What is history: it is the echo of the past to the future, the reflection of the future on the past. - Hugo
Speaking of Xu Shiyou, I believe that everyone is familiar with him, he is one of the more legendary founding generals. In the years of the revolutionary war, a lifetime of conquest on the battlefield can also be regarded as a great contribution to the victory of the Liberation War and the founding of New China. He joined the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army in 1928, and at that time, in the Red Fourth Front, Xu Shiyou was also a person who could recruit good warriors. He has fought many hard battles, but at the same time made great contributions to the struggle to create revolutionary base areas in Sichuan and Shaanxi.
In the revolutionary ranks, Xu Shiyou also came from the positions of soldier, company commander, battalion commander, regimental commander and division commander, and finally served as the deputy army of the Red Fourth Front, the commander and other positions. Because he studied martial arts at the Shaolin Temple as a teenager, he later made him the commander of the cavalry of the Red Fourth Front. In those days, cavalry was the equivalent of mechanized troops.
Xu Shiyou
It can be said that during the period of land reform, Xu Shiyou's status in the Red Army was still very high. Later, during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, he served as the deputy brigade commander of the 386th Brigade and became the deputy of General Chen Geng. The two famous generals joined forces and in the Xiangchenggu area south of Wei County, in the form of a pre-ambush, lured and annihilated a reinforced infantry squadron of the Japanese army, killing more than 200 people below the enemy brigade commander and taking eight prisoners, dealing a heavy blow to the Japanese army, known in history as the Battle of Xiangchenggu.
However, Xu Shiyou did not serve long as deputy brigade commander in the 386th Brigade. In 1940, he was transferred by Grandpa Mao to Shandong to create a base behind enemy lines. Since then, Xu Shiyou has been fighting in Shandong, including the later period of the Liberation War.
In the Shandong region, Xu Shiyou had just arrived at this time, and the conditions in all aspects were still very difficult. The Jiaodong guerrillas, militia, lacked training, were not well armed with ammunition, some soldiers did not even have a decent gun, and the base area was very small. Even solving the problem of food and clothing is sometimes a problem.
However, after the arrival of Xu Shiyou, he organized a militia and used guerrilla tactics to sneak attack the puppet army and Japanese transport vehicles. In this way, we can get supplies in life, and guns and ammunition can also be improved. Therefore, during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Xu Shiyou played a certain role in the expansion and development of the jiaodong enemy base area. For example, the smashing day and the frequent "sweeping" and encroachment of the puppet army have caused the enemy to be frightened. In particular, he led his troops to attack the traitors Zhao Baoyuan, Kewandi, and Zhanzuo Village, swept across the banks of the Wulong River, and removed the obstacles to the anti-Japanese resistance in Jiaodong.
After the outbreak of the Liberation War, Xu Shiyou was still in Shandong, and he continued to fight on the familiar ground. In the eyes of the people in Jiaodong, Xu Shiyou is a legendary figure, very influential in the local area, has been fighting in Shandong for several years, and has also done a lot of good things for the local people.
After the shandong field army and the central China field army were merged, the Jiaodong column led by Xu Shiyou was reorganized into the ninth column of the East China Field Army, and served as the commander of the column, also known as the Shandong Corps. Friends who know the history of the East China Field Army know that the Ninth Column is an ace force, and it is also an ace army in Chen Su's hands, and together with the first column (Ye Fei), the sixth column (Wang Bicheng), and the fourth column (Tao Yong) are called huaye ace army. The Ninth Column was cultivated by Xu Shiyou, and Nie Fengzhi also came out of the Ninth Column.
Later, under the command of Commander Su, Xu Shiyou participated in major battles such as the Battle of Laiwu, the Battle of Menglianggu, and the Battle of Jiaodong, especially in the Battle of Liberating Jinan, and he was appointed by Grandpa Mao as the commander-in-chief of the front line of the Jinan Campaign, responsible for the liberation of Jinan. At that time, the defender of Jinan was Wang Yaowu, who was also a fierce general. However, under the command of Xu Shiyou, it took less than a week to attack the city of Jinan and capture Wang Yaowu alive. As a great hero of the liberation of Jinan, Why didn't Xu Shiyou participate in any major battles after the Battle of Jinan? For example, the later Battle of Huaihai, the Battle of Crossing the River, and the liberation of Shanghai did not involve him. Then, is Xu Shiyou hidden in the snow, or does he have another heavy responsibility?
Although Xu Shiyou did not participate in the later battles, the Ninth Column he brought out with him, under the command of Nie Fengzhi, participated in major battles such as Huaihai and River Crossing. Another reason why he did not serve as the commander of the Ninth Column was that he was somewhat similar to the ancient chivalrous in terms of fighting, belonging to single-handedness, one-on-one, and was not suitable for coordinated combat. Especially large-scale battles like the Battle of Huaihai.
However, after the liberation of Shandong, Xu Shiyou's responsibilities in Shandong were still very important, and it could be regarded as a heavy responsibility entrusted by his superiors. Although Shandong was liberated, there were still remnants of the state's military forces scattered everywhere in the province. They break down to pieces, and from time to time they come out to harass the people or carry out attacks. Therefore, the heavy task of eliminating these remnant enemies and ensuring the safety of one side was entrusted to Xu Shiyou. In fact, in terms of merit, this is no less than the merit of killing the enemy on the front line. Therefore, after the founding of the country, he was also awarded the rank of general, and if there is no merit, how can it be awarded to the general.