Four Field Generals Series 63: Deng Yue (II)
Author: Mast
The 7th Division of the 3rd Column of Dongye can become one of the 7 main divisions of Dongye, and can be named by Lin Biao to participate in the Beiping Entry Ceremony, mainly because it can fight, have good results, and play a prestige on the battlefield.
It should be said that the 7th Division is the old eighth road from Shandong, and the foundation is better. The organizational and command skills of division commander Deng Yue also played a crucial role in the growth of this unit. Deng Yue was not only determined to fight, but also good at thinking, calm-headed, and flexible. The following two battle examples show that Deng Yue's battlefield judgment and resilience are first-class.
(1) The distribution pool could not be moved for 8 hours, and Deng Yue immediately found problems as soon as he arrived at the front
The attack on Jinzhou was the highlight of the Liaoshen Campaign. In order to capture Jinzhou, we must first clear the periphery. The distribution pool is originally a series of water supply, located in the north of Jinzhou City, and is a reinforced concrete building. With it as its core, the enemy defenders transformed the surrounding half square kilometers into defensive fortresses, with more than 20 permanent and semi-permanent blockhouse groups. The pool and its large knot about 1,000 meters to the east constitute two important strongholds in the north of Jinzhou City. The pool was initially defended by 1 infantry company, 1 heavy machine gun company, and 1 anti-aircraft artillery platoon. Before the general attack on Jinzhou, it is necessary to capture the pool and the big knot.
The pool was fought by the 7th Division commanded by Deng Yue, and the battle was extremely fierce. In the movie "Armageddon - Liaoshen Battle", there is a long battle scene for attacking the pool.
The main attacker was the 1st Battalion of the 20th Regiment of the 7th Division. Zhao Xingyuan, commander of the 1st Battalion, divided the 3 companies into 2 echelons, the 2nd and 3rd companies were the 1st echelon, the 3 companies were the main attackers, the 2 companies assisted, and the 1 company was the 2nd echelon. Artillery preparations began at 6:40 a.m. and infantry began to charge at 8 a.m.
Battle hero Zhao Xingyuan
After more than an hour of shelling, most of the enemy defenders' surface fortifications were destroyed, but there were still a large number of bunkers and hidden fire points. Therefore, when the attacking troops made a surprise attack, they were still frantically intercepted by enemy fire, and suffered heavy casualties. Due to the heavy casualties of the 3rd Company, Zhao Xingyuan ordered the 1st Company to enter the battle and join the 3rd Company. However, the enemy also disregarded casualties and launched more than 10 counterattacks in a row, and each time became more and more ferocious. Seeing that the breakthrough was slow, Zhao Xingyuan led the battalion guard personnel at noon and rushed to the position of the 3rd Company to take command nearby. By 4 p.m., the 1st Battalion had suffered more than 500 casualties, and only more than 60 people could fight, but the pool had not yet been taken.
【Battle of the Pool Outside Jinzhou】
Unable to take down the pool for such a long time, Deng Yue personally rushed to the forward command post. After observing and briefly listening to the situation report, Deng Yue felt that there was something wrong with the enemy: it had been fighting for 8 hours, the enemy seemed to be no less, the counterattack was still fierce, and there must have been a steady stream of reinforcements. Judging from this, it is likely that the enemy had a dark trench connection between the distribution pond and Jinzhou City. Therefore, the 1st Battalion was ordered to immediately stop the attack and readjust the deployment: the 2nd And 3rd Battalions were ordered to advance from east to west, insert themselves to the south side of the pool, first destroy the enemy between the pool and Jinzhou City, and then turn around to collect the defenders of the pool.
Deng Yue spent 20 minutes to complete the deployment adjustment, launched another attack at 5 p.m., 3 battalions attacked at the same time, and after 40 minutes of fierce fighting, the pool was finally captured. In other words, the small distribution pool played for nearly 9 hours before and after. After the war, there was indeed a dark trench leading to Jinzhou City in the pool.
After the battle, Deng Yue had just ascended to the pool, and the commander of the 3rd Column, Han Xianchu, also arrived. It turned out that the 8th Division was responsible for attacking the big knot, and it also encountered the same problem, and the enemy could not fight less. Deng Yue introduced the enemy's dark trenches, and Han Xianchu immediately ordered the 8th Division to adopt the tactics of the 7th Division and first cut off the enemy's reinforcement channels. As a result, the 8th Division soon took the big knot as well.
(2) The machine was arbitrary, and as soon as the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea struck, a war of annihilation was fought
On the evening of October 24, 1950, Deng Yue led the 118th Division of the 40th Army into the DPRK for five days. The first time I went abroad to fight, I kept the radio silent, and it was a night march, and I knew nothing about the enemy's situation and my feelings. Although Deng Yue had been in the battlefield for a long time, his heart was also very anxious and nervous. After encountering the headquarters of the Volunteer Army and listening to General Peng's instructions to "deal with the enemy independently, decisively, annihilate the enemy, and fight the first battle abroad," Deng Yue led his troops to continue to advance towards the Qingchuan River.
As we marched, the sound of gunfire from the south could already be clearly heard. Forty miles after the cannon was fired, Deng Yue judged that the enemy was likely to have crossed the Qingchuan River, so he said to the political commissar Zhang Yuhua: The task of our division is to reach Wenjing before dawn on the 25th, which is likely to encounter the enemy on the way. Our division is marching at night, and if tomorrow it encounters an enemy who is well rested, it will be very unfavorable to me. Therefore, I propose to shorten the marching distance tonight and let the troops camp in advance to rest and prepare for battle. If the enemy does not come, continue to Onwell tomorrow night. Zhang Yuhua and the other division chiefs unanimously agreed with Deng Yue's opinion.
At the same time, Deng Yue ordered the vanguard 354 regiment to camp in the area north of Wenjing, first occupying favorable terrain, constructing simple fortifications, preparing for battle, and then resting in hiding. The main force of the division gathered in the areas of Liangshuidong and Beizhen and entered the battle as appropriate.
At about 10:30 p.m. that night, the Avant-Garde 354 Regiment arrived at the camp area. They learned from the people's army that Wenjing had retreated that Wenjing had been occupied by the enemy. This confirmed Deng Yue's judgment. The enemy set out from Onjeong and attacked north, just as it was about to pass through the camp area of the 354th Regiment. The terrain here is very conducive to ambushes: the road to North Town is located in this section of the valley, and after our army has occupied the hills on both sides first, it can be condescending and firepower, and the woods on the mountain are also convenient for air defense.
Chu Chuanyu, commander of the 354th Regiment, and Chen Ye, political commissar, called a meeting of cadres at and above the battalion level on the side of the road, and according to the enemy's situation and terrain, planned to ambush the enemy here: the 2nd Battalion of the Vanguard was required to deploy 2 companies to guard the direction of Wenjing; the 3rd Battalion of the Rear Guard also deployed 2 companies to guard the road; the deployed troops should occupy favorable positions, build simple fortifications, and be ready for battle at any time. At the same time, it was decided to eat early the next morning, seize the rest, and pay attention to concealment.
At about 9 a.m. on October 25, the enemy in Onui moved. The infantry marched along both sides of the road, and the convoy overtook the infantry from the middle and headed for the "pocket" arranged by the 354th Regiment. According to the enemy's marching column, the commander of the 354th Regiment decided to put all the enemies in and fight again. However, due to the arrogance of the enemy, the infantry and the speed of the car were uneven, and the team was stretched to 5 or 6 kilometers. By the time the enemy tail had all entered the ambush circle, several of its leading vehicles had already crossed the ambush range of the 354th Regiment and reached the vicinity of the division headquarters.
While on the march, the enemy sharp soldiers found a vehicle parked on the side of the road, immediately opened fire, the bullet broke the glass of the command car, and the driver who slept in the car immediately got out of the car and hid. The divisional commanders who were resting in the village heard the gunshots and immediately moved up the hill. Deng Yue couldn't even put on his cotton pants, so he immediately went up the mountain to observe the situation, making a bit of a mess. Later, it was rumored that Deng Yue was "not wearing pants."
The reconnaissance company of the division headquarters, which lived at the mouth of the village, reacted quickly and immediately occupied the position and fiercely returned fire. The enemy was caught off guard and was immediately knocked down, and the rest fled back. The division headquarters was always in danger.
The 354th Regiment in front saw that the enemy troops were all in ambush range and immediately launched an attack. Deng Yue then ordered the 353rd Regiment to enter the battle and launch an attack on the surrounding enemies. At 3:30 p.m., after cleaning up the battlefield, a total of 325 enemy soldiers were killed and 161 captured (including 1 US adviser) in the battle. According to the prisoners' confessions, they were the 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Regiment of the Han 6th Division and the 1 artillery squadron attached to them, which was the vanguard of the Han 6th Division and was heading for the Yalu River.
This battle was the first battle of the volunteer army to go abroad. Winning the initial battle dispelled the doubts of whether the volunteer army could fight, found out the bottom card of the coalition army, and gained valuable experience for follow-up operations. Therefore, although this battle is small, it is of great significance, and this day has also been designated as the anniversary of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. Strictly speaking, there is some controversy over which unit fired the first shot of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. However, all the battles in the same period were fought in encounters and routs, and only the 118th Division of the 40th Army fought a prepared ambush and completely annihilated the enemy army. This is the reason why it was determined that the 40th Army fired the first shot of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea.
It should be said that Deng Yue's decisive action and ordering the 118th Division to camp and arrange the battlefield in advance were the key to achieving victory in this annihilation battle.