Lai Chuanzhu, a founding general, served as chief of staff of the New Fourth Army, political commissar of the 13th Corps and 15th Corps of the People's Liberation Army, and political commissar of the Beijing Military Region.
During the Long March of the Red Army, Lai Chuanzhu was famous for covering the whole army.
In November 1934, Lai Chuanzhu, who was the political commissar of the 1st Division of the Red First Army, together with the division commander Li Jukui, led his troops to cross the Xiang River and cover the crossing of the Xiang River by the central column; in early 1935, he organized troops to cross the Wu River by force, erected a pontoon bridge, and received follow-up troops to cross the river safely.
In April 1935, Lai Chuanzhu returned to the 5th Regiment of the 2nd Division of the 1st Red Army as a political commissar. At about 8 o'clock on the 25th, the vanguard of the 5th Regiment arrived at the pig farm in Xingyi County, Guizhou, which bordered Yunnan, just as the central column was passing, due to the narrow road, only one team could pass, Lai Chuanzhu immediately ordered the troops to stop in place, give way to the central column, and at the same time sent a guard to the rear. To the south is a large mountain with a steep cliff, and at the foot of the mountain there is a trail through which the Central Column (the Column of the Party Central Committee and the Central Military Commission) passes. To the northeast is also a large mountain that controls the trail at the foot of the mountain.
The Red 5 Regiment was guarded by a protruding hill next to the mountain to the south, except for a flat rice field on the north mountain corner, and there was a mountain barrier on all sides, and the mountain was covered with thatch and small trees, which was just convenient for concealment.
At this time, the warrant of the regimental commander Lin Zong arrived.
Originally, the enemy Xue Yue's column adopted the tactic of long-distance light attack, and suddenly appeared on the flank of the Red Army's advance, and the commander of the Lin Army ordered the 5th Regiment: "Resist the enemy and cover the safe passage of the central column." Lai Chuanzhu knew very well that this mission was extremely difficult. The enemy is a column, nearly 10 times the strength of our troops, and it is indispensable to fight a fierce battle.
Lai Chuanzhu gave the task of seizing the commanding heights in the northeast and blocking the enemy to the 1st Battalion. As soon as the 1st Battalion Commander went up with the team, the battle began, and the enemy was one step behind the Red Army.
The gunfire grew more intense. Xue Yue was an old rival of our army, from the "encirclement and suppression" of the Central Soviet Region to the Tailing Red Army to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. The enemy's attack was very fierce, and immediately after the failure of a charge, he organized a continuous charge in an attempt to rely on superior troop strength and use the "man-sea tactic" and the "wheel warfare method" to prevent our army from breathing and gradually compressing its positions toward our army.
The situation is getting worse.
Lai Chuanzhu couldn't help but look back at the ravine through which the central column passed. Due to the narrow mountain road, the luggage was bulky, the line was very long, and coupled with the harassment of enemy aircraft, the team had to be hidden, and sometimes stopped. Obviously, it is necessary to resist the enemy and buy time to ensure the safe passage of the central column.
Lai Chuanzhu sent people to tell the 1st Battalion to have more time to rise; on the other hand, he sent horse staff officers to urge the central column to pass as soon as possible, and after the team was finished, he immediately lit fireworks to inform the 5th Regiment.
The tense and fierce fighting on the side of the 1st Battalion continued, and the enemy was desperately trying to seize the high ground. Staff Officer Ma went for more than two hours, and the fireworks in the mountains had not yet started, which meant that the 5th Regiment had not yet completed the cover task. At the cost of heavy casualties, the enemy was desperately attacking the 1st Battalion.
The 1st Battalion fought fiercely until noon, and Lai Chuanzhu saw green smoke rising from the ravine, which meant that the central column had passed. I thought to myself, the task given to us by the regimental commander was completed.
By this time, the enemy had rushed to the position of the 1st Battalion. The 1st Battalion was engaging the enemy's short soldiers and engaged in white-knife fighting, killing inextricably.
The central column has passed safely, is the task completed? Lai Chuanzhu carefully pondered the last 4 words of the Lin Legion Commander's warrant, "Safe Passage", and thought to himself, the task was not completely completed! Keep blocking! The team of the central column has passed, but the speed of the team is not fast, if the 5th regiment does not insist on fighting and blocking the enemy, the enemy will surely follow and catch up.
The 5th Regiment was now in a more difficult position, and the 1st Battalion was moving to the main position after completing its mission of holding out. The enemy has occupied the position of the 1st Battalion of the Commanding Heights in the northeast, and can dive and shoot the main position of the 5th Regiment, and is now advancing towards the main position of the 5th Regiment. The Red 5 Regiment is facing another test of severe gorges.
Lai Chuanzhu brought in 4 heavy machine guns, mounted them on the position of the regimental command post, personally commanded, and was determined to organize forces to counter the enemy's attack.
The main position of the 5th Regiment was exposed to the threat of enemy fire in the northeast. The enemy approaching the corner of the mountain immediately launched a charge against the main position of the 5th Regiment, and with the issuance of Lai Chuanzhu's shooting order, 4 water pressure heavy machine guns spat out the tongue of fire, pressing the enemy straight.
Immediately afterward, the charge of our army resounded through the valley, and the troops rushed down the mountain like fierce tigers, not even one step behind the wounded and sick, pushing the enemy from the southern slope of the mountain to the northern slope of the mountain. The fierce fighting lasted for more than 3 hours though.
The enemy's eyes were also red at this time, and the enemy officers supervised the battle with machine guns, driving the sheep-like soldiers, stepping on the corpses on the hillside, and under the cover of superior firepower, they actually rushed up again. Lai Chuanzhu loudly ordered: "The enemy is coming to the door to send death, and the 3rd battalion has a bayonet!" ”
Liang Xingchu, commander of the 3rd Battalion, rushed down with his team, and the killing sound shook the valley, and the soldiers drove the enemy down the mountain with bayonets.
Political Commissar Lai Chuanzhu and the soldiers rushed to kill, and suddenly, a bullet entered his chest and immediately fell to the ground. By the time he woke up, he had been carried off his position by the guards and moved down on a stretcher.
The fighting became more intense. The enemy repeatedly charged seven or eight times, the weeds and small trees on the hillside were flattened, the position of the 5 regiments was still as stable as Mount Tai, and finally, the enemy moved back from the rice field in an attempt to attack our army position from the left rear, and the distance between them was only about 400 meters, but the enemy no longer dared to go up the mountain. The officers and men of the Red 5th Regiment always stood at the top of the hill and did not take the initiative to shift their positions until dusk.
In this battle, the 5th Regiment not only completed the task of covering the safe passage of the central column, but also won time and escaped the pursuit of the enemy, which was praised.