Chapter 11 Section 11 Zhang Lingfu feels "shame"

Zhang Lingfu felt "shame" in the battle against Lianshui The 57th brigade wiped out a battalion-organized team of the 6th division at the cost of 300 people The northward movement of Huaye aroused the fighting spirit of the reorganized 74th Division. On October 19, 1946, the reorganized 74th Army divided into three routes to attack Lianshui in the north.The 51st Brigade on the Middle Road departed from Machang Town in the northeast of Huaiyin and pointed directly at Lianshui, while the 57th Brigade on the East Road and the 58th Brigade on the West Road departed from Huai and Huaiyin respectively to outflank the left and right wings of Lianshui.

Due to the oppression of Wang Yaowu's five armies in the Second Appeasement District of the Xuzhou Appeasement Administration, the Shandong Field Army was unable to draw troops to support the Central China Field Army, let alone realize the strategic intention of the two troops to gather troops westward. The task of defending Lianshui fell on the Huaye commanders alone body. Su Yu defended Lianshui City with the 10th Column and the 5th Brigade of the 2nd Division of the New Fourth Army, guarded the north bank of the Yellow River with the 9th Column and the 6th Division of the New Fourth Army, and used Pi Dingjun's 13th Brigade as the general reserve of the whole army.In other words, Su Yu prepared to fight a position defense battle with the reorganized 74th Division with four times the enemy's strength.

In June 1938, after Chiang Kai-shek blew up the Huayuankou levee of the Yellow River, the Qianli River and the Huaihe River became the country of Ze, and the Yellow River was diverted as a result.After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, under the repeated requests of the people in the Yellow Flood Area, the Kuomintang blocked the gap of the Yellow River, and the Yellow River resumed its original flow. Between the Yellow River and the Yanhe River in the north, it connects the two liberated areas of central China and Shandong. That is to say, if Lianshui fails, the CCP army will be driven out of northern Jiangsu and forced into Shandong, and Chiang Kai-shek can realize his encirclement and annihilation of the main force of the Communist army. Finally, the strategy of pacifying East China.

The reorganized 74th Division once again played the role of a vanguard. On October 21, the 57th Brigade reached the south bank of the Yuhuang River, and the city of Lianshui was looming.When it was nearly dusk, the brigade commander Chen Xiyun didn't pay attention to the People's Liberation Army on the other side. He said to his subordinates: "Brothers, destroy this food and fight across the river. We will light a fire and cook under Lianshui City today, and tomorrow Take the old lair of the communist army and go to the city to drink celebration wine!" The cheers of the soldiers flew to the north bank of the Yellow River along with the roar of the mountains and the tsunami-like artillery sound.

Guarding the embankment was the 6th Division of the New Fourth Army. The division commander, Wang Bicheng, was known as the Tiger General.When the north bank position was completely bombed by the 57th brigade's field artillery, and hundreds of enemies were rushing northward in rubber boats, he kept his face ashen and watched the movement of the river center with a telescope. Half an hour later, when more than a dozen rubber boats were about to approach the north bank, he finally uttered the word "打" like a hardened steel from between his teeth! Following this bell-like roar, screaming bullets poured down on the rubber boat like a rainstorm, and the officers and soldiers of the 57th Brigade who crossed the river left dozens of corpses and retreated to the south bank.

Chen Xiyun believed that this was just the result of the communist army's concentrated firepower to attack him unprepared, and it was not worth worrying about.He ordered the mobilization of 4 Maxim heavy machine guns to suppress the firepower on the other side, and then organized the second river crossing operation. The Maxim heavy machine gun has a range of 8,000 meters and is extremely powerful. It is difficult for the 6th Division to raise their heads. More than 300 officers and soldiers of the 57th Brigade climbed onto the river bank, shouting and launching a fire against the embankment. charge.

The sun, like a powerless old man, quietly rests on the horizon, watching a battle that is about to unfold. Seeing all the enemies with tom guns rushing towards his position, the calm Wang Bicheng felt a little nervous. "Melee bayonet!" Before his words fell, Rao Shoukun, the commander of the 18th Brigade standing beside him, had already rushed to the front line like an arrow. The 1st Battalion of the 53rd Regiment was defending the front line of the embankment. Before Rao Shoukun reached the front, the Battalion Commander Dong Xianguang had already led his men towards the enemy.

The sound of killing was loud, the sound of gunshots was heart-wrenching, the two sides fell in pieces, twisted together in groups, smashed with guns, stabbed with knives, and knocked with grenades; They just bit their teeth, punched, kicked, pinched with both hands! Scarlet blood splashed in the air, bloody bayonets flew in the setting sun, screams and cursing wafted in the wilderness! The heavy machine guns of the 57th Brigade blocked the way for the 6th Division's reinforcements, and the rubber boats thrown on the north bank made it impossible for the 51st Brigade to get reinforcements.

The sky was getting dark gradually, and a round of setting sun hid deep in the ground with blood stains all over his body.The river beach is silent, except for the occasional Other than a few groans, the only thing people on the shore heard was the rushing sound of the yellow water flowing in the Yellow River! The 57th Brigade wiped out a formed battalion of the 6th Division at the cost of 300 people, and Rao Shoukun was demoted to the regiment due to ineffective rescue. The Central China Field Army and the reorganized 74th Division were tied, and Zhang Lingfu regarded it as a "disgrace"

The 57th Brigade, which took advantage of some advantages, followed the same pattern the next day, using mountain artillery and light and heavy machine guns to suppress the long guns and short artillery of the 6th Division across the bank, and using infantry with flamethrowers to storm the beachhead of the Yuhuang River. Han Zhuang, 8 miles away from Lianshui City, hid himself and looked for opportunities to fight again. In this way, the 57th Brigade stumbled to the city of Lianshui.At this time, in addition to the 58th Brigade being blocked by the 9th Huaye Column in Daihe Town, the 51st Brigade and the 192nd Brigade of the reorganized 28th Division also gathered at Lianshui City.

The 5th Brigade and the 10th Column of the 2nd Division of the Huaye New Fourth Army had to divide their troops to guard the gates of Lianshui. After the bitter battle, the 57th Brigade, which had driven away the 6th Division of the New Fourth Army, was at a time when their morale was high and high. They blasted a gap in the west gate wall in one go, and poured into the city like a tide. The soldiers of the 2nd Division and the 5th Brigade The ground is retreating, retreating, Lianshui City is already in extreme danger! The turning point of things often exists in some kind of chance.It is said that on the high ground in the west of the city, there is a majestic and ancient seven-story brick tower. This tower is so high that it overlooks the whole city. It is very generous and strong.As early as when preparing for the war, the 5th Brigade installed 3 heavy machine guns on the first, third, and fifth-story towers, and the shooting range could reach the whole city.The officers and soldiers of the 57th Brigade, who were attacking Xing, probably never expected that they would encounter such a steel barrier on their way forward, and a rain of bullets came, and more than 200 forward troops were either killed or injured, and all fell to the ground.Chen Xiyun also stepped into the city at this time, he knew better than anyone the danger of being blocked in this place called Heaven Should Not Work, and even if he was delayed for a minute, the danger would increase by one more point.Therefore, he formed a "death squad" of non-commissioned officers and veterans to charge in turn, but apart from the casualties, the brick tower still did not reduce its firepower.In the end, he ordered 6 cannons to be moved from outside the city and bombarded the ancient pagoda crazily. "It took 4 hours and 800 shells were fired. Standing majestically, the strong fighters on the tower continued to attack the enemy fiercely." 45 years later, "Chen Su's Army Battle Records" described this historical fact in this way. At this time, a sad news also spread to the defenders: Xie Xiangjun, the commander of the 10th column, was shot by the enemy and died heroically!Xie Xiangjun is from Dawu, Hubei. He is a senior commander who grew up from a porter. The slogan "Revenge for Commander Xie" resounded through the ancient city of Lianshui! When the offensive of the 57th Brigade was frustrated, the 5th Brigade of the New Fourth Army reorganized its forces and immediately turned to a counterattack. The Reorganized 74th Division who entered the city gate was about to be made dumplings, so they immediately let go and fled away. In this battle, more than 7,000 people were wiped out from the reorganized 74th Division and the 192nd Brigade. Huaye killed and injured 6,963 people under the commander of the 10th Column, Xie Xiangjun. The two sides almost tied, but Huaye kept Lianshui and gained the upper hand strategically. Since participating in the civil war, it was the first time that the reorganized 74th Division encountered such a hard nail. Although they only had about 2,000 of the more than 7,000 people wiped out by Huaye, they still regarded this defeat as a big "setback." , Treating it as a "shame", they gritted their teeth and looked at the opportunity for revenge.