The Kunming Military Region is stationed in Yunnan, bordering Vietnam, and has been undertaking combat tasks since the mid-1960s. For the appointment of the commander of the Kunming Military Region, the Central Military Commission has always selected from among the fierce generals with outstanding military achievements. Wang Bicheng, who served as commander of the Kunming Military Region from June 1971 to January 1979, was known for fighting big, hard, and vicious battles, and was a "tiger general."
In January 1979, another month after the outbreak of the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam, the Central Military Commission considered Wang Bicheng's physical reasons and was not suitable for commanding the operation, and changed generals on the spot. By comprehensive measures, Yang Dezhi, the commander of the 68-year-old Wuhan Military Region, was appointed to succeed him.
01. Wang Bicheng created 4 "firsts" of the New Fourth Army against the Japanese army, and Zhang Lingfu in the three wars of the Liberation War
Wang Bicheng was born on February 29, 1912, to a poor peasant family in Macheng, Hubei Province. At the age of 17, he joined the Red Army and fought bravely, bravely and well. He successively participated in the anti-"encirclement and suppression" campaigns in the Eyu-Anhui Soviet District, the anti-"siege" in the Sichuan-Shaanxi Soviet District, and the 25,000-mile Long March. At the end of the Long March, he had grown from a Red Army soldier to a deputy commander of the 89th Division of the Red 30th Army.
At the beginning of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, after graduating from the Anti-Japanese Military and Political University in Yan'an, Wang Bicheng served as the chief of staff of the Second Regiment of the First Detachment of the New Fourth Army, and soon became the regimental commander. He commanded the Second Regiment to achieve 4 "firsts" in the New Fourth Army's battle against the Japanese army. The Battle of Xinfeng Station was the first night battle of the New Fourth Army; the Battle of Jurong was the first battle to break into the enemy-occupied county; the Battle of Dongwan was the first example of a reinforcement battle at an offensive point; and the Great Victory at Yanling was the first battle of the New Fourth Army that attracted national attention. Many battles and victories made Wang Bicheng famous, and his second regiment was called "Tiger Regiment" and he was called "Wang Tiger".
In 1941, after the Anhui Incident, the New Fourth Army was rebuilt, and Wang Bicheng served as the commander of the 2nd Brigade of the 1st Division, and the commander and political commissar of the division was the famous Su Yu. At the end of 1942, the main force of the 2nd Brigade crossed the river south and merged with the 16th Brigade, which was assigned to the command of the 1st Division, with Wang Bicheng as the commander of the 16th Brigade and Jiang Weiqing as the political commissar.
After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the 16th Brigade was renamed the 1st Column of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Military Region. At the beginning of 1946, it was renamed the 6th Division of the New Fourth Army, and Tan Zhenlin served as the division commander and political commissar, but the actual work was presided over by deputy division commander Wang Bicheng and deputy political commissar Jiang Weiqing. Beginning in October 1946, Wang Bicheng led the 6th Division to fight zhang Lingfu's reorganized 74th Division.
In late October 1946, Zhang Lingfu was born in World War I. Wang Bicheng commanded the 6th Division to fight with the 18th Brigade for 14 days, defending the Lianshui City in Huaiyin and covering the safe evacuation of the leading organs of the party, government, and army in central China. Although more than 7,000 enemy troops were annihilated, Wang Bicheng also learned the strength of the 74th Division. He sighed: The army is defeated and the mountain does not fall, this Zhang Lingfu has his own set.
In December 1946, Zhang Lingfu in World War II, Wang Bicheng suffered the biggest defeat in his life. Although more than 8,000 enemy troops were annihilated, the 6th Division suffered more than 5,000 casualties, most of whom died heroically. Wang Bicheng was almost dismissed by Chen Yi for investigation, but thanks to Su Yulibao, he was changed to staying on his post for inspection. Although Zhang Lingfu won, the backbone of the grass-roots battle suffered heavy losses, laying the groundwork for Meng Lianggu's defeat.
In May 1947, Wang Bicheng, who was already the commander of the Sixth Column of the Central China Field Army, fought a decisive battle with Zhang Lingfu's reorganized 74th Division at Menglianggu. Ye Fei's one column, Tao Yong's fourth column, Wang Jian'an's eighth column, and Xu Shiyou's nine columns coordinated. In the end, Wang Bicheng's special agent regiment directly attacked the command post of the 74th Division in the cave around Meng Lianggu's waist and killed the division commander Zhang Lingfu.
02, the change of war will become Wang Bicheng's regret in life, he sent three and a half people from his family to the front line
In 1978, Vietnam fought with the support of the Soviet Union, but our government repeatedly advised and expanded its ambitions, armed provocations against our borders, and killed and injured our border people. In December, the Central Military Commission decided to fight a self-defense counterattack against Vietnam.
Considering the physical reasons of Commander Wang Bicheng, the Central Military Commission is no longer suitable for commanding a high-intensity war, and is transferred to the commander of the Wuhan Military Region, which has become a regret for wang Bicheng, a "tiger general."
In order to make up for his regrets, Wang Bicheng wrote to his sons and daughters, hoping that they would go to the front line to defend their families and defend the country. With his encouragement, his son and his most beloved little daughter went to the front. The daughter-in-law, who was already two months pregnant, also took the initiative to ask Miao to go to the front, and Commander Wang readily agreed.
Wang Bicheng said in his later years: Although it is a pity that I cannot go to the front, there are three and a half people in the family who have gone to the front line. His son and daughter were both awarded the third class for their bravery in battle.
In June 1987, the Central Military Commission approved Wang Bicheng's retirement. On March 13, 1989, Wang Bicheng died of illness in Nanjing at the age of 77.
03. From the son of a blacksmith to the commander-in-chief of the Volunteer Army, Yang Dezhi has made outstanding achievements in battle
Yang Dezhi was born on January 13, 1911, to a poor blacksmith family in Nanyangqiao, Liling County, Hunan Province. Since I was a child, I only read the "Three Character Classic" and "Hundred Family Names" for a few days, and then I followed my father to learn to play iron to make a living. At the age of 14, he followed his brother to work as a coal picker in an anyuan coal mine in Jiangxi.
In January 1928, Yang Dezhi, who had just turned 17, participated in the Shonan Rebellion in Chenzhou, Hunan Province, and then followed Zhu De and Chen Yi to Jinggangshan and became a member of the Red 4th Army.
From January 1929 to October 1934, Yang Dezhi successively participated in successive anti-"encirclement and suppression" operations in the Central Soviet Region, and because of his combat tact and bravery, in the fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" operation, he began to serve as the commander of the 1st Regiment of the 1st Division of the Red 1st Army.
In the course of the Long March, he led the Red 1 Regiment to break through the natural dangers of the Wujiang River, creating favorable conditions for the capture of Zunyi. Personally commanding 17 brave soldiers to forcibly cross the Dadu River, killing a bloody road for the central Red Army column, and smashing Chiang Kai-shek's delusion of turning the Red Army into "Shi Dakai's second" delusion.
During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Yang Dezhi served as the commander of the 685th Regiment of the 115th Division of the Eighth Route Army, commanded the troops to participate in the Battle of Pingxingguan, fought in coordination with brother troops, annihilated more than 1,000 enemy troops, and dealt a heavy blow to the elite Sakagaki Regiment of the Japanese Army.
During the Liberation War, Yang Dezhi served as the commander of the Jin-Cha-Ji Field Army, and led his troops to conquer Shijiazhuang after 6 days and nights, annihilating more than 24,000 Kuomintang troops, setting a precedent for the People's Liberation Army to seize large cities. Subsequently, on the orders of Chairman Mao, he commanded the troops to completely annihilate more than 19,000 enemy defenders in Zhangjiakou and the New Security Kuomintang, making an important contribution to the final victory of the Pingjin Campaign. The new security battle is included in the military history curriculum as a typical example of the PLA's movement to annihilate the enemy.
In January 1949, Yang Dezhi was appointed commander of the 19th Corps, incorporated into the First Field Army, under the command of Peng Dehuai, together with brother troops, eliminated more than 44,000 people of Hu Zongnan's group, completely annihilated The Qinghai Ma Bufang and Ningxia Ma Hongkui Groups, and avenged the Red Army's Western Route Army.
In the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Peng Dehuai named him to participate, and he successively served as commander of the 19th Corps, the second deputy commander of the Volunteer Army, and in November 1954, he served as the commander of the Volunteer Army, and successively organized and participated in the Fifth Campaign, the All-Front Tactical Counterattack Operation of the Volunteer Army, the Battle of Shangganling, and the Summer Counterattack Campaign.
In August 1953, Yang Dezhi led the team to participate in the 4th anniversary of the National Day as the head of the volunteer army delegation. On the upper floor of Tiananmen Square, Chairman Mao personally introduced him to Liu Shaoqi, Zhu De, Zhou Enlai, and other central leaders: "This man's name is Yang Dezhi, the leader of the Red 1 Regiment who forcibly crossed the Dadu River, and now the deputy commander of the Volunteer Army, and Dehuai's assistant. Hunan people's clan, my hometown! ”
At the age of 04 and 68, he was appointed commander of the Kunming Military Region and commanded the counterattack against Vietnamese self-defense
In 1955, Yang Dezhi was awarded the rank of founding general and successively served as the first commander of the Jinan Military Region and the commander of the Wuhan Military Region. In 1979, on the eve of the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam, the central leadership talked to him and asked him if he could go to the front line as a commander. Yang Dezhi did not hesitate to take a stance: everything obeys the central authorities.
On January 7, 1979, Yang Dezhi was appointed commander of the Kunming Military Region. The situation at that time was unfamiliar to him: the terrain of Yunnan was unfamiliar; the enemy situation was unfamiliar; and the troops participating in the war were not familiar. He quickly led the personnel of the organs to survey the terrain, listen to the pre-war preparation report, and study the battle plan.
On February 17, the day of the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam, Yang Dezhi's stomach began to hurt. On the 25th, the battle progress was very smooth, and the troops arrived at the predetermined combat area, but due to the high-intensity command, he frequently had blood in the stool, lost too much blood, and fainted at the command post. Rushed to the field hospital, there was already heart failure, the doctor immediately injected morphine, about six or seven minutes later, Yang Dezhi's heart resuscitated.
The next day, the central government sent a special plane to pick him up and send him to the 301 Hospital, where he was rescued after two days of rescue before the crisis turned to safety. Despite his weakness, he set up a combat telephone at the head of the bed and spoke to the command post. On March 5, the Chinese government announced the end of the operation, and Yang Dezhi commanded the safe retreat of the troops from his hospital bed.
After the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam, in March 1980, Yang Dezhi was appointed chief of the general staff, and stepped down in November 1987. He died in Beijing on October 25, 1994 at the age of 83 due to illness.
The Slovaks are gone, and the style is still there. Throughout Yang Dezhi's life, he was a famous general and excellent military expert who grew up as a soldier of the Red Army, with outstanding military ability and outstanding combat achievements, which deserve to be remembered by every Chinese.