Chapter 17 Chapter 17 A Dozen of Yulin

"Three battles and three victories", going west to Longdong and regaining the "three sides" - Peng Dehuai's prologue trilogy made Hu Zongnan show his timidity, "Ma's army" was frightened, and an inexplicable psychological plague of fear generally spread among the Kuomintang officers and soldiers on the Northwest battlefield among. There is only one person who stays out of the matter, and that is Deng Baoshan, the commander of the Shanxi-Shaanxi Border Region who sits firmly in Yulin and remains calm. Since the autumn of 1937, when the commander of the new First Army stationed in Lanzhou was transferred to Yulin as the commander of the 21st Army and the deputy commander-in-chief of the North Route Army in the Second Theater, Deng did his best in domestic and foreign affairs, while resettling the Mongolians who had fled to Yulin. Banner princes and a large number of refugees organized them into guerrillas and stationed along the Yellow River west of Baotou. On the one hand, they closely contacted Yan Xishan, commander-in-chief of the World War II zone, and Fu Zuoyi, commander-in-chief of the North Route Army of the World War II zone, to strengthen the defense deployment in Northwest Shanxi.At the same time, with an intimate attitude, he also got in touch with the rear troops of the Eighth Route Army to stabilize the river defense.He also transported the spirit tablet of Genghis Khan enshrined in the Bailing Temple to Lanzhou in a grand manner, and placed it in Xinglong Mountain in Yuzhong.The psychological impact of this on the Mongolian people cannot be underestimated.Since then, no matter how chaotic the prairie is, their yearning and looking back have always been at the source of the Yellow River.

If Yulin is not guarded, it is naturally stable.Since Jing Xiuyue, an old Shaanxi warlord, built his nest here in the early years of the Republic of China, Yulin has been in a precarious state.Jing Xiuyue's brigade commander Gao Shuangcheng and even Gao's subordinate Zuo Shiyun have followed for more than ten years, but they have not been able to anchor Yulin, a sailboat in the rough waves, at a harbor, but Deng Baoshan has done it. When Deng was ordered to arrive in Yulin, Taiyuan, Guisui, and Baotou fell one after another. People from Chasui and Chasui provincial governments, their affiliated institutions, and local troops fled to Yulin one after another, and the princes of the Mongolian Banner panicked.Deng himself could hardly imagine how he managed to calm down this chaotic situation.During the eight years of the Anti-Japanese War, Deng Baoshan gradually grew old amidst the turmoil.Sitting in the frontier fortress, for several years, the passionate man gradually became a piece of bacon that could not be chewed or tasted.

Chiang Kai-shek did not dare to underestimate this piece of "bacon".The unforgettable meeting at the "Second Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee" of the Kuomintang on the eve of the civil war gave him an unforgettable stimulus.It was after that meeting that Lao Jiang confirmed that this soft-boned guy was not a loyal executor of his own policy of "fighting chaos".Is it accidental that Deng Baoshan claimed to support Washington but not Napoleon?Chiang Kai-shek ignored it on the surface, but reminded Hu Zongnan more than once in private: "Brother, this person (referring to Deng) is unreliable. He doesn't talk about leaders, and his mind is full of 'isms', such as Washington, Napoleon, and I Look, he only has Deng Baoshan in his heart!" Hu Zongnan sighed: "This is all for the Communist Party."

Hu Zongnan's words seemed to mean something.During the entire Anti-Japanese War, Hu not only vividly remembered Deng Baoshan's contact with the Communist Party, but also recorded it.At that time, as long as Deng went to Xi'an, he had to stop in Yan'an on his way to and from Xi'an.In Yan'an, Mao Zedong met with Deng twice, and it is said that the two talked "very speculatively".The CCP generals Xiao Jinguang and Wang Zhen also visited Yulin many times, and they often exchanged letters with each other.As for people like He Long, Peng Dehuai and Xi Zhongxun, they are short of calling Deng Baoshan brothers!It is said that personal relationships belong to personal relationships, and politics belongs to politics, but how can the two be clearly distinguished?He, Deng Baoshan, didn't close the door to read the Communist Party's pamphlets in the end-of course, Hu Zongnan is inconvenient to say more about this, and Hu himself is no stranger to the Communist Party's theoretical policies.

Indeed, in terms of ideals and beliefs, there may be something in common between Deng and Hu, and both of them can be regarded as revolutionaries.But "revolution" is not the same as "revolution". Even if Deng and Hu are in the same camp, they are also loyal believers of the "Three People's Principles", and they read communist pamphlets together, but if you take a step deeper, who is it? I can't figure out who's true face. The complexity of China in the 20th century is probably here. The most terrible thing is that Deng Baoshan holds Yulin firmly in his hand.This ancient town on the Great Wall is a veritable frontier fortress.The irreplaceable location makes Hu Zongnan feel a dull pain in a certain part of his body every time he thinks about it.Before attacking Yan'an, the defense area under the jurisdiction of the Yulin garrison stretched from Fugu and Shenmu in the east to Hengshan in the west, "three sides".With Yulin as the fulcrum, Fu Zuoyi's Suiyuan in the north and Ma Hongkui's Ningxia in the west echo each other and form a corner.Without this line of defense, even if Hu Zongnan jumped to the sky on the battlefield in northern Shaanxi, he would be helpless.

However, is Yulin reliable?Hu Zongnan asked himself thousands of times, but he still had no idea.Naturally, he couldn't let this situation go unchecked.In the way of a gentleman, courtesy first and soldiers second, Hu launched a fierce offensive against Deng.The first trick is to flatter, no matter what the occasion, when mentioning Deng Baoshan, you won't hear Hu Zongnan say "no".Even in front of Lao Jiang, Hu highly praised Deng, saying that he had made great contributions to the party and the country, was highly respected in the Northwest, and was deeply loved by the people.As long as Deng went to Xi'an, Hu Zongnan would always invite him to Dongcangmen's mansion with excellent courtesy.When Gao Shuangcheng, commander of the Yulin garrison brigade, died of illness, Hu went to Yulin in person in the name of condolences, and performed the intimacy between himself and Deng Baoshan to a disgusting level.However, Deng Baoshan is still Deng Baoshan, what should be said and what should be done, no one can put his head on his neck.

Hu Zongnan shaved his head and picked his head hot, and finally got a little tired from the "hot", so he played Chiang Kai-shek secretly, hoping to replace Yulin.Coincidentally, after the "Second Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee", Deng Baoshan felt uncomfortable in any muscle, and ran back to her hometown in Sanyuan, Shaanxi, declaring that she did not want to work in Yulin again.He is escaping from reality and doesn't want to be involved in the vortex of civil war!Chiang Kai-shek pushed the boat along the way, and after a few words of persuasion, he hurriedly pushed his confidant Dong Zhao up, and was appointed as the deputy commander-in-chief of the Shanxi-Shaanxi-Suibei Border Region in name, while Deng was still the commander-in-chief, but in fact he was replaced by Dong Zhao.

Dong and Zuo Shiyun, commander of the 22nd Army of Yulin's veteran defender, were from the same township. According to Hu and Jiang's thinking logic, it should not be difficult for Dong Zhao to control Yulin.Unexpectedly, there are thorns on the top chair in Yulin. Although Zuo Shiyun is a fellow villager, he is also wary of Dong Zhao, a directly subordinate member of the Central Committee who came to Yu alone, and welcomes outside but rejects inside.Dong Zhao climbed to the thorny top spot and did not sit for half a year. He felt uncomfortable and resolutely offered to resign.This time Hu Zongnan understood that Yulin still needs Deng Baoshan.

Deng Baoshan is also inseparable from Yulin.From "young and strong" to "veteran", the city of Yulin seems to have some kind of physical connection with him, and his name seems to be the same as this fortress, destined to become a "must fight".Not many days after returning to Yu, something like Cao Youcan's "trilateral" uprising happened, and then He Long and Nie Rongzhen attacked Suibao.Deng Baoshan had to discard some mirage-like ideas and make a more pragmatic choice.This choice forced him to come here at Yulin Xiu's departure airport, half-coerced and half-dutifully. The long letter advising him to "resolutely raise troops to revolt" was hesitant.

Even so, Hu Zongnan still saw it in his eyes and was anxious in his heart.Apart from "strengthening supervision", the only thing we can do is "install nails".This is still the "one trick" that Dai Li taught him before his death.But Hu Zongnan is not Dai Li, he has all kinds of martial arts under him, and it is hard to find a character as delicate, slippery and loyal as Dai Yunong.For several days, Hu Zongnan was troubled by this matter.In desperation, he suddenly remembered a person, and this person was Xu Bao, commander of the reorganized 28th Brigade.Xu is from Chahar Huai'an (now in Hebei Province). He graduated from the fourth phase of Whampoa. , It was not until 1936 that I became a regimental leader.Needless to say, this is the leader of Hu Da Hu Er.He is addicted to gambling, and his gambling addiction is even worse than that of Hu Zongnan back then.Unexpectedly, it was precisely this that became the opportunity for him to impress Hu Zongnan and make him a success.

It all started with a night of gambling.Just at the end of the month, the officers and soldiers of the whole regiment had their salaries at hand, so Xu Bao boldly broke into the casino, hoping to hold a golden baby.Unexpectedly, he was unlucky, and he couldn't stop. In one night, he lost tens of thousands of wages and nothing left.Xu Bao's gambling style is frank, and he will never let his debts fall when he loses his pants.After dawn, he had no choice but to assemble the team with empty hands and give a lecture: "Brothers, this month's head of the payroll...here it is!"Xu Bao salivated, and his tone collapsed, "But... his grandma, our regiment is not lucky, the regiment leader didn't draw cards all night, and lost all the money!" Splashed a chill, eyes straight.The shrewd and ingenious Xu Bao hastily changed the subject: "Brothers, don't worry, it's a good day tonight, and the head of the regiment will definitely go and find out for everyone. Tomorrow, I promise to pay the whole regiment double wages! Everyone said, will it work?" What's wrong?The officers and soldiers of the whole regiment were stunned for a moment, and had no choice but to shout "Hello". The matter reached Hu Zongnan's ears, which made him very angry! "Fucking ball!" Hu slapped the table to Xu Bao, who was respectfully standing upright, "I ask you, the ancient generals, which one was born as a gambler? You answer me!" If you can answer such a question, Xu Bao is not Xu Bao up.Hu Zongnan hummed in disappointment, not knowing what to scold.At this time, it happened that someone shouted "report" outside, and Hu took the opportunity to rush out the door.Three circles in one circle, and the matter was left behind. When it was dark, Hu Zongnan came back, but he never expected that Xu Bao was still standing there motionless.This time Hu was deeply moved, loyal or not depends on his actions, after all, he is also a member of Huangpu, and he did it in his own whole division... Thinking about it, his heart softened, and he reprimanded: "Forgive you again I can’t answer my question after ten days of thinking! Useless things, go, go to the manager and get another month’s salary... Don’t be fooled next time!” Xu Bao didn’t care about the next time, so he saluted, Turning around and grinning, he ran to collect the second payment. From then on, Xu Bao's name appeared in Hu Zongnan's notebook. Not long after, Xu received a letter of appointment to be promoted to brigade commander, and happily left the position of brigade commander who owed a butt of gambling debts.With the deepening of understanding, Hu Zongnan also learned later that Xu Bao's father-in-law Wu Mianzhi and Deng Baoshan were former colleagues of the Nationalist Second Army.Xu himself used to have contacts with Deng when he was the deputy of the regiment stationed in Lanzhou in the first division.In this way, the appointment of a loyal Xu Bao can affect a large background, which of course Hu Zongnan is very happy to do.But if Xu Bao can be placed beside Deng Baoshan through certain reasons, the meaning will be even more different. With his mind set, Hu Zongnanli sent his deputy Gao Guizi to Yulin to plan Yulin's defense together with Deng.Immediately afterwards, as the meaning of Hu Jun's massive attack on Yan'an, more than 6,000 people from Xu Bao's reorganized 28th Brigade were airlifted to Yu and dropped from the sky.The incident was very natural before and after, and Hu Zongnan's intentions were clearly revealed.Yes, the strength of 6,000 troops has indeed strengthened Yulin's defense.But it has put pressure on Deng Baoshan and her original team.What Hu Zongnan wanted was this "pressure".He believes that the special significance of this move will be revealed sooner or later.Sure enough, by August 1947, everything became clear. Deng Baoshan felt very sudden when she learned that Peng Dehuai had entered Yulin.At night, he quietly brought Zuo Shiyun here to discuss countermeasures.The left face was heavy, and he said: "Peng has seven brigades of the Communist Party's main force in northern Shaanxi. Even if we don't fight, the siege of Yulin for a month or two is enough for us!" Deng Baoshan snorted faintly: "Is the matter really as serious as you said?" He got up and walked to the wall chart, and slowly opened the curtain, "As far as I know, the Communist Party just held a meeting in the 'Three Sides' to plan A new strategy. Their formulation is to switch from inside defense to inside counterattack. What is "counterattack"? It's nothing more than moving the battle to the garrison area of ​​the national army. Did you know? Chen Geng in southern Shanxi is already organizing the "Taiyue" The Corps is going south. At present, Peng Dehuai's first priority is to hold Mr. Hu and make way for Chen Geng's Corps, not me..." Zuo Shiyun listened suspiciously to Deng Baoshan's words, not sure, let alone denying it.As early as when Hu Zongnan captured Yan'an, Deng predicted that the head of the Communist Party would never leave northern Shaanxi easily. .Although the current situation is different, Deng Baoshan's judgment seems to have its own reasons based on Deng Baoshan's thorough knowledge of the situation of the Communist army.Zuo Shiyun turned to talk about trivial matters about the defense of the army, and the conversation between the two became cold. At this time, Xu Bao came in.He was always like this, arriving uninvited, and quietly, which caught people off guard.This made Deng Baoshan very uncomfortable, but it was inconvenient to say more in order to save face.Xu Baoji is good at observing words and demeanor, so of course he knows it well, he just pretends not to understand, and always follows the steps when meeting each other, so as to respond to all changes with the same.When Deng Baoshan was called by Xu Bao's uncle a few times, the feeling of discomfort in her heart disappeared, and she could not help but treat each other with courtesy and ask some insincere words.At a meeting of senior military officers a few days ago, when Deng Baoshan analyzed Peng Dehuai's next move, she expressed her own point of view. She believed that the two possibilities of "crossing the Yellow River east" and "attacking Yulin" that everyone talked about lacked basis for existence. .Especially in the attack on Yulin, he concluded that Peng would not move Yulin lightly before Hu Zongnan's main force was eliminated. As soon as this remark came out, Xu Bao was the first to stand up and object.Deng Baoshan didn't say anything at the time, but she always wanted to talk to Xu afterwards, and this was the opportunity, so Deng said, "Is my nephew exaggerating to Peng Dehuai?" , Peng's seven brigades have been recuperating in the "Three Sides" for almost a month. If he wants to go south to fight with Mr. Hu, the team will not be able to afford it, and the force will be weak. Yulin is under siege, can Mr. Hu just watch and ignore it? If I were Peng Dehuai, I would hit Yulin, one stone hits two birds!" Although Xu Bao is a ghost, he is a rough person after all, every word he speaks makes Deng Baoshan frown.On the other hand, Zuo Shiyun listened carefully, and after Xu Bao finished speaking, he echoed in a low voice: "I also think that Peng Dehuai was a bad visitor..." Deng Baoshan was a little shaken, but her tone remained unchanged, and said with a sneer: "The Communist Party still needs to go to war with Yulin so much? They don't have to use force if they want to enter Yulin. In my opinion, they probably want to cross the Yellow River east!" These words are tantamount to revealing their relationship with the Communist Party. up.Xu Bao shook his head, knowing the mystery but didn't point it out. He just said: "The ancients are right, the fence is tightly tied, and wild dogs can't get in. Uncle, don't be too careless, it's better to be careful!" Deng Baoshan opened his mouth and smiled, "Don't worry! Nephew..." With a haha ​​on his lips, a small drum was beating in his heart: Is it true that the CCP really wants to occupy Yulin? Deng Baoshan has his reasons for being suspicious.Since Hu Zongnan increased his troops in Yulin, he has repeatedly urged Deng to prepare for the war.Xu Bao responded positively. His 28th Brigade made a big fuss on the defensive position of the Lingxiao Tower in the south of the city on its own initiative, casting reinforced concrete, and conducting new weapon exercises, which made Deng feel very awkward.As a member of the army, he always attached great importance to personal friendship, so he never believed that the Northern Shaanxi People's Liberation Army under the command of Peng Dehuai would attack Yulin without a declaration of war. "If you really want to occupy Yulin, you should send someone to say hello first!" He mentioned this privately to Zuo Shiyun, the commander of the 22nd Army more than once. Zuo Shiyun is sober.When Hu Jingduo raised his righteousness, Deng Baoshan’s headquarters was still located in Taolin Mountain Villa next to Jingang Temple in the south of the city. Zuo Jian invited Deng to live in his military headquarters, saying: “Commander-in-Chief, forgive Zuo’s blunt statement, the battlefield is not like the Jianghu, the Communist Party has always been Do not fight against 'ism'!" Deng Baoshan waved his hands with a nonchalant expression on his face: "Everyone has his own aspirations, I know it!" He still returned to Taolin Villa, and fixed a radio station for himself. Accompanied by an old electrician, he listened to the news from Xinhua News Agency every night and watched from the sidelines the situation in northern Shaanxi.In the past few months, the war situation has taken a turn for the worse, and Deng Baoshan is becoming less and less optimistic about the Kuomintang.This further strengthened his determination to keep Yulin out of the war in northern Shaanxi. However, what can Deng Baoshan's wishful thinking explain?Yulin, armed with live ammunition, is undoubtedly a great threat to the Northern Shaanxi People's Liberation Army and the CCP's leadership.Since Deng Baoshan was unable to remove the armor from the city, she could only accept the sword.Two days later, on August 4, he had to make a rational choice, and another real "commander-in-chief" surfaced: Deng Baoshan held a banquet in Taolin Villa, and Yu Jianzun, commander of the reorganized 11th Brigade, He convened a meeting with Wang Yongqing, the head of the first regiment, Zhou Xiaowu, the head of the second regiment, and the officials above the brigade.Holding a glass of wine, Deng announced to them that they would be transferred into the city from Hongdun in the northwest of Yulin to Wushen Banner and Sancha Bay 20 miles south of the city. Prepare for unexpected events. But it was too late.On the third day when Deng Baoshan shyly decided to fight, Sanchawan, Liuguanzhai, and Gaojiapu strongholds outside Yulin were surrounded by the PLA at the same time and wiped out several battalions of the Kuomintang army stationed there.Because all the telephone lines were cut off during the battle, the news did not reach Deng Baoshan immediately, and it was not until the next day that it came like a thunderbolt. Deng Baoshan is stupid!The officers and soldiers guarding these strongholds were brought out one by one from his hometown!Mr. Zhen Zaiming, who was the secretary of the lieutenant colonel of the headquarters, recalled that the Battle of Sanchawan greatly stimulated Deng Baoshan, "He never thought that he would fight the Communist Party. He had to fight, but the first sacrifice was brought out by himself to participate in the battle." Hometown Children of the Anti-Japanese War". Under the urging of Zuo Shiyun and others with repeated phone calls, Deng Baoshan left Taolin Villa angrily and returned to the city. "On the day Deng left Taolin Villa, his face was gloomy. Before he left, he went to inspect the offices in person. At this time, bullets shot through the houses behind the sand beams above the King Kong Temple. We swarmed into the city with Deng. When we When I walked to the south gate of Yulin, I looked back and saw the area around Nanmao Village to the east of Taolin Mountain Villa, and the red flag of the People’s Liberation Army was already flying on the sand beam.” Thus, Yulin began to become a prepared city in a hurry.In the afternoon of the same day, Deng Baoshan held a military meeting in a mission hall of a Christian church in the city to redeploy the defense of Yulin City, and determined that the four cities in the east, west, south and north were the main points of city defense. The temple and other positions were the most important. Deng entrusted Xu Bao with the heavy responsibility of guarding these positions, and appointed Ao Mingquan, head of the 83rd Regiment of the 28th Brigade, as the commander of the positions.The 82nd Regiment firmly guarded the southern city wall.After the deployment of the city defense was completed, Deng Baoshan took Xu Bao to inspect all the main positions in the city, and at the same time sent a report to Xi'an and Beiping to report the situation of the siege and the measures to defend the city. Hu Zongnan was very calm when he received Deng Baoshan's telegram.It is a little gratifying that Deng finally had no way out and declared war openly. As for putting Xu Bao's team in a dangerous place, it is human nature. From another perspective, this also shows that Deng Baoshan trusts Xu Bao whom she sent. and reused.In any case, it is better for Xu Bao to be trusted and reused by Deng than to be suspected for no reason.Hu felt that he didn't have to worry too much about these side issues.He had more important things to do. Before Deng Baoshan's telegram, another telegram from the Nanjing Ministry of Defense had already arrived.Chiang Kai-shek wants to make a historic adjustment to the Northwest battlefield, and he is scheduled to visit Yan'an in person in the near future! For this day to come, Hu Zongnan has been tossing for half a year.It was not long after the capture of Yan'an, and he began to select the site and prepare materials, and arranged the "Chairman's Mansion", specially for Chiang Kai-shek to renovate the former border area diplomatic hotel on the west slope of Nanguan in Yan'an.Hu Zongnan took great pains and spent a lot of money on this. All the materials needed for building bricks, tiles and internal facilities were all airlifted from Xi'an and replaced.Indoor coffee color lacquered wooden floor, foreign porcelain bathtub, flush toilet, sofa, steel wire bed, Chinese and Western tableware, cabinets and the like—delicate in place.After the entire project was roughly completed, Hu Zongnan ordered the heavy doors to be locked tightly, and special personnel were assigned to take care of them, and no idlers were allowed to come near.Now, the days are approaching, and Chinese and Western chefs and delicacies from mountains and seas must be airlifted from Xi'an, Nanjing, Shanghai, and Peking.Hu Cai didn't care how many Communist troops gathered around Yulin.He understood that Chiang Kai-shek was lucky enough to be in Yan'an, and even if the sky fell, would Hu Zongnan still be guilty of hitting him with his head? Hu Zongnan's superficial indifference made the CCP Central Military Commission and Peng Dehuai somewhat disappointed.At that time, Mao Zedong didn't know that Chiang Kai-shek was about to visit Yan'an. He only thought that there must be another reason for Hu Zongnan's abnormal calmness.Deng Baoshan's reduction of troops and an unprecedentedly active defense, and Hu Zongnan's equanimity and delay in making the necessary response seem unreasonable in Peng Dehuai's preset plot.But that didn't surprise him.So far, the People's Liberation Army has only approached the city with troops, except for defeating a few outlying strongholds, it has not made any major moves.If one day Yulin City is torn apart, let's see if Hu Zongnan can hold his breath!Hu never sees the coffin without crying, and Peng Dehuai's real purpose of attacking Yulin this time is to get a coffin for Hu Zongnan to see, mobilize the main force of Hu Zongnan's group to go north, and seize the strategic points of Yulin by camera, so as to obtain soldiers, replenish supplies, and consolidate rear.To this end, the Central Military Commission has made an all-out gesture.As soon as the Xiaohe meeting ended, Boss He sent Xu Guangda's third column, which had been honed for a long time in Northwest Shanxi, across the Yellow River. Xu Guangda came prepared to cross the Yellow River.In the past few months, although the newly formed third column has fought a lot of battles, it is far inferior to galloping around under the big theme of "defending the Party Central Committee and defending Chairman Mao".Seeing the thrilling scenes in Hexi and Northern Shaanxi, the commanders and fighters couldn't help but feel a little lonely.Therefore, after receiving the order to cross the Yellow River westward to participate in the Xiyehui to attack Yulin, the troops completed preparations for departure in only two hours. The task is exciting enough: the fifth independent brigade crosses the river first, goes straight to Wulongbao, and then passes through Xingshu Tower and Yinjiangmao from Shajiadian to clean up the enemies at Liuquan River and Qingyun Mountain outside Yulin; the second independent brigade is commanded by the column The Ministry directly controls and is responsible for solving the enemies of Gaojiabao and Qiaochatan in the northeast of Yulin.These strongholds are arranged on the east side of Yulin in a north-south line, and the third column is in charge of one side and forms a pincer attack trend with the first and second columns.In addition, Xu Guangda left an infinite tail behind all the orders.Based on his tactical sensitivity, it is not difficult to guess that no matter how realistically the troops in front of him have completed the siege of Yulin, it is just a gesture.And hidden behind this posture, maybe at some point it will turn the horse's head to meet and cover the central agency that is being transferred! The existence of this possibility does not relieve the pressure on Xu Guangda's heart from the current task.He is a commander with an extremely precise and strict style and a strong personality, and he will never allow one in ten thousand omissions in the combat organization.During the course of the army's operations, he repeatedly thought about two things: first, he must play the prestige of the Jinsui troops when he was transferred to northern Shaanxi for the first battle; second, he was prepared to take on the most difficult task and make the greatest sacrifice.The first step is to arrive at the assembly area on time.This is indeed a blow to San Zong.It takes less than two days to travel hundreds of miles. Even if the enemy's situation is not considered, there is still a Yellow River crossing in the middle!But Xu Guangda did it.One can imagine what kind of mood Peng Dehuai felt when he received a report that all the troops of the three verticals had entered the designated area in advance at dusk on August 6.Peng has always hated the situation where people are not in place when the time comes, and he often yells at him and never shows mercy.But right now, all the troops participating in the siege mentioned which way was which way, and everything was handy, which really made Peng Dehuai feel comfortable: This is how wars should be fought. It is planned that after dark the peripheral battle will be in full swing.Unexpectedly, starting at 8 o'clock in the evening, the sky suddenly became cloudy, and after a while, it began to rain.Peng Dehuai walked out of the headquarters and stood in the rain for a while.Looking up, the ancient city is locked in mist and rain, and the enemy is hiding in those bright and dark fortresses or turrets at the top of the city, while our soldiers have to erect ladders and climb ditches like drowned chickens.Besides, three verticals... Within a few seconds of turning around, Peng Dehuai made a decision: postpone the attack by one day.On this day, for those commanders and fighters who marched day and night to the assembly point and rushed to battle, what a wonderful breather!But for Deng Baoshan who had just retreated into Yulin City, it was simply a ravage.Based on Deng's understanding of the combat style of the Communist army, the troops always go to war as soon as they arrive, and fight quickly, and take advantage of the wind and rain to fight in bad weather.So, how could Peng Dehuai let go of such a rainy night?However, nothing happened that night.Deng Baoshan stayed up until dawn without blinking her eyes, and watched a silent rainy night amidst the precariousness of the world. On August 7th, it was another hard day.Finally at dusk, Peng Dehuai gave an order, and the attack first started from the high ground of the Lingxiao Tower in the south of the city.Immediately afterwards, the siege forces of Dongcheng, Xicheng, Beicheng and Gaojiabao in the northeast all started the battle.Deng Baoshan feels the strongest, of course, is the close proximity of Chengnan.The battle continued until dawn the next day, when the 3rd Battalion of the 82nd Regiment of the KMT's Lingxiaota position was wiped out, and the position was occupied by the People's Liberation Army.In the command post of the regiment in the tower and the first battalion of the regiment in the Sanyi Temple in the west of the tower, only a small number of defenders are still desperately waiting for reinforcements.This made Xu Bao anxious.Like an ant on a hot pot, he gritted his teeth and ran to the forefront to supervise the battle. It was the same old trick he had used 10,000 times, but he yelled at the soldiers: "Hold on, five yuan a minute! Don't retreat, Reinforcements will be here soon!" I don't know how many "immediately" passed, and there was no sign of reinforcements, but Deng Baoshan came.He also came up to supervise the formation himself when he learned that the Lingxiao Tower's position was lost.Deng was very disappointed that Xu Bao's troops were so careless. He pointed to Xu's nose and said, "Boy, the Lingxiao Tower position is related to the safety of the whole city of Yulin. You spent so much money on me and lost it to me." You have to snatch it from me even if you hold your head, if not, don't blame me, Deng, for denying my relatives!" Now that the matter has come to this point, Xu Bao has nothing to say.Originally, he was ordered by Hu Zongnan to come to Yulin to monitor Deng Baoshan, but he did not expect that Deng entrusted him with such an "important task".In the past period of time, he somewhat hindered Deng Baoshan's personal relationship with her old father-in-law, and saved many things if possible.Now, I just want to report, I'm afraid I don't have a chance!Anyway, on the face of it, he is still a general of the Yulin garrison, and his military law is ruthless. If something happens in Nancheng, Deng Baoshan has the right to give him some "colour". The more Xu Bao thought about it, the more he felt that the little braid was in Deng Baoshan's hands. After all, ginger was old and spicy, so he couldn't accept it. He felt that he had no way out, so he assumed a decisive posture and immediately sent Wang Zongyi, the deputy head of the 83rd regiment, to lead him A battalion went out of the city to counterattack the position of Lingxiao Tower.He stood in front of the team, called Wang Zongyi to his side, raised his airs, and said, "Deputy Head Wang, now, whether you want the Highlands of the Lingxiao Tower or the guy with the neck to eat, you can decide!" Knowing that Wang Zongyi is an extremely rough character, the only advantage of being on the battlefield is that he is not afraid of death, so he deliberately threw out this sentence to let everyone weigh it. Wang Zongyi led the order to go out of the city, and he had the idea of ​​going and not returning.He and Xu Bao are from the same hometown, and they used to be taken care of, but they don't know when to repay their kindness!Before setting off, Wang Zongyi stood in front of the team, rolled up his sleeves, drew a short knife from his knee, closed his eyes and stabbed it into his forearm, immediately bleeding profusely.He let the blood stain five fingers red, printed it on a piece of white paper and handed it to Xu Bao: "We can't read, if you die, you can take this to my mother, so that I can explain to her old man !" Wang Zongyi didn't look at Xu Bao when he spoke, and after he finished speaking, he landed on one knee and clasped his fists away from his face.This shocked Xu Bao quite a bit, he nodded and took the "letter" with five fingers printed on it, and said only one sentence: "Your mother is my mother, you go!" Then he turned around and left. Xu Bao ordered the artillery of the brigade and the defenders on both sides of the South City to concentrate their firepower at the same time, hitting the high ground of the Lingxiao Tower with dark clouds rolling and flames soaring into the sky.At the same time, Deng Baoshan also ordered the artillery of the garrison 22nd Army to block and shoot at the PLA positions in the southeast and southwest corners, making it impossible for our army's second echelon reinforcements to approach Nancheng.Wang Zongyi's counterattack was based on this background. He tossed back and forth for more than three hours, and the artillery bombardment lasted for 50 minutes! By 10 o'clock in the morning on the 8th, all the commanders and fighters of our army who clung to the high ground of the Lingxiao Tower had died heroically, and there were only about 30 people left in the battalion led by Wang Zongyi.The vested positions fell back into the enemy's hands. In Xu Bao's mind, the gains and losses of the Ling Xiao Pagoda position has been paid more attention to.He no longer dared to be careless, and specially ordered Ao Mingquan, the head of the 83rd Regiment, to lead a battalion of troops to take over the task of guarding the nearby Sanyi Temple.In this way, the backup is full of confidence, and the Lingxiao Tower position does not appear lonely.For a moment, the Lingxiao Pagoda calmed down.But the Beiguan guns rang suddenly and turned into a sea of ​​flames.There are more than 50 households living close to the city, and the terrain is much more complicated than that of Nancheng. Our army won the first battle and occupied several key points.Deng Baoshan was worried, and also ordered to take it back.The two sides fought for a day and a night without result, and there were countless casualties. In the middle of the night on the 9th, the Kuomintang defenders scattered like birds and beasts, and all of them fled to the city.The common people wailed and howled loudly, and made a fuss for most of the night. If it is difficult to fight, nothing is better than Xicheng.The east, south, and north of Yulin are all mountains, but the west city is adjacent to the desert, which is an open area. The soldiers can go up without any cover or barrier, unable to hide, and can't even build fortifications.We can only try to build a little high ridge, but it's useless. It can block people's faces but not bullets.This made it difficult for the third battalion of the 358th brigade, 715th regiment and the third battalion to occupy the position.The soldiers had no choice but to quickly dig out a sand nest, bury their bodies in it, and shoot at the city wall with their eyes exposed. In the weather in August, eggs can be baked in the sand nest. What does it feel like to bury a human body in it?Many soldiers lay quietly in the sand nest because they sweated too much and had no water to drink, never waking up.And the people who were hit by the condescending enemy fire were one after another.However, the troops fought hard from dawn to dusk for a whole day, but to no avail. Luo Kunshan, head of the 715th Regiment, and political commissar Liu Peirong saw this scene at the command post behind Shaliang, and they were very anxious!The army can't even touch the edge of the city wall, so why talk about siege!None of the "old three items" such as ladders, grenades, and explosives can be used.Seeing that the sun came out again, it was noon in a while.The commanders and fighters who had been buried in the sand for a whole day shuddered at the thought of the scorching sun above their heads.At this time, Luo Kunshan suddenly heard the third battalion commander report hoarsely on the phone: "Head, there is, just wait and see!" What's the matter?Luo Kunshan is skeptical.The commander of the third battalion had an idea in three minutes, and an idea in five minutes. Zhuge Liang tried his best at the meeting, such as digging the right trench and throwing sand in a targeted manner. Near noon, a sentry of Yang Qianzhi's Company of the 22nd Army's Supply Battalion of the Kuomintang's Xiaoximen garrison suddenly noticed someone waving a white flag behind Xishaliang, a mile away from the city.The white flag on the battlefield was an extremely sensitive signal. The sentry ran away and immediately reported to the company commander Yang Qianzhi: "The Communist army is about to surrender!" This was a bit strange and sudden.Yang Qianzhi murmured in his heart, but on the surface he was still happy, and climbed up to the top of the wall in one breath.But no, there is a clear white flag, which is extraordinarily dazzling in the sun.There was nothing to say, Yang Qianzhi, who was full of impulsiveness, ordered the entire company to stop shooting without even thinking about it, and at the same time sent a platoon leader to lead more than 20 soldiers out of the city for reconnaissance. All eyes on the top of the city were fixed on these twenty soldiers.Under the leadership of the platoon leader, they walked towards Shaliang step by step.Walking in the sand nest, the feet were sunken, and it took almost half an hour to walk more than one kilometer.Just when this platoon arrived near Shaliang and was about to climb up, tongues of fire suddenly spewed out from behind the Shaliang. More than 20 enemy soldiers rolled and crawled, confused by the sudden blow.After a moment of ignorance.They woke up and ran back one by one with their heads in their hands.Seeing this situation, the enemy soldiers on the city did not dare to pull the trigger.The distance is too far, the head is not accurate, and I am afraid of hitting my own people, so I have to worry. A wonderful scene appeared: behind the retreating enemy soldiers, hundreds of commanders and fighters from the third battalion and ninth company of the 715th Regiment were chasing after them.他们很快追上逃敌，却并不向敌人射击，显然，他们需要这二十多人的掩护，接近城墙。城上的杨谦之悔得拼命跺脚，双手直搓，打又打不得、拦又拦不住，只好扯开嗓门拼命朝那个带队的敌排长喊：“刘奇山，刘奇山，拦住共产党军队！打他们！打呀……”但此刻的刘奇山哪还顾得上打呢！他心里只有逃命的念头，只恨爹妈少生了一双腿！就这样，双方混合一处，渐渐迫近了城门。杨谦之不得不下手了，城上的步枪、机枪一起狂叫起来，这支混合队伍在离城几十米的地方，纷纷倒地…… 敌人万没想到，这是我七一五团三营精心设计的一个“连环套”战术。在敌人的步、机枪响起第一声时，混在敌人中的九连指战员早就有准备地“纷纷倒下”了，而真正中弹的多是敌人那二十多个兵。后来知道，在这场有准备的挨打中，九连仅牺牲十九人，是预想数字的一个零头。出发前，九连每个指战员都表示了决心，随时准备以生命掩护幸存的战友，完成既定任务。此时，这个誓言便在十九位烈士身上实现了！ 黄昏不期而至，三营的攻势越来越猛，子弹打在城上，压得国民党军抬不起头来，杨谦之三番五次企图派人出城“收尸”，都没有成功，因为派出这个排，他没有事先报告，心里很虚，不知马虎眼怎么打过去。还算杨谦之命大福大，后来当西城指挥官张之因询问原委时，小西门负责人张博学扯了个弥天谎，称西沙梁边有一座小庙，解放军白天据为哨所，不断向城上射击，所以派兵去破坏。从而替杨谦之打了个圆场。此事一级一级报到邓宝珊那里，也没予以追究，内中情由，多半是因为小西门接踵而至的有惊无险。 那是当天深夜1点多钟，与七一五团三营相邻的部队土工作业取得了成效，这正好给逼近城门的九连提供了极好的机会。他们趁着夜暗在城门一侧安放好足够的炸药包，而城上的敌兵还浑然不觉。不紧不慢乒乒乓乓打了大半夜的敌兵们，都有点困了，刚要打个盹，忽听脚底下轰的一声巨响，烟尘冲天而起，小西门被炸开一条缝！九连杀声震天，鱼贯入城，各种武器一齐抡开了，有的战士跟敌人展开肉搏。敌小西门守卫负责人张博学和杨谦之等人听到爆炸声还以为内部失事。他们无论如何也想不到城门会被炸开。不但他们想不到，我方指挥员对此也估计不足。当敌二十二军补充营营长张彦明仅以一个排的火力集中封锁城门时，冲进城内的解放军官兵却迟迟不见后续部队，只好无奈地交替掩护向城外撤退。这期间，邓宝珊的特务营一个加强连和另外一个工兵连先后赶到。邓还下令八十六师炮兵向小西门外集火射击，阻止我军后续部队靠近缺口。稍纵即逝的战机失去了，九连撤出城外冲过敌人的炮火封锁线回到阵地，只剩下了四个人。 榆林小西门的惊险情状，蒋介石是次日凌晨知道的。他于8月7日乘美龄号专机抵达延安后，神经一直很紧张。那个精心装修起来的边区外交宾馆，并未给匆匆一宵的他留下多少印象。 日程简单而又简单，好像仍在南京国防部一样：当天下午，召开整编军军长、参谋长以上高级将领会议；第二天上午到延安指挥所看了一眼作战计划，随后在延安市区泛泛地转一圈。围绕他转的无非是胡宗南、裴昌会、薛敏泉、董钊、刘戡以及随行的国防部司长罗泽闾、空军副司令王叔铭等人。 平淡如水的起居饮食是蒋介石一贯作风，到延安就更得如此。领袖的大度与正确性，到此为止无可挑剔。 但是，蒋介石永远是荒谬的。他总是在小的行迹方面谨严得天衣无缝，而在大的道行方面放纵到纰漏百出。延安之行实质性的内容，是给胡宗南面授机宜。这关键性一出是当晚胡送蒋到边区外交宾馆之后，在蒋的卧榻旁边完成的。其时，蒋取下假牙，说话有点“瘪”，但胡还是句句听得真切。蒋要胡在今后的陕北作战中，“不要稳扎稳打，要用急进猛打的战法，以补过去的缺陷”；特别是眼前榆林战事，要趁共产党军队胶着于榆林外围的时机，一举攻占陕北各县，并迅速北进寻求共产党军队主力决战，最低限度也要压迫共产党军队主力东渡黄河。显然，蒋介石把邓宝珊当作鱼钩上的一条蚯蚓。他要用榆林来钓大鱼，一战而定陕北。所以，蒋介石千叮万嘱一句话：“这是关键性一仗，马虎不得！” 胡宗南的功夫之一，就是会爬竿子。他知道蒋介石是因为对自己在陕北战场上表现不太满意，才有这番叮咛和嘱咐，因而竭力做出悔过的样子。谈及北解榆林之围的计策，他连忙表示：“共产党军队围攻榆林，是醉翁之意不在酒。他们的真正目的，是想靠近黄河！校长放心，这次我不会上当，我要在米脂以北地区打他一个埋伏！” 这个意见正好说到蒋介石的心坎上，让蒋介石看到了胡的长进，颇感快慰。但是，蒋还是点拨这位“高足”，“榆林之围，也不可不解”。他神秘地眨眨眼睛，并加重语气而深含意味地嗯了一声。见胡愣怔片刻作顿悟状，才又语重心长地接着往下说：“兵力嘛，这个……可以分成两路，一明、一暗。主力沿咸榆公路北上，不要急，一步一步来，声势搞得响一点，此为明；另派钟松第三十六师，出击横山，沿长城以北向东急进，侧击围榆之共产党军队。此为暗。三十六师是国军的精锐，很能打的嘛，这次，就给他们一个机会。你同钟松讲，动作要快，要突然出现在彭德怀的脑后，可以让宁夏马部配合一下嘛！这样一来，榆林之患不解自消。”说到这里，蒋叹口气，自言自语：“这个邓宝珊……叫他吃点儿苦头，有好处！” 胡宗南忙又点头。蒋转过眼珠重新说：“最要紧的是，榆林解围之后，三十六师须出榆南下，接共产党军队之踵尾击，同北上之主力会攻榆、米之间，形成南北夹击之势，与敌决战！” 这无疑是一着妙棋。如果没有众多的耳目周详的情报，对蒋介石的所谓“暗”——钟松整三十六师行迹有清醒的预见，彭德怀势必难以应付，更谈不到下一步的灵机一动，作出暂停攻榆、并在沙家店地区集结七个旅陷钟松于死地的对策。即便如此，彭德怀也还是历尽大惊大险才赢得转机。 老蒋的钦命经胡宗南转述，成为钟松建立不世功业的巨额野心。他拿出百分之百的骄狂，拼命鞭打部队，8月11日就到了横山以北地区，接下来只用三昼夜即逼近榆林城下。而彭德怀此时的攻榆行动经过一而再、再而三的失利，出现明显疲软。特别是七一五团炸开小西门竟未得手，继而围城各部队又争取到几次爆破机会，均因药量不足没有成功，痛失大好战机，对部队情绪影响很大。彭原以为敌人主力沿咸榆公路经响水堡、归德堡北上的可能性比较大，如此，在归德堡地区打援亦不失为一绝。谁知部队调集到归德堡又落了空。这种情况下，钟松的出现使形势立刻变得相当严峻。 摆在彭德怀面前有两条路：一是攻城不舍，明知不为而为之。那么，钟松一到，内外夹击，部队牺牲不可估量。另外一条路便是撤围。这意味着整个攻榆行动未果而终。尽管当初计划就没有指望攻城能有多大收效，而重在调动胡宗南北上；尽管胡军倾巢而动锋头北指，陈赓的太岳兵团南渡黄河挺进豫西便没有什么威胁，但一镐刨下去连个白点也没见，多少让人有些遗憾。闪念之间，彭德怀还是果断地下达了命令：撤！下达命令之后，他兴奋地补充了一句话：“撤是为了争取主动，有主动就能克敌制胜！” 这是8月12日凌晨1点，彭德怀目睹围城部队一批一批离开榆林城下辛辛苦苦构筑起来的攻击阵地，心中忽然涌起一团巨大的期待。这期待究竟是什么，他还说不清楚。但有一点可以肯定，上苍正在赐给他一件战争神器，似乎一切都在按照某种定势不可遏制地徐徐而降：西野部队撤围南下，客观上示弱于前，产生了骄敌之兵的效果，胡军包括钟松三十六师在内的10个旅共6.3万兵力全面蠢动起来的壮观图景使这一“效果”得到强化，而刘戡所率主力的缓缓推进与钟松“援榆快速兵团”的昼夜兼程形成鲜明反差，以及榆林转危为安、大难不死之后获救的喜悦心情等，所有这些在胡宗南、邓宝珊、刘戡、钟松的心头产生了一系列微妙的交响。一时间，榆林、延安及西安、南京的上空，文电交驰，信号拥挤，豪笑与庆幸之声不绝于耳，谁也不去想这狂喜的背后会不会还隐藏着别的什么。 12日晌午时分，钟松让部队驻足在榆林城头可以看得见的距离上，而自己和几个将校军官，则披着斗篷、骑着大马摇摇摆摆地进城去见邓宝珊。他要告诉邓宝珊在沙漠中急行军披星戴月的种种感受，并尽量保持未及洗尘的本色，让猎猎威风自然而然唤起这位老将的羞愧。且共产党军队不战而退又恰似无言的颂诗。钟松想象着马蹄踏入城门时扑面而来的花香和泪雨，不觉浑身战栗起来，在马背上有些摇摇欲坠。他按下马头，让随行的军官们再次整理军风纪。 果如钟松所料，邓宝珊安排的欢迎仪式令人满意。不管怎么说，榆林之围是因为钟部来临才解脱的，邓的感激之情溢于言表，见面就一口一个“钟将军”，当晚在私人官邸大摆“家宴”，隆重款待钟松一行。“真险啊……”邓宝珊恍若隔世地感慨着几天来的惊心动魄，特别是凌霄塔高地失而复得和西城小西门的有惊无险，重提起来居然有些眼泪汪汪，“我全军将士用命不二，硬是用鲜血和性命保住了这座榆林城！”这番颂扬当然也包括了钟部的整二十八旅。徐保站在旁边挺胸收腹。钟松禁不住频频送去嘉许的目光。 钟松听着邓宝珊的絮叨，时而点头，时而微笑，时而不屑一顾地仰起脸望着那些五颜六色的家眷们。三杯酒下肚，控制不住了，点头、微笑和仰脸斜视都开始失去分寸，嗓门也响亮起来：“邓将军何必如此伤怀，共产党军队不是退走了吗？钟某不才，对付共产党军队倒也有点儿心得，只要他敢跟我交手，管叫他……”钟松的牛皮泡泡越吹越大。正在大吹大擂之际，忽见徐保领着他的机要参谋神色板正地闯进来，趋前递上一份急电。钟松皱起眉头看电报，宴会厅也随之一片肃静。 电报是胡宗南打来的，命钟松火速带领所部南下绥德，与正在那里因扑了空而大生闷气的刘戡会师，然后合兵一处寻找共产党军队主力决战。这份不识时务的电报破坏了钟松的好兴致，牛吹不下去了，脸上不免蒙起一层沮丧的阴云。他朝身边的邓宝珊咧咧嘴，苦笑着说：“你看，军务在身，一顿饭也吃不成。对不起，兄弟不便久留！”说着起身拱手，满场扬过一遍，拔腿就走。邓宝珊目睹这个年轻气盛的家伙，在微明的星月下跨马远去，不禁打个寒战。隐约感到，钟松这一走，或许是个不祥之兆。他默默收拾零乱的心情，静观其变。 邓宝珊的预感千真万确。在钟松三十六师抵近榆林时，中共中央的思路已有一个奇妙的跳跃。西野攻榆的同时，毛泽东率中央纵队告别小河村，沿大理河斜斜地向东北方向转移。8月13日深夜，他们通过无定河大桥，跨越了绥德，进到无定河与黄河之间狭长的“走廊”。刚好，这时贺龙和习仲勋奉命率西北局和陕甘宁边区后方机关向黄河东岸转移，军委便让他们故意把声势搞大，借机诱惑敌人，使之误以为中共中央和西北野战军主力已撤离陕北。 主意打的正是钟松三十六师。自从该敌放单插到榆林，彭德怀就瞄准了它。现在的问题是，怎样迫使钟松沿一定的路线机动。想不到这一步轻而易举做到了，胡宗南的电报已使钟松急会刘戡成为石板上钉钉的行动纲领。那么，从榆林至米、绥的途中，就含着解决钟松的唯一机会。为了完成必要的铺垫，彭德怀命令第二纵队在撤离榆林后，大张旗鼓地向长乐堡方向移动，而一、三纵队及其他部队全都静悄悄地在榆林不远处隐蔽下来。 这无疑是一着险棋，胡宗南的注意力被吸引到榆林东北地区，我军真实处境极为险恶：西北两面是沙漠，东侧是黄河，一条不大不小的无定河插在其间，使得立足区域更为狭窄，根本没有回旋余地。但是，胡宗南的愚蠢却使险情打了折扣。他一言九鼎，咬定我军主力正在东渡黄河，完全放松了西、北两面的警戒，而把目光紧紧盯在黄河沿岸。他完全被自己固执的判断所鼓舞，尾巴情不自禁地翘起来，竟下令钟松“迅速追击，勿失此千载良机”。自然，这种狂躁也传染给正在自恃“援榆有功”的钟松。钟的脑子热得不行，一路走一路高谈阔论，开口闭口要“一战结束陕北战争”。倒是刘戡吸取了前几次失败的教训，带着整二十九军和一军的九十师共五个多旅的兵力，走一步看三看，不急不忙地由绥德向葭县北进，显得十分谨慎。 中共中央进入高度紧张的运作。西北野战军旅以上干部会，毛泽东和周恩来亲自参加。会上，毛泽东第一次提出“过山坳”这样一个形象生动的词语。他说：“……眼前陕北的处境，就像我们湖南人常说的'过山坳'，快爬到山坳坳上了，千万不能松劲，要咬紧牙关一鼓作气爬上去，往后的路就好走了！”这话到了彭德怀嘴里，就变成一条活生生的策略。他告诉大家，钟松三十六师一二三旅和一六五旅的四九三团，现正在由镇川堡向沙家店的乌龙铺前进。“同志们注意啰，”他用红铅笔在地图上着力一画，“我决定在这个地区给他一下子……”一个红色圈圈凝固了一段辉煌的历史，那便是解放战争史册上赫赫有名的沙家店战役。