Chapter 20 The twentieth chapter Mao Zedong crossed the river in the dark and the "three-man regiment" discusses the army at dawn

Harrison Salisbury once wrote: Had it not been for that cumbersome, unsuitable, redundant train of baggage trailing fifty miles behind, the Red Army would have almost certainly crossed the Xiang River and passed Chiang Kai-shek's fourth and final blockade.Although the vanguard of the Red Army failed to reach Quanzhou first, they crossed the Xiangjiang River on November 25. The troops of the 1st Army and the 3rd Army also crossed the river by November 26.Just at that time, the Guangxi warlord Bai Chongxi moved his troops south from Xing'an, pretending to defend Guilin, but actually opening the corridor for the Red Army to travel from Xing'an to Quanzhou. On the evening of November 27, the advance troops of the 3rd Army and the 1st Army crossed the Xiangjiang River side by side without much resistance. After them, the 9th Army followed the 1st Army, and the 8th Army followed the 3rd Army. The central column followed them middle action.Jieshou and Jiaoshanpu are two major ferries.The river is very shallow, and most people simply wade across the river.

Originally, the entire Red Army could cross the river within two or three days without much loss.But the huge, sluggish train of trains and the poorly trained recruits changed that. After the 1st and 3rd Corps fought hard on their respective positions on the west bank of the Xiangjiang River for two or three days, the first batch of troops from the central column arrived on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River. It was dusk at this time, and the enemy planes that had been bombarding both sides of the ferry for a day, because of the low visibility due to the setting sun, and the fog on the river, had no choice but to withdraw their troops unwillingly.The ferry seemed very quiet for a while, and the vanguard of the central column did not intensify the noise here.They know that it is time that counts.

Zhou Enlai has been walking in front of the central column since the beginning of the march, closely following the 1st and 3rd Army Corps.Zhou Enlai understood what it meant to be closer to the troops at such an extraordinary moment.He arrived on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River in the morning, but he was not in a hurry to cross the river. At this time, what he was worried about was not the 1st and 3rd Army Corps in the hard battle, but the huge central column behind, and the 5th Army Corps who were fighting behind.Up to this moment, he had no idea whether all the troops could cross the river.Can you break through the enemy's fourth blockade?Can it successfully rendezvous with the 2nd and 6th legions?Many whys circled in his mind together, and his heart was heavy.

He issued the order of the Long March, and he was also responsible for the implementation of the troops.He expected to pass the first, second, and third blockade lines smoothly, and he expected to fight in the Xiangjiang River.But when he can fight here and what the consequences will be, this is beyond his imagination. As a commander of the Red Army, he knows too well what it means to be fast. But the entire Western Expedition's Red Army just couldn't get up fast. He knew what the cumbersome team behind him looked like when they were marching.He also agreed and approved of the big move of the central column, but he never expected that the entire central column would move so slowly, so slow that it made people angry and short-tempered.Things have come to this point, there is no other choice but to wait.After he came to Jieshou, he sent people to convey his orders, ordering the 1st and 3rd Army Corps to protect the central column across the river at all costs; ordering the troops behind: advance quickly.

Finally at dusk, Zhou Enlai welcomed Bo Gu and Li De.Bogu and Li De were riding on horses, travel-stained and anxious.Zhou Enlai shook hands with them one by one. The three met and decided that Bo Gu and Li De would cross the river first and command the 1st and 3rd armies in front to withstand the enemy's charge, while Zhou Enlai continued to wait here for the follow-up troops. Watching Bogu and Li De's horses jump into the river, Zhou Enlai let out a long breath. When he turned around to look around, he saw Zhu De.Not seeing him for a few days, Zhu De looked dark and thin, and his eyes were bloodshot.Zhu De kept yelling at the horse he was sitting on. The horse seemed to be exhausted and wobbled when he walked.Zhu De couldn't wait, jumped off his horse, and walked up to Zhou Enlai in a few steps.

Commander-in-Chief Zhu, hurry up and cross the river.Zhou Enlai held Zhu De's hand and said. Let's go together.Zhu De looked at Zhou Enlai, and he found that Zhou Enlai had also lost weight, with dark shadows around his eyes and chapped lips. Zhou Enlai: You go first, I have to wait here. Zhu De shook his head and said, "That's good too!"He took the rope from the guard and walked into the river. At this time, the sky was already hazy, and the sound of cold guns and cold guns could be heard from time to time from the blocking positions of the Red Army on the West Bank.

The first shell fired by the enemy landed in the river, and the river was blown up into a high water column. It took a long time for the water column to fall, and the river surface became noisy.The enemy began to fire volleys of artillery into the river. Immediately, the water in the Xiangjiang River was emptied, and there were bursts of artillery. Zhou Enlai directed the people around him to lie down in concealment, and he himself sat down under a big tree.The guards rushed to his side, and he said angrily: "Let you hide, why surround me."The guard stared at him blankly.He waved his hand, and the guards had to spread out a little, but they still stayed around him.

Two shells exploded not far or near them.Zhou Enlai felt weak for a while, and he really wanted to just sit down and never get up again.The vanguard of the central column began to cross the river. They had no choice. The enemy's artillery was firing blindly. If they waited for dawn to cross the river, the enemy's planes would not be blindly dropping bombs and shooting. Zhou Enlai stood up and shouted loudly: Be careful and avoid the enemy's artillery. The troops rushed towards the center of the river, and a volley of artillery came over, and the crowd was immediately submerged in the waves. It took a long time for Zhou Enlai to see clearly that there were still a few figures advancing.He closed his eyes in pain.

When Zhou Enlai opened his eyes, he saw a row of lanterns approaching, and by the shadow of the lights he saw clearly that it was Mr. Xu, Mr. Dong and Mr. Lin who were coming. Zhou Enlai hurried over.Seeing these old comrades at this time, he felt more indescribable.He felt that there were many things to say, but only one sentence remained in his throat: cross the river quickly, hurry up! Several old people also knew that this is not a place to talk, Xu Teli turned his head and said: Enlai, you should take care too. Zhou Enlai smiled. The pontoon bridge has been blown up, and the east and west sections are floating in the river.Zhou Enlai rushed to the two guards and said: Hurry up and protect Mr. Xu and them from crossing the river.

The two guards took the ropes from Mr. Xu and Mr. Lin and walked into the river. When Zhou Enlai turned around again, he saw Mao Zedong standing not far from him, with several guards and staff standing beside him.Mao Zedong's health seemed much better than before the Long March.At this time, Mao Zedong was standing in the shadow of the lamp smiling at him. Surprised and delighted, Zhou Enlai hurried forward to greet him: Chairman, how are you?Let's cross the river. Mao Zedong watched the looming artillery fire on the west bank of the Xiangjiang River, and asked: Is the situation okay.The question was lukewarm, as if he was an outsider.

Not so good, the 1st and 3rd armies fought too hard, they have persisted for 3 days and suffered heavy casualties.We are anxious, the enemy is even more anxious than us, wishing to eat us in one bite.Zhou Enlai rubbed his temples while talking. We are too slow, too slow!Mao Zedong said. This is indeed a lesson. At the beginning we miscalculated the situation, but now it is too late.Zhou Enlai said bitterly. We are beggars beating dogs.Mao Zedong added another sentence. I have informed the back to move forward lightly, but some things just cannot be lightened. Zhou Enlai had a bitter face. Wang Jiaxiang said on a stretcher in the shadows: Farmers are conscious, if green hills remain, are they afraid that there will be no firewood?Castle Peak is gone, so how can there be firewood! Only then did Zhou Enlai see clearly Wang Jiaxiang and Luo Fu in the shadows, and he immediately realized what was happening, and said: It's all because I didn't think carefully before the Western Expedition. This is still secondary, the key point is that we have to find a correct route. Luo Fu said something without thinking. A flash came to Zhou Enlai's mind. The three people in front of him all spoke in the same tone, and their central meaning was exactly the same.His mind seemed to clear up a lot all of a sudden, he didn't say anything, pointed to the river and said: let's cross the river quickly. Mao Zedong said: Enlai, can't we cross the river together? Zhou Enlai said: I will wait a little longer and hear the news of the 8th Army and the 5th Army. Seeing what Zhou Enlai said, Mao Zedong didn't insist anymore, and walked towards the river together with Wang Jiaxiang and Luo Fu. Zhou Enlai stared at the backs of the three people who disappeared in the shadow of the lamp. He stood on the shore, thinking. Zhou Enlai crossed the river at dawn, when it was still dark, the eastern sky was faintly white, and the river water was a bit cool.The enemy no longer fired artillery or guns, and the two sides of the Xiangjiang River were temporarily silent. The enemy seemed to be accumulating strength at dawn, preparing to fight more ferociously and cruelly after dawn. Zhou Enlai had been standing on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River, silently praying in his heart for the central column to go faster, and even faster.After the vanguard troops crossed the river, there was no news from the large troops of the central column for a while, and only a few people squeezed sparsely to the edge of the Xiangjiang River. Zhou Enlai inquired about the news of most of the troops again and again, and always replied: The large troops are still behind.Zhou Enlai anxiously rushed to the temporary command post at Jieshou on the West Bank, and saw Zhu De looking at the map under the light.His arrival lifted Zhu De's head from the map. Zhu De waved his hand, and a guard brought Zhou Enlai a big cup of warm corn paste. Song De smiled and said: I have had someone warm you up several times. Zhou Enlai took the corn paste and looked at Zhu De in front of him, this honest brother, always so charitable. Zhou Enlai drank the corn paste in a few sips, and asked the guards to twist the towel and wipe his face.Then he said: Commander-in-Chief, the situation is complicated. Zhu De raised his face and said sadly: We are very passive now. The central column has not yet crossed the river completely, but according to intelligence, they are still about 20 kilometers away from the Xiangjiang River. If everything goes well, they will arrive before noon tomorrow. The legion is fighting the enemy here, and the 5th legion is fighting Zhou Hunyuan's pursuers on the outskirts of Wenshi... Zhou Enlai has been worried about the 5th Army, and the troops blocking the rear are the most dangerous.Along the way, they have been serving as guards, walking around and fighting, and the troops have been dragged to pieces, and some of them have lost news and cannot be contacted.This army, which was born in the Ningdu Uprising in December 1931, suffered heavy losses when defending Guangchang. More than half of the troops were added before the Long March. Fighting stops along the way, the 34th Division suffered the heaviest casualties. They were the rear troops of the 5th Army Corps. Commander Chen Shuxiang commanded the whole division, fighting almost all the way, with heavy casualties. There is also the 8th Army, which is almost all recruits recruited before the Western Expedition.Zhou Enlai and Zhu De wanted these recruits to be added to the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Army Corps, but Bogu and Li De disagreed. They said that the establishment of the 8th Army Corps was to strengthen the momentum of the Red Army's westward expedition. So there was the 8th Army, the recruits of the 8th Army, from the beginning of the transfer of troops, the morale of the army was not stable, and they fled to death. Now the 8th Army has almost lost more than half, and it is difficult to have too much combat power. Zhou Enlai thought of this and said worriedly: I think the designation of the 8th Army can be cancelled, and the remaining troops can be added to several main regiments, which will be more convenient in management. Zhu De also said: It seems that it is indeed a mistake to form a team with all recruits. Zhou Enlai nodded. Instead of continuing what Zhu De said, he changed the topic: The Xiangjiang battle has been fought for 3 days, and the troops have lost a lot. If it goes on like this, who knows how long it will last. I am afraid that the morale of the troops will be unstable. Zhu De seemed to have seen through Zhou Enlai's mind, and quickly comforted him: "The loss of the troops is a bit greater, but on the other hand, our main force has crossed the Xiangjiang River after all. The enemy wanted to wipe us out on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River, but now we have successfully crossed the Xiangjiang River." After crossing the Xiangjiang River, on the other hand, we can be regarded as a big victory. Zhou Enlai understood Zhu De's relief, so he said: You can rest for a while, it seems that it will be another hard battle at dawn. Zhu De rubbed his astringent eyes and said: It's time to rest for a while.You also sleep for a while. Zhou Enlai didn't nod or shake his head. He turned down the lantern beside him and said to Zhu De: Go to sleep.After speaking, he pointed to the ammunition box and said: I can just sleep here. Zhu De took a blanket from the guard, walked out of the temporary command post, and squeezed to the grassy slope where the staff on duty of the headquarters slept outside the door.These days, he was so tired that he fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes. Zhou Enlai didn't sleep, he just dazed on the ammunition box for a while, then sat up, turned on the lantern, and began to draft a message to strengthen political and ideological work, so that the troops could be united, persevere, persevere... The telegram was written quickly, and Zhou Enlai leaned under the lamp to watch: One day's battle is related to the whole of our field army. Victory in the west can open up future development prospects, otherwise our field army will be cut off layer by layer. The heads of our 1st and 3rd regiments and the political department should dispatch political workers overnight to go deep into each company to carry out combat agitation.It is necessary to mobilize all commanders and fighters to understand the significance of today's operations.We are not winners, we are losers.Victory or defeat is related to the overall situation. Everyone must fight with the highest courage, regardless of all sacrifices, overcome fatigue, and carry out the task of attacking and destroying the enemy with a resolute assault, so as to ensure that the military commission No. 1 and 1:30 combat orders are fully fulfilled and the enemy is repelled. Occupied places, destroying the enemy's offensive troops, opening up a road to the west, and ensuring that all our field troops break through the blockade should be the basic slogan of today's operations.Holding the banner of victory high, Wang rushed to the line of fire. He didn't write the signature after he finished writing. He wanted to send it to Li De and Bogu for review, but the time waited for no one. It was already early in the morning, so he should send it in the name of the Military Commission.He wanted the guards to wake up Zhu De, but Zhu De was already standing behind him and said, "Okay, I think it's fine to send troops like this." Zhou Enlai looked at Zhu De behind him in surprise and said: Why didn't you sleep a little longer? Zhu De said with a smile: "It's a big military matter, how can I snooze." Zhou Enlai immediately signed the order: central bureau Military Commission general affairs Zhu De took the telegram and asked the guards to send it to the Confidential Section, and immediately distributed it to the troops. Only then did Zhou Enlai let out a long breath. Zhu De whispered beside him: You can sleep for a while. Zhou Enlai smiled, wiped his face with a towel, stood up and said: "It's almost dawn, and it will be another hard battle." Zhou Enlai walked out of the temporary command post, followed by two guards.Zhou Enlai waved his hand and said: "You guys also take a nap, don't follow me, I want to stand outside alone for a while." Zhou Enlai was standing on a rock, the Xiangjiang River was ringing in his ears, the east was already dimly lit, and the tidal river wind blowing over made him shiver, and his spirit was also lifted.The Xiangjiang River has shown a rough outline, and there is fog, quietly floating on the river.Zhou Enlai took two deep breaths. On the east bank of the Xiangjiang River, there was another sound of people shouting and neighing, which indicated that another group of Red Army troops had rushed to the Xiangjiang River. Zhou Enlai said in his heart: hurry up, hurry up, hurry up! Suddenly a shell exploded in the front position, and the sound broke the tranquility before dawn.Zhou Enlai knew that a fierce day had come. When Zhou Enlai saw Li De and Bo Gu, it was already daylight.After they met, there was not much greeting.The fierce battle made their spirits highly tense.The first task before them is, where will the troops go after crossing the river?Judging from the current situation, the enemy has discovered their attempt to join the 2nd and 6th legions. It will be more difficult to act according to the original plan; if the marching route is changed, where will the troops go next? Zhu De had already raised this issue at the staff meeting last night. As soon as the three met, Zhou Enlai first raised this question. Li De said without thinking: Of course, we must act according to the original plan. Joining the 2nd and 6th legions is our best way at present. Bogu didn't speak, he seemed to be in deep thought.The sound of guns and guns came one after another, and the earth trembled after it. Zhou Enlai: According to our original idea, it is entirely possible to use 80,000 mourners to break through the enemy's blockade and join the 2nd and 6th armies.But when we made the plan, we ignored a problem: Bing is expensive and fast!We failed to do so, causing serious losses to the 8th and 5th Army Corps. We lost contact with the last 34th Division of the team. The 1st and 3rd Army Corps have been fighting for three or four days. If this continues, we may have to persist In the past few days, we have no way to count how many soldiers the army has lost. Even if we are lightly armed now, with our current exhausted army, can we continue to fight the enemy head-on? ... Li De seemed very excited after hearing Zhou Enlai's words. He paced back and forth in a small place in front of him. The half of the lit cigarette had been extinguished, so he didn't care about it. When Zhou Enlai finished speaking, he stopped and stared at him. The map in front of us said: If we don't join the 2nd and 6th legions, we will have to march every day. What about the wounded and supplies?The troops cannot rest, and morale will be even lower. The only way out is to join the 2nd and 6th legions. Zhou Enlai felt that what Li De said was reasonable, but Zhou Enlai still hesitated whether it would work. Bogu, who was silent for a while, said at this time: I think we may have imagined too much in some aspects.What if the enemy didn't expect our attempt to join the 2nd and 6th legions?Just thought of it, are their troops deployed properly?I think you might as well do some testing first.At present, the army is indeed too tired after fighting for days. After this battle, we try to rest for a few days and adjust the team. It is indeed a feasible way to join the 2nd and 6th legions, but it is just a matter of time. After Bogu finished speaking, he looked at Li De and Zhou Enlai. Li De felt that Bogu's suggestion was feasible, but he didn't speak. He took out a fire from his pocket and lit the half cigarette. Zhou Enlai hesitated and said: Shall we listen to the opinions of some other comrades, such as Wang Jiaxiang, Luo Fu, and Mao Zedong and others. There is a Chinese saying that three cobblers are better than Zhuge Liang. Bo Gu and Li De quickly looked at each other. Li De remembered what Xiang Ying told him to beware of Mao Zedong before the Red Army set off.He didn't take it seriously.But Bogu kept it in his heart. Maybe he is a Chinese, and he knows the true meaning of this famous saying that you must not have the heart to harm others, and you must have the heart to guard against others. At the beginning of his departure, he watched Mao Zedong's every move in the dark.He quickly discovered the unusual contacts among Mao Zedong, Luo Fu, and Wang Jiaxiang.It didn't take long for rumors to spread, saying that the main action of the Red Army this time was to escape without a plan and so on.He told Li De about the rumors he had heard. Li De was very excited. He didn't understand why Mao Zedong and others accused the operation of being unplanned and escapism?Li De couldn't figure this out.After the excitement, he quickly calmed down again. He had secretly made up his mind that this operation must be a success, and let those who gossip behind his back see whether this operation was an escape. When Zhou Enlai mentioned Mao Zedong, Li De and Bogu immediately became sensitive. Bo Gu couldn't hold his breath at first. He waved his hand at Zhou Enlai and said: It is better not to listen to their opinions. Some of them must say that we were wrong from the beginning. They have said enough behind our backs. That's right, others call them the "Central Trio", and the intentions of what they spread is self-evident... The more Bo Gu talked, the more excited he became. Zhou Enlai lowered his head and thought for a while and said: Sometimes, there is nothing wrong with listening to criticism, and we can think about the problem from another way of thinking. Li De threw away the cigarette butt, stepped on the cigarette butt again, and said fiercely: We have some shortcomings, such as being hindered by those baggage, but it cannot be said that the direction is wrong. This is an omission in our work, and often this omission will bring us a fatal blow.Zhou Enlai said slowly. It was the central column that held us back, the old and the young, we are now fighting on stretchers, so there is no reason not to be slow.Bogu kept arguing. If this is not the case, then we are truly escaping. We have moved almost the entire Soviet area away, which shows that our plan has thoroughness and omissions.Zhou Enlai wrote to Li De and Bogu. The two did not speak for a while. Before the Red Army withdrew from the Soviet area, the plan was implemented by three people.Bo Gu was in charge of politics, Li De was in charge of the military, Zhou Enlai supervised the implementation of the entire plan, and the retreat order was also issued by Zhou Enlai.Of course, at such a time, it is useless to blame and complain.The important thing is how to unite and overcome the immediate difficulties. It is impossible to predict the extent to which things will develop in the future.Thinking of this, Zhou Enlai said: The most important thing for us now is to solve the immediate problem, and the merits and demerits of this transfer will be discussed later. We must join up with the 2nd and 6th legions, and we must take this path, otherwise our transfer will be a real and complete failure.Li De said loudly. I don't know when, on the position of the 3rd Army, the sound of guns and guns rang out. Looking from a distance, the place was filled with smoke, and half of the sky was swallowed up by gunpowder smoke. The three people were stunned by the intense gunfire for a moment, and they realized that for the Red Army, every minute and every second is the soldiers' lives in exchange for it.It's not too late, we can't delay like this any longer. Bogu first came back to his senses, and said sharply: At present, our rendezvous with the 2nd and 6th legions may be the only way out, otherwise the consequences will be disastrous. Zhou Enlai understood that if this endless debate continued, there would be no final result.If there is no other way to go, joining the 2nd and 6th legions may really be the only way out.He came to the map, looked at the map and said: Let those who meet with the 2nd and 6th armies be put aside beforehand. We are following to urge the troops to cross the river earlier and leave this area as soon as possible. Our soldiers are bleeding... It is right to leave the Xiangjiang River as soon as possible, but the follow-up troops can't catch up in time, what should we do if the enemy sticks?Li De seemed to lose his mind for a moment. Then let them stay in place to fight guerrillas, establish new bases, and wait for the opportunity to join us again.Bogu said quickly. Zhou Enlai's heart sank. He knew that if that happened, the remaining troops would be in danger. For the fate of the entire Red Army, there is no better way.But the reason why they can't get away now is that the huge central column has not yet completely crossed the river.During the day, the Xiangjiang River was almost blocked by enemy planes and cannons. If you want to cross the river, you have to wait until night. With so many people and so much luggage, how can you pass it all in one night. Li De looked at the map and said: "Choose a gathering place now, and let those who cross the river first take the first step. The 1st and 3rd legions can only support one more. As soon as the follow-up troops arrive, we will leave this place immediately." After Li De finished speaking, he pointed to the oil press flat on the map and said: The troops are assembled here. Zhou Enlai saw that it was the Yuechengling mountainous area in Ziyuan County, which was convenient for the troops to hide. After the 6th Army crossed the Xiangjiang River, it also established a foothold there.Zhou Enlai nodded. Bogu also has no objection. Wait for Zhu De to come back from the front line, and if he has no objections, give the order.Zhou Enlai. At this time, it was almost noon, and the fierce battle reached a fever pitch on the positions of the 1st and 3rd legions. Several batches of planes took turns to assist in the battle. They strafed and dropped bombs from the air. The eyes of the three people turned to the position ahead where the smoke was billowing. There is a life-and-death struggle going on...