Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Jiangbei Yangge

March to April 1949 Lu'an Bengbu Hefei Yangtze River Liu Bocheng wrote at his desk, and his handsome and powerful small script was meticulously written on the yellow rough-edged paper——"Tactical Precautions for Crossing the River".His rigor is reflected in the battlefield, on the desk, and even in life, such as living, speaking, and dressing.The leggings he wears are the kind of "human" characters stacked on top of each other, tight and energetic, meticulous, and this is the case all year round-even in midsummer, when passing through the yellow flood zone, the 300,000 troops behind are chasing after them. The first floor was bombed by planes, and there was a three-foot-deep silt beneath my feet.

In late March, he led the Second Field Command into Lu'an, an important town in western Anhui.Lu'an was an old area of ​​the Soviet revolution back then, and almost every family "had made a fuss", and every household had children who joined the Red Army.On the day the People's Liberation Army entered the city, there were red flags and red slogans all over the city, welcome crowds all over the streets and alleys, and people stood on the towers. The old principal of Chengbei Elementary School, leading the school teachers and students, was waving small red flags to welcome the PLA. Officials from the County Working Committee approached him and said, "The PLA doesn't want to disturb the people. They want to sleep in the open on the school playground. What do you think?"

The headmaster immediately mobilized, except for a female teacher's dormitory, all the other buildings were vacated. In the evening, three jeeps came to the gate of the school, and a burly old soldier with glasses stepped out of the car. Knowing that it was Liu Bocheng, the old principal said excitedly: "Oh, I knew his name when he was a famous general in Sichuan and Sichuan, and he was chasing Yuan Yingxiong! Our school is lucky. I dare not think that Liu Bocheng can be in our school. live!" Liu Bocheng led the troops to live in the three rooms in the backyard, which were the school's arithmetic teacher's room.

Here, Liu Bocheng expounded one by one his "Instructions on Precautions for Crossing the River Tactics" composed of ten points.His strategic and tactical preparations for crossing the river had already begun.In the preface to his compilation of "On the Soviet Army's Breakthrough in the Fortification Zone", he analyzed the Kuomintang Army's Yangtze River defense line and pointedly pointed out: For the defense of the Yangtze River, there is the so-called "direct deployment", that is, deploying its main force directly on the south bank of the Yangtze River; Deployed at key points on both sides of the Yangtze River to strengthen reconnaissance, while the main force is deployed at deep mobile locations on the south bank...

Chiang Kai-shek's advanced equipment for the defense of the Yangtze River, in a broad sense, refers to his defense between the Yellow River and the Yangtze River;All of these could not be implemented due to the loss of the backbone forces in the Huaihai Campaign.Its retreat equipment is also unable to do so due to the small number of troops, the wide defense of the river, and the difficulty of communication with the south bank.He had to focus on direct equipment, but it was still not easy to do because of the small number of troops.The Yangtze River defense line of more than 2,000 miles below Hankou and the necessary deep equipment are too costly.On the salient part of the Yangtze River to the north bank, such as Hankou, Pukou and other key points, each has only two basic armies, so that such a long river defense becomes a "dead snake formation" that cannot move, and is ready to be cut.If one of them is cut off, the whole line will be shocked.

As for how to cut off this "dead snake formation", Liu Bo admitted: You must be good at collecting ships; be good at organizing troops to fight; be good at scouting the enemy's defensive equipment on the south bank, conduct detailed research, and strive to make key assault deployments targeting the enemy's weaknesses while crossing the river at the same time with a wide front; be good at organizing concentrated artillery fire To support the infantry crossing the river, so that it is not hindered by the enemy fleet, artillery and tanks. There is a village called Sunjiaxuzi in the southern suburbs of Bengbu City, which is known as the Pearl City. Behind the village is the Plum Blossom Mountain, and all the stones on the mountain have plum blossom patterns.The village is not small, mostly adobe walls and thatched roofs.

At the end of March, Chief Jia brought several soldiers to the house, and entered Sun Dunlan's house first.Last month, Liu Ruming's troops from the Eighth Corps of the Kuomintang also lived in this village, and Liu Ruming lived in Sun Dunlan's house.Fearing that the elder brother and the second brother would be caught by the strong men, Sun Dunlan's mother hid the eldest son and the second son in a hole in the ground, and the hole was under the mother's bed.Unexpectedly, Liu Ruming lived in his mother's room, and he couldn't send food and water to the cave. His mother was so anxious that she hid in the firewood shed and cried.Fortunately, they only stayed for one day, and Liu Ruming and his troops left in a hurry.At this time, when she heard that soldiers were coming again, my mother trembled nervously.

Chief Jia said: "This time, the soldiers from the Communist Party, the People's Liberation Army, are here." Sun Dunlan's mother was still shaking. She had never seen the People's Liberation Army, nor heard of the Communist Party.The big soldier next to Chief Jia said: "Mother, don't be afraid, we are the New Fourth Army during the Anti-Japanese War, now we are called the People's Liberation Army." The Sunjiaweizi area was a guerrilla zone during the Anti-Japanese War. Japanese troops and puppet troops lived in Bengbu City, and the New Fourth Army was in Meihua Mountain—that was the Sixth Detachment of the New Fourth Army led by Luo Binghui.During the day it was ruled by the Japanese and puppets, and at night it was ruled by the New Fourth Army. There is no one in this area who does not know the New Fourth Army.Sun Dunlan's mother nodded with half-belief, and gave up the four thatched houses newly built in the south for her second son to marry a wife.

Sun Dunlan was fourteen years old at the time. She was locked in the back room by her mother at the beginning. Later, she saw some soldiers pulling some ropes from the window to the south room one by one. Stand in the yard and watch.After looking at it, he went to the door of the south room, there was obviously no one in the room, but he heard someone talking, it was a woman's voice.He was startled, and after searching carefully, he gradually discovered that the sound came from a square wooden box. "It's haunted!" he yelled, and Sa Yazi ran away. The soldiers in the courtyard roared with laughter, deliberately teasing him: "The more you run, the more you will be chased by ghosts!"

Without looking back, he jumped into the window again with a whoosh. The next day the main force came.The person who lived in the south room of Sun Dunlan's house was a fat man in his forties, not too tall, with a big face, big eyes, and a loud voice, and he was accompanied by four servants.Sun Dunlan's mother still hid her eldest son and second son in a cave. A day passed, and the fat official only wandered outside the village for a while in the evening, and didn't leave the house all day.Quite a few people went to his room, all of them in a hurry, carrying papers and notebooks, shouting "report" and going in and out.Sun Dunlan's father said to her mother: "These soldiers are like the New Fourth Army. They buy and sell food and grass in the village. They don't beat people, arrest people, don't look at women, and they are neatly dressed. They are different from Liu Ruming's team. I Let's call the two boys out."

Mother agreed.Sun Dunlan said: "Don't lock me, I heard other people's children singing outside." The mother also nodded. The next day Sun Dunlan's father went out to the field, and the fat official greeted him with a smile, "Boss, how many acres have you planted?" "Four acres, sir." "Are the crops growing well?" "Thanks to the commander, there is no shortage of rain this year, and the wheat and rice are all good." "Haha, I'm not lucky, the boss is thanks to himself!" He said and went into the room. Sun Dunlan's father asked the soldiers standing guard outside the gate: "Is the chief who lives in my house a high-ranking official? He is very kind." The soldier on guard said, "It's a regimental commander." That night, Sun Dunrong, the son of Uncle Sun Dunlan, said quietly to him: "Third brother, let me tell you, there are so many rare things for the army coming back! The short official who lives in my house washes himself with well water when the sky is not clear. Really. If you don’t believe me, get up early tomorrow to see.” The next day Sun Dunlan got up early and slipped out the door. Sun Dunrong was already waiting for him.The two ran behind the fence of Sun Dunrong's house, and through the gap in the fence, they saw a short man wearing only a pair of shorts, taking a shower with a bucket of icy cold water.Sun Dunlan shivered when he saw it, and tightened his cotton jacket. Sun Dunrong said in a low voice: "Third brother, I see that he washes very happily, let's try it too?" Sun Dunlan hesitated: "Then it's not a frozen monkey?" "Look at him, he's all washed red, why isn't he cold?" "These people can haunt ghosts, and they can pack people into a very small box; they don't need kerosene or fire, and the lamp will light up by itself with a touch of your hand!" "Little devil, what are you doing there?" The short officer found them. They ran and murmured, "Why do they call children 'kids'?" "Probably... they are all 'big ghosts'." The soldiers on guard that day greeted Sun Dunlan's family, saying that there will be a meeting in the Nanwu for the next few days, and asked them to cooperate and be quiet. Sure enough, a lot of people came that day, several cars parked outside the courtyard, and laughter kept coming from the south room.You can see from the window that the fat official and the thin old man can laugh the most; the short man in the cold shower is not funny, and he is smoking a cigarette with his thin lips, watching them laugh.Sun Dunlan was locked in the room again by her mother, because she was afraid that he would mess around and affect the meeting in the south room.Forty-eight years later, Mr. Sun Dunlan said to the author: "I don't know, at that time the house was full of Chinese marshals and generals. The one who lived in my house was Chen Yi, the one who lived in Sun Dunrong's house was Deng Xiaoping, and the skinny old man was Tan Zhenlin. ——In fact, he was only in his forties at that time, and he was an old man in the eyes of our children. When I grew up, I liked to read history books and read some memoirs. The "Outline for the Implementation of the Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou Campaign" by Dingding Qiankun was formed during those few days of research, and it was in this adobe thatched hut of my house—this is probably the crudest combat conference room in the world!  …” Mr. Sun Dunlan said it well. On March 26, 1949, the General Front Committee meeting was held in Sunjiaweizi.Liu Bocheng was organizing troops to march to the north bank of the Yangtze River, so he was unable to attend the meeting. The other four—Deng Xiaoping, Chen Yi, Tan Zhenlin, and Su Yu—all attended the meeting. Zhang Zhen, chief of staff of Huaye, and some corps commanders also attended the meeting. These bosses are independent, and they rarely get together, and greeting and joking with each other are indispensable.Tan Zhenlin heard that Chen Yi got a "hailiu cigarette holder", so he had an "attempt" to "communist", saying: "I heard that Mr. Zhonghong (Chen Yi's word) got a treasure recently, and he didn't show it to open our eyes. It's stingy." Well." Chen Yi smiled slyly: "Boss Lin, do you want to hit my 'Autumn Wind'? I just can't be fooled by you!" Everyone laughed. Deng Xiaoping lit a cigarette and announced the start of the meeting.He first conveyed the spirit of the Second Plenary Session of the Seventh Central Committee, and then read the calls from the Military Commission on March 19 and 22. The Military Commission's telegram on March 19 stated: "...it has been decided that April 1 will be the day when representatives from Nanking will arrive in Peiping and start negotiations. Before April 5, we will be able to judge whether there is any hope for negotiations."22 A telegram from the 13th of April pointed out: "...in this way, the whole army can start crossing the river on April 13th or 14th, which will be beneficial to negotiations." Time is extremely urgent, and the battle of crossing the river is about to begin. This pre-war meeting is the meeting to specifically determine the plan for crossing the river. Deng Xiaoping pointed out that the general principle of the meeting is: to prepare for the enemy to gather troops in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou for a temporary confrontation or a decisive battle with us; to consider crossing the river to gain a firm foothold, consolidate the beachhead, and repel the enemy's counterattack. Take advantage of the victory to expand the results in depth. This principle was put forward based on a large amount of information collected by Su Yu's intelligence network. Mao Zedong had a strategic conception of sending Su Yu across the river in 1948, and after listening to Su Yu's opinion, he postponed this action.However, Su Yu, who has always had an "advanced" consciousness, began to prepare for crossing the river since then, and sent three batches of small troops and local cadres to the south to conduct a detailed study of the Yangtze River's ferry crossings, hydrology, and lakes, rivers, and ports associated with the Yangtze River. survey and draw a map.A large number of valuable military intelligence and various military maps collected by the military intelligence network of Nanjing, Shanghai and other cities distributed by the Third Field Army also provided important information for this meeting. After the Battle of Huaihai, Su Yu returned to Jinan to treat stomach problems.This disease that accompanied him all the year round would have a vicious attack every time he was extremely nervous and tired.From his dark and thin cheeks and heavy dizziness, it can be clearly seen that the illness and fatigue have not left him.This silent and unsmiling "Su Lang" is always so calm and peaceful, like a deep and clear lake.Mao Zedong noticed his extraordinary, once looked into his sunken eyes seriously, and asked him if he was a minority.Su Yu shook his head.In fact, Su Yu is a Dong nationality, but he never knew it before his death.The small farmyard with a maple forest in the mountainous area of ​​western Hunan has his childhood memories, but that small courtyard did not know that he had raised an extraordinary person. Su Yu made a speech at the meeting. He pointed out that Tang Enbo had 75 divisions, of which 54 divisions were on the front line of Jiangxi defense, and the focus was between Nanjing and Shanghai; a division.Of Bai Chongxi's forty divisions, 27 were deployed on the first line of Jiangfang, and 13 divisions were deployed on the second line. In addition, the Jiangfang Fleet and the Second Fleet had a total of more than 130 ships, which were located in the middle and middle of the Yangtze River. Downstream; more than 300 aircraft are located in Nanjing, Shanghai, Wuhan and other places.According to recent intelligence analysis, the enemy's defense of the Yangtze River is characterized by a shortage of first-line troops and almost no second-line troops.From this point of view, the enemy may form a rout situation under the situation that our various armies have successfully crossed the river, and withdraw to defend the Zhejiang-Jiangxi line for in-depth resistance. When the meeting was studying the specific plan, Tan Zhenlin pointed out in his speech: "The Military Commission asked us to cross the river on April 13th and 14th. That day was the 16th day of the lunar calendar, and the moonlight was all night. My commando team in the first echelon could not hide and could not seek Tactical suddenness. Therefore, it is recommended to delay for two days and start crossing the river on April 15th, that is, before 9:00 p.m. on the eighteenth day of the lunar calendar. It will be dark at that time, and it will be advantageous to dispatch." There is unanimous agreement with this recommendation. When discussing the specific method of crossing the river, Deng Xiaoping said: "In 1947, before our army went south and forcibly crossed the Yellow River, Comrade Bo Cheng conducted some research on the tactics of crossing the river in front of the enemy, and issued a document to the troops, reflecting that Very good. He was not able to come to this meeting, and here I have a copy of "Study on the Battle of Crossing the River", written by Comrade Bo Cheng, which is very valuable." Chen Yi continued: "I have read Comrade Bo Cheng's "Research on the Operation of Crossing the River". It can answer and solve many problems that may be faced in crossing the river. I think I should read it here for a while." He took the materials from Deng Xiaoping , said jokingly, "Comrade Bo Cheng is a great military strategist and intellectual, and he has a lot of research on military theory. I, Chen Yi, have followed the scriptures, and the generals should listen carefully." "According to our understanding, floating bridges cannot be built on the Yangtze River, only water crossings are possible. The main means of crossing the river are wooden boats and windshields; Wide, our artillery on the shore is not easy to suppress the enemy's firepower, and it is difficult to support the first echelon; fourth, the enemy has the cooperation of sea and air force, which is a greater threat to our crossing the river. How do we view these problems?" Liu Bocheng raised a lot of questions when he came up, like a hook to catch the hearts of the commanders and fighters first, and then analyzed and studied them one by one.It's a pity that Boss Chen read too fast, and the commanders of the corps who took notes were in a hurry and still didn't remember everything. Chen Yi said: "Comrade Xiaoping, why don't you print more of Bocheng's material and distribute it to the troops?" Deng Xiaoping agreed. At this time, the confidential staff sent two telegrams, Deng Xiaoping took over and read them, and one said that Li Zongren had transferred an independent 95th division from the northwest to strengthen defense in the south of the Yangtze River.Deng Xiaoping handed the telegram to Chen Yi and the others, thought for a while, and said, "Damn, I knew about this unit when I was working with Feng Yuxiang, and now we have to meet again." Then, Deng Xiaoping read the second telegram.Looking at it, he suddenly raised his eyebrows, and said loudly with joy: "Okay, Chairman Mao and the Party Central Committee entered Beijing yesterday!" Beijing was still called Beiping at that time, but everyone present heard Deng Xiaoping It's about Beijing. The news caused jubilation in the venue.Although it is reasonable for the Party Central Committee and Mao Zedong to enter Beiping, once this day becomes a reality, the excitement and excitement will still move these generals who have been fighting for decades.This made them truly feel that the birth of New China is not far away, and the ideal of the Communist Party's bloody struggle is about to be realized. Deng Xiaoping, in order to restrain his uneasy mood, lit a cigarette and smoked half of it in one gulp.He didn't like joking very much, so he said humorously at this time: "Oh, I will have to kneel three times and kowtow nine times when I come to Beijing in the future!" Sanye's chief of staff, Zhang Zhen, is an active person, and he continued: "Be careful, or you will be pushed out of the Meridian Gate and beheaded!" Chen Yi laughed loudly: "Brother Comrade, you still have to show mercy." While chatting and laughing, the two Eight Immortals tables that were used together for meetings had been pulled apart, and meals were served.Without waiting to be greeted, everyone sat around the table and waved their chopsticks. The meeting continued after the meal, and the overall deployment was completed in the evening.The 1.2 million crossing troops of the Second and Third Field Armies were divided into three combat groups: East, Central, and West.First, the Chinese group broke through from Wuhu to Zongyang, hit the enemy's left side and back, and cut off the enemy's southward retreat.The Central Group consists of the Seventh and Ninth Corps of the Third Field Army, the Second and Fourth Regiments of the Howitzer Artillery, a battalion of the First Regiment, and a cavalry regiment, with about 300,000 people, commanded by Tan Zhenlin, the deputy political commissar of the Third Field Army. Then the East Group will break through from the Zhenjiang and Jiangyin sections, cut off the traffic between Nanjing and Shanghai, and split the enemy's defense system; then reserve necessary troops to control the Beijing-Shanghai line according to the situation, and use the main force to cooperate with the Central Group to advance and attack the enemy who may retreat southward. The main force is in the west of Taihu Lake Zhelangxi, Guangde area.The East Group is composed of the Eighth and Ninth Corps of the Third Field Army, the Fifth and Sixth Howitzer Regiments, three garrison brigades in the Subei Military Region, the Coastal Defense Column, the Tank Regiment, and the Artillery Reserve, with about 350,000 people. Deputy Commander Su Yu and Chief of Staff Zhang Zhen commanded. The West Group crossed the river from the east and west sections of Anqing to attack the Zhejiang-Jiangxi line.The West Group consists of the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Corps of the Second Field Army, with about 350,000 soldiers, commanded by Liu Bocheng, commander of the Second Field Army, and Li Da, chief of staff of the Second Field Army. In order to facilitate the organization and command of the entire campaign, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yi led a command post to the vicinity of Hefei to coordinate the actions of various groups. After the meeting, Zhang Zhen was ordered by Chen Yi to draft a battle plan for crossing the river including the actions of the two major field armies according to the minutes of the meeting.It took Zhang Zhen a few days to draft it and then submitted it to Chen Yi, who reviewed it and then submitted it to Deng Xiaoping.After reading it, Deng Xiaoping called Zhang Zhen and said: "The command of the Corps should not be too specific. It is enough to mainly explain the battle plan and possible plans." Zhang Zhen said, "Okay, I'll start over." Deng Xiaoping thought about it for a while and said, "Time is running out, so I'll do it myself." On March 31, Deng Xiaoping formulated the "Outline for the Implementation of the Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou Campaign" based on the discussions at the meeting. The full text of the "Outline for the Implementation of the Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou Campaign" is divided into eight parts. It correctly analyzes the enemy's situation from the overall situation, and puts forward our army's combat program, combat deployment, campaign objectives, and time limit for launching campaigns; At the same time, it pointed out that each department can act decisively according to the specific changes of the situation. Chen Yi appreciated it very much after reading it, and issued it in the name of the General Front Committee on the same day, and reported it to the Central Military Commission and the Second Field Army. On April 3, the Central Military Commission replied, agreeing to the "Outline for the Implementation of the Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou Campaign."The day after the "Outline" was submitted to the Central Committee, at 4:00 pm on April 1, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yi led the General Front Committee to bid farewell to Sunjiaweizi and went to Yaogang Village, Cuo Town, Hefei, the new command site. It was drizzling that day, and the people in the village stood in the rain to see them off.Chen Yi said to Sun Dunlan's father: "Boss, we have lived here for quite a few days and have caused you a lot of trouble. Thank you!" Sun Dunlan wanted to get close to touch the small pistol on Chen Yi's waist, but she couldn't squeeze in.His two elder brothers stood in front of Chen Yi like wooden stakes, blushing and wanted to leave with the troops.Sun Dunrong was lucky. When Deng Xiaoping left his house, the guards gave him a whistle made of bullet casings, and when he blew it, it sounded half the village, making Sun Dunlan very envious. Bengbu had just been liberated, and the railway passenger transport had not yet resumed, only the stuffy tank trucks for transporting coal were still in operation.The reconnaissance staff officer Li Fuchou used his brains, negotiated with the person in charge of the railway, and added a hard-seat carriage for Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yi to the stuffy tank car. When it was getting dark, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yi arrived at Bengbu Railway Station.Chen Yi, who loves to move, walked from the front to the rear of the car, and said to Deng Xiaoping: "I see that there are still many empty compartments in those stuffy tank cars. Our organization of the General Front Committee can be regarded as a pocket organization." "The pocket mechanism is light and fast, okay." Deng Xiaoping said, rolling his eyes, "I said, you think we can take the stuffy tank car?" Chen Yi didn't react immediately. Deng Xiaoping said with a smile: "You can lie down and sleep in the stuffy tank car, which not only saves time, but also relieves fatigue. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone." Chen Yi looked at Deng Xiaoping's sunken eye sockets and high cheekbones, and knew that he was very tired these days.Chen Yi himself only slept for two hours last night. "It kills two birds with one stone! Just take the stuffy tank car." Chen Yi agreed. Li Fuchou hurriedly said: "That's a stuffy tank car for pulling coal!" Deng Xiaoping said, "It's fine if you can sleep." Chen Yi continued: "Where you can sleep now is heaven!" Li Fuchou hastily set up two camp beds temporarily in the stuffy tank compartment for pulling coal. The train roared all the way, and at dawn the next day, Hefei arrived.Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yi sat up, and before they could speak, they burst out laughing. Their faces were black except for their teeth and eyeballs, with a thick layer of soot attached. The sun was setting, and the sky was full of fiery red sunset glow, like millions of red flags fluttering.The vast Yangtze River was infected, and the black surface of the river gradually turned into light purple, and then turned into carmine, before taking a closer look, it turned into deep red, deep purple, and bronze... The Fifteenth Army, the advance unit of the Fourth Corps of the Second Field Army, arrived at the riverside in advance.On March 28, the 45th Division of the Front Guards of the Army, with thunderbolts, wiped out all the 355th Regiment of the 119th Division of the 68th Army, which was defending Huayang Town and the beachhead of Jiangzihao, and cleared the obstacles in Jiangbei. , Controlled the Huayang Ferry that goes straight out of the Yangtze River. Huayang Town is eight kilometers southeast of Wangjiang County. The lake here has a wide water area, which is convenient for gathering equipment for crossing the river and training troops on the water.The rivers and lakes are connected by the Huayang River, which is a good channel for attacking.There are many sandy beaches on the south bank, which is convenient for landing and is an ideal gathering place. However, the grim reality before them is that there are no ships, no sailors, and no necessary tools and equipment for repairing and building ships.Some of the local ships sank to the bottom of the river after being destroyed by the enemy, and some were towed away when the enemy retreated.The masses and fishermen along the river were persecuted by Jiang Jun. Some "fleeed and rebelled" to other places, and some were forced to go south of the Yangtze River by Jiang Jun's company and boats.The situation faced by the Fifteenth Army is common.The advance eleventh army, which set off at the same time as the fifteenth army, encountered the same problem. Fighting across the river, if you can't "cross", you can't talk about fighting.As far as "war" is concerned, as the troops reached the lakes and lakes by the river, new problems also appeared.Most of the soldiers in the army are soldiers from the Loess Plateau and the Northern Henan Plain. Their feet ran for 200 miles a day and a night without blisters or redness.If you let them ride horses and run on the vast plain, they can let go of the reins, raise their hands in the air, and perform a wonderful riding show amidst the cheers of the people. Now, almost all of their "unique skills" are useless.After going around the lake, their internal organs were all emptied, and they vomited.Before the Yangtze River was seen, these small tributaries of the Yangtze River tossed them into this appearance.So the Yangtze River that they had in their hearts - "a river of spring water, peach blossoms on both sides", no longer picturesque, and its appearance became hideous. "Hey, do you know how big the wind and waves are on the Yangtze River?" "There are three feet of waves without wind, but one foot high with wind!" "I heard that the Yellow River has a 'face with evil and kindness', and the Yangtze River has a 'face with kindness and a heart with evil'." "There are 'jiang pigs' in the Yangtze River, which are more fierce than tigers on the ground!" "There is also a rock that bites the boat. It is said to be nine miles and thirteen rocks. If it hits it, it will capsize..." And the task they faced was very urgent, requiring that "all preparations for crossing the river must be completed within half a month."Everything, including everything needed to cross the river: reconnaissance, intelligence, ships, sailors, tactics, technology... Liu Bocheng once again told his troops, "Don't be careless and negligent." Urgent matters are ships and sailors. The Communist army once again showed his love for the people.It is said that when the New Fourth Army and the Eighth Route Army came to the river, those who "fleeed from the rebels" and wandered in other places returned to their homes one after another;While publicizing the significance of crossing the river, the troops saved their own rations to help those families who were "not receiving enough food" to make spring famines.The local working committee cooperated with the army to formulate a ship collection policy, announcing that: for owned ships, they must be returned to their original owners after use, regardless of whether they are old or new, and damages will be compensated; for unowned ships, whoever finds them and salvages them and provides them to the troops will belong to them in the future .After the notice was posted, the enthusiasm of the ship owner and insiders was mobilized. An old monk was rescued from malaria by the health workers of the army. He said: "The army is benevolent and the people love things, so we must help." When the ship owner went to the temple to inquire about good and bad luck, he always had to sign a lot, thinking that the army would be helped by God's will, so he enthusiastically handed over the ship. Having a ship does not mean having sailors.It is more difficult to turn the boatman into a commando who dares to cross under the artillery fire than to conscript the ship.Those instructors and trainers who are quite good at educating soldiers, relying on their own enthusiasm and experience, called the ship bosses for meetings and discussions, and got busy. On that day, the instructor Jin Hutang organized a meeting for the boatmen. He talked endlessly about "land reform and turning over", and talked about "the meaning of crossing the river" and "military-civilian cooperation".He had prepared carefully and spoke so well that he was moved.Look at the boatmen, some are thinking about something, some are stretching, and some are just squatting in the corner and dozing off.Jin Hutang asked: "Fellow townsmen, what do you think?" "I don't understand..." "Sitting for too long, my butt hurts." After a basin of cold water came down, Jin Hutang felt unspeakably frustrated and disappointed. When the local party committee learned of this, it smiled and said, "How can you bring your experience in land reform here? They are all dock workers, with a lot of experience, suffered a lot, are suspicious, and don't believe in it. But they have their own ideas. Temperament, loyalty, and loyalty; you respect him one foot, and he respects you ten feet; you treat him sincerely, and he trades his head. They are all in the "Bang", that is, "Sanfanzi". In the "Bang" All people talk about seniority, and one word from the 'Old Man' is an imperial decree." Qin Jiwei first came forward to invite the "old man" to drink in the "tent" and invite him to "participate in the military aircraft"; the commander of the division also invited people from the "big generation" to have a meal and drink together and ask them to give ideas; the instructors and instructors all boarded the boat, Chat with the boss of the boat and make friends; the soldiers are like apprentices serving their masters. When they get on the boat, they first salute the boatmen collectively, serve food and water, and learn skills with an open mind.In addition, the life of the family members of the boatmen will be given preferential treatment; for those who have made meritorious contributions to the army, they will be issued a decree of merit, hang a flag of honor, host banquets for leaders, and take pictures with reporters. Those Jianghu men who often drank a few sips of old wine and opened their clothes clapped their palms heavily on the soldier's shoulder, and with the other hand clenched into a fist and hit their own chest: "Brother, don't worry a hundred times. There is a boat coming , I’m here. If I’m here, I’ll escort you across the river.” "Don't think of me as a fool, I don't understand why your army came across the river? You only have one life, you are willing to lose it, why should I keep it?!" "Brother, poor people have a lot of ambition. We are all bloody, and we hate those oppressors all our lives. From ancient times to the present, I have never seen such a good person like you. It is not bad to say that I will not send you a boat. Is it a man who ventured into the rivers and lakes?" "In a word, if you don't send the army across the river, you will be in vain for the people of this world!" Water training has begun. On the third month of the lunar calendar, the hibernating insects had just woken up, and the soldiers threw off their cotton clothes, leaving only a pair of shorts naked.They soaked in the bone-chilling river branch all day long, some hugged a door panel and fluttered around; some hugged a thick bamboo and stabbed it; plane.In the wind and rain, these "landland ducks" finally got used to water. Under the clear sky, the lake is full of waves.The boatmen led the new apprentices, shouting shortly from time to time: "Left rudder!" "Right rudder!"The new apprentice was so anxious that his face turned red. The harder he tried, the more the boat turned, and the boatman laughed loudly.The wind stopped, and the boat seemed to be sucked by water, and would not move again.The young man couldn't bear his temper, raised his neck, looked at the little weathervane on the top of the mast, and said "heh-heh".They whistled their newly learned whistle, stammering and clumsy, without the charm of the old sailor's mouth.The female fisherman who mended the net covered her mouth and laughed. Soon the fishermen discovered the cleverness of the soldiers. With their hands holding guns and cannons, they not only manipulated the tiller, scull handle, and awning rope, but also made one sail and two sculls passed down by fishermen from generation to generation. The fishing boat has changed.Fan Ruilai, a soldier who was born as a railway worker, made water leaves from four boards three feet long and three feet eight inches wide, and set them up as a cross; he installed a front clip and a rear clip on the deck to clamp the axis of the cross inside. A wooden handle is installed at the end, and people sit in the cabin and shake it, which is equivalent to adding ten pairs of oars, which can not only conceal the body, but also greatly increase the speed of the ship. Soldiers of the Second Field and Twelfth Army invented a "life buoy".They twisted 20 jins of straw into handles, formed a circle, and put water on their bodies, which can not only hold guns, but also save lives.This lifebuoy can still be used after being immersed in water for twelve hours. Wang Jinshan, commander of the 12th Army, came to the station of the 35th Division.In the morning, Liu Bocheng called him and asked the Twelfth Army to conduct an actual combat exercise. First, to gain experience in fighting on the river, and second, to eliminate some northern soldiers' fear of the Yangtze River.Wang Jinshan selected the thirty-fifth division.The division is close to Tiebanzhou, Jiangxinzhou, the enemy's Jiangfang stronghold. On the island, there are more than 300 people from the third battalion of the 87th Regiment of the 29th Division of the enemy, and there are bunkers. Wang Jinshan came to the lake to watch the soldiers train after assigning tasks in the 35th Division.He grinned when he saw that the soldiers had changed from "climbing tigers" to "floating dragons" one by one, and their bodies were tanned. The soldiers liked their commander who "burned the grass" very much, and shouted: "Commander Wang, come one!" Wang Jinshan's heart was already itching, and when he was called out like this, he tossed his hat and took off his cotton coat. The accompanying staff officer was in a hurry: "Commander, I'm going to get sick from the cold!" "Which one said that?! I still dare to throw myself in the river for nine days." Wang Jinshan said that he was almost undressed, and jumped into the lake with a plop.The soldiers in the lake cheered. Wang Jinshan has been playing in the water since he was a child, and in the pond in front of Hong'an's house, he got rid of all the naughty things a child could do.Decades have passed, but the kung fu is still there. He is up or down, standing up or down, like a "white stripe in the waves".The soldiers were dizzy from seeing, and applause came one after another. Xiao Meng, Wang Jinshan's guard, was very proud. He knew that the commander had a "unique skill", so he shouted on the shore: "Commander, erect the dragonfly!" "Commander, catch the moon!" "Commander, the Eight Immortals cross the sea!" "Not coming, not coming." "Commander, let's have another carp jumping over the dragon's gate!" Xiaomeng still refused to give up. "Okay, okay, I let you direct for so long, my legs are cramping." There was laughter on the lake. At this time, Xiao Yongyin, deputy commander of the 12th Army, was running near the river embankment on the first line of Zongyang.He was given command of a powerful artillery group, four mountain artillery battalions of the Twelfth Army, one mountain artillery regiment of the Third Corps, and one howitzer regiment of the Yesi.According to the deployment of the Erye Command, the Twelfth Army will cross the Yangtze River from Zongyang, east of Anqing, the main assault direction. Their left wing is the Sanye troops, and the rear side is the Erye Liu Bocheng's troops in the direction of Tongcheng. More than 200 cannons are concealed in the dense willow forest on the Yangtze River embankment.The willow branches spouting new green leaves are drooping and scattered, green and emerald, like a heaven-made camouflage for the cannons of the troops crossing the river, covering the black and bright cannons tightly.There are also some cannons hidden on the hillside facing the south bank of the river.The slope is densely covered with azaleas, and the branches as tall as a person are green and black, which is exactly the same color as the group of cannons.The pink flower buds in the thriving azalea bushes are swaying with the wind on the oily green, looking from a distance, they look like a group of playful urchins. Xiao Yongyin squatted in the army command post on the embankment, raised his thick eyebrows, and watched the misty and misty river across the river.The black muzzles of his cannons pointed at the south bank of the river, and all of them were numbered; all the enemy fortifications on the opposite bank were also numbered. "Sit on the right seat", his artillery group must make an effective "speak".Now it is not like the embarrassment when we forcibly crossed the Dadu River. At that time, there were only three or five shells, but now each gun has 100 to 150 shells.The real "today is not what it used to be, the shotgun has changed".