Chapter 198 4. The commander of the field army issued an "exit order" to the commander-in-chief

It was the first time in the history of the People's Liberation Army that it forcibly conquered a large city fortified by the Kuomintang army.Commander-in-Chief Zhu De attaches great importance to the coordinated operations of artillery, infantry, and engineers (blasting). In the early morning of October 27, Zhu De arrived at the artillery brigade station in Xibozhang Village, northwest of Anguo County, from the Field Army Headquarters.Although he is over sixty years old, he is still walking steadily, reviewing artillery units in the uneven fields.He approached the cannon, looked at the front and back, and asked the commanders: How about the performance and range of the cannon?How heavy is it, how to carry it?How is the ammunition prepared?After the review, he expressed condolences to everyone on behalf of the Party Central Committee and the Central Military Commission, and delivered a speech. He said:

"Our artillery has developed. There are more artillery in the Northeast Army. The artillery has more than a dozen regiments and thousands of artillery. There is an artillery column in Shandong, and there are also artillery in Taihang and other places. You also have a brigade, which is very good. You have a future. Get ready, continue to develop and expand, and prepare to fight in the future." "Artillery is very important. Opening the way for the infantry can reduce casualties. If the artillery does not fire, the mouth will not open. Opening the gap can successfully advance in depth and expand the results of the battle." "Tactical attention must be paid to approaching the enemy with secrecy. When firing artillery, it must be fierce and sudden. The firepower must be neatly concentrated, and within the concentration, it must be concentrated again. It is also necessary to pay attention to the use of different terrains for shooting. If you don't fight, you can hit it. Fierce, accurate, and ruthless. The infantry and artillery cooperate well, and the victorious battles are constantly fought.” (Zhu De’s speech when receiving cadres above the 1st Regiment and Platoon of the Artillery Brigade of the Jinchaji Military Region, transcript, October 27, 1947)

On this morning, Zhu De rode horses and walked again. He visited 6 villages in a row, inspected 2 regiments, 2 battalions and 4 companies, and returned to the brigade headquarters for lunch at 2 o'clock in the afternoon.In the afternoon of the same day, Zhu De conveyed and explained the Central Committee's "Strategic Policy for the Second Year of the War of Liberation" to the cadres above the artillery brigade, and described the war situation across the country.On this day, Zhu De worked in the artillery brigade for 12 and a half hours, and did not leave until after 8 o'clock in the evening.

In the next few days, Zhu De also convened some company, platoon, squad cadres and soldiers to discuss how to fight Shijiazhuang, and also asked the captured soldiers to learn about the enemy's situation.Under his proposal, on October 30, the Field Army Command, chaired by Chief of Staff Geng Biao, convened a meeting of artillery and engineering cadres in Anguo to focus on how to fight fortified positions.Zhu De participated in the meeting and worked with everyone to study in detail how to build low forts and bunkers, how to implement approaching operations and tunnel blasting, how to use artillery firepower to flatten defensive ditches, and how to cooperate with artillery and engineers in street fighting.He listened carefully to everyone's speech, and from time to time inspired everyone to imagine several situations and study several styles of play and tactics.

On October 31, the field army headquarters held a meeting of cadres above the brigade to announce the order and deployment of the attack on Shijiazhuang. Zhu De attended the meeting and gave a report for more than two hours. In order to be sure of conquering Shijiazhuang, Zhu De also worked out a careful battle plan with the leaders of the field army.The tough battle was about to begin, and Zhu De remained at the field army headquarters.The Kuomintang planes kept coming to bomb, and everyone was worried about the safety of the commander-in-chief. Mao Zedong, who was far away in northern Shaanxi, was very worried when he learned that Zhu De had arrived at the front line. He called Liu Shaoqi and said: "It is good for Mr. Zhu to go to Yang Dezhi and Yang Chengwu to help with training for a period of time, but when Yang and Yang hold Shimen or other places to fight, please persuade Zhu De Always return to the Work Committee, do not come to the front line in person." (Mao Zedong to Liu Shaoqi, November 1, 1947)

Yang Dezhi recalled: "We persuaded him several times to go to Hejian County, where the Jizhong Military Region is located, but he shook his head and refused. He said: 'Aren't you all here? Maybe the plane came to find me Zhu De.' I know he He was concerned about the development of the battle, so he said: "When you arrive in Hejian, we will report to you at any time." Boss Zhu smiled. He said humorously: "The commander of the field army issued an order to expel the guests from the commander-in-chief. There is no other way. I had no choice but to go to Sun Huzi (referring to Comrade Sun Yi, Commander of the Jizhong Military Region)." (Yang Dezhi: "Heng Ge Ma Ma", PLA Literature and Art Publishing House, December 1984 edition, p. 349)

On November 1, Zhu De left Anguo and arrived in Hejian County, where the Jizhong Military Region is located.Before leaving, he called Nie Rongzhen, Xiao Ke and others, and told them: "I have visited the artillery here, and convened a meeting of artillery and engineering cadres to discuss the technical issues of attacking Shimen. I also called a meeting of cadres above the brigade and jointly decided The plan to capture Shihmen is to use the offensive tactics of positional warfare as the main method, to attack in an organized and step-by-step manner, use tunnel operations to approach the fort, use explosives to blast, bombard, and destroy each one, and take a steady and steady approach.” He demanded. In order to ensure the victory of the battle, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region "must have sufficient materials, especially explosives and shells" and prepare personnel supplements. (Zhu De: "A Telegram to Nie Rongzhen and Others Concerning the Plan and Precautions for Attacking Shimen", "Selected Works of Zhu De", p. 212)

Subsequently, the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region resolutely implemented Zhu De's instructions and made intense preparations for the battle of Shijiazhuang.