"What is your relationship with Qiu Shaoyun?"
In an old earthen house in Xinba Village, Mugua Town, Zunyi City, Guizhou Province, two leaders of the Public Security Bureau and an octogenarian farmer looked at each other, and the atmosphere was a little awkward for a while.
Shi Xiaohong visited Chen Daquan's old man's home
In 2016, near the Spring Festival, the Zunyi Municipal Public Security Bureau arranged the Spring Festival visit and condolence activities according to the custom, and the objects of condolences were veterans and the survivors of martyrs. Accompanied by the director of the Mugua Town police station, Shi Xiaohong, director of the Traffic Management Bureau of the Zunyi City Public Security Bureau, came to Xinba Village.
The purpose of the two men's trip was to find a veteran named Chen Daquan.
According to villagers, Chen Daquan participated in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and after the war, he returned to his hometown of Xinba Village and lived in seclusion for 60 years.
Chen Daquan's later years were not good, he had no children and no daughters, his wife died early, and he lived alone in an earthen house, relying on the government's minimum guarantee and subsidies.
Receiving the condolences of the leaders of the Public Security Bureau, the 86-year-old Chen Daquan was very grateful and quickly invited the two to the house. After entering the house, Shi Xiaohong began to look at the old man's residence, only to see that the walls in the house were full of cracks, and the furnishings were very simple, only a cabinet, a table and a few chairs could be regarded as "furniture".
Shi Xiaohong couldn't help but sigh, "Old man, your life is too hard!" ”
“
Compared with my comrade-in-arms Qiu Shaoyun and the soldiers who sacrificed in Korea, I already feel very content!
Chen Daquan was obviously very indifferent.
Qiu Shaoyun? comrade in arms? As soon as Chen Daquan's words came out, they immediately attracted the exclamations of the two leaders of the Public Security Bureau. Shi Xiaohong immediately asked, "
What is your relationship with Qiu Shaoyun?
”
A real photo of Qiu Shaoyun provided by Chen Daquan
Shi Xiaohong's suddenly raised voice startled Chen Daquan, he was a lot older, would he still deceive people? He stood up, took a package from the dilapidated cabinet, and took a photograph from the package to show to the two leaders of the public security bureau.
This is a one-inch crown-free photo of a volunteer soldier with three or seven points of hair and a pair of eyes shining brightly. Shi Xiaohong looked at the photo and said, "Old man, this is your military photo, right?" ”
This is where I am, this is my comrade-in-arms Qiu Shaoyun!
Chen Daquan was misunderstood, looked a little angry, turned the photo over, and signaled for them to look at the back.
Seeing the content behind the photo, the two leaders were directly stunned on the spot. Only to see that it reads:
Presented to dear Comrade Chen Daquan, for souvenirs, comrade-in-arms Qiu Shaoyun. under
The noodles also indicate the time of "souvenir".
"Old man, how come you have a picture of Qiu Shaoyun?" 64 years ago, Qiu Shaoyun was ordered to ambush in the meadow in front of the 391 Heights of Shangganling and was burned alive by the enemy. Qiu Shaoyun was only 26 years old at the time of his death, leaving no photographs, so that when he publicized his revolutionary deeds, portraits posted throughout the country and the whole army were artistically processed.
If the photo in front of you is real, it will cause a sensation in the country!
Perhaps seeing the doubts of the two leaders, Chen Daquan took out some objects from the package. In front of the eye, there are Chairman Mao's portrait seal, the "Certificate of Revolutionary Soldiers", and the "Meritorious Service Certificate", which are stacked together and are the best proof of Chen Daquan's identity as an old man.
There is no doubt that Chen Daquan is a hero of the Volunteer Army, but where did this photo of Qiu Shaoyun that he took out come from? True or false? Under Chen Daquan's narration, the two leaders finally learned what happened.
The words behind the photo
Chen Daquan, a native of Xinba Village, was born in 1930. Like the children born in that turbulent era, Chen Daquan experienced hardships at a very young age, and in order to reduce the burden on the family, he went to the landlord's house from a few years old to herd sheep, did not have enough to eat and wear, and was not warm, and if he was not careful, he would be beaten by the landlord.
In January 1935, the Red Army captured Zunyi and held a Zunyi Conference to influence the future trend of China. After the meeting, the Red Army, under the leadership of Chairman Mao, "crossed the Red Waters in four directions" and left Zunyi. Although the Red Army left, it left the spark of revolution in Zunyi, and the people of Zunyi were greatly encouraged and threw themselves into the revolutionary movement. As a native of Zunyi, Chen Daquan also had a yearning for revolution.
However, Heaven and Chen Daquan made a joke. In 1945, the son of the landlord's family bullied Chen Daquan's younger brother, and when Chen Daquan went to the landlord's house to theorize, he was just in time for the Kuomintang to arrest Zhuang Ding. Before Chen Daquan could say goodbye to his family, he was arrested and rushed to the front line to fight.
It was not until 1949, when Liu Deng's army liberated the southwest and Chen Daquan's unit surrendered to the People's Liberation Army, that he was able to escape from the bitter sea.
Old photo of Chen Daquan
After the liberation of Zunyi, every household divided the land, and Chen Daquan's family was no exception. Chen Daquan realized that the People's Liberation Army is a team that truly fights for the poor people, and in order to protect the fruits of victory, he resolutely chose to join the People's Liberation Army and participated in many battles to liberate Sichuan and Yunnan to suppress bandits.
In 1950, the Korean War broke out, and under Chairman Mao's wise decision to "defend the homeland and defend the country and resist the United States and aid Korea", millions of soldiers of the Volunteer Army crossed the Yalu River and fought against the "United Nations Army" led by the US army.
In March 1951, before the fifth battle began, Chen Daquan's 15th Army, under the leadership of the commander Qin Jiwei, entered the Korean War.
In the fifth battle, the 15th Army showed great bravery, but also paid a considerable price, and was forced to take a long rest.
In January 1952, Chen Daquan's unit was training in southern Korea and met Qiu Shaoyun for the first time.
One of the two grew up in Sichuan, the other grew up in Guizhou, even if they are half of the same township, and both were born in poor families, both were arrested by the Kuomintang, and similar experiences made the two quickly become acquainted and became good friends. Chen Daquan learned from Qiu Shaoyun that he had lost his parents since childhood, was a poor orphan, and that the People's Liberation Army had given him a new life. Before going to North Korea, he wrote his only family letter, which read:
In order for the suffering people of the world to live a good life, I volunteered to join the volunteer army and must drive out the Yankees. For the sake of the strength of the motherland, what is it that I am dead?
Volunteer soldiers in the tunnels
After a month of training, comrades-in-arms are about to follow various units to the front line, and when they leave, they give each other gifts to commemorate each other.
Chen Daquan received more than a dozen photographs of his comrades-in-arms, including one given to him by Qiu Shaoyun on February 19, 1952.
Chen Daquan cherished this photo very much, wrapped several layers inside and out, put it in the pocket of his underwear, and said "cherish" to Qiu Shaoyun. However, what he never expected was that this would become the last time the two would meet.
On October 3, 1952, Qin Jiwei, commander of the 15th Army, decided to eliminate the American troops stationed in Pingkang and Jinhua before the Battle of Shangganling officially began, and this task was handed over to the 9th Company of the 87th Regiment of the 29th Division, which was Qiu Shaoyun's company.
The 9th Company was given the task of occupying The 391 Heights in Shangganling. This highland is very important to defend the Pingkang Highland, and once it is taken, it can form a horn with the two highlands of Shangganling 537.7 and 579.9, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Responsible for defending Hill 391 was a reinforced company of American troops, and they formed a powerful network of firepower on the high ground, exposing their vitality no matter which direction the volunteers attacked. The only loophole was a large open area on the front of the highlands, where there was a sea of grass, which was conducive to the ambush operations of the volunteers.
Volunteer ambush
After repeatedly studying the terrain, the battalion instructor decided to tie the 500 soldiers of the battalion to the weeds the day before the battle began on October 12, and quietly lurked in this sea of grass, waiting for the opportunity to attack.
This is a battle that cannot be lost, and Qiu Shaoyun wrote an application to join the party before leaving, which read:
I would rather sacrifice myself than expose my goal and advance for victory!
Subsequently, Qiu Shaoyun and his comrades-in-arms made a disguise and quietly sneaked into the grass only 60 meters away from the enemy's position to ambush.
By noon on October 12, Qiu Shaoyun's combat group had been lurking in the grass for more than ten hours, and the fighters did not eat or drink, allowing mosquitoes to bite and not move.
The forward position was surprisingly calm, and the Americans seemed to sense something strange, blindly shooting at the grass in front of the position with machine guns and sending aircraft to drop bombs.
Qiu Shaoyun lurked in the grass, motionless, suddenly felt some heat in his right foot, his eyes subconsciously looked, and immediately understood that the camouflage on his body was ignited by the enemy's incendiary bomb. In just a few seconds, the fire that covered Qiu Shaoyun's body grew larger.
Qiu Shaoyun in flames (oil painting)
The comrades-in-arms also discovered this situation and immediately signaled to Qiu Shaoyun to turn over and extinguish the flames. But Qiu Shaoyun shook his head slightly, enduring the severe pain of his body, and stuck his hands in the dirt below him without saying a word.
You must know that there is a ditch one meter away from Qiu Shaoyun, as long as he rolls backwards and rolls into the ditch, he can extinguish the fire. But Qiu Shaoyun did not do so, because he understood that even a small move would be discovered by the enemy on the position, the troops would be completely destroyed, and all the plans would be in vain.
For 30 minutes, Qiu Shaoyun was burned by the fire for 30 minutes, his hair, his cotton clothes, his skin and flesh, and his body were ravaged in the raging fire, but he did not say a word from beginning to end, and did not even lift his eyelids!
Qiu Shaoyun overcame the flames with an insistence that ordinary people could not understand, and sacrificed heroically!
As the comrades-in-arms watched Qiu Shaoyun lose his life by the fire, they all hated the enemy to the point of itching their teeth. On the evening of October 12, the horn of the general offensive sounded, and the soldiers who had been lurking for a day and a night rose from the grass and shouted the slogan of "revenge for Qiu Shaoyun", and ended the battle in twenty minutes, completely annihilating the enemy, taking the 391 heights, and pulling out the enemy's teeth before the Battle of Shangganling began.
After the war, Qiu Shaoyun was posthumously honored by the Volunteer Army Command for special merit and was awarded the honorary title of "First Class Combat Hero".
Chen Daquan was devastated when he learned of Qiu Shaoyun's sacrifice and vowed to avenge Qiu Shaoyun.
In the Battle of Shangganling, Chen Daquan's squad suffered heavy casualties, and only he and the deputy squad leader survived. In such an unfavorable situation, the two desperately threw grenades at the enemy, repelled more than 30 enemy attacks in succession, and defended Shangganling with blood and life.
After the battle, Chen Daquan's entire company was only about 30 people left, and he was credited with the collective first class merit.
Portrait of Qiu Shaoyun
In 1956, Chen Daquan responded to the call to retire from the army and return to his hometown, initially working on the railway, and then catching up with the streamlining of workers to return to their hometowns to work as farmers, living a peaceful life. As a meritorious veteran of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Chen Daquan did not publicize his deeds, let alone make any demands on the government, so he lived in seclusion for more than sixty years.
The medals, certificates, and photographs left by his comrades-in-arms were wrapped in a package and treasured for sixty years.
If it were not for the leaders of the Public Security Bureau to visit the countryside, this history would continue to be sealed in dust.
Shi Xiaohong knew that this real photo of Qiu Shaoyun, which was treasured by the elderly Chen Daquan, if confirmed, must have been a discovery that shocked the whole country, so the first time he returned to Zunyi, he revealed the news to the Guizhou Metropolis Daily. When the newspaper reporter heard about this, he immediately rushed to Chen Daquan's home to conduct an interview and report.
After Qiu Shaoyun's only photo was reported, it not only caused a sensation in society, but even alarmed the Central Military Commission.
In 2017, the elderly Chen Daquan took the initiative to donate the photo to the Qiu Shaoyun Memorial Hall, and the Central Military Commission also uniformly printed a portrait of Qiu Shaoyun based on this photo. That's the end of the matter, but experts have questioned it.
Chen Daquan held a certificate in his hand
There are three reasons for questioning: First, according to the information in hand, Qiu Shaoyun does not write, even if he can write, he should not write simplified characters after the photo; second; Qiu Shaoyun's hairstyle on the photo is too fashionable and too avant-garde; third, Qiu Shaoyun's comrade-in-arms, the elderly Zheng Shicong, also mentioned a photo of Qiu Shaoyun, which is very different from the one provided by Chen Daquan.
But Chen Daquan was a real volunteer army hero, and he could not have been a prophet, preparing a fake photo early to deceive the leader, and had no motive at all.
After the incident, the joint memorial hall of the army identified the authenticity of the photos, but due to the age and the lack of enough insiders, the matter was finally resolved, and there is still no answer.
In 2018, the 88-year-old Chen Daquan passed away with some regrets.
In fact, no matter what the truth is, it cannot erase the merits of the old man Chen Daquan for the establishment of the country, and like Qiu Shaoyun, as a volunteer soldier, he is the most lovely person. It was their charge 70 years ago that drove away the invaders that we have a happy life today, salute!