General Chen Xilian was a famous anti-Japanese general.
During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the 769th Regiment of the 385th Brigade of the 129th Division of the Eighth Route Army, under the command of the regimental commander General Chen Xilian, attacked Yangmingbao at night.
In this battle, fierce fighting lasted for one hour, destroying 24 enemy planes and killing and wounding more than 100 Japanese troops.
Chen Xilian created a brilliant example of annihilating a large number of enemy aircraft with infantry, and after receiving the good news, Liu Bocheng's division commander praised it: "Fight well, fight well!" ”
Chiang Kai-shek and Wei Lihuang were also very happy and issued a special commendation order to Chen Xilian, and also specially rewarded the 769th Regiment with 20,000 oceans of cash.
Chen Xilian was a famous general in a hundred battles, who could fight and lead soldiers, and the generals Wang Jinshan and Li Desheng were once his subordinates. In particular, General Li Desheng, his later achievements were even greater, surpassing the old leaders, and the official was at the level of zhengguo.
Li Desheng, born in April 1916, is a native of Xinxian County, and Xu Shiyou is a fellow villager.
Li Desheng was born very bitter, his father could not read big characters, when he was 7 years old, his mother died, and he began to herd cattle for landlords at the age of 8.
In 1929, at the age of 13, Li Desheng joined the revolution and became the head of the children's regiment.
Soon he joined the Red Army and was incorporated into the Party.
After joining the Red Army, where the fighting was most intense and dangerous, Li Desheng rushed to wherever he went, sometimes taking the place of the sacrificed or wounded platoon commander to command the battle. Once, he followed the red fourth front commander Xu to fight a charge, fighting with the enemy, in the fierce battle, he was wounded, a bullet shot between the ribs, penetrated the left lung, almost injured the heart. After the war, he recovered from three months of injuries before he recovered. Because of his outstanding performance, he was praised many times by the commanders of the regiments, divisions and even the commander-in-chief of the Red Fourth Front.
Li Desheng fought bravely, but was expelled from the party during the Long March.
In June 1935, Li Desheng was punished for opposing Zhang Guotao's erroneous line, and he was tied up and imprisoned, dismissed from the posts of party branch secretary and squad leader, and expelled from the party.
Li Desheng, who was punished, was transferred to the Traffic Brigade of Chen Xi's Joint Division as a squad leader.
Chen Xilian, commander of the Tenth Red Division, saw that Li Desheng was a talentable man, and as soon as he had time, he talked with Li Desheng and other messengers and soldiers to teach combat experience. Chen Xilian is very concerned about and trusts Li Desheng and gives a lot of care and help. Encourage Li Desheng to lay down his ideological baggage and overcome setbacks.
After the Red Army was reorganized into the Eighth Route Army, Chen Xilian, who was the commander of the 769th Regiment, continued to promote Li Desheng. Many important combat tasks were entrusted to Li Desheng to complete, so that his military talents could be displayed. In an anti-sweeping battle, Li Desheng was injured in the head, and Chen Xilian, who had just finished the battle as a brigade commander, learned the news, and immediately arranged for doctors to operate on Li Desheng, and visited him in the hospital and asked him to recover from his injuries.
Under the direct leadership of Chen Xilian, Li Desheng fought many victorious battles and experienced many major battles and vicious battles, such as the night attack on Yangmingbao, the setting up of the Xiangtangpu, and the Battle of the Hundred Regiments.
After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Chen Xilian deliberately transferred Li Desheng from the Taihang Military Region to his headquarters as the main regiment commander, and also proposed that Li Desheng be reinstated as a party member. In this regard, Li Desheng is full of gratitude.
Under the cultivation of Chen Xilian, Li Desheng gradually grew into a famous general in our army. In the Liberation War, Li Desheng successively participated in the Battle of Xiangfan, the Battle of Huaihai, and the Battle of Crossing the River, and made many military achievements.
In 1949, Chen Xilian was appointed commander of the 3rd Corps of the Second Field Army. Li Desheng served as the commander of the 35th Division of the 12th Army of the 3rd Corps.
On the eve of the war to resist US aggression and aid Korea, Chen Xilian was appointed commander of the artillery of New China. At the beginning of Chen Xilian's tenure, General Manager Zhu instructed him: We must train cadres, order weapons, and quickly form a powerful artillery unit to ensure the war to resist US aggression and aid Korea. Throughout the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the artillery under the command of Chen Xilian sent more than 300,000 artillery units to the front.
Chen Xilian's old subordinate Li Desheng went directly to the battlefield of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, successively serving as commander, deputy commander, first deputy commander, and chief of staff of the Thirty-fifth Division of the Twelfth Army of the Volunteer Army, and successively led his troops to participate in the Fifth Campaign, the defensive operations in the area south of Jincheng, and the Battle of Shangganling.
The second half of the Battle of Shangganling was commanded by Li Desheng, then deputy commander of the 12th Army.
Just after the battle of Shangganling, once, a staff officer of the Twelfth Army listened to the radio while saying: "Shangganling was also fought by us, and in the end it was all the credit of the 15th Army, and we did not mention a word of our army." ”
After hearing this, Li Desheng criticized him on the spot: "Your idea is not right, what you and we are fighting by our volunteer army!" ”
In 1955, the People's Liberation Army awarded the title for the first time, and Li Desheng was awarded the rank of major general. Chen Xilian was awarded the rank of general.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, General Chen Xilian held many important positions, such as: commander of artillery, dean of the artillery academy, commander of the Shenyang Military Region, commander of the Beijing Military Region, member of the Standing Committee of the Central Military Commission, and vice premier. It is a vice-national level.
General Lee Also held many important positions. In August 1973, he was elected to the Standing Committee and Vice Chairman. It is the level of the state.
In 1988, Lee was awarded the rank of general — the same rank as Chen Xi.
Chen Xilian and Li Desheng, the two have known each other for more than 60 years and formed a profound revolutionary friendship.
On June 10, 1999, Chen Xilian passed away, and Li Desheng was deeply saddened.
Unable to suppress his grief, Li Desheng recalled his comradeship with Chen Xilian in the People's Daily under the title of "Mighty Shock the Enemy's Courage to Fight the First Order -- Deeply Remembering Comrade Chen Xilian, an Outstanding Military Scholar."
He said with great emotion: "Comrade Chen Xilian's life is a life of revolution and a life of fighting. It is a life of selfless dedication for the party and the people. I feel infinite regret and sorrow for the loss of such an old leader and old comrade-in-arms, and I will always miss him deeply! ”