The Eighth Route Army, a well-known name in modern Chinese military history, was the first people's armed force recognized internationally. In the early days of the founding of the army, the Eighth Route Army had three divisions: the 115th Division, the 120th Division, and the 129th Division, each of which had a main and deputy division commander, that is to say, there were six division commanders. After the founding of New China, five of the six division commanders were awarded the rank of marshal, and even the political commissar of the 115th Division became a marshal. However, there was such a division commander, but he did not become a marshal, not even a general, but a general. This person was Xiao Ke, the deputy commander of the 120th Division. So, what exactly did he lose touch with the marshal?
Because of the family feud, he found faith and embarked on the revolutionary road
Xiao Ke was born in Tiancun, a small street in Jiahe Pantou, Hunan, Hunan, and his name was Xiao Kezhong. His daimyō is xiao Wuyi according to the family tree. His father was Xiucai at the end of the Qing Dynasty, a well-off squire with six acres of land in the family. After Xiao Ke was born, he grew up in the sound of his father's reading, so he had a relatively good cultural foundation. When he was six years old, he was sent to a private school by his father and began to study officially. At that time, the private school still taught the Four Books and Five Classics, poetry and song. Therefore, Xiao Ke was able to recite a lot of ancient poems from an early age, and his personality became as pure as a poet.
In addition, Shaw was also fascinated by the deeds of heroes since childhood. Once, he read the "Biography of the Seventy-Two Martyrs of Huanghuagang", and he was so moved that he was moved to sorrow and burst into tears, and even his father was shocked. Since then, those early images of revolutionary heroes have taken root in Shawke's mind and influenced him throughout his life.
Although the Shaw family has their own land, but the population is also quite large, not counting him, there are four children. In order to make ends meet, the Xiao family also had to rent someone else's land to farm. At that time, landlords and tenants were sworn enemies and always intolerable. Once, a rich man was in a hurry, and Xiao Ke's hot-tempered big brother had an argument with the other party. As a result, this rich man made something out of nothing, slandered Brother Xiao Ke for colluding with bandits, and was actually killed. At this time, Shaw was just fifteen years old. Faced with the tragic death of his relatives, he had the idea of becoming a soldier and an official and punishing his enemies.
Soon after, Xiao Ke came to Jiahe County Jiazhong Normal School to study, and unexpectedly came into contact with some military books, so he began to read the one hand, in order to avenge his eldest brother in the future, on the other hand, to prepare to take responsibility for the motherland with internal and external troubles. However, the pure military is only an armed force, and if we want to save the country and sweep away the injustice of the world, we still need a little ideological sublimation. Coincidentally, Xiao Ke's cousin ended his studies in Guangzhou at this time and returned home. He told Shaw many current events and revolutionary stories. The young Xiao Ke then made up his mind, and before he graduated, he borrowed some plates and went to Guangzhou alone.
When we arrived in Guangzhou, we were just in time to recruit cadets from the Gendarmerie Training Institute of the Kuomintang Central Military Commission. Originally, Xiao Ke wanted to apply for the Whampoa Military Academy, but at this time, he had already missed the time, so he signed up for the coaching office. Soon after, the good news came that the gendarmerie training institute was admitted to the Whampoa Military Academy, and Xiao Ke became a Whampoa IV student.
When Xiao Ke graduated, he was in time for the Northern Expedition. The glorious deeds of Ye Ting's independent regiment spread throughout the country at any time, which made Xiao Ke excited. At this point he was a gendarme of the headquarters, far from the front. So Xiao Ke took a "family leave" and followed the Northern Expedition troops all the way, following Ye Ting's independent regiment. Later, after several twists and turns, he finally joined the team and found his faith in the battle, Marxism.
On August 1, 1927, the gunshots of the Nanchang Uprising began, and Xiao Ke was also in the ranks of the uprising. Later, the uprising failed, the main force was scattered, and Xiao Ke had to travel from place to place to find his home. The next year, he finally found the Nanchang Uprising Division led by Zhu De, joined the team to fight together, and later went all the way to Jinggangshan and became a formal Red Army.
A legendary military career
Because of his outstanding performance and many achievements in the battlefield, Xiao Ke soon became the commander of the Red Sixth Army. It was also at this time that he changed his name to "Shaw". During the years of the Long March, Xiao Ke led his troops as an advance army, constantly interspersed in Hunan and Guizhou provinces, and the marching distance was far more than 25,000 miles. During this period, Xiao Ke skillfully maneuvered with the enemy and, together with He Long, created the Qiansu District of Xiang'echuan. After that, Xiao Ke also became the deputy commander-in-chief of the Red Second Front, and came to northern Shaanxi with the troops.
During this period of time, there is a small story that illustrates The flexibility of Shaw's use of soldiers. Because his troops were moving so fast that the enemies who wanted to surround him could not keep up with his speed, they sent planes to attack. Because the Red Army led by Shawke was wearing straw hats, the enemy planes were ordered to fire at the sight of the Straw Hat Army. Unexpectedly, Shaw had ordered the troops to throw away the straw hats at this time. The enemy who was chasing after him was sweating hot, and when he saw the straw hat on the ground, he picked it up and put it on like a treasure, and naturally he was bombarded by his own plane. This incident later became known as the "Straw Hat Scheme", and was The Proud Work of Shaw.
In 1937, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression broke out. After continuous struggle, the Red Army was finally reorganized into the Eighth Route Army. Xiao Ke served as the deputy commander of the 120th Division, still partnering with He Long. After that, Xiao Ke participated in the Battle of Xinkou and founded a number of anti-Japanese base areas in northwestern Jin, Pingxi, Pingbei, and eastern Ji. Later, he also became the acting commander of the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region.
During the Liberation War, Xiao Ke served as the commander of the Jin-Cha-Ji Field Army, and participated in and commanded famous battles such as the Battle of Chengde, the Battle of Yechi, the Battle of Zhengtai, the Battle of Huailai, and the Battle of Shijiazhuang. However, due to the large-scale disarmament of the field army before the war began, which led to the shortage of troops later, the Jin-Cha-Ji Field Army has not been able to play too much prestige, and can only be in a position of cooperation. As a result, the Jin-Cha-Ji Field Army failed to become a large combat unit like the other four major field armies. It may also be because of this situation that Xiao Ke did not appear particularly dazzling in the liberation war. Although Xiao Ke was later transferred to Shiye as chief of staff and also participated in several large-scale battles after crossing the river, his sense of existence was still somewhat thin.
In 1955, new China was awarded the title, and Xiao Ke's old partner He Long became a marshal, while he himself became only a general. Although some people think that his rank is a little low, after all, the famous general Su Yu is a general, and Xiao Ke's performance in the Liberation War is indeed slightly inferior, and being a general is not a demeaning. Moreover, Xiao Ke himself never competed for a position, and never expressed dissatisfaction with his rank. This quality makes many people who feel that the rank is small and noisy.
Military educator
For the treatment of individuals on the battlefield, Xiao Ke himself may not be very concerned. In fact, in his heart, he had already installed another career. He was born in The Scholarly Sect and attached great importance to education. In 1948, he founded the North China Military and Political University. Later, although he went to the battlefield again, he was still concerned about military education.
After the founding of New China, Xiao Ke's new position was that of director of the Military Training Department of the Central Military Commission. After that, Xiao Ke vigorously grasped the regularization and modernization of military academies and made outstanding contributions to the training of military talents in the Plaster. During this period, he founded the Army University, compiled military regulations, standardized discipline, internal affairs, and platooning, and strictly trained the army. It is precisely because of the foundation he laid that the Plakmen Can maintain strong morale and extremely high combat effectiveness even after a long period of time.
Shaw's re-education was not limited to the military. In the 1980s, he founded the first private university in New China in the Jiulingshan area of Hunan. In order to improve the quality of teaching, Xiao Ke and other main creative personnel paid for themselves and hired well-known professors from all over the country to give lectures here. Later, the school grew larger and larger, paving the way for students to the peak of life in the mountains of Hunan.
General Xiao Ke's decades of military career, from the Northern Expedition to the founding of New China, witnessed the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. His contributions at this stage will also be remembered by the people. On October 24, 2008, exactly two months after the conclusion of the Beijing Olympic Games, General Xiao Ke passed away quietly at the age of 102.