One day in 1973, Li Desheng received an order and took a special plane from the capital Beijing to Nanjing. Xu Shiyou and Li Desheng were fellow villagers in Henan and formed a deep friendship during the war. Therefore, after getting tipsy, Xu Shiyou told Li Desheng the reason fo

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One day in 1973, Li Desheng received an order and took a special plane from the capital Beijing to Nanjing.

That night, Xu Shiyou hosted a banquet enthusiastically, and he and Li Desheng drank wine at the wine table, drinking one cup after another of Maotai.

Xu Shiyou and Li Desheng are fellow villagers in Henan. They formed a deep friendship during the war. Therefore, after getting tipsy, Xu Shiyou told Li Desheng the reason for his drinking.

Seeing this, Li Desheng quickly stated his purpose: "Do you know why the chairman sent me here?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Shiyou suddenly became interested: "The chairman asked you to come?"

Li Desheng explained Afterwards, Xu Shiyou finally put down his burden and no longer melancholy about the past.

So, why did Li Desheng go to Nanjing? What did the chairman tell him again?

From the head of the Boy Corps to the famous general of the

In 1973, Li Desheng was already the commander of the Anhui Provincial Military Region and director of the Provincial Revolutionary Committee. Chairman Mao sent him to Nanjing in person to meet with Xu Shiyou. There was no doubt that he had important matters to discuss.

In fact, Chairman Mao’s decision was based on comprehensive considerations of the life experiences of Xu Shiyou and Li Desheng.

In 1916, Li Desheng was born in Xinxian County, Henan Province, the same hometown as Xu Shiyou.

Li Desheng's childhood experience was very rough. He was born in a poor peasant family, which put him under tremendous pressure since he was a child. The oppression of landlords and the exploitation of the Kuomintang made the family's life even worse.

Fortunately, in 1928, the workers' and peasants' Red Army came to , a new county in , and liberated the local people. Li Desheng saw that the Red Army had strict military discipline and distributed all the land and property of the landlords to the people, and he respected the Red Army in his heart.

So, at the age of only 12, he volunteered to become the leader of the Boys' Regiment, responsible for guarding sentries and delivering letters to the Red Army. Because of his outstanding performance and his desire to make revolution with the army,

was admitted under special circumstances two years later and became a member of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army.

Li Desheng started as an ordinary soldier of the Fourth Red Army. During the Agrarian Revolution, he fought bravely and fearlessly. Every time the charge signal sounded, he took the lead and rushed to the front of the team.

He achieved outstanding military exploits in famous battles such as Huang'an Battle and Shanghuang Battle.

Therefore, he was deeply appreciated by his superiors and was continuously promoted.

From an unknown soldier, to a sole correspondent and messenger, to a heavy-duty squad leader and secretary of the party branch of the transportation team, Li Desheng's fame is growing, and his status in the military is getting higher and higher.

Li Desheng devoted everything to the revolution, especially during the period of establishing the Sichuan-Shaanxi Revolutionary Base Area, where he was injured many times.

In the bloody battle with the national army at Bamiaoya, he took the lead in fighting and eliminated a large number of enemies. However, he was unfortunately injured. A bullet penetrated his chest and damaged his nerves. From then on, he became unable to move his left hand and became permanently disabled.

However, because of Zhang Guotao's wrong line, Li Desheng was dismissed from the positions of squad leader and party branch secretary in 1935, and was demoted to an ordinary orderly soldier.

Fortunately, Li Desheng's superior was the later famous Chen Xilian. Seeing that Li Desheng had deep qualifications and great military exploits, he could not bear to bury his talent, so he often encouraged him and gave him the opportunity to go into battle to kill the enemy.

During the subsequent 25,000-mile Long March, Li Desheng followed the army, climbing snow-capped mountains and crossing grassland . In the most difficult situation, he never gave up his revolutionary ideals.

Because of this, after the all-out Anti-Japanese War began in 1937, Li Desheng was reused and served as a platoon leader in the 769th Regiment of the 285th Brigade of the 129th Division of the Eighth Route Army.

A famous anti-Japanese general who has repeatedly made military exploits

At this time, Xu Shiyou was already a famous figure in the Eighth Route Army, and was also known as the "Captain of the Big Sword Dare to Die". During the Agrarian Revolution, he fought in the north and south and made great achievements.

In 1936, he was implicated in the Zhang Guotao incident, but Chairman Mao saw that he was a rare talent and insisted on keeping him.

From then on, Xu Shiyou was extremely grateful to Chairman Mao and extremely enthusiastic about the revolution.

After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he took the initiative to take up the responsibility and went to the front line, serving as deputy brigade commander of the 386th Brigade of the 129th Division.

Although they were both in the 129th Division, Xu Shiyou had never heard of Li Desheng's name. After all, Li Desheng was just an ordinary platoon leader at this time.

But Li Desheng often heard about Xu Shiyou's deeds. He knew that Xu Shiyou was a fellow countryman of his and a Shaolin monk with extraordinary skills, so he admired him very much.

Of course, Li Desheng himself was also a military wizard, and he quickly rose to prominence in the Eighth Route Army.

In 1937, he led his team to attack Yangmingbao at night, destroying dozens of Japanese fighter planes. In 1940, he participated in the 100-regiment battle against Japan and destroyed the Japanese army's "mopping up" conspiracy.

In 1942, he was even ordered to lead more than a thousand people to fight against the 25,000 invading Japanese invaders.

Under his skillful command, the Eighth Route Army defeated the greater number with less, blocked the Japanese attack, and created favorable conditions for the headquarters and rear agencies to break through.

These battles are just the tip of the iceberg in Li Desheng's glorious resume. As he continues to win, his positions have been promoted repeatedly.

At the end of 1944, he was the commander of the 30th Regiment of the Second Military Division of the Taihang Military Region.

In January 1945, Li Desheng took the initiative to attack the Japanese stronghold of Mafang. In order to find out the enemy's deployment, he disguised himself as a farmer and sneaked into Mafang to inspect it himself.

After knowing himself and the enemy, Li Desheng took action immediately. He mobilized 82 soldiers, all of whom were elites in the Eighth Route Army.

Under the leadership of Li Desheng, they marched along the path and decisively launched an offensive before the Japanese army was aware of it.

took down this important stronghold in one fell swoop, annihilated hundreds of Japanese troops, and seized a large amount of weapons and equipment.

After this battle, Li Desheng became famous and was publicly praised by the "Liberation Daily".

"I didn't expect that Li Desheng had such a good temper."

However, due to different positions and different jobs, Li Desheng and Xu Shiyou never had the opportunity to meet.

In the subsequent Liberation War, Li Desheng worked in the Central Plains, while Xu Shiyou fought in East China, Shandong and other places, and the distance between the two became even further.

It was not until 1950, after the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea broke out, that fellow villagers Xu Shiyou and Li Desheng finally met each other.

On the Korean battlefield, Xu Shiyou was the commander of the 3rd Corps, and Li Desheng was the commander of the 35th Division of the 12th Army of the Volunteer Army.

In the summer counterattack, the two worked together to beat the United Nations army into panic.

In 1952, Li Desheng participated in the command of the Shangganling Battle of Shangganling, and unified the troops of the 12th Army and the 15th Army fighting on the front line of Shangganling.

But after learning that Li Desheng was in charge, Wang Jinshan, the acting commander of the Third Corps, also said "I can rest assured if Li Desheng goes up."

The battle situation was not what Wang Jinshan expected.

Li Desheng adhered to Chairman Mao's tactical thoughts of "active defense" and "zero knockoff" and engaged in a long-term confrontation with the enemy.

The intensity of the Battle of Shangganling can be compared with any battle during the Second World War. The artillery fire of the United Nations Army kept falling on the positions of the Chinese Volunteer Army.

But in such a difficult environment, Li Desheng led the volunteer soldiers to block hundreds of enemy offensives and successfully defended the Shangganling position.

After returning from the Korean War in 1954, Xu Shiyou often took the initiative to ask Li Desheng to drink and talk.

Xu Shiyou has a straightforward temperament and likes honest people most in his life, while Li Desheng is famous for his loyalty.

Coupled with the friendship from his hometown, Xu Shiyou valued him very much, and the relationship between the two became deeper and deeper. Xu Shiyou often said that Li Desheng was a rare confidant.

However, there was some friction between the two.

In 1960, the Central Military Commission decided to transfer the 12th Army from Zhejiang to northern Jiangsu to strengthen the defense of northern Jiangsu.

Due to the poor economy in northern Jiangsu at that time, the Military Commission stipulated that planks, camping equipment and food could be carried.

After receiving the order, Li Desheng immediately took action to pack the materials and put them on the train.

However, this move was reported to the military region by someone who was interested. When Xu Shiyou heard that Li Desheng was "plundering local food", he became furious.

He was rushed to Nanjing with a phone call, and he was scolded severely. When he got angry, he even scolded him: "What's so great about you, Li Desheng?"

However, Li Desheng didn't take it to heart. He listened quietly to Xu Shiyou's lecture, and after his anger subsided, he explained the situation clearly.

After figuring out the whole story, General Xu Shiyou apologized repeatedly and asked Li Desheng for forgiveness.

Every time this matter was mentioned in the future, Xu Shiyou said sincerely: "I never expected that Li Desheng has such a good temper."

Since then, the two have a better understanding of each other and their relationship has become more harmonious.

Not only that, after learning about the situation in northern Jiangsu, they worked together and worked together to promote the development of northern Jiangsu and let the local people live a happier life.

Li Desheng met Chairman Mao for the first time

From October 13 to 31, 1968, the 12th Plenary Session of the 8th enlarged 12th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was held in Beijing. Li Desheng attended the meeting as the main person in charge of Anhui Province.

met Chairman Mao, whom he had admired for a long time, for the first time at this meeting.

When General Zhou came to Li Desheng's name, Chairman Mao suddenly asked, "Who is Li Desheng?"

It turned out that Chairman Mao had used the pseudonym "Li Desheng" when he went to Yan'an , and at this time he suddenly heard Li Desheng's name. I felt very cordial and asked Premier Zhou about his name.

Premier Zhou immediately introduced Chairman Mao.

Later, Li Desheng solemnly said hello to Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou, while Chairman Mao kept looking at him: "Hearing a hundred times is better than seeing it once, and it is indeed well-deserved."

Then, Chairman Mao asked again, "Where are you from?"

"Report to the Chairman, I am from Xin County, Henan Province" , Li Desheng replied without hesitation.

Premier Zhou asked, "We are from the same county as Xu Shiyou, right?"

"Comrade Desheng and I are from the same county." Xu Shiyou, who was sitting in front of Li Desheng, answered.

Upon hearing Xu Shiyou's statement, Chairman Mao immediately realized that the two had a good relationship. Seeing that his two favorite generals were both fellow countrymen and close friends, he couldn't help but smile knowingly.

In April 1969, the Ninth National Congress of the Communist Party of China was held in Beijing.

It was also at this conference that Li Desheng was elected as a member of the Central Committee and an alternate member of the Political Bureau at the First Plenary Session of the Ninth Central Committee.

When General Zhou came to Li Desheng's name, Chairman Mao once again proposed to look at Li Desheng.

It can be seen that Li Desheng has left a deep impression on Chairman Mao.

In the following years, Li Desheng assisted Premier Zhou in completing a large number of important tasks, such as the construction of the Gezhouba Water Conservancy Project, preparations for table tennis diplomacy, etc.

Due to his outstanding performance, he was deeply trusted by Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou. In 1970, he was promoted to the director of the Political Department of the People's Liberation Army. In 1971, he also served as the commander of the Beijing Military Region.

received the order and rushed to Nanjing

Logically speaking, one of Li Desheng and Xu Shiyou was in Beijing and the other was in Nanjing. They were very busy with work and had almost no chance to meet.

However, on May 5, 1973, Chairman Mao suddenly found Li Desheng and assigned him a special task.

"Desheng, go to Nanjing, meet with Xu Shiyou, and ask him to stop drinking. Drinking will harm your liver."

Li Desheng said nothing, just nodded and accepted the order.

In fact, Li Desheng knew Chairman Mao's intentions very well.

A year ago, Xu Shiyou went to Beijing for a meeting. He was criticized for improper wording of a letter and fell seriously ill. After returning to Nanjing, he drank every day.

Chairman Mao asked him to go, naturally to enlighten Xu Shiyou.

So, Li Desheng boarded the plane to Nanjing early the next morning.

Xu Shiyou was very happy to see Li Desheng coming. He patted Li Desheng cordially on the shoulder and said, "Let's go, let's eat, eat."

That night, Xu Shiyou hosted a banquet on the second floor of the guest house. As soon as he entered the banquet hall, he was greeted by What I saw were two bottles of Maotai.

Xu Shiyou loves to drink. Li Desheng has long heard that during the Agrarian Revolution, drinking was prohibited in the military, but Xu Shiyou was an exception.

Chairman Mao gave Xu Shiyou special permission to drink, but he repeatedly told Xu Shiyou to drink less. He also made a three-part agreement with him that he should not drink before, during and after the war.

Li Desheng also knew that Xu Shiyou was a generous person and liked people who drank happily, so he did not refuse. He drank it all as soon as it was served, and turned the cup over after drinking to show that not a drop was left.

Taking advantage of the drunkenness, Xu Shiyou told what happened before, and Li Desheng also took the opportunity to say that his trip was arranged by Chairman Mao.

Upon hearing this, Xu Shiyou was a little surprised at first: "Chairman Mao asked you to come over. What's the matter?"

Li Desheng said, "The chairman is worried that you drink too much and hurt your health. Let me persuade you." .

Only then did Xu Shiyou understand that Chairman Mao had always cared about him. Thinking of this, the eyes of General Xu Shiyou, who had always been carefree, turned red.

When Li Desheng saw this, he quickly asked "What happened?" Xu Shiyou just said lightly: "It's okay, it's okay, I'm drunk."

Conclusion

Seeing that Xu Shiyou's heart had opened up, Li Desheng did not stay long and returned to Beijing early the next morning to return his life to Chairman Mao.

Chairman Mao also smiled with joy when he heard that Xu Shiyou no longer drank alcohol.

At the end of that year, Chairman Mao made arrangements for the exchange of commanders of the eight military regions. Xu Shiyou went to the Guangzhou Military Region , while Li Desheng came to the Shenyang Military Region.

The days are long and the journey is long, and the two people meet increasingly rarely. However, the two generals who have experienced hundreds of battles, one in the south and one in the north, shoulder the heavy responsibility of guarding the territory of the motherland, and they have lived up to Chairman Mao's high expectations.