At the beginning of the All-out War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Eighth Route Army had the 115th, 120th, and 129th Divisions under its jurisdiction, of which the 115th Division had the 343rd Brigade and the 344th Brigade, and the 343rd Brigade had the 685th Regiment and the 686th Regiment under its jurisdiction. The leader of the 685th Regiment was the famous Yang Dezhi, who later became the founding general.
The 685th Regiment had 3 battalions, who were the battalion commanders of those 3 battalions? What happened next? Let's look down:
The commander of the first battalion was Liu Deming. Liu Deming is a native of Liquan, Shaanxi. In December 1931, Liu Deming joined the Fifth Red Army after participating in the Ningdu Uprising, participated in the Fourth and Fifth Anti-"Encirclement and Suppression" Struggles and the Long March in the Central Soviet Region, and served as the commander of the Fourth Regiment of the Red Second Division after the Arrival of the Red Army in northern Shaanxi. After the outbreak of the National War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in 1937, the main force of the Red Army was reorganized into the Eighth Route Army, and Liu Deming served as the commander of the first battalion of the 686th Regiment of the 343rd Brigade of the 115th Division, and went to the anti-Japanese front in Shanxi and participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan and the battles of Wucheng and Jinggou. In August 1940, Liu Deming participated in the Battle of the Hundred Regiments and was later transferred to the deputy commander of the Eighth Military Subdistrict of the Northwest Jin Dynasty Military Region. On February 27, 1942, the Japanese army carried out a large-scale "sweep" of the anti-Japanese base area in northwestern Jin, and Liu Deming died heroically in a battle at the age of 32.
The commander of the second battalion was Zeng Guohua. Zeng Guohua is a Guangdong Wuhua. He participated in the Northern Expedition in his early years, and later joined the Red Army, successively serving as a squad leader, platoon leader, and company commander, and participated in the fourth and fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" and long marches in the Central Soviet Region. After the Red Army arrived in northern Shaanxi, Zeng Guohua served as the commander of the Fifth Regiment of the Second Division of the First Red Army, and led his troops to participate in the Western Expedition and the Battle of Mountain Castle. In 1937, after the outbreak of the All-out War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Zeng Guohua served as the commander of the second battalion of the 685th Regiment of the 343rd Brigade of the 115th Division of the Eighth Route Army and participated in the Battle of Pingxingguan. After that, Zeng Guohua also served as the commander of the 2nd Brigade of the 115th Division and the head of the Shandong Military Region's Teaching Regiment. During the Liberation War, Zeng Guohua served as chief of staff of the 13th Corps of the Fourth Field Army. In 1955, Zeng Guohua was awarded the rank of lieutenant general.
The commander of the third battalion was Liang Xingchu. Liang Xingchu was a native of Ji'an, Jiangxi. In 1930, Liang Xingchu joined the Red Army. During the Long March, Liang Xingchu served as the commander of the first cavalry reconnaissance company of the Red Army, and completed important reconnaissance and combat tasks many times, and was later promoted to the commander of the second regiment. During the All-Out War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Liang Xingchu served as the commander of the third battalion of the 685th Regiment of the 343rd Brigade of the Eighth Route Army, the commander of the 5th Brigade of the 115th Division, and the brigade commander of the Independent Brigade of the New Fourth Army. During the Liberation War, Liang Xingchu served as the commander of the Tenth Column of the Northeast Field Army and participated in the command of the Montenegro Blockade. During the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Liang Xingchu served as the commander of the 38th Army, known as the Banzai Army. In 1955, Liang Xingchu was awarded the rank of lieutenant general