What is history: it is the echo of the past to the future, the reflection of the future on the past. - Hugo
In November 1948, six columns of the East China Field Army surrounded 120,000 men of the Kuomintang Huang Baitao's 12th Corps in the area of Nianzhuangwei.
On November 11, Su Yu used three columns to block the enemy of Huang Baitao in the east of Xuzhou, and surrounded Huang Baitao's army with six columns.
However, after the battle began, for the first three days, Huaye's progress was not smooth. Many positions were repeatedly fought over, and although the encirclement was reduced, the casualties were very large. For this reason, the Kuomintang trumpeted and shouted "a great victory in the milling of Zhuang wei", and Chen Cheng shouted at the case:
"Huang Baitao is a true hero also!"
The front-line generals of the People's Liberation Army unanimously reported: "Huang Baitao is difficult to fight!" At the same time, the three columns responsible for fighting the enemy's reinforcements also fought very hard, and even the officers and men below the battalion commander went to fight for bayonets.
This put a lot of pressure on Su Yu, the acting commander of Huaye.
For this reason, he believed that in order to annihilate Huang Baitao, it was necessary to first change the situation of Xu Dong's blockade battle, and first of all, he would give a more powerful blow to the two corps of enemy reinforcements, Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi. After a few days of thought, he set his sights on Pantang in the southeast of Xuzhou.
Pantang, south of the Xudong Battlefield, was the throat of the two land routes of longhai and Xuhuai, and the only communication lifeline of the Kuomintang army in Xuzhou. Through Pantang, to the west, it is possible to detour to the flank of the enemy Qiu Qingquan's eastern reinforcements, and to the east, it can also detour back to the flank of the Huaye reinforcements. This is a key area that moves the whole body.
Therefore, Su Yu resolutely ordered the three columns of the Northern Jiangsu Corps, which were responsible for providing reinforcements, to go forward to clamp down and intercept the enemy in Xuzhou, to insert Pan Tang to attack the rear road of the Qiu Corps' eastern reinforcements from the flanks, and to force Qiu and Li Bingtuan to look west at Xuzhou with the tactics of attacking them and forcing them to look west to Xuzhou, and did not dare to dare to come to the aid of the east.
Unexpectedly, at this time, Du Yuming, the supreme commander of the enemy front, also became interested in Pan Tang.
On November 14, the Kuomintang troops reinforcing to the east, due to the fierce resistance of Huaye, Qiu Qingquan could only advance two or three kilometers a day, and Li Mi could only capture two or three villages, so gu Zhutong, the chief of staff in Nanjing, ran to Xuzhou to supervise the battle, and when he saw Du Yuming, he asked:
"The enemy has only two or three columns, so why can't the two corps move?"
He strictly ordered Qiu and Li to attack and advance.
On the same day, Du Yuming ordered Qiu and Li: "Regardless of all sacrifices, occupy the Daxu family within one day, otherwise the military law will be engaged!"
Du Yuming also transferred the second-line troops of the 74th Army to assemble near pantang town, attacked the Daxu family from the Pantang Shun Shuanggou Highway, and stabbed at the flank of Huaye's troops to open the deadlock that could not be attacked head-on.
Both sides of the war took a fancy to Fantang, and the dramatic Battle of Pantang occurred.
In the early morning of November 16, two opposing forces of the Nationalists and Communists encountered Zhangji, southeast of Pantang, and immediately went to war.
At dawn, the generals on both sides were astonished: on the battlefield about 5 kilometers across Pantang, the enemy and our canine teeth were intertwined. However, in the fierce battle, the positions of the Nationalist 74th Army were broken several times, and the 261st Division of the 107th Army was defeated. Qiu Weida, commander of the 74th Army, exclaimed: "In front of us are the numbers of four or five columns of the communist army. One of the regiments was only 3 miles from his command post. At the same time, Teng Haiqing, commander of Huaye's Second Column, also found that an enemy regiment was only one ditch away from his headquarters.
The commander of the enemy regiment, Qiu Qingquan, was surprised to receive Qiu Weida's report, and urgently ordered the 70th Army west of Xuzhou to reinforce Pantang, and ordered the 112th Division of the 12th Army on the right flank of the 74th Army to participate in the battle, while requesting air support from Nanjing.
After a day and a night of fierce fighting, the two sides repeatedly fought, each with casualties, so the war was in a state of stalemate.
At this time, Su Yuxian had a move.
On November 17, he found that the main force of the enemy reinforcements, except for Li Mi's corps, had reached the Pantang front line, and immediately ordered huaye's main force to withdraw from some positions, so that the enemy could boldly move eastward, lure the enemy deeper and then surround and annihilate.
In the early morning of the 18th, the enemy commander Qiu Weida reported upwards: "The communist army in the southeast of Pantang Town has retreated. Subsequently, the enemy air force reconnaissance plane also reported: "Found that the communist army retreated." ”
Qiu Qingquan, Du Yuming, and Liu Zhi all judged that "the communist army was in a general rout", immediately ordered a pursuit, and sent a telegram to Nanjing informing them of the "Pantang Victory". The Nanjing side immediately held a zhujie conference to celebrate, so gongs and drums were beaten everywhere in the city, firecrackers were set off, and a farce of "Zhujie" was staged.
In the earth-shattering sound of the "Pantang Victory", the death knell of Huang Baitao's corps rang.
On November 17, under the order of Su Yu, Hua Ye's main force launched a general attack on Huang Baitao's army. Unprepared, Huang Baitao was quickly captured in five or six villages outside Nianzhuangwei, and then all of the 100th Army, the 44th Army, and the 25th Army were also annihilated. Huang Baitao's corps headquarters and remnants of the troops were in disarray. The reinforcements of Li Mi's corps were stopped by Hua Ye less than 15 kilometers away from Nianzhuangwei and could not take any further advance. Huang Baitao climbed up the roof, looked west with his neck, only heard the rumbling of the cannon, saw no sign of reinforcements, and said with a dejected head:
"If Li Mi has Qiu Qingquan's strength, there is still some hope for the siege to be lifted." Now that Qiu Qingquan's main forces have all gone to Pantang, we are completely hopeless!"
On November 19, Hua Ye launched a general attack on Nianzhuangwei, and in only three days, Huang Baitao and 120,000 men and horses were completely, completely, and cleanly eliminated. Huang Baitao himself was killed. Subsequently, Hua Ye's army quickly advanced westward, and in one fell swoop surrounded Du Yuming, Qiu Qingquan, Li Mi and other large armies around Chen Guanzhuang.
No one expected that a "Pantang Victory" would actually become a turning point for Huang Baitao to be annihilated and Du Yuming's army to be surrounded.