Picture 丨 Liu Yalou old photo
In 1964, after Liu Yalou returned from a visit to Romania, his originally energetic body began to become physically weak, and after his wife's repeated urgings, Liu Yalou was finally willing to go to the hospital for examination, and the results of the examination shocked everyone, and Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou immediately gave instructions to save Liu Yalou's life. Subsequently, Premier Zhou came to visit on behalf of Chairman Mao and the CPC Central Committee, and after bidding farewell, Premier Zhou sadly said to the people around him:
"I will never go to the hospital to see Liu Yalou again..."
Liu Yalou and Premier Zhou have known each other for more than 30 years, what is the reason for Premier Zhou to say such a thing?
In 1932, chairman Mao led the Red Army on an eastern expedition back to the base area, Chiang Kai-shek sent 500,000 troops to begin the fourth "encirclement and suppression" of the Central Soviet Region, and while the whole army was preparing for the battle, a temporary central order removed Chairman Mao from his political commissar post and premier Zhou took over.
Pictured: Chairman Mao poses with the guardsmen
At the oath-taking meeting against "encirclement and suppression," Commander-in-Chief Zhu briefed everyone on premier Zhou, the newly appointed general political commissar, and invited premier Zhou to make a mobilization report. Although Liu Yalou, who was standing under the stage at that time, applauded and welcomed with everyone, he could not help but feel a little musty in his heart, and the temporary change of commander before the war was a big taboo for soldiers, not to mention that Chairman Mao was still supported by Liu Yalou in his heart.
After analyzing the situation between the enemy and us, Premier Zhou put forward his overall line of thought on the anti-"encirclement and suppression" campaign, and Premier Zhou stressed that by applying the combat method advocated by Chairman Mao, we will certainly be able to crush the enemy's offensive. Premier Zhou's mobilization report made Liu Yalou put aside his worries and led the soldiers to actively participate in pre-war preparations.
However, the situation in the central authorities at that time was not something that Liu Yalou thought was simple, and a group of "foreign students" led by Bogu began to intervene in the fourth anti-"encirclement and suppression" operation. Liu Yalou was ordered to lead an army to attack Nanfeng City, but after 6 days of bloody battle, it did not make much progress, causing great casualties to itself, after learning the news that the enemy was rushing to help Nanfeng, Liu Yalou found the commander of the army, hoping to abandon the strong attack and find another way.
Figure 丨 Liu Yalou during the Red Army period
At that time, although the commander of the army also had a red eye, he still insisted on attacking Nanfeng City, and took out the central government's order saying that the capture of Nanfeng was approved by the Central Bureau and must be carried out. Liu Yalou saw that he could not convince the regimental commander, and could only return home in sorrow. When inspecting the position the next day, Liu Yalou suddenly saw that Commander-in-Chief Zhu, Premier Zhou, and others were also on the position, and immediately made up his mind to report his views to the supreme commander.
This was the first time that Liu Yalou had a face-to-face conversation with Premier Zhou, and Liu Yalou truthfully reported on the difficulties encountered by the troops at present, and stated his idea of abandoning the strong attack and thinking of another way. Premier Zhou listened very carefully and never interrupted Liu Yalou's speech until after he finished speaking, when Premier Zhou said in a loud voice:
"Worthy of attention, worthy of attention!"
Liu Yalou's feedback immediately attracted the attention of Premier Zhou, Commander-in-Chief Zhu, and others, and quickly changed the original operational deployment, first withdrew from Nanfeng City, and then looked for an opportunity to annihilate the enemy. It did not take long for the Red Army to capture a fighter plane, win two major ambush battles, annihilate three elite divisions, capture tens of thousands of enemies, and Chiang Kai-shek's plot once again came to a hasty end, and had to admit that "this defeat is the only hidden pain in my life." ”
Photo: Premier Zhou, Zhu De, and some comrades of the Red Army
Liu Yalou's timely report on the battlefield attracted the attention of Premier Zhou. After the end of the fourth anti-"encirclement and suppression" campaign, the Central Military Commission ordered the reorganization of the Red Army, and Liu Yalou was appointed political commissar of the Fifth Regiment of the Second Division. Premier Zhou asked Liu Yalou what opinion he had on his demotion to the position of political commissar of the regiment, and Liu Yalou said without hesitation that he had no opinion and believed that other comrades would bring the team better. Premier Zhou praised his answers one after another, praising him as a true Communist Party member who only wanted to make a revolution and did not care about personal gains and losses.
After Liu Yalou was transferred to the political commissar of the Fifth Red Regiment, he handled all kinds of work very well and was set up as an exemplary pacesetter when he was inspected. Soon after, Liu Yalou was transferred to the director of the political department of the Second Red Division, and later promoted to the political commissar of the division. During the Long March, Liu Yalou basically served as a forward, leading his generals to make a bloody road for the troops behind him, which won the praise of Premier Zhou and other leaders.
After the end of the Pingjin Campaign, Chairman Mao deeply felt the importance of preparing an air force, so he wrote a letter to Premier Zhou with a pen, making the decision to establish an air force before establishing a new China. At that time, Premier Zhou was also struggling to establish an air force, and it was imperative to find a competent air force commander.
Liu Yalou commanded the liberation of Tianjin
Premier Zhou sifted through his mind again and again, and finally selected Liu Yalou, the "Yang Eight Road," and when he agreed on a candidate with Chairman Mao, Chairman Mao also believed that Liu Yalou was the best candidate for the formation of the Air Force. At that time, the formation of the air force was inseparable from the help of the Soviet side, Liu Yalou had studied in the Soviet Union, was fluent in Russian, knew the armies of both sides, and was one of the few "highly educated" generals.
In August 1949, Liu Yalou, as the representative of new China, went to the Soviet Union to sign an aid agreement such as aircraft purchase, and before leaving, Premier Zhou conveyed to him the decision of the Central Committee and asked to add Liu Yalou's wife Zhai Yunying to the delegation. Zhai Yunying was born in the Soviet Union, and after hearing the news that her husband was going to visit the Soviet Union, she hoped to go together to see her hometown after many years of absence and find the whereabouts of her relatives.
Liu Yalou immediately refused after knowing his wife's idea, after all, he went abroad for business and could not "distinguish between public and private", after this matter was known to Premier Zhou, he personally instructed Zhai Yunying to follow Liu Yalou to the Soviet Union as a member of the delegation. For Premier Zhou's concern, Liu Yalou's heart is unspeakably grateful.
Picture 丨 Liu Yalou and his wife Zhai Yunying
More than two months later, when Liu Yalou returned to China, Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou summoned him alone in Zhongnanhai to listen to a report on his current visit to the Soviet Union. Liu Yalou recounted in detail the process of his visit to the Soviet Union to obtain assistance and the plans for the construction of the aviation school afterwards, and Premier Zhou affirmed his idea and instructed him:
"Now we need you to work intensively to sing well the drama of building the Air Force!"
"You have solved the big problem for us, and I must sing this play well."
When Liu Yalou walked out of Zhongnanhai, he had already obtained the "Shangfang Sword" given by Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou. According to the agreement, each aviation school should be equipped with 40 interpreters in order to ensure the smooth work of Soviet experts, Liu Yalou asked the Central Military Commission to need a batch of Russian translators, and with the support of Premier Zhou, the matter was quickly and properly resolved.
Pictured: Liu Yalou visits the Soviet Union
At the beginning of 1950, Liu Yalou followed Premier Zhou on another visit to the Soviet Union and asked the Soviet side to assist China in strengthening air defense and forming an aviation unit as soon as possible. Due to the constant bombing and harassment of our country by Kuomintang planes, Chairman Mao instructed Liu Yalou to form his own air force as soon as possible, and Premier Zhou also had high hopes for him, asking him to run the aviation school as soon as possible:
"Even if it's just a month, we'll build up our own air force as soon as possible."
In June of the same year, the first aviation unit of New China was formed, and less than a week later, the Korean War broke out, and Chairman Mao made the decision to "resist US aggression and aid Korea." At that time, MacArthur shouted that the US Air Force would make the Yalu River bleed into a river, and Air Force Commander Liu Yalou became a focus figure for a time.
At the military conference on October 18, Premier Zhou briefed on the request to the Soviet Union to send an air force to assist in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and Stalin said that military equipment could be provided, but the Soviet Air Force could only be stationed in China along the Yalu River. China's "War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea" fell into a very difficult situation, and Chairman Mao made a decision on the spot that shocked the whole world:
"Don't wait for the Soviet Union any longer, we will send troops without assistance!"
Chairman Mao presided over the study of the issue of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea
"Commander of the Air Force, I am waiting for your Air Force!" After a moment of silence, Peng Dehuai stood up and said to Liu Yalou. Everyone's eyes were suddenly focused on Liu Yalou, and Liu Yalou responded firmly:
"Please rest assured General Manager Peng that no matter whether the Soviet Air Force dispatches sooner or later, our Air Force will be pulled into the battlefield as soon as possible!"
During the Period of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Premier Zhou always paid close attention to the building of the Air Force; premier Zhou gave detailed instructions on each of these important links, personally inspected the implementation, and personally discussed with Nie Rongzhen, Liu Yalou, and others the timing of the Chinese Air Force's stationing in the DPRK and the construction of the airport before it was stationed.
On January 21, 1951, the first Chinese Air Force to enter the Korean War destroyed one Us aircraft, and after that, on the Korean battlefield, the Chinese Air Force achieved outstanding results, breaking the myth of the invincibility of the US Air Force. Premier Zhou said to Liu Yalou: "Your air force is 'if you don't fly, you will soar into the sky; if you don't make a sound, you will already make a splash. ’”
Pictured: A volunteer aircraft ready to go
The young Chinese Air Force achieved great results on the Korean battlefield, and after interviewing the heroes of the air combat, the Political Department of the Air Force wrote a long article. At that time, Liu Yalou hoped to only publicize in the air force system and not publish it in newspapers outside the military, so as to avoid the pride and complacency of the air force. When Xiao Hua asked Premier Zhou for advice, Premier Zhou gave instructions:
"Go ahead, hurry up and get the newspaper up, boost morale."
Liu Yalou built the Chinese Air Force from scratch to shine on the Korean battlefield, creating an incredible miracle in a short period of time. In addition to all the painstaking efforts that Liu Yalou has put into it, it is also inseparable from the ardent care and expectations of Chairman Mao, Premier Zhou and other leaders.
In 1964, when Liu Yalou visited Romania with the delegation, he gradually felt that his body was somewhat weak and his appetite was weak, and after returning to China for more than 20 days, Liu Yalou lost a circle of weight. His wife Zhai Yunying, as a doctor, was shocked to see her husband's appearance and urged Liu Yalou to go to the hospital for examination, but Liu Yalou refused his wife's proposal because of his busy work.
Liu Yalou reported to Chairman Mao on his work
After a few months, Liu Yalou's body was really difficult to support, so he went to the hospital for examination accompanied by his wife, and the results of the examination shocked everyone, and Liu Yalou suffered from liver cancer on the basis of cirrhosis. Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou immediately instructed that they should go all out to rescue and treat Liu Yalou, and Premier Zhou also specially instructed that for the time being, liu Yalou's illness should not be revealed, and that he and his family should be kept particularly secret, so as to lighten the ideological burden.
As a doctor, Zhai Yunying proposed to participate in Liu Yalou's condition discussion several times, although each time the medical team happily agreed to Zhai Yunying's request, but each time he would prepare a set of fake medical records for him to view, and also comforted her that the treatment had worked, and Liu Yalou's condition was gradually getting better. After Zhai Yunying left, the experts took out the real medical records and quietly studied Liu Yalou's treatment plan.
At that time, the unmanned reconnaissance planes of the US military repeatedly invaded China's airspace, and our army failed to ambush several times, causing heavy losses. Premier Zhou instructed the Air Force to shoot down an unmanned aircraft. After Liu Yalou learned of Premier Zhou's instructions, he disregarded the obstruction of doctors and his wife and personally went to the front line in Guangzhou to hold a symposium to study tactical issues. On November 15, under the guidance of Liu Yalou, our army shot down the unmanned reconnaissance plane of the US army, and Liu Yalou, who was far away in the hospital, excitedly grabbed the phone and reported to Premier Zhou, and the premier's wish was finally realized.
Picture: Liu Yalou watching the Kuomintang plane shot down by our air force
When Premier Zhou learned that Liu Yalou was still caring about his work, he was very distressed and instructed Yang Chengwu to tell Liu Yalou that if he was sick, he should rest in peace and recuperate and work after his illness was better. Chairman Mao also personally wrote a letter to Liu Yalou, instructing him to listen to the doctor's words and not to neglect him. Premier Zhou also gave special instructions to the treatment team:
"If there are special drugs for the treatment of liver cancer in foreign countries, no matter how much money they spend, they must send people to buy them and do their best to save the life of Comrade Liu Yalou!"
On April 25, 1965, Premier Zhou came to Shanghai on behalf of Chairman Mao and the CPC Central Committee to visit Liu Yalou, who was hospitalized. After Liu Yalou learned about it, he insisted on washing up, getting dressed and getting up to greet him. When Premier Zhou arrived at the entrance of the hospital, Liu Yalou had been waiting for a long time, and when he saw Premier Zhou get out of the car, Liu Yalou pushed away his hand and took a few steps toward Premier Zhou and said:
"The prime minister is so busy that he still comes to see me."
"How can you come downstairs?" Premier Zhou clasped Liu Yalou's hand tightly and said with concern.
Liu Yalou was with Premier Zhou, Deng Xiaoping and other leaders
Premier Zhou helped Liu Yalou step by step upstairs and walked back to the ward, telling him that Chairman Mao was very concerned about his condition, that he should read his report on his condition every day, and that he should listen to the doctor's words and receive good treatment. Liu Yalou also comforted Premier Zhou in turn, saying that the premier was seriously ill during the Long March and was cured. Now with such good conditions, his illness can certainly be cured.
In fact, Liu Yalou could already feel that his illness could not be saved, and a few days before Premier Zhou came, he also told the nurses that they would not have to be busy for a few days, and that he had already received An invitation from Marx. At the same time, he also instructed medical staff not to tell others the true situation of his condition and avoid the worries of the chiefs and comrades.
Premier Zhou talked freely with Liu Yalou in the hospital room for a while, and when they were separated, Liu Yalou braced himself and sent Premier Zhou to the door. After leaving the hospital, Premier Zhou sadly said to the people around him:
"I don't go to the hospital to see Liu Yalou again, he is so sick that he still insists on sending me, I can't bear it!"
The newspaper published the news of Liu Yalou's death
Although the doctor did his best to prolong Liu Yalou's life, he was still unable to keep him. Less than half a month after Premier Zhou visited Liu Yalou, Liu Yalou, who was only 55 years old, passed away. Liu Yalou's death has made the whole country feel a huge loss. Just an hour after his death, Zhai Yunying received his first telegram of condolences:
"The passing away of Comrade Liu Yalou is a major loss to our party and our army."
On May 8, the first page of the People's Daily published an obituary by the Ministry of National Defense, which printed a large photograph of Liu Yalou with a black frame. On the morning of the same day, Liu Yalou's body was transferred to the Lilac Garden Auditorium, and a number of Shanghai municipal leaders came to bid farewell. At three o'clock in the afternoon, Liu Yalou's ashes were escorted from Shanghai to Beijing, and He Long, Nie Rongzhen, and other leaders personally greeted them at the airport.
Liu Yalou's urn was moved to Zhongshan Hall in Zhongshan Park, where party and state leaders held their funerals. During the two-day mourning activity, 100,000 soldiers and civilians in the capital came to commemorate Liu Yalou, and Premier Zhou, Liu Shaoqi and other state leaders in Beijing signed the check-in book, which, according to the recollections of relevant personnel, was the most complete signature of the party and state leaders.
Premier Zhou, Zhu De and other state leaders attended Liu Yalou's memorial service
On the morning of May 11, the public festival officially began, except for Chairman Mao, all the central leaders in Beijing participated in the meeting, four soldiers guarded Liu Yalou's urn, and wreaths were placed around the spiritual hall. Luo Ruiqing delivered a eulogy at the conference. After the end, Liu Shaoqi and other leaders escorted the hearse to the Babaoshan Cemetery, and along the way, the soldiers saluted with solemnity, and the major media across the country reported on Liu Yalou's death, almost occupying the first page of major newspapers.
Shortly after Liu Yalou's death, Premier Zhou once sadly told Zhai Yunying that a thousand troops are easy to obtain, and it is difficult to find a general, Comrade Yalou left too early, and it is difficult to choose the commander of the Air Force. Affirming Liu Yalou's contributions to the Air Force over the years and demanding military discipline from the Air Force, Premier Zhou recalled the scene when he visited Liu Yalou in the hospital and said with emotion:
"In my opinion, it is not a form, but the minimum pursuit of a standard soldier."
Figure 丨 Zhai Yunying in his later years
Years later, Zhai Yunying learned that she had been concealed from her husband's illness, which was an instruction given by Premier Zhou. Zhai Yunying immediately lost his voice and cried bitterly: "Premier Zhou, when you knew that you might be terminally ill, you ordered the medical staff to report the condition truthfully, because you still have a lot of work to account for, but for Ya Lou's condition, why did you instruct me to hide it? ”