The 46th Army was formerly known as the Jidong Military Region of the Eighth Route Army, which then evolved into the 9th Column of the Northeast Field Army, and was later reorganized into the 46th Army of the Fourth Field Army. This unit has made great achievements in battle, annihilating no less than 130,000 enemies before and after, and producing many heroic figures, such as: Lieutenant General Zhan Caifang, Lieutenant General Yang Meisheng, Major General Li Zhongquan, Major General Yuan Yuan, Major General Zeng Yongya, Major General Xiao Quanfu... As for this article, the focus is on the relationship between Major General Li Zhongquan and Major General Zhang Xiuchuan, a foreigner.
Zhan Caifang
Li Zhongquan is a native of Daxian County, Sichuan, born in 1915. He came from a poor background and joined the famous Red Army's Eastern Sichuan guerrillas at the age of 17. He was cultured, brave in battle, and loyal to the party, so he was quickly promoted to political commissar of the Danba Tibetan Independent Division of the Red Fourth Front. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he came to work in the Eastern Hebei Region in 1942 and became the director of the Political Department of the Eastern Hebei Military Sub-district. During the Liberation War, he became deputy political commissar and director of the political department of the 9th Column of the Northeast Field Army.
Compared with Li Zhongquan, Zhang Xiuchuan's qualifications are relatively shallow. He is a native of ShenXian County, Hebei Province, 4 years younger than Li Zhongquan, and an excellent commander of both culture and martial arts. He joined the Party in 1936 and joined the Eighth Route Army in 1937, and belonged to a typical 38-type cadre. The difference is that Li Zhongquan has always been engaged in political work, while Zhang Xiuchuan has led soldiers and has also engaged in political work. In 1949, Li Zhongquan was already the political commissar of the 46th Army of Siye, and Zhang Xiuchuan was the political commissar of the division of the 41st Army.
Lee Chung-kwon
One is the old Red Army, the other is the old Eighth Road, although they work in the northeast region, they hardly have any intersection. Similarly, both are from the countryside, both have a certain culture, are brave in battle, loyal to the party, and are honest and upright, and have a strong party spirit. In 1950, the 46th Army was ordered to stay in the Shonan region to suppress bandits. The military commander is Yang Meisheng, the political commissar is Li Zhongquan, and the deputy military commander and chief of staff is Xiao Quanfu. At this time, Zhang Xiuchuan was appointed director of the political department of the 46th Army.
Li Zhongquan greatly admired this little brother who was excellent in military and political affairs, and Zhang Xiuchuan also had great respect for this elder brother who was highly respected and respected. The two have similar temperaments and cooperate tacitly. Under the joint command of Yang Meisheng, Li Zhongquan, Xiao Quanfu, Zeng Yongya, Zhang Xiuchuan, and other generals, our army quickly and completely eliminated the banditry in the Shonan region. According to statistics, our army has annihilated nearly 30,000 bandits in the Shonan region, absorbed nearly 10,000 miscellaneous armed forces, and sheltered about 15,000 rangers of the enemy's regular army.
Zhang Xiuchuan
In 1951, Li Zhongquan was transferred to the 46th Army. He was ordered to come to Kaiyuan, Liaoning, and was reappointed as the political commissar of the 3rd Army of the Air Force. The commander was Zeng Guohua, who had been the chief of staff of a corps in Shino. I have roughly calculated that from Zhang Xiuchuan to the 46th Army, to Li Zhongquan's departure from the 46th Army, it was less than a year. Although the time of coexistence is not long, the relationship between Li Zhongquan and Zhang Xiuchuan is not bad. At least, there is no information to show that the two have had any major holidays.
Li Zhongquan was full of ambition and was bent on making some achievements in the air force system. However, within half a year, he left the Air Force 3. In 1952, the whole army cadre was rated, and he was designated as a deputy military cadre. In 1955, the old hero, who had served as the political commissar of the Tibetan Independent Division during the Red Army, was awarded only the rank of major general. As for Zhang Xiuchuan, he was appointed as a cadre at the rank of quasi-military. In 1955, he was also awarded the rank of Major General. Soon after, he was officially appointed political commissar of the 46th Army.
I have read the memoirs of Major General Li Zhongquan, and he has a very low opinion of Zhang Xiuchuan. Moreover, as soon as the old subordinate was mentioned, he immediately became grumpy. From a close comrade-in-arms, quickly transformed into a passerby, and even an unrequited relationship, why is this? I checked, probably there are two most important factors: First, Zhang Xiuchuan once led people to criticize the old political commissar, which made Li Zhongquan very embarrassed. Secondly, Zhang Xiuchuan later embarked on a road of no return.
In 1951, Li Zhongquan was then the political commissar of the 46th Army, and he was ordered to be the political commissar of the 3rd Air Force. At that time, everything was in ruins, and the Air 3 Army could be described as poor and white. Li Zhongquan looked in his eyes and was anxious in his heart. So, he violated the discipline of the time. He took a batch of funds belonging to the 46th Army without authorization and brought it to the Air Force 3 corps in the northeast. He used the money to build a house in the Air 3 Army and buy a batch of equipment. It can be said that the establishment of the Air Force 3 Army is inseparable from his painstaking efforts.
Zhang Xiuchuan was the one who knew about the matter, and although he was not happy, he did not stop Li Zhongquan. Moreover, he was powerless to stop Li Zhongquan at all. Some people recalled that the two had a big fight over this matter and eventually broke up. Soon, the 46th Army launched an internal campaign to crack down on all corrupt elements. Subsequently, Li Zhongquan, who had left the army, was exposed and made the target of key criticism. After Li Zhongquan heard the news, he was furious and quickly returned to the old unit to complain.
Then, an angry Li Zhongquan actually quarreled with some old subordinates in public. In the end, he did not pass the pass and was punished by the superior department. At that time, he was the political commissar of the 3rd Air Force, and he was only designated as a deputy military cadre. Soon after, he was reappointed chief of staff of the Air Force of the Beijing Military Region. In 1955, he was awarded only the rank of major general. In fact, with his seniority, prestige, and military achievements... For his part, he was fully qualified for the rank of lieutenant general. However, he was unfortunately planted on this internal movement.
Li Zhongquan insisted that Zhang Xiuchuan was deliberately targeting himself, so he has since formed a grudge with him. His memoirs often reveal his dissatisfaction and hatred for Zhang Xiuchuan. In fact, it is not unusual for Li Zhongquan to take away funds without authorization. Although this incident violates the discipline of our army, it is not illegal. Moreover, he devoted all this money to army building, which fully embodies the party spirit and consciousness of an old hero of the old Red Army and the eighth road, and deserves our admiration.
In the parlance of the time, this was called localism. He loved the 3rd Air Force, but his actions were extremely unfair to the 46th Army. In accordance with the discipline and custom of the time, it was strictly forbidden for anyone to take any property of one unit without permission, including to another unit. For example, there is a cadre in the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region of the Eighth Route Army, his name is Chen Zhengxiang. Before he left the Jin-Cha-Ji First Division, he left behind his beloved shell gun and telescope, which were all things sent to him by the First Division.
Later, Li Zhongquan successively served as deputy commander of the Air Force of the Beijing Military Region, deputy commander of the Air Force of the Nanjing Military Region, and second political commissar of the Air Force of the Nanjing Military Region. In 1983, at the age of 68, he retired and enjoyed the treatment of deputy military district. He died in Beijing in 2014 at the age of 99. According to the supplementary introduction, most of his family members joined the Red Army or sympathized with the Red Army, which can be described as full of loyal martyrs. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, only he, the fourth brother Li Zhongbai, and his sister Li Zhongqiu survived, and they were all heroes.
As for Zhang Xiuchuan, he was promoted to political commissar of the 46th Army in 1955. In 1962, he was promoted to director of the Navy's Political Department. In 1968, he was promoted to deputy political commissar of the Navy. Soon, he was reappointed as the political commissar of the People's Liberation Army Military and Political University, and the president was Huang Yongsheng, chief of the general staff. He was also elected alternate member of the Central Committee in 1969. In 1971, Lin Biao had an accident, and he was also affected and suspended for review. He was then expelled from the party and the military and later died in 2005.
After writing about Li Zhongquan and Zhang Xiuchuan, I was thinking about writing about the following generals or troops. However, it is really difficult to decide who to write first, and I hope that everyone will give an opinion: Chen Zhengxiang, why did he leave the Eighth Route Army Jinchaji First Sub-district; Guo Huaruo, who served as the political commissar of the corps, why was he designated as a deputy corps-level cadre and obtained the rank of lieutenant general; Chen Mingyi of the 18th Army, returning to his hometown in Shangcheng... Under this explanation, even if some pictures and texts are written, it is difficult to pass the review, I hope you can understand!