Introduction
On April 5, 1970, the founding general Su Yu set out from Beijing and headed to Hexi Corridor in Gansu, headed west to Yumen Pass, passed Jiayu Pass, and then turned from Jiuquan to Ejina Banner and Juyanhai on the Sino-Mongolia border for on-site inspection.
During the more than 50 days of inspection, Su Yu focused on investigating the combat readiness of the front line of border defense, and factories, enterprises and his inspection were also the targets.
On May 23, Su Yu returned to Beijing after finishing his inspection work. He immediately reported to Premier Zhou : "Prime Minister, I decided to resign from all positions. Please approve it."
Premier Zhou was a little confused, so he was stunned and asked Su Yu to go back first. He asked comrades such as Pi Dingjun in detail about Su Yu's inspection route, and finally figured out why Su Yu resigned.
Premier Zhou, who has always been cautious, immediately found Su Yu: I understand what you mean, and I agree with your point of view...
Why did General Su Yu go to Inner Mongolia for a survey and voluntarily resign when he returned to Beijing? Premier Zhou said that "agrees with his point of view" What happened to ?
Picture | General Su Yu inspected the army
1. Su Yu, who committed the mistake of "military dogmatism", was born on August 10, 1907 in Huitong, Hunan. His original name was Su Duozhen, and he used to be Su Zhiyu, the Dong ethnic group.
1927, Su Yu officially joined the Communist Party of China, and later participated in the Nanchang Uprising. He joined the Central Red Army in the Jinggangshan Revolutionary Base Area and participated in previous anti-"consensus" and five anti-"encirclement and suppression" battles.
During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Su Yu, who was deeply trusted by Chairman Mao, stayed in South to organize guerrilla warfare ; during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Su Yu served as deputy commander of the Second Detachment of the New Fourth Army, deputy commander of the Jiangnan Command and the Northern Su Command. In 1941, he served as commander of the th Division of the New Fourth Army First Division.
During this period, Su Yu went to southern Zhejiang , southern Jiangsu , southern Jiangsu , Shanghai and other places. The establishment of Suzhong anti-Japanese base has enabled New Fourth Army to gain a firm foothold in the area north of Yangtze River .
During the Liberation War, Su Yu served as the commander of Central China Field Army, the deputy commander of East China Field Army, and the acting commander and acting political commissar of Gaoyou Battle, Suzhong Battle, , Menglianggu Battle, , the Jinan Battle, Huaihai Battle, Shanghai Battle, .
The Central China Military Region and the Central China Field Army formed by Su Yu relied on the Central Soviet Liberated Area to fight seven consecutive times. This is the famous "Seven Victories in the Central Soviet Union". It provides practical experience for the operations in the early stage of the Liberation War and makes great contributions to the New China.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Su Yu served as Chief of Staff of the People's Liberation Army of China and a member of the Standing Committee of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China. On September 27, 1955, Su Yu was awarded the rank of general and was awarded the first-class August 1 Medal of , the first-class Independence and Freedom Medal of and the first-class Liberation Medal.
At the first award ceremony of New China, Chairman Mao originally intended to grant Su Yu the marshal, but was rejected by Su Yu.
Su Yu believes this: the title of marshal is mainly based on qualifications, prestige and military achievements. itself has a lower qualification compared to the seniors such as Chen Yi , Xu Xiangqian, Nie Rongzhen, and Luo Ronghuan.
Moreover, Su Yu was quite indifferent to military rank titles. He once said to the staff: "It is enough to be named General. What kind of marshal do you want? I just think it is high or not low."
Chairman Mao understood Su Yu's meaning and believed that he still needs to be the leader of the top ten generals.
After the founding of New China, the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea broke out immediately. The Party Central Committee and the state leaders originally hoped that Lin Biao and Su Yu would one of them serve as the commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army.
helpless, Lin Biao and Su Yu were both sick. Especially General Su Yu, he was injured six times in his life and twice in his head. During the Wuping battle, the bullet passed through the temporal bone of the upper right ear on his head, and his arm was injured twice. Su Yu in his later years suffered from illness.
pic | Su Yu during the Eighth Route Army
In February 1984, after Su Yu's death, his family found three shrapnel from the ashes of his cremated skull.
In 2003, the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences prepared to establish the History Museum, and Su Yu’s wife Chu Qing disclosed these three shrapnel pieces that had been treasured for 20 years.
In short, General Su Yu’s legendary story is really endless for three days and three nights. However, in 1958, Su Yu made the mistake of "military dogmatism". It was May 26, 1958, and the enlarged meeting of the Central Military Commission was held in Beijing. Su Yu, then chief of staff of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army of China, went to Jurentang, Zhongnanhai to attend the meeting as usual.
Unexpectedly, the meeting concentrated on criticizing Su Yu, saying that he had made serious "military dogmatist mistakes". Su Yu was forced to write a letter of review, step down as Chief of General Staff, and transferred to Deputy Minister of the Ministry of National Defense and Vice President of the Academy of Military Sciences.
From then on, Su Yu left the front line. The old general was worried about this matter all his life. He led the troops to fight for decades, and his entire blood and thoughts were integrated with the military camp. After retiring to the second line, General Su Yu was a little depressed.
As for what is the "military dogmatism" error? It mainly originated in the early 1950s. Against the backdrop of "full Suhua", the PLA's military training and education work showed some tendencies of " dogmatism ".
To put it bluntly, it means that it relies too much on Soviet advisers, copying the Soviet military model, and copying it into daily work and study.
1956, Marshal Liu Bocheng wrote a letter to the Party Committee of the Academy in response to this phenomenon, believing that the People's Liberation Army should focus on learning modern war theory and combine it with the specific reality of our army.
Marshal Liu Bocheng's proposal sparked heated discussions within the army. Some comrades believed that: The experience of the Soviet army is advanced, and we should study it seriously. If we don't learn, how can we know what we should criticize?
After the actual investigation and research of Marshal Peng Dehuai, who was in charge of Military Commission at that time, he believed that the PLA troops were somewhat unrealistic according to the intentions of the Soviet army consultants. If is completely copied from the Soviet army's defense system, it will not conform to China's national conditions at all and will suffer losses in the future.
Against this background, the central government called for "opposing dogmatism". At the enlarged meeting of the Military Commission in 1958, a group of generals including Liu Bocheng, Ye Jianying, Su Yu, Xiao Ke, etc. who presided over the training of the People's Liberation Army and the work of military academies were wrongly criticized.
, especially Chief of General Staff Su Yu, who was criticized by some people without any warning. General Su Yu was hard to argue with a hundred words, and some even accused him of being "ambitious and value fame and fortune." The final result of
is that Marshal Liu Bocheng was removed from his leadership position, and a group of founding generals such as Su Yu, Xiao Ke, Li Da were dealt with by the organization.
Until the late 1960s, the "Zhenbao Island Incident" broke out between China and the Soviet Union. Premier Zhou Enlai followed Chairman Mao’s instructions and established the “National Defense Industry Military Control Team” in the State Council.
Premier Zhou took this opportunity to find Su Yu, who was then the vice president of the Academy of Military Sciences, and asked him to serve as the leader of the military control team.
Picture | In the war years, Su Yu and Premier Zhou took a photo with him
Premier Zhou thought so: Since it is a military management team, then you cannot lead an outsider. After more than ten years of second-line work, Su Yu must have a further understanding of the training and international relations of the People's Liberation Army at that time.
plus Su Yu had accumulated rich experience in fighting the enemy during the war, so it was perfect for him to be the leader of this team.
From the perspective of an old comrade-in-arms, Premier Zhou hopes that Su Yu’s ability can be used practically.
2. Inspecting the border defenses of Northwest and North China, Su Yu discovered a serious problem.
When the notice was officially issued to General Su Yu, he was overjoyed and immediately served as the leader of the military control team.
After a year of intense work, Su Yu managed the national defense industry at that time in an orderly manner, and his work achievements were obvious to all.
General Su Yu also visited the front-line troops for inspection for a long time. Seeing these lively People's Liberation Army soldiers, the veteran general was so happy that he seemed to have returned to the war era with the rumbling sound of cannons.
However, the task of the national defense industry is important. After a year of governance, by the beginning of 1970, production of important national defense industrial bases across the country resumed.
In other words, General Su Yu's work has come to an end, and he doesn't need to run around. Although he was a little reluctant, Su Yu handed over work with his later comrades and prepared to continue working in the Military Hospital.
How could Premier Zhou easily let Su Yu serve as vice president again? He hurriedly asked Su Yu to stay in the State Council, so that the situations that occurred in the future would be easier to communicate in a timely manner.
Faced with Premier Zhou's retention, Su Yu was a little embarrassed: "I have fought all my life and stayed in the State Council. Some majors are not right, and I can't do local work at all."
Premier Zhou said with a smile: "That's such a smart person who beat Chiang Kai-shek up and can't do local work. Can't you learn?"
Finally, Su Yu agreed to Premier Zhou's invitation and continued to work at the State Council.
Considering the tense situation between China and the Soviet Union, Su Yu made a request to Premier Zhou : "Please report to Chairman Mao on my behalf. If a war starts in the future, send me to the front line."
Premier Zhou nodded with a serious face.
In fact, Premier Zhou left General Su Yu to work in the State Council only for the reason, and the purpose was to protect him.
The early 1970s was a relatively complex and changeable political environment. Su Yu stayed in the State Council and Premier Zhou protected this old comrade-in-arms to the best of his ability.
So, Premier Zhou gave full play to Director Su Yu's strengths and asked him to go to the northwest and North China areas. On the one hand, he could go deep into the local area and understand the living conditions of the masses; on the other hand, he could also understand the actual combat readiness of the border defense forces .
Su Yu understood Premier Zhou's painstaking efforts. He formulated his travel route in detail. Starting from Beijing, he first went to the Hexi Corridor, and then went west to the Juyanhai area of , the Sino-Mongolia border . The reason why
planned such a route was mainly based on the tense relationship between the two major powers of China and the Soviet Union at that time. The Soviet side has deployed millions of troops on the border, and our country has made plans for the worst.
In late April 1970, General Su Yu arrived in the area of Xining Datong in Qinghai, and set out from here to Yinchuan and Shizuishan . In mid-May 1970, General Su Yu began to inspect the Jilantai Salt Lake and the Alaxan Left Banner areas in Inner Mongolia.
then returned east to Yinchuan and Baotou, and arrived in Hohhot along the China-Mongolia border. On May 23, 1970, he went from Zhangbei to Zhangjiakou and returned to Beijing.
: General Su Yu set out in early April and did not return to Beijing until late May. The inspection lasted for more than 50 days, nearly two months.
General Su Yu focused on inspecting the border defense forces. He found that the combat readiness of the border defense forces in the northwest and north China was generally good and there were no major problems.
Each grassroots company attaches great importance to political heights, and all the commanders and fighters strive to be the first, and the ideological education of combat readiness made General Su Yu very satisfied.
Of course, as the frontline general who actually led the troops to fight, Su Yu focused on the actual combat readiness of the border defense forces.
Picture | Su Yu went deep into the grassroots troops to understand the situation
Border defense commanders and fighters told General Su Yu that they mainly carried out " three-fight three-defense " training. "Three fights" means fighting tanks and , fighting enemy planes and paratroopers; "Three defenses" means protecting nuclear weapons and , chemical weapons and biological weapons.
"Three Fights and Three Defenses" training purpose is to achieve the "four meetings": being able to walk, fighting, doing mass work, and being able to live.
The grassroots border defense forces not only conduct key drills in normal military combat readiness, but also actively go deep into the masses and carry out propaganda work behind enemy lines in a timely manner.
General Su Yu was very satisfied after listening to the report of the commanders and fighters. He seriously asked about the lives of the grassroots soldiers. When holding a symposium, he emphasized the importance of the preparations for the border defense forces and asked everyone not to relax - is not afraid of hardship in peacetime and less bloodshed during wartime.
Apart from inspecting the army, General Su Yu did not forget Premier Zhou's instructions. He inspected the establishment of national defense fortifications and the "People's Commune" in cities such as Lanzhou, Xining, and Baotou.
Because General Su Yu has no airs and is light and simple when traveling, and even often communicates with ordinary people, everyone says : I have never seen such a big leader to inspect in such a remote area as ours.
It seems that General Su Yu's northern inspection this time should be very satisfactory. However, after General Su Yu returned to Beijing, he immediately found Premier Zhou Enlai and said that he had resigned from all positions. Not only will he not work in the State Council, he will also resign from his position as vice president of the Academy of Military Sciences and retreat to the second line with peace of mind.
This made Premier Zhou very strange. He found Pi Dingjun, commander of Lanzhou Military Region, and asked Su Yu about the route of the inspection this time and other specific situations.
Through Pi Dingjun's retelling, Premier Zhou understood why General Su Yu suddenly wanted to resign after returning to Beijing.
In fact, this is related to the "people are piled up" advocated by Lin Biao.
4. The "Architecture" project made General Su Yu worried
"Man-Crossing Mountains", also known as the "Architecture" project, in the early 1960s, Considering that the Soviet Union might invade China through Outer Mongolia , in order to prevent the enemy from entering, Lin Biao, as Vice President and Minister of National Defense, proposed to build an "Architecture" defense project in the vast and deserted north.
The plan aims to build an "artificial oroe" every 40 to 50 kilometers on the plains of North China, Northeast China, Northwest China and other plains, as well as on Suiyuan Xinjiang Avenue.
Lin Biao thought so: After 1958, China and the Soviet Union had serious differences, and the Soviet Union withdrew all experts to aid China, and their relations with the United States were eased. In time, the Soviet army might have advanced straight in and launched an attack on Beijing through North China Plain .
Since there is no danger to defend in North China, the Soviet army can reach the city of Beijing within a day and night with its powerful mechanized troops.
has no strategic depth, and Beijing, including Tianjin, Zhangjiakou and Badaling areas are almost flat.
is equivalent to the cavalry of the northern nomadic tribes during the feudal period, and can lead the troops south to invade the Central Plains regime in a short period of time.
Once the Soviet tank troops stationed in Siberia and Outer Mongolia break through Zhangjiakou, Beijing will fall within a few hours.
In view of this, Lin Biao proposed a project plan related to "artificial orogenic", focusing on solving the defense problems in North China, North Jiangsu and Northwest Plains.
Picture | No. 1 "Architecture" in Juyanhai area
In early 1965, the central government decided to establish five "Architecture Groups" to pilot it in Tianjin and northern Jiangsu.
"Architecture" project is mainly provided to the People's Liberation Army's long-range artillery troops. The two mountains cannot be too close, and each mountain must radiate an area of 40 to 50 kilometers.
Mountains should also connect the passages that reach each other, rely on ground defense fortifications to achieve the strategic goal of attacking and retreating and defending.
"Architecture" defense plan is similar to the underground fortress built by the Japanese army during the War of Resistance Against Japan; or the tunnel fortifications built by the Chinese People's Volunteer Army during the War of Resistance Against Japan and the War of Resistance Against the United States and Aid Korea.
In May 1967, Engineering Corps held a "Architecture" engineering meeting in Beijing and formulated the "Architecture" engineering tactics for North China and Northern Jiangsu Plain .
technical requirements plan to build a "artificial orogenic" defense project that meets the use of 300 infantry divisions across the country, and was approved by Chairman Mao and Lin Biao.
Lin Biao issued a dead order to the engineer. In his imagination, the shape of the "artificial oroe" is a single rhombus or an ellipse, and the height cannot be less than 20 meters; the front is 250~400 meters wide, and the depth must be more than 120 meters. The total length of the underground tunnel is about 600~1 kilometers, and 6 to 10 exits are reserved.
underground fortifications can withstand at least 250 kilograms of aviation bombs. The interior requires natural ventilation, power and water supply, allowing 300 to 500 PLA soldiers to live underground for at least one month.
With the outbreak of the "Zhenbao Island Incident" in 1969, the Central Military Commission accelerated the construction time of the "Architecture" project.
In November 1969, the first "artificial orogenic" project was built on the only way from Hohhot to Baotou to Urumqi, which is now the coastal area.
Juyanhai has been a must-fight place for military strategists since ancient times. In the early days of the Western Han Dynasty, the famous general Huo Qubing captured the Hexi Corridor and defeated Xiongnu , and took this path.
resident Hainan is located next to Heihe . To the north is a Gobi Desert, and to the east is a vast plain with lush water and grass along both sides of the river. The reason why the superiors built the first "artificial oroe" here was to see the effect after the construction of the project. After several years of construction, the first "artificial orogenic" project was finally over. Lin Biao was about to go and see it himself. After hesitating, he decided to send his secretary Zhang Yunsheng and Li Wenpu to take a look and make a detailed report when he comes back. After
arrived at the site, Zhang Yunsheng and Li Wenpu discovered that the so-called "artificial orogenic" project was actually a small landbag, which did not look like a real mountain from the outside. The commander of the
engineering corps explained: The "artificial orogenic" project is quite difficult. A battalion of troops was used and it took several years to barely complete the construction.
Just using steel and cement, including stone and earth transported from a distance, is enough to build a large factory.
As for the specific construction funds, there is no clear statement. According to General Pi Dingjun's recollection, : An "artificial orogenic" project will cost at least 50 million yuan!
Considering that the "artificial orogenic" project was in the late 1960s, RMB 50 million was an astronomical figure.
During this inspection, Zhang Yunsheng and Li Wenpu discovered many design flaws in the "Architecture" project.
Picture | Su Yu shook hands with Chairman Mao
For example, the "artificial orogenic" project is built on plains, and there are almost no dangers around it. Even if the PLA builds up "artificial orogenic", the enemy will not attack forward foolishly. As long as one or two divisions are placed around from a distance, the underground People's Liberation Army will surrender without fighting.
or the enemy simply attacks with fire, and the "artificial orodo" defense project is equivalent to self-destruction without attack.
After hearing the report of Zhang Yunsheng and Li Wenpu, Lin Biao fell into deep thought.
As time goes by, no large-scale war broke out between the two major powers of China and the Soviet Union. When Lin Biao crashed in September 1971, the "artificial orogenic" project was quickly abandoned.
Therefore, when General Su Yu inspected the North China and Northwest border areas in 1970, he saw the "artificial orogenic" project and believed that the "artificial orogenic" project basically had no effect.
For this project in the desert, Su Yu vividly compared it to a "lonely hanging island". When
reported to Premier Zhou, Su Yu pointed out incisively that in modern warfare, facing the enemy's wide frontal and deep attack, this kind of fortification is not much stronger than the French Maginot line in World War II .
Considering the material and manpower consumed in building an "artificial orogenic" project, Su Yu still hopes that the Party Central Committee can immediately stop the project from a practical perspective.
Because he was against "Vice Chairman Lin", General Su Yu took the initiative to announce his resignation. Premier Zhou, who has always been cautious in his words and actions, expressed his agreement with Su Yu's point of view.
Conclusion
Is the "artificial orogenic" project useful? It is still a topic of debate.
people who think it is useful give the reason: if the enemy really breaks into the North China, North Jiangsu, and Northwest Plains, relying on the "artificial orogenic" project, the People's Liberation Army's artillery fire will be launched in an instant, which will definitely be a heavy blow to the enemy.
Some people used the tunnels built by the Volunteer Army in the of the Shangganling Battle as evidence, and believed that the defense capability of the "artificial orogenic" project is much stronger than the underground tunnels built by the Volunteer Army during the Shangganling period.
Picture | General Su Yu inspected the route in 1970
If a war broke out between China and the Soviet Union, the PLA garrison troops rely on tunnels and use fortifications on the positions to defend, exhaustion and consume the enemy and win the time necessary for counterattack preparation.
"Architecture" project has an important role in harassing, counterattacking or restraining the enemies occupying surface positions. Large forces can launch counterattacks with the People's Liberation Army troops guarding the underground of the "Architecture" project.The reason for the opponents of
was to equate the "artificial orogenic" project with the Maginot Line of Defense and the Japanese army's establishment of the "Soviet Fortress" in Northeast China.
The soldiers have no normal shape, and the water has no constant momentum.
Only by fully understanding and grasping the enemy's situation and the people's situation in advance can we achieve victory in every battle.
As a PLA general who is good at "winning unexpectedly", Su Yu disagrees with the PLA troops guarding one place stupidly.
Of course, General Su Yu learned and applied Chairman Mao’s military theory to the key to his achievements in so many military achievements.
No matter what, it is already commendable that General Su Yu can report his true thoughts to Premier Zhou in that special historical environment without fear of power.
Whether in the war years or after the founding of New China, General Su Yu was good at thinking independently and exerted his creative military talents. These are unquestionable facts.
General Su Yu has a noble character, does not fight for merit or power, is broad-minded and repays grievances with virtue, and is worthy of being the top ten generals.
