Chapter 18 Chapter 17 Banners Pointing to the South, Thousands of Horses and Thousands of Armies Are on the Bow

In March, there is a scene of spring in the south of the Yangtze River. According to the deployment of the Central Military Commission and the General Front Committee, at the beginning of the month, Liu Bocheng commanded the three corps of the Second Field Army to be divided into Fu? , Shenqiu, and Luohe areas, advancing mightily to the north bank of the Yangtze River.With the 3rd Corps as the left army, go straight from Fuyang to Anqing; with the 4th Corps as the right army, look to the river from Shenqiu;And ordered the 11th and 15th armies to be the advance team, to arrive at the predetermined area in advance, and to open up positions for the main force to cross the river.In order to contain and confuse Bai Chongxi, the troops of Tongbai and Jianghan Military Regions were also ordered to move towards Anlu, Yingcheng, and Tianmen, threatening Wuhan's back and attracting part of Bai Chongxi's troops to look westward.

The section where the Second Field Army crossed the river was the junction of the Tang Enbo and Bai Chongxi groups, and it was also the southward protruding part of the Yangtze River, on the left side of the Tang Enbo group.Defending the enemy along the river is about 40,000 people from the 3 armies and 8 divisions of the Liu Ruming Department of the 8th Corps.Its 68th Army headquarters?In Zhide, 3 divisions are distributed along the line from Dongliu to Hukou; the headquarters of the 55th Army is located in Guichi, 1 division is located in the section from Wushazha to Guichi, and 2 divisions are located in Tongling, which is in front of the third field army crossing the river , Qingyang section; the headquarters of the 96th Army is located in Yinjiahui, and the two divisions are located on the line from Jiyang Dadukou to Wushazha.In the deep area of ​​this section, only the 17th Corps Hou Jingru led 2 armies in the Shexian to Ningguo area.Generally speaking, the enemy's combat effectiveness in the entire section of the Second Field Army crossing the river is weak, there are very few mobile troops, and there are guerrilla activities in the southern Anhui area, which has become a favorable direction for our army to attack.But at the same time, the main force of the Bai Chongxi Group was on the right side of Erye's river-crossing area, seriously threatening Erye's side and back safety.The Xiawei Corps also used Jiujiang and Anqing as bases to extend its guard troops to Wangjiang, Taihu Lake, and Qianshan in an attempt to delay our army from approaching the river bank, destroy ships or rob them to the south bank of the river to prevent us from crossing the river.

According to the current enemy situation, Liu Bocheng, the commander of the Second Field Army, determined that three corps should be lined up on the front with a width of about 100 kilometers between Guichi and Madang, and the breakthrough should be carried out with an emphasis on the east and west sections of Anqing.The specific deployment is: the 3rd Corps crosses the river from the east of Anqing to the section of Zongyang Town, advances into She County (that is, Huizhou) to cut off the Huihang Road, and then goes east along the road to Hangzhou; the 5th Corps crosses the river from the west of Anqing to the section of Wangjiang , and then went straight out of Quxian along Fuliang to control the Zhejiang-Jiangxi line and cut off the enemy's retreat; the 4th Corps crossed the river between Wangjiang and Madang, and then went east along the river to take over the task of the 9th Corps to monitor the enemy in Wuhu, and Prepare to take part in the battle to capture Nanjing.After breaking through the south bank, each unit expanded to the two wings, took the initiative to respond to the landing of brother troops, and coordinated operations.The main force of the Advance Corps of the Fourth Field Army, which was temporarily under the command of the Second Field Army, was located in the area east of Wuhan, and commanded active activities of the Tongbai, Jianghan, and Hubei-Henan military regions to contain the Bai Chongxi Group and support the Erye crossing the river.

Rolling iron flow southward.From the Huaihai area in the east to the Ping-Han Railway in the west, the Chinese People's Liberation Army's millions of troops formed a mighty ranks and converged into a majestic torrent. Thousands of troops crossed the river, Huaihe River, and Han Dynasty in dozens of roads. The plains, galloped bravely, marched south. Bao Xianzhi, then commander of the 11th Army of the Second Field Army, gave a vivid description of the troops marching along the Yangtze River and preparing for battle: The majestic scene of the historic march of millions of troops crossing the south of the Yangtze River touched the revolutionary pride of countless poets. Commander Chen Yi of the Third Field Army, who commanded the army on the eastern front to go south, wrote a new heroic poem on the way south:

On the way to the south of the Yangtze River, the whole army was full of high morale and confidence in victory.When the units of the 4th Corps were dispatched from the Feihe and Zhoukou areas, they were caught up in continuous heavy rain. The troops braved the heavy rain and walked in the mud, advancing day and night. The soldiers' clothes, backpacks, and flour bags were all soaked. The cold rain rushed down the neck to the back, and the wet clothes wrapped tightly around the body.The flat avenue has turned into muddy ditches. Some places are slippery and unsteady, and some places have their legs stuck and cannot be pulled out. Many people fell down on the road one after another, covered in mud.However, the glorious mission of crossing the river greatly inspired everyone.Although the rain was violent and violent, the sound of wind and rain could not hide the high-pitched singing of the troops. Everyone sang the heroic song of "Storm, North to South".

On March 11, the Chen Geng Corps began to dispatch.The procession sets off before dawn, with constant singing.The next day, as soon as the troops had marched more than 10 kilometers, it began to rain.The cold raindrops hit the body drop by drop.When they arrived at Shangcai City, the soldiers' cotton clothes and trousers were all soaked.No matter how severe the wind and rain, the fire of crossing the south of the Yangtze River that ignited in the hearts of the soldiers burned more and more vigorously.Everyone braved the greater rain and stepped on the deeper mud, and insisted on walking to the scheduled campsite.

The troops crossed the Huaihe River from Xixian County, and the ferry was seven or eight kilometers east of the city.There is a temporary pontoon bridge built with wooden boards on the river.The construction of the pontoon bridge was a relatively large project. In addition to the engineering troops, many people from the surrounding areas came to participate, and the pontoon bridge was built soon.The riverbed of the Huaihe River is very wide and the current is relatively fast.On both sides of the pontoon bridge, thousands of infantry and field artillery pulled by eight mules crossed the pontoon bridge day and night and rushed to the south.

After crossing the Huai River, the people's customs, life, and urban and rural scenery are completely different from those in the north.The streets in the villages and towns are long and narrow. The grain stores are full of white rice, and the stalls are filled with bamboo utensils, fish and shrimp, and people speak differently from those in the north.It gives people a new impression everywhere.There are squares of paddy fields along the way, and clear streams flow everywhere, which is also significantly different from the north of the Huaihe River. Once across the Huaihe River, you will enter the Dabie Mountains area.Most of these areas were red areas in the past, where the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army had been active for a long time, and later became liberated areas during the Anti-Japanese War and the People's Liberation War.The broad masses of the people, rich in revolutionary tradition, have shown incomparable enthusiasm for the PLA.It was also occupied by Bai Chongxi's Guangxi troops for a long time, which planted a particularly deep hatred for the people.

Huangchuan on the south bank of the Huaihe River was originally a beautiful city and also the gateway to the Dabie Mountains.It is also an important military town and the junction of several main roads.After long-term brutal ravages by the Jiang army, the city was desolate and business was depressed, and there were still remnants of the enemy's tyranny on the walls: slogans such as "The only son must be recruited" and "Monks and priests must be soldiers" drawn by the false township. A popular local song says: The enemy forced the arrest of strong men, causing many tragedies.Hu Fatzi and Wu Zhuangcai, young farmers from Xiaoliudian Village in the second district of Huangchuan, did not want to be cannon fodder for Chiang Kai-shek, so they asked their mothers to cut off their right hands with a kitchen knife.Young farmer Li Chenghai asked his wife to pierce his eyeballs with a needle when Jiang Jun surrounded the village to arrest him, and he became blind.In this area, whenever the troops enter the garrison, many people who have been killed will complain of all kinds of disasters caused by the enemy with great grief and righteous indignation.

Leaving Binchuan and heading south, gradually entering the central area of ​​the old base of Dabie Mountains.Xinxian County, built at the foot of the mountain, has war remnants throughout the city, including the remains of burned houses and many demolished courtyards.Xin County, formerly known as Xinji Town, was the capital of the red area of ​​Hubei, Henan and Anhui during the Second Civil Revolutionary War.In the 20 years of the Revolutionary War, I can't remember how many times I fought with the reactionaries.After the main force of the Red Army left the red area to march westward, Liu Zhi led his troops to invade and occupy here, looting wantonly, and changed the place name to "Jingfu".

Since entering the Dabie Mountains area, Chen Geng has been full of imagination and excitement. During the Second Civil Revolutionary War, Chen Geng served as the division commander of the 12th Division of the 4th Front Army of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, and led the troops to fight in Hubei, Henan and Anhui for a long time.When Chen Geng arrived in Xinxian County, he recalled that he had been here four times during the civil war and had been wounded in battles on nearby hills.The house he lived in that night was the seat of the workers' and peasants' democratic government in Hubei, Henan, Anhui.He loves this land. On March 24, when the troops arrived in Xincheng, Chen Geng was filled with emotion, and wrote in his diary that day: The 15th Army and the 11th Army led by Qin Jiwei and Li Chengfang were the vanguard of the front station. On March 24, Liu Bocheng issued the "Instructions on Precautions for Crossing the River Tactics", which stipulated ten important tactical principles for the implementation of crossing the river.Among them, the advance troops are required to "first sweep away the enemy's cover positions in Jiangbei and reach the riverside before they can make further practical preparations." "When sweeping away the support points of the enemy's Jiangbei bridgehead, especially for the enemy that hinders our main crossing points, we strive to cut off their retreat, split their deployment, and quickly wipe them out, so as not to retreat to the south of the Yangtze River and increase their resistance in the future." In order to ensure the suddenness of the advance troops' actions, Liu Bocheng laid out a series of suspicious tactics: while the troops of the Tongbai and Jianghan military regions were feigning an attack, he sent a telegram to the 12th Corps of Siye, which had just been assigned to the Second Field, to go straight out of Xinyang and threaten the southern section of Pinghan Road. Increased the pressure on Bai Chongxi; ordered the 4th Corps of the Right Route Army passing through Macheng and Luotian to deliberately expose the marching attempt, creating the illusion of intending to attack Wuhan. Sure enough, Bai Chongxi was frightened by the emptiness of eastern Hubei and the threat of Jiujiang, so he hurriedly withdrew the main force of the 46th Army of Anqing garrison to Huangmei and Jiujiang via Susong to strengthen the defense of the area.only stay? One regiment of the 174th Division retreated to Anqing and its surrounding points to stick to it. "April Heavenly Soldiers Conquer Corruption". On April 8, under the leadership of Commander Li Chengfang, the 11th Army liberated Xishui County south of Macheng in one fell swoop.The gunshots of the battle were still ringing, the residents opened their doors, and workers, shop assistants, students, and citizens flooded the streets. The sound of firecrackers welcoming the army and the gunfire of the frontline battles merged together. The team at the front station arrived at Lijiahe, Macheng County, and reported a shocking news to the whole village: Li Chengfang, who was in the Red Army 20 years ago, is coming back today. Early in the morning, the entrance of the village was full of people.They waited, looking up at the endless line of troops in the distance, walked up to the marching troops, and recognized every red and black face in the ranks. Li Chengfang was only 16 years old when he joined the Red Army. He was still a naughty child. Just because he couldn't bear the crimes of the Kuomintang, he became a member of the Red Army and started a revolution until now.When he saw the trees and roofs of his hometown from a distance, he couldn't help but get excited.What will happen when you see your family?What do you say when you meet an acquaintance?He has never been so nervous in front of the enemy.When he suddenly saw people standing at the entrance of the village, his eyes immediately became moist.He kept walking into the crowd, greeted everyone happily, and carefully looked at everyone's faces, but his heart slowly shrank, and he couldn't recognize anyone.After a long time, an old man came forward and asked tremblingly, "Are you Cheng Fang?" This is his uncle Li Qingyi. Li Chengfang was surrounded by a large group of people and entered the room.Children surrounded him?Walking, jumping, and making troubles following this "Uncle Red Army".The old man was very emotional: the child has grown up and brought the team back, and the final victory is coming soon.But…… Li Qingyi went to Li Chengfang's side and said sadly and angrily: "After you left, the Bai Party (referring to the Kuomintang) crushed Dabie Mountain to death. Your father and mother were beaten to death. Later, your sister also disappeared. No one is hungry. I don't care about anyone. Your house was also demolished by Bai Jun..." As he spoke, he led Li Chengfang to a rubble field and pointed, "Do you remember? This place used to be your main room, and this is the kitchen where you eat." When he pointed to a corner full of weeds, his fingers couldn't help trembling: "You slept there when you were a child!" Li Chengfang was busy running to see the mother of a comrade. His son participated in the revolution with Li Chengfang, but had already died.The room was terribly desolate, and everything was ruined by the Kuomintang army.The dilapidated walls were smoky and black, with watermarks poured from the rain.The stove looked like it hadn't fired for many years, the floor was full of dust, and the room was full of cobwebs. Suddenly, a blind white-haired mother-in-law stood up from the haystack, like a beggar.She called out his nickname vigorously, and Li Chengfang ran forward immediately.She took his hands, then hugged him tightly in her arms, her tears rolled down Li Chengfang's clothes like spring water.Li Chengfang, who has been tempered into an iron man in 20 years of bloody battle, can no longer hold back her tears. After a long time, the old woman finally said a word: "Call the Bai Party to kill them all, Cheng Fang? Quickly lead the team to fight across the river and avenge me!" Li Chengfang's eyes were wet, and he ordered the troops to speed up their pace. Under the leadership of Qin Jiwei, the 15th Army, the vanguard of another route, took shortcuts and concealed the movement.Starting from the Zhoukou area, the Ministry marched in the heavy rain for several days. After 20 days, it even conquered Yingshan and Luotian in Hubei Province, and the four cities of Taihu and Wangjiang in Anhui Province, and occupied Wangjiang and Huayang on March 27 as planned. The town and Laozhoutou to the east of Susong line the river bank. On the 29th, the main force of the army entered the Taihu and Wangjiang areas to control the beachheads (including the Yangtze River and nearby large and small lakes) along the north bank of the river centered on Huayang Town. . The main force of the 4th Corps took the 13th Army as the left column and the 14th Army as the right column. It arrived in Guangshan and Huangchuan on March 18 to stand by. On March 20, the Field Army ordered the 4th Corps to wipe out the enemies of Macheng, Xishui, and Guangji, pretended to copy the situation in Wuhan, and restrained the enemy, so that Bai Chongxi's troops looked westward and covered the safety of the right and back of the entire army, so that the field army could attack in Anqing, Wangzhou, etc. The section of the river crossed the river smoothly. On March 24, the 13th Army contacted the first part of the 176th Division of the Kuomintang in the Macheng area. After two days of fierce fighting, the enemy was forced to retreat to the southwest of Macheng. At 8 pm on the 25th, Macheng was conquered. The Battle of Macheng cooperated with the advance corps of the Fourth Field Army heading south to Xinyang, forcing Bai Chongxi to transfer the main force placed in Anqing to Jiujiang and Wuhan to the west, and the 188th Division to Huangmei from Qianshan and Taihu to the west. The 4th Corps marched eastward from Macheng on April 5, crossed the border between Hubei and Anhui, arrived at Susong on the 11th, and began to gather in the Susong and Huangmei areas. At this point, Erye completely occupied the predetermined area on the north bank of the Yangtze River, and began to transfer to the preparations for directly crossing the river. As soon as the Chen Geng Corps arrived at the riverside, according to the instructions of the Central Military Commission and the Field Army, they began to conduct tactical and technical training for crossing the river in lakes along the river. After the 15th Army arrived at the designated area? , from Qin Jiwei, Gu Jingsheng, cadres at all levels to soldiers, took turns to observe the enemy's situation by the river day and night, understand the terrain and water conditions, choose the location, the movement path, and study the tactics of crossing the river.We also asked the local Yangtze River water conservancy management personnel to investigate the water regime, wind direction and route. The work of raising boats is the primary task of material preparation for crossing the river.When the enemy fled from the north to the south of the river, most of the ships along the north bank of the river were destroyed or robbed, which caused great difficulties for crossing the river. After the 15th Army arrived at the river bank, it immediately dispatched troops to assist the local government in publicizing and mobilizing ships to the masses.There were many boatmen along the river, because Jiang Jun was afraid that the People's Liberation Army would cross the river and forced them to pull the boats on the north bank to the south bank or destroy them.Boats are the life capital of the people in this area. In order to survive, some boatmen quietly rowed their boats out of the Yangtze River.Loaded with sand and sank to avoid persecution by Jiang Jun.Now when they heard that the People's Liberation Army was going to cross the river, they excitedly picked up the boat and quickly repaired it.Some are also building new ships for the PLA day and night. The 15th Army of the Advance Army, which first arrived at the river, raised and repaired 443 large and small boats in 8 days with the strong support of the local people. people, 600 sailors in the army), and can carry 10,000 people at a time.The masses also worked with the army commanders and fighters to transform civilian ships into combat ships.The protection of the ship was strengthened with earth bags, wet quilts, etc., life buoys were made of bamboo, wood, and straw, and cotton, lime, etc. were prepared to repair bullet holes.In order to facilitate camouflage, brick powder, white ash, and sludge are used to paint the hull and sails of the boat to make the water boats one color. At that time, most of the ships raised were in the inner lake, and the exit was blocked by enemy artillery fire on the other side.Under such circumstances, everyone came up with ideas and created methods such as opening canals to divert water, overturning dams, and digging dikes. Under the principle of not revealing the intention of the battle and not flooding the farmland, the troops and residents along the river worked day and night intensely in the continuous rain. , Overcoming various difficulties, the ships were introduced into the Yangtze River, and hidden docks were dug. With the settlement of the ships, the troops started intensive training day and night in suitable areas such as the inner lake and the river.The training content is carried out separately according to the task.The assault troops focused on the formation movements of getting on and off the ship, the tactical training of shooting on the water and capturing the beachhead, as well as the practice of rowing, rowing, steering, sailing and other sailing methods.The formation in the river is generally based on the command ship and maintains a certain formation.The basic requirements are: according to the pre-specified landing point, each ship goes straight to the enemy's shore at the fastest speed, naturally forming an irregular formation.After each ferry docked, they actively cooperated to quickly eliminate the enemy in front of them, and then attacked concentrically to capture the intended target.The follow-up echelons and reserve teams across the river focus on combat skills training in mountainous, river, and paddy field battles. Most of the commanders and fighters of Liu Deng's army were from the north.Water training is hard.Using lakes and river branches to practice hard and become familiar with water has become the primary task of crossing river training.That is to organize commanders and fighters to practice rowing, gradually from seasickness and fear of bumps to free movement, without seasickness, and without losing their way.Then carry out combat exercises, set off at the same time with large ships and small ships, and test which ship is faster, has smaller targets, is closer to the shore, and is flexible in action.Offensive and defensive exercises were also carried out at night. The attacking troops set off from five miles away until they suddenly landed on the shore. When the defensive troops found out, they were caught off guard.The soldiers jumped out of the fortifications, clapped their hands happily and shouted: "We just heard the sound, and you are already here. The battle across the river is nothing more than that." After a period of intense water training, most of the soldiers learned to paddle, steer and punt, and the troops were proficient in getting on and off the boat. Many soldiers who did not know water at first have become skilled sailors.Generally, the average ship speed of a company is 70 meters per minute, and it only takes 30 seconds for the whole company to land after landing.All kinds of personnel in the army also actively practiced in combination with their own business. The hygienist practiced rescuing the wounded on the water, transported the wounded from 100 meters away from the ship to the ship in 3 minutes, and the telephone operator practiced wiring on the water, etc.? Another important aspect of preparations for crossing the river is campaign and tactical reconnaissance.Headquarters at all levels set up observation posts on the river bank to organize reconnaissance in front of the enemy and observation and investigation of the hydrology and meteorology of the Yangtze River.Each unit also selected the starting point and the landing area at the same time, set up the ferry command post, determined the commando, organized the ships, organized the cadres to operate in the sand table, unified the tactical thinking, and pre-determined the disposal method according to the possible situation. The large corps is assembled in one place to fight, and the demand for materials is particularly large, which is another arduous and arduous task in the preparations for crossing the river.Under the unified leadership of the Party Committee of the Liberated Areas, the logistics department cooperated with the local organization to support the front line, and set up military depots on the way of the troops' movement and assembly areas, forming a supply line that stretched thousands of miles, organized and used various transportation forces, overcome various difficulties, and guaranteed Supply of troop supplies and equipment.The people of Anhui, Hubei, and Henan actively organized militiamen to cross the river with the army.On the road that stretches for thousands of miles, thousands of migrant workers deliver military rations day and night.The people along the river were as happy as New Year's Eve, enthusiastically supported, donated boats, and sent their own children to send the People's Liberation Army across the river. "You need food, you need people, you need boats." Encouraged by the enthusiastic support of the people along the river, the officers and soldiers strengthened their confidence in the victory of crossing the river. All divisions, regiments, battalions, companies, platoons, and squads all put forward various reasons and asked their superiors to entrust them with the tasks of the first echelon. In mid-April, the corps completed preparations for crossing the river in accordance with the instructions of the Field Army Command and the General Front Committee.Everything is ready, only the east wind is owed.The soldiers were gearing up one by one, ready to fight.