Chapter 12 Chapter Eleven Western Expedition

Tanggou, Caohezhang Township, Benxi County, is a famous tourist resort in the author's hometown.This is one of the countless ditches in the mountains of Liaodong. It runs from east to west, and there is a clear river at the foot of the steep mountain on the north side.At the end of the 1980s, as if overnight, multi-storey buildings of different colors and shapes rose along the banks of the river, lining up from the mouth of the ditch all the way to the ditch.A concrete bridge is arched over the middle section of the river to lead tourists to the "Yang Jingyu Memorial Hall" at the foot of the mountain.Not far from under the bridge, on a large bluestone by the river that can accommodate more than a dozen people, there are three large bronze characters "General Stone" inlaid.

The meeting to decide the westward expedition of the 1st Division was agreed on the "General Stone". In mid-May 1936, after Lishudianzi almost wiped out a reinforced battalion of the "Big Tail Squad", Yang Jingyu led the army and the 1st Division to Tanggou.At that time, Tanggou was a road leading to the outside of the ditch. There were only a few families in the ditch, including the author’s grandmother’s family.A natural hot spring that gushes out in four seasons attracts some people who wash the soup and treat diseases.Nowadays, there is a constant flow of traffic here every day, and it costs tens to hundreds of yuan, or even more, to live in the Yanhe Building for one night.Back then, people lived in those few households. If they couldn’t fit in the North and South kangs, they would make floor bunks. If they didn’t bring any food, they could still eat. They made big rice and salted radish lumps at will. Same.It's the same with the anti-union.When the beard comes, you have to make some "chewy wraps", and it's unbearable to piss people off.

It should be a beautiful spring day, the air is filled with the scent of wildflowers, and pheasants in heat are cooing in the woods.Just after a big victory, the officers and soldiers were very happy, scrubbing in the hot hot spring with a smell of sulfur, laughing and playing.Then, Yang Jingyu summoned cadres above the division level, sat on the big bluestone, held a meeting while basking in the sun, and studied the issue of the Western Expedition. In March 1934, the leaders of the Shanghai Central Bureau were arrested and rebelled, and the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee was severely damaged.Previously, the Manchuria Provincial Party Committee had been in contact with the Shanghai Central Bureau, but now the relationship was broken.In the autumn of the same year, the Central Soviet Area's fifth campaign against "encirclement and suppression" failed, and the Red Army began its long march. The relationship with the Central Committee was completely severed. From then on, it was directly led by the CCP's delegation to the Communist International in Moscow.The problem is that this kind of leadership and contact is intermittent, and the 1st South Manchurian Army, which is far away from the Sino-Soviet border, is even more difficult to reach. In January 1936, the Manchuria Provincial Committee was abolished, and the only superior was gone. The 1st Army became a lone army like a motherless child.

In fact, at this time, the situation of the various armies of the Anti-Allied Forces was similar.It's just that the 1st Army is closer to the pass, and the task of opening up the connection with the Party Central Committee and the Red Army in the pass has historically fallen on the 1st Army. As the vanguard of the Western Expedition, the 1st Division also had the task of opening up channels for the follow-up troops, exploring roads in western Liaoning and Rehe, and setting up front stations, so that the main force of the 1st Army could quickly open up guerrilla areas and bases inside and outside the Great Wall.

The chief director of the tragic western expedition started by the 1st Division should be Wang Ming in Moscow. In late June, under the leadership of Song Tieyan, Director of the Political Department of the Army, Cheng Bin, Commander and Political Commissar of the 1st Division, and Li Minhuan, Chief of Staff, the Western Expeditionary Force set out from Pushihe, Benxi County.There are more than 20 people in the division headquarters, more than 70 people in the guard company, more than 150 people in the juvenile battalion, and more than 150 people in the third regiment. In addition to the long and short guns carried by individuals, there are 4 machine guns, 1 flat-fire gun and 2 grenade bombs. cylinder.The general marching route is to avoid the enemy's strong forces in Fengtian and Anshan, detour westward from Liaoyang, Xiuyan, Yingkou and other places, cross the Liaohe River, go straight to Shanhaiguan, or enter the pass through Rehe.

Leading the way by the forest team "Zhan Dongyang", the soldiers approached the Anfeng Railway in two ways.After a battle at the mouth of Caohe, it turned north again, and finally crossed the Anfeng Railway between Lianshan Pass and Xiamatang.Then cross the Motian Ridge between Benxi and Liaoyang and enter Liaoyang.Encountered and fought with the enemy from time to time along the way, the 1st Division did not love to fight, sometimes they would attack, close when they saw a good deal, and leave when they were hit, traveling day and night, detouring westward among the mountains. Entering Liaoyang County in early July, the original plan was to cross Liaoyang and go straight west.The enemy seemed to be aware of it, began to chase, and dispatched aircraft for reconnaissance. The 1st Division turned around and headed south, from the mountains at the junction of Liaoyang, Benxi, and Fengcheng to Xiuyan, in order to get rid of the enemy, and at the same time manage to move westward.The enemy pursued hotly, and mobilized a large number of Japanese and puppet troops from Fengtian, Liaoyang, Haicheng and other places to pursue, detour, and surround by train or car, hoping to take the opportunity to eat the 1st division.

At this time, the enemy had already begun to gather families and villages in these areas and organize self-defense groups (the locals called them "stick teams").What's worse is that the locals don't understand the Anti-League, and they think that Beard is coming, or run away, or attack in groups.The youth battalion entered a village, wanted to get something to eat, and knocked on the door. An old man in his seventies rushed out like a madman with a spear in his hand, and stabbed a soldier in the chest.In order to have a full meal, they have to attack hard, pay the price of their lives, and even risk being surrounded and wiped out.

Ma Guangfu, commander of the 11th company of the 3rd Regiment, said in the "Memory Materials": When we arrived in the southern Liaoning area, the enemy blocked us in front of us, surrounded by layers, and there was no mass base here. Many people were exploited by the enemy. They held sticks in their hands and stood guard in every village. When they saw us, they would blow their horns. The more and more enemies gathered , with convenient transportation, will soon surround us. The decision to abandon the west expedition and start to retreat should be around July 8th.At this time, the army has been reduced by about half.It should be said that Cheng Bin's decision was correct and timely.If you go on, you can only wipe out the whole army.

In order to reduce the target and facilitate operations, the troops were divided into three groups.Cheng Bin and Li Minhuan led the division headquarters and the security company, and Cisu, director of the Political Department of the 3rd Regiment, led the 3rd Regiment. These two routes basically returned along the same route.Under the leadership of battalion commander Wang Decai, the Youth Battalion was surrounded by the enemy at Brother Mountain in Fengcheng County.After dispersing and breaking through, Wang Decai led some officers and soldiers of the 2nd company to retreat northward. The 1st company was pursued by the enemy, and the company commander Zhang Quanshan led his men to the south, the farthest was Longtanggou in Zengdazhuanghe County, and then returned north.There are enemies and "stick teams" everywhere, they can only operate in the dark at night, fight when they can't hide, and chew on half-cooked sorghum ears and green rice when they have nothing to eat.They fought a battle near Tangwang Mountain in Haicheng County, and were overtaken by the enemy when they crossed the road. Zhang Quanshan led everyone to grab a Lazi Mountain and hold on.From dawn to early morning of the next day, ammunition and food were exhausted, leaving only Zhang Quanshan, Xiao Cao, and soldier No. 6.The enemy clamored to catch them alive, and the three jumped down a mountain stream more than 30 meters high, and were rescued by Tang Ju Wuyu, who was active in the local area.

The officers and soldiers of the 1st Division who survived the Western Expedition returned one after another. Wang Zhongshan, who was soldier No. 3 of the 3rd Regiment, 2nd Company, 2nd Platoon, 3rd Squad, recalled nearly 30 years later: On the day when the whole army meeting was held, I saw that Chief of Staff Kim brought back 12 people, most of whom were platoon leaders and orderlies from the former youth battalion. In addition to one pistol, each person brought back only three or four carbine. quite serious.At the meeting, Yang Jingyu ordered that Chief of Staff Jin be tied up and questioned him: "What are you doing when you come back? Where did 100 people go!" Immediately, two of them were shot, and they heard that they had betrayed behavior.The whereabouts of Chief of Staff Kim were not known afterwards.

When the 1st Division was found to be returning eastward, the enemy pursued and intercepted it. On July 15, a group led by Cheng Bin and Li Minhuan returned to Motianling at the junction of Liaoyang and Benxi counties.This ridge is steep and the peak is inserted into the clouds, so it is called "Motian", which can be regarded as a famous mountain scenic spot in the author's hometown.The mountain road twists and turns, mostly steep walls and deep rocks, and there is a gap at the top of the ridge, which can be used for riding. The division headquarters of the 1st Division and the security company traveled day and night, and it was already daylight when they arrived here.After crossing the gap, I ate something at the place called the kang opposite, rested in hiding, and prepared to cross the Anfeng Railway at night and continue eastward. Lianshanguan Town, 15 kilometers east of Motianling, has a Japanese garrison brigade and is an important stronghold on the Anfeng Railway.This morning, Captain Imada of the 2nd Squadron led his squadron to intercept the 1st Division and searched all the way to Motianling. It was already around 2 o'clock in the afternoon.It was a hot day, including Imada, there were 49 devils in total, and there was a Korean interpreter, all panting, sweating, and hungry.Walking to a slightly flatter grassland by the forest under the Kangshan ridge opposite, Imada yelled "Missy", and the devils mounted their guns, took off the pork kidney lunch box hanging from their waists, sat down and devoured it. There are more than 20 dog pens for the Lianshanguan garrison to keep military dogs. If this boy Imada leads a military dog ​​today, the author's words may not be there, or this battle is another form and appearance. It is said that as soon as the devil appeared at the foot of the mountain, he was spotted by the lookout post on the top of the mountain, and the snoring in the forest stopped.This is a miscellaneous forest, with tall oak trees, linden trees, and catalpa trees covering the sky and densely packed dwarf shrubs, especially the hazel trees at the edge of the forest. , are rarely the first to be hit. As a command organization, the actual combat effectiveness of the division headquarters is naturally limited, but this security company is the essence of the 1st division.The task of the security company is to protect the division headquarters, and also to prevent traitors and counter-revolutionaries. The officers and soldiers are politically reliable and military-strength.On the way to the west, he was chased and beaten everywhere, slept in the open, and sometimes didn't even have the time to grow wild vegetables, what a coward.Since the first sight of the Imada Squadron coming to die, the officers and soldiers lying in the woods spit fire and smoke in their eyes.Covered by branches and leaves, some can't see clearly, and the closest distance to the enemy is only about 30 meters.And within 50 meters, a box gun is a small machine gun. Imada fell to the ground at the first shot.The devil was stunned, looking around, the rain of bullets in the woods was like a hurricane, and the branches and leaves were flying, deafening. Lianshanguan Town, 15 kilometers away, heard gunshots like fried beans.Still in a daze, those who threw their lunch boxes to grab guns fell to the ground one after another.There was no wind in the mountain depression, and the gunpowder smoke lingered for a long time. The "samurai" of the Imada Squadron were scattered in disorder, and the green leaves and grass were splashed with dirty blood. One devil, one translator, only two escaped.The devil was seriously injured and died a few days later. It was called "Motianling Great Victory" at that time. The 1st Army went west twice, and the Motianling victory was the only bright spot.After the great victory, the enemy was immediately pursued and intercepted even more frantically, and the 1st Division suffered heavy casualties. In early November, that is, more than three months after the failure of the 1st Division's westward expedition, on a hillside in Hongtonggou, Hongtudianzi, Benxi County, Yang Jingyu convened a meeting with the leaders of the 1st Division and the 3rd Division, and decided to change the 3rd Division, which had only been established for half a year, into a Cavalry, march west again.The plan is to take advantage of the freezing of the Liaohe River, use the cavalry to turn north and then west, quickly break through the line of Tieling and Faku, cross the Liaohe River and rush to Rehe Benguan. Half a month later, under the leadership of division commander Wang Renzhai, political commissar Zhou Jianhua, chief of staff Yang Junheng, and director of the political department Liu Wanxi, the 3rd division embarked on a journey. This is a far more difficult Western Expedition than the 1st Division. Huang Shengfa, who was Liu Wanxi's messenger at the time, recalled: We almost stayed up all night, because of excessive fatigue, some soldiers fell asleep while walking, and even fell asleep immediately.If you rest for a while, people will lie on the ground without waking up; especially infantry, if they can't keep up with the cavalry, they have to trot, and if they are negligent, they may fall behind; it is even more difficult to eat and drink along the way. Under normal circumstances, people don’t go into villages easily to find water and food. When they are thirsty, they drink water from stinky bubbles. When they are hungry, they eat a few mouthfuls of frozen corn cakes.In addition, the pseudo-self-defense regiments, stick teams, and pseudo-police were howling all over the mountains and fields, trying to surround us, so every day we marched, we had to fight every day. The officers and soldiers of the 3rd Division fought hard and finally arrived at the east bank of the Liaohe River at Shifo Temple in Tieling County. The Liaohe River was expected to be frozen and snow-covered, but it was flooded with water, and the ferries were all controlled by the enemy.what to do?Decided to grab the boat and force the crossing.There is a big river and plains on both sides. As soon as he makes a move, the enemy realizes his intention to rush forward, and the enemy on the other side also fires to stop him.The turbid river surface, the gloomy sky, and bullets weave like locusts. It's windy and snowy all the way, sleeping in the open, and the officers and soldiers are wearing wet cotton clothes. What's it like?It looks like this again.There was no other way, so we had to retreat while fighting, and return by detour. There were more than 400 people in the 1st Division's western expedition, and more than a hundred returned. There are more than 400 horses in the 3rd Division, and more than 70 came back. At the beginning of 1936, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China formed the "Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army Anti-Japanese Pioneer Army" in order to expand the base areas of Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia and at the same time demonstrate the determination of the Red Army to resist Japan. On February 17, the "Declaration of the Eastern Expedition" was issued. On the 20th, the Eastern Expedition began, crossed the Yellow River, entered Shanxi, and prepared to go north to Hebei and Suiyuan to go to the anti-Japanese front line.Due to the siege of the Kuomintang army, it failed to do so, so it withdrew to Hexi on May 5. As for the specific motivation for the 1st Division’s westward expedition, the author’s hometown Benxi Municipal Party Committee Party History Data Collection Office compiled a very informative "Anti-Japanese Beacon on Both Sides of the Huntai River": "One day half a month after the Tanggou meeting, Comrade Yang Jingyu saw a message from the Japanese and puppet newspaper: 'The forest bandit troops are active in the Rehe area', and concluded that Lin Biao, the general of the Central Red Army, led the team to Rehe. He ordered The first division will set off to march west immediately." Regardless of whether Yang Jingyu knew about the Red Army's Eastern Expedition at the time, this was the background of the First Army's Western Expedition.Just based on a piece of news in the Japanese and puppet newspapers, "the first division was ordered to go west immediately", it is not easy to say rashly.However, there should be a more realistic judgment as to whether the Liaohe River could be frozen during the 3rd Division's westward expedition.Because Liaohe is in Liaoning, not in Heilongjiang, the temperature is almost the same. Some old people said that according to the solar terms, the Liaohe River should have been frozen at that time, but it was still raining at the end of November that year.We little soldiers know what we are going to do in the Western Expedition, but we don't know that we have to cross the Liao River, let alone wait for the Liao River to freeze, and cross the Liao River like a flat road.What did the farmer know at that time, he only knew the rivers near his home "Bala".But the higher-ups should know that the "Tiantou" (weather) is so warm that the Liaohe River can't freeze, so they should have thought about it. Even if the Liaohe River is frozen, it is inevitable to act blindly wishful thinking. From the decision to go west to the departure, it should be said that the preparations of the 1st Division are relatively sufficient, while the 3rd Division only needs half a month to convert infantry into cavalry.The cavalry had big targets and were not suitable for guerrilla warfare, and activities in mountainous areas were more inconvenient. Most of the horses captured by the 1st Division before and after the Western Expedition were sold at very cheap prices.Some books and materials say that this time, we have learned the experience and lessons of the 1st Division, highlighting the fast word, and we must quickly pass through the enemy-occupied area.However, according to the old man Huang Shengfa, "Because of the shortage of horses, only a small number of them were organized into cavalry."This kind of mixed infantry and cavalry march, the infantry drags the cavalry, and is not even as fast as the infantry, unless the infantry is dragged down and thrown away. The 1st Division's western expedition chose summer, when the leaves were closed and green gauze tents were everywhere. The infantry was light and flexible, and it was difficult to hide;Wearing wet clothes, it is rare to enter the village, just drenched and frozen in the rain and snow. At that time, no matter how resistant the person is, he is still human after all.What about the sick number?carry?In addition to "marching every day" and "fighting every day", I don't know how many casualties were there when they reached the Liaohe River, and how many non-combat casualties were lost.Looking forward to the future, the straight-line distance is much farther than the distance traveled when we arrive at Rehe and head to the Pass.Inadequate planning, insufficient preparation, misjudgment, God and the Lord of the Land are not friends, who knows how many accidents are lurking ahead? Scarier than all of this is the "stick team".Dongbian Road also has a similar "stick team".The author's old father-in-law used to be the "Bangzi Team" back then. It was established after the "Group Tribe" was established. The official name is "Self-Defense Group", which is the "Group Tribe" armed organization. The "Manchukuo" Baojia Law stipulates that men aged 18 to 40, non-civil servants, and disabled people are all members of the self-defense regiment, and they patrol in shifts every night.There are several people in each class, carrying old foreign guns, spears, and sticks, and each class spends two incense sticks.The old father-in-law said that when the beard came, he could yell loudly, and people would grab their belongings and run out. The "plainclothes team" (anti-Japanese, or other anti-Japanese armed forces) came, and we ran away. Who cares about the Japanese?Some even tipped off the "plainclothes team" and led them to capture the dogs. The problem is that this "stick team" is not the other "stick team". The 1st Army's westward expedition was to enter and leave the enemy's hinterland, and it was an area under strict Japanese and puppet rule. The masses did not understand what kind of team the Anti-Japanese League was.The same goes for the pseudo-self-defense groups and pseudo-police.When I saw the Anti-League, I thought it was Huzi who was going to enter the village and fight the streets, so I blew the trumpet, and howled all over the mountains and fields.There is no way to supply food and ammunition, so it can only be solved by fighting, and the sound of gunfire can only attract siege and interception. Compared with the journey of the first division with green mountains and green trees, the third division walked on the rainy and snowy, white land, and it would be a problem for people to eat and feed horses.The non-combat attrition caused by hunger and cold may drag down this army. You can also imagine what it would have been like if the Red Army's 25,000-mile Long March ended a year ago, if the Japanese Kwantung Army instead of the "two-gun generals" from the Central Army of the Kuomintang and Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan were the ones chasing and intercepting them? At the end of June 1936, the Second Congress of the Nanman Party Organization was held in the secret camp in Heli.According to the spirit of the "Seventh National Congress" of the Communist International and the instructions of the CCP delegation to the Communist International, the meeting decided to merge the two special committees of East Manchuria and South Manchuria into the Southern Manchurian Provincial Committee, with Wei Zhengmin as the secretary of the Provincial Committee.Immediately afterwards, on July 4, a meeting of senior cadres of the 1st Army and 2nd Army was held, and it was decided to combine the two armies into the 1st Route Army of the Northeast Anti-Japanese Army. Wang Detai, commander of the army, was the deputy commander-in-chief, and Wei Zhengmin was the director of the General Political Department.Regarding the guerrilla policy and activity area of ​​the 1st Route Army, it was decided that the 1st Army Headquarters, 1st Division, 3rd Division, and 2nd Army 4th Division would march westward to carry out guerrilla warfare in a larger area. The headquarters of the 2nd Army, the 6th Division, and the 2nd Division of the 1st Army were active in the Tonghua area and opened up the Changbai Mountain base area. The 5th Division was still fighting with the 5th Army in the East Manchuria and Suining areas, and at the same time maintained cooperation with the 1st Route Army, the Southern Manchurian Provincial Committee and the 3rd Army. , 5th Army, Beiman, and Jidong party organizations. However, another problem seems to follow. The 1st Army, 1st Division, 3rd Division and 2nd Army 4th Division marched westward. The main force is gone. Can the remaining ones persist?Does this mean abandoning Nanman?And without the containment and support of Nanman, what would it mean for Beiman, Jidong and Dongman? At this time, the Western Expedition Pioneer Division 1 had already set off for many days, and might find that the Western Expedition was hopeless, so it decided to return east. Two years later, in May, at a meeting between the 1st Route Army and the Nanman Provincial Party Committee senior cadres held in Laoling, Ji'an County, Yang Jingyu proposed to get in touch with the Guannei Eighth Route Army.No matter what kind of problem, Nanman seems to be able to solve it relatively easily.The meeting decided to draw troops from the 1st and 2nd Divisions to supplement the 3rd Division, and the 3rd Division would go ahead and go west again, followed by the 1st and 2nd Divisions.It was only because of Cheng Bin's rebellion soon that the Western Expedition could no longer be taken into account, so it was left alone. The primary feature of military ingenuity is not what you want to do, but what you can do——Yang Jingyu, who wrote "Song of Victory in the Western Expedition", did he really think he could succeed after the 3rd Division still lost? The Southern Expedition advancing on the Eastern Road, from the conditions of the masses to the physical geography, passed through areas that were weak under the enemy's rule.Xizheng is just the opposite.In the two Western Expeditions, nearly half of the 1st Army's strength was lost, and they were all elite, and their vitality was seriously injured. Since the establishment of the 1st Army, it has suffered heavy losses.This price is unbearable.After two years, the "group tribes" in various places have been completed, the Japanese and puppet rule has become more stringent, and it is naturally more difficult to work with teachers and expeditions.Yang Jingyu should be very clear about this, so why did he continue to march west? In the historical materials and works of various periods, there is no controversy about the westward expedition of the 1st Army and the 1st Route Army.This is not difficult to understand.The only exception was Kim Il-sung, then commander of the 6th Division of the 2nd Army. In his memoirs, he said: "Wang Detai expressed doubts from the beginning", "It is also taboo to leave the base area in the mountains and go to the plains. This does not meet the requirements of guerrilla warfare." .We cannot march west just because the Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army marched eastward in the pass.”Kim Il Sung also believed that "the Jehol Expedition Plan is very risky and unrealistic", and said that the Comintern had repeatedly issued instructions for the Western Expedition, and the instructions were drawn up by Wang Ming. , but in the name of the Comintern". Is there such a possibility that Yang Jingyu, who is subjectively interested in the Western Expedition, did not know that he could not do it objectively, but just made such a decision-this will not violate the organizational principles, and he can wait for opportunities in the future . On February 13, 1937, Zhou Baozhong, Secretary of the Jidong Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Party Committee of the Fifth Army, said in the Draft Outline on the Establishment of the "Road Army" by the Northeast Anti-Japanese Allied Forces: The First Route Army should take Fengtian as the central target of its activities, and while maintaining the original active zone of the Dongbian Road, it should cut its main force across Nanman Road.The other part infested the Anfeng Line and entered the triangular area to divide the enemy's situation. When necessary, it prevented the Japanese bandits from driving from the Korean coast through Seoul to North Manchuria in Liaoning, and blocked their communication.The South Manchurian Party and the Eastern Manchurian Party decided last autumn that the action was extremely correct. Wang Ming, who was directing blindly in Moscow, messed up everything. In Wang Ming's vision, there are 3 armies, 6 armies, and 9 armies in North Manchuria; 4 armies, 5 armies, 7 armies, 8 armies, and 10 armies in Jidong; 2 armies in Dongman; The main force of the army went west to Liaoxi and Rehe, active inside and outside the Great Wall, and joined forces with the Red Army (Eighth Route Army) inside the pass. What a magnificent picture!If this is the case, the political and military influence will be huge, and practice will prove that the 1st Army can persist there to the end.After Japan surrendered, the first Chinese army to break into the Northeast was the Eighth Route Army in East Jidong. Wang Ming was probably intoxicated by the grand plan he conceived. The question is, is it possible for the 1st Army to get there through the enemy's inner circle? Most of the armies of the Anti-Japanese War had expeditions. Due to the different time, space and purpose, the endings were also different.And the Western Expedition of the 1st Army, in a sense, was Wang Ming's wishful thinking. Another question arises: Wang Ming is wishful thinking, but Yang Jingyu doesn't understand "the general is away, and the king's fate is not accepted"? Is it a mystery?