Chapter 213 Chapter 24: The Battle of Linfen: A Typical Battle for Tough Positions

In July 1946, the artillery of the People's Liberation War started. After more than a year of bloody fighting, our army smashed the Kuomintang army's all-out and key attacks on our liberated areas. At the end of June of the following year, under the unified command of Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army broke through the Yellow River natural barrier that the enemy called "an army of 400,000" and marched into the southwestern part of Shandong Province. Prelude to the attack.Then, under the leadership of Chen Geng and Xie Fuzhi, the Taiyue Corps of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army crossed the Yellow River from the south of Shanxi to fight in the west of Henan.Chen Yi and Su Yu led the East China Field Army to advance into Henan, Anhui and Su.

The three-way armies cooperated with each other and closely cooperated to carry out strategic deployment to the Central Plains area ruled by the Kuomintang. Between the Jiang, Huai, He, and Han, mobile operations, looking for opportunities to wipe out the enemy, pulled out more than a hundred cities successively, and established the Central Plains Liberated Area .Our Northwest Field Army and Northeast Field Army also launched a fierce offensive against the Kuomintang army on the inside.Under the heavy blow of our army, the Kuomintang army could only parry, but had no power to fight back. The occupied area was shrinking day by day, so they had to switch to divisional defense, and the main forces were concentrated on strategic points and communication lines.

On December 27 of this year, the 8th Column I just formed, the 2nd Column of the Northwest Field Army, the 3rd Independent Brigade of the Shanxi-Sui Military Region and the 4 regiments of the Taiyue Military Region launched the Battle of Yuncheng and conquered the Yan Xishan and Hu Zongnan's important stronghold in southern Shanxi - Yuncheng.Once Yuncheng fell, Yan Xishan was left with Linfen, an isolated city in southern Shanxi. Linfen, the largest city in southern Shanxi, is said to be the place where Tang Yao established his capital and has always been an important military town.Since the completion of Tongpu Road, which runs through the entire province of Shanxi and connects North China and Northwest China, it has become the hub of the southern section, and its position has become more and more important.Linfen City was built on an alluvial loess highland on the east bank of the Fen River. The terrain outside the city is lower than the inside of the city. The city wall built with loess is very solid. The thickest part of the base is more than 30 meters. The wall surface is like the back of a cow, inclined Upward, it is 14 meters high and 10 meters wide on the top, which can accommodate 3 carts in parallel; the circumference of the city is nearly 10 kilometers; a guard city was added to the southeast outside the city, the height and thickness are slightly lower than that of the main city, and the circumference is 3 Many kilometers.The whole city is bordered by the Fen River in the west, and open on the south, east and north sides.From a distance, it looks like a yellow ox lying on the bank of the Fen River.Therefore, Linfen is also called "City of Crouching Cow".According to the local people, Linfen City has never been breached in history. Even Li Zicheng, the king of Chuang, was shot blind in one eye, and he could not subdue this "lying bull". He was so angry that he hung his armor on a tree outside the city. Withdraw the troops and leave.So later generations called the village where the armor was hung "Guajiatun".

Perhaps it is the effect of historical records. Since the liberation of Yuncheng, the reactionary township groups and local tyrants in southern Shanxi all retreated to Linfen to hide, and regarded Linfen as a safe haven. Linfen is indeed too important.It is the bridgehead of Jinzhong and the south gate of Taiyuan.If the Kuomintang army wants to keep Jinzhong and Taiyuan, and contain the support of our Shanxi, Hebei, Luyu troops to the Northwest battlefield, they cannot do without Linfen.Chiang Kai-shek saw this, and he could no longer let Linfen be lost.So Hu Zong's 30th brigade in the south was urgently ordered to stay in Linfen, and Yan Xishan was urged to transfer a division from Jinzhong to strengthen Linfen's defense.According to Chiang Kai-shek's instructions, Yan Xishan made a decision to strengthen Linfen's defense force and ordered Xu Qichang of the 66th Division stationed in Jiexiu to lead his troops into Jinzhong to come for reinforcements.At the same time, in order to uniformly mobilize and command the Linfen garrison, Liang Peihuang, who had already served as the commander-in-chief of the 6th Army of the Linfen Garrison, was ordered to concurrently serve as the commander-in-chief of the Jinnan Armed Forces.

"I still have to send a telegram to General Liang in Linfen!" Yan Xishan ordered his chief of staff, Guo Zongfen, to say, "I want him to repair and renovate the city's fortifications based on the lessons learned from the fall of Yuncheng. Three Japanese military advisers will join the 66th Division." General Xu entered Linfen together."