Chapter 25 The twenty-fifth round of Li De's frustrated oil press Zhou Enlai awakened from a big dream

On December 2, 1934, at dusk, the Red Army rushing out of the Xiangjiang River finally gathered one after another at the oil press flat surrounded by mountains on three sides. Youzaping is a small town with only a few hundred households, and the Red Army headquarters is located in a small courtyard in the town.The troops received an order to rest and recuperate at the oil press flat. Temporary tents set up by the Red Army can be seen everywhere in and outside the town, as well as the figures of Red Army soldiers with tired expressions. On December 4, in the names of Zhu De, Zhou Enlai, and Wang Jiaxiang, the "Order for Downsizing of Rear Organs" was issued.Order to reduce the size of the corps and the division-level agencies directly under the team, cancel the division's rear agencies and military depots, incorporate all redundant personnel directly under the rear agencies into the regiment's combat troops, and immediately inspect, discard, and destroy unnecessary documents, materials, and luggage .

The Xiangjiang battle completely shook Li De's position in the Red Army.For the past two days, Li De and Bogu were in a low mood, almost silent.Regarding where the Red Army should go, they no longer stubbornly insist on their previous propositions. Zhou Enlai sat on a small hill outside the town, looking at the figures of the Red Army soldiers busy in front of him, thinking a lot and thinking far away.The troops rushing out from the bloody battle had no rear at this time, nor could they be replenished, let alone rest, and they might be ready to move out again at some point. Where is the army going?Should we stick to the original plan to join the 2nd and 6th Army Corps, or change the marching route and find a place where the Red Army can gain a firm foothold?At present, Li De and Bo Gu have lost their prestige in the Red Army. Under such circumstances, if there is no one who can command the whole army and achieve unanimity, it is still impossible to break out of the enemy's encirclement.

At this time, among their "Supreme Trio", who can take on this important task? Zhou Enlai knew about Bogu, let alone in such a critical moment, even in a small battle, he had to rely on Li De.What about Li De?Practice has proved that Li De is not good either. From the defense of Guangchang to the bloody battle on the Xiangjiang River where the Red Army marched west, Li De has lost his prestige.Not only has it lost its prestige, but there is also a sense of hostility brewing among the commanders and fighters of the Red Army. A thought suddenly jumped into his mind, and he thought of Mao Zedong.He knew Mao Zedong.Since Mao Zedong handed over military power at the Ningdu Conference, he has been observing this man calmly.It seems that only Mao Zedong has the ability and prestige to save this nearly paralyzed army at this moment.

Thinking of this, Zhou Enlai felt more at ease.But soon Zhou Enlai thought of Xiangjiang's defeat again.Bing is expensive and fast, which is common sense necessary for a commander, but the Red Army's westward expedition ignored this common sense.When starting from the Soviet area, there were 14,000 people in the columns of the Central Committee and the Military Commission alone, more than 2,000 bearers and stretchers, and a large number of mules and horses.This heavy burden stretched for more than 50 kilometers, with columns protecting them on both sides.This slow movement caused the main force of the Red Army to lose opportunities again and again.It is certain that without such a big burden, the Red Army would not have suffered such heavy losses on both sides of the Xiangjiang River.

However, can this burden be thrown away? At that time, the Red Army in the Soviet area had three options.Either lose the agency; or lose the initiative in the war; or do not make a strategic shift, and fight the enemy to the end in the Soviet area. Obviously, none of these three approaches is advisable, so they had to compromise and choose the strategy of carrying the burden and transferring it.In the end, there was the fiasco of Xiangjiang. Who will bear this responsibility?Zhou Enlai couldn't think clearly for a while, and couldn't think of a clue. As the sky gradually darkened, Zhou Enlai stood up and looked around in a daze, feeling an indescribable feeling in his heart.

There are so many people squeezed into the small Youzheping Town at once, there are figures running in a hurry everywhere, mules, horses, and stretchers are crowded together, and the noise is like a pot of boiling water. Bogu squeezed into the crowd.It was dark and no one noticed him.At this moment, he didn't want others to notice him.He wanted to talk to Luo Fu or Wang Jiaxiang and others.He didn't think about what to talk about, anyway, he felt that he should talk about it, and his heart was empty. He suddenly heard a person shouting loudly: Kill me, kill me quickly.If I don't stay, you can kill me.

Bogu looked around and saw a wounded man lying on a stretcher, arguing with a group of people surrounding him. A man who looked like a commander squatted in front of the stretcher and comforted him: Don't worry, Lao Wang, we will arrange you to a reliable fellow villager's house, leave more money, and they will take good care of you. No, I don't want to stay, I want to see Zhou Enlai, Bogu is also fine, I want to tell them that the wounded cannot be treated like this.The wounded man was still screaming. Bogu originally wanted to go to the stretcher to comfort the wounded man, depending on the situation, the wounded man was a commander, but when he heard the wounded man call his name, he changed his mind.The most difficult job is to comfort the wounded. At this time, the wounded are desperate. They can say anything, and anyone has to bear it.After thinking about it, Bogu still walked forward quickly.

Bogu found Wang Jiaxiang's small courtyard. What he didn't expect was that Mao Zedong also lived in this small courtyard.As soon as he entered the door, he heard Mao Zedong speaking loudly in that Hunan dialect. He stopped and stood there with one foot in the door and one foot outside the door, not knowing whether to advance or retreat. At this time Wang Jiaxiang saw him and shouted: Comrade Bogu, come in. He entered the hut and said: Passing by here, come in and see you. He didn't find Luo Fu in this hut. Mao Zedong smiled and said while smoking: We are all fine, don't worry about us.

Bogu was a little embarrassed, and he said after a long while: "Tomorrow we have to leave again. Can you bear the hardships of climbing mountains and ridges?" Wang Jiaxiang said, "I'm fine. I've come all this way. If I can't sit on a stretcher, I'll be carried. Anyway, I won't be left behind." Bogu nodded, turned his head to Mao Zedong and said: This transfer is more difficult than expected, and we suffered another defeat in the Xiangjiang River. There are really many lessons to be learned. Mao Zedong didn't speak, he was still smoking, and seemed to be meditating on what Bo Gu had just said.

But Wang Jiaxiang said: The Red Army lost too much in the Xiangjiang battle. If it continues like this, it will definitely not work. It is time to summarize it. Bogu forced a smile and said: Yes, we are also considering these issues. Mao Zedong flicked the cigarette ash in his hand and said: "Revolution, there will always be successes and failures. The key is that we have to find out the reasons for failures. Only in this way will everything be easy." Yes, yes.Bogu said without embarrassment. Wang Jiaxiang also said: I think we need to find out the subjective and objective responsibilities, and we can't always emphasize the objective...

Suddenly, a heavy shadow shrouded Bo Gu's heart, and he remembered what Xiang Ying told them to beware of Mao Zedong before the troops marched west. During the Western Expedition, Wang Jiaxiang, Luo Fu and Mao Zedong were almost inseparable.At this time, he was finally verified. From Wang Jiaxiang's conversation, he could clearly hear that Wang Jiaxiang had already stood on Mao Zedong's side. The three stopped talking and looked at each other. Bo Gu was eager to know what Luo Fu was thinking. Since Luo Fu was not around, there was no need for him to stay any longer.He stood up and said goodbye to Mao Zedong and Wang Jiaxiang in a humble manner. The Red Army suffered an unprecedented defeat on the Xiangjiang River.Before Mao Zedong came to Youzaping, he suggested that Luo Fu should complete a task, which was to summarize the reasons for the defeat of the Red Army.Mao Zedong considered at that time that among him, Wang Jiaxiang and Luo Fu, it was best for Luo Fu to come forward.Because Wang Jiaxiang was injured, Mao Zedong himself had no position or authority at this time. Moreover, Mao Zedong had always been a representative of the rightist line, and it was obviously inappropriate to say something from him. Luo Fu's mood is very complicated.Listening to Mao Zedong's military discussions along the way, he consciously or unconsciously stood in Mao Zedong's position.So he quickly agreed to Mao Zedong's proposal to make a summary of the Red Army, but one thing made him embarrassed, that is, he didn't understand military affairs, so he could only quote Mao Zedong's ideas for a summary, but he was afraid that he would not be able to understand it thoroughly.These days, he has been troubled by this matter. It was a quiet night. After having dinner with Mao Zedong and Wang Jiaxiang, Luo Fu excused himself from some discomfort and returned to his residence early.He wants to think quietly and sort out his chaotic thoughts. As soon as he arrived at the house, Bo Gu pushed the door open and walked in. Bogu smiled and said: Why, is there something on your mind? Luo Fu hurriedly said: "Where, why do you have time to come to us?" Bogu smiled bitterly, and sat side by side with Luo Fu on the creaking bed. Bogu sighed and said straight to the point: Comrade Luo Fu, the Red Army is now in an extraordinary period, and Comrade Li De is also very anxious.He grabbed one of Luo Fu's hands, shook it vigorously, and said: I hope our comrades from Moscow can unite in this critical moment and tide over the difficulties together. Luo Fu keenly sensed the overtones in Bogu's words.Thinking of the loss of the Red Army in the Xiangjiang bloody battle, he lowered his head and remained silent for a while. Bogu also said: Wang Jiaxiang was often with Mao Zedong along the way, and he must have been influenced by Mao Zedong. Luo Fu looked up at Bogu.During the Long March, the three of them were together all the time. At this time, Bogu said that Wang Jiaxiang was influenced by Mao Zedong, and he also brought himself into it by implication.Bogu seemed to have noticed Luo Fu's reaction, so he quickly explained: Of course, Wang Jiaxiang's performance is not a day or two. As early as the Ningdu meeting, he also had opinions on the removal of Mao Zedong. Luo Fu blinked his eyes behind his glasses and said: This is all a matter of personal opinion, and it cannot be said that who influences whom. This time it was Bogu's turn to be dazed. Bogu thought of the evening before the Red Army set off from the Soviet area. Luo Fu angrily went to Bogu and asked why there were no Qu Qiubai and He Shuheng in the transfer list? Bogu explained at the time: Zhai Qiubai is not in good health, and He Shuheng is old, and the two of them are not conducive to transfer. Luo Fu said that Bogu lacked emotion. In the end, Bo Gu agreed to let Xiang Ying arrange to transfer the two of them to Shanghai as soon as possible, so Luo Fu didn't say anything. As early as after the Fifth Plenary Session of the Central Committee, because Luo Fu and Bo Gu disagreed, he was sent to work in the central government.Of course Luo Fu understood that this was Bogu's first step to push him out of the center.Later, Luo Fu was sent to the Fujian and Jiangxi regions to do inspection work, and he did not return from the Fujian and Jiangxi regions until the eve of the Long March.He is not clear about the arrangement and decision of the Supreme "Triple Group" on the Long March.This loss made him naturally get close to Mao Zedong, Wang Jiaxiang and others.This is also one of the main reasons why he quickly took the stand of Mao Zedong. The defeat of the Red Army on the Xiangjiang River made Luo Fu realize that the Red Army had developed a sense of distrust towards the current central leadership, and this feeling of distrust was getting stronger day by day. Comrade Luo Fu, Bo Gu also said: I heard that during the transfer, Mao Zedong, Wang Jiaxiang and others were very dissatisfied with the current party work. Is this the case? Luo Fu didn't nod or shake his head.He stared at Bogu in the dark.Bogu did not mention his name, but the semantics did not exclude him.This made him very uncomfortable. Bo Gu tentatively said again: This, this, is not friendly. Wouldn’t it be better to bring it up, let’s have a face-to-face talk and exchange views? We did not say that the Party line was wrong, nor could the instructions of the Third International be said to be wrong.Luo Fu finally said, but first he affirmed the general direction. But Bogu said without losing the opportunity: If everyone admits that the route is correct and it is just a mistake in some links, then the problem will be solved easily. Luo Fu was hesitating and thinking.He knew that Bogu was trying to find supporters. Bogu grabbed Luo Fu's hand again and said: Since we have no major differences in principle, we can still be united.Speaking of this, Bogu paused, but quickly added: especially our comrades from Moscow. Bogu looked away from Luo Fu's face.Luo Fu didn't know what to say to Bogu.He can't say anything about what he discussed with Mao Zedong and Wang Jiaxiang. Speaking out at this time is tantamount to betraying the other two people.Although he is now eager to replace the central leadership team, the timing seems to be immature at present.After all, Bo Gu is still the top leader of this team, talking too much is not good for himself, and it is even worse for others, so he can only use silence instead of words. Bogu grabbed Luo Fu's hand and shook it vigorously, as if thousands of words were in his hand. Bo Gu said: Comrade Luo Fu, since this is the case, I will not say anything more.You have a good rest, I say goodbye. Luo Fu sent Bogu to the door, watching Bogu's back disappear into the night. When Luo Fu came back, he lay down on the creaking little bed without any sleepiness.When will the time for him to replace the central leadership come? Bo Gu came out from Luo Fu, very excited.Halfway through his walk, he was still excited, so he wanted to go back and have a good talk with Luo Fu.But this thought quickly disappeared again.He thought, anyway, there will still be opportunities in the future, as long as Luo Fu does not stand on Mao Zedong's side, and Wang Jiaxiang alone supports Mao Zedong, it will be difficult to shake the current position of the highest "three-person group".He wanted to tell Li De Luo Fu's thoughts as soon as possible.But when he walked to the command post, the guard told him that Li De had already rested.The guard added: Li De brought his wife Xiao Yuehua here. Bo Gu didn't say anything, he stood in front of Li De's room for a while, shook his head, sighed and left. When Harrison Salisbury described Reed, there was a passage like this: ... All leading cadres, male or female, were extremely displeased with Li De's sexual demands.When Li De arrived in China in October 1933, he thought the Red Army was like any other army, and he counted on the women accompanying him to sleep with him.But there were no prostitutes in the Soviet area.So they tried to find a female companion for Li De, but it didn't help.Chinese women were quick to shy away from him, saying that he was too fat, too big, and too rough for them physically. Li De's apartment is not far from the dormitory of the Communist Youth League.One of the leaders of the Communist Youth League at that time had a very beautiful wife.Li De coveted the woman and wanted to sleep with her, and he offered to give her presents (one of the Chinese complaints is that he has better food than anyone else).Li De's approach is really not strategic enough.The husband soon realized what he was up to.Some comrades, including translator Wu Xiuquan, took measures to save the situation.They found a young woman named Xiao Yuehua, who was working with Hu Yaobang at the time... But after the Long March started, she was sent to the recuperation company like most women, which caused trouble, whether it was Xiao Yuehua or Li Germany does not know current affairs.Not only did they quarrel with themselves, Xiao Yuehua also quarreled with the lesbians around him.Deng Yingchao, Zhou Enlai's wife, Kang Keqing and others spent an untold amount of time to quell the storm, but to no avail. Bogu didn't bother Li De.When he left Li De's residence and walked towards the opposite hillside, he saw Zhou Enlai. Zhou Enlai had just walked around in the team and was about to go back when the two met on the hillside and stopped. Both of them could see that the other had something on their minds, and they seemed to want to say something to each other. After staying for a while, they walked towards the small river down the hillside.There was a sound of water coming from behind a bush, and a man was sitting on a rock. Seeing two people walking by, the man stood up and shouted: Gay men back. Zhou Enlai recognized that it was Kang Keqing's voice, so he said with a smile: What are you doing here. Kang Keqing also recognized that it was Zhou Enlai, and hurriedly said: It is the General Political Commissar, they are taking a bath, and I am standing guard for them. Zhou Enlai and Bo Gu stopped, and they walked in the other direction, and finally saw a crouching bull stone, and they sat down.At this time, the Red Army in the camp had rested, and only the sound of running water and the voices of lesbians were left in front of them. Comrade Enlai, Bogu pushed the glasses on his nose and said firstly, what do you think is our chance of rendezvous with the 2nd and 6th legions? Zhou Enlai looked at the river, and said after a while: "The battle of Xiangjiang is a lesson for us. We don't have time to count how many people have rushed out now, but from the current point of view, the 8th Army and the 5th Army have suffered the heaviest losses." , There is no news about the 34th Division of the 5th Army Corps so far. In my opinion, there must be bad luck. Yes, our loss in the battle of Xiangjiang was big enough, but it cannot be said that there is no hope for us to join the 2nd and 6th armies.Now the troops need to be adjusted, and there is no place to stay.Bogu said. Zhou Enlai didn't want to argue with Bogu on whether he could meet with the 2nd and 6th Army Corps. He was thinking about the present. Although the troops had crossed the Xiangjiang River, they were still not out of danger. They will catch up, and the most important thing now is to stabilize the mood of the Red Army and find a way to break through the encirclement. Only in this way can the fate of the Red Army be saved. Seeing that Zhou Enlai didn't speak for a while, Bogu said again: "Now some people have a lot of opinions on us behind our backs."Bo Gu deliberately emphasized the word "we". Zhou Enlai said: We have made many mistakes. Since the fifth campaign against "encirclement and suppression", we have made a big mistake with regard to the 19th Route Army. If it hadn't been for that, we might not have come to this point today. This cannot be completely blamed on us. We followed the advice of international organizations and did not cooperate with the 19th Route Army.Bogu argued. No one is a saint, and the instructions belong to the instructions, but it is ourselves who deal with the enemy.Zhou Enlai said slowly. Now someone accuses us of running away, how to explain this!Bogu looked excited. In this transfer, we did not think carefully enough in some aspects, such as the establishment of troops, and so many households.Zhou Enlai took a compromise approach to view this transfer. He neither denied that it was an escape, but he did not shirk responsibility. Anyway, there will be no chance to go back to the Soviet area and walk again, but it cannot be said that we are fleeing when we leave the Soviet area.Bogu looked aggrieved. Zhou Enlai picked up a stone and threw it into the water.At some point, those lesbians had already left the bush and walked towards the camp.Zhou Enlai meditated for a while, then raised his head and said: We had no choice but to leave the Soviet area. Up to now, we can say that we failed in the fifth counter-campaign against "encirclement and suppression". Zhou Enlai did not use failure to comment on the fifth counter-campaign against "encirclement and suppression", but used the word failure. We are a transfer, not a loss.If we continue to fight recklessly with the enemy in the Soviet area, the enemy will not eat us up in one bite.Bogu insisted. Zhou Enlai smiled wryly and shook his head. Bogu noticed it. He didn't expect Zhou Enlai to be so pessimistic. When he came out of Luo Fu, the short-lived joy that he had felt disappeared immediately, and a terrible shadow shrouded his heart thickly and heavily.He couldn't help shivering, raised his head and said in a low voice: Mao Zedong, Wang Jiaxiang, Luo Fu and others seem to have problems with us. I think they still want to do something. Zhou Enlai did not speak. He had heard about Mao Zedong's three people talking about them behind their backs, and he knew where their opinions came from.Some opinions, he not only agrees with, but also supports.Of course, he did not show it in front of Li De and Bo Gu, and always adopted a tolerant and gentle attitude towards Mao Zedong and others' comments.As soon as he crossed the Xiangjiang River, he heard the complaints and dissatisfaction of many commanders below.He understands this kind of dissatisfaction, the troops have suffered consecutive defeats, and the loss in Xiangjiang World War I was so heavy, it would be abnormal to ask the troops to be emotionally high at this time. On this point, he and Bogu had different ideas. Bogu ignored this kind of emotion from the grassroots. When Zhou Enlai and Zhu De visited the army during the day, they came to the 3rd Army. After Peng Dehuai greeted them, he sat there without saying a word. Of course Zhou Enlai knew what Peng Dehuai was thinking, he stretched out his hand and patted Peng Dehuai's shoulder, Peng Dehuai raised his head and gave him and Zhu De a wry smile and said: What kind of battle is this? Zhou Enlai and Zhu De could only smile wryly along with them. Peng Dehuai also said: The troops are not afraid of fighting now, but of losing every day. Zhu De hurriedly said: We have indeed lost the battle of Xiangjiang. Zhou Enlai wanted to say something to comfort Peng Dehuai, but after thinking about it, those words were superfluous, so he might as well not say anything, so he excused himself to go to the troops below to have a look, and walked out with Zhu De with a heavy heart. There are wounded everywhere outside, and many people are doing the work of the wounded, persuading them to stay.One of the wounded yelled, "Mom, that X, if I don't stay, I'll die if I stay, why don't you give me a knife." Zhou Enlai and Zhu De looked at each other and walked over to the wounded soldier. When people saw the commander-in-chief and the chief political commissar, they immediately fell silent. They took the initiative to make way for the two of them to walk over.A man who looked like a commander squatted beside the stretcher stood up, saluted the two and said: Report to the commander-in-chief and the general political commissar, I was ordered to do the work of the wounded, let him stay. Zhou Enlai nodded, and the commander stood aside. The wounded recognized the commander-in-chief and the chief political commissar, and he struggled to sit up from the stretcher, but Zhou Enlai stopped him.Zhou Enlai squatted in front of him. The wounded grabbed Zhou Enlai's hand and said with a choked voice, "General Political Commissar, I'm not afraid of death. I don't want to leave the army. If I was afraid of death, I wouldn't leave Jiangxi." Zhou Enlai looked at the soldiers in front of him and calmly persuaded him: "Little comrades, you have to understand that there are still many battles ahead, and there are still many mountains and mountains to cross. The Red Army is not leaving you alone, but wants you to stay and recuperate. When the wounds heal, we will continue to fight again." Are you returning to the team? Where can I find troops then?The wounded asked innocently. Zhou Enlai was at a loss for words. He didn't know how to answer the wounded man's question. He could only say: Don't be afraid if the Red Army goes far away, can they still fight guerrillas after their injuries are recovered? The wounded cried, and said while crying: Please, I really don't want to leave the Red Army. Zhu De's eye circles were red, but he still said hard-heartedly: Don't cry, if you are a hero, don't shed tears. If you have the guts, pull up a team, and I, Zhu De, will pick you up when the time comes. I mean what I say. The wounded stopped crying and stared blankly at Zhu De. Zhu De took the opportunity to wink at Zhou Enlai, and the two left the stretcher. After walking a long distance, Zhou Enlai saw that the corners of Zhu De's eyes were still wet. Zhu De knew this team better than Zhou Enlai, and he sympathized with these soldiers more. The two of them were no longer in the mood to look around in the army. There were wounded soldiers who didn't want to leave the army.They can't do the work of these wounded, let alone those grassroots cadres.There is no choice but to enforce it, if you stay, you have to stay, if you don't stay, you have to stay.At this time, I can only harden my heart, otherwise the consequences of dragging these wounded away will be unimaginable.The Red Army, which was severely damaged in the Battle of Xiangjiang, was incapable of being hit again. However, among the wounded left behind, how many people can survive in the mountainous area where there is a lack of medical treatment?Even if he survived, can he escape the Kuomintang's search? With so many wounded, there must be endless arrangements in the small oil press. If they cannot be resettled, they can only be carried temporarily, and they will find a way to resettle them when they encounter inhabited places. This is the only way to go. As the commander-in-chief of the Red Army, Zhu De couldn't help being moved by his soldiers. At the same time, he was also proud of having these soldiers. Bogu may not be thinking about this. What he is thinking about most now is how others will evaluate the transfer of the Red Army, whether it is good or bad. He is eager to get a clear statement.However, everything in front of him was undoubtedly not good for him, and he felt a little sad and aggrieved. He and Zhou Enlai were silent by the river for a long time. If Zhou Enlai hadn't stood up and told him to go back, he didn't know how long he would have sat here. Zhou Enlai: Let's rest early, tomorrow we have to climb a big mountain. Zhou Enlai's words brought Bogu back to reality.He walked towards his place of residence with a heavy heart. Zhou Enlai originally wanted to take a look at the recuperation company, but felt that it was too late at this time, so he didn't go, but stood alone in the dark. His mind was very confused these two days, and he had to think carefully. What will be the fate of the Red Army?