Chapter 324 6. A million soldiers cross the river

On April 20, 1949, the day the Nanjing Kuomintang government refused to sign the "Peace Agreement", the second and third field armies of the Chinese People's Liberation Army launched a battle across the river.Suddenly, on the north bank of the Yangtze River, thousands of guns were fired; on the surface of the Yangtze River, thousands of sails raced across the river.At the same time, the 12th Corps of the Fourth Field Army, led by Xiao Jinguang, launched a series of offensive operations against Bai Chongxi's troops in the Hanchuan, Xiaogan, Huangpi, and Xinzhou areas in the north of the Yangtze River.

At 8 o'clock on the 20th, Tan Zhenlin, the commander-in-chief of Dujiangzhong Group, took a deep breath, and issued a thunderous order to the radio receiver: march to the south of the Yangtze River! The great battle across the river begins! After the marching order was issued, the People's Liberation Army's million-strong army divided into three groups on the 1,500-mile front from Jiujiang in the west to Jiangyin in the east.The battle across the river was divided into dozens of points, and the wide frontal crossing was implemented. The enemy was hard to defend, the enemy's gap was very large, and the strength of the troops varied. If one was successful, the other places could continue to work.

The 7 armies of the Central Group (7th and 9th Corps) commanded by Tan Zhenlin have 300,000 people, and the 4 armies of the first echelon (the 21st and 24th armies of the 7th Corps, and the 25th and 27th armies of the 9th Corps) were launched in April. At 8 o'clock in the evening on the 20th, the section from Shijitou to Lugang launched the first attack.When crossing the river, the wind and waves on the river were calm. Under the cover of powerful artillery fire, thousands of wooden sailboats braved the interception of enemy ships and river defense artillery fire, sailed across the river for hundreds of miles, and quickly broke through the enemy's defense line. "People's Daily" made the following report at the time: "At one moment, the red flag was waved, the charge horns sounded in unison, and the river surface was reddened by artillery fire, suddenly thousands of white sails were raised, and they flew towards the flames on the other side. ... The enemy on the other side opened fire, The bomb set off a column of water in the middle reaches, and huge waves hit the hull, but the commando still broke through the waves." (People's Daily, April 28, 1949) The PLA encountered only weak resistance when crossing the river this time. After hours of fighting, until 6 o'clock in the morning on the 21st, they occupied the Digang and Lugang areas, and expanded to the Fanchang and Tongling areas.After the Central Group broke through the river defenses, the enemy's formation was in disarray, and the PLA immediately moved across the board to the south bank.Tang Enbo hurried to Wuhu by plane on the 21st to organize the anti-blockade, but it was of no avail.

On the middle road: After the Zhong Group broke through the defense lines of Anqing and Wuhu, it has passed 300,000 people within 24 hours. On the afternoon of the 21st, Lianke Fanchang, Shun'an, Tongling and other counties. At noon on the 22nd, they broke into the Kuomintang army's defense area with a depth of 50 kilometers, conquered Guichi County, and advanced towards Qingyang. On the 23rd, all the armies of the second echelon of the Central Group also crossed to the south bank.The enemy's combat effectiveness in this area is very weak. According to Li Zongren's words: "The CCP's army is like entering no one's land." ("Memoirs of Li Zongren" (Volume 2), p. 965)

On the West Road: under the command of Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, the 9 armies of the Eryexi Group (3rd, 4th, and 5th Corps) with 350,000 people, under the support of strong artillery fire, started from 5:00 p.m. Forced crossing.After crossing the river, Liu Bocheng issued an order to the Second Field, responsible for "cutting off the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Line and Hangzhou-Huizhou Line, annihilating the enemies on the two lines, and preparing for the purpose of attacking Hangzhou" ("Cut off the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Line, Hangzhou-Huizhou Line", "Liu Bocheng Commander's Notes of the Marshal's Army, Naval Press, 1989 edition, p. 405), the 3rd Corps attacked the enemy in Huizhou area; the 5th Corps attacked Quzhou to intercept the enemy; the 4th Corps attacked the enemy in Shangrao area.The troops crossing the river from Guichi to Pengze occupied positions 200 miles along the south bank on the 22nd, and liberated the counties of Pengze and Zhide and the vast areas along the line of Guichi, Dongliu, Zhide and Pengze.The troops crossing the river from the east of Madang captured key points such as Huangshan and Xiangkou, and developed in depth.The enemies encountered by the Western Group also had no fighting spirit, and retreated one after another. On the 22nd, 300,000 people had passed through, and the main force went straight to the Zhejiang-Jiangxi line, quickly cutting off the connection between the Tang Enbo and Bai Chongxi groups.

On the East Road: Eight armies of the East Group (8th and 10th Corps) with 350,000 troops under the command of Sanye Acting Commander, Acting Political Commissar Su Yu, and Chief of Staff Zhang Zhen launched a cross-river operation at the same time as the West Group.In the section from Yizheng to Nantong, from the evening of the 21st to the dawn of the 22nd, 300,000 people passed through overnight.In the north of Changzhou, it occupied the line from Ligang to Taohuagang on the morning of the 22nd, and marched southward, cutting off the Beijing-Shanghai railway line.In the section from Zhenjiang to Jiangyin, when the People's Liberation Army crossed the river from the 20th to the 21st, it was shelled twice by four British imperialist warships and Kuomintang warships trying to prevent the People's Liberation Army from crossing the river, causing 252 casualties.The People's Liberation Army immediately fought back bravely, damaging the British ship "Amethyst" on the river near Zhenjiang, and the other three British ships fled to Shanghai.After smashing the imperialist armed provocations, the spokesperson of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Headquarters issued a statement stating: "China's territorial sovereignty must be defended by the Chinese people, and foreign governments are absolutely not allowed to invade it." (People's Daily, May 1, 1949) Japan) at the same time warned that the armed forces of imperialist countries such as Britain, the United States, and France must quickly withdraw from China. On the morning of the 21st, the troops of the East Group captured Dai Rongguang, the commander of the Jiangyin Fortress of the Kuomintang Army, through the underground party organization of the Jiangyin Fortress. The ship fled from the east to the west.The Jiangyin Fortress Uprising created favorable conditions for the People's Liberation Army to successfully cross the river.

As of 13:00 on April 22, most of the 7th and 9th Corps of the Three Fields had crossed the river; the 3rd, 4th, and 5th Corps of the Second Field had also crossed the river; Jiang.At this time, the General Front Committee reported to the Central Military Commission by telegram that the task of crossing the river had been completed so far.In the future, our army will strive to quickly complete the connection between the east and the west, split the enemy, and cut off the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Road.In order to cope with the East Group's operations, starting from the 22nd, "Tan Zhenlin led the 7th and 9th corps directly under the command of Su (Yu)." ("Crossing the River", p. 111)

At the same time as Sanye and Erye crossed the Yangtze River, the advance corps of Siye and the troops of the Central Plains Military Region successively liberated Huangmei, Xishui, Hanchuan and other places, effectively restraining the Bai Chongxi Group and supporting Erye's crossing operation. At this point, the KMT prepared hastily, and the Yangtze River defense line, which had not been well-arranged and did not intend to stick to it, collapsed in an instant.The myth that the Kuomintang has propagated for a long time that "the Yangtze River is a natural moat and cannot be flown across" has been shattered.When the People's Liberation Army was fighting across the river, it was shelled and bombed by the enemy with a total of 8,000 casualties.The People's Liberation Army broke through the "natural danger of the Yangtze River" so quickly. On the one hand, due to the full preparations before crossing the river, the troops were in high spirits, brave and good at fighting, invincible and unstoppable.On the other hand, due to the chaos of the enemy's formation, no overall arrangement, and little resistance, the People's Liberation Army completely followed the predetermined combat plan, rapidly developed in depth, and achieved the goal of dividing and encircling.