Chapter 5 Chapter 04 Captured Niutuo Village, Yan Motou Golden Cicada escapes its shell

Niutuo Village, located at the foot of Dongshan Mountain in Taiyuan, is the first fortress in the northeast of Taiyuan City and the core position of Dongshan Fortress.Yan Xishan once called it "the fortress within the fortress" and "the fort within the fortress".It is 300 meters higher than the city wall of Taiyuan, only 3 miles away from the city wall.Looking east, you can go through Mengjiajing to Hanshan, the highest peak of Dongshan Mountain; to the south, you can reach the "Fortress of Life" Shuangta Temple.It is closely connected with Naoma, Xiaoyaotou and Shantou, forming an outer line of defense tens of miles long in the east of the barrier city, and has an important strategic support role for the east and north of Taiyuan City.Therefore, Yan Xishan spent the most money here.Looking from the mountain ridge opposite Niutuo Village, there are densely packed blockhouses on the village.At the very front is a 3 or 4 feet high cut wall, straight up and down.

From the wall to the top, there are more than 10 levels of stepped slopes, all of which are covered with barbed wire fences 5 or 6 feet wide.Under the barbed wire and in its vicinity, all landmines were planted.Further inside, there are all kinds of bunkers.There are big and small, square and round, bright and dark.These fort groups, according to the terrain conditions, are roughly divided into three Tuo Tuo.Yituotuo on the hill to the west has a slightly larger area, the highest terrain, and many blockhouses. The ones that can be called are No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 8, No. 9, and No. 10, one next to the other. .This Tuo Tuo is the largest blockhouse No. 10, standing there like a water tower.Because the equipment inside is the wild cannon made by Yan Xishan, so Yan Bandits also called it the cannon block.Around this artillery block, there are 4 or 5 small blocks.Yituotuo, on the east side of the mountain, is a forward position with No. 5, No. 6, and No. 7 as the backbone.There are not many Tuo Tuo bunkers, but there are many floating posts and observation posts.It also has a telephone connection with the main bunker behind.

In the middle of these two Tuotuo, a little behind, is the No. 4 blockhouse mentioned by the captured battalion commander.It is located in the middle of the Niutuo Village position. Although the terrain is low, it can provide fire support to all the big blockhouses in Niutuo Village.Between Block No. 4 and Block No. 6, there is a T-shaped car road, forming a large isosceles triangle.Under the No. 4 blockhouse, there is a concrete tunnel leading to the No. 4 column, which leads directly from Niutuozhai Village to Taiyuan City in the northwest, and the command blockhouse in the southeast.There is another secret passage in the southeast of the command tower, which leads to Taiyuan City through other positions.To the west and south, No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3 are its satellite towers; No. 8 and No. 9 towers in the north, No. 5, No. 6, and No. 7 in the east and north, just like its two sharp horns. Block No. 4 is the heart of commanding the operations of these groups of blockhouses.Sanduotuo formed three large positions, each with horns.

Rifle and machine gun firepower can be directly supported.Except for one point connecting with each other, the rest are deep ditch and cliffs, isolated from each other, each forming an independent combat position.It is said that the layout of Niutuo Village was all designed and approved by Yan Xishan himself.After it was completed, Yan Xishan once invited American journalists to Niutuo village to bombard it with his best field cannons in order to show its sturdiness.As a result, only a few small craters were blasted where the shells fell.American reporters were full of praise after watching it.Yan Xishan transferred the 8th, 12th, 13th, 14th Regiment, the 8th Corps, and the 9th "Guardian" Regiment to stand firm.He named them the "Shenwu Regiment" and boasted: "You give me these blockhouses to guard, and I sleep a lot every day, and I am relieved." It should be strengthened every day, the thin ones should be thickened, the low ones should be heightened, and the bright ones should be darkened. It is necessary to turn Niutuo Village into a "Tie Ge Tu Da".Yan Xishan often said to his Dongshan defender: "With the fortress of Dongshan, I have relieved my worries about going east. The terrain of Dongshan fortress is the most favorable for my defense. The Communist Party will never choose to attack Taiyuan from Dongshan."

However, ever since Commander Xu Qianqian seized the opportunity to divide and encircle Yan Xishan's three divisions in the Xiaodian area in the south of the city, and sent orders to pursue the victory and storm Taiyuan, he decided to attack Niutuo Village first. At that time, according to the terrain and fortifications of Taiyuan, many people believed that: to attack Taiyuan City, or detour to the north of the city, and implement a two-sided attack; or forcefully cross the Fen River and break in from the west of the city.To the east of Taiyuan, the mountains are high and the roads are narrow, and Yan Xishan has built countless bright and dark forts along the mountains. It is really not easy to use troops!

At the corps combat meeting, Deputy Commander Zhou Shidi introduced the situation first.Then, Commander Xu Xiangqian, who commanded the battle while sick, said happily: "Now the national situation is developing rapidly. Shandong has taken Jinan, and we have to take Taiyuan as soon as possible to cooperate with the national strategic counterattack."Having said that, he turned to the map, pointed to the map and said, "It is of special significance to choose Niutuo Village for our attack on Taiyuan. Yan Xishan threatened that 'Niutuo Village is a Tiege Tuda, and the Communist Party would never dare to attack Niutuo Village. .' We just want to touch this Tiegetuda and beat this Tiegetuda to pieces."

Commander Xu breathed a sigh of relief and continued: "Niutuo village has been a battleground for military strategists since ancient times. In the past, Li Zicheng entered from here. The Japanese invaders also passed through this road when they fell into Shanxi. Today, although Niutuo village looks unbreakable, it is from Zhuangzi to Liushu. Yan is the boundary between the enemy's Dongshan garrison area and the northern area. We will choose the attack point at this joint of the enemy. From here, we will rush in, attack Dongshan, and occupy Niutuo Village. As long as we capture the enemy's Dongshan Occupying the Niutuo Village, controlling Taiyuan City, and separating the enemy's body from the fortress will destroy the entire defense system of the enemy. By then, Yan Xishan will be the turtle among the old men."

Commander Xu Xiangqian spoke more and more vigorously.He analyzed the situation of the enemy and us in detail, and finally said: "Our army has just won a battle in the south of the city, and launched a fierce attack in the north of the city. The enemy has panicked and has been mobilizing troops for several days in an attempt to fight in the south and north of the city. The enemy was not prepared, so they went around from the south of the city to the northeast of the city, took a surprise attack, stormed Dongshan, and captured the Niutuo village." After the combat meeting of the Corps, Peng Shaohui, the commander of the seventh column, and Comrade Sun Zhiyuan, the political commissar, immediately led the troops to advance towards Dongshan overnight in a covert manner.

When the troops arrived at Shangxiayangzhai, Commander Peng Shaohui took several brigade commanders to survey the terrain before the backpacks were put down.Due to the long distance and the occlusion of mountain beams, the terrain of Niutuo Village cannot be seen clearly through the telescope.Commander Peng Shaohui wanted to go forward, but the combat staff officer stopped him and said, "The enemy's bunker is ahead, so we can't go any further." Everyone knows that unfamiliar terrain will bring great difficulties to the troops' combat operations.At this time, the brigade commander Fu Chuan asked the head of the column: "Comrade commander, whether our army can capture Niutuo village is related to the victory or defeat of the capture of Taiyuan. I request to check the terrain personally tonight."

Commander Peng said: "You must find out the terrain and roads. You don't need to go there, just send a reconnaissance section chief." After repeated requests from Brigadier Fu, Commander Peng had no choice but to agree. He said: "To win a battle, it is very important to find out the terrain. It's fine, you go. But be careful on the road, especially pay attention to concealment." On October 16, 1948, at dawn, Brigadier Fu returned with two staff officers for reconnaissance.The three of them wore the shabby cotton-padded jackets of Shanxi villagers, covered their heads with white towels, and carried dung baskets, and went to Niutuo Village for a night of terrain reconnaissance.Brigadier Fu reported the situation to Commander Peng and Political Commissar Sun, who was very satisfied.Commander Peng said: "In order to be quick and sudden, and to catch the enemy by surprise, we must study the party committee of the economic column as soon as possible, and initially determine the combat plan: use the tactics of containment on both sides and breakthrough in the middle to conquer Niutuo village in one fell swoop. The specific deployment is: by The 7th Brigade, where Brigadier Fu Chuan belonged, served as the main attack, and the other two brigades assisted; the 3rd Brigade attacked Shizhugou, and the 12th Brigade captured Yulinping to ensure the safety of the two wings and the rear of the main attack direction.

This combat plan was quickly approved by the Corps Command.The head of the Corps told them: In order to cooperate with them to wedge into the depths of Dongshan from Yulinping and Zhuangzi, and occupy the fortresses of Niutuo Village and Huangjiafen, the Corps decided that a part of the Seventh Army would occupy Dabeijian and be responsible for cutting off Niutuo Village and Hanshan Mountain. , Mengjiajing area to defend the enemy, and another part of the force will attack Nanpingtou, Mazhuang, and Shuangtasi; Feint at the enemy and cooperate with their actions. After dark, our army carried out a north-south pincer attack with lightning speed, and penetrated into the core of Dongshan in one fell swoop, Yulinping in the northeast of Lianke Niutuo Village, Dayaotou in the west of Mengjiajing, and Beijian in the southwest. Dangerous strongholds such as Shizuizi.First, divide the fortress of Niutuo Village, and then attack the enemies gathered in Hanshan.More than 1,000 people from the 14th regiment of Yan Bandit's "Xue Shame Struggle" stationed in Hanshan were tightly surrounded by me and had nowhere to go. Under the leadership of the regiment leader Li Peiying, they surrendered to our army.So far, the positions east of the so-called inner defense line have all been captured by our army.The defense system of Yan Xishan Mountain was fragmented. At the same time, Brigade Commander Fu Chuan commanded the 21st Regiment to quickly insert between Yulinping and Zhuangzishang, and advance lightly to the southwest along the ravine.In the middle of the night, the troops came to the mountain ridge opposite Niutuo Village.According to the original position, the troops quickly occupied the starting position of the attack. The night was dark and silent.At 1:30 midnight, the 21st regiment suddenly launched a fierce attack on the enemy in two directions.It is the second company of the first battalion who is responsible for the attack mission on the left.The commando quickly leaned the ladder against the cut wall of the enemy's front.Class 7 leader Zhu Haizhu was the first to climb up quickly.Unexpectedly, because the cut wall is too high, the ladder is still about one person short.Zhu Haizhu stepped up and stretched out his hand, but he still couldn't grab the edge of the wall.At this time, Wang Donghai, who was behind him, took a step forward, pushed Zhu Haizhu up with his shoulders, and sent him up.Then, the third was pushing against the second, and the fourth was pushing against the third, and the commandos all climbed up one by one.Zhu Haizhu climbed up the cut wall, twisted the enemy's barbed wire, quickly went around to the enemy's No. 10 blockhouse, and Wang Donghai quickly killed an enemy's mobile sentry.When they rushed to the enemy's No. 3 bunker, the enemy hadn't noticed it yet.They pulled out grenades and fell into the No. 3 bunker.The enemies inside were all killed without firing a single shot. After the first battalion captured bunkers No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 8, and No. 9, the second company took the initiative to attack No. 10 bunker.During the campaign, they encounter a group of enemies.The seventh class first seized the favorable terrain.With a grenade, the enemy was shrunk back.When they continued to charge forward, they were blocked by a barbed wire fence.The seventh squad leader Zhu Haizhu bypassed the barbed wire and came to Dage on the southern slope. He dug a stepping hole with a bayonet, climbed up, and killed an enemy who was fleeing back with a bayonet.He quickly occupied a relatively concealed terrain to observe the movement of the enemy.At this time, only 20 meters in front of the left, the enemy commander was yelling: "Quickly mount the machine gun! Quickly mount the machine gun!" Hearing this, Zhu Haizhu said in his heart, "Okay, the enemy hasn't set up the machine gun yet. !” Without saying a word, he unscrewed the cover of the grenade and threw three grenades in a row.Then, he shouted: "Come on! Go!" He was the first to go up. Zhu Haizhu rushed into the enemy's line in one breath, and the machine gunner who killed the enemy captured a machine gun.He turned his gun and fired at the enemy group.This lone hero, with the machine guns he had brought in, defeated two companies of the 3rd Machine Gun Regiment which had just been reinforced by the enemy.After covering the second platoon to the side of the enemy's No. 10 blockhouse, they successfully captured the No. 10 blockhouse. The brother troops also progressed very smoothly. They worked hard and occupied Yituotuo, No. 5, No. 6, and No. 7 blockhouses on the east side of Niutuo Village. After a night of fierce fighting, all the enemy blockhouses in Niutuo Village were captured by our army except Block 4.When Dongshan garrison commander Wang Xiaozeng reported the situation to Yan Xishan, Yan Xishan was still sleeping.He rubbed his eyes and said nonchalantly, "It's impossible. The main force of the communist army is gathering in the south of the city. How could they rush to Niutuo Village all of a sudden? Did they grow wings and fly to Niutuo Village?" Knowing how powerful the People's Liberation Army used its soldiers, he was stubborn in his mouth, but he was very uneasy in his heart.He put on his clothes, opened the window, and really heard fierce gunshots from Dongshan.Yan Xishan flew into a rage with anger, swearing at his Dongshan garrison commander Wang Xiaozeng, saying "bastard" and "grey ghost".He picked up the phone and directly ordered Wang Xiaozeng: "Organize forces immediately and take Niutuo Village back!" Wang Xiaozeng was afraid and anxious, so he quickly dispatched the "Struggle" Ninth Regiment stationed in Hanshan to support Niutuo Village.As a result, the first counterattack failed, and two companies were killed or injured.The second counterattack failed again, and entered a battalion, the third time, the fourth time... the counterattack was also unsuccessful.The seventh time, it was divided into two sections by our army, half was wiped out by me, and the other half was retracted.I also captured 65 of them alive.The battalion commander was caught by our army when he crushed the enemy's counterattack. Niutuo Village is located five kilometers northeast of Taiyuan City, about 300 meters above Taiyuan City, and can overlook the whole city. It is the closest commanding height to Taiyuan City.Historically, Li Zicheng attacked Taiyuan from this point, and the Japanese invaders occupied Shanxi from this point.Yan Xishan built it as one of the four major fortresses in Dongshan, carefully fortified and heavily guarded, fearing that history will repeat itself. Our army aimed at the vital point, seized the opportunity, boldly penetrated into the enemy's depth, and attacked Niutuo village.Thus, opened the door to conquer Taiyuan. The enemy's seventh counterattack was repulsed.Temporarily calmed down on the battlefield.At this time, a captured Yan bandit officer quarreled with our soldiers. This prisoner was originally a battalion commander of the Ninth Struggle Regiment guarding Hanshan by Yan Xishan.He was transferred from Hanshan, and was captured alive by our army when he was supporting the No. 4 blockhouse for the seventh counterattack against me.He tilted his head, squinted his eyes, and looked arrogant.If you ask him something, he doesn't answer, if you give him a cigarette, he doesn't reach out, if you give him water, he even throws the kettle aside. The soldiers were so angry that they really wanted to beat him up.Can not violate the policy.and asked him: "Why, after losing the battle, are you still not convinced?" "Who loses? It's hard to say who wins and who loses." He tilted his head and raised his face, rolling his eyes. "Still stubborn? We took down nine of your ten bunkers, and that one didn't last long. Why are you still unconvinced?" The guy turned his head and glanced in the direction of their No. 4 bunker, and said sarcastically: "You still want to capture Niutuo Village? If you have the ability, why don't you take down Block No. 4?" The soldiers said: "What's so great about your Block No. 4? Sooner or later, let it get on our 'earth plane' and wander around in the sky." The guy sneered. The company commander came over and told him to take this stubborn guy to the back. There was no time to grind his teeth with him on the front line. Yan bandit battalion commander was taken down.His attitude caught everyone's attention.This one said: "Look at this guy's aura, there may be something really interesting about this block No. 4." The other said: "The big deal is a few more layers of bricks and more layers of cement!" "No matter how hard it is, in the In front of our People's Liberation Army, there is no fortress that cannot be conquered!" It turns out that there are mountains on the east and west sides of Taiyuan City.Dongshan is condescending, with overlapping peaks and criss-cross gullies. It is about 30 miles wide from north to south and 60 miles long from east to west.It is not only the natural barrier of the ancient city of Taiyuan, but also plays the role of guarding the east of the city, and can flank the south and north of the city. The geographical location is very important.It can be said that the gains and losses of Dongshan are the key to attacking and defending Taiyuan. During the Japanese puppet period, the Japanese invaders used to fortify Taiyuan City and the steel mills and arsenals at the foot of Dongshan Mountain.After Yan Xishan took over Taiyuan, he built forts and barriers on a large scale in the Dongshan area.After the Battle of Shangdang, the Battle of Fenxiao, the Battle of Yuncheng, the Battle of Zhengtai, and the Battle of Linfen, every time Yan Xishan failed, he built another fortification here.He also assigned Liu Fengbin, the former deputy commander-in-chief of the Sixth Army, and Cheng Jizong, the commander of the engineering division, to take charge of it.They have been in business for three years. In addition to the original single blockhouses, brick blockhouses, ground blockhouses, and high blockhouses scattered all over the place, they have added steel and concrete blockhouses and various low blockhouse groups.After the Battle of Jinzhong, the situation in Taiyuan became increasingly critical, and Yan Xishan repaired many field fortifications starry night.In Dongshan, a permanent strong fortification with a depth of 60 miles was finally completed.The front reaches the Hanshan area.Each hilltop is a separate stronghold, with 3 to 8 small cement bunkers and one to two feet of outer trench splitting slopes.And each continuous hill or village constitutes a group defense position.There are dozens of blockhouses on the top, supplemented by field fortifications, deer villages, barbed wire fences, cut walls and tunnels.Between the forts and between the hills, they all formed a crossfire net.So that every small ditch trail is under its strict blockade.For the convenience of transportation, they also built a car road in Mengjiajing, 30 miles east of the city, connecting Hanshan and Taiyuan City.The old temple at the foot of the mountain on the east side has an artillery position, and there are many blockhouses around it, which is not only convenient for stationing troops, but also convenient for attack and reinforcement.The main points of Zhuangzishang, Yulinping, Mengjiajing, Hanshan, Xilin, and Xiaheituo formed a line of defense in the suburbs of Taiyuan, forming the vanguard of the four fortresses of Dongshan Niutuozhai, Xiaoyaotou, Naoma, and Shantou. support point.Within 5 to 10 miles away from the city, Niutuo Village in the northeast of the city, Xiaoyaotou and Naoma in the east of the city, hilltops in the southeast of the city, and Shuangta Temple and other fortresses stood tightly around the city, forming the inner defense line in the east of Taiyuan City.In this way, a complete defense system of Taiyuan Dongshan was formed.Yan Xishan was very satisfied with this, boasting that he was "the first fortification in North China", and often boasted that his fortresses were worth 100,000 elite soldiers. Offense and defense are the two basic styles of warfare.There is defense in attack, and offense in defense.Our army's capture of Niutuo Village was originally an offensive battle.However, at this time, it was converted into a defense in an offense. Since our army occupied Niutuo village in one fell swoop, the enemy has launched a frantic counterattack against this narrow position, which is less than 100 meters in length and less than 3 meters in width. On the 18th, they counterattacked 4 times and fired more than 6,000 shells. From 9 am to 6 pm on the 19th, there were 9 counterattacks and more than 8,000 shells were fired. On the 20th, the enemy only fired more than 200 shells and did not take other actions.On the fourth day, the enemy redeployed their forces and launched a more rampant attack on me.They used more than 60 mountain artillery, field artillery, and heavy mortars to bombard our position from the west, south, and north.On our army's position, gunpowder smoke filled the sky, dust soared into the sky, fortifications were destroyed, and guns were blown out.The legs of soldiers Zhou Jishan, Li Chengyi, and Ma Dengliang were all seriously injured. They gritted their teeth and stood up, passed out, got up again, and threw grenades at the enemy.The cook He Jintu came to the camp to deliver food and participated in repelling the enemy's three counterattacks.The barber had knocked off his hat, his clothes were on fire, and he was still delivering ammunition to the line of fire. However, the war situation is complex and changeable.Since the 21st Regiment evacuated the position too early during the handover, the 3rd Battalion of the 19th Regiment only took over the positions of Nos. 5, 6, and 7 bunkers, and the other bunkers were reoccupied by the enemy.Brigadier Fu and Political Commissar Cao were about to call the head of the 19th Regiment, Qiu Taixing, and ordered: "Watch as much as you want. Be sure to guard! Be sure to guard!" Everyone knows that on this bare hill, it is impossible to hold the position without fortifications.In the evening, Brigadier Fu, Political Commissar Cao, and Deputy Brigadier Xing led the 19th Regiment Qiu Taixing along the ridge to the front of Niutuo Village, and inspected the position again.According to the enemy's attack direction, they decided to strengthen the defense between No. 6 and No. 7 bunkers, and instructed each company: to grasp the law of the enemy's counterattack during the day and shelling at night, use the gap, and according to the terrain conditions, attack the enemy on the slope behind the enemy. , On the cliff, build a single bunker as soon as possible to avoid the destruction of artillery fire and attack the counterattacking enemy. After a day of repeated fighting, although the enemy fired 6,000 rounds of shells and made 15 counterattacks, they found nothing but corpses strewn all over the field.Our army still stands majestically on Niutuo Village. At night, the enemy's shelling began again.On the one hand, our army repaired fortifications, and on the other hand prepared ammunition.The masses in Dongshan organized themselves to support the front line. More than 2,000 farmers sent 1,000 rafters, 2,000 door panels and more than 10,000 sacks to the positions overnight.It provided conditions for our army to repair fortifications. The next morning, as soon as the sun came out, the enemy dispatched 4 planes to bombard and straf our position in turn.The enemy's 7 artillery groups and the artillery base in the city also cooperated together and bombarded our position for more than three hours.Then, Hu Zongnan's 30th Division with American equipment transferred from Shaanxi rushed up.All the commanders and fighters of the 3rd Battalion of the 19th Regiment of our army inserted their bayonets and rushed up like a tiger descending a mountain. They started hand-to-hand combat with the enemy and wiped out all the more than 100 enemies who climbed up. At this time, the enemy under the ditch counterattacked again.Soldiers Li Guozhong and Xiao Mingde each dragged a whole box of grenades, broke the string of one of the grenades, and kicked the whole box of grenades down the ditch with their feet. "Boom! Boom!" With two loud bangs, more than 500 enemies under the ditch were all buried on the spot. The enemy's 30th Division had just been repelled, and the 10th Corps formed by the Japanese invaders counterattacked me under the cover of artillery fire.Enemies met each other and were extremely jealous. The soldiers gritted their teeth and shouted: "Fight! The enemy is coming. Kill all these dog robbers!" The grenade flew out with a "whoosh", causing the Japanese invaders to scramble and shrink back. On this day, the enemy counterattacked 7 times in a row.More than 10,000 shells were fired at my position.All the field fortifications were destroyed, 3 feet of scorched earth above the position, and shrapnel scattered.But before my hero's warriors, the enemy has never advanced a step. The battle for Niutuo Village cost the enemy a lot.Commander Peng Shaohui seized the opportunity and issued an order to "organize forces and launch a counterattack".A certain regiment leader Cai realized that No. 10 blockhouse was the head of the enemy's position, so he immediately organized the cadres of the sharp knife company, the assault teams, and the blasting team leaders to touch the terrain at night and set up a sand table during the day to study in detail how to eliminate No. 10 blockhouse. . On the night of the 31st, the fighting resumed.Soldiers Zhao Quanbao and Li Ergui of the vanguard squad followed the familiar route to the enemy's bunker and blew up the bunker, paving the way for the follow-up troops.The soldiers took advantage of the momentum to rush up, and at a place 20 meters close to the main bunker, they threw grenades at the enemy group like a hailstorm, killing the enemy and wounding them.The soldier Zhang Jinfu quickly made a detour and sent a pack of explosives to the side of the main bunker. He heard a "boom", and the main bunker and the 6 or 7 enemies who retreated to the vicinity of the main bunker all went to the west. The troops attacking No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 9 blockhouses also developed smoothly.After only half an hour of fierce fighting, except for No. 4 Temple Block in Niutuo Village, which was occupied by the headquarters of the 10th Corps of the enemy, the remaining 9 large blockhouses returned to the hands of our army. On November 11, 1948, the head of the 20th Regiment Zhong Shengshan received a combat order from Commander Peng Shaohui: "In order to resolutely seize the tactical point of liberating Taiyuan, Niutuo Village, we must organize continuous blasting. Resolutely blow up the No. 4 blockhouse and wipe out the enemy. " Head Zhong immediately convened the party committee and made research arrangements.In order to strengthen the blasting force, the regiment organized a commando team and a blasting team. On the afternoon of the 11th, under the cover of artillery fire, our 20th and 21st regiments began to attack No. 4 temple block from two routes.The commando leader planted a red flag on his back and led 12 commando members down the mountain like a tiger, quickly breaking through the enemy's forward position.Commander Zhong Shengshan moved with the second battalion. He went around to the side of the enemy bunker, and under the cover of heavy machine guns, commanded the commando to launch a continuous charge against the enemy. Because the walls of the No. 4 temple block are too thick and the firepower is strong, it has been blasted several times without success, and it has not been captured after several times of rushing.Captain Zhong is on fire.The well-known Zhang Yushan blasting team was transferred. Zhang Yushan took off his cotton-padded clothes and only wore a single cloth shirt. He took four team members he selected, each carrying 50 kilograms of explosives, with grenades and grenades hanging on their waists. Under the cover of our army's firepower, Zhang Yushan , Taking advantage of the enemy's firepower gap, they approached Temple No. 4: because the enemy's firepower blockade was too strict, they hid in a shell crater with a radius of two meters.At this time, our army concentrated its firepower and blocked the enemy's firepower from three directions.Seeing that the enemy's firepower had been suppressed, Zhang Yushan nodded to the first blaster.The first blaster immediately jumped out of the crater and approached the No. 4 temple block.I saw him deftly moving forward in a roundabout way, jumping from one crater to another, and was about to charge up. At this moment, a hidden fire point suddenly appeared in the ditch on the right rear side of Temple Fort No. 4.He only heard a few gunshots of "chug", and he fell headlong. The artillery battalion commander Wang Yueliang immediately commanded the firepower team to block the enemy's hidden firepower points in Wagou with all the American guns captured by the People's Liberation Army.Zhang Yushan took advantage of the momentum and rushed out, using a big detour, from the left side of the No. 4 temple block, around to the back of this hidden fire point, and blew it up. Taking advantage of the dispersal of the smoke, Zhang Yushan crawled to Zhang Le, the first blaster who was seriously injured.While taking off his dynamite pack, he said: "I will avenge you! Go down and rest in peace!" In the temple block, the enemy's firepower shot at them violently.Zhang Yushan couldn't move forward for a while.He gritted his teeth in hatred, thinking: "You want to hit me? To hell with you!" He cleverly avoided the enemy's frontal fire, and leaped forward in a roundabout way. At this time, it was completely dark.On Niutuo Village, gunshots were heard intensively and flames were flying.The soil under his feet was all hollowed out, and when he stepped on it, he couldn't reach his calf.However, some places are full of sharp shell skins, and there is no place to step down.Zhang Yushan led his other three blasters to keep crawling forward.His knees and elbows were bleeding. They climbed over a broken barbed wire fence and then over a short wall.Zhang Yushan was the first to touch the No. 4 temple block.He turned half of his body sideways, took off the explosive bag on his back, and quickly placed it in front of the temple block.He wanted to dig a hole to bury the detonator with his hands, but the temple block was surrounded by concrete floors, so he couldn't dig it no matter what.At this time, the soldier Da Lao Li also followed.Zhang Yushan said: "Just put it on the ground and fry it!".They put 100 catties of explosives together.However, after an earth-shattering sound.The bunker was not blown up. At this time, the first blaster also followed.Without saying a word, Zhang Yushan and four team members each carried 50 catties of explosives, and climbed towards the No. 4 temple block.They climbed to the front of the temple block, gathered 250 catties of explosives together, ignited it, and there was another loud noise.When looking up.The temple block is still standing there, motionless. In this way, it was fried 6 times in a row.The amount of explosives is increased each time.Under the fire of the enemy, the commando rushed 6 times in a row.But No. 4 bunker is still breathing fierce flames. Zhang Yushan is on fire.For the seventh time, he used 500 catties of explosives and blasted a big hole 4 or 5 feet wide.I reached in and touched it, and it was about 3 or 4 feet thick, but it was still not fried through. Zhang Yushan's eyes were red, he gritted his teeth and said: "Fried! Let me see how thick Yan Xishan's bastard is!" Lu Tingfa, the machine gunner who served as the cover, was so hot that the barrel of the gun turned red because of the long shooting time.He turned sideways, pissed on the machine gun, and continued firing. For the eighth time, Zhang Yushan's blasting team and the blasting team of the brother army transported 850 kilograms of explosives up.It is still placed in the place where it was originally fried.After the other comrades withdrew, Zhang Yushan buried a detonator in the explosives, checked it three times in a row, and then ignited the match tied to the fuse.It was not until most of the fire rope burned that he held his head in his hands and rolled to the bottom of the ditch 5 or 6 meters deep on the left. "Boom!" After a loud noise that shook the sky, a thick puff of smoke rose into the air.At this time, Zhang Yushan was lying on the ground, not knowing anything. Temple No. 4 was finally blown up. The commando rushed up together.In the bunker, there was not a single living enemy, some were killed by the blast, but most were killed by the shock. Zhang Yushan woke up.People lifted him up, Brigadier Fu Chuan held Zhang Yushan's hand tightly and said: "Well, our blasting king! On behalf of the brigade party committee, I congratulate you! You have made another great contribution!" In the 28 days before and after, after more than 60 repeated battles, Yan Xishan's Dongshan stronghold Niutuo village was finally occupied by our army. Standing in Niutuo Village, overlooking Taiyuan City, it seems to be looking at the bottom of the basin from the edge of the basin.The commanders and fighters said happily: "The enemy in Taiyuan has become a turtle in a urn, and they can't escape!" With the development of the war, the day when Taiyuan City will return to the people's hands is approaching day by day.On the surface, the enemy is as strong as a cow, stepping up to resist, but inside he is terrified, lamenting his own destruction. On March 29, 1949, Yan Xishan, who had always advertised that he vowed to live and die with Taiyuan, left the lair that had been in business for many years, left the subordinates who followed him, and slipped to Nanjing with an excuse. In June 1948, after the Battle of Jinzhong, Yan Xishan, who had always boasted of his sophistication and stability, could no longer hold his breath.He cried for the more than 100,000 troops lost in the First World War in Jinzhong.Since then, he has been panicked and in a bad mood.Every day, leaning on a cane and supported by guards, he walked around irritably in the staff office, combat team, Inner North Hall, Outer North Hall, and Zhonghe Zhai of the Appeasement Administration.Except for Liang Huazhi, Yan Huiqing and a few cronies, they cursed with their mouths and beat them with their hands. Even his senior military and political officials couldn't avoid him when they saw his shadow.The staff who came to ask for instructions were so frightened that they couldn't speak clearly and trembled all over. Since the liberation of Yuncheng by our army in December 1947 and the liberation of Linfen in May 1948, Jinzhong has been in jeopardy.Yan Xishan hurriedly used his 6th, 7th, and 83rd group armies, including 5 armies, 13 divisions, and 3 corps with a total of 130,000 people, to occupy Xinxian in the north, Lingshi in the south, and Yuci in the east. , to the narrow area of ​​16 counties including Xiaoyi and Fenyang in the west.And with the Tongpu Road running through it, a defensive zone centered on Taiyuan was formed.He dreamed of sticking to Jinzhong with all his strength, and waiting for the armed intervention of the US imperialists to make a comeback.For this reason, he tried his best to strengthen the defense facilities in Jinzhong in an attempt to save his own fate. In order to solve the military ration crisis, Yan Xishan vigorously strengthened the control of the Xinxian to Lingshi section of Tongpu Road and the Taiyuan and Fenyang highways, and robbed food and arrested people in the hinterland of Jinzhong.In addition, the 45th Division and 72nd Division of the 34th Army were mobilized to guard Lingshi and Jiexiu, and the 44th Division to guard Pingyao; the 70th Division and personal trainers of the 43rd Army to guard Fenyang and Xiaoyi; the 69th Division of the 61st Army to guard Jiaocheng; The temporary 37th Division of the 33rd Army guards Qixian County; the 71st Division of the 33rd Army and the Ninth Corps guard Taigu; the temporary 40th Division of the 19th Army and the 8th and 10th Corps guard Yuci; Xin County; the 68th Division of the 19th Army guarded Huangzhai; the 46th Division of the 33rd Army, the 49th Division of the 43rd Army, and the Engineer Division guarded Taiyuan and Jinyuan.And the 34th Army, 43rd Army, and 61st Army formed the Blitz Corps, with the field commander Zhao Chengshou as the commander-in-chief to cover the wheat grabbing. Yan Xishan's plan to grab the wheat was wrong.Protecting the wheat harvest in Jinzhong is a struggle of great strategic significance.Our army defended the wheat harvest and cut off the source of the enemy's army food.When the army food is cut off, the enemy panics before fighting, and they will perish without fighting.For this, our army has already made full preparations. On May 31, the North China Military Region, the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Border Region Government and the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Border Region Administrative Committee issued a joint wheat protection instruction, calling on "all soldiers and civilians to mobilize to start a struggle to protect the wheat, to protect the people's production fruits, and to combat the enemy's wheat grabbing." conspiracy".Under the command of Commander Xu Qianqian and Deputy Commander Zhou Shidi, the troops of our 18th North China Corps, Luliang Military Region, and Beiyue Military Region, based on Yan Xishan’s comprehensive defensive posture in the Jinzhong area, tactically used separate advances and joint attacks to cut off the Its traffic, dividing and encircling its main points, attacking local puppet bandits, ensuring Jinzhong's wheat harvest and other strategies and tactics.After that, adopt the policy of cleverly capturing the enemy's main points, luring the enemy's main force to reinforce them, and annihilating the enemy in field battles.In this way, within one month, our army annihilated Yan Xishan's four military headquarters of the 19th, 33rd, 34th, and 43rd armies and a part of the 61st army's military headquarters, as well as the 70th, 71st, 72nd, and 73rd divisions, temporary The 37th, 39th, 44th, and 46th divisions and the temporary 9th and 10th corps, etc., totaled more than 100,000 people.Even Zhao Chengshou, the commander-in-chief of Yan Xishan's field army, was captured alive. He liberated 14 county towns including Yuci and the vast villages of Jinzhong, and took advantage of the victory to advance to Taiyuan. In the first battle of Jinzhong, Yan Xishan was seriously injured, his main force was lost, the defense area was reduced, and Taiyuan City was empty, and it was in a state of chaos. No wonder he was helpless and in a bad mood. After more than 10 days, Yan Xishan's mood gradually turned to normal.He took the measures of standing firm and waiting for help. On the one hand, he closed the city gate and adjusted his deployment; on the other hand, he called for help from Chiang Kai-shek. At around 10 o'clock in the morning on March 17, 1948, the weather was gloomy and drizzling.Chiang Kai-shek and Xu Yongchang flew to Taiyuan for inspection.Yan Xishan respectfully ran to the new airport in the north of the city to greet him, and invited Chiang Kai-shek to the conference room on the second floor of the Taiyuan Appeasement Office, where they had a private conversation for more than two hours. Later, Chiang Kai-shek summoned Wang Jingguo, commander-in-chief of the Taiyuan Appeasement Office and commander of the 10th Corps, Sun Chu, deputy director of the Taiyuan Appeasement Office and commander of the 15th Corps, and Yang Aiyuan, chief of staff of the Taiyuan Appeasement Office.He listened to Yang Aiyuan's report on the battle of Jinzhong and his request to stick to Taiyuan in the future. Chiang Kai-shek immediately agreed to send 3 additional troops to Taiyuan to assist in the defense.And said to several senior military officials of Yan Xishan: "Under the leadership of Chief Yan, we must unite with sincerity, share the difficulties, and work with one heart and one mind to assist Chief Yan to eliminate the Communist bandits, protect Taiyuan, and restore the entire territory of Shanxi." Yan Xishan felt great comfort from Chiang Kai-shek's support.He vowed to "live and die with Taiyuan" and "dry the last drop of blood for the great cause of the party and the country". Within a few days, the American Chennault came again and agreed with Yan Xishan that, from the American aid supplies, he would allocate 500 carbines, 100,000 artillery shells, 15 million rifle shells, 10 million machine gun shells, and 200,000 grenades to the Taiyuan Appeasement Administration. 100 radio stations, 1000 stretchers, 50 tons of 15 kinds of auto parts, and 100 surgical tools.此外，还有蒋介石调给的大米200万包等。 8月20日，蒋介石从西安胡宗南那里调来了“坚强部队”——第30军的第27师和第30师89团。第30军曾在运城战役中大吃苦头，这次奉调，军长鲁崇义借故不往，只得提升第27师师长黄樵松为军长。 继第30军空运太原之后，美国援助的武器弹药等军用物资，也源源空运而来。蒋介石由芜湖调拨的红大米，也经上海运到青岛，并由青岛空运到了太原。 虽然增兵又增粮，但太原四面楚歌，形势越来越糟。新城机场丢失以后，军用物资只好靠空投。不仅效率大减，还有相当一部分落在了我军手中。不久，又传来天津地区52万军队被我军就地解决的消息。阎锡山十分惊恐，慌忙再次向南京呼救。为保住太原这一重要战略城市，蒋介石不惜以肉补疮，又从陕西榆林把第83师调来，在汾河以西的红沟临时机场降落。 这以后，阎锡山还致函美驻华大使司徒雷登和美驻盟军总司令麦克阿瑟，请求援助。发了函，不放心，又让一直隐蔽在太原的日本前驻山西第一军团司令澄田中将，回日本参见麦克阿瑟，面陈求援之事。还给美驻华舰队司令白吉尔去信，请求固守青岛这个为太原提供给养的唯一基地。 为了显示自己死守太原的决心，阎锡山仿效希特勒的做法，下令在川至制药厂生产了一大批毒药。又从五台老家运来木料，做了一口棺材，声称要“效法于禁，抬榇死战。” 春节时候，美国记者来访。在绥靖公署会议大厅里，阎锡山指着桌子上的500多瓶毒药说： “我决心死守太原。如果太原不守，我就和这些小瓶瓶，同归于尽！” 他又指着棺材说：“我与共军不共戴天，有我没他，有他没我。这口棺材，就是我这种决心的明证。到时候，这里边不是装着共军的尸体，就是我的尸体”。 阎锡山觉得这还不够，又让人找来一个身佩手枪、目露凶光、杀气腾腾的士兵，对众人说：“这是标准的有武士道精神的日本士兵。我让他跟随我的左右，以便在危急的时刻，将我打死。这个任务，非日本人不能完成”。 可是，就在阎锡山装模作样，叫嚷“死守太原”的同时，他又连连致电蒋介石，另图打算。 蒋介石给阎锡山回电，布置了两件事：一是就大局看，太原绝难长久支持。要阎锡山退往西安，担任西北营主任，负指挥西北各处重责。所剩干部，由陈纳德派飞机接走。军队尽量西渡，由胡宗南派遣精锐，从离石军渡至太原的这条公路，打开一条走廊。另由陈纳德的飞虎队，抽拨战斗机一百架，俯冲掩护西撤。二是共产党对太原兵工厂很重视。放弃太原的时候，一定要把兵工厂彻底破坏。 阎锡山对蒋介石的这番布置，很不满意。他假意装作要固守太原而没有接受。 1949年3月，战斗由太原外围进展到太原市城郊附近。南郊和北郊的飞机场，已由我军完全控制。新开辟的西门外红沟临时机场，也在我军的炮火射程之内。空运交通，行将断绝。困守太原的阎锡山，已成了瓮中之鳖。 这时，蒋介石下野。李宗仁以和平商谈面目出现，代理总统。阎锡山一面在蒋介石下野后，亲赴蒋介石的家乡奉化，与蒋面谈，认为李宗仁肩负的和谈任务决不会成功，到时候，还是要蒋介石再度出山，组织战时政府，并提出由蒋任总统，自己任行政院长的主张，一面又指示当时正在南京的杨爱源，筹划向美帝驻华大使司徒雷登及美使馆武官杨乐将军和陈纳德等，尽力斡旋，促成李宗仁为代理总统，他为行政院长，何应钦为国防部长，白崇禧任参谋总长。与此同时，又把杨爱源调到太原任绥署副主任，代理主任之职。 阎锡山这只老狐狸如此安排的目的是：一旦太原形势紧急，他可直飞南京，出任行政院长。如果太原形势和缓，又可返回太原，继续统治山西。 在阎锡山的如意算盘行将实现之时，李宗仁变了态度，对外公布了何应钦为行政院长，并电告阎锡山，借阎的名望很高，正筹划授予更高职位为名，推翻了蒋介石的安排。 阎锡山开始也不以取得行政院长的职位为满足，他以为自己曾在外国记者面前拿出毒药炫耀过自己的反共精神，又通过与司徒雷登、杨乐和陈纳德等接洽，一再表现自己的反共本领。因此，在美国政府试验了蒋介石这个战时总统，又试验了李宗仁这个和谈总统之后，总统职位应该落到自己身上了。但事到如今，总统没捞着，连行政院长也没当上。阎锡山接电之后，气得七窍生烟。可转念一想，解放军步步迫近太原，不找出一条退路，必然是死路一条。他只好忍气吞声，复电李宗仁：“为了拯救晋民，名位高下，在所不计，虽副席亦可也”。 阎锡山又悄悄给绥靖公署驻南京办事处处长方闻，发了三封电报。叫方闻“多方活动，尤要接近李代总统，设法将吾调出太原”。 3月29日下午两点钟，太原绥靖公署各部要员，突然接到阎锡山要召开紧急会议的命令。在城外火线上的各军事负责人员，也被叫回，共计20多人，齐集于绥靖公署阎公馆内。 梁化之见人到齐，便去请阎锡山下楼开会。阎锡山笑容满面地走进会议室，一点也没有平素那种乖张暴戾之气。人们都很奇怪。 阎锡山令大家入座以后，十分和蔼地向秘书长吴绍之说： “你把李代总统来的电报，念给大家听听”。 吴绍之打开公文夹，念道： “和平使节，定于月杪飞平，党国大事，诸待我公前来商决。敬请迅速命驾。如需飞机，请即电示，以便迎迓。宗仁。3月28日”。 电报念完，阎锡山假惺惺地征求大家有何意见。人们有的默不作声，有的逢迎地说：“此次赴京开会，应在南京多住些日子”。 阎锡山说：“也许3天5天，也许10天8天，等和平商谈有了结果，我就回来”。 见众人没有别的意见，他又说：“在我离开期间，由梁化之、孙楚、王靖国三位组成'执行小组'。军事方面，孙、王两位会同赵参谋长、戴军长共负责任。政务方面，由吴秘书长操持。梁化之跟随我多年，对诸事熟悉，他手下的人分布也广，事情易于推行。由他代管全面事务，住在钟楼下我的地下室内”。 接着，他又把“八杀”军律重申了一遍。这八杀是：进攻或赴援迟缓者，杀；放弃守地者，杀；邻阵被攻不援者，杀；临阵被陷，不坚持本阵地以待恢复者，杀；射击后，阵地前无敌尸者，杀；主官杀伤，次级不挺身代行职务者，杀；上司有令，执行不坚决者，杀；心怀有二，或散布流言蜚语者，杀。 最后，阎锡山说：“楚汉相争的时候，山东出来个齐国。最后一个齐王，叫田横。刘邦取胜以后，田横带手下五百壮士退守一个海岛。刘邦得知后，召见田横。田横不甘受辱，在途中自杀了。他属下的500人闻知，也全部自杀于海岛上。田横能得士，士也尽忠于田横。这就是传为千古美谈的田横五百壮士的故事。必要时，你们应仿效这五百壮士”。 正在此时，梁化之插话说：“天气已经不早，飞机早在机场等候，请早动身吧。” 阎锡山不要大家相送。他立刻起身，乘坐汽车，由太原绥靖公署，风驶电掣般地直奔西门外红沟机场。 除梁化之和阎慧卿送到机场之外，其他人员只送到大堂口，算是作了几十年共事的最后一别。 阎锡山到机场后，见20多箱金条已装上飞机，便在我军炮弹的“欢送”下，匆匆登机，逃往南京去了。 阎锡山借故逃了。代行阎锡山职权的梁化之之流，丝毫不能挽救阎家小朝廷灭亡的命运。 梁化之，原是很受他的姨表叔阎锡山器重的侄辈。他24岁刚从山西大学毕业，就当上了阎锡山的少校机要秘书。为阎锡山掌管着私人印章和特费开支，成了当时红得发紫的人物。四年以后，他又在阎锡山的“自强救国同志会”里任总干事，并作为阎锡山的代表参与并控制了“牺盟会”。 抗战第三年，他被阎锡山派到重庆，在国民党中央党校政训班受训。“晋西事变”后，他虽辞去了职务，却到大后方的成都、重庆，做了个“消遥自在王”。不久，回到山西，开始在一个名叫“最后同志会”的文人组织里，当上了头目。以后，又当上了特种警宪指挥处的处长。 自此，阎锡山就把一切特务大权，都交给了他。特务团、宪兵队、警察局，统统在他的管辖之内。牺盟会、同志会、高干会，也在他的控制之下。保委会、内卫处、防卫组、侍参室、侍从队，亦在他的掌握之中。就是王靖国的军人组织，即铁军基干——三三铁血团，还有那青年党、民社党，以及军官收训总队、雪耻奋斗团，实际上也受他的操纵。 梁化之发明的、专门对付共产党和老百姓的那个“自清、自卫、自治”的“三自传训”，和“自白转生”那套名堂，更是受到阎锡山的竭力赞许和推广。于是乎，梁化之想抓谁就抓谁，想怎么处死就怎么处死。太原市内的七处刑场，每日里怒吼惨叫之声不绝。梁化之却哈哈大笑，说：“枪毙是最便宜的事。只有让他们死得越惨，我心里才越痛快！” 梁化之这样为阎锡山效尽犬马之劳，替阎锡山翦灭政敌，清除异己，扫除隐患，越发受到阎锡山的信任。他成了支撑阎锡山的一根台柱子和离不开的膀臂了。因此，阎锡山出逃时，理所当然地把全权托付给了梁化之。 4月1日晚间，吴绍之给梁化之送来一份阎锡山的密电：“化之、靖国、孙楚台鉴：吾已安抵南京，勿为悬念。现李代总统宗仁正主持召开会议，商定国策，会期不得而知。昨闻行政院妇女部一司长之位在缺，吾念慧卿经略此务有方，遂向李代总统举荐照准。特电告诸位，转告慧卿，不日将派飞机往接，望速准备，切勿违嘱。阎锡山。民国卅八年4月1日”。 阎慧卿，是阎锡山的堂妹，人称“五姑娘”、“五妹子”。她虽名为社会处长梁延武的妻室，实际上，却是阎锡山朝夕不离的姘头。梁化之取代了阎锡山的一切实权，对这个“五妹子”，当然也就全盘接受了。 阎锡山逃走时，故意将阎慧卿留下，原是表示还要回来的。现在，要把她接走，也是阎锡山临走时暗中与阎慧卿说定的。但此时的梁化之，却不干了。 梁化之马上给阎锡山回电说，慧卿是绥署妇女会的理事，又是助产学校校长，组织上是个基干。她若一走，更会影响人心，不利于太原的坚守。因此，必须留下。阎锡山无奈，只好暂且不提此事。 在此期间，我军为使太原人民免遭战争损害，多次劝告梁化之、王靖国、戴炳南等人，放下武器，赎罪自新。并派被我俘获的阎匪野战军总司令赵承绶，前去进行商谈。然而，这伙决心与人民为敌到底的战争罪犯，悍然拒绝了解放军的多次劝告，连城门都没让赵承绶进去。他们一面大肆烧毁民房和公用建筑物，施放毒气，残杀人民，一面“加大享受，缩短阳寿”，过着荒淫无耻的生活。梁化之与阎慧卿姘居在绥署楼下阎锡山的地下室内，每日凶恶地监视和控制着阎匪的军政要员，等待着末日的来临。