Before Chairman Mao's death, the biggest concern was who should hold China's military command.
Many people think that it must have been controlled by General Ye Jianying or Deng Xiaoping, but it did not.
Chairman Mao handed over this power, which had a bearing on the fate of the country, to Chen Xilian
。
Many people wonder why Chairman Mao would hand over this power to Chen Xilian.
Chen Xilian
Although Chen Xilian's fame is not as great as general Ye Jianying's, his strength should not be underestimated, Chen Xilian is loyal and virtuous, and many people praise his qualities.
Deng Xiaoping said:
Chen Xilian can fight wars, can plan, and is a general.
”
Mao Zedong also admired his qualities and military talent.
Chen Xilian, born in 1915 in Gaoqiao Town, Hubei Province, an ordinary peasant family, when he was a child, his family was very poor, in order to eat a mixed meal, he grew up to herd cattle for the landlord's family, when he was 14 years old, he encountered the army conscription, he decided to join the army to change his fate, and made a grand ambition to save the country and save the people in his heart.
Chen Xilian handed over his conscription volunteer form to the person in charge of the conscription, but the person in charge refused his request, on the grounds that:
You're thin and small, you may not even be able to pick up a gun, and you're too young to be a soldier
。 ”
However, Chen Xilian felt that he could do it, and he consulted with the person in charge many times, but he was still rejected.
Soon the conscription ended, Chen Xilenovo's desire to become a soldier was still enthusiastic, so he followed the troops for more than 50 kilometers, and finally the person in charge was touched by Chen Xilian's sincerity.
He was able to enter the army smoothly
From this incident, we can see Chen Xilian's tenacious and hard-working spiritual qualities.
In his first year in the army, Chen Xilian was infected by the red ideas of the Chinese Communist Party, and he joined the Chinese Communist Party with his own enthusiasm and began his revolutionary career.
In the following decades, Chen Xilian led troops to fight, accumulated rich combat experience, and slowly,
He grew from a small soldier to a Red Army general who had made great achievements.
In 1931, Chen Xilian was appointed as the political instructor of the Four Fronts of the Red Army, responsible for the political and ideological work within the Party, and successively participated in two anti-encirclement and suppression activities of our Party against the Kuomintang with the army.
In the same year, Chen Xilian and his company comrades went to attack the town of Shuangqiao, and in this battle, his performance was very outstanding.
In just a few hours, Chen Xilian's team captured the commander of the enemy army alive, and our army successfully took the town of Shuangqiao.
The superior leader praised him:
Don't look at Chen Xilian as small, the battle is very powerful, there is a set of battles, that is, a powerful steel cannon!
It can be seen that the diminutive Chen Xilian is really very good.
In 1933, chen Xilian, with his talent and courage, was promoted by his superiors and began to serve as the political commissar of the 263rd Division of the 30th Army of the Red Army. He was not only responsible for the ideological work of the contingent, but also often led the troops to beat the Kuomintang up and down, hiding in the east and fleeing from the west, and made great contributions to our party's opening up of the revolutionary base areas in the Sichuan-Shaanxi Soviet region.
subsequently
Chen Xilian led the Red Army troops to resist the Kuomintang's fifth encirclement and suppression campaign
He also led his army through the Long March and evaded several encirclements and blockades by the Kuomintang.
In 1937, the Japanese army attacked from the northeast corner of our country, gathered heavy troops in the Shanxi region of China, and in order to take the Shanxi region as soon as possible, they transferred several heavy weapons, including new tanks, artillery and fighters.
Because the japanese military equipment is really tough and strong, whenever the war starts, the Japanese planes fly over the army, and as soon as the armored tanks drive over, the trenches of our army are in a mess and miserable.
Early October 1937,
Chen Xilian was appointed commander of the 769th Regiment of the 129th Division of the Eighth Route Army
He commanded the war in the Shanxi region, and he carried out mountain movement warfare and guerrilla warfare according to the arrangements of his superiors. In order to annihilate the enemy army, Chen Xilian held out day and night without slackening off.
Chen Xilian always adhered to Liu Bocheng's instructions to annihilate the enemy on a mobile basis and annihilate the enemy in motion, and led his troops to the area of Sulongkou on the south bank of the Tuotuo River.
Sulongkou was a small village near the south bank of the Tuotuo River, and down the Shun River was Xinkou, which was an important area for Chen Xilian's forces to engage the Japanese army.
During the operation, Chen Xilian found that the Japanese planes were constantly flying overhead, and they were all heavy fighters; in order to avoid the ammunition attack of the fighters, Chen Xilian asked the soldiers to hide in place urgently, but the planes flew through the air one after another, and also dropped bombs, one after another two planes, one three planes, and the loud sound of "rumbling" came from time to time.
Many comrades looked at the bombed positions and stomped their feet in anger and scolded: "
It's really a dog day, the day devil has the ability not to scurry in the sky, there is a kind of down to the ground and Lao Tzu real gun to fight a battle!"
Subsequently, these fighters wanted to strafe the plane with the machine gun in their hands, and Chen Xilian hurriedly stopped them, telling them not to hit the grass and snakes and continue to hide.
Chen Xilian did not make a sound to the plane flying overhead, and secretly observed the situation of the plane.
Because Chen Xilian worked calmly and thoughtfully, our army suffered almost no losses in this Japanese air raid.
Subsequently, Chen Xilian reported this situation to his superior leader Liu Bocheng, who, after receiving the telegram, praised Chen Xilian's behavior and proposed: Quickly lead people to find the location of the airport and blow up the Japanese airfield, interrupting the Air Support Force of the Japanese Army.
Although the superior issued this order, chen Xilian was inevitable to complete this task, but Chen Xilian did not know the exact location of the airport, and it is conceivable that this task is still relatively arduous.
After Receiving the order, Chen Xilian immediately replied to his superiors with confidence:
Rest assured, I will complete the mission and blow up all the planes!
Then he immediately launched an investigation into the location of the airfield, and with his keen sense of military smell, he found that the Japanese fighters should be near the battlefield, and he speculated about the traces of the Japanese airfield by observing the time and route of the Japanese aircraft.
In order to get accurate information, Chen Xilian personally led scouts to inquire about the news, and asked the nearby compatriots, and found that the airport was located 5 miles south of Yangmingbao Town, in the core of the Japanese troops.
There are about 24 planes at this airport, 8 planes take turns to bomb the Xinkou and Taiyuan areas during the day, and at night, all the planes are parked at the airport for refueling and repairs. About 200 people were guarding the Yangmingbao town airport, and all of them were gathered in the northern corner of the airport.
Yangmingbao Japanese airfield was originally an airfield built by Yan Xishan, and after the Nationalist army repaired it, it was occupied by the Japanese army before it began to use, so fewer people knew about it. At that time, thousands of Japanese troops attacked, and Yan Xishan withdrew with his troops urgently.
This airfield and the thousands of supplies at the airport became the spoils of war of the Japanese army and posed a great threat to our army
After Chen Xilian investigated the location of the airport, he immediately reported the specific situation to his superiors, and immediately began to deploy the sneak attack plan and adjust the status of the army at the same time.
After all the preparations were completed, he led the 129th Division to the Yangmingbao area and prepared to attack the Japanese airfield at Yangmingbao at night.
After the troops arrived at the Japanese airfield, Chen Xi and his men bundled grenades and explosives together, and then threw them around the fuselage of the aircraft.
Just listen to the loud noise of "boo" and "boo", and several planes were blown apart
The whole airfield was in a mess, and from time to time there was a loud explosion, the airfield was full of debris of aircraft, and the Japanese garrison at the airfield heard the sound and began to fight with the soldiers of our army.
In less than an hour, Chen Xilian's troops blew up 24 Japanese fighters, annihilated the Japanese pilot team of nearly 100 people, and almost paralyzed the Japanese air military force.
After all the planes were destroyed, Chen Xilian quickly led people to evacuate the airport. When the Armored Vehicle Troops of the Japanese Army stationed at Yangmingbao came to reinforcements,
Our troops have safely withdrawn from the airfield, leaving only the wreckage of the aircraft
Because the strength of the fighter plane was paralyzed, the Japanese army in the Xinkou and Taiyuan areas could not be supported, and nearly one wing of the Japanese army in the rear was also attacked by our army and the Kuomintang troops. In order to defend the rear, the Japanese were forced to withdraw a large number of troops from the front.
Chen Xilian's current activity of destroying the airfield effectively coordinated with the Kuomintang army's battle against Japan, and at the same time, it also greatly enhanced the prestige of the Eighth Route Army, boosted the morale of our army, and made the Japanese army fear the Eighth Route Army.
The night attack on Yangmingbao shocked China and foreign countries, and many foreign military experts were amazed; this was not only a miracle created by our army, but also a miracle created by Chen Xilian.
Since then, Chen Xilian's talent has slowly been revealed, and the 22-year-old "commander of the Eighth Route Army" has also been called a name in the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, and Liu Bocheng, Deng Xiaoping, and others have given high praise.
Chen Xilian's slogan of "small steel cannon" is also getting louder and louder
When Mao Zedong heard about his achievements, he was also amazed!
After that, Chen Xilian also commanded the Battle of Shentouling and the "Nine Road Siege" of Hexiangtangpu. On the battlefield, Chen Xilian commanded Ruoding, resourceful, and led the soldiers to kill the enemy bravely, because of his amazing combat performance and unique operational thinking, he was appointed as the brigade commander of the 385th Brigade of the 129th Division and the commander of other military regions.
From this point on, Chen Xilian's military success began to take a huge leap forward, from a small regimental commander to a mighty military commander.
In August 1940, the Hundred Regiments War broke out, Chen Xilian commanded the 14th Regiment and 769th Regiment under the 129th Division to fight the Battle of Lion's Brain Mountain with the Nationalist Army, he took advantage of the favorable terrain and environmental conditions to carry out small-scale guerrilla warfare and movement warfare, to contain and mobilize the Japanese army, while suppressing the Japanese army with the fierce fire of mortars.
This battle was fought for nearly seven days and seven nights, and the enemy came to attack our army's garrison several times, but each time chen Xilian was defeated and won.
This battle,
Our army annihilated more than 4,000 enemy troops, captured thousands of pieces of armaments and materials, and won a major victory
In this campaign, Chen Xilian's troops dealt a major blow to the Japanese army, which not only boosted the morale of our army, but also created favorable conditions for operations in other theaters.
Chen Xilian (first from left) and Wang Jinshan
Although Chen Xi's joint combat skills are very exquisite, he is low-key and never shows off everywhere. Every time someone praised Chen Xi's joint combat technology in place, he always modestly said:
I don't have anything powerful, I just obey the arrangement and command of the superior leaders, or the bosses at the top are strong!
Chen Xilian is a humble, low-key, and cautious person, so he is respected and appreciated by many people in the military, and his superior leaders have praised his quality and talent many times.
It is rare for a person to have military talent, but if he is good at character and learning, he will be appreciated!
By the time of the Liberation War, Chen Xilian was even more brilliant, and his rank was constantly promoted, becoming the youngest of the many commanders of the People's Liberation Army, only 31 years old.
In 1946, the Nationalist army deliberately provoked a civil war, and under the command of Chairman Mao, all the troops of the army rushed to battlefields throughout the country.
In 1947, Chiang Kai-shek attacked our army's revolutionary base areas in Shandong and northern Shaanxi with all his might, and the whole army was forced to shift strategically.
Liu Deng's army advanced into the Dabie Mountains and directly approached the Central Plains
" plan.
Liu Deng's army advanced into dabie mountain
Subsequently, Chen Xilian followed Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping to lead troops into the Dabie Mountains and directly attack the nationalist government in the Central Plains.
Chen Xipin led the vanguard across the Longhai area, broke through the obstacles set up by the Nationalist army in the flood area of the Yellow River, and led the troops to march alternately to reduce the marching pressure of our army. After that, Chen Xilian led the advance troops to cross the Ruhe and Huaihe areas successively, and annihilated the Nationalist troops near the two rivers, providing an opportunity for Liu Deng's army to cross the river.
Because Chen Xilian led people to cross the Huai River first and blocked the Nationalist army on the other side of the Huai River, Liu Deng's army smoothly entered the northern foothills of the Dabie Mountains and set up an ambush in the northern foothills.
The Nationalist army was led into the encirclement, and the Nationalist army was annihilated by thousands of people!
Within half a month, Chen Xi's combined forces liberated 9 counties and cities in the Wanxi region, and the Wanxi region was liberated on a large scale!
In April of the same year, Chen Xilian was sent to the battlefield of western Henan, and he took the initiative in the battle of western Henan"
Avoid its sharp edge, lure the enemy deeper, and annihilate the whole army
"The tactics of our army were counterattacked by the Kuomintang, a strategically weak unit of our army, and eventually the Nationalist army was surrounded, our army annihilated the two mechanized columns of the Kuomintang, and the heavy weapons of the Nationalist army were destroyed.
The victory in this battle opened up a new situation for our army on the battlefield of western Henan and also provided a guarantee for the start of the Huaihai Campaign.
At the end of 1947, Mao Zedong and others planned the strategic counteroffensive of our army, and after the liaoshen campaign, the northeast region was basically liberated, and the next step was to liberate the central plains, and the Huaihai Campaign began.
After being instructed by a superior,
Chen Xilian led the 1st and 3rd Columns of the Central Plains Field Army to cooperate with the 13th Road Column of the East China Field Army to launch a campaign from the western front and capture Su County
Before launching the war, Chen Xilian carefully observed the map situation, personally led troops to reconnoiter and explore the enemy's situation at the combat site, and closely monitored the enemy's movements.
After all the deployment was completed, Chen Xilian led people to launch an attack on the Nationalist army and successively eliminated the enemy army. After the enemy's strength weakened by more than half, Chen Xilian led the army to quickly launch a general attack, and after a day and night of fierce fighting, the victory and defeat were divided!
Our army completely annihilated more than 12,000 Kuomintang troops in the Suxian area, and captured a large number of armaments and materials.
Battle of Suxian County
Because of the victory in Suxian County, the Kuomintang Liu Zhi's army was isolated and helpless, and fell into passivity, and the combat position of our army in the Huaihai Campaign was further enhanced. Later, Chen Xilian helped other field army units to fight in the Shuangdui area, and eventually annihilated the Elite Kuomintang Troop Huang Wei Corps.
In February 1949, Chen Xilian served as the commander of the 3rd Corps under the Second Field Army, leading the troops to participate in the Battle of Crossing the River, tossing and turning in the great southwest region, successively breaking through the enemy's border river defense line and the Zhejiang Gansu defense line.
Straight to the Kuomintang's "Old Nest Chongqing"
After capturing Chongqing, Chen Xilian served as the secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Party Committee and concurrently served as the commander-in-chief of the Eastern Army, which contributed to the establishment of China!
After the founding of New China, many revolutionary heroes were named generals, and Chen Xilian was no exception, and was awarded the rank of general.
When New China was founded, all regions were unstable, and those generals and marshals were basically sent to towns all over the country, such as Chen Yi went to Yunnan and Ye Jianying went to Guangdong. However, Chen Xilian was left by Mao Zedong to deal with some military issues.
At the beginning of 1950, the situation in Korea was critical, which seriously affected the security of our country. The Party Central Committee has decided to establish advanced artillery units for strategic defense, and at the same time set up a central leading organ to direct the formation of our artillery units.
Various army leaders have been selected, but the head of artillery is still vacant.
Who is in charge of the artillery, the Party Central Committee held a meeting to discuss.
During the meeting, Mao Zedong humorously said: "
Of course, the artillery is our Red Army devil, Comrade Chen Xilian, a small steel cannon!
After Mao Zedong finished speaking, the crowd began to laugh, saying that the chairman's proposal was very good.
In April of the same year, the Party Central Committee appointed Chen Xilian as the commander of the artillery of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. Chen Xilian was very surprised when he received this order.
He was originally humble and low-key, but after receiving the order, he felt that he was incompetent, and immediately said to the old chiefs Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping:"
Chief, I can't, I don't understand this! And I don't want to leave you! I want to work with you all the time!
Deng Xiaoping smiled and said, "
Tin Union, don't be afraid, you won't be able to learn! Wherever you go, it is for the country and the people, and you boldly do it
！”
Liu Bocheng also agreed with this.
Subsequently, Chen Xilian began to prepare for the work of the artillery unit, and his main task was to preside over the formulation of the future development plan of the artillery unit, study the development trend of the artillery, and organize the troops to develop artillery equipment.
Chen Xilian used his experience and knowledge to develop and grow the artillery unit, and provided many novel suggestions for the development of Chinese artillery!
Subsequently, at Mao Zedong's suggestion, Chen Xilian took his artillery unit to the Korean battlefield and applied his research and experience in artillery to the Korean War, providing cover for the troops crossing the Yalu River and allowing our soldiers to enter the Territory of Korea smoothly.
In the Battle of Kinmen in the Korean Campaign,
Chen Xilian's artillery technology played a huge role and helped our army win victory!
After returning to China from Korea, Chen Xilian began to study artillery matters again, and by the end of the 1950s, the artillery of our army had reached a reasonable establishment, well-trained, and complete equipment, and the scale of the artillery contingent had gradually expanded.
Wu Dongfeng interviewed General Chen Xilian
In order to study the range of the cannon, Chen Xilian led people through the desert, the Gobi and no man's land to do experiments, and later, he took people to study missiles, from the site selection of missile research bases to missile material statistics, Chen Xilian almost personally started. Through the unremitting efforts of its team, our military's missile research and development technology has reached a higher level.
Our military status in the world has also been significantly enhanced
In the late 1950s, Chen Xilian was heavily used and transferred to the northeast to take charge of the army in the northeast, while serving as the commander of the Shenyang Military Region and the secretary of the Secretariat of the Northeast Bureau of the CPC Central Committee.
Subsequently, Chen Xilian entered the Central Military Commission and concurrently served as vice premier of the State Council, so it can be said that Chen Xilian held several positions, whether it was military or political, the central authorities used him very much.
By the middle of 1970, when the Central Bloc was in a critical moment, and many leading figures of the Central Committee had been suppressed, Mao Zedong was seriously ill and unable to take into account the problems existing in the Party, and Ye Jianying was ill for a while."
Who holds the military power
"It's a big problem.
After much thought by Mao Zedong, he proposed that Chen Xilian serve as the Central Military Commission and preside over the work of the Central Military Commission.
In 1976, the Central Committee issued an instruction to Chen Xilian to preside over the work of the Central Military Commission.
As for why Mao Zedong chose Chen Xilian, there are actually the following reasons:
At this time, Ye Jianying was seriously ill, Deng Xiaoping and others were suppressed, and those who had worked in the Central Military Commission and were members of the Politburo of the Central Committee were now left with only Wang Hongwen and Chen Xilian.
Chen Xilian had formed artillery units, fought battles, and had rich experience, and he was also a member of the Politburo and the Central Military Commission.
Third, Chen Xilian is a low-key, modest, and cautious person; he has no ambitions, does not make enemies in the army, and is easy to convince the public.
Whether it is from the perspective of ability and experience, or quality thinking, Chen Xilian is the best person.
As Deng Xiaoping once said:
Chen Xilian is a low-key, capable, and ambitious man, and he only thinks about the people and the central authorities, and it is most appropriate to preside over all the work of the Central Military Commission!
For a long time after that, Chen Xilian worked in the Central Military Commission and contributed his own strength to the development of our country.
Chen Xilian has also always kept Mao Zedong's recommendations and heavy use in mind, and has always followed Mao Zedong's words, cautiously and diligently serving the work of the party and the country, and never half a point of transcendence.
In 1999, Chen Xilian died of illness in Beijing.
His revolutionary career of more than 70 years came to an end.
Although Chen Xilian is gone, his legendary revolutionary career has become a brilliant shooting star in the long river of history, forever shining, and his low-key and modest work spirit will always be remembered by the world!