments of the 5th Army and the General Supply Department of the West Route Army in the city.Ma Yuanhai brigade, the main force of the Ma family army, frantically attacked Linze City.When the Red Army retreated, most of its baggage was lost, and hundreds of non-combatants were intercepted by the Ma's army.The most distressing loss was that several skilled bomb-making workers in the General Supply Department were all killed by the Ma's army, cutting off the source of the West Route Army's own ammunition production.Fortunately, Chen Haisong, the political commissar of the 9th Army, brought a regiment to meet him, and commanded the battle calmly, which saved the 5th Army from the fate of being completely annihilated. After the Battle of Gaotai, the Ma's army tightened their encirclement and interception of the West Route Army.In this unfavorable situation, the leaders of the West Route Army decided to abandon the plan to advance westward and lead the troops back east. On January 23, the West Route Army sent a telegram to the Military Commission, reporting the news of the failure of Gaotai and the current enemy situation, and stated the next step, saying: "Now the troops are scattered and the cavalry is moving fast. It is not easy for me to move fast. The troops need to be reorganized. Before marching east, try to seize the opportunity to attack the enemy on the spot and on the road, so as to facilitate the eastward advance. There are still three to four thousand people in Zhizhi, and women and children account for 1,000. , Unite to kill the enemy, overcome any difficulties, learn the lessons of blood, although some setbacks, but all commanders and fighters are extremely united, and fight to the end according to the tasks given by the Military Commission.” After sending out the telegram, the West Route Army Command led the entire 30th Army and a regiment of the 9th Army to Xidongbao.Wang Shusheng led the rest of the 9th Army to Longshoubao, preparing to take a rest before heading east. On January 25, the Central Military Commission sent a telegram to instruct the West Route Army: "Your policy of action is to facilitate the attack on the enemy and preserve your strength. The direction of action is up to you. . . , the danger is greater. The whole army should be assembled, not scattered, and use resolute fighting to complete the mission of the eastward advance.” However, the Central Committee’s instructions also said: “Although we try our best to assist the West Route Army from all aspects, the only thing we still have to rely on is yours. Complete your eastward mission independently under the condition of defeating the two horses.... Intensive political mobilization, resolutely not relying on external forces, and everyone has the determination to win to the death. In a difficult environment, strictly enforce the discipline of the Red Army and win the support of the masses. important security." On January 28, all the West Route Army assembled in Nijiayingzi. There were more than 10,000 soldiers left in the army, and less than half of the combatants.Ma Yuanhai immediately reported to Ma Bufang: "Most of the Red Army left the Ganzhou-Xinjiang Highway and entered Nijiayingzi in the south of Ganzhou. Forty-three Zhanbao Villages are scattered around ten miles around. The total number of people is about 13,000. They are indeed the main force of the Red Army." .” He led the five main brigades of the Ma family army and a large number of militia groups, and surrounded the Ni family camp. Nijiayingzi is a settlement composed of dozens of Tuweizi.It is 16 miles long from north to south and 3 miles wide from east to west.Forty or fifty earth enclosures, large or small, are scattered scattered across the desolate fields.Several families lived in one soil enclosure.The soil enclosures of rich people have tall walls, three to five feet thick, with crenels and watchtowers, much like city walls.The soil enclosure of ordinary people is called Zhuangzi, with only short walls.Outside the fence is the cultivated land of the common people and the Gobi Desert. The distance between the villages is one or two miles, and there are some trees and ditches.The West Route Army is finally relatively concentrated here. From January 31st, Ma's army launched another attack on Nijiayingzi.They also know how to destroy the vital forces of the Red Army, so they only look for the Red 30th Army positions to fight.The Red 30th Army did not show any weakness. Under the command of Li Xiannian's political commissar and Cheng Shicai's commander, they launched a thrilling and bloody battle with Ma's army.Cheng Shicai recalled: "Each time the enemy attacked, they first used several cannons to breach the earthen wall of our village, and then used light weapons to cover a large number of infantry to pounce on our position. Every time they hit a certain distance, our side launched a counterattack. The future invading enemy is partially repulsed to the original defense line. In many battles, when the two sides confronted each other, the rifles were of little use. Often the two sides fought with grenades. In the end, both sides hacked back and forth with big knives, and blood flowed on the battlefield. At the same time, every time I was 50 meters away from the village enclosure, I would start hand-to-hand combat with the enemy. The enemy fought into my enclosure, and I would kill the enemy out of the enclosure, driving the enemy back to the original position, and the two sides formed a confrontation. The rule of battle is that it is mostly daytime, and we fight from dawn to dusk. In the afternoon, I counterattack and retreat the enemy, and the battle ends. Sometimes our army sends troops at night to disturb the enemy, making him panic and fatigue him.” Xu Xiangqian recalled: "Because of the lack of ammunition, the rifles and machine guns were almost useless. I went to the forward position to see that the soldiers had their rifles on the side, holding broadswords, spears, and sticks in their hands, waiting for the enemy to come up and carry out the attack. Fighting. Here, there is no difference between gays and lesbians, lightly wounded and seriously wounded, combatants and miscellaneous personnel, fighting on their own, fighting on their own, raising their blades to the enemy, striving to be the first. The wall was The artillery fire collapsed, and the flesh and blood were the barriers. The comrades in front fell, and the comrades behind blocked them. The lightly wounded did not get out of the line of fire, and the seriously wounded fell to the ground, still holding grenades, ready to die with the enemy. Here, survival is fighting, fighting It's survival." The Nijiayingzi bloody battle lasted for more than a week.Ma's army was exhausted and suffered nearly 10,000 casualties.The West Route Army has also paid a heavy price. They are basically out of ammunition and food, and there are more and more wounded, without even the most basic medical conditions.The commanders of the West Route Army realized that they had reached the last moment. If they continue to fight, the enemy will have a steady stream of supplements, while the Red Army will have no supplements or assistance. The balance of forces is getting worse and worse. new way out.However, the central government was negotiating with Chiang Kai-shek at that time, hoping that the West Route Army could persist on the spot and maintain the situation in the Hexi Corridor, and asked the West Route Army to rest on the spot and supplement training.On February 6, Xu Chen felt that he could no longer wait passively, and sent a telegram to the central government.After reporting on the existing strength of the West Route Army, he said: On February 13, the West Route Army sent a telegram to the central government to request the 4th Army and the 31st Army to come for reinforcements, thinking that "the 4th Army and the 31st Army cannot return to the organizational system at this time, and if they attack the two horses, the West Route Army will not be able to complete the westward mission. Determined Attack the enemy in the Gao and Fu areas, and move to the Datong and Xining areas as soon as the weather warms up." On February 17, in the double name of the Central Secretariat and the Presidium of the Military Commission, the Central Committee sent a stern telegram to the leaders of the West Route Army: This harshly worded telegram from the Central Committee put great pressure on the leaders of the West Route Army.Xu Xiangqian said: "During the southward movement, we did make mistakes and owed debts. If we link the direction of action of the West Route Army with past political mistakes, who can move!? Chen Changhao is under great pressure. He used to be Guotao An active supporter of the line, he is now in charge of the chairmanship of the Military and Political Committee of the West Route Army. Once he grabbed the braids in the past, he was even more dumb and ate Coptis chinensis. However, the grim reality is in front of us, and there is definitely no way out for staying on the spot.To this end, the Military and Political Committee of the West Route Army convened a meeting to study the action plan.Xu Xiangqian strongly advocated returning to the east, which was unanimously supported by everyone.Chen Changhao seemed preoccupied and hesitant.With the minority obeying the majority, on February 21, the West Route Army broke out from Nijiayingzi and moved to Xidongbao and Longshoubao.Cheng Shicai recalled the situation at that time and said: "Under such circumstances, the military and political committee of the West Route Army held a meeting to discuss the issue of action. Should we go or not? Not going is impossible, the only way is to go. Where should we go? At that time We decided to go eastward, cross the Yellow River, and join the Central Red Army. After the problem was determined, we began to dispatch eastward. Our army mostly operated at night, and there were no battles along the way. Two days later, when we arrived in the area of ​​Xidongbao, the enemy rushed to fight with Our army made contact. The enemy attacked our 88th Division's defense line first, and our army resolutely resisted and stopped the enemy's attack. The next day, the enemy turned to our 88th Division's right wing to attack fiercely. All the enemy regiments were wiped out, and one was seized. This was the second time that the West Route Army gained a lot of things when they crossed the river. Originally, this was a small victory, but the enthusiasm of the leaders at that time was revived. Cheng Dasheng said that the enemy's strength was weakened, thinking that this victory was decisive. The superior also denied the plan to advance eastward, and still turned westward, returning to the Nijiayingzi area. After this policy was determined, it was regarded as ruining the West Route Army fate." Cheng Shicai was talking about Chen Changhao.Seeing that the 30th Army had won the battle and received some supplements of guns and ammunition, he proposed to return to Nijiayingzi and continue to establish the Ganbei base.Xu Xiangqian was taken aback and said: Comrade Changhao, what strength do you have to go back and establish a base!We managed to break out of the siege, wouldn't we be perishing when we go back?But Chen Changhao insisted on going back.Because the central government called continuously and asked them to stand on the spot. On February 24, the Central Committee received a telegram saying: "I would like to tell all commanders and fighters to uphold the glorious banner of the Party and the Red Army, fight to the last man, to the last drop of blood, and seek victory in desperate situations. The entire Party and the entire Red Army swear to be your backing." 2 On February 26, the Central Committee replied to the West Route Army’s telegram asking for help, saying: “A, stick to it for 50 days. B, we are using various effective methods to assist you.” Therefore, Chen Changhao believed that he was following the central line, while Xu Xiangqian was “right leaning.” opportunism".He sang loudly at the military and political committees, and the atmosphere was so overwhelming that everyone could not speak.After the failure of the West Route Army, Chen Changhao also stated in his second report to the Central Committee on October 15, 1937: "Among the leading cadres of the West Route Army in Yongchang and in Ganzhou, there were still some who opposed the central line. , but insisted on expressing my wrong line in the past. Although I opposed such comrades in person and tried to start a struggle in the military and political committees, the result was still that the prestige was not realized. I drafted telegrams several times to the central government to admit the mistakes in the past line In the end, it was not sent out, and there was only this telegram at the end of the day, instead of resolutely and openly, insisting on fighting for the correct line of the Central Committee." Xu Xiangqian said frankly in his memoirs: "This passage refers to our Chen Changhao did not understand that a senior cadre who is in charge of his own affairs must proceed from the reality and combine it with the actual situation at that time and the local situation, especially when the situation is far away from the central government and the situation is critical! Regardless of the objective reality How to, follow the gourd and paint the ladle, mechanically and blindly implement the instructions of the superiors, it must be a bad thing." However, Chen Changhao is the chairman of the military and political committee and has the final decision.When the West Route Army returned to Nijiayingzi, they found that the village had been looted by Ma's army, leaving only scorched earth and broken walls.Not even a place to live.All the Red Army wounded left in the village were massacred by the Ma's army.Some were frozen to death in the wilderness, and some had their heads smashed.Ma Jiajun didn't expect the Red Army to come back, and immediately surrounded him again.In each charge, more than two brigades and militias were concentrated, and with the cooperation of artillery fire, they rushed towards the Red Army.Soldiers of the Red 30th Army and the 9th Army wielded broadswords and repelled the enemy's attacks three or four times a day.The enemy was exhausted from the attack and was not good at fighting at night, so they had to confront the Red Army. Cheng Shicai recalled: "At this time, our army was in extreme difficulty. We had no food or water to drink. The surrounding area was almost reduced to ruins, and there were no houses to live in. The enemy has a large number of troops, so they can be used differently and rested. Our side is that A few people fought the enemy to the death, and felt the most exhausted. The soldiers also wanted to sleep during the battle, and all the cooks and grooms went to the battlefield. A women's regiment (more than 300 people) in our army also went to the battlefield to do fortifications, chop Trees were used to make wooden fences. In addition, they also helped deliver food and water to the soldiers." The battle was brutal to the extreme. "Both sides hacked back and forth with big knives. During the confrontation, they used big knives, grenades and bayonets to fight recklessly. The rifles only served as a cover. On the battlefield, the sound of killing was like thunder, and the sound of machine guns cracked the eardrums. It was really shocking. I heard it. Be discouraged." The West Route Army's battle of attrition in Nijiayingzi exhausted its last bit of strength.Seeing that the general situation was over and there was no way to recover, Chen Changhao kept asking the central government for help and reporting the real situation.The leaders of the central government were very anxious and tried every means to rescue the West Route Army. On February 15, Mao Zedong called Zhou Enlai: "Please make two-step negotiations on the issue of the West Route Army. The first step is to order the two horses to cease fighting and let the defense go, or send someone to signal that they will give up, and at the same time send an airplane to send money and bomb them; Second steps to send reinforcements." On the 18th, Mao sent another telegram to Zhou: "Please try to find people to go to Qinghai in various ways. It is very important to solve the problem of the West Route Army." On the 21st, Mao called Zhou again: "At present, the focus is to get another 500,000 (1) The West Route Army is in dire straits, and it is now too late to send troops to help them, and the money can only be raised.” Zhou Enlai repeatedly negotiated with Gu Zhutong, the chief officer of the Kuomintang stationed in Xi’an, but Gu Zhutong only agreed Send planes to drop supplies to the West Route Army.But this is just talk, Ma Bufang worked hard to fight the Red Army for Chiang Kai-shek, and the Kuomintang was happy to reap the rewards.Besides, the reason why Ma Bufang fought desperately with the Red Army was to keep his territory in Qinghai.Whoever persuades him will not give up.Therefore, Zhou Enlai's negotiations had no effect. On February 22, the CPC Central Committee decided to organize troops to reinforce the West Route Army.In the name of the Presidium of the Military Commission, Mao Zedong called Peng Dehuai, Ren Bishi, Liu Bocheng, Zuo Quan, and Zhou Enlai in Xi'an: According to the instructions of the central government, the West Aid Army was established on February 27.It is composed of the 4th Army, 31st Army, 28th Army, 32nd Army and a cavalry regiment.Liu Bocheng was the commander and Zhang Hao was the political commissar.Set off to seize the Jingyuan Ferry, build a boat every day, and prepare to cross the Yellow River.But the West Route Army has reached the most dangerous moment. Jing is 1,900 miles away from Ganzhou. Apart from other factors, the march alone will take more than 30 days.To reach Yongdeng 1100 miles, it takes 20 days to march without stopping.It will take time to build ships, cross rivers, and fight.Therefore, although the central government organized the West Army, it was too late to reinforce the West Route Army. The West Route Army fought bloody day and night in Nijiayingzi, exhausted to exhaustion.Xu Chen is still looking forward to the arrival of reinforcements. On March 4, Xu Xiangqian, Chen Changhao and Li Zhuoran, Director of the Political Department, called the Central Committee and the heads of the various units of the Red Army: The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China replied to the West Route Army on the same day, stating: "The Central Committee has now decided to send troops to reinforce you, and use various other methods to help you unite cadres and boost morale." At the same time, it pointed out: "The West Route Army is currently in a dangerous situation. Although it is due to the difficult terrain, supplies and objective conditions, the main reason is that the leaders of the West Route Army did not rely on their own strength to overcome all difficulties, eliminate the enemy, and complete their own tasks. As a result, their self-confidence was wiped out, and their hopes were pinned on external forces. At the same time, the relationship with the masses, especially the Hui people, and the mistakes in strategy and tactics are also important reasons.” 最着急的是张国焘。 3月4日他又一次以个人名义致电西路军，但不是教徐陈如何摆脱困境，而是要他们改正路线错误，接受中央的批评。The telegram is as follows: 3月5日，西路军领导人决定放弃倪家营子，乘着夜色的掩护向祁连山转移。马家军骑兵跟在后面穷追不舍。3月8日，西路军进至临泽南接近祁连山的东流沟、南流沟和西流沟。这是三条低洼的古流水沟形成的一片狭长地带。每条流沟里都稀稀落落分布着一些房屋。周围是戈壁滩和沙漠。西路军此时尚有8000人，30军和9军把住流沟两头，总部机关住在中间。听到中央派出援军的消息，疲乏不堪的红军战士心中又有了一线希望。徐陈决定在这里固守待援。第二天天刚亮，马家军的骑兵就卷着滚滚烟尘追来了。西路军被分割在三条流沟里，整天被敌人的人海战术轮番进攻。尤其是红30军被敌人分割在几个围子里，相隔不远但却不能往来联络。红军一天要顶住敌人三四次进攻。还是用大刀拼杀。88师师长熊厚发在察看敌情时被流弹打断左臂，仍然提着马刀指挥作战。在三条流沟的四天战斗中，红军每天都要伤亡几百人。红30军也打成了空架子，与9军一样都只剩下不足千人。粮食也吃光了，3月11日夜里，总部命令9军的两个团（近千人）里应外合，接应30军余部杀出重围，与总部会合后向祁连山口的梨园口退去。 梨园口是入山的口子，三面环山，中间有些民房。徐向前命令9军政委陈海松带两个团约千人把守山口，掩护总部和剩余人员向山里转移。9军在山口旁的小山顶上集中防御，还没修好工事，敌人骑兵又追到了。祁连山的山头不像四川的大山那样陡峭和易守难攻，而是一片缓坡，骑兵一个冲锋就到了山顶。为了守住山口，9军与马家军展开了最后的战斗。在陈海松政委带领下，红军战士光着膀子，挥舞大刀，与敌人骑兵拼杀。因力量悬殊，不到半天，9军仅存的这些人全部战死。军政委陈海松、25师政委杨朝礼等都壮烈牺牲了。敌人又向30军猛攻。为了掩护总部和伤员转移，30军战士又与敌军骑兵殊死战斗。这一天红30军主力264团全部拼光，263团也大部阵亡。 3月12日夜里，徐陈向中央告急。 中央当天答复徐陈：“你们现已处于特殊情况之下，已不是一般方法所能解决问题，必须立即采取特殊方法达到保存一部力量的目的。因此，我们向你们提出下列两种方法，请你们考虑决定一种：（一）率现存三团人员向蒙古边境冲去。（二）率现存的三团人员打游击战争。以上方法不论采取哪一种，均需将伤病员安置民间，均须采取自主自动姿势，均须轻装，均须采取变化不测的战术。”中央这个指示，是允许西路军化整为零，不再与马家军硬拼了。 西路军从南流沟撤出后，尚余不到3000人，跟随徐陈的只有30军和机关的千余人。部队原来计划向红安寺进发，梨园口一打起来，总部又改变向康龙寺转移。结果妇女团在前面出发去红安寺，脱离了总部和部队，半路上被马家军打散。团长王泉媛、政委吴富莲均被马家军俘虏。西路军余部到了康龙寺，马家军又追上来。在康龙寺南山恶战一场。红30军著名的“夜老虎团”265团和267团又遭受重大损失，西路军总供给部部长郑义斋带上全军的经费寻找总部，不幸遭敌包围，壮烈牺牲。 3月13日康龙寺之战后，西路军终于失败了。徐陈收拾残余部队，连夜向山里行军。3月14日天亮到达石窝一带。这里是一片青石山沟，石缝里长着稀疏的灌木和野草。在较大的一座山上有一片光石崖，崖下有个大坑，坑中有一块巨石，大家给这个荒凉地方取名叫石窝。红军到了山上，马家军又随后赶来了。李先念、程世才带领30军剩下的几百人边打边撤，掩护总部和其他同志上山。马家军看天色黄昏，不敢夜战，便在山下扎营。 在石窝子，西路军高级干部都聚到一起。大家都伤心落泪。但是敌人仍然紧追不舍，明天再打就会全军覆没。必须要拿个主意，否则只有等死。天黑之前，陈昌浩召集军政委员会会议，提出分散活动问题。大家一致同意，这样目标小，总有能活着回去的。但是具体怎样办？程世才回忆：“陈昌浩是这样说的：1、现在是战不过敌人，只有分散活动，保存点力量，待援西军过黄河后再去会合。2、军队只剩这么多人，昌浩、向前离开部队回陕北去。陈提出来后，向前同志反对离开部队，还要与部队一起走，死也死在一起。当时各干部同意（徐陈）离开部队，减少目标。不过干部同意不是主要的，决定权在昌浩，最后昌浩决定他两个离开部队了。3、任务分配：30军剩下千把人，为左支队；由世才、先念、（李）天焕带走左翼打游击。9军剩下三百多步兵和一百多骑兵为右翼支队，由王树声、朱良才带走右翼大山上打游击。总部直属队剩下大部分干部与30军一路去打游击。这时候真是惨痛到极点，大家都在流泪。会开完后，各自回去组织部队准备天黑行动。” 徐向前听了陈昌浩宣布的决定，心里十分痛苦，也很矛盾。他回忆说：“散会后，我还想动员陈昌浩，不要回陕北。我拉着他的手，恳切地说：昌浩同志，我们的部队垮了，孤家寡人回陕北去干什么，我们留下来，至少能起到稳定军心的作用，我看还是不要走吧！陈昌浩很激动地说：不行，我们回去要和中央斗争去！他要斗争什么呢？无非是西路军失败的责任问题。我那时的确不想走，但没有坚持意见。事实上李先念他们并不想让我走。我迁就了陈昌浩的意见，犯了终生抱憾的错误，疚愧良深。” 西路军失败了，部队散了。幸存的红军有的合成大股，有的零星活动，各奔前程。等待他们的是一条充满艰难险阻和生死未卜的道路。