Foreword
In 1986, two middle-aged men carrying cameras and notebooks came to a small village in Wanxian County, Sichuan Province. The two of them walked and stopped, looking for something again and again, until they came to a dilapidated hut. Only then did he stop.
"Bang bang~" A man knocked on the door and then shouted: "Old man, we are reporters from the Military Museum. We want to come over and take some photos. Can we come to your house for a drink?"
At this time, the door slowly opened. Opening it, a lame old man came out and took them inside to drink water.
The reporter walked into the house and found that it was very simple, with only a bed, a table, and a tattered, dusty flashlight that gave off a little light.
Looking carefully, the old man seemed to have some problems with his left leg, and he only had four fingers left on his right hand, but he still picked up a pot of water and handed it to them.
Chen Renhua
Out of reporter's instinct, they felt that the old man's identity was definitely unusual, so they looked around and saw a group photo on the earthen wall. In it, in addition to a young man in military uniform, there was also Jianguo Marshals Peng Dehuai and He Long.
The reporter asked in shock: "Old man, aren't these Marshal Peng Dehuai and Marshal He Long? The person taking a photo with them is you, right?"
The old man nodded, and took the photo on the wall in his hand. The old man said proudly: "Yes, this is me. I didn't expect that thirty years have passed so quickly..."
The old man's words quickly attracted the attention of the reporter. After talking, they learned that the old man's name His name is Chen Renhua, and he is a veteran of the Volunteer Army. But when they asked about the old man's career in the army, Chen Renhua's face stiffened.
Faced with the urging of reporters, Chen Renhua said sadly:
"I have been to North Korea, but that is all in the past, so don't mention it again..."
What exactly has Chen Renhua experienced? Why can he take photos with the founding marshals Peng Dehuai and He Long? What secrets does he have? Let us follow the scholar's pen tip and take a closer look.
The Korean War was about to begin.
In 1929, Chen Renhua was born in a small village in Wanxian County, Sichuan Province. His parents were just poor farmers who worked at sunrise and rested at sunset. However, their family never complained and worked wholeheartedly on their business. My own little family.
However, due to financial problems, his parents could not send Chen Renhua to school to study and read. However, Chen Renhua, who has always been filial, did not complain about this. Instead, he helped his parents with work very considerately, feeding pigs, herding sheep, planting land, and watering. Pass.
During the Anti-Japanese War, when the Eighth Route Army came here, Chen Renhua wanted to join the army to serve the country and fight on the battlefield with blood. However, because Chen Renhua was too young at the time, his parents did not agree to his request.
US Army
However, time flies. In 1950, Chen Renhua had become a 21-year-old young man. At this time, the international situation also changed dramatically.
In September 1950, the U.S. military crossed the 38th Parallel and spread the flames of war on the Korean battlefield to China. In order to maintain national security, the Chinese government immediately formed the Chinese People's Volunteer Army and went to fight on the Korean battlefield.
Hearing that the Volunteer Army was recruiting troops, Chen Renhua immediately signed up to join the army and stood out among the new recruits. He was highly praised by the army leaders:
"Although Chen Renhua is a recruit, he will definitely be a good candidate to fight the enemy on the front line in the future."
After the Volunteer Army
After the recruit training, Chen Renhua was assigned to the 5th Company of the 600th Regiment of the 200th Division of the 67th Army of the Volunteer Army as an ordinary soldier, and boarded the Anton train with the large army and embarked on a journey to the Korean Peninsula.
The war situation at that time was urgent, and the recruits had very little combat experience, but Chen Renhua seemed to be fully prepared. Facing the sacrifice of his comrades, Chen Renhua picked up the worn-out 38 rifle from his arms and successfully killed one. American soldiers seized a brand new American firearm.
As a recruit who has been in the army for several months, it is hard-won to be able to point firearms at the enemy. As a result, he won the third-class merit and became an outstanding volunteer soldier.
In August 1952, the Volunteer Army launched a fierce battle in the " United Nations " led by the United States. The two sides fought fiercely on the battlefield, and the situation reached a stalemate.
Because the Volunteer Army is the attacker, a long stalemate will only bring about fearlessness. sacrifice, so the organization decided to set up a demolition team to conduct a raid on the US military.
Volunteer soldier
At this time, Chen Renhua volunteered to join the team and quietly approached the enemy camp with three recruits. Whenever an enemy notices them, Chen Renhua can keenly detect the opponent's position and then deliver a fatal shot.
The four of them made a surprise attack from the flank, and eventually killed three people, captured one person, and seized a machine gun. As a result, Chen Renhua was awarded second-class merit and became a well-known "celebrity" in the military.
After two years of joining the army, he was able to achieve two military exploits. Such achievements are worthy of praise from the people in any era. But what is even more rare is that Chen Renhua is not arrogant and complacent. However, he does not dare to make any mistakes when he continues to consult his revolutionary predecessors for combat skills. careless.
In fact, Chen Renhua, who had just made military exploits, once had a proud side. He fantasized about returning home in fine clothes and being praised by his parents, but the increasingly severe battle still made him "sober" up.
Cross Hill Counterattack
In 1953, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea entered a critical period. The armistice work reached a deadlock due to the unreasonable troubles made by the United States at the negotiation table. In order to force the United States to cease the war, the Chinese People's Volunteers launched a massive summer counteroffensive.
During the summer counteroffensive, one battle was very famous, and that was the Battle of "Hill of the Cross".
Cross Hill is located on a hill in the Jincheng area of North Korea. There are ten hills in total. Since it has been occupied by the US military for a long time, they have deployed a regiment of troops here and built many fortifications and bunkers. There are more soldiers on patrol. There are countless of them, and it can be said that it is very difficult for the volunteers to capture this place.
Zheng Weishan
General Zheng Weishan hoped to place a 3,000-man squad near the enemy, wait for the battle to start, surprise the enemy, and annihilate them in one fell swoop.
Chen Renhua's 5th company is one of these 3,000 squads, and Chen Renhua personally wrote a letter in blood, hoping to serve as the most dangerous blaster.
The battle officially started on June 12, 1953. Facing the fierce attack of the volunteers, the enemy also carried out a tenacious counterattack with advanced combat weapons.
Chen Renhua looked at the bombers hovering in the sky and the bombs landing one after another, and he was shaken in his heart - whether I can defeat them.
The soldier holding the explosive bag
Before he could react, a loud "bang" sound reached his ears. Chen Renhua was knocked to the ground by the huge waves. When he forcibly opened his eyes, his comrade-in-arms He had fallen on the slope and never stood up again...
Only at this moment did Chen Renhua really wake up. They never retreated in the face of danger, just to protect the common people of the motherland. These people who risked their lives to die. Comrades are your role models.
As he "awake", Chen Renhua's eyes also focused on the firepower point on the main peak.
So, while platoon leader Ren Zhiming was anxiously thinking about how to eliminate the enemy's firepower, Chen Renhua had already quietly led his teammates and climbed towards the cliff.
Because of the perspective problem, going up the cliff is naturally the safest place, but this road is full of dangers, and you may die here at any time.
Fortunately, Chen Renhua's hands and feet were very flexible. After carefully observing the enemy's shooting pattern, he crawled to the enemy's bunker on both hands and feet, and took out an explosive pack from his back.
Volunteer Army Charge
He looked at the bunker above his head, holding a stone in one hand and an explosive pack in the other. Then he pulled the fuse with his mouth, stuffed it into the mouth of the machine gun and left quickly.
"Boom..." The power of this explosion was not small. In addition to killing the enemies in the bunker, Chen Renhua who was hiding aside was also blown away by the fierce air wave.
Platoon leader Ren Zhiming in the distance was extremely surprised when he heard the explosion. He shouted excitedly: "You are indeed my soldier, there is no coward, what a boy!"
But Ren Zhiming was preparing to let Chen Renhua come back to rest. At this time, Chen Renhua picked up another explosive bag and rushed towards the second fire point.
Chen Renhua turned around and climbed over into a tunnel. Then he suddenly jumped out when the enemy's firepower was slow. He threw out the explosive package with both hands and bit off the fuse with his teeth. The second bunker also collapsed.
Looking at the dust flying in the distance, Chen Renhua decided to take advantage of the chaos and run to the third fire point to blast. However, this bunker was on a rock wall, and the difficulty was much higher than before.
Because he was condescending, the enemy's field of vision was wider. When Chen Renhua was crawling forward, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his left leg, and could clearly feel that something was flowing on the ground.
But stopping at this moment would cost him his life. Chen Renhua endured the great pain and crawled forward, finally reaching the third bunker.
Volunteer soldier carrying a grenade
Chen Renhua was delighted and touched his back, only to find that the explosive pack had been used up, but the pain in his leg diverted his attention and prevented him from noticing.
Faced with this crisis, Chen Renhua first collected all the grenades together, and then tied them together and used them as explosive bags.
With a loud noise, the third fortress also collapsed. However, because the grenade's fuse was short and his legs were severely injured, Chen Renhua had no time to escape from here.
Under the thrust of the shock wave , Chen Renhua fell to the rock five meters away, and his eyes slowly closed in the red blood.
Everyone thought that Chen Renhua had died, but he was still unwilling to give up the last chance for his comrades, so he was sent to a field hospital for rescue treatment.
Military Medal
Three days later, Chen Renhua woke up slowly, but as he opened his eyes, a severe pain swept over him. When he looked carefully, he discovered that his right finger had been cut off. One leg was removed, and half of his left foot was missing, leaving him disabled.
Because of his outstanding contribution in the Battle of Cross Hill, Chen Renhua was awarded the title of "Class II Combat Hero" and received special merit once.
In October 1953 , Peng Dehuai and He Long came to the 67th Army to express condolences to Chen Renhua. After seeing him, He Long jokingly said: "Our People's Liberation Army came to take a photo with the heroes of the Volunteer Army. This is also glorious."
Then , Chen Renhua took a photo with the two founding marshals. This was the photo that reporters saw many years later.
Marshal He Long
In the autumn of the next year, Kim Il Sung, leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, came to Pyongyang and met with volunteer soldiers including Chen Renhua.
At the venue, Kim Il Sung put a "Level 2 Hero Medal" on Chen Inhua's chest and said softly: "Hero, we want to thank you because you are serving us!"
in Pyongyang During this period of time, Chen Renhua saw many people like him, including nurses who shuttled between the hail of bullets, intelligence agents who were injured and unable to walk, and little soldiers who lost their sight at a young age...
Kim Il Sung
saw Here, Chen Renhua couldn't help but shed tears anymore. He choked and said:
"Many soldiers are missing arms and legs. I am nothing compared to them."
In fact, in comparison, Chen Renhua He was lucky to survive the battlefield, and he also got an opportunity to go to Beijing to be interviewed by Chairman Mao.
After returning to China, Chen Renhua was named the representative of the 67th Army and was about to be reviewed by Chairman Mao, the leader of the people. However, Chen Renhua was so excited when he learned the news that he suffered the sequelae of concussion and was in a coma for more than ten days.
Naturally, he missed the opportunity to meet Chairman Mao due to his coma. In desperation, Chen Renhua had no choice but to come to Nenjiang Shuangcheng Hospital for treatment.
Chairman Mao
Chen Renhua in the hospital was very uncomfortable. Not only was he depressed because he had not seen Chairman Mao, but he was also sad because of his current body. So he went to the doctor and asked:
"Doctor, can I still be injured?" Okay? Can I still be a soldier?"
Looking at Chen Renhua's thin face, the doctor didn't know how to respond. After a while, he shook his head and said: "It's not clear yet, we will actively treat it."
In fact, When the doctor was silent, Chen Renhua already had the answer. He looked from the doctor to his mutilated sole, and then sighed...
returned to his hometown
Not long after treatment in the hospital, Chen Renhua submitted a demobilization application to the organization After applying, he followed a group of demobilized soldiers back to their hometown. However, considering Chen Renhua's merits and injuries, the army gave him a third-class and second-class disability certificate and arranged a job.
But what people didn’t expect was that Chen Renhua donated his third-class and second-class disability certificate and came to a village in Wanxian County to become a militia captain.
In 1972, Chen Renhua was transferred to the town-run coal mine and served as the deputy mine director, responsible for production safety. This job is not easy to do. In order to prevent the workers from being injured, Chen Renhua had to go to the construction site every day to check, and his feet suffered as a result.
But it was Chen Renhua who was serious and responsible. During his tenure, there was never a safety accident in the coal mine. The workers also praised him as "the top of the army and a role model for the workers"
Mr. Chen Renhua
Until Chen Renhua died in 1985 Suffering from a serious illness and knowing that he could not work, he quit his job in the coal mine, returned to his hometown with his wife, and lived a peasant life of working at sunrise and resting at sunset.
He lived an unimaginably poor life in his hometown in Sichuan. A bed, a table, and a tattered, dust-filled flashlight were all his belongings, and he also became a child due to the pain after the war. The lame old man.
Why are the second-level combat heroes and special meritorious officials of the Volunteer Army in poverty because of this?
It turns out that since Chen Renhua returned to his hometown, he has kept silent about his deeds. Even his children do not know that their father once had such a glorious journey.
What is even more regrettable is that because Chen Renhua's discharge file was lost in a flood in 1971, there is no record of him being a special meritor in his provincial, municipal, and county-level units.
In 1975, the army once looked for him, but Chen Renhua turned down the opportunity due to coal mine production. At this point, his contact with the army was completely severed.
But how can a hero be forgotten?
In 1986, two reporters from the Military Museum, Chen Fuming and Chen Xuefeng, came to Wanxian County, Sichuan, and met the old man Chen Renhua while begging for water. At first, they did not feel the difference in the old man until they saw the group photo.
Chen Fuming asked in disbelief: "Old man, aren't these Marshal Peng Dehuai and Marshal He Long? The person taking a photo with them is you, right?"
After receiving the old man's recognition, the two reporters immediately became aware of his past. Interested, but the old man said:
"I have been to North Korea, but that is all in the past, so don't mention it again..."
Looking at the old man's lonely expression, Chen Fuming and Chen Xuefeng patiently persuaded him. Said: "Mr. Chen, please don't reject us yet. If you don't say anything, this period of history will become a blank, and our descendants will not be able to feel the cruelty of the battlefield. How will we cherish our current life?"
heard this Only then did Chen Renhua speak out about his experience on the Korean battlefield.
The two reporters immediately checked Korean War documents after leaving Chen Renhua's home, but they still found no records in books such as the "List of Model Heroes of the Chinese People's Liberation Army" and "The List of Special Merits and Heroes of the Chinese People's Volunteers".
People's Daily
But they did not give up. Finally, they saw a list of heroic models and special meritorious officials of the Chinese People's Volunteers in the People's Daily, and found Chen Renhua's name on it.
At the same time, they also found the location of the 67th Army and met Ren Zhiming, Chen Renhua's platoon leader when he fought at Zijiashan.
After learning about Chen Renming's current situation, the army leaders immediately backed up Chen Renming's archives, sent his relevant certification materials, and wrote on the materials:
"Comrade Chen Renhua, in June 1953 at the famous During the Battle of Cross Mountain, one man continuously blew up five of the enemy's main firepower points and planted the red flag of victory on the main peak. His body was injured and disabled, and he was awarded special merit. In 1954, he was awarded the Second Class Combat Hero Medal by General Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang. And put it on himself. He was also received by Commander Peng Dehuai and Comrade He Long, and was later sent to Nenjiang Shuangcheng Hospital for treatment. He was rated as a third-class B disability and was mobilized to retire. At that time, the comrade considered The country is in difficulty, so we voluntarily donated the disability certificate to the country..."
The content of the material is exactly the same as what Chen Renming said. At this point, the heroes of our volunteer army have finally returned to the people's vision.
The hero's 67th Army
After the county government learned of this, it specially helped him renovate his house and provided him with a family. Chen Renhua's living situation took on a completely new look. The head of the military region would often visit the old hero and ask him what he needed.
But whenever this happened, Chen Renming would reply without hesitation: " Resisting U.S. aggression and aiding Korea and protecting our homeland and country are the bounden duty of our soldiers. Compared with those comrades who sacrificed their lives in a foreign country, I am already very lucky and happy... …"
