In June 1951, the 20th Volunteer Army, under the leadership of Deputy Commander Liao Zhengguo (who was recuperating from his wounds at the time), was ordered to go to the Huachuan area to block the "United Nations Army" and cover the transfer of large volunteer troops to the rear for recuperation.
Liao Zhengguo ordered the 60th Division, as the left wing of the whole army, to set up a blocking position around the strategically important Changgu Peak.
Changgu Peak is a mountain with an altitude of 830 meters, and if the Sixty Division can hold this mountain, it will be able to firmly grasp the Zhubo Ridge, the necessary place from Shanyangli to Jincheng Highway, and can also jam another road from Shanyangli to Jinhua.
Of course, the enemy also understood the importance of Changgu Peak, and sent well-equipped Mechanized Troops of the American Army to pounce from the two roads in a murderous manner and launch a pinch attack on the Sixty Division.
A battalion of the 180th Regiment of the Sixty Division insisted on the main peak of Changgu Peak and engaged in an extremely fierce offensive and defensive battle with the American army.
Although they actually had only 11 squads of troops, and were far inferior in terms of weapons and equipment and logistical supplies, they fought extremely bravely and tenaciously, and fought the position for three days and nights.
On the morning of June 12, the embarrassed And angry U.S. troops dispatched dozens of times the strength of the volunteer army, launched a frenzied attack under the cover of aircraft, artillery, and tanks, and finally occupied Changgu Peak.
The loss of this strategic point of Changgu Peak meant that there were major loopholes in the defense system of the 20th Army of the Volunteer Army, which would have a series of chain reactions.
Sure enough, in the next two days, the Fifty-ninth Division, which was in the right flank position of the Twentieth Army, also lost two important positions in chigen mountain and three days peak in succession.
It can be said that the entire defensive line of the Twentieth Army has taken a precarious state, which makes the atmosphere in the command post of the army extremely tense and heavy.
As the actual commander of the whole army, the famous "one-armed general" Liao Zhengguo was caught in anxiety and bitter thought about the current extremely unfavorable situation.
Liao Zhengguo has always had the habit of commanding the front, so he set up the military command post near the Bean Chestnut Cave, which is only 6,000 meters from the front. For the U.S. military, which has mechanized equipment, tanks, aircraft and artillery can pose a deadly threat to the command post of the Twentieth Army at any time.
In this case, even if Liao Zhengguo was very reluctant in his heart, the military command post must be moved to the rear.
At more than 3 o'clock in the afternoon of June 14, the enemy's offensive became tighter and tighter, and Liao Zhengguo, under the strong persuasion of cadres at all levels, finally issued the order to retreat from the general's command post.
The commander and instructor of the guard battalion of the military headquarters were well aware of the importance of ensuring the safety of the military command post, and solemnly stated to Liao Zhengguo that he would hold on to several hills in front of the Bean Chestnut Cave at all costs, drag the enemy to death, and cover the smooth transfer of the army command post.
Subsequently, the two cadres arrived at the command position with their troops, stepped up the construction of fortifications, and prepared to fight the enemy to the death.
However, it was not until the guard battalion repelled three onslaughts by the vanguard of the US army that they learned from the telephone that although the military command post had been safely transferred, Liao Zhengguo, as the supreme commander of the whole army, still did not move in the same place!
Why did Liao Zhengguo do this? The reason is very simple, no matter how critical the situation is, he always requires himself to be in the front position as far as possible, to breathe with the frontier soldiers and share the fate!
Therefore, he asked the military command post personnel to be transferred after dinner in advance, leaving only two combat staff officers and a guard squad.
Liao Zhengguo stayed in such a dangerous place, and many of his subordinates were naturally impatient, calling one after another to urge him to move immediately.
In the middle of the night, Peng Fei, commander of the Sixty Division, learned that Liao Zhengguo had not yet retreated, and he roared urgently on the phone: "Deputy Commander, you must move immediately!" You're too dangerous there! ”
Liao Zhengguo said emphatically, "If you beat you, leave me alone!" When to transfer, I know in my heart! ”
Not long after, Dekelin, commander of the Fifty Division, also called impatiently and urged: "Deputy Commander, if you don't leave again, the enemy may blow you up in the sky as soon as a shell hits you!" ”
Liao Zhengguo replied impatiently, "When it's time to leave, I will go myself, and I don't need you to be long-winded!" ”
It is reasonable to say that Liao Zhengguo, as the highest commander of the whole army, even if he let him retreat a little and let his subordinates relax their hearts a little, it is reasonable to say. However, the stubborn Liao Zhengguo ignored the repeated urging of his subordinates and refused to transfer no matter what.
Incredibly, it was precisely because of General Liao Zhengguo's unreasonable stubbornness at a critical juncture that the entire war situation underwent a miraculous change.
Liao Zhengguo still refused to move his nest in the face of the danger of death, which made Peng Fei and Dekelin and other subordinates uneasy: Since the supreme commander of the whole army had not been transferred, then the division command post, the regimental command post and even the battalion even the command post did not retreat backwards, and there was only one thing they could do, that is, to do their best to resist the enemy's attack!
In the face of the example set by the deputy commander, cadres at the division, regiment, battalion, and company levels responded one after another with actions: division-level cadres went down to the most cutting-edge regiment to supervise the battle, regimental-level cadres went down to the most cutting-edge battalion to supervise the battle, and battalion-level cadres went down to the forefront of the company to supervise the battle.
The cadres' practice greatly encouraged every soldier, and they all showed their determination not to retreat or give up the enemy, to overcome various difficulties such as insufficient weapons and ammunition, the limited number of soldiers, and the lag in logistical supplies, and to repel the enemy's crazy attacks again and again with incomparably full fighting spirit and unparalleled firm confidence, and firmly held the position.
In this way, the tide of battle miraculously took a major turn, and the Twentieth Army finally successfully completed the task of blocking the enemy and covering the transfer of the main force.
Reference historical materials: "The Master of the Hundred Brigades: The History of the Twentieth Army", "The Chronicle of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army", "Documentary of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea", etc