Chapter 38 1. The time for the decisive battle is ripe

The great clock of history has pointed to the summer and autumn of 1948. The great Chinese People's War of Liberation has entered its third year. After two years of war, the People's Liberation Army has grown from 1.2 million at the beginning of the liberation war in June 1946 to 2.8 million, including 1.49 million regular troops.The equipment and quality of the troops have been greatly improved, especially in the ability to accumulate rich experience in fortified battles and positional warfare. The troops have also established their own artillery and engineers, with more than 1,100 heavy artillery.Each base area has established its own logistics support system, which not only guarantees life, but more importantly, provides a basic guarantee for the supply of weapons and ammunition (of course, Chiang Kai-shek, the dedicated "transportation captain" is still playing a big role. role).At the same time, the total strength of the Kuomintang army is about 3.63 million, of which 1.98 million are regular troops.The ratio of forces between the enemy and us has been reduced from 3.4:1 in 1946 to 1.3:1, of which the regular army is 1.32:1.Although the number of enemy troops is slightly larger than ours, they cannot be fully used on the battlefield, because the Kuomintang ruled area is currently full of dangers, and several troops must be deployed in various places to suppress the masses of the people.This kind of force, not to mention the local troops, even the regular army has 36 divisions or brigades, with more than 230,000 people.At this time, the southern guerrillas led by our party had reached more than 40,000 people. These guerrillas had established guerrilla bases in Hunan, Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Anhui, Yunnan and Hainan Island. The role played in cooperating with the frontal attack of our liberation army is by no means a substitute for an army of more than 40,000 people.

The area of ​​the liberated areas led by our party has expanded to 2.35 million square kilometers, accounting for a quarter of the country's total area; the population of the liberated areas has reached 168 million, accounting for more than one-third of the country's total population.The liberated areas across the country have been connected as one, and they can support each other and fight together.Not only has the land reform in the liberated areas been carried out, most areas have also undergone re-examinations. The enthusiasm of the peasants who have stood up to support the front line and actively join the army is the most reassuring basic guarantee for our army to fight on the front line.

We have already introduced the situation in the Kuomintang-ruled areas at this time in the first chapter of this book and will not repeat it here.In a word, it is facing collapse. The situation in China at this time, as Mao Zedong said in the important article "The Current Situation and Our Tasks": The revolutionary war of the Chinese people has now reached a turning point.This means that the Chinese People's Liberation Army has repelled the attack of the millions of reactionary troops of Chiang Kai-shek, the lackey of the United States, and turned itself into the offensive.

This is a turning point in history.This was the turning point in Chiang Kai-shek's 20-year counter-revolutionary rule from development to elimination.This is a turning point in the more than one hundred years of imperialist rule in China from development to elimination. Under such circumstances, how should our army arrange the overall strategy?Ye Jianying analyzed it in the article "The Great Strategic Battle": This balance of power between the enemy and ourselves shows that the time has come for the Chinese People's Liberation Army to wage a strategic decisive battle with the reactionary Kuomintang army.In order to continue to annihilate the enemy in large numbers and fundamentally overthrow the reactionary Kuomintang government, the People's Liberation Army must attack the enemy's fortified large cities and must fight against the enemy's powerful mobile corps.Therefore, whether to dare to fight a big battle that our army has never fought before, dare to conquer a large enemy city, dare to annihilate a powerful group of the enemy army, and whether to dare to win a greater victory have become our army's strategy at that time. major issues in decision-making.It was at this time that the KMT’s Nanjing Military Conference in August 1948 discussed retreating to the Northeast, securing central China, and insisting on Shenyang until the end of October. In order to observe the development of the current situation, Shenyang would not be abandoned in principle. At the same time, it also made a combat guidance plan for retreat preparations.Under such circumstances, is it to let the enemy realize their plan to withdraw their existing troops to the pass or to the south of the Yangtze River, so that we will lose the opportunity and increase the trouble of future operations?Or before the enemy has had time to make a decision to escape, should we act decisively, seize the golden opportunity, organize strategic decisive battles, and eliminate the powerful strategic groups of the enemy?Comrade Mao Zedong resolutely seized this opportunity for a strategic decisive battle based on his scientific analysis of the war situation, and successively organized the three major battles of Liaoshen, Huaihai, and Pingjin.

Armageddon is global, but where to start? The situation on the national battlefield is roughly like this: On the battlefield of the Central Plains, our three-way army has conquered the important towns of Luoyang, Kaifeng, and Xiangyang, and successively carried out the battles of Wanxi, Wandong, Suiqi, Songhe, and Xiangfan.In the Battle of Suiqi, which was carried out from the end of June to the beginning of July, an enemy regiment, the District Shounian Corps, was wiped out.During the Battle of Xiangfan in July, Kang Ze, the Kuomintang spy chief, was captured alive.On this battlefield, it is our Central Plains Field Army and the Bai Chongxi Group of the Kuomintang facing each other.

On the battlefield in East China, after the liberation of Jinan, Shandong Province has basically been liberated except for Qingdao.On this battlefield, it is our East China Field Army and the Liu Zhi Group of the Kuomintang facing each other. On the North China battlefield, our army liberated the important towns of Shijiazhuang and Linfen, and captured Yan Xishan’s field army commander-in-chief Zhao Chengshou. The entire Shanxi Province was basically liberated, and Yan Xishan only had an isolated city of Taiyuan.On this battlefield, our North China Field Army and the Fu Zuoyi Group of the Kuomintang are facing each other.

On the northwest battlefield, our army has regained Yan'an and conquered cities such as Fufeng, Baoji, and Lingtai. Hu Zongnan's rule in the northwest has been completely shaken.On this battlefield, our Northwest Field Army and the Hu Zongnan Group of the Kuomintang are facing each other. On the Northeast battlefield, our army has controlled the entire Northeast except for the three regions of Changchun, Shenyang, and Jinzhou.On this battlefield, our Northeast Field Army and the Wei Lihuang Group of the Kuomintang are facing each other. On the land of China, the ten major military groups are facing each other, and the imminent decisive battle will definitely start on one of the five major battlefields.From a global perspective, the Central Plains, North China, and Northeast China are the most likely.After repeated studies, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China determined the Northeast.On this point, Ye Jianying's article "The Great Strategic Battle" discusses this:

While firmly grasping the opportunity of the decisive battle, Comrade Mao Zedong correctly chose the direction of the decisive battle.At that time, although the situation in various battlefields across the country was favorable to the People's Liberation Army's operations to varying degrees, the enemy strategically attempted to prolong the period of holding on to several isolated key points in the Northeast as much as possible, so as to contain our Northeast People's Liberation Army and prevent our troops from entering the pass to fight. At the same time, the enemy is preparing to withdraw the Northeast Kuomintang troops to Central China to strengthen the defense of Central China.Under such circumstances, if we first point the direction of the strategic decisive battle to the North China battlefield, our army will be attacked by the two strategic groups of North China and Northeast China and fall into a passive position; if we first point the direction of the strategic decisive battle to the East China battlefield, then It will cause the enemy in the Northeast to retreat quickly and realize their strategic contraction attempt.

Therefore, the Northeast battlefield has become the key to the development of the national war situation.At that time, the situation in the Northeast battlefield was particularly favorable to me.In terms of enemy troops: isolated and scattered, with a prominent posture; the area is narrow, and supplies are difficult; Changchun is besieged and cannot be rescued;As far as our army is concerned: superior strength and better equipment; the vast area is connected into one piece; the land reform is completed and the rear is consolidated; all districts in the pass can be supported.If the Northeast People's Liberation Army annihilates the enemy forces in the Northeast, it will be able to smash the enemy's strategic shrinkage; rear.According to the above situation, Comrade Mao Zedong first pointed the direction of the strategic decisive battle to the Wei Lihuang Group in the Northeast battlefield, which put the victory of the initial battle of the strategic decisive battle on a safe and reliable basis.

This is a good pawn cast by Comrade Mao Zedong in his overall plan.The decisive battle begins with local advantages, and then strives for greater overall advantages.Due to the quick and smooth victory in the Liaoshen Campaign, the national war situation took a turn for the worse and the originally expected war process was greatly shortened.