"Chairman Mao gave the order that Deng Shijun's body must be snatched back, but he can't get your head back!" On the evening of May 21, 1951, on the banks of the Hongcheon River in North Korea, Xu Xin, commander of the 187th Division of the 63rd Army of the Chinese Volunteer Army, gave a death order to Chen Mingyue, a guard of Deng Shijun of the 559th Regiment, who had just died.
After giving the order, Xu Xin was a little uneasy and said, "Is it okay to give you 200 people?" ”。
"More than 30 people is enough, and the target is too large, but it is more dangerous." Chen Mingyue replied firmly.
"I will give you 30 men, and the artillery of the whole army will support you!"
After receiving the task, Chen Mingyue put on the walkie-talking machine, led a platoon of fighters, under the cover of the firepower of the whole army, crossed the Hongchuan River, and traveled another five or six kilometers to the burial ground of the regimental commander Deng Shijun.
The reachable location, the scene in front of him, made Chen Mingyue powerful and nowhere to go, because there were dozens of enemy tanks parked here, and the lights were bright, and there was no way to start.
After 3 attempts, but failed to succeed, Chen Mingyue had no choice but to use a walking machine to report the situation to the division commander Xu Xin, who replied that he was on standby, chen Mingyue and others waited for 2 hours, and only then did they receive the order to retreat and return to the garrison.
After returning home, Chen Mingyue found that the military commander Fu Chongbi and the division commander Xu Xin were all standing on the shore, waiting for their squad to return, and afterwards, the division commander Xu Xin told Chen Mingyue that the reason why they stayed in the same place for so long was to ask Chairman Mao for instructions, because the order to retrieve Deng Shijun's body was issued by Chairman Mao, and if they were to withdraw, they had to ask Chairman Mao for consent...
Who is this Deng Shijun? Why did his sacrifice alarm Chairman Mao? Why didn't his body come back when he was sacrificed?
Today's story is the story of Deng Shijun, the commander of the 559th Regiment, who was wounded 12 times, won the titles of "Combat Hero", "Production Model", "Work Model", "Special Combat Hero" and other titles 9 times, and unfortunately died on the Korean battlefield.
Deng Shijun, a native of Cangxi County, Sichuan, was born in a poor local peasant family, the eldest son in the family, although poor and poor, but the parents of Jackie Chan, wangzi, still sent him to a private school, but unfortunately, due to the family's poverty, he dropped out of school after only 1 year of study and went home to farm.
In 1932, the Red Fourth Front entered the river from western Hubei and liberated Cangxi, the local people rejoiced, and under the influence of revolutionary ideas, 16-year-old Deng Shijun hid from his father and mother, hiked more than 60 kilometers, and signed up for the Red Army.
After enlisting in the army, due to his young age, Deng Shijun served as a service soldier, a messenger, a trumpeter, a nurse and other positions, in January 1933, in a battle, a bullet pierced his right cheek, the wound was extremely serious, but the bleeding did not scare him, but made him more courageous, in 1935, because of his outstanding performance, he became a communist.
Soon after joining the party, Deng Shijun followed the Red Army to participate in the Long March, and along the way, he participated in countless vicious battles, such as attacking Lazikou and attacking mountain castles, Deng Shijun participated, and always rushed to the forefront, gradually emerging.
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Deng Shijun followed the 115th Division to the Jin-Cha-Ji Battlefield, and participated in the famous Battle of Pingxingguan, which was incorporated into the "Old Fifth Regiment" of the Fourth Division after the war.
In 1938, the Japanese army gathered 30,000 troops, the Ninth Road besieged the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Area, at this time Deng Shijun, was already a platoon leader, because the student camp was oppressed by the Japanese army and retreated, Deng Shijun's company went to support, and when marching to Nanpo Village, it was blocked by the Japanese troops stationed here.
At this critical moment, Deng Shijun firmly undertook the task of opening the way, and he led his troops to climb up from the cliff unexpectedly, annihilated a small group of Japanese troops, and cooperated with large troops to annihilate 300 Japanese troops.
In August 1940, the Eighth Route Army launched the Hundred Regiments War, and Deng Shijun, who had been promoted to company commander, was responsible for attacking the Mohetan Railway Station, unfortunately, there was a train carrying 700 veteran Japanese troops, followed by an armored vehicle loaded with weapons and ammunition.
The sudden situation made Deng Shijun fall into passivity, but he did not mess up, in the case of multiple injuries, he commanded the troops to retreat into mohetan village in an orderly manner, relying on street houses, circling with the enemy for 5 hours, repelling more than 10 attacks of the Japanese army, killing more than 200 Japanese Kou, and then taking advantage of the night to withdraw, and when he returned to the army, his company, only 17 people remained...
Because of his outstanding performance in this battle, his company was awarded the title of "Blood Battle Grinding River Beach Hero Company", and Deng Shi was awarded the special hero.
In a battle in 1943, Deng Shijun was wounded again and was sent to the rear hospital for recuperation, unfortunately, he happened to encounter the Japanese army sweeping, he was suffering from malaria, he was weak and could not run and fell out of the team, fortunately, the local women's rescue association president Rong Guanxiu found him, let him step on his shoulders, and sent him into a cave seven or eight feet above the ground, Deng Shijun only escaped a disaster.
When the Japanese army retreated, Rong Guanxiu took good care of him again, and Deng Shijun recovered.
In February 1944, Deng Shijun participated in the "Heroes' Meeting" in the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region, saw Rong Guanxiu again here, and immediately went to talk to Rong Guanxiu, but in the process of resisting the Japanese, Rong Guanxiu rescued countless soldiers, plus he was old, and he did not remember Deng Shijun, laughing and saying: "You are all my relatives, but who you are, I don't remember." ”。
Despite this, Deng Shijun did not mind at all, reintroduced himself, and said gratefully: "Without your rescue, I would not have lived today..."
At this meeting, Deng Shijun and Rong Guanxiu and his wife took a picture, and Nie Rongzhen personally inscribed the photo "Glory Forever".
After the meeting, Deng Shijun helped Rong Guanxiu to the mule, sent one journey after another, and when he returned to the army, he also wrote a letter to Rong Guanxiu: "... I would like to shoot the enemy of all evils with a flat end of my gun and aim accurately, to defend you, to defend our Jin-Cha-Ji. ”。
In 1950, the National Conference of Model Workers of Combat Heroes was held in Beijing, where Deng Shijun saw Rong Guanxiu again, and at this time Deng Shijun had been promoted to regimental commander, and for Deng Shijun's performance, Rong Guanxiu was extremely satisfied, touching the scars on Deng Shijun's body, asking long questions and short questions, this time, they also had a picture with Chairman Mao.
Also in this year, Deng Shijun, who had been away from home for 18 years, wrote a letter to his father in his hometown in Sichuan, and when he learned that Deng Shijun was still alive, the whole family was ecstatic and worried about his old father, and decided to go to Shaanxi to find his son.
In September of that year, he set out from Sichuan with his son, carrying straw shoes, dry food, coils and tools for making bamboo mats on his back, and began a difficult road of searching for relatives.
After eating all the dry food, running out of coils, and finishing the strips, they begged for food, and on two legs, they spent 18 days from Cangxi to Sanyuan County, Xi'an.
When he saw the old father who was dressed in rags and described as a beggar, the strong Deng Shijun burst into tears, hugged his father and cried bitterly, and everyone who saw him wept.
Immediately after, he called his wife Yuan Xiuzhen to kowtow to the old father, and then took his son Deng Qiping out and showed it to his father.
At that time, Deng Qiping was only 3 years old, which was the most adorable time for a child, making grandpa laugh, and in Xi'an, their family rarely enjoyed a period of natural happiness.
However, the good times did not last long, only ten days after his father's arrival, Deng Shijun received the order to enter the DPRK to fight, Deng Shijun took his wife and children, watched the old father leave, repeatedly instructed his father to take care of his health, said that the victory of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, he would go home to fulfill his filial piety...
In February 1951, Deng Shijun led the 559th Regiment to set foot on Korean soil, 2 months later, the fifth battle began, he returned to the battlefield, he was still invincible, led his troops to several highlands, because of his outstanding performance, the army decided to promote him to deputy division commander.
On the evening of the 19th, Deng Shijun received orders to advance in a roundabout way to the depths of the enemy, Deng Shijun led 2 battalions to advance rapidly, on the battlefield, he never took the lead, and he and the commander walked in a position even higher than the sharp knife platoon.
Soon, under the cover of aircraft artillery, a regiment of the US army launched an attack on the 559th Regiment, and under the command of Deng Shijun, the troops repelled the enemy's six charge and annihilated more than 200 enemy troops.
However, just on the way to retreat, while passing through a canyon, Deng Shijun and his party were violently attacked by enemy artillery, and a shell landed on Deng Shijun's side, and his left thigh was hit by shrapnel, and the blood flowed.
Guard Chen Mingyue saw the situation, immediately took out the first aid kit, bandaged him, unfortunately, at this time another bomb fell, shrapnel hit Deng Shijun's head, Deng Shijun died heroically, only 35 years old.
Deng Shijun's sacrifice made the comrades grief-stricken, they found a door panel, carrying Deng Shijun's body to retreat, unfortunately, the Hongchuan River, which was deep in the water, blocked the way, and there was no way to carry the body across the river, so they had no choice but to bury Deng Shijun on the other side of the river first.
When he returned to the unit, the guard Chen Mingyue immediately found the division commander Xu Xin and reported to him the sacrifice of Deng Shijun, and then Xu Xin reported the matter to Chairman Mao, and finally reached Chairman Mao's ear, and Chairman Mao instructed that Deng Shijun's body must be snatched back, which was the scene at the beginning of the article.
Unfortunately, because of the burial place of Deng Shijun, it was too close to the US tank unit to retake it, which made Chen Mingyue and others regret it.
In October 1950, the domestic corps stayed behind and found her wife Yuan Xiuzhen to talk, when she was only 24 years old, she learned that her husband had died and cried bitterly.
Yuan Xiuzhen is a native of Mancheng County, Hebei Province, born in a cold and bitter background, 8 years old to give people as a child bridesmaid, in 1946, the Red Army conquered Mancheng County, after the liberation of Mancheng, Yuan Xiuzhen also dissolved the feudal marriage contract, joined the Women's Rescue Association, and fought with comrades landlords, made military shoes, engaged in propaganda, and went all out to help the PLA team.
At that time, Deng Shijun, who was the commander of the 19th Regiment of the Seventh Brigade of the Third Column of the People's Liberation Army, was stationed in their village, and Deng Shijun on the battlefield was a tough general, but he was approachable in life, helping the people sweep the yard, carry water, collect firewood, and cultivate the land, never shouting bitterly and tired, and in his spare time, he would also sit down and talk to the villagers, and everyone liked him.
Knowing that Deng Shijun was in his early 30s and still a bachelor, the enthusiastic people in the village introduced Yuan Xiuzhen to Deng Shijun, and in early 1947, after a period of getting along, the 32-year-old Deng Shijun married the 20-year-old Yuan Xiuzhen.
After marriage, Yuan Xiuzhen followed Deng Shijun into the army, the two got along very harmoniously, in their spare time, Deng Shijun would also teach her to read and write, Yuan Xiuzhen made great progress and became a party member.
In April 1948, the two had a love crystal, the eldest son Deng Qiping was born, and the family of three was even happier.
After that, Yuan Xiuzhen followed Deng Shijun to Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia and other places, and it was not until after liberation that she settled in Sanyuan County, Xi'an.
At this time, Yuan Xiuzhen was pregnant again, and when Deng Shijun went to the battlefield, Wang Xiuzhen was holding up her 9-month-old belly, although she very much hoped that her husband could stay by her side, but she also did not cry until the duty of the soldiers was to defend the country, so she did not cry or make trouble, and took her son with a big belly to watch her husband board the train and leave.
In December 1950, Yuan Xiuzhen gave birth to a daughter, and Deng Shijun, who heard the news, was ecstatic and named his daughter Deng Juping, while Yuan Xiuzhen, who had been looking forward to her husband's return, could live happily as a family.
However, gradually, Yuan Xiuzhen found that something was wrong, after the comrades-in-arms and family members around her saw her, there were many fewer words, and even some people quietly avoided her, which made her start to wonder if her husband was injured on the battlefield again, who knew where the corps stayed, but told her that her husband had died.
After hearing the news of her husband's death, Yuan Xiuzhen washed her face with tears all day, but soon she perked up because she was going to North Korea to find her husband's body and see his comrades-in-arms.
Therefore, she sent the child back to her hometown and let her mother take care of it for her, because she did not want the old man to be sad, she did not tell them the news of Deng Shijun's sacrifice, but in the middle of the night, she told her sister the truth, and the two sisters cried with headaches.
Because she was worried about her daughter, her mother did not want her to go to North Korea, Yuan Xiuzhen lied to her mother that Deng Shijun was injured in North Korea, and I wanted to visit him, saying, kneeling on the ground and holding her mother and crying bitterly, and her mother could not bear it and agreed to let her go.
In North Korea, Yuan Xiuzhen stayed for a month, Deng Shijun's leaders and comrades-in-arms came to visit her and advised her to live well, which made Yuan Xiuzhen very grateful, she said: "Shijun sacrificed to defend the country, I want to raise two children, let them inherit their father's legacy." ”。
After returning from North Korea, Yuan Xiuzhen cheered up, raised 2 children, and gave both parents a pension to send them to the end, and gradually, her and Deng Shijun's children grew up, and Yuan Xiuzhen's life was also relaxed.
Their son Deng Qiping joined the army at the age of 16, from squad leader to regimental commander, and later changed careers, serving as a political commissar on a freighter of Tianjin Ocean Shipping Company, and daughter Deng Juping joined the army at the age of 19, was a full-fledged cadre, and changed careers with his brother in the same year and entered the Haidian Branch of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce.
Although the children's life is very good, in Yuan Xiuzhen's heart, there has always been a wish, that is, she hopes that her husband's remains can return to China, but unfortunately, until 2002, when she died of cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 75, she could not see her husband's bones.
In 2014, under the negotiation of the state, 437 remains of volunteers returned to China, and when the hearse came to the Shenyang Martyrs' Cemetery, Deng Qiping, Deng Juping, brothers and sisters, who were already more than 60 years old, lost their voices and cried bitterly, but they did not know whether there was a father of their own in this batch of remains...