In July 1995, Liao Xilong, then deputy commander of the Chengdu Military Region, took over Kui Fulin and formally took charge of the Chengdu Military Region. In January 1959, at the age of 18, Liao Xilong was conscripted into the army. Liao Xilong's military quality is excellent, but his education is not high, and he was once faced with the difficult choice of going and staying.
In February 1979, the counterattack against Vietnam broke out, and Liao Xilong, then deputy commander of the 91st Regiment of the 31st Division of the 11th Army, led his troops deep into the enemy territory and achieved good results, becoming the focus of the superior chief. In April 1984, Liao Xilong was already the commander of the 31st Division of the 11th Army, and the Battle of Yinshan became famous in the Battle of Yin mountain.
Pictured | the early years of Liao Xilong (a man in a coat).
In less than half a year, Liao Xilong became the commander of the 11th Army (partner Qu Mingyao) and the last commander of the 11th Army. In June 1985, the 11th Army was ordered to withdraw, and Liao Xilong was promoted to deputy commander of the Chengdu Military Region, one of the youngest senior deputy generals of the Grand Military Region.
By July 1995, Liao Xilong, who had been serving as deputy commander of the Chengdu Military Region for more than ten years, was promoted to commander of the Chengdu Military Region. His partner is Zhang Zhijian. Zhang Zhijian has an extraordinary resume, his military career is similar to Liao Xilong's, he is a veteran of the battlefield for a long time, and he is also a "strategist" who is both military and political.
Tu | Liao Xilong (then commander of the Chengdu Military Region)
In May 1934, Zhang Zhijian was born in Beiguo Village, Wenxi County, Shanxi Province. The name wenxi county has a long history, starting in 111 BC (the sixth year of the Western Han Dynasty). In the same year, Emperor Liu Che of the Han Dynasty passed through Zuoyi Tongxiang because of his inspection of the Ling clan, and he was pleased to hear that the Han army had won the victory of Pingnan yue, so he was named "Wenxi".
Wenxi has gone through thousands of years, and the name of the county has not changed. What is less known is that Wenxi is an old revolutionary area, and chenjiazhuang under its jurisdiction was the seat of the three local committees of Taiyue during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the War of Liberation, where Jia Kangjie, Chai Zemin, Jin Changgeng and other proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation fought and lived.
Pictured| Zhang Zhijian
Citing the "Genealogy book of Anti-Japanese Heroes", the deeds of 60 anti-Japanese martyrs, 60 anti-Japanese heroes, 120 anti-Japanese figures, and 254 anti-Japanese figures in the county were recorded. It can be seen that Wenxi is also a hot land with no shortage of heroes, which has had a profound impact on Zhang Zhijian.
At the beginning of 1950, Zhang Zhijian was admitted to Yuncheng Normal School (the predecessor of Yuncheng Normal College). In July 1951, Zhang Zhijian threw himself into the pen and became a cadet of the 31st Infantry School, and later transferred to the Military and Political Cadre School of the North China Military Region. In August 1952, Zhang Zhijian became a teacher at the Chahar Military Region Cultural Accelerated School.
Figure | the leading group of the 67th Army during the period of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea
In December of that year, Zhang Zhijian was ordered to enter the Korean War and accepted the baptism of modern warfare. In June 1954, Zhang Zhijian was selected to study in the Volunteer Army Staff School after actual combat experience and a good cultural foundation. In July 1957, Zhang Zhijian was transferred to the Staff Of the 67th Army Training Office.
The 67th Army is of the blood of the 115th Division of the Eighth Route Army and is known as the "Royal Forest Army of North China". As early as the period of the Liberation War, it was the main force of the field army of the North China Military Region. In the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the 67th Army annihilated more than 87,800 enemy troops, ranking first among the 27 armies, and belonged to the elite of the aces worthy of the name.
Old photo of the 67th Army |
After Zhang Zhijian was transferred to the 67th Army, he engaged in staff related work in the army for a long time. By May 1978, Zhang Zhijian was the chief of staff of the 201st Division. In 1979, Zhang Zhijian was promoted to deputy chief of staff of the 67th Army. In December 1980, Zhang Zhijian was appointed commander of the 200th Division. In May 1983, Zhang Zhijian replaced him as commander of the 67th Army.
In January 1985, the Central Military Commission dispatched the 67th Army to participate in the Two Mountains Round Battle Mission, with the 199th Division as the main force and the 138th Division of the 46th Army, with a total of 19,931 troops (excluding follow-up troops). Immediately, Zhang Zhijian and Jiang Futang organized troops and traveled more than 4,000 kilometers into the southern Xinjiang front. At the end of March, Zhang Zhijian combined the combat characteristics of the Vietnamese army and conducted targeted combat training.
Pictured| Zhang Zhijian (front row center) on the front line of Laoshan Mountain
At the end of May, the 67th Army took over the defensive positions of the 1st Army of the Nanjing Military Region in the Laoshan and Balihe Dongshan areas. The 67th Army was worthy of being the main ace force, and it was the first of the brave troops to participate in the war in the number of enemy annihilators in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and continued to write brilliantly in the Battle of the Two Mountains:
During the war against Vietnam, the 67th Army annihilated 8,400 enemy troops (killing more than 4,000 enemy, wounding 4,390, and capturing 10), destroying 225 enemy artillery pieces, 27 vehicles of various kinds, and 1,150 various fortifications, and capturing 3 artillery pieces, 141 guns of various kinds, and various military supplies.
Zhang Zhijian, unlike other military commanders who participated in the rotational battle, was promoted to deputy commander of the Jinan Military Region (then commander Li Jiulong) in June 1985, which is very rare. In September 1988, our army resumed the rank system, and Zhang Zhijian was awarded the rank of major general.
In July 1990, Zhang Zhijian was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general. In November 1992, Zhang Zhijian crossed the military region to serve as deputy commander of the Beijing Military Region and commander of the Beijing Garrison District. In December 1993, Zhang Zhijian's military career took a major turn: from military chief officer to political chief officer, he became the political commissar of Chengdu Military Region.
Picture | Liao Xilong and Zhang Zhijian accompanied Zhang Wannian to inspect the grass-roots level
Since then, Zhang Zhijian has partnered with Li Jiulong (term of office from September 1991 to October 1994) and Kui Fulin (term of office from October 1994 to July 1995). In July 1995, Liao Xilong took charge of the Chengdu Military Region, and his first partner was Zhang Zhijian. In March 1998, Zhang Zhijian was promoted to the rank of general. In May 1999, Zhang Zhijian retired from active duty due to his age.
Resources:
[1] "The Legendary Liao Xilong - Memoirs of the Veterans of the 11th Army" (Southern Xinjiang Khan Qing Yiyuan Forum);
[2] "Casting the Soul of the Border Pass Army: Visiting Lieutenant General Liao Xilong, Commander of the Chengdu Military Region, and General Zhang Zhijian, Political Commissar" (Xie Jichao, Wan Yuan, Zhao Zhonglu, "Western China");
[3] "Zhang Zhijian - Wenxi Contemporary Figures Special Topic" (Boya Culture Tourism Network);
[4] A Brief History of the 67th Army of the People's Liberation Army of the Chinese (Xu Huiru, "Military History").