In August 1945, the Party Central Committee decided to appoint Lin Biao as the commander of the Shandong Military Region. However, in view of the very important strategic position of the Northeast, the central government sent an urgent telegram to Lin Biao, who was going to Shandong, telling Lin Biao, Xiao Jinguang and others not to go to Shandong but to return to the Northeast immediately.
After Lin Biao received the telegram from the central government in Puyang, Henan, he immediately changed route and rushed to the Northeast day and night. As we all know, Lin Biao has strong command and combat capabilities, otherwise the central government would not suddenly let him go to the Northeast. However, what no one expected was that after Lin Biao entered the Northeast, he actually fought several defeats in succession, and Hingquan, Chaoyang and other places fell one after another.
Lin Biao
This series of defeats also made the entire army begin to question Lin Biao's commanding ability. Before long, a saying spread among the troops in the Northeast: "Mr. Lin can no longer fight."
Faced with everyone's doubts, Lin Biao was not angry, but calmed down and reflected on his previous failures. While reflecting, Lin Biao was also waiting for an opportunity, an opportunity to prove himself to the central government and the soldiers. Fortunately, this opportunity came soon. Lin Biao proved his ability to everyone in just one battle and convinced everyone.
So what is going on? Which battle was Lin Biao’s battle to prove himself?
Lin Biao moved to the Northeast
In June 1945, on the eve of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Chairman Mao learned that Luo Ronghuan, the head of the Shandong Party Political Commissar Army, had severe kidney disease and needed to recuperate, so he sent Lin Biao to Shandong to take over his post. Soon after, the central government officially notified the Shandong Branch :
html On August 15, Japan announced its unconditional surrender, officially ending the eight-year war of resistance. At this time, Chairman Mao saw the importance of the Northeast battlefield. Within just a few months, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China transferred 110,000 troops and 20,000 capable cadres from all over the country to the Northeast. Obviously, in terms of winning and controlling the Northeast, our party is one step ahead of the Kuomintang and has taken the lead.that Lin Biao would serve as the commander of the Shandong Military Region, and Luo Ronghuan would serve as the secretary of the Shandong Branch and the political commissar of the Shandong Military Region. If Luo Ronghuan recuperates due to illness, Lin Biao will act as Luo Ronghuan's deputy.
Chairman Mao and Lin Biao
htmlOn September 12, the central government sent a telegram to Chairman Mao who was in Chongqing: Are you considering sending a capable military commander to the Northeast? Everyone thought of Lin Biao. html On September 19, Liu Shaoqi said in a telegram: "Establish the Hebei Reliao Central Bureau and expand the Hebei Reliao Military Region , with Li Fuchun as secretary, Lin Biao as commander, and Luo Ronghuan to work in the Northeast."On the same day, Chairman Mao and Zhou Enlai sent a message to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China to Zhang Yunyi and Rao Shushi: "It is agreed that Chen Yi and Rao Shushi will go to the Northeast, Luo Ronghuan and Xiao Hua will go to the Northeast, and Lin Biao will go to Rehe. The sooner the better."
Lin Biao received the appointment halfway. , however, before he took office, he was reassigned by the central government to the Northeast. In order to compete with our party for the important territory of the Northeast, Chiang Kai-shek also took a series of measures:
On September 1, 1945, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Xiong Shihui as chairman of the Military Commission and director of the Northeast Operations, and appointed Zhang Jiaao as the Northeast Operations Economic Officer. The committee director, Chiang Ching-kuo , was the special commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Northeast...
In order to strengthen his control over the Northeast, Chiang Kai-shek also divided the three northeastern provinces into nine provinces and appointed governors of each province. On October 16, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Du Yuming as the commander-in-chief of the Northeast Security Department, with full responsibility for operations in the Northeast region.
As soon as Du Yuming entered the Northeast, Chinese and foreign reporters and military commentators were very concerned about the situation in the Northeast and predicted that our party and the Kuomintang would have a war of the century in the Northeast.
Du Yuming
There is a certain connection between Du Yuming and Lin Biao. Both of them are graduates of Huangpu Military Academy, but Du Yuming graduated in 1924, while Lin Biao graduated in 1925.
Du Yuming was a mechanized warfare wizard. He was born in Shaanxi Province in 1904. After joining the army, he was gradually promoted from platoon leader to army commander due to his meritorious service in combat. Lin Biao is our party's best tactician, and he and Du Yuming can be said to be rivals.
Judging from Chiang Kai-shek's early deployment of Xiong Shihui and Du Yuming to the Northeast, we can see that he attached great importance to the fight for the Northeast and was very confident. Chiang Kai-shek believed that Du Yuming was a student of the first phase of Huangpu and was very good at fighting. In addition, Du Yuming's troops were equipped with beautiful weapons and equipment and had strong firepower. He could be said to be the elite among the elite. Chiang Kai-shek was confident, had strong generals and sophisticated weapons, so it was no surprise that he would win in the Northeast.
In early November 1945, Du Yuming led the elite Kuomintang troops to land in Qinhuangdao , and decided to rush to Jinzhou in one fell swoop; then he divided his troops to the west and attacked towns in the Hebei Reliao Liberated Area; then he commanded the elite Kuomintang troops to occupy Heishan, North Town , Chaoyang, Pingquan and other places.
On November 15, Du Yuming concentrated the forces of five elite divisions and launched a strong attack on the Northeast People's Autonomous Army stationed in Shanhaiguan. In order to prevent the Kuomintang from continuing to attack, the Shanhaiguan garrison and the enemy troops launched a fierce battle.
At that time, the First Division of our army had not yet arrived, and the Third Division was behind the enemy. The troops arriving from the pass did not carry weapons, and the combat effectiveness of the Northeast People's Autonomous Army participating in the war was not very strong. Therefore, our army had no choice but to abandon Shanhaiguan.
After the Kuomintang troops captured Shanhaiguan, they arrogantly fought fiercely and soon occupied the Suizhong area of Liaoning. Not long after, the Kuomintang troops occupied Xingcheng, Jinxi, and Huludao.
On November 19, Lin Biao arrived at the front line in western Liaoning. After conducting investigations on the front line, he discovered some worse situations. At that time, the weapons of the Northeastern People's Autonomous Army were very poor, the officers and soldiers were tired, and they had no base area. Coupled with poor communications, they were unable to compete with the well-equipped Kuomintang army.
Based on the current situation of our army in the Northeast, Lin Biao decided to change his strategy, retreat first, and then find a suitable time to attack. Lin Biao then reported his ideas to Chairman Mao and the Central Military Commission. The Military Commission took into account the actual situation in Northeast China and agreed to his suggestion.
He suffered frequent defeats in the Northeast battlefield, and Lin Biao was questioned as not knowing how to fight.
On November 21, Lin Biao sent a telegram to the Central Military Commission on the Jinxi front line:
"What I have seen and heard in the Xingcheng and Jinzhou areas in recent days, our troops have participated in The fighting soldiers are exhausted, their combat effectiveness is getting weaker and weaker, and there are more recruits. They have a fatal flaw, which is the lack of training. Liang Xingchu's division headquarters has just arrived, and Huang Kecheng's division headquarters has not yet arrived, and all the weapons are very tired. Ammunition is insufficient and has not been replenished.
The local people have not yet mobilized, and there are many bandits. Therefore, when encircling us in a roundabout way, there is no way to know whether the enemy will take advantage of the above weaknesses of our army and gradually advance towards our army and adopt an encircling roundabout. Based on the above situation, I have an opinion, that is, in order to prevent our army from being defeated one by one by the enemy, we should avoid rushing into the battle, prepare to abandon Jinzhou and go two to three hundred miles north, let the enemy spread out, and then select weak points to attack. . "
Lin Biao believed that the conditions for a big war are not yet mature, but the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Northeast Bureau are still thinking about controlling the Zhonglong Road and large cities. On November 22, the Central Committee sent a telegram: "It is reported that Chiang Kai-shek's troops have no fighting spirit at all. If our army goes all out to fight with them, most or all of them can be wiped out."
Since Lin Biao did not have high power, The radio station was unable to get in touch with Yan'an , so telegrams were piled up for a week, and it was not until December 3 that the situation in Jinzhou was reported to the central government:
"Because our army was not familiar with the enemy's situation, it occupied Gaoqiao and Gaoqiao on November 27. Tashan, but failed. Then we divided our troops into three groups to pursue northwest Jinzhou, and arrived near Damao Fort on the 30th. When we learned that an enemy division was located 30 miles north of Jinzhou, we decided to attack the enemy in three directions. Attack on the second day.However, because some troops did not receive this telegram, the strength of the troops was not as expected. There were only less than 4 regiments. Considering that there would be enemy reinforcements in Jinzhou, they separated from the enemy..."
Although it did not reach the initial level, Du Yuming was so frightened that he broke into cold sweat and stayed in Jinzhou for more than 20 days without dare to come out.
At this time, Lin Biao's radio station was still not connected to the troops. He asked the Military Commission to convey the message and went to Jiangjiatun, Jinxi with his staff. Huang Kecheng reunited. Since Huang Kecheng could not get in touch with the Northeast Bureau, he decided to fight the Kuomintang according to the original plan. When he led the scouts to the front line to survey the terrain, he unexpectedly ran into Li Tianyou sent by Lin Biao to contact him.
Soon after. Huang Kecheng stated his suggestion on establishing a base area to Lin Biao in person. Lin Biao immediately accepted it and ordered Huang Kecheng to move his troops to the vicinity of Yi County to mobilize the masses. Then the Kuomintang launched an attack on Yi County, and Lin Biao and Huang Kecheng's troops had to withdraw to Fuxin. .
On November 24, the superiors sent a notice: "The Kuomintang may send troops to attack Shenyang. Our army is preparing to start street battles with the enemy in Shenyang City to defend Shenyang in the spirit of defending Madrid . " At that time, each cadre was issued a rifle, pistol and hand grenade . They wanted to unite the front with the soldiers and fight the enemy.
On November 25, Lin Biao twice suggested that the Northeast Bureau and the Autonomous Army headquarters be moved to Hailong. After most of the troops left the city, they established base areas around Yanji and Linjiang . The situation became increasingly tense, but many leaders of the Northeast Bureau still missed the big cities.
Lin Biao was very angry when he saw this. Said: "Whoever wants to occupy Shenyang will occupy it. Anyway, I don't want it. I want to evacuate with my troops!" " Immediately afterwards, Lin Biao commanded the troops to withdraw from Suizhong, Xingcheng and Jinxi.
At first, Lin Biao wanted to fight a large-scale annihilation battle in the Jinxi mountainous area, but at this time the decisive battle in Jinxi was meaningless. Lin Biao gave up and moved to Shenyang. The first phase of the battle plan centered on the decisive battle, and then adopted Huang Kecheng's suggestion to voluntarily abandon Jinzhou and withdraw to the front line of Yixian to carry out mass work. On November 26, the Kuomintang army occupied Jinzhou and Yixian. The situation in the Northeast no longer exists, and the troops have also suffered heavy losses...
With this series of losses, the situation of our army is getting worse and worse, and Northeast Army also gradually spread "Mr. Lin is no longer here" "Will fight" words. Faced with these rumors, it is impossible to say that Lin Biao had no knowledge, but he, who never liked to talk, did not defend himself or get angry, but treated it calmly.
Lin Biao reflected on Waiting for a suitable opportunity, waiting for an opportunity to prove himself to the Central Committee, Chairman Mao and the soldiers, an opportunity to stabilize the Northeast Army. What everyone did not expect was that this opportunity came so quickly. He proved his strength to everyone in one battle and convinced everyone.
formulated two combat plans
On December 16, 1945, the CCP delegation headed by Zhou Enlai arrived in Chongqing to attend the CPPCC meeting in January of the following year. The two parties reached an Armistice Agreement, and at the same time, the two parties issued an armistice order in accordance with the agreement, stipulating that starting from January 13, both parties would cease all combat operations.
However, what was unexpected was that shortly after the Armistice Agreement was reached, the Kuomintang betrayed its promise. In February 1946, Kuomintang agents successively caused a series of "anti-communist" incidents in Chongqing, Peiping and other cities.
The armistice should have included the Northeast region, but the Kuomintang believed that it would not be possible until the takeover of Northeastern sovereignty was completed. There are no internal affairs issues at all. Therefore, the Kuomintang does not recognize the legal status of the Communist Party and our army in the Northeast, and refuses to negotiate with our party on issues in the Northeast.
The Kuomintang strengthens the deployment of additional troops to the Northeast to seize strategic points in order to occupy them by force. The purpose of the Northeast. On January 13, 1946, the Northeast People's Autonomous Army launched a counterattack and regained Yingkou City . After the armistice order was issued, the Kuomintang government successively transferred the newly formed First Army, Sixth Army, 71st Army, 94th Army's 5th Division, and 60th Army to the Northeast.
In early February 1946, Du Yuming used six divisions to attack Shenyang in three directions along the Beining Railway . Among them, the 89th Division of the 13th Army successively occupied Guangyuquan in Faku County and Xiushui Hezi in the southwest of the county.
At the beginning The Northeastern Democratic Coalition abided by the "Armistice Agreement" and not only did not open fire on the Kuomintang, but instead persuaded them to retreat with good words. However, the Kuomintang not only did not retreat, but also frequently invaded Faku County, where the headquarters of the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army is located.
In view of the arrogance of the Kuomintang army, Lin Biao and others believed that they must find suitable opportunities to attack the enemy and change the passive situation in military strategy. According to reconnaissance intelligence, Lin Biao believed that it would be most beneficial to annihilate the 89th Division of the 13th Army of the North Road Kuomintang Army.
First of all, the division's troops are not very large and are concentrated in one place; secondly, the division is far away from the enemy's main force, and it would take a day's journey to come over for support; finally, after resting and replenishing, the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army's morale has improved A huge increase, giving them an advantage in numbers.
If we can win this time, it will not only deter the enemy from invading for a certain period of time, but also politically encourage the Northeastern Democratic Alliance Army and the Northeastern people. Based on all the above, Lin Biao decided to concentrate his forces and annihilate the 89th Division of the 13th Kuomintang Army in Xiushuihezi and Wuhuanchi.
The headquarters of the Northeast Democratic Alliance formulated two combat plans:
html On February 11, a battalion of the 266th Regiment of the 89th Division of the 13th Army of the Kuomintang came to Tuanzi Mountain, 10 kilometers northeast of Xiushuihezi. After being attacked by our army, they quickly withdrew to Xiushuihezi. In view of the enemy's actions, Lin Biao decided to implement the second plan.First, if the Kuomintang continues to invade eastward from Xiushuihezi, then it will lure them to the Shuangtaizi area in the southwest of Faku County and use a small number of troops to contain the enemy head-on. Then use the main force to attack the enemy's flanks and rear from both wings and annihilate them;
Second, if the Kuomintang stops attacking at Xiushui River, then our army will take the initiative to attack and annihilate it.
Xiushuihezi is a village with 100 households. The place is not dangerous. The terrain in the northwest is undulating, with Beishan and Xishan being the commanding heights of Xiushuihezi. The Kuomintang Army’s 13th Army, 89th Division, 266th Regiment and other units built bunkers on the edge of the town, and dug holes in every corner.
The Kuomintang troops heading to the Northeast have first-class equipment, rich combat experience, and are all elite divisions. Since the Shanhaiguan battle, the Kuomintang army's momentum has increased significantly, and they have basically encountered no obstacles as they marched eastward, so they did not take the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army seriously.
The Northeast Democratic Alliance Army suffered successive defeats because the soldiers were unfamiliar with the terrain and were too tired. However, since the central government decided to establish a consolidated Northeastern base policy, the soldiers gradually recovered from fatigue.
According to Liang Biye, political commissar of the First Division of the Shandong Military Region of the Eighth Route Army, recalled: "When the news of the attack on Xiushuihezi was conveyed to the troops, the emotions of the soldiers rose instantly. Letters of challenge, letters of challenge, and tactics among the companies Letters of determination were sent to the company headquarters, battalion headquarters, etc...."
In fact, when the division first arrived here, the people here were not very welcoming to our party comrades. It turns out that the people here have been oppressed by the Japanese army and beguiled by the Kuomintang for a long time. They think that our army and our party are not good.
In this case, the troops strictly abide by mass discipline, conduct propaganda to the masses, and help the masses work. If the masses don't like the troops entering the courtyard, the soldiers will wait outside the door; if the masses don't like the troops entering the house, the soldiers will rest in the courtyard; if the masses don't like the troops going to the kang, the soldiers will lay on the floor to rest.
Slowly, the attitude of the masses towards our army changed, and when the soldiers saw this, they also aroused the courage to destroy the enemy.
Lin Biao only needed one battle to prove his strength to everyone.
On February 13, 1946, the Kuomintang built bunkers and fortifications in Xiushuihezi Village to strengthen defense.At dusk that day, the 1st Division, 7th Brigade and regiments of the Northeastern Democratic Alliance Army successively set off from their bases and approached the Kuomintang positions.
At 6 pm, the 1st Division, 1st Regiment and 2nd Regiment quickly occupied the Wulishanzi position, and then came to the northwest highlands and northern heights of Xiushuihezi, occupying the starting position of the general offensive. After each regiment entered the position, they immediately began to reconnoiter the terrain, organize firepower, and make intense preparations for the attack.
At 10 o'clock in the evening, the Northeast Democratic Coalition officially launched an onslaught. The First Division, Regiment and Battalion attacked the positions of the 2nd Battalion and the Company of the 266th Regiment of the Kuomintang from the northwest four times in a row, but unfortunately they failed.
At this moment, the 1st Division, 2nd Regiment, 3rd Battalion and 7th Company quickly joined the battle, advanced heroically at great speed, and attacked Beishan in one fell swoop, capturing more than 30 enemy soldiers. After being reorganized, the 8th Company of the 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Regiment rushed towards the enemy's northward position. Since Beishan is the commanding heights related to the safety of the Kuomintang army, the Kuomintang launched a counterattack against the 7th and 8th companies of our army with one battalion.
html After tenacious resistance, the soldiers of the 17th and 8th companies were able to repel the Kuomintang army, defended the Beishan position, and attracted the main force and firepower of the Kuomintang army to the north. However, there is a disadvantage of staying here, that is, it is difficult to move forward and can only form a confrontation with the enemy.
22:20, when the enemy and we were fighting fiercely, the 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 19th Regiment of the 7th Brigade of the Northeastern Democratic Alliance suddenly launched a fierce attack on the enemy from the south with powerful firepower, and occupied the small village on the south side of Xiushui River in one fell swoop. . Then the attack continued to the north, but due to the stubborn resistance of the enemy, the attack speed was relatively slow.
2:30, the 1st Division, 2nd Regiment, 1st Battalion, 3rd Company and 3rd Platoon launched an attack on the enemy, which also opened a breakthrough for the enemy. The soldiers first entered the village, and the main force of the 1st Battalion immediately went into the battle. Then the 2nd Battalion of the 2nd Regiment of the 1st Division broke through the enemy position from the right wing of the 1st Battalion, and attacked from east to west with the 1st Battalion.
At 12 o'clock in the evening, after fierce peripheral battles, the 1st and 3rd Battalions of the 19th Regiment of the 7th Brigade broke through the enemy's defenses from the south and southwest of Xiushuihezi Village respectively, and then advanced side by side to the 1st and 3rd Battalions to attack the enemy. .
Just as the Xiushuihezi battle was in full swing, the 6th Regiment of the 2nd Division of the 52nd Army of the Kuomintang, which came to support, had entered the vicinity of Taipingzhuang south of Xiushuihezi. Soldiers from the 12th Regiment of the 7th Brigade of the Democratic Alliance Army who were tasked with blocking the reinforcements quickly marched towards Taipingzhuang. After a fierce battle, our army annihilated hundreds of Kuomintang troops, and the reinforced enemy troops were forced to retreat near Taipingzhuang.
Despite this, the reinforcing enemy troops still refused to give up. They used various guns and artillery to blindly fire in the direction of Xiushuihezi, and fired flares continuously, just to let the enemy troops in Xiushuihezi know that they were coming for reinforcements.
html At 2 o'clock in the morning on February 14, the enemy troops in Xiushui River saw that there was hope for rescue, so they tried their best to use the built fortifications, houses, etc. to resist desperately, and made many counterattacks. The battle also developed to the most intense stage.At 4 o'clock in the morning, the 1st Division of the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army and the 1st Division of the 7th Brigade besieged the Kuomintang regiment headquarters and finally annihilated it after a fierce battle. After the Kuomintang army command organization was annihilated by our army, the remaining enemy troops were like headless flies, not knowing what to do. Some enemy troops fled in a hurry, while others huddled in the northwest corner of the back street, relying on the courtyard wall to wait for rescue.
At the same time, the 1st Division, 1st Regiment and 1st Battalion of the Democratic Alliance Army broke into Xiushuihezi Village from the northwest corner of the village and divided the remaining enemy forces. After the final fierce attack before dawn, most of the enemy troops surrendered. The remaining troops broke out to the west, but they were all intercepted by our army.
At 6:30 in the morning on February 14, the reinforcing Kuomintang army was annihilated by our army, and the battle came to an end.
After the battle, the Northeast Democratic Coalition killed and wounded more than 500 enemy soldiers, captured more than 900 people, and seized many guns and ammunition, as well as 22 cars, a radio station, 5 telescopes, etc.
The Xiushuihezi Annihilation War was the first major victory fought by our army after entering the Northeast. It was once called the "first spring of the Northeast Liberation War" and also played a very important role in the history of my country's Liberation War.
The victory of this battle completely broke the myth that the Kuomintang army equipped with beautiful weapons was invincible. It also improved the status of our army and our party and kicked off the Northeast Liberation War. Du Yuming, the supreme commander of the Kuomintang in the Northeast, once said: "The Battle of Xiushuihezi was the beginning of the first entire regiment of our army to be wiped out in the Northeast."
It was also because of this battle that Lin Biao completely surrendered to the Central Committee, Chairman Mao, and The warriors proved their ability. The battle of Xiushuihezi commanded by Lin Biao also convinced everyone. From then on, they no longer dared to say "Mr. Lin does not know how to fight".
