History has its own life, it is like a person, both easy-going and self-respecting. ——Yu Qiuyu
When it comes to Red Army soldiers, the first impression that comes to everyone's mind should be the image of a heroic and vigorous youth. After all, in that war-torn era, physical fitness was still very important, and too young or too old may not be able to adapt to the cruel war. However, at that time, there was a small Red Army, who joined the battle at the age of seven and joined the Long March at the age of nine, and he was the youngest Red Army soldier in the history of our army, and he is still alive today. So who is this person?
His name was Xiang Xuan, and he was born in 1926 to a revolutionary family in Sande, Hunan Province, where his uncle was the famous Marshal He Long and his mother, He Mangu, was Marshal He's fifth sister. Under the influence of his uncle, almost everyone in the family participated in the revolution, and 109 relatives and clans died in the revolutionary cause. Xiang Xuan's mother, He Mangu, was one of the brave female warriors, and although she was a daughter, she did not allow her to raise her eyebrows, and she was one of the earliest military cadres and women cadres of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army in western Hunan Andu. He Mangu not only has outstanding ability, but also has a good kung fu, playing with knives and guns, even if more than a dozen men can't get close to her. However, due to the betrayal of the traitors, He Mangu was unfortunately arrested, and under the rescue of many parties, due to the special status, he never succeeded. Not long after his arrest, He Mangu was brutally killed by the enemy. After the heroic sacrifice of his mother, Xiang Xuan was taken to the side of his great aunt He Ying, but the good times did not last long, and the army of the great aunt was also attacked by the enemy, and finally due to the outnumbered, the great aunt was seriously injured, and before dying, he told Xiang Xuan to let him go to his uncle He Long, and handed him four silver dollars and a gun.
For a seven-year-old, it is undoubtedly extremely difficult to embark on the road to find his uncle alone. Carrying the relics left by his aunt, there was no specific direction, he could only hover aimlessly on the edge of the battlefield, and unfortunately he was shot in the calf in the chaos of the war. After finally going through many tribulations, Xiang Xuan finally found his uncle. When He Long saw his nephew, he was really sad and happy, so he left him by his side and specially approved him to join the Red Army, and in this way, Xiang Xuan became the youngest Red Army.
However, As a big man, He Long was also in an important position, so naturally he had little experience and time to take care of Xiang Xuan, so he handed him over to the female soldiers in the army to take care of. Although Xiang Xuan is still young, he is very sensible and often helps female warriors work, so everyone likes this little one very much. At the age of nine, Xiang Xuan began to participate in the Long March with the large army, although the conditions were very difficult, but at a young age, he never cried bitterness. Not only that, he also took the initiative to help the Red Army pass on information, and his young age and thin body were often able to confuse the enemy and pass through the blockade area. Because Xiang Xuan was often able to complete intelligence tasks well, he became the deputy squad leader of the communications class at the age of ten. As he grew older, he was no longer the skinny child he had been, but had grown into a tall warrior, and He Long sent him to the front line to fight.
On the battlefield, Xiang Xuan is a brave warrior, always rushing to the front with every charge, and the fearlessness from the bloodline makes him an excellent general. In life, he is also a humorous and funny person, and the relationship with comrades-in-arms and subordinates is very good, often telling some jokes and funny things to ease the tense war atmosphere. But surviving in the war is not easy after all, the guns on the battlefield are not long-sighted, the heroic Xiang Xuan was wounded many times on the battlefield, and even his right eye was unfortunately hit by a bullet in a battle, which eventually led to blindness. Until now, Xiang Xuan's body still has many shell debris that have not been taken out, which also causes his body to be not very good, these broken shrapnel is like a devil, from time to time to torment his life, but these are also the most direct manifestations of his outstanding battle achievements.
For his outstanding contributions to the battle, Xiang Xuan was awarded the rank of lieutenant colonel in 1955 and promoted to colonel in 1960. After consultation between the military district and a group of generals, it was determined that Xiang Xuan's military age was calculated from April 12, 1933, because on that day he took the pistol left to him by his aunt and participated in the battle, and he was wounded, and at the age of seven, he became the youngest Red Army soldier in the history of our army. Since xiang Xuan retired from the army, he has been living in the dry rest house in Shima Township, Chengdu, and although he is now more than 90 years old. Due to an injury left in his early years, he is now hospitalized for almost all years, and because of his mobility problems, he even needs help from others to go out for a walk and bask in the sun. But if I talked to him about the development of the army and the glory days of that year, the old Red Army was immediately full of energy and talked endlessly.
The years flew by, and in the blink of an eye, nearly a hundred years had passed, and those heroic and vigorous Red Army soldiers of that year had also disappeared one by one in the long river of years, and the number of remaining old Red Army troops in the whole country was also very limited, and they had dedicated their lives to the revolutionary cause of the motherland, so let us offer the most heartfelt blessings to these old Red Armymen together.