In October 1934, the erroneous ideas of Wang Ming's "left-leaning" opportunism spread within the party
The failure of the 5th anti-encirclement and suppression campaign, the Central Red Army was forced to move its base areas, opened the snow-capped mountains, crossed the meadows,
In the entire history of Chinese wars, and even in the history of world wars, it is a difficult long march that can be called legendary.
Climb snow-capped mountains
There were many children in the team, their eyes were resolute and fearless, but the childish faces made this fearlessness taste a little more bitter.
That year Yang Yongsong was 15 years old,
He was also one of these children, and at that time he was already an "old revolutionary" who had followed the party for three years.
He has gradually grown into the appearance of a teenager, his eyes are full of revolutionary faith and determination, and his life has just begun.
In 1919, Yang Yongsong was born in Hounan Village, Baihou Town, Dapu County, Guangzhou. Guangzhou is one of the most peculiar beings in China's modern history, and when the invaders repeatedly opened the gates of China with artillery fire, Guangzhou, a city that has always been prosperous in a coastal position, suddenly became a little restless.
Yang Yongsong
When the great powers developed the economy here, they also brutally exploited the people here
The development of the commodity economy has caused serious damage to the small peasant economy, coupled with years of war, which has caused a large number of fields to be destroyed, and the lives of the common people are very difficult.
The village where Yang Yongsong lives naturally cannot avoid such a disaster, not to mention that this is a family with many children, and it is naturally extremely poor.
When Yang Yongsong was 5 years old, his father died of overwork and illness, and he had no choice but to do so.
The eldest brother and the second brother can only travel to Singapore to make a living.
Life is hard, not enough to eat and wear is not warm is the norm, but
The mother still gritted her teeth and insisted on sending Yang Yongsong to the town's Stepi Primary School to study.
I hope that the child can recognize a word, and may be better in the future.
This is a great and wise mother, she knows that changing the current predicament can only make children increase their knowledge, so no matter how difficult it is, she is willing to persevere.
One day in 1928, my mother brought Yang Yongsong home.
She had already worked hard for this family, her gray hair was slumped, and Yang Yongsong knew that he had to do something for the family, and he couldn't read anymore, although he really wanted to read.
That year, Yang Yongsong was 9 years old, and his mother looked at her young son with tears, and there were too many inexplicable emotions in the tears. That year in order to subsidize the family,
Yang Yongsong went to herd cattle for people and got a small reward.
In those days of herding cattle, he saw the barren fields, the decadent houses, and saw that many people were so hard but still couldn't eat enough, clothe, and warmth, and those officials and landlords could eat and drink well if they didn't do anything, and his heart was incomprehensible, and he was even more angry.
He hopes that this situation can be changed, and he hopes that the people can live a good life.
Later, he saw the burning hope in the eyes of the second brother, which was something he did not understand called faith, and the second brother said,
Only revolution can change the status quo, and only the Communist Party can save China
。
But before that, he was still a cowherd, in fact, many of China's outstanding generals at this time were lonely cattle herders, they groped in the daily suffering and struggle,
In the end, they all became members of the revolution and became the solid backbone of New China.
When it comes to Yang Yongsong's revolutionary road, no matter how you say it, you can't avoid his second brother Yang Hesong.
Yang Hesong was Yang Yongsong's enlightenment teacher on the road to revolution
He and his eldest brother worked in Singapore to earn a living, joined the Chinese Communist Party in Singapore at an early age, and have always been enthusiastic about the revolutionary cause.
On March 3, 1928, Yang Hesong returned to his hometown to organize the revolution, and Li Guangming led the revolution."
Hundred Hou Riots"
Soon, however, the reactionary authorities had already launched a counter-offensive, and Yang Hesong had no choice but to retreat with his men.
It was during the retreat that Yang Hesong met his younger brother Yang Yongsong
，
This man who was zealous in the cause of the revolution could not even go home to see his mother and family, for if he did, he would bring ruin to his family, the revolutionaries
At that time, Yang Yongsong was only 10 years old, did not understand the revolution, only knew that the revolution was to seek happiness for the people, he wanted to participate in the revolution, just met his brother, the idea in his heart was even stronger, but due to the economic constraints at that time, no one in the county party committee agreed, Yang Yongsong went home again to herd cattle.
Warlord Chen Jitang
A year later, Yang Hesong became a member of the county party committee, and he decided to let the fourth brother return to school again, but such a day did not last long, and soon, the warlord Chen Jitang began to massacre the Communists, and Yang Hesong had no choice but to lurk.
In the days of lurking, Yang Hesong did not forget his work, always busy in the first line of revolution and the War of Resistance, he became the guide of Yang Yongsong's future life road, he led Yang Yongsong to the revolutionary road.
“
You stayed in the district committee to help deliver letters, inquire into intelligence, and do some chores
It was this sentence from his brother that made him officially participate in revolutionary work, and he was only 11 years old that year.
Later, on the way to a mission, Yang Hesong was killed in Nantong Dingjiadu, and victory was imminent.
And this revolutionary hero is no longer visible
Fortunately, his younger brother Yang Yongsong will stick to the path he has traveled and will grow into a qualified revolutionary.
In July 1931, Yang Yongsong was arrested by the "Purge" Committee on counter-revolutionary grounds, and after a few days of detention, he was released, when he had two ways to go:
The first way is to return home and continue to be his cattle herder, repeating the lives of his ancestors. This second way is to join the Red Army.
At a young age, he clenched his fists,
Resolute eyes:"
Let the Red Army test me, I am bent on revolution
。 ”
He believed he could overcome all the tests.
The Red Army crossed the Jinsha River
After Yang Yongsong joined the revolution, he was assigned to do chores and clerical work in the political department organs of the 12th Army of the Red Army, and successively participated in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th anti-encirclement and suppression wars of the Central Soviet District of the CPC Central Committee.
He quickly grew into a staunch revolutionary.
In October 1934, when the Long March began, the 15-year-old Yang Yongsong originally followed the three regiments, but not long after, because he was too young, and he had never walked such a road, he was lost, Yang Yongsong was looking for the station of the three regiments, met comrade Nie Heting, the chief of staff at the time, the chief of staff saw this thin child, and asked with some unbearable emotion:
Little devil, you are still young and your body is very weak, can you keep up?
”
Nie Heting
I am not afraid of suffering and difficulty, I can do it
The chief of staff still couldn't bear to let such a young child suffer on the road, so before the Red Army was integrated, he asked the people around him to send him home, and he gave this task to a comrade named Tan Zheng in northern Shaanxi.
After Tan Zheng investigated, he told the chief of staff with a heavy face: "
Does he still have a home there? The brothers have all joined the revolution, and sending him home is tantamount to sending him to death.
But why wasn't the Long March sent to death? The difficulties they have to face along the way are not only the layers of blockade by reactionary rulers, but more terrible is the harsh natural environment, which is endless.
As long as you fall, you can no longer stand up to the grasslands, mud swamps and snowy mountains.
Admiral Tan Zheng
Yang Yongsong's three regiments were at the forefront of the legion, and they had to take the lead in crossing the most terrible grass. Along the way, I occasionally saw military hats floating on the mud and comrades dying in the bushes.
In the course of the Long March, the Red Army, which had 86,000 men at the beginning of the Long March, and when it arrived in Yan'an in 1935, the First and Third Armies and the column of the Central Military Commission added up to about 7,000 or 8,000 people. The Red Fourth Front had about 100,000 men when it set out, and at the end of the Long March, there were 35,000 men left, and the Red Army conquered the grasslands and conquered the snowy mountains, and they also paid a considerable price.
On the 6th day of entering the Maoergai grassland, heavy rain has been falling almost all the time, and this grassland is a wet swamp,
Many comrades because their legs have been soaked in the mud for a long time, and their legs are swollen.
Walking has become difficult, but for the sake of ideals, I have to grit my teeth and persevere.
The Red Army in the Mao'ergai steppe
Yang Yongsong is even more difficult to walk, because he is young, weak, and small, his two legs have been soaked in mud and rain, and his legs are swollen like steamed buns, but he has always encouraged himself:
You can't just fall like this, you must go out
Falling down means death, which is a fact that is clear to everyone, and there is no choice but to persist. He put it on, a pair of unmade socks he bought after the first victory, and put on the new straw shoes that he had been reluctant to wear,
Pick up a branch and use it as a walking stick.
He struggled to keep up with the large army, his legs aching violently, and he meditated again and again in his mind:
You must be able to go out, absolutely not to fall, absolutely not, and hold on again
。 "When a child's heart is full of hope and faith, miracles will come.
Finally on the 7th day, his legs began to gradually swell, death passed him by, fate chose to take care of this determined child, experienced more than 10 provinces, traveled twenty-five thousand miles, defeated a thousand mountains and rivers, experienced the enemy's siege, he underwent the most serious test,
He also became a good war commander.
On July 7, 1937, the Lugou Bridge Incident broke out, and the Kuomintang and the Communist Party united to resist Japan and established an anti-Japanese national united front. Yang Yongsong served as the technical secretary of the Political Department of the 685 Regiment, as the vanguard of the troops to the Shanxi anti-Japanese front,
Participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan and the Great Victory of Pingxingguan, which is a victory that should go down in history.
Lugou Bridge Incident
Soon after, Yang Yongsong accepted the orders of the party organization and went to the Senior Party School of the Shandong Branch of the Communist Party of China in October 1942 to study, and later to the Secretary Section of the Suide Kang University General Campus. He became the head of the secretarial section and served at the side of President Xu Qianqian.
Fate put dangers on him everywhere, but he overcame the difficulties again and again,
He wrote his legend with the enthusiasm and passion of youth, grew rapidly in the military life of the Southern Expedition and the Northern War, and with the efforts of countless young people like him, the goal of the founding of new China was just around the corner.
In March 1949, Yang Yongsong was assigned to the Fourth Field Army Chariot Division as a political commissar, at that time the whole country had been basically liberated, and the liberation war had reached the end of the time.
Yang Yongsong is looking forward to the establishment of a new China
Founding Ceremony
October 1, 1949,
This is the most unforgettable day of every Chinese son and daughter, the smoke and war have finally ended in this devastated land, the thriving situation has been revealed, and everything is developing towards the best.
The founding ceremony was solemnly held in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.
Yang Yongsong's tank division was inspected, and the tank formation walked majestically through Tiananmen Square in a neat formation, waiting to be inspected by Chairman Mao and other party and state leaders.
In 1955, after the situation in New China was fully stabilized, the party and the state decided to reward heroes who made outstanding contributions in the War of Liberation, the War of Resistance Against Japan, and the Agrarian Revolution, and Yang Yongsong was awarded the rank of major general.
He was awarded the August 1st Medal of the Third Class, the Order of Independence and Freedom of the Second Class, and the Liberation Medal of the Second Class.
Order of August 1st Class, 3rd Class, 1955
The hardships and obstacles of life have portrayed glory and glory in this one, and those smoke and flames of war have turned into golden medals in their hands, and the party and the country remember their efforts and sacrifices.
Just the moment he got the medal, Yang Yongsong couldn't be happy.
The 36-year-old major general cried bitterly, he was the youngest founding general, but not the youngest revolutionary, those who fell on the revolutionary road, there were younger than him, they were all heroes, he thought of his brother, his sister-in-law, those heroes who sacrificed one after another on the road of revolution,
Comrades-in-arms.
The great rivers and mountains in front of them, the beauty and peace in front of them are their lifelong aspirations, they can't see it now, their blood spilled on the revolutionary journey, in exchange for the blossoming of flowers along the way, they built their bodies into the backbone of the motherland, dyed the bright red of the five-star red flag.
In his later years, Yang Yongsong always recalled the years of the Long March, those painful but passionate years, is the memory of his life that is difficult to forget.
In the face of the peace and prosperity of the motherland today, the old man will always recall those years, so he wrote his memoirs - "The Past of Gun smoke".
He is recalling those years, but also letting future generations remember those years, and then work harder to build the motherland.
Yang Yongsong's "Smoke and Smoke Past"
In 1968, Yang Yongsong served as the political commissar of the engineering corps of the Beijing Military Region. He was a man destined to regard the revolution as a lifelong cause, and in 1978 Yang Yongsong retired to the second line, but he still could not sit idle, and the engineering adviser in the central district of Beijing continued to contribute his strength to the military construction of the country.
In 1981, Yang Yongsong retired according to the rank of deputy corps, and enjoyed the treatment of Zhengda District for medical treatment, but he still did not idle, he always paid attention to the development of the people's army and the great cause of the construction of the motherland, perhaps he had long been accustomed to hard work, used to paying.
Those days of bloody struggle have passed, but he cherishes the life in front of him even more.
He was the only surviving founding general in Guangdong.
The founding of new China was filled with bloodshed, war and smoke, and there were always reactionary forces trying to persecute the safety of people's lives and property and to undermine the hard-won peace.
Yang Yongsong during this time,
He also actively devoted himself to the construction of the motherland, and he held important positions in important fields of new China
It is committed to China's military development, so that the army of new China will not forget the efforts of its predecessors and become a plausible PLA in the new era that obeys the party's command, can win battles, and has a fine work style.
Founding General Yang Yongsong
He could not forget his mission, could not forget the years of burning passion, some of them raised their children to become the builders of new China, and some wrote memoirs to record that time.
Some have given everything and feel that they are still not doing enough.
As of December 2020, of the 1,614 people who were awarded the rank of general from 1955 to 1965, there were only 6 living founding generals left, yang Yongsong was one of them, this year he is 102 years old, and the "Smoke and Smoke Past" written in his later years has a high reference value for studying that period of history.
In his lifetime, Yang Yongsong witnessed many major events in the history of our party, from the third anti-encirclement and suppression war to the fourth and fifth anti-encirclement and suppression war, the twenty-five thousand mile long march, the War of Resistance Against Japan, the War of Liberation,
The founding of New China has been until now
His life was a life of the Communist Party of China seeking happiness for the people and the country.
In 2016, when Xinhua News Agency reporters interviewed General Yang Yongsong, the old general Yang Yongsong participated in the flag ceremony, and looking at the young faces of the Young Pioneers who sang on the stage, Yang Yongsong said with great excitement: "
I was very excited to see so many dolls dressed in our costumes and wearing the songs we sang in that year, and I awarded the banner with the words "General's Descendants Choir" to the leadership of the troupe, which pinned on the expectations and inheritance of our older generation for the descendants of the revolution
Yang Yongsong in the work "Heroes"
On December 12, 2019, the Decision of the Cpc Central Committee Organization on Commending Advanced Collectives and Advanced Individuals of Retired Cadres nationwide commended Comrade Yang Yongsong for "
Advanced individual of retired cadres throughout the country
”。
Life is endless, the struggle is not stopped, their whole life is interpreting this word, those magnificent years constitute a magnificent picture of history, one legend after another unfolds from there, in the flames of the burning smoke and war, meet a teenager with a spirit.
The lifelong conviction of General Yang Yongsong is the lifelong conviction of countless Chinese Communists, and his brothers and comrades-in-arms have always adhered to this belief. This is the life of a communist,
Bow down to the country and the people, and dedicate his life to the party.