"Comrade Yang Side, please hurry back to the 46th Army and tell Commander Han Liancheng that when we fight Li Xianzhou, we will not fight the 46th Army." After destroying Li Xianzhou's 12th and 73rd Armies, they would let go of the northeast direction and let the 46th Army return to the Jiaoji Line. However, we must pay attention to the fact that Han Liancheng must inform us of the changes in deployment, the direction and location of action at any time, so as to avoid the misfire of the gun. At the same time, we must pay special attention not to get involved with the 73rd Army, otherwise it will burn all the jade! If this happened, we would have to fight with the 46th Army. If that time comes, we must persuade Han Lian to lay down his weapons, and we will ensure his safety. ”
Inside the headquarters of the East China Field Army, Commander Chen Yi was talking with this man named Yang Side, looking eager and sincere. He must seize every opportunity to persuade Han Liancheng, the commander of the 46th Army, whom he calls him. If Han Liancheng really acted according to his instructions, there would be no suspense in the victory of the Battle of Laiwu, and the East China Field Army might still have about 20,000 fresh troops. However, the evolution of things was so peculiar, and later the battle situation did not unfold according to Chen Yi's expectations, but the result was unexpectedly gratifying.
Who is Han Liancheng? Worth Chen Yi's personal concern? Looking at his resume, it is really unusual.
Born in 1908 in Guyuan County, Gansu Province, Han Liancheng came from a poor background, attended private school, and worked as a handyman. At the age of 16, he joined the Northwest Army, gradually climbing from an ordinary creep to the position of regimental commander. His superiors were the famous "Ning Ma" Ma Hongkui, who was all subordinate to the "Defecting General" Feng Yuxiang at that time.
Han Liancheng and Chiang Kai-shek, the head of the Kuomintang, also had a special fate. In 1930, Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang, and Yan Xishan launched the Central Plains War in Henan, and Ma Hongkui defected and defected to Chiang Kai-shek. In order to greet Ma Hongkui, Chiang Kai-shek came to Shangqiu to take command, but was surrounded by Feng Yuxiang's cavalry and was about to be captured. At this time, Han Liancheng personally led troops to relieve Chiang Kai-shek's siege. Chiang Kai-shek was very happy, and at that time he signed a warrant, giving Han the status of a third-term graduate of the Whampoa Military Academy. Strictly speaking, this practice is "student registration fraud", so later Chiang Kai-shek explained not to be public, and Han Liancheng did not mention it much in the future.
The student registration is false, but the ability is real. After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in 1937, Han Liancheng first won battle merits in the Battle of Guinan, and then devoted himself to writing books and lectures, writing papers such as "Mobilization Studies" and "On National Defense Education," and combining his theories of operations and training with the grand strategy and making extremely useful summaries. Chiang Kai-shek also attached great importance to him, as long as it was something that Han Liancheng wanted to do, asked for money and things, and gave him full support.
Despite receiving such courtesy, Han Liancheng's heart still often felt a burst of desolation. From the original Northern Expedition to the War of Resistance Against Japan, Chiang Kai-shek has been suppressing Han's desire to serve the country. As early as 1933, he had proposed to Chiang Kai-shek to resist Japan, but Chiang Kai-shek said that he "did not understand politics" and was counted down. Within the Gui clan and the Central Army, Han Liancheng also often saw their party and government tilting, corruption and bribery. Is this the country to which you swear allegiance? Han Liancheng did not dare to imagine.
Later, he engaged in theoretical work and handled a large amount of data every day, from which Han Liancheng found that the army led by the Communist Party of China was higher than the Kuomintang army in terms of the proportion of annihilating the enemy, and almost nothing defected to the enemy and committed treason. He slowly realized that it seemed that the Communist Party was determined to resist Japan. In addition, he has always had progressive ideas such as anti-imperialism and oppression and national independence, so he is very yearning for the Communist Party.
By chance, Han Liancheng and Zhou Enlai met alone and had a long conversation. Between the words, Han Liancheng expressed his admiration and yearning for the Chinese Communist Party, and made it clear that he hoped to join the party. Zhou Enlai did not immediately agree, but asked him to continue to do his job within the Gui clan. Later, after constant contact, Han Liancheng became closer and closer to the party, and slowly became a high-level underground worker. However, at that time, Han Liancheng's identity was classified in the party, and only a few people such as Zhou Enlai, Li Kenong, and Pan Hannian knew about it.
After the War of Resistance Against Japan, Chiang Kai-shek actively prepared for a civil war and arranged heavy troops in the Shandong region. The famous general Wang Yaowu became the commander of the Second Appeasement District, commanding the 73rd Army, the reorganized 74th Division and other powerful units. In order to strengthen this part of the troops, Chiang Kai-shek also transferred the 46th Army, and its commander was Han Liancheng. Later, Han Liancheng made contact with Chen Yi, commander of the East China Field Army, and in order to facilitate the transmission of information, Chen Yi arranged Yang Side, chief of the liaison section of the Political Department of the Jiaodong Military Region, and Xie Kui, deputy section chief, to Han Liancheng's side.
At the beginning of 1947, Chen Cheng, who had just taken office in Xuzhou, launched the Battle of Lunan in order to show his performance. According to his conception, the Kuomintang troops would be divided into two parts, one part led by Ou Zhen, commander of the reorganized 19th Army, attacking from south to north against Linyi, the capital of the People's Liberation Army in Shandong at that time; the other part, led by Wang Yaowu's subordinate Li Xianzhou, blocked the RETREAT of the People's Liberation Army on the northern front, hoping to annihilate the People's Liberation Army operating in Shandong in one fell swoop with the so-called north-south attack! All of Chen Cheng's combat meetings were attended by Han Liancheng, so Chen Cheng's deployment would always appear at Chen Yi's and Su Yu's desks at the first time.
After the battle began, Chen Yi and Su Yu made a decision based on intelligence to retreat on the southern front and set up suspicious troops, and the main force went north to annihilate Li Xianzhou. Su Yu commanded the troops to take the initiative to retreat and gave way to Linyi. Ou Zhen's side occupied Linyi, and he was overjoyed, and immediately falsely reported his battle achievements and sent a good report to Chen Cheng. Chen Cheng was naturally happy and also asked Chiang Kai-shek for credit. At this moment, Wang Yaowu, who had experienced hundreds of battles, suddenly sensed that something was wrong, and immediately asked Li Xianzhou's group to retreat, and reacted to Ou Zhen's untruthful battle achievements. However, Han Lian became a fighter between his own troops and the People's Liberation Army, and told Chen Yi that he would not leave his defense zone of Jiaodong and let the People's Liberation Army fight others first.
When Chen Cheng received Wang Yaowu's report, he immediately burst into flames and asked Chiang Kai-shek to persecute Wang Yaowu and force Li Xianzhou's clique to return to its original position. Wang Yaowu had no choice but to do so. Li Xianzhou immediately ordered the 46th Army to take the lead and attack the PLA's defensive area of Mengyin. Han Liancheng saw that the situation had changed, and immediately asked Yang Side to explain the situation to Chen Yi.
What Han Liancheng wants to express is a four-point suggestion:
I. General Chen Yi please wholeheartedly grasp the strategy of the Battle of Lunan and do not have to worry about me. If there is any action near our department, please inform it so that you can respond.
Second, if Li Xianzhou asked the 46th Army to fight Mengyin, then it was recommended that you fight the 73rd Army; if Li Xianzhou ordered the three armies to advance in tandem, I would find a way to drag the 46th Army backwards.
3. In order to facilitate timely contact, please designate a radio station, twenty or thirty miles away from me.
If possible, please tell me after the 73rd and 12th armies have been completely wiped out, and send someone to study the method of the uprising of our unit.
Chen Yi immediately gave instructions to Yang Side, making it clear that he would not fight the 46th Army. When the 12th Army and the 73rd Army are wiped out, they will be given a way. However, it should be noted that it cannot be mixed with the 12th Army and the 73rd Army, otherwise it will be impossible to distinguish and can only fight together. If this really happened, he could only ask Han Liancheng to lay down his weapons and not burn the jade. Finally, Chen Yi emphatically emphasized: "Our strength is enough to defend Mengyin, so I hope that General Han will stay away from the changlu (30 miles north of Mengyin City)." Changlu is the gateway to the clouds, and whoever thinks of Changlu will fight anyone. ”
In late February, the Battle of Laiwu, in which the East China Field Army annihilated Li Xianzhou's group, had already begun. Han Liancheng listened to the sound of artillery in other directions and was worried, lest his own troops and the People's Liberation Army fight. Yang Side would hold meetings with Han Liancheng every day and constantly enlighten him. But soon after, fears occurred, and Li Xianzhou ordered Han Liancheng to lead the 46th Army closer to Laiwu. Han Liancheng was in a dilemma at this time, if he went, he was likely to fight with the People's Liberation Army, and if he did not go, he would openly "disobey" and was not conducive to his future lurking.
After thinking about it, Han Liancheng decided to go to reinforcements, but walked slower on the road, giving the People's Liberation Army time to eliminate Li Xianzhou. Yang Side warned him that once he passed, he was likely to engage in fire with the People's Liberation Army, and the result might not be able to be cleaned up. Han Liancheng said, "Li Xianzhou has an order, and it is not okay not to go." I still look forward, look at the situation and then say, where the hit is stopped. "But on the battlefield, where the square inch is so easy to grasp, the 46th Army quickly exchanged fire with the People's Liberation Army."
Suddenly, Wang Yaowu's voice came from the walkie-talkie. The commander of the Second Appeasement District was very worried about Li Xianzhou and his 73rd Army, so he got on a plane and personally commanded in the sky. He ordered Han Liancheng to rush into Laiwu City at all costs, meet Li Xianzhou, increase his troops, and break through together. Han Liancheng's idea of "stopping wherever you hit" could not be realized, and he could only lead his troops into the city.
At this time, the battlefield situation was very chaotic, and Chen Yi had originally told Han Ton to practice thousands of times, but in the end he could not prevent the 46th Army from staying away from danger. However, As an old underground party, Han Liancheng already had new plans at this time.
Li Xianzhou saw that Han Liancheng was already in place and immediately began to prepare for the breakthrough. Han Liancheng knew that now that Chen Yi and Su Yu were still deploying, Li Xianzhou would be able to give the PLA an extra chance of winning by walking a day late. So at the combat meeting, he shirked that the troops still needed to be adjusted and should wait and leave. Li Xianzhou considered for half a day, supported Han Liancheng, and adjusted the breakout time from February 22 to 23. It was this day of backward mistakes that became a watershed in Li Xianzhou's personal destiny.
In the early morning of February 23, 1947, Li Xianzhou prepared to gather senior generals for a meeting before the breakthrough. Han Liancheng proposed that he want to go to the east of the city to deploy it, but he disappeared as soon as he left. Li Xianzhou waited from morning to 10:30 a.m., and sent many people to look for it, but he couldn't find Han Liancheng. The commander of the 46th Army actually disappeared like this. Li Xianzhou sensed that something was wrong and quickly ordered a breakthrough. However, the 46th Army was leaderless and had long been in chaos, and as a result, the breakthrough time was delayed for half an hour. At 11:00 a.m., the battle began, and the guns of the East China Field Army rained down on Li Xianzhou's group, and in just two hours, a 50,000-strong unit was completely annihilated by the People's Liberation Army, and Li Xianzhou also became a prisoner of the People's Liberation Army.
So, where did Han Liancheng go? It turned out that he took Yang Side and Xie Kui to hide at an underground liaison point, and they did not come out until Laiwu was occupied by the People's Liberation Army. Just imagine if it weren't for Han Liancheng's temporary adjustment of strategy and dragging Down Li Xianzhou, it is really difficult to say whether this battle would achieve this effect.
After that, Han Liancheng met Chen Yi and Su Yu, and everyone warmly embraced and celebrated the victory. After that, Han Liancheng said that if he returned to the revolutionary ranks in this way, it would be a pity, and he could still re-enter the tiger's den and continue to lurk. So soon after, Han Liancheng came to Chiang Kai-shek's office and told his "heroic deeds" of "breaking through alone and traveling thousands of miles." Chiang Kai-shek was convinced of this, rewarded Han Liancheng, and promoted him to deputy commander of the Eighth Appeasement District. A year later, Han Liancheng officially broke away from the Kuomintang and returned to the embrace of the people. Chiang Kai-shek was puzzled by this, so he became angry with He Yingqin, saying that he had forced Han Liancheng away.
In the history of the People's Liberation Army, there is the so-called "Four Great Generals of Longtan", and Han Liancheng is one of the four. He was awarded the rank of lieutenant general in 1955 for his outstanding contributions. Later, when people talked about his story, it was very strange that Han Liancheng was deeply trusted by Chiang Kai-shek, and he was not ostracized or wronged, so why did he choose the Communist Party in the end? Premier Zhou Enlai's sentence hit the point: "The reason why Han Liancheng followed the party with an iron heart is entirely the power of faith." ”