Chapter 191 6. Geng Biao said: "I think we will fight here!"

Luo Lirong led the 3rd Army to the door, and the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Field Army decided to seize this rare opportunity to annihilate the 3rd Army. So where is the best place to annihilate Luo Lirong's 3rd Army?Yang Dezhi, Yang Chengwu, and Geng Biao felt that fighting in the area north of Baoding was what the enemy wanted and absolutely not.This battle must be fought in the area south of Baoding, but not too close to Baoding.Because the enemy not only has an army in Baoding, but also has more troops north of Baoding. Geng Biao crouched on the map, drew a big circle around the Qingfengdian area, and said, "I think we'll fight here!"

This senior general of the People's Liberation Army who grew up from the time of the Red Army has always been known for his resourcefulness and determination, and his daring to fight dangerous and vicious battles. His extraordinary memory and clear mind during the war are as praised by the world as his bravery. Geng Biao, born in Yanjiachong, Liling County, Hunan Province in 1909, worked as a miner in Shuikou Mountain, Changning County in his early years.He used to be the small leader of the Liu (Yang) Li (Ling) guerrilla detachment, and later served as the staff officer of the 9th Division of the 3rd Army of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, the leader of the cadre teaching team, and the division chief of staff. In March 1933, he served as the head of the 4th Regiment of the 2nd Division of the 1st Army.During the Long March, he led his troops as the vanguard of the division, broke through the Wujiang River at the Jiangjie Ferry, and opened up the way forward; then commanded the regiment to participate in the capture of Loushan Pass and Tongzi City, and consolidate the northern wing of Zunyi. In November 1936, he was transferred to the Chief of Staff of the Fourth Army of the Fourth Front Army.During the Anti-Japanese War, he served as the deputy brigade commander, deputy political commissar and chief of staff of the 385th Brigade of the Eighth Route Army, and Wang Weizhou led troops to station in the Longdong area to defend the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia border area. In October 1944, he was transferred to be the deputy chief of staff of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region. From January to August 1946, he concurrently served as the Deputy Chief of Staff of the CPC Delegation of the Executive Department of the Beiping Military Mediation. In June 1947, he concurrently served as chief of staff of the Jinchaji Field Army.After participating in commanding this battle, he also participated in commanding the Shijiazhuang Battle. In May 1948, he served as the deputy commander and chief of staff of the 2nd Corps of the North China Military Region, and led his troops to participate in the Taiyuan, Pingjin, Lanzhou and Ningxia campaigns.

In this Battle of Qingfengdian, he chose an ideal cemetery for Luo Lirong's 3rd Army. To the north of Qingfengdian are Wangdu and Baoding, and to the south are Dingxian County and Xinle (where Luo Lirong was stationed at the time). Among them, the area south of Fangshun Bridge is an ideal battlefield for our army.This is because the enemy-occupied area is to the north of Fangshun Bridge, and Fangshun Bridge is only more than 20 kilometers away from Baoding. The Qingfengdian area south of Shunqiao is a liberated area, and the conditions of the masses are good, which is conducive to blocking news and obtaining strong support from the people.

At the same time, the terrain in this area is suitable for our army to fight mobile warfare, and there are no strong cities and towns for the enemy to use to hold on.If the battlefield moves further south, it will not only make it difficult for our army to quickly maneuver and seize the enemy, but more importantly, the enemy can rely on Dingxian to resist and hold on, which will increase the difficulty for our army to wipe out the enemy. The key to annihilating Luo Lirong's troops in the Qingfengdian area is to buy time.At this time, Luo Lirong's troops were only 45 kilometers away from the Qingfengdian area, and the main force of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Field Army was going from the north of Xushui, bypassing the enemy's entrenched Baoding, to the south of Fangshun Bridge. 75 kilometers, the farthest is about 125 kilometers, and it is continuing to move westward.If the battlefield moves north, our army's itinerary can be shortened, and Luo Lirong's itinerary will be increased, but that will be too close to Baoding, which is not acceptable; if it moves south, our army's itinerary will be farther, which is also not acceptable.Therefore, the key to whether we can win and win this battle is whether our army can catch up with Luo Lirong at the fastest speed and reach Qingfengdian.

"Soldiers are expensive and fast", time is victory!Our army must stop the enemy at least south of Fangshun Bridge before October 19.That is to say, our army must walk more than 100 kilometers with both feet in a little more than one day and night.If this group of enemies is allowed to get ahead, they will cross Fangshun Bridge and sneak into Baoding, completely defeating our army's plan to wipe out the enemy. Geng Biao was busy making phone calls with various troops and setting up a command post.That night, Geng Biao issued the mobilization order to all units: "In order to win a big battle, we must concentrate all our troops and firepower, strike, charge, and advance vigorously, carry forward the traditional style of our army, strike hard, fight hard, fight desperately, without any hesitation, crush the enemy, surround the enemy, and annihilate the enemy! Regardless of any fatigue, we must resolutely carry out orders, not afraid of marching at night, marching in a hurry, regardless of food, water, and fighting day and night, not afraid of difficulties, not complaining, not neglecting, walking even if we can't move, crawling and rolling We must also pursue, resolutely not let the enemy go, all cadres lead by example, and Communist Party members play a special role. The enemy must be resolutely destroyed when he resists, and the enemy must be chased and wiped out if he flees. Call for great victories, and the competition will serve the people!  …”

The mobilization order sounds like a horn, which excites everyone's heart, and the long march marches forward and gallops across the boundless wilderness.Everyone understands that there is now a double contest, a race against the enemy to see who gets the upper hand, and a race with brother troops to see who can catch the enemy first. In the vast Jizhong Plain, the air is humid and fresh with the first autumn rain.Looking around, a major artery running north-south - the Ping-Han Railway stretches out into the distance through the wilderness.Just on both sides of the northern section of this railway, at the same time, the Jinchaji Field Army deployed six brigades and rushed southward.Four brigades in the east of the road, including the 10th, 11th, and 12th brigades of the 4th column and the 4th brigade of the 2nd column; two brigades in the west of the road, the 9th brigade of the 3rd column and the 6th brigade of the 2nd column The brigade and the six-way army are like six off-string arrows, following different routes stipulated by the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Field Army Headquarters, rushing towards the same goal-the Qingfengdian area.

This is fighting for time with the enemy, and it is also a contest of will and combat power with the enemy.Regardless of casualties, consumption, and fatigue, all commanders and fighters rushed southward under the instigation of slogans such as "rush to Qingfengdian in advance and resolutely capture Luo Lirong alive".The soldiers Li Zhi and Zhu Cheng were both eighteen or nineteen years old. Their feet were blistered and they hurt when they landed, but they still insisted on walking. Wang Ping, a political commissar of the Hebei-Shanxi Military Region, who was attending the land reform meeting, organized the landlord troops to delay the 3rd Army's northward movement in order to rush to the front line immediately. He galloped to the front line. The first horse ran for more than 50 kilometers and died of exhaustion. It took a change of horse to arrive at the field army headquarters.

After more than ten hours of continuous forced march, the troops finally arrived at their destination ahead of schedule, and blocked the 3rd Army in the Qingfengdian area at noon on the 19th.The 2nd Column, 4th Brigade and other troops that first contacted the enemy immediately opened fire on the enemy, captured the enemy, and the follow-up troops came in a steady stream.Luo Lirong hastily ordered the squadron to go on the defensive. On the evening of the 19th, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Field Army had surrounded the enemy in more than 20 villages in the Qingfengdian area.