Chapter 250 2. Where to fight first, Mao Zedong and Lin Biao argued for several months

The flames of the Three-Year Northeast War were first ignited in Shanhaiguan. After the Battle of Benxi, the Battle of Siping, the Battle of Anhai, the Battle of Xinkailing, the Battle of Three South and Four Protections of Linjiang, and then the summer of 1947-1948 The Northeast Field Army has no small battles to fight, and can only choose to fight at three points in Changchun, Shenyang, and Jinzhou.At this time, Lin Biao's opponent Wei Lihuang was a general with senior qualifications than Chen Cheng. At this time, Wei Lihuang's total force was 44 regiments, 14 armies, 44 divisions, plus local miscellaneous troops, totaling 550,000 people.He adopted the policy of "concentrating troops, focusing on defense, ensuring Shenyang, Jinzhou, and Changchun, and opening up the Beining line at any time", and assembled heavy troops in the three areas of Chang, Shen, and Jin. Zheng Dongguo, commander in chief and commander of the First Corps, led 100,000 troops to garrison; Shenyang and its satellite cities, Benxi, Fushun, Tieling, and Xinmin, had 300,000 troops under the direct command of Wei Lihuang; Jinzhou and Jinxi, 150,000 troops, It was led by Fan Hanjie, deputy commander-in-chief of the Northeast "Suppression General", director of the Jinzhou Command Post, and commander of the Jire-Liaoning Border Region.

These three pieces are hard bones, which one should we start with?Lin Biao repeatedly compared and pondered in the Shuangcheng command post. At this time, the Northeast Field Army had grown to 12 infantry columns, 36 divisions, 15 independent divisions, 3 cavalry divisions, 1 artillery column, 1 railway column, and 1 tank regiment, with a total of 700,000 people.With the addition of 330,000 local troops, the total strength reached 1.03 million. Mao Zedong judged the situation and promptly put forward the strategic concept of completely annihilating the Northeast Kuomintang Army.Where to hit first?Mao Zedong disagreed with Lin Biao, the commander-in-chief of the front line.Should we go to Changchun first or go south to the Beining line and go to Jinzhou first?Mao Zedong and Lin Biao had different opinions and disputes, and they fought for several months.

At that time, after carefully studying the American retreat proposal and Chiang Kai-shek's attempt, Mao Zedong believed that Jinzhou should be attacked first on the Northeast battlefield, cutting off the connection between the Northeast Kuomintang Army and North China, resulting in the trend of "closing the door and beating dogs". Lin Biao, on the other hand, believed that the Jinzhou city defenses were solid, and there were 150,000 heavy troops guarding them. Like the attack on Siping Street, they might not be able to attack for a long time, forming a stalemate. Lin Biao called Mao Zedong on April 18, and proposed to conduct military education and tactical training for half a month in May, and then concentrate his forces to "attack Changchun and fight for aid".At the same time, it is recommended that the North China Military Region use the main force to enter the Chengde and Shanhaiguan areas to cooperate in operations to restrain the Fan Hanjie Group.

When the telegram was sent to Xibaipo, Mao Zedong was furious when he read it. To Zhou En, he said, "Another general who will not accept the order of the emperor abroad. I think he is too timid. In February, I asked him to go south to the Beining line for more than two months." Well, it’s still the same attitude, or else I’ll go to the Northeast.” Zhou En looked at the telegram for a while and said: "Chairman, I think we can only agree with their plan in principle, and reiterate the importance of going south to the Beining line." Mao Zedong said: "It has to be like this."

On April 22, 1948, Mao Zedong agreed to Lin Biao's plan to attack Changchun first. In late May, Dongye attacked Changchun with two columns and seven independent divisions, annihilating more than 6,000 Kuomintang troops and occupying Dafangshen Airport, but the troops suffered heavy casualties.Lin Biao found that the Changchun Kuomintang army was far stronger than originally estimated, and the siege troops did not have an absolute advantage in comparison with the Changchun defenders, so it was difficult to attack Changchun. On June 5, Lin Biao proposed three plans to the Central Military Commission regarding the operations of the Northeast troops: one is to formally attack Changchun now, but he believes that there is no certainty and the possibility of success is small; the other is to besiege Changchun with a small number of troops and block food , the main force went to the Beining line, Rehe, and eastern Hebei to fight.However, it is believed that in addition to the possibility of rushing to the south, or because the enemy is concentrated and difficult to fight, food is extremely difficult. At the same time, the enemy in Changchun may take the opportunity to flee back to Shenyang, resulting in an ending with no results at both ends; the third is to adopt a longer-term siege of Changchun. , and then the method of siege, the preparation time is two to four months.During this period, strive to fight for aid, and at the same time conduct military training.If we do not seek reinforcements during this period, then our old and new troops have been trained and their fighting strength has increased, and the enemy has been starved for a long time. It is estimated that after the general offensive begins, the battle will develop rapidly, and we can fight before the enemy's reinforcements arrive. The enemy of Changchun can be solved.Lin Biao believes that the last option should be adopted at present.

When Mao Zedong received this plan from the Northeast Bureau, he picked up a brush and scribbled wildly: "This turn is so hard to turn. A dozen criticisms are useless. This means that you will not shed tears without seeing the coffin." On June 7, Mao Zedong replied to the Northeast Bureau and basically agreed with the third plan.Both Mao Zedong and Zhu De gave detailed instructions on the deployment and tactics of attacking Changchun and aiding the enemy. It is hoped that Dongye's victory in the attack on Changchun will open up the way for the subsequent southward operations to conquer various major cities and gain experience.At the same time, he also emphasized: "During the three to four months of attacking Changchun, you must simultaneously complete the food, ammunition, and clothing necessary for the next step in the Chengde, Zhangjiakou, and Datong areas, or in the eastern Jidong, and Jinzhou areas. preparations for the road transportation of supplies, recruits, etc.”

Lin Biao thought hard for more than ten days before finally making up his mind to prepare to go south to fight Jinzhou after the rainy season.