Chapter 5 Chapter 4 Five battles and five victories, Liu Deng's army won the battle

In the early morning of June 28, 1946, more than a dozen horses galloped on the dusty Handan Road, running from north to south, and the yellow dust raised by the horseshoes diffused like a thick fog. Running in the forefront was a tall chestnut horse with windy hooves, and a burly soldier sat on the horse's back.He grabbed the rein suddenly and waited for the maroon horse behind him.Sitting on the horse is Commander Liu Bocheng, and political commissar Deng Xiaoping is riding the maroon horse. Behind the two field army chiefs were deputy political commissars Bo Yibo, deputy political commissar Zhang Jichun, chief of staff Li Da and his entourage.They set off on horseback from Handan, the capital of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan liberated area, to Matou Town, Ci County, Hebei.Participate in the mobilization meeting of the third and sixth columns in the Liberation War self-defense counterattack held there.

The dust raised by the road covered the stubble fields that had just been harvested by the roadside, and with the first sunrise, the fields looked like gold and silver. Liu and Deng reined in the horses, and the speed of the horse team gradually slowed down, the dust gradually dissipated, and the roadside scenery was clearly visible.The abandoned roadbed of Pinghan Road from Xinxiang to Handan is like a dilapidated embankment of the Shahe River, which has been washed away by floods and ditches everywhere.The railway station has been demolished, the tracks have long disappeared, and the whale-like roadbed that used to be visible from a long distance has now been dug into deep trenches, the water tower is dilapidated, and the locomotive is a pile of scrap metal.On the upturned carriages, the pattern of "blue sky and white sun" painted by the Kuomintang military paint is vaguely discernible.The slogans written in white paint are still vivid in my mind: "Only by fighting chaos can we build a country, and North China must be recovered." "Eliminate the Communist Party in three months." …

When Commander Liu saw this, he laughed first, and said, "There is no need to step on the Taihang, Liu and Deng are on the plain!" Commander Liu took the reins, wiped the dust off his glasses with his sleeve, and said to Deng Xiaoping with a smile: "How dare he brag! He can wipe out the Communist Party in three months! The toad yawns, and his tone is not small!" Deng Xiaoping said with a smile: "Chiang Kai-shek is still unripe on the Handan Road!" Liu Bocheng continued: "A few days ago when I was negotiating in Xinxiang, the Kuomintang was clamoring for war. I told them in person, you should stop dreaming. The Chinese Communists are not afraid of the threat of war."

"Yes!" Deng Xiaoping looked at the people on the left and right, and said succinctly and emphatically, "Since they have imposed war on us, we have no choice but to resolutely fight to the end!" "Stop war for war, and war for war." Liu Bocheng went on to say, "I told the Kuomintang negotiators that we don't want to fight anymore. After eight years of war, the people need to recuperate. We should turn war into jade and cannon into plowshares!" They regard our desire for peace as weakness and bullying..." More than a dozen horses galloped along the Handan Ancient Road for a while.I saw the morning smoke, the green trees, and Matou town in sight...

When Liu and Deng arrived at the village head of Matou Town, Chen Xilian, Wang Jinshan, Du Yide, Xiao Yongyin, Zhao Lantian, and Li Desheng, the heads of the third and sixth columns and brigades, were already standing outside the village of Matou Town, waiting for a long time. Liu and Deng came straight to the venue.The weather was fine on this day, the warm south wind was blowing across the land, and the surrounding fields were peaceful... The Iron Warriors were all waiting with bated breath for the arrival of Chief Liu Deng.Accompanied by Chen Xilian, Wang Jinshan and others, Liu and Deng were spotted by soldiers waiting in the square when they turned around the entrance of the village. Immediately there was stormy applause and the sound of slogans like sea waves...

The swearing-in meeting was chosen on the open ground in the west of the village of Matou Town, and people built a high reviewing platform with wooden boards on the coal pile.From here, through the rows of weeping willows and green willows, you can see the Congtai built by King Zhao Wuling in the old China.The majestic Congtai is hidden among the ancient cypresses and pines, telling people an ancient story: At the beginning of King Wuling's succession, Zhao State was in decline, and was often threatened by Qin, Qi and other countries and Huns and Hu people. When foreign tribes invaded, Zhao Guo was unable to resist and often suffered defeats.King Wuling of Zhao discovered during the war of resistance that the Hu people wore short clothes and were very convenient for horseback riding and archery, while his own soldiers were all in broad robes and rode heavy chariots, and their movements were extremely slow.So King Zhao Wuling decided to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, reformed the uniforms of the troops, asked the troops to leave the chariots, and learn to ride horses and shoot arrows.But his proposition was immediately opposed by princes and ministers.King Zhao Wuling knew that it would be difficult to defeat the enemy without reform, so he took the lead, wearing a Hu suit, riding a horse and shooting arrows.Since then, the Zhao State has become stronger, and the army has won many battles and victories.In order to watch the drill and celebrate the victory, King Zhao Wuling built a large-scale Congtai here.

Liu and Deng stood on the stage and inspected their troops. The soldiers sat on the square, looking horizontally in rows and vertically in rows. The bayonets on their shoulders shone brightly. Rows of light and heavy machine guns were neatly placed on the ground, mortars were mounted on pack horses, commanders raised their arms and shouted slogans... Deng Xiaoping spoke on the stage: "...the Kuomintang tore up the armistice agreement and launched a full-scale attack on the liberated areas. The enemy launched an attack on the liberated areas with 193 brigades (divisions) and about 1.6 million people. The troops used to attack the liberated areas of Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong and Henan , there are 28 brigades (divisions) with about 250,000 people..."

Deng Xiaoping was excited and his voice was like a bell. He informed the troops of the serious situation on the battlefield and mobilized in a decisive tone: "After eight years of hard resistance, the people have won. Everyone hopes that cannons will be turned into plowshares and tanks will be turned into plowshares. Convert it into a tractor to plow the fields. But war is the same as peace, it cannot be just one side’s will. Chiang Kai-shek imposed war on us, and we have to fight to the end!” At 1 p.m., a meeting of cadres above the column company was held in the coal bunker at Matou Station, mobilized by Deputy Political Commissar Bo Yibo.Bo Yibo introduced in detail Chiang Kai-shek's deployment of an all-out attack on the Liberated Areas and said: "Don't look at the fact that there is no big movement, in fact, Chiang Kai-shek is like a duck floating on the water, his feet buried in the water are very busy! "

Having said this, Bo Yibo looked stern, and briefly explained the current enemy situation to everyone.He said: "This time Chiang Kai-shek has made up his mind to 'suppress the bandits' again. He has eaten the weight and made up his mind. He will not cry when he sees the coffin. The door has already been called. Do we dare to fight? How to fight? Are we sure? Chairman Mao has not slept for several days. No one can say for sure what the result will be. Let me tell you, the Party Central Committee has already made a judgment on the situation In a word, this battle must be fought. The situation is grim, and there are only three prospects before us: one is to defeat Chiang Kai-shek and liberate the whole of China; , and return to the Taihang Mountains to fight guerrillas with a small burden on our backs. What kind of future we want to fight for depends on ourselves!"

Every word is very important, knocking on everyone's heart.Everyone knows what it was like to fight guerrillas in the Taihang Mountains with a small burden on their backs.When leaving the meeting, no one spoke.But when the various companies discussed after the meeting, everyone spoke enthusiastically and expressed their determination: to strive for the first prospect, avoid the second prospect, and absolutely not allow the third prospect. After the swearing-in meeting, Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping led the main force to leave northern Henan and march towards southwest Shandong at lightning speed.

When the war started, the situation was very serious.The Kuomintang has a great advantage in both military power and economic power.The Kuomintang has an army of 4.3 million people, including 248 regular brigades with about 2 million people. It has modern equipment such as tanks and aircraft, including 1 million Japanese military equipment received, and 45 divisions (brigades) equipped by the United States. Modern and mechanized equipment.The Kuomintang ruled 3/4 of the country, with a population of about 300 million. It controlled major cities, strategic bases, and traffic arteries, and received huge military and financial assistance from the U.S. government.In contrast, the People's Liberation Army has only more than 1.2 million people, of which only 610,000 are regular troops, lacking modern weapons and equipment.The liberated area has a population of 100 million, land reform has just started, and the rear is not very consolidated. Under such a dangerous situation, the Kuomintang reactionaries attempted to first eliminate our army in the Central Plains, then capture Jiangsu and Anhui, and then attack North China. They tried to resolve the issue within the Pass within three months, at most six months, and then resolve the Northeast issue. Eliminate our party and our army, and destroy the liberated areas. The enemy's implementation of the above-mentioned strategic plan depends on the main arteries of Jinpu Road, Longhai Road and Pinghan Road. Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping were very anxious.In order to force the Kuomintang troops who were besieging and chasing the troops of the Central Plains Military Region to return to aid, and to cooperate with the Central Plains breakthrough and the operations of the Shandong and Central China Field Army, they took the initiative to ask the central government for instructions, and planned to focus the operations of the Shanxi-Hebei-Luyu Field Army on the Longhai Road in the east of Henan. Xuzhou, In the Kaifeng section, strategically mobilize and annihilate the enemy.In Liu Bocheng's words: "Our iron hammer must first hit the main artery of Chiang Kai-shek's all-out civil war—the Longhai Line! Disrupt the enemy's deployment and timetable for launching a civil war!" The Longhai line is the lifeline of the Kuomintang army leading from the headquarters to East China, North China, Northwest China, and Northeast China. It relies on the transportation of troops and the turnover of supplies.In order to protect this lifeline, the enemy deployed heavy troops sixty to seventy miles deep, with strongholds, blockade ditches, and blockade walls everywhere, and many troops were sent to patrol.There are also armored cars and track cars on the railway line, and the defense is very tight. In August, in eastern Henan where the sweltering heat was unbearable, Liu Deng led three columns. They crossed the old course of the Yellow River with a miraculous movement, and suddenly launched an attack on the enemy on the 50-kilometer-wide front from Kaifeng to Xuzhou on the Longhai Road.In only two days, they captured Lanfeng (now Lankao), Sanyijia, Luowang, Lizhuangji, Yangzhuang, Liudiquan, Liuheji, and Liba in the Kai (Kaifeng) and Xu (Xuzhou) sections. , Yejigang and other station strongholds, wiped out more than 5,000 enemies, and controlled and destroyed more than 150 kilometers of railways.On the enemy's main artery, Liu Deng's army controlled 150 kilometers of railways, which greatly shocked the enemy's headquarters. On August 13, a brigade of the 55th Division of the Kuomintang sent troops to the west to aid; the 68th Division was aided from the east by Kaifeng; in addition, Chiang Kai-shek transferred back the reorganized 3rd Division, 41st Division and 47th Division from the team that pursued the breakout forces of the Central Plains Military Region. Advance to Kaifeng. Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping took advantage of the enemy's reinforcements before they arrived. While restraining the enemy, they conquered the two cities of Qixian and Tongxu, and then captured Chenliu, and then took Yucheng, Dangshan and other places in succession. At this time, the enemy from the west reached Kaifeng and Xinxiang, and the enemy from the east arrived at Dangshan and Xiayi in an attempt to attack Liu Deng's army from east to west. Under such circumstances, Liu Deng commanded the troops to retreat to the north of Longhai Road to rest in time. On August 23, the Longhai battle ended successfully. "The sudden emergence of the Liu and Deng Department of the Communist Party is my confidant's great trouble! Our army of 100,000 is attacking the Central Plains. Liu and Deng actually broke through the Longhai Road, approached Xuzhou and Zhengzhou, and then threatened Nanjing! In just 10 days, they even 5 cities, 300 miles of broken roads, what have you guys been doing?!" Chiang Kai-shek threw a thick red and blue pen on the combat sand table of the Zhengzhou Appeasement Office, and his cold gaze was directed at Liu Zhi, the director of the Appeasement Office known as the "Fu Jiang". As soon as Liu Deng's army came out of the Longhai line, it took only two days to break through a 150-kilometer-long gap in the Kuomintang's Central Plains defense system, which greatly shocked the Kuomintang army's headquarters.Chiang Kai-shek couldn't stay longer at his official residence on Huangpu Road in Nanjing, so he flew to Zhengzhou with Chen Cheng and other entourage to deploy a counterattack against our army. Liu Zhi pursed his lips and was about to explain, but Chiang Kai-shek waved his hand: "I don't want to listen to your explanation. The fact that Longhai Road was destroyed has already shown your dereliction of duty! Incompetence!" Liu Zhi's well-maintained chubby fingers pointed at the Dabie Mountains on the sand table, hesitating to speak. Chiang Kai-shek said with a sullen face: "I know you are going to say that there is no army to separate Li Xiannian in the Dabie Mountains. Then let me ask you, where did Li Xiannian's troops go after two months of the campaign? If one is captured and one is lost, Even if the merits and demerits are balanced, and both ends are lost, what face do you have to repay the trust of the party and the country?" "Report to the president." Liu Zhi finally plucked up the courage, "What I want to say is that as long as a part of the troops are allocated and quickly assembled in the southwest of Shandong, I can guarantee that even if Liu Bocheng's Communist army cannot be completely wiped out, the most powerful force will be given." Attack them so that they cannot freely enter and exit the eastern section of Longhai Road!" "Not only the Longhai Road, but also the Pinghan Road." Chiang Kai-shek's eyes were threatening, "If this battle is not fought, it will be over. If it is fought, Liu Deng will be driven back to the Taihang Mountains!" Chen Cheng quickly took over the words, pointing to the sand table, and said: "According to the deployment of the president, the 5th Army, the 10th Division of the Reorganized Division, and the 5 brigades of the 88th Division of the Xuzhou Appeasement Administration are ordered to divide into three routes from Xuzhou, Dangshan, and Yuzhou. Attack the Shanxian, Chengwu, and Yutai areas in the urban area; all of the 3rd, 41st, and 47th Divisions reorganized by Sun Zhenzhi in the 5th Appeasement District of the Zhengzhou Appeasement Office, and the 55th and 68th Divisions reorganized by Liu Ruming in the Fourth Appeasement District 1 brigade, divided into three routes from Fengqiu, Kaifeng, Kaocheng, and Shangqiu areas to Dongming, Dingtao, and Caoxian areas. At present, after Liu Bocheng succeeded in Longhai Road, he stayed away from the rear, neither daring to go south, nor crossing the river. Therefore, after our army has formed a pincer attack, it will not be able to gain a firm foothold and hesitate! As for the commander-in-chief of this battle..." Chen Cheng's gaze turned to Chiang Kai-shek.Chiang Kai-shek slightly closed his eyes and nodded. Chen Cheng raised his voice: "The chief of the Zhengzhou Sui Department, Liu Zhi, will still be in charge!" "Principal!..." Liu Zhi himself didn't expect that he could be promoted after losing a battle, and his lips trembled with excitement for a moment, and he couldn't continue speaking. Xue Yue, the director of Xuzhou Sui Department, and others who were present at the scene stared at the fat Liu Zhi, and looked at his fat lips, fat cheeks, and fat belly "puchi, puchi", as if he was busy eating and drinking. All with a bit of sarcasm. Although Liu Zhi's prestige in the Kuomintang army is not high, he can be regarded as a veteran.He graduated from the Baoding Military Academy in 1916, and became an instructor at the Whampoa Military Academy in 1924.Therefore, he was a part of the two most popular factions among the Kuomintang soldiers—the Baoding faction and the Huangpu faction.However, in terms of achievements, Liu Zhi has no record to boast about.What is strange is that he has always been appreciated by Chiang Kai-shek, and his official career is prosperous.Over time, whether it was envy or sarcasm, his colleagues gave him such a nickname: "Fu Jiang". Liu Zhi finally ate and drank all the excitement, and said confidently: "Principal! To take on this important task, even though Liu Zhi is so heartbroken, he will not hesitate!" "We need to cover up quickly, and drive in immediately..." Chiang Kai-shek opened his eyes and inspected the crowd, "I want to come to the front line to supervise!" "Yes, move in immediately!" Liu Zhi ordered Wang Zhonglian, Wang Jingjiu, Liu Ruming, and Zhao Xitian to return to the headquarters, and immediately followed Chiang Kai-shek's order: "Move in immediately." In an ordinary farmhouse in Heze, Liu Bocheng, Deng Xiaoping, and the leaders of each column sat around a farm table covered with maps, and no one spoke for a long time. The air was a bit dull, and outside the house, the violent wind and rain, lightning and thunder seemed to overturn the thatched roof house.A bright flash of lightning shot into the low window lattice and across the map on the dining table.In an instant, the blue arrows protruding from the east and west directions on the map looked like two ghost teeth that were biting together, sharp and eerie. Deng Xiaoping and Liu Bocheng exchanged glances, stood up, and broke the dullness: "Everyone is clear about the situation. The enemy has a total of 3 divisions coming from the direction of Jinpu Road, two of which are Chiang Kai-shek's trump cards. Chiang Kai-shek has five trump cards in total. Take out two at once. The 5th Army and the 11th Division are all equipped with American weapons. They have strong combat effectiveness and are relatively difficult to deal with. There are many enemies from the west, but their combat effectiveness is not strong. In view of this situation, I consider two options: One is to temporarily avoid the enemy's sharp edge, quickly withdraw our main force to the north of the Old Yellow River to rest for a short period of time, and then look for an opportunity to go south to wipe out the enemy. This plan is more advantageous considering the local situation, but in this way , will inevitably increase the pressure on Chen Yi and Li Xiannian, which is not good for the overall situation. The other option is to grit your teeth and fight another battle. In this way, our burden will be heavier, but it will be much easier for Chen Yi and Li Xiannian! In my opinion, the second option is better." Liu Bocheng looked at his generals with a smile: "I agree with Political Commissar Deng. Chiang Kai-shek is a restaurant tactic. Before you can finish eating, he sends another table to force you to eat. Come and eat." Don’t be rude, since it’s here, let’s eat it freely!” Usually at this time, Liu Bocheng's witty words would definitely cause the generals to roar with laughter.But today, they really couldn't laugh.If they were just soldiers, any one of them would charge forward without hesitation at the command, but they are all leaders, the generals who lead the army, and they have a heavy burden on their shoulders. Consider the carrying capacity of the troops.The battle of Longhai lasted for half a month, and the troops were extremely tired.There were a lot of casualties, there was no time for the wounded to be transported, the ammunition was not replenished in time, and the enemy situation was so serious that if they fought, it would be a cruel and fierce battle.In this situation, whoever it is, will weigh the heaviness of it. As the two commanders of the field army, Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping understood their feelings. Deng Xiaoping walked to the window and said slowly: "Our army has a great reputation outside. It is called Liu Deng Dajun. In fact, we only have such a small family, with less than 50,000 soldiers, plus a few mountain artillery, mortars, and ammunition. There is also a shortage. Most of the soldiers in our army are the sons of peasants who have turned over and liberated, and they are of good quality. The Battle of Longhai suffered 5,000 casualties, and there is not much to replenish. It is really distressing to use this group of backbones..." "Political Commissar Deng! Don't talk about it..." Wang Jinshan stood up abruptly, "I agree with the fight! Let's use our Six Columns to fight! Compared with other columns, our Six Columns are the youngest. Let us fight, even if we fight all out, As long as it is beneficial to the overall situation, one word: 'value'!" "We are reluctant to let the pawns fail to keep the car. For the sake of the overall situation, we are willing to make sacrifices!" Chen Xilian, the commander of the three columns, stood up. "No. 1 (Liu Bocheng), No. 2 (Deng Xiaoping)! Give the order!" The political commissars of the commanders of each column all stood up with a "hula". "Comrades," Liu Bocheng looked at the group of loving generals who stood up in unison, slightly moved, "I once said that our Shanxi-Hebei-Luyu Field Army is in the field of the Fourth World War, and we need to cooperate with Shandong and northern Jiangsu to the east. To fight against the enemy, we must cooperate with the troops from Shanxi, Gansu and Gansu to fight against the enemy. Therefore, the people used to call our Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army the "Army of the Four Wars". Today, it is time for the overall situation to test us. Glory to the army!" After all, Liu Bocheng walked to the map: "Chiang Kai-shek made a big bet this time, and stretched out two big iron pincers to pinch us here. But his two pincers seem to be the same thickness, but their actual strength is different. West Although the number of this road is larger than that of the east road, most of them are miscellaneous troops, and only 3 divisions are directly descendants of Jiang. This division has always been known as "capable of attacking and defending, invincible". Liu Zhi has a teacher-student friendship, and is the nephew of the army commander-in-chief Gu Zhutong, so he is arrogant and arrogant. If we eat him as the main force, we can cut off his west road; the rest of the east road will naturally become lame. I can take the opportunity to split up the encirclement and destroy each one!" "Commander, give us the task of annihilating the entire 3rd Division!" Wang Jinshan was the first to challenge again. "Okay, I support you." Deng Xiaoping spoke. "The political commissar has the final say, and the entire 3rd Division will be handed over to you!" Liu Bocheng pointed at the map, "Remember, to destroy the 3rd Division, you must first give him a place. Let the enemy go deep until he is introduced into the tomb of Dayang Lake, and then destroy him!" On August 25, the Sixth Column, which was resting near Juancheng, received an order to evacuate. Wang Jinshan was still in the old tradition. He immediately organized troops to return the bed boards, sweep the yard, fill the tank with water, and check the discipline of the masses.When everything was ready, the phone rang.When Wang Jinshan heard that it was Deng Xiaoping calling, he immediately reported that the troops were withdrawing in an orderly manner and that the discipline of the masses had been checked. "No!" Deng Xiaoping interrupted Wang Jinshan, "Don't sweep the yard, and don't fill the tank with water." Wang Jinshan kept muttering in his heart, what's wrong with the chief?Commissar Deng has always used an iron fist to grasp discipline, and he is serious. What happened today?Is there something wrong with my ears?Deng Xiaoping's voice continued in the earphones: "Be more hasty, be more panicky! You can throw away some of the tattered equipment, and you can also throw away a few of your knapsacks... Retreating is not about calmness, but about being in a hurry..." "This, could it be..." Wang Jinshan thought of this, and punched his temple with his fist, "Soldiers never tire of deceit, this is to lure the enemy into deep!..." It turned out that in the face of a new round of pincer attacks from the enemy, Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping were determined to make great strides forward and retreat, mobilize the enemy, and avoid the strong and attack the weak.Before taking action, build momentum first, and then lead the main force to move westward secretly, looking for opportunities to annihilate the enemies in motion. The Kuomintang's east and west armies were dispatched at the same time, and the entire 3rd division was far ahead, repelling several attempts by the communist army in a row, and was advancing towards the Daxiaoyanghu area.After the rain in Southwest Shandong, the sun was shining brightly, and the weather was particularly fine.Liu Bocheng ordered the main force to abandon some towns and retreat northward by running.The entire 3rd Division occupied the Dayang Lake, Tianye Temple, and Dahuangji areas without much effort, and was far away from the flanking reorganized 47th Division. At this moment, Zhao Xitian, the commander of the 3rd Division, was sitting in a jeep, holding a walkie-talkie, and proudly reported to Liu Zhi: "Liu Bocheng has been defeated. I can occupy the entire Hebei, Shandong and Henan in less than two weeks, and catch him up to the Taihang Mountains!" Although Liu Zhi is also crazy, he is also in awe of Liu Bocheng's resourceful, brave and capable generals.He warned Zhao Xitian not to underestimate the enemy, and asked in secret words if he wanted to cooperate with the plane.Zhao Xitian thought that Liu Zhi was worrying too much, so he said loudly on the phone in plain language: "There is no need for planes. With this little equipment, the communist army is vulnerable." Liu Zhi reprimanded and asked, "Why don't you speak the secret language?" "It doesn't matter, the communist army doesn't have this thing!" Zhao Xitian replied. At this time, not only the arrogant Zhao Xitian had no idea of ​​Liu Bocheng's intentions, but even the Supreme Command of the Kuomintang was kept in the dark.The battle reports from the front greatly encouraged Chiang Kai-shek who was in Lushan Mountain, and he specially sent a telegram to commend the entire 3rd Division. Liu Zhi's worries were completely dispelled, and he immediately rushed from Zhengzhou to the front line for inspection and condolences. "In order to develop a good situation and quickly expand the results of the battle," Liu Zhi temporarily changed his deployment, changing the plan that the 3rd Division and the 47th Division would attack Dingtao to the 3rd Division to attack Heze alone, and the 47th Division to attack Dingtao alone.However, he never dreamed that in this way, the gap between the two divisions was further expanded, which just helped our army. On September 3, the enemy's 3rd division marched alone, and once again "repelled" our army's "blocking" and successfully entered Xiaoyang Lake.However, they never came out again. "Wang Jinshan? How are you getting ready?" Liu Bocheng called Liu Zong. At this time, Wang Jinshan has penetrated to the forefront only a few hundred meters away from Dayang Lake. "Commander, please rest assured. We have prepared everything and resolutely wiped out the entire 3rd Division! Even if there is only one company left in the Sixth Column, I will be the company commander and Du Yide will be the instructor. I ask the soldiers to shoot all their bullets and grenades Go to the enemy, bite with your teeth in the end, and bite the enemy to death!" "Good!" Liu Bocheng praised, "Comrade Jinshan, your determination is very good! If we cannot win this battle, we will not be able to stand on the Hebei-Shandong-Yuan Plain! We have to carry our burdens and go back to Taihang Mountain! Your task tonight It is very difficult, as long as the enemies of Dayang Lake are eliminated, the whole battle will change a lot.” Liu Bocheng put down a phone and picked up another one.After listening to the report of Yang Yong, the commander of the Seventh Column, Liu Bocheng further said: "Comrade Yang Yong, the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Liberated Area was created by you yourself, and you took it from the enemy with your blood. If we don't take this enemy Annihilation, not only will the people here be massacred by the enemy, but you will also lose all your previous efforts!" "Commander Liu, I understand, we must completely wipe out the entire 3rd division!" Yang Yong's voice made the phone buzz. Finally, Liu Bocheng called Chen Xilian and Chen Zaidao, the two column commanders one by one, asked about their preparations, and said to Deng Xiaoping: "The general offensive can begin." Deng Xiaoping nodded: "Tonight, let's go to Liuzong together." Late at night, at 23:30.Three red signal flares rose from the forward command post of the Sixth Column Main Attack Brigade, dyeing half of the sky red like a magnificent morning glow.Immediately afterwards, intensive artillery fire hit the junction of the 3rd Division Division Headquarters and its 59th Regiment Headquarters at the southeast corner of Dayang Lake. In the continuous artillery fire, the enemy's trenches, deer villages, barbed wire, and shelters, like hornet's nests on fire, flew into the air one after another. At the same time, the soldiers of the 1st Battalion and 3rd Company of the 54th Regiment, who were in charge of the main attack, quickly pierced into the enemy's position like a sharp knife, and first occupied Datuweizi, the key point of the enemy's defense. In the sky full of gunpowder smoke, Zhu Hui, the instructor of the 1st Battalion, carried a basket of grenades and drove the assault team into the village like a nail.Subsequently, company 1 was on the left and company 2 was on the right, tearing the gap in a scissors shape and rushing into the village. "Thug Thuk", "Bah Ba Ba", the enemy stunned by the artillery fire woke up, desperately blocked the way forward with machine guns, and the bullets hit like locusts. The advance of the commando was blocked, Zhu Hui's eyes were burning with anxiety, and he waved his hand: "Demolition team! Blow up the enemy's firepower point!" Because the enemy's firepower was too fierce, two blasting teams were dispatched in a row, but they were unsuccessful.Zhu Hui, who was red-eyed, grabbed nine grenades, tucked them in his waist, stood up "swish", and rushed up with the blasting team himself. "Boom! Boom!" There were two loud bangs, and the enemy's machine gun went dumb. The soldiers of the 1st Battalion rolled over like a flood that broke the embankment. The 2nd Battalion and 3rd Battalion rushed in from the left and right wings one after another, and the head of the regiment, Lu Yanshan, followed up with the command post, thus firmly controlling the core position of Datuweizi. The enemy panicked, concentrated their main forces, and with the cooperation of powerful artillery fire, they outflanked the Datuweizi where the 54th regiment was standing. "Captain, we are surrounded!" This nail obviously hurt the enemy, and they attacked the 54th regiment's position in turn. Lu Yanshan concentrated the light and heavy firearms of the whole regiment to form a ring-shaped fire net to contain attacks from all directions. Soldiers stuck to the ruined walls and fired calmly. Rows of dense bullets and bursts of hail-like grenades stirred up the big soil enclosure like the center of a tornado. Once, twice... the enemy's 9 consecutive attacks were repelled! When the enemy launched the tenth attack, the bullets of the whole regiment were almost exhausted, and the grenades became the only firepower of the soldiers. "Save ammunition, wait for the enemy to get close, and then give him 'watermelon'!" Li Zhifu, the commander of the 7th company, placed two baskets of grenades beside him, commanding the company calmly, "One, two, three! Feed it a bitch!" Booming, grenades smashed past like a volley of cannonballs.At this time, Li Zhifu was almost like a howitzer, throwing the most and fastest grenades. When he was shot in the head and fell down, there were hundreds of strings covering the ground.Weaved a coffin for him... The ace elite of the 3rd Division of the Enemy Division, known as "capable of attacking and good at defending", fell down and swarmed up. The 7th company's grenades are gone!The whole battalion has been wiped out with grenades!The instructor Zhu Hui shouted: "Blow the charge!" Then he led the soldiers to rush towards the enemy group with sharp bayonets. The sound of explosions on the battlefield disappeared, but the sound of trumpets, killing sounds, the metal sound of bayonet hitting and the wailing of the enemy were intertwined, shaking the earth and shaking the mountains. During the fierce battle, Zhu Hui was seriously wounded, his uniform soaked in blood. Before he died, he held the hand of the platoon leader Sun Quangui and said one word: "Fight!..." "Comrades!" Sun Quangui yelled, feeling that the surrounding area was a bit empty, only to find that he, Li Sanyuan, Sun Yushun, and Liu Xinheng were the only ones around.A rush of blood rushed to Sun Quangui's head. He held the handle of the gun tightly and shouted orders like commanding thousands of troops: "Revenge for the instructor! Avenge for the comrades!" The four rushed towards the enemy group like four tigers descending the mountain, "click, click", the enemies fell down like ears of grain, and the rest were forced to the entrance of the alley.Li Sanyuan jumped into a tiger, grabbed a firing machine gun, and competed with the enemy.The muzzle of the gun was hot, and his palms creaked and oily, and he refused to let go.During the fight, three enemies rushed towards him with bayonets in hand.Seeing this, Sun Quangui, Sun Yushun, and Liu Xinheng threw away the bent bayonets, pulled out a steel shovel from their waists, and rushed towards the enemy's head with a round swing. firearm. A machine gun guarded the alley, and after repelling the enemy's attacks again and again, Liu Xinheng was the only one left at the alley.He took the machine gun from the comrades who died, and while shooting, he said silently: "As long as I am here, the bastards will not even think about coming up..." The head of the regiment, Lu Yanshan, saw that an assault battalion full of people was beaten down to only one person, and his tears blurred... Our 54th regiment fell into a tight siege alone, the 49th regiment's attack was blocked, and the 52nd regiment suffered more than 400 casualties in the first charge... The situation on the battlefield became more and more severe. "Dinglingling..." Wang Jinshan, who was commanding the battle on the front line, picked up the microphone, and Deng Xiaoping's voice came from the earphone: "Comrade Wang Jinshan, Commander Liu and I are in your command post. This battle will not be fought well." , let’s go back to Taihang together with our burdens on our backs! Go back and tell Chairman Mao that we haven’t completed the task he gave. Can Dayang Lake be taken down or not? If we can’t take it down, the troops will be withdrawn!” "Report to the chief." Wang Jinshan really felt the weight of Deng Xiaoping's words, and answered decisively without the slightest hesitation, "I, Wang Jinshan, burned down the paving grass today, and I will take Dayang Lake down with my life!" "Take the 18th Brigade!" Wang Jinshan immediately wanted to contact Xiao Yongyin of the main attacking brigade, "Old Xiao! I'll give you another regiment, can you take Dayang Lake?!" "If you can't take it off, I'll give you the head!" Xiao Yongyin could tell that Wang Jinshan was about to burn the grass. "Okay! Remember, the entire 3rd Division suffered huge casualties just like ours, and there are three critical hurdles. Adding one more blade of grass to a heavily loaded camel can also bring it down! Tell comrades, Commander Liu and Deng The political commissar is waiting for our good news in the column command post!..." "Commander Liu and Political Commissar Deng are directing us!" For a time, exciting news spread throughout the frontier. The battle intensified.My 54th regiment is still firmly nailed to the big soil enclosure like steel nails.The lightly wounded took up their weapons and continued to shoot, the seriously wounded crawled back and forth on the ground to collect ammunition, the health workers put down their bandages and fought with the enemy, the buglemen smashed the enemy's skulls with bugles, regimental leaders, political commissars, government officials, The servants all took up weapons and fought the enemy one by one... "Comrades, reinforcements are coming up!" Seeing the signal flare rising in the sky, Lu Yanshan waved his hands and shouted: "Come on!..." The quenched steel nail immediately turned into a sharp blade and pierced towards the enemy. Guns roared, and the sound of killing shook the sky.All the troops rolled over like a stream of iron, and the red flags riddled with bullets were flying and fluttering in the smoke of gunfire. Dayang Lake has finally been taken down! Seeing Wang Jinshan's face, Lu Yanshan burst into tears: "Commander! The 54th Regiment has been wiped out..." The battle of Dingtao centered on Xiaoyang Lake is of great significance.This battle not only wiped out an entire 3rd division, but also took advantage of the momentum to wipe out 4 brigades of the 47th and 41st divisions, achieving a major record of annihilating more than 17,000 enemies.Together with other battlefields, Chiang Kai-shek started the civil war for only one month, and the loss of troops will exceed tens of thousands, showing defeat. Four days later, Mao Zedong himself wrote the article "Jiang's Army Must Be Defeated" in Yan'an's "Liberation Daily": This is another great victory after our army's breakthrough victory in the Central Plains and the Soviet Central Victory. The front has played a role in reversing the situation.The situation that Jiang's army must be defeated and our army must win is set. The fourth column of the Shanxi-Hebei-Luyu Field Army led by Chen Geng was also fighting in full swing with Hu Zongnan in southern Shanxi.Hu Zongnan was the commander of the 1st Division of the Kuomintang, and the two can be described as "well-matched".Today, Chiang Kai-shek put Hu Zongnan in Xi'an to deal with Yan'an; Mao Zedong sent Chen Geng to southern Shanxi to defend the flanks of the Shanxi-Gansu-Ningxia and Shanxi-Hebei-Luyu liberated areas.Therefore, they are "rightly matched", one Qin and one Jin, fighting next to each other, which can be regarded as "the road of enemies is narrow". In terms of status and strength, Chen Geng is obviously inferior to Hu Zongnan.Hu Zongnan became a big official and became the commander-in-chief of the first war zone. He was based in Xi'an and controlled large areas of Kanto, Guanzhong and Western Henan. He had 11 armies, 34 divisions and brigades, and hundreds of thousands of horses.Chen Geng was only the commander of a column, with only 3 brigades and some local troops under him, and his territory was pitifully small, and he was sandwiched between Hu Zongnan and Yan Xishan, so there was not much room for maneuver. Based on these, Hu Zongnan naturally didn't take Chen Geng seriously, but Chen Geng just didn't believe in this evil, and wanted to compete head-on with his old classmate and opponent like a diamond. 7月上旬，为了配合阎锡山打通同蒲路，胡宗南出动了3个整编师，会同阎锡山的1个军，分别由运城、介休出发，企图实行南北对进，寻歼陈赓部于晋南洪洞、赵城地区。 虽是大军压境，陈赓却一点也不惊慌。他早已看出胡宗南和阎锡山之间存在着矛盾：胡部骄狂冒进，阎部则力求保存实力，南北两方面不可能做到步调一致。陈赓决心利用这一矛盾，乘胡、阎两部未合拢之机，以一部兵力进至临汾以北钳制阎部，而让主力在运动中歼灭北犯之胡部，然后再转兵北上打击阎部。 7月12日，胡宗南的先头部队第31旅和第167旅分别进至闻喜、能张镇一带，长驱直入解放区70多公里，未受到大规模的阻击，故而更加骄傲，队形分散，如入无人之地。陈赓要的就是这个效果，立即集中6个团在宋村、胡张镇歼灭敌31旅所属92团及其旅部，接着又在如意、下晃地区歼敌31旅93团，并歼灭了前来增援的敌167旅两个营和78旅1个营，给了胡宗南第一个打击。随后，陈赓挥师北上，于8月中旬发起同蒲战役，连克洪洞、赵城、霍县、灵石、汾西等城，歼灭阎锡山部1万余人。 南北两仗，既打了胡宗南，又打了阎锡山。阎锡山被打疼了，胡宗南却被打精神了。自恃兵多将广的胡宗南斗鸡一样全力北进，意欲逼迫陈赓进行主力决战。 出场的阵势便不一般。胡宗南把他发家的老本钱，整编第1师摆了上来。该师的第1旅，训练有素，装备精良，全部美式武器，多年来以其无敌的战斗力被蒋介石、胡宗南吹嘘为“天下第一旅”。因这支部队的前身是蒋介石的警卫部队，故而人称“蒋家御林军”。胡宗南是这个旅的第一任旅长，以后历任指挥官也都必须是黄埔生。现任旅长黄正诚不仅毕业于黄埔，而且留学德国，虽任旅长，军衔已是中将，以中将之衔任旅长，足见这个旅地位的特殊。 陈赓是在他的无线电监听器中得到这个消息的。当时他正在和旅长们研究，要击中胡宗南的要害，必须抓住他的嫡系痛打才行。没想到胡宗南那么善解人意，竟然把他嫡系中的嫡系送来了。 陈赓拧着下巴颏笑了：“哈哈！胡宗南这是用掌上明珠来斗法呀！快，把无线电声音调大，听听这出戏他准备怎么唱！” 无线电里传来敌总指挥董钊对第1师师长罗列的喊话：“你们注意共军的伏兵，特别是南面那个高地方。” "clear." “你要注意策应临汾的老大。”罗列又和167旅旅长通话，“还要当心左侧的高地方……” “司令员。”通信科长对陈赓说：“临汾的'老大'，恐怕就是敌人的第1旅。可这个'高地方'……” 陈赓审视着地图，手指从临汾渐渐向北移动，突然用力一点“知道了！高地方一定是浮山！他们是怕我们在浮山设伏……好吧，我们就从这个高地方入手，把那条大鱼从临汾钓上来！” 有人提出：“是不是连那个167旅一起干掉！” 陈赓摇头了。他虽确有非凡的胆识和惊人的气魄，常人不敢想的他敢想，常人不敢做的他敢做。但他又绝不是鲁莽的人，他的决心和设想总是建立在对敌我情况的全面分析和精确判断上。 沉思了片刻，陈赓说：“'天下第一旅'虽是敌人的吹嘘，但它也不是一块豆腐渣。且不论它的装备，也不说它各级军官的军事素养和作战经验，单讲它的士兵，个个都有七八年的兵龄，横得走路都扛着肩膀。而我们只有几个旅，如果连同167旅一起歼灭，我们还没有那个力量。所以，我的意见是……” 陈赓用红铅笔在地图上的临浮公路上画了三个线段，又将公路中断的官雀村圈了一个圆。 周希汉、李成芳、陈康三位旅长立刻围拢上去。 ... 9月22日，敌167旅在响水河、天坛里一线遭到阻击，董钊以为陈赓要对167旅下手，或者准备死守浮山，于是命令27旅迅速与167旅靠拢，合力攻击浮山。 其实，董钊的判断完全错了。陈赓对打167旅和守浮山都不感兴趣，他设阻只是声东击西，撒点鱼饵，把“天下第一旅”诱出来。 董钊不知是计，接到27旅和167旅击退共军阻击，顺利占领浮山的报告后，十分高兴，立刻命令“天下第一旅”第2团沿临浮公路推进，占领浮山以西的官雀村。 一切都按陈赓的导演计划在调动。大鱼的半个身子露出来了！陈赓立即命令隐蔽集结的三个旅全部出动，杀向临浮公路。我13旅插到浮山与官雀村之间，隔断两敌联系，同时准备阻击浮山西援之敌；我11旅包围官雀村的“天下第一旅”第2团，准备将其全歼；我10旅进至官雀村以西，准备阻击或全歼自临汾东援的“天下第一旅”第1团。 当夜，11旅将官雀村团团围住。旅长李成芳正在猛抽自己卷制的“大炮”，临时指挥所的地上，成了他的大烟灰缸。每次战前都是这样，他先过足了烟瘾，一开打准“戒”。 陈赓的电话打来了：“李成芳，敌人的第2团战斗力很强，也很顽固，你们只有两个团担任围歼任务，行不行？” 李成芳知道陈赓手边并没有机动兵力，便把半截子烟一口吸到嘴里：“我们保证完成任务！” “好。”陈赓说，“一定不要叫敌人跑掉！发挥我们的夜战特长，分割围歼，争取拂晓前解决战斗！” “是！”李成芳把最后一个烟头摔到地上，“通知部队，10分钟后发起总攻！” 总攻按时发起，仗却打得十分艰难。 “天下第一旅”确实不是吹牛，这个第2团进入官雀村只短短几个小时，已经在村周围构筑了一系列地堡，并依据民房院落组成了各自为战又相互支援的防御体系。 面对大潮一样压过来的冲锋，敌人打得很沉着。冲击的部队接近地堡时他开枪，不暴露，等部队越过地堡，向村内发展时，地堡里的轻重武器一齐吐出火舌。 一道火舌，倒一层，两道火舌，倒一片…… 李成芳火了，从旅指挥所一跃到了营里：“3营长！你带8连改变突破位置，从敌人战防炮连和辎重连中间突进去！” 战防炮连和辎重连存放着大批弹药，火舌不敢向那里打了。3营8连果然从那里一举突入村内。全营迅速跟进，攻占了村东北高地，而后全团拥了进来，于拂晓前歼敌战防炮连、辎重连、3连、2连和6连，占领了一部分院落，与敌人形成插花对峙状态。 有了这块前进阵地，李成芳心里有底了。他把各团团长召集起来，重新调整部署，决心按照陈赓的要求，天亮之前解决战斗。 陈赓的电话又打来了。这一次却要求李成芳停止攻击，只要把敌人围住就行。李成芳吃不准了，电话里又不好问，碰巧各团领导都在，原封不动地传达了命令，一个人闷在指挥所里掏出旱烟叶，一根一根地卷“大炮”抽。 天亮了，敌人也嚣张起来，隔着院子，对着村外喊叫：“八路军！有种的不要熄火呀！” “别他妈的像夜猫子！天亮了摆开打一打呀……” 刺耳的喧嚣把李成芳的心火拱得一阵一阵往头上窜。 李成芳不知道，陈赓此时的胃口正大着呢！他不但要消灭瓮中之鳖的第2团，还要消灭整个“天下第一旅”。他知道，如果过早地将2团吃掉，远在临汾的第一旅的其他部队就不会出动增援。反之，只要2团还在，第一旅必然来救。 到了中午，陈赓的电话打到官雀村：“李成芳，天下第一旅的旅部和1团已经被包围在陈堰镇，你们可以对2团发起总攻了！” 抽了一上午烟，憋了大半天火的李成芳得到命令，立即冲出指挥所，对早已等在门外的各团团长说：“马上总攻！” 具体部署也随之脱口而出。他决心重点解决敌人的团部，并把这个任务交给了31团。 布置完毕，李成芳又一竿子插到31团，交代从哪里占据有利地形，从哪里阻住可能增援团部的敌人，又从哪里包围敌人的团部，隔断它和前后左右的联系，然后挥起右手，用力向下一劈。 李成芳的手刚刚劈下，两颗信号弹便飞上天空。和旅长一样憋足了劲的战士们吼着叫着冲向敌阵。 部队进展的消息一个接一个地传来： “敌人团部已被包围！” “增援团部的敌人第三次被击退！” “敌人的团部已经拿下！团长王亚武被击毙！” 从下午一直到凌晨，李成芳始终处在极度兴奋状态，根本没有想到要抽烟。直到听说部队已经完全控制官雀村，全歼敌人第2团，缴获全部美式装备时，他才深深地喘了口气，从兜里掏出烟丝和纸条。一根“炮弹”没卷好，纵队的战情通报到了：我十旅在陈堰镇一带歼灭“天下第一旅”旅部和第1团，活捉中将旅长黄正诚。