Chapter 12 Chapter 11 Strategizing, the Huaihai War is imminent
In a small village thousands of miles away from the Central Plains, Xibaipo Village in Pingshan County, Hebei Province, southwest of Beijing, Mao Zedong was thinking about the situation in the Central Plains day and night.
By the beginning of November, the People's Liberation Army's autumn offensive had won brilliant victories. 100,000 enemies were wiped out in the Jinan Campaign, 472,000 enemies were wiped out in the Liaoshen Campaign, and the entire Northeast was liberated, which greatly changed the war situation.At this time, the total strength of the Kuomintang army had dropped to 2.9 million. The Fu Zuoyi Group, the commander-in-chief of the "North China Bandit Suppression Headquarters" on the northern line, was being compressed in several major cities, and the Hu Zongnan Group on the Northwest Battlefield on the southern line was squeezed into In the corner of Guanzhong, the two groups of Liu Zhi and Bai Chongxi in the Central Plains battlefield, a total of 930,000 people, were isolated in Xuzhou, Wuhan and their surrounding areas.Liu Zhi Group governs Qiu Qingquan (2nd Corps), Huang Baitao (7th Corps), Li Mi (13th Corps), Sun Yuanliang (16th Corps), and 1st, 3rd, 4th, 9th Corps The four appeasement zone troops, with Xuzhou as the center, approached each other in an attempt to stick to Xuzhou, control Shangqiu, Haizhou section and southern Jinpu section of Longhai Road, and shield Nanjing.The Bai Chongxi Group has jurisdiction over 3 corps including Zhang Gan (3rd Corps), Huang Wei (12th Corps), Song Xilian (14th Corps) and 3 appeasement zone troops including the 5th, 13th, and 16th, controlling the southern section of Pinghan , strangle Wuhan, Xinyang, and Xiangfan, and shield South China.
Not only can the various groups of the enemy fail to form a complete front, but they have already fallen into a situation of being passively beaten and facing annihilation.
In the past few days, Mao Zedong has always been restless.The overall situation of the Northeast battlefield has been decided, and he should have relaxed for a few days.However, the looming Huaihai Campaign kept him awake at night.The situation there is more complicated than in the northeast battlefield.The Battle of Huaihai was fought at Chiang Kai-shek's doorstep, the enemy's resistance would be more tenacious, and logistical support and military support were also extremely convenient.The success or failure of this battle will directly affect the course of the Chinese revolution.
There were two telegrams on the table, both from Su Yu.A report stated that preparations for the Huaihai Campaign were underway, and that the entire campaign was expected to be under the unified command of Commander Chen Yi and Political Commissar Deng Xiaoping.In this regard, Mao Zedong has responded on behalf of the Military Commission and agreed to Su Yu's request.Another telegram was Su Yu and Tan Zhenlin's specific opinions on the deployment of troops and the timing of the attack.
Mao Zedong sat on an old-fashioned sofa that had just been shipped from Shijiazhuang, with telegrams and maps spread out on his lap.The war situation in Xuhuai land was rolling in his mind.He thought over and over about the strategic decision to annihilate Huang Baitao first.Will this extremely important step be seen through by Chiang Kai-shek and his staff?In case Huang Baitao retreats to Xuzhou, what changes will happen to the strategic situation?
He kept smoking, puff after puff...
Now, the decisive battle that will determine the fate of China is imminent, and the Northeast Field Army is about to enter the customs. How can we not startle the more than 600,000 Kuomintang North China troops in Beiping and Tianjin?
The familiar footsteps outside the house startled Mao Zedong who was in deep thought.It was Zhou Enlai, vice chairman of the Military Commission and chief of the general staff, Zhu De, commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, Ye Jianying and other comrades from the combat command.
A military meeting that is related to the entire war situation is going on solemnly and nervously in the simple farmhouse in Xibaipo...
Mao Zedong said in his thick Hunan accent: "I think it's decided. More than ten years ago, Chiang Kai-shek won the warlords from all walks of life in the Central Plains. Today, he will definitely lose to the Communists and the people in the Central Plains. I immediately wrote In the telegram, Su and Tan (that is, Tan Zhenlin) were telegrammed, and Liu, Chen, and Deng were told to launch attacks simultaneously in various places on the night of November 7 or 8, causing the enemy to be surrounded by the PLA's main force everywhere on the Huaihai battlefield. The false appearance made them fearful and did not dare to support each other, so that the People's Liberation Army could seize the opportunity to quickly wipe out Huang Baitao."
On November 14th, Mao Zedong waved a pen like a rafter, and wrote the article "Major Changes in China's Military Situation", pointing out with confidence: "China's military situation has now entered a new turning point, that is, the balance of power between the two sides in the war has taken place. Fundamental changes. The People's Liberation Army has already had an advantage not only in quality, but also in number. This is a sign that the success of the Chinese revolution and the realization of peace in China are approaching." The progress of the war has been greatly shortened... Now it seems that it only takes about one year from now to completely overthrow the reactionary Kuomintang government."
On the same day, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China instructed the Central Plains Field Army to leave Xubeng eastward immediately.On the 16th, it was decided to establish the General Front Committee of the Huaihai Front, consisting of five comrades Deng Xiaoping, Liu Bocheng, Chen Yi, Su Yu, and Tan Zhenlin. Deng Xiaoping, Liu Bocheng, and Chen Yi were the standing committee members, and Deng Xiaoping was the secretary. Based on the original plan for the Huaihai Campaign, Xuzhou was the center for a large-scale decisive battle with Chiang Kai-shek's largest strategic group, and it was planned to annihilate the enemy in the area north of the Huaihe River within 3 to 5 months.
In the decision, Chairman Mao instructed the General Front Committee to say: "The Battle of Huaihai is an unprecedented battle on the southern front. If this battle is won, the situation north of the Yangtze River will be settled."
"Since ancient times, Pengcheng has been linked to Kyushu, and dragons and tigers have fought for thousands of years!"
On November 5, 1948, Xuzhou Airport.
More than 10,000 officers and soldiers were silent, in a gray area, neatly arranged in square formations.
Surrounded by the commander of the Corps and his entourage, Liu Zhi walked quickly, looking around the entire airport.
The eyes of tens of thousands of people at the airport were all on him at this moment.This general commander-in-chief, who served successively as the commander of the 1st Army of the National Revolutionary Army and the commander-in-chief of the 1st theater during the Northern Expedition and the Anti-Japanese War, has a large military mark on his chest.
A few days ago, the Nanjing Ministry of National Defense revealed to him that Bai Chongxi would succeed him in Xuzhou.He felt embarrassed.It was even more difficult for his senior staff to accept, and they complained in front of Liu Zhi from time to time.Liu Zhi was so angry that he drank alcohol for several days.Later, when he heard that Bai Chongxi was not coming, Liu Zhi was overjoyed.Three days ago, Nanjing informed Liu Zhi that Chiang Kai-shek would go to Xuzhou to arrange the war in person.Liu Zhi was both nervous and excited. He mobilized more than 10,000 troops overnight to practice at Xuzhou Airport, preparing for Chiang Kai-shek's review.
This morning, the Ministry of National Defense called to say that Chiang Kai-shek was stranded in Nanjing due to important matters, and the Chief of Staff Gu Zhutong was ordered to come to Xuzhou to hold a military meeting.
Liu Zhi was a little disappointed that Chiang Kai-shek did not come to Xuzhou.But Gu Zhutong is not someone to wait for nothing.Let Gu Zhutong see Xuzhou's military power with his own eyes, and go back and report to the old man, the old man will naturally be happy.Therefore, when the staff officer asked him whether the military parade at the airport would still be held, he was a little annoyed: "Is there any need to ask? Not only do we have to do it, but we have to do it better!"
The roar of the plane came from the southwest direction.
Every head on the airport seemed to be hung around the neck by an invisible rope in the sky.
Among the senior generals of the Kuomintang army, Gu Zhutong, chief of staff, is probably the most elegant.Accompanied by Guo Rugui, the short and sturdy director of the war department, he stepped off the plane step by step and appeared among a large group of senior generals like stars holding the moon. The demeanor is even more outstanding.
... Gu Zhutong looked over the generals around him and looked straight at the past, only to see the queue at the airport waiting to be reviewed silently in the cold wind.Looking far away, Yunlong Mountain, the ancient Yellow River, Xuzhou City looming... Oh, Xuzhou!Gu Zhutong's heartstrings trembled.This place is about to become a battlefield again.
In late October, after the main force of the Central Plains Field Army liberated Zhengzhou and Kaifeng, the Kuomintang High Command judged that the East China Field Army might go south to northern Jiangsu, and the four main columns of the Central Plains Field Army might move eastward.If the People's Liberation Army of East China and the Central Plains jointly launch an offensive, "the Central Plains Battle will be held in Xuzhou." Therefore, on October 23, Chiang Kai-shek hosted an emergency combat meeting in Nanjing and formulated the "Xu Bang Battle Plan". The basic idea is: Xuzhou Except for one or two armies of the "Suppression General" to stick to Xuzhou, all the major cities along the Longhai line were abandoned.The main force carried out offensive defense in the areas on both sides of the railway between Xuzhou and Bengbu, and concentrated all its efforts to find the People's Liberation Army moving eastward from Pinghan Road and southward from Jinpu Road for a decisive battle.
Xuzhou, known as Pengcheng in ancient times, is one of the famous ancient counties in my country.
These two poems summarize the strategic position of Xuzhou, and also show that this is a place that military strategists of all dynasties must contend for.
Xuzhou is located at the junction of the four provinces of Jiangsu, Shandong, Henan, and Anhui. It has been a major traffic route in the Central Plains since ancient times.After the opening of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, it is the only place connecting the north and the south.The strategic position of transportation is very important.Xuzhou is known as the "Military City".Especially when the territory is divided and the north and the south are facing each other, Xuzhou is even more important. It is true: "The ancient battlefield at the foot of Jiuli Mountain, the shepherd boy picked up old swords and guns."
Since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Xuzhou has been between Qi, Lu, Wu, Yue, and Song, and it has always been the most eye-catching place for princes to contend for hegemony in the Central Plains.From 573 BC, Chu and Zheng defeated Song to capture Xuzhou; Jin, Lu and Wei intervened to besiege Xuzhou;At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Xuzhou became a place of contention, such as Cao Cao's attack on Tao Qian, and the rulers of the Tang Dynasty and the feudal towns in Xuzhou.After the Song Dynasty, Xuzhou was close to Gyeonggi, and its status became more important.Throughout the ages, dragons and tigers have been fighting here.According to written records, there have been more than 400 wars from the 15th year of Emperor Xia to the present.The Gaixia battle between Liu Bang and Xiang Yu was even more tragic and shocked the history books.Huang Xing, the hero of the Revolution of 1911 and an outstanding military strategist, put it more clearly: "If you don't get here in the south (Xuzhou), you can't see Shandong; if you don't get here in the north, you can't see Jiangdong.
Li Shuzheng, chief of staff of Lieutenant General Li Shuzheng's command and report called Gu Zhutong back to his thoughts.The military music rang, and the military parade officially began.Liu Zhi and Gu Zhutong walked side by side to the parade troops.Liu Zhi is four years older than Gu Zhutong, but he looks much older. The biggest similarity between the two is tolerance.Liu Zhi always regards himself as a veteran, and he never feels jealous when he sees young officers flourishing one by one. "You are my students, just respect me as a teacher!" Just as Chiang Kai-shek never forgot that he was the principal of the Whampoa Military Academy, Liu Zhi is most proud of his experience as a military instructor.Gu Zhutong's generosity to his subordinates often surprises his subordinates.He couldn't help the officers and soldiers from gambling and bribery, as long as they could fight.Because of this, Gu Zhutong's subordinates brought together the best soldiers and the most indecent villains of that era.Huang Baitao, the general of the miscellaneous army, was also able to avoid disasters and rise to the top because of relying on him.
Hearing Liu Zhi's heavy breathing, Gu Zhutong gradually slowed down his pace.He remembered Guo Rugui's joke on the plane.Ten minutes ago, when the plane was about to land, Guo Rugui asked Gu Zhutong: "Chief Commander, there are some complaints internally, did you hear that?"
"No." Gu Zhutong wanted to hear.
"People say that Xuzhou is the gate of Nanjing, and a tiger general should be sent to guard it. Even if you don't send a tiger, you should also send a dog to guard the gate. Now you only send a pig, how can you keep it?"
Gu Zhutong did not answer directly, but said euphemistically: "We have considered two candidates for the 'Xuzhou Suppression General', one is Liu Jingfu, and the other is Jiang Mingsan. Jiang Ming prostitutes for three days and gambles at night, and doesn't care about it. In comparison, It's better to be helped by Liu Jing."
Liu Zhi frowned at this moment, he seemed anxiously expecting something.Suddenly, the troops under review shouted loudly: "Serve the party and state, defend Xuzhou!" Liu Zhi's eyebrows stretched out, and his eyes turned to Gu Zhutong.Gu Zhutong smiled.
Gu Zhutong bears the old man's secret order and feels a heavy responsibility.Therefore, in the morning, Qiu Qingquan, Huang Baitao, Li Mi, Sun Yuanliang and other corps commanders, as well as army and division commanders who could serve as Xuzhou, were summoned to hold an emergency combat meeting at the "Suppression General" headquarters in Xuzhou.
At this moment, most of the senior generals in the Xuzhou area gathered in the conference room.Rows of buttons and epaulets are shining, densely packed like stars.
Liu Zhi accompanied Gu Zhutong to sit down in the center of the conference room.Liu Zhi is always smiling, like Haha Buddha in a big temple.But if you take a closer look, you will find that his eyelids are a little shiny and swollen today, his movements are slow and tired, and he grins from time to time, as if he is suppressing countless yawns, and many tears are suppressed in his eyes.
He stayed up all night last night.
Gu Zhutong always looks energetic, and his straight waist always maintains a good military posture.In the solemn atmosphere, Gu Zhutong's eyes swept over the faces of the generals present one by one.Most of these generals Gu Zhutong are familiar with.He exchanged subtle glances with them, some nodding their heads in greeting.When he met the slightly bald Huang Baitao who was sitting on his left hand, he felt that there was a sense of sadness in Huang Baitao's eyes.When he was at the airport yesterday, he noticed something unusual about Huang Baitao.In fact, Huang Baitao just had a stomach problem these days.Gu Zhutong's eyes lingered on Huang Baitao for several seconds.Among the generals present here, he seems to have a special relationship with Huang Baitao.
When Huang Baitao was young, he could be considered pretty, but it probably had something to do with his humble background and lack of nutrition, and his stature was relatively thin.In his early years, he was the messenger of the Beiyang warlord Li Chun.Li Chun saw that he was diligent and eager to learn, so he sent him to the Jinling Military Officer Education Corps to study.From then on, he began his ups and downs career as a military commander.In the warlord melee, he finally took refuge in Chiang Kai-shek.Chiang Kai-shek's usual method of lifting the military power of the generals of the miscellaneous army is to send them to the Army University to study.So Huang Baitao became a student of Lu University.But Huang Baitao did not give up, and continued to study military affairs conscientiously, hoping to make a comeback.Sure enough, when he was a lieutenant general in the military committee, he was highly appreciated by He Yingqin, then Minister of Military and Political Affairs, because he wrote an extremely beautiful military thesis.Huang Baitao therefore had ties to Chiang Kai-shek's system. In 1941, he entered Gu Zhutong's circle and became the chief of staff of Gu Zhutong's third theater.But Huang Baitao was not a direct descendant of the Central Army. In the days to come, his fate was like a light boat in the raging waves. Sometimes he was thrown into the bottom of the valley, and he was killed several times;Almost every battle in the Central Plains battlefield pushed Huang Baitao to the front of the screen, playing the most dramatic main role.
What is his fate in this war?Gu Zhutong exhaled calmly, bid farewell to Huang Baitao, and moved to the right.
Qiu Qingquan, the lieutenant general commander of the 2nd Corps, sat dignifiedly, watching Gu Zhutong.Qiu Qingquan was Gu Zhutong's student when he was in Huangpu, and Gu Zhutong knew him too well.He is not like Huang Baitao, this guy has been promoted step by step from second lieutenant platoon leader to lieutenant general corps commander, and has always been favored by Chiang Kai-shek.In the battle of Kunlun Pass, he won the Baoding Medal.Afterwards, he commanded the 5th Ace Army, and took the creed of "the first time the head is cut with a knife, the more valuable it is, and the corpse is not sealed with mud" as his creed, he fought east and west, and became the direct line of the central army's lineage and the elite of the elite.His injured lip was stitched several times, leaving a deep groove, and his mouth crooked when he spoke.
At this time, Lieutenant General Guo Rugui, director of the Department of Operations of the Ministry of National Defense, began to announce the plan for the Xu Bang battle.
"Sun Yuanliang's corps was transferred from Shangqiu to Mengcheng area to ensure the safety of the west side of Xu and Bang on Jinpu Road; Qiu Qingquan's corps gathered in Dangshan and Yongcheng areas to wait; Li Mi's corps was transferred from Nianzhuang to Lingbi and Sixian areas to serve as the Mobile mission; Huang Baitao's corps moved from Xin'an Town to the west of the canal to gather; Feng Zhi'an abandoned Lincheng and Zaozhuang..."
When Qiu Qingquan heard that "The Second Corps is gathering around Yongcheng and Dangshan", he breathed a sigh of relief.His subordinates are currently stationed in Shangqiu, Henan.Although he was born in a scholarly family, he studied at Shanghai University in his early years, and later went to Germany for further studies. He has always regarded himself as a Confucian general, but he is very superstitious. He feels that the place name Shangqiu is incompatible with his surname, and it is a homophony of "Shangqiu". .Now that I am leaving that ominous place, I feel somewhat relieved.
Guo Rugui continued to read: "The 7th Corps should ensure the west bank of the canal and be in close contact with the 1st and 3rd Appeasement..."
The battle plan was drafted by Gu Zhutong, so he naturally didn't need to listen.At this moment, he was still sitting there motionless, looking at everyone in the venue with sharp eyes.
Li Mi, a fourth-year student in Whampoa, has a witty aura in his brows.When he commanded the Eighth Army, he once had a great time on the Burma Road.Later, it was this Li Mi who recruited tens of thousands of soldiers in the Yunnan-Myanmar Golden Triangle area, established his own independent kingdom, and became a world-renowned "armed drug lord".He has long heard people say that to be successful in the "National Army", two conditions must be met: wearing a green hat (Army University) and wearing a yellow robe (Whampoa Department).Liu Ruming, the deputy commander-in-chief of the "Suppression General" and the commander of the 4th appeasement area, is a big man from Hebei. He looks simple and honest, but in fact he has a deep city.As for Feng Zhi'an, the deputy commander-in-chief of the "General Suppression" and the commander-in-chief of the 3rd appeasement zone, sitting on the farthest edge, although he can also be called dignified, the turbidity between his brows shows that this person is bright on the outside but dark on the inside. , Always indecisive when things happen, he doesn't seem to have noticed that the entire Huaihai decisive battle of the Kuomintang was defeated like a mountain, and it will start from a big mutiny around him...
After Guo Rugui finished speaking, she stepped aside.Gu Zhutong said expressionlessly that he wanted to hear the opinions of everyone present.
After a moment of silence in the venue, Huang Baitao stood up and said in a strong nasal voice: "The Ministry of Staff resolutely carries out the order. But according to the reconnaissance report, this time the bandits Chen and Liu joined forces with the ambition to encircle our 7th Corps. We It has been discovered that the main force of the communist army is rushing towards me from the line of Linyi..." He believed that the 7th Corps was far away from Xuzhou, isolated and easy to be defeated, and at present, the armies were distributed on both sides of Longhai Road, and their forces were scattered. The right is few, the front is prepared, the rear is few, and there are no shortages." "Only by imitating Napoleon's concentration method and gathering the 7th Corps near Xuzhou can the threat of the Communist Army be relieved." It should be said Well, Huang Baitao was aware of his dangerous situation.
"No!" Hearing a loud cry, Qiu Qingquan almost jumped up against the case, grinned, and gave Huang Baitao a disdainful glance, and said, "Boss, I have captured the scouts of the third column of the Communist Army. , Liu Er bandits and dozens of our troops formed a situation of attacking from east to west."
"Boss!" Li Mi stood up, without looking sideways, and said word by word: "Our department has also detected that the main force of the communist army is approaching our department."
Feng Zhian swallowed his saliva, but stopped talking.He knew very well that his troops were at the forefront, and he had to be the first to be threatened by the Communist army.But he can't say it, his army is a motley army, and it has always been used as cannon fodder. It should be so, and it is useless to say.Huang Baitao is used to fighting, even if he is despised by Qiu Qingquan and others, let alone himself?
Even more brilliant than Feng Zhian was Sun Yuanliang, Lieutenant General Commander of the 16th Corps.Although he was born in Huangpu and has a noble blood, he never bullied others.He never engages in such indecent arguments as this.Therefore, his popularity is extraordinary.As early as when Jiangxi "encircled and suppressed" the Red Army, because he was defeated, Chiang Kai-shek ordered him to be killed in a fit of anger.Strangely, more than ten years later, when Chiang Kai-shek held a banquet for the meritorious generals, Sun Yuanliang stood in front of him.Chiang Kai-shek turned his face away and asked a general, "Didn't this man be killed?" The general said, "Headmaster, he is also your student, and he is very good at fighting. We let you go without telling us." After hearing this, Chiang Kai-shek had no choice but to let it go.
"Everyone, Xuzhou is what the communist army really covets!" Liu Zhi came out to speak, his old voice buzzing in the venue. "Xuzhou is the location of the 'General Suppression'. Xuzhou is not guaranteed, and the dragons have no leader. Therefore, there must be a strong military force in the city. Don't be careless?"
Where is the main force of the communist army?What is their combat intention?Gu Zhutong saw that the senior generals disagreed with each other and couldn't agree on what to do, so he had to break up the meeting hastily.