He was a famous "general without title", who voluntarily resigned his title for the sake of taking into account the overall situation, and later specially approved to enjoy the treatment of a general
As one of the many senior generals of new China, Chen Manyuan was not as dazzling as the founding general who was awarded the title in 1955. In fact, during the long years of revolution, construction, and reform, Chen Manyuan held important posts in many aspects, whether it was military, political, and logistical posts in the people's army, or government posts.
Chen Manyuan, born in 1911 in Mengshan County, Guangxi Province, to a wealthy peasant family, in 1922, he was admitted to the county higher primary school with excellent results, in the face of the warlords in Guangxi, the local tycoons and inferior gentry, the people are not happy, he pondered bitterly: Where is the way out for the people?
In 1923, with the support of the progressive principal Cai Tingsheng, teachers and students in the school openly spread new ideas and new cultures, calling on teachers and students to unite and participate in the revolutionary struggle to overthrow the warlords, expel the great powers, and save China.
In 1925, Chen Manyuan was admitted to the Provincial No. 2 Middle School to study, actively participated in the Wuzhou workers' student movement, and founded the "Cangwu Book Club".
The following year, the "1219 Incident" occurred in Wuzhou, where the Kuomintang's right-wing military and police authorities in Wuzhou openly arrested Communist Party members and progressives.
In the early morning of April 17, 1927, the reactionary military police in Wuzhou suddenly surrounded the Cangwu Book Club, arrested Chen Manyuan and others, and sentenced them to life imprisonment without trial, until they were released after being rescued by the Guangxi Special Committee of the Communist Party of China.
In October of the same year, the Fourth Guangxi Garrison Brigade led by Zhang Yunyi entered Youjiang, and Chen Manyuan became one of them.
During the period of the agrarian revolutionary war, Chen Manyuan participated in the famous Baise Uprising, transferred from the Right River to the west of the Jiangjiang River, and threw himself into the third, fourth, and fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" and 25,000-mile long march in the Central Soviet Region. He was a pioneer in hundreds of battles, brave and good at fighting, and made many achievements in battle, quickly honing himself into an excellent commander of the Red Army with both civilian and military skills.
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Red Army was reorganized into the Eighth Route Army of the New National Revolutionary Army, and Chen Manyuan was appointed chief of staff of the 344th Brigade of the 115th Division to assist the brigade commander Xu Haidong and political commissar Huang Kecheng to go to the front to kill the enemy.
In late August 1937, Chen Manyuan and Xu Haidong led their troops to cross the Yellow River in Zhichuan, Hancheng County, and advanced along the Tongpu Railway into northeastern Jin.
At dawn in September, he led his troops to launch a surprise attack from the left flank, and together with his brother troops, annihilated more than a thousand people of the Japanese Kou Banyuan Division in one fell swoop, and won the first victory in the national war of annihilation.
On October 14, he led his troops to kill more than 100 enemy people in Xiaozhai Village, northeast of Pingxingguan, destroying dozens of enemy vehicles, and forcing the enemy to return to Lingqiu County.
Subsequently, the 344th Brigade successively recaptured Pingxingguan, Tuanchengkou, Shahe And Hunyuan County, which greatly encouraged the resistance of the people from all walks of life in northeast Jin.
In November, Chen Manyuan served as the commander of the third sub-district of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region, led hundreds of people to advance to the area west of the Pinghan Railway, boldly implemented the strategy, mobilized young and middle-aged people to participate in the anti-Japanese assembly team, quickly formed a fourth detachment, attacked the Japanese army with tact and flexibility, and effectively covered the Hebei People's Self-Defense Army led by Lü Zhengcao to Luxi for training.
Since then, Chen Manyuan has successively served as chief of staff of the Northwest Jinbei Military Region and deputy chief of staff of the Jinsui Military Region.
During the Liberation War, he served as chief of staff and commander of the Jinsui Military Region and chief of staff of the First Corps of the North China Field Army, and participated in the organization and command of the Battle of Northern Jin, the Battle of Datong Jining, the Battle of Jinzhong and the famous Battle of Taiyuan.
After the liberation of Taiyuan, a major town in north China, he served as deputy commander and chief of staff of the 18th Corps of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, participated in the organization and command of the Xianyang Blockade Battle, the Battle of Fumei and the Battle of Qinling, and cooperated with the First Field Army to march southwest, making important contributions to the liberation of all of China.
After the founding of New China, Chen Manyuan served as deputy secretary of the Guangxi Provincial Party Committee and director of the Military Control Commission of Guilin City, the provincial capital, and assisted Zhang Yunyi in presiding over the work of the provincial party committee.
In 1955, the military rank system was implemented, and the Guangxi Military Region officially reported the list of personnel awarded the rank in accordance with the criteria of the Central Military Commission for assessing the rank of general: General Chen Manyuan and General Li Tianyou.
However, in the 1950s, the Chinese government sent a military delegation to Vietnam to help Vietnam resist the French and carry out the Battle of Dien Bien Phu.
Vietnamese Ho Chi Minh told the president: "The head of the Wei State Qing who fought in Dien Bien Phu should be rated as a general." ”
The chairman approved this issue to Chen Manyuan, then the first secretary of the Guangxi Provincial CPC Committee, for handling it.
After receiving the instructions, he immediately took the initiative to say that he himself did not participate in the appraisal of the title, gave up the rank of general, and gave up the opportunity to confer the title.
Many people think that this is the biggest regret of his life, but he said: "The chairman does not evaluate the rank, learn from the chairman!" ”
Although Chen Manyuan was indifferent to fame and fortune and took the initiative to give up his title, the party and the state did not forget his contribution to the revolution, so there was a supplementary method on military ranks, and finally recognized Chen Manyuan as a general, but did not award titles.
Moreover, in the series of "Biographies of Generals of the Chinese people's liberation army" approved by the Central Military Commission in 2007, his biography is also included according to his experience as the head of the Grand Military Region.
In 1982, Chen Manyuan retired to the second line, although he was too old to be rare, he still had a majestic style, actively engaged in military academic research and literary creation activities, and left hundreds of thousands of words of memoirs.
He wrote in the "Jiang Chengzi Zhi'er Generation Poetry Book See Mail":
The old man has recently learned poetry. Xi GuanShang, Bu Yuan Tang, Wind and Rain Yin Oh, Day and Night on Xuan Window. It's not that the muse loves me late, chases the times, and catches up with Erlang.
Ercao Jiaoyi is on the long side. Suo shixing, examination articles, repeatedly send fish books, and detain the travel of the box. Is it the fame and fortune of The Lord? Spare the remaining heat, with candlelight.
"Cherish the residual heat, hold the candlelight", which shows the open-mindedness and enterprising spirit of Chen Manyuan, a respectable Confucian general who has ceaseless life, a strong heart, and a pursuit of non-stop.
In 1986, Chen Manyuan died of illness in Beijing at the age of 75.