introduction
From September 16 to 24, 1948, the East China Field Army launched the Jinan Campaign, which completely annihilated more than 100,000 people under Wang Yaowu, commander of the 2nd Appeasement District of the Kuomintang and chairman of Shandong Province. In late October, Zhengzhou and Kaifeng were captured by the People's Liberation Army. Xuzhou's strategic ties with Pingjin and Xi'an were thus severed.
In order to prevent the East China and Central Plains Field Armies from going south, the Kuomintang army headquarters urgently ordered The "Suppression Commandery" of Xuzhou liu Zhibu to strengthen the defense of the Shangqiu to Haizhou section of the Longhai Road and the Lincheng to Bengbu section of the Jinpu Road in an attempt to "defend by offensive attack" and "consolidate Xuzhou and ensure it." Why was Liu Zhi in charge of this battle?
Photo | Liu Zhi
01 Why Chiang Kai-shek appointed Liu Zhi as the commander-in-chief of Xuzhou
As early as May 1948, Gu Zhutong served as the chief of staff, and the Xuzhou Headquarters of the Army Headquarters was reorganized into Xuzhou "Suppression General". Regarding the selection of the commander-in-chief of the "suppression of the general", Chiang Kai-shek first asked Jiang Dingwen to take over. However, Jiang Dingwen resolutely resigned and was unwilling to clean up the mess left by Gu Zhutong.
Chiang Kai-shek thought of Liu Zhi again and consulted him. Although Liu Zhi felt that the situation was precarious, unless there was a miracle, it was difficult to turn the tide. However, with chiang kai-shek's encouragement, he was doubly confident and righteously stated: "If I want to be an official, I dare not obey orders." It is incumbent upon me to do my best. ”
Therefore, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Liu Zhi as the commander-in-chief of Xuzhou's "suppression" and handed over the northern gateway guarding Nanjing to this faint and confused "Fu general".
Liu Zhi, a native of Jiangxi, was born in June 1892 to a peasant family in Miaobei Village, Jiji'an County, Jiangxi. Later, he went to private school and went to Guanlan Academy and Pushi Higher Primary School.
Pictured| Whampoa Military Academy
In 1907, Liu Zhi threw his pen from Rong and was admitted to the third phase of hunan army primary school. Here, Liu Zhi realized a set of philosophies on how to live in the world, and patience is the best in everything.
After the outbreak of the Xinhai Revolution, Liu Zhi joined the student army to defend Wuchang, and then went north to the First Preparatory School of the Army in Qinghe Town, near Beiping, to continue his studies, and after graduation, he was admitted to the Baoding Officers' School in Hebei Province.
In 1920, Liu Zhi decided to go south to join the Defending Army. After the establishment of the Whampoa Military Academy, the school needed an instructor, and Liu Zhi was introduced by He Yingqin, the chief instructor of the Whampoa Military Academy, to serve as a tactical instructor at the school.
At the end of this year, the Whampoa Military Academy set up a teaching regiment, with He Yingqin as the commander of the first regiment and Liu Zhi as the commander of the second battalion. Since then, Liu Zhi and Gu Zhu have become He Yingqin's second generals.
During the two eastern expeditions of the Northern Expedition, Liu Zhi was appointed commander of the Second Division for his many military achievements. After that, he directed the "Zhongshan Ship Incident" with Chiang Kai-shek and others. It is said that the communist Bao Huisheng once questioned Liu Zhi why he arrested the communists, saying: "I will do whatever the principal orders me to do." ”
Pictured| Lieutenant General Li Zhilong, then captain of the Zhongshan warship and a member of the Communist Party, and the Zhongshan warship
When this sentence reached Chiang Kai-shek's ears, he greatly appreciated it, and Chiang Kai-shek also treated him differently. In his youth, Liu Zhi was also a fierce general who made military achievements in the Northern Expedition.
Later, in the Jiang-Gui War and the Great Battle of Chiang Feng-Yan Zhongyuan, Liu Zhi continued to fight for Chiang Kai-shek, repeatedly turning danger into safety in unfavorable situations, turning defeat into victory, and becoming a "blessed general" of Chiang Kai-shek.
In June 1932, Chiang Kai-shek launched the fourth encirclement and suppression of the Eyu-Anhui base area, and Liu Zhi commanded the 7 columns of the Zhonglu Army to adopt the tactics of deep equipment, parallel advancement, simultaneous attack, and step-by-step battalion, to capture Jinjiazhai and Xinji, the center of the Dabie Mountain base area, forcing Xu Xiangqian, Zhang Guotao, and Chen Changhao of the Red Fourth Front to leave.
Chiang Kai-shek praised Liu Zhi vigorously, and also named Henan Xinji Jingfu County as a reward. And this honor, only Wei Lihuang among the Kuomintang generals can compare with it.
In April 1935, liu zhi, who had just turned 40, was promoted to general of the army and concurrently served as the chairman of the Henan provincial government, and for a time the scenery was unlimited, and Liu Zhi also became one of the five tiger generals.
Figure | Liu Zhi during the Northern Expedition
It was also at this time that Liu Zhi's career began to decline. After the Xi'an Incident broke out, he followed He Yingqin to Luoyang and advocated the use of force to suppress Zhang Xueliang and put Chiang Kai-shek to death.
Unexpectedly, with the peaceful settlement of the Xi'an Incident, their plans were ruined, and Chiang Kai-shek knew what Liu Zhi had done, and he did not trust him as much as before.
After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Liu Zhi was reappointed as the director of the Zhengzhou Appeasement Office, under the jurisdiction of Henan and Shaanxi provinces, commanding the troops of the first and fifth theaters, and attacking the liberated areas along the northern line of Pinghan Road. Unexpectedly, not long after the start of the attack, his elite troops, Zhao Xitian's Third Division, were surrounded by Liu Deng's army, and the entire army was destroyed for a time.
When the news of the defeat reached Lushan, Chiang Kai-shek was accidentally furious and directly dismissed him, and Liu Zhi slipped back to Shanghai with his third aunt. It was not until 1948 that Chiang Kai-shek regained his temper.
02 After the defeat of Huaihai, Chiang Kai-shek dismissed Liu Zhi from his post in one fell swoop
In early November, the Kuomintang military command formulated the "Battle Plan for Xu Beng" in order to prevent the Xuzhou Liu Zhi clique from repeating the mistakes of the Wei Lihuang clique:
It is planned that the corps under the "Xuzhou" suppression and the main forces of the sui district will move to the east and west areas of Bengbu on the south bank of the Huai River (including the areas of Linhuaiguan, Huaiyuan, and Fengtaijian) to occupy positions, and use offensive defense to repel the other side's attack, and the camera will be turned into an offensive and annihilated.
Picture | the troops of the East China Field Army advancing in the Huaihai Campaign
On November 4, Gu Zhutong, the chief of staff, personally went to Xuzhou and jointly determined the operational deployment with Liu Zhi. The entire 800,000-strong army of Xuzhou's "Suppression General" formed a cross-shaped formation on Jinpu Road and Longhai Road with Xuzhou as the center, in an attempt to fight a decisive battle with the Central Plains Field Army of the East China Field Army.
At the same time, the People's Liberation Army's East China Field Army, the Central Plains Field Army, and the local troops of the subordinate military regions, totaling 600,000 people, are also actively preparing to attack and annihilate Liu Zhi's clique.
In accordance with the instructions of the Central Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee, it is planned to first concentrate its forces to encircle and annihilate Huang Baitao's corps, and then fight against Haizhou, Lianyungang, and Lianghuai.
On November 5, the Nationalist army began to shrink its strength to Xuzhou and Bengbu. On the 6th, the East China Field Army launched an attack on the Huang Baitao Corps assembled on the front line of Xin'an Town.
On the 8th, Zhang Kexia and He Jifeng, deputy commanders of the 2nd Sui District, led 20,000 people to revolt in the Jiawang and Taierzhuang areas, opening the northern gate of Xuzhou. On the 11th, the Yellow Army was surrounded by the East China Field Army in the Nianzhuangwei area.
Pictured| Huang Baitao
After Huang Baitao was besieged, Chiang Kai-shek changed his original plan to gather troops between Xu and Beng, and decided to gather the main force near Xuzhou. He then ordered Huang Baitao to wait for help at Nianzhuangwei, and ordered the two corps of Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi stationed in Xuzhou to work hard to break the siege in the east.
Sun Yuanliang's corps was also transferred into Xuzhou, and the 3rd Sui District Li Yannian Division was changed to the 6th Corps, and the 4th Sui District Liu Ruming Division was changed to the 8th Corps, and attacked Su County separately. He also ordered Huang Wei's army to rush to Mengcheng and Suxian to support Xuzhou. He also transferred Du Yuming to serve as the deputy commander-in-chief of Xuzhou's "Suppression General" and assisted Liu Zhi in command.
Chiang Kai-shek admonished his generals:
"The Battle of Xuhuai is indeed the greatest key to the success or failure of our revolution and the survival of the country," and it is necessary to "unite and fight hard, and we will win in the hope of victory." ”
On November 11, the East China Field Army launched a fierce attack on Huang Baitao's corps, and the fierce battle lasted until dusk on the 22nd, when all 120,000 people of Huang Baitao's 5 armies were annihilated, and Huang Baitao himself "killed himself".
After Huang Baitao's corps was annihilated and the news of Huang's own suicide was confirmed, Liu Zhi and Du Yuming felt like needles. However, in order to paralyze people's hearts, Liu Zhi instructed the General Political Work Office to constantly fabricate news of good news from the front line.
Figure | officers and soldiers of the Kuomintang
On December 22, Li Shuzheng, the chief of staff of Liu Zhi's interaction, moved his headquarters to Bengbu, and he himself asked to go to the command post set up in Bengbu to command the various corps on the southern front, and entrusted the military affairs of Xuzhou to the forward command, and let Du Yuming command for him.
At this time, the Huang Wei Corps, which was reinforced from the north, was blocked by Erye in the area of Nanping Town and Shuangduiji, which separated the main forces near the Kuomintang Xuzhou from the Huang Wei Corps and the Li Yannian Corps near Bengbu. It was at this time of crisis that Liu Zhi's request was finally approved. On November 27, the Ministry of National Defense issued a telegram:
"Commander-in-Chief Liu flew to Bengbu to take command, and the xuzhou side of the military was under the command of Deputy Commander Du."
Although Du Yuming was a famous general, he was unable to return to heaven because of the loss of the fighter. On January 10, 1949, with the annihilation of Du Yuming's troops in Chen Guanzhuang and Qinglongji in all of Beijing, the Battle of Huaihai came to an end.
After the end of this war, the balance of power between the Kuomintang and the Communists changed significantly, and Chiang Kai-shek no longer had the ability to fight a decisive battle with the Communists. Chiang Kai-shek, believing that Liu Zhi was delaying the overall situation and being immoral and incompetent, dismissed him in a fit of rage.
Pictured| Chiang Kai-shek
03 After the defeat of the Liberation War, Liu Zhi went where to go
After Liu Zhi was dismissed, in order to seek Chiang Kai-shek's forgiveness, he privately asked people to trust Chiang Kai-shek, saying that he had "shaved Mingzhi" and shaved all his beards. But Chiang Kai-shek was still angry and did not pay attention. It was under the patronage of He Yingqin that he was reappointed as a strategic adviser to the Presidential Office.
Liu Zhi, who had escaped a difficult situation, knew that the general situation had gone, so he began to arrange a back road for himself, first taking his favorite third aunt back to his hometown in Ji'an, Jiangxi, and finally visiting the ancestral grave.
Soon, the People's Liberation Army launched the Battle of Crossing the River, and Liu Zhi hurried to Guangzhou, once again expressing his intention to "go to the country with Chiang Kai-shek." But neither Chiang Kai-shek nor Li Zongren paid any attention.
Stranded in Guangzhou for several months, Liu Zhi did not get a glimmer of hope of reinstatement after running. Even He Yingqin felt that he was too incompetent and said that he could not help.
Later, Liu Zhi found his good friend Gu Zhutong and hoped that he could help. But Gu Zhutong couldn't take care of himself. After accompanying Liu Zhi for two days, Gu Zhutong flew to Taiwan under the pretext of busy affairs and left Liu Zhi on the mainland.
Figure | Gu Zhutong with He Yingqin and Bai Chongxi
On September 20, a melancholy Liu Zhi left the mainland with Chen Wumin and his wife and took the lead in Coming to Hong Kong. At this time, Liu Zhi's three aunts and four children had already arrived in Hong Kong one step ahead.
At this time, Liu Zhi was still unwilling and hoped to gain Chiang Kai-shek's trust again. On the way, when he heard the news of the founding of New China, he could only sigh and understand the current situation.
Liu Zhi, who lived in Kowloon, ignored the persuasion of Kuomintang leftists Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Jianwu, and single-mindedly hoped to regain Chiang Kai-shek's trust.
But after writing several letters of repentance in a row, there was no response at all. Gu Zhutong wrote to him vaguely telling him: There is no hope of going to Taiwan. Knowing that Chiang Kai-shek had been completely abandoned by Chiang Kai-shek, Liu Zhi decided to serve as a public servant in Hong Kong for a long time.
Since then, Liu Zhi, who has been frustrated in the official arena, began to go in and out of bars and dance halls all day long, spending all day drinking to numb himself. Unexpectedly, the tree made a big move, and the old subordinates who fled to Hong Kong to spend their lives with Liu Zhi coveted Liu Zhi's property. They summed it up, and then they went to the door and forcibly took a sum of money.
Frightened, Liu Zhi fell ill and was sent to Santa Maria's Hospital in Hong Kong for treatment. After the diagnosis, the hospital decided that he was not in serious trouble, and only needed to rest in peace.
While Liu Zhi was recuperating, Chiang Kai-shek, who was hiding behind, came to power in Taiwan. Liu Zhi, who was good at pandering to tricks, united a group of politicians and soldiers in Hong Kong to send a congratulatory message to Chiang Kai-shek. It was okay not to send it, and this congratulatory message reminded Chiang Kai-shek of his previous mistakes. Instead of forgiving Liu Zhi, he also directly dismissed him from his position as a strategic adviser.
Upon receiving this news, Liu Zhi completely realized that he had been abandoned by Chiang Kai-shek. Later, in his memoirs, he complained:
"Probably I don't need to be a veteran, Taiwan can neither maintain health nor make up for the difficulties of the times, which only increases the burden on the government, so I decided to go to Indonesia for the time being..."
Why did Liu Zhi think of going to Indonesia? At a previous banquet, Liu Zhi met Qiu Yuanrong of the Indonesian Chinese Association. Because the two are of similar age, they have become acquainted with each other. Qiu Yuanrong told Liu Zhi that Indonesia has a suitable climate and many overseas Chinese, which is very suitable for living.
At this time, although Liu Zhi was "looted" by his subordinates, but his assets were still quite rich, he had the idea of returning to seclusion, wondering why not find a place where no one knew him to live a stable life?
Pictured| Liu Zhi in the film and television drama
After making plans, Liu Zhi, his wife Huang Peifen and his four sons and daughters boarded a passenger ship bound for Nanyang on September 24, 1950, and headed for Singapore.
04 Desperate, in his later years Liu Zhi became a teacher
Liu Zhi is rich and powerful, and naturally sits in the first class. The passenger ship came to the port of Singapore to add supplies and fuel, so it stayed here for a few days. Liu Zhi casually came to the dock with great interest and took a ride on a tricycle.
Unexpectedly, the tricycle drivers here colluded with the gangs, and when they saw that they were either rich or expensive, they robbed them of a sum. A few days later, the passenger ship arrived in the Indonesian capital. Just as he handed the customs officer a pseudonymous passport, the man felt that Liu Zhi was like a rich man, and he also blackmailed him fiercely.
Just after passing through customs, Liu Zhi encountered a military inspection post and openly asked him for a bribe. He did not pay enough money, and even the few tens of Hong Kong dollars in his pocket were confiscated.
After such a toss, Liu Zhi's family property has run out. After coming to Jakarta, Liu Zhi finally got a temporary residence permit with the help of Qiu Yuanrong and lived in a Heshi Interlacci Hostel.
After living in Jakarta for more than half a month, Liu Zhi felt that it was not easy to live here, and the price was much more expensive than in Hong Kong, so he began to plan for his family. After careful planning, Liu Zhi decided to raise money for business.
Later, Liu Zhi's family moved to a cheaper salad hostel in Bogor City. But after they lived here for a month, Liu Zhi still did not find a way to make a living. In desperation, his wife Huang Peifen could only put down her body to find a job.
Due to the large number of overseas Chinese in the area, Huang Peifen was a college student who graduated from a normal school, and he soon became a Chinese teacher at a local Chinese school. In this way, Huang Peifen not only solved the problem of family meals and education, the Indonesian government also agreed to extend their residence from the original three months to two years.
Just after a few months of stability, Huang Peifen received a telegram from Hong Kong in 1952, asking her to hurry back to Hong Kong. Huang Peifen had a hard time finding a job, and was reluctant to lose it, so she proposed to let her husband Liu Zhi help with Chinese and geography classes.
Although Liu Zhi is a pifu, he has studied in private school for several years and has more or less some basic knowledge of Chinese language. Plus he had attended military school and was familiar with geography. He didn't care about face, so he took up his post.
Unexpectedly, Liu Zhi's lectures were vivid and funny, and they were very popular with students. When Huang Peifen returned from visiting his relatives, the school was reluctant to let him go, and directly hired him as a formal teacher to teach Chinese, history, composition, geography, and several homework.
In the past, the general who commanded thousands of armies and horses became a teacher in his later years, which was an ending that Liu Zhi never imagined. Later, Liu Zhi recalled this experience and boasted with great interest: "To get the world's talents and education, a pleasure." ”
Because of the tragic experience of being robbed in Hong Kong and Singapore, Liu Zhi and his family live in seclusion in Indonesia, rarely appearing in public. But one day in March 1952, Liu Zhi accidentally found someone speaking in his name in a newspaper, which was published in a newspaper with progressive tendencies.
Upon inquiring, I learned that this "fake Liu Zhi" in the newspaper was Liu Yingyi, a cousin of liu Tong, a former classmate of his classmate at the Baoding Army Officer School. In anger, Liu Zhi hurriedly wrote a letter to this newspaper to "refute the rumors."
Liu Zhi's statement was published in the newspaper and immediately caused a sensation. Since the end of the Battle of Huaihai, people have rarely heard from Liu Zhi, there are rumors that he was captured by the People's Liberation Army, there are rumors that he was imprisoned by Chiang Kai-shek, and some people say that he hid in the United States as a public servant...
No one expected that the five tiger generals would condescend to become a primary school teacher in a small Indonesian town.
05 Back to Taiwan, what is the end
When indonesia's national security zone learned of Chiang Kai-shek's men in their own country, they sent someone to find out about him. Many local overseas Chinese merchants also reacted and borrowed his fame to advertise themselves.
Even Mr. and Mrs. Liu Zhi began to call him attention, taking advantage of his 61st birthday to raise money. At that time, in order to subsidize his family, Liu Zhi also worked part-time at another school, and this school also wanted to take the opportunity to raise funds.
In this way, Liu Zhi's birthday had not yet arrived, and the two schools fought for the right to hold Liu Zhi's birthday, causing a storm in the city. Afterwards, the two schools were very unhappy because of the uneven distribution of benefits.
Soon, a series of news from Liu Zhi in Indonesia finally attracted the attention of Chiang Kai-shek. In this regard, Chiang Kai-shek was greatly angered and felt that he was very humiliated, so he sent someone to investigate the relevant situation of Liu Zhi. Fearing that Chiang Kai-shek would cause another scandal and that he would return to the mainland like Li Zongren, he asked him to return to Taiwan.
Photo | Chiang Kai-shek
Soon, Liu Zhi was overjoyed to receive a letter from Yuan Shouqian and expressed his willingness to go back, and Chiang Kai-shek asked the people in the presidential palace to send him travel expenses and entry permits.
After returning to Taiwan, Liu Zhi immediately set out to see Chiang Kai-shek. Who knew that before he could speak, Chiang Kai-shek would be a stinky insult to him. Fortunately, Liu Zhi was well aware of Chiang Kai-shek's temper, and could only promise to say yes, and the enmity between the two was written off.
In October 1954, Liu Zhi held the title of "Guangfu Mainland Design and Research Committee of the Executive Yuan". Although he has no real power, he is only a fictitious position, but he can barely make ends meet.
Because of his experience wandering in Indonesia, although he was dissatisfied with the position, he was reluctantly acceptable. In his later years, Liu Zhi did not come out of the house all day, writing a diary, reading and reading every day, and completed a memoir "My Memories". In his memoirs, Liu Zhi once boasted:
"I am a revolutionary soldier, I did not love talent when I was in office, I only knew how to do my duty as a soldier ... In the past, if it continued slightly, it was donated to run primary and secondary schools..."
Pictured| Liu Zhi and Bai Chongxi
In fact, Liu Zhi was not a clean revolutionary soldier as he said, he was greedy and lustful, and his reputation for selling fame and reputation had long been known, and he was also very good at cultivating private forces and winning people's hearts.
In 1965, Liu Zhi's wife, Huang Peifen, suddenly fell seriously ill and died of depression not long after, which was a heavy blow to Liu Zhi. Since then, he has begun to be depressed and spend his years in loneliness. On July 15, 1971, Liu Zhi died of illness in Taiwan at the age of 79.