Source: Corps Daily
Author: Xu Min
In June 1953, Cui Yingjie (first from the left in the second platoon) came to Ili Halabura Township (now the 72nd Regiment of the 4th Division) in Xinjiang with the communication regiment of the 15th Division of the Fifth Army. At that time, the Regimental Political Office decided to open a local school with both Han and Chinese students. Cui Yingjie, who worked as a clerk in the army, was assigned to the school as a teacher. This photo is a group photo of the teachers on the first day of school
Stepping into the Cultural Square of the 72nd Regiment Headquarters of kokdala City, the fourth division of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, an artistic group sculpture "Song of the Pioneers" composed of the images of the old Red Army, military reclamation fighters and the young people of the new generation of the regiment stands majestically, as if telling people the history of the Red Army.
Following the red footprints, we came to the Memorial Hall of the Red Legion of the Seventy-second Regiment, which collects precious historical relics and detailed literary and historical materials, and through modern multimedia expressions, comprehensively shows the glorious course of the Seventy-second Regiment from the agrarian revolution, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and the War of Liberation to garrisoning the three counties in southern Xinjiang, moving to Ili in northern Xinjiang, and reclaiming Shoalbulak.
An army green military blanket in the memorial always attracts visitors to stop. A corner of the military carpet is sewn with strips of cloth, and there are still some traces of being burned by fireworks, and it is particularly conspicuous that there are many bullet holes in the military carpet.
"The military blanket was donated to the memorial by my father in 2015. In that year, on the battlefield of the Anti-Japanese War, my father fought against the Japanese Kou, and this military blanket was a trophy distributed by the troops. Yao Li, the eldest daughter of Yao Yunsong, an old Red Army, recalled.
This is a veritable Red Army. According to the historical records of the Memorial Hall of the Red Army of the Seventy-second Regiment, in 1951, the Red Army stationed in Shorebulak had 23 old Red Army members, 126 old Eighth Road soldiers, and 1560 old People's Liberation Army troops.
At the end of 1951, the 13th Regiment of the 5th Division, reorganized from the 717th Regiment of the 359th Brigade, was ordered to cross the Tianshan Mountains from the north of the garrison of the basement to participate in the suppression of bandits and counterinsurgency in the Ili area. After the rebellion was quelled, the troops launched a large-scale production campaign on the spot.
In 1952, the Ili River Valley was covered with snow, Wang Zhen was concerned about the future of the 717 regiment, he led the leaders of the 15th Division (the predecessor of the 4th Agricultural Division) to the Shoalbulak Steppe, holding a telescope in his hand to ascend to the far horizon, waving happily: "You see, here is a new source on one side, on the other side is Gongliu, surrounded by mountains and waters, a large grassland, how good!" The division headquarters was chosen here. ”
There are two red lines on the planning map approved by Wang Zhen, which are water diversion channels. After that, more than 4,300 commanders and fighters braved the severe cold and snow to enter the construction site.
Fast forward to the beginning of 1953, the Gongnes River crossing was frozen, cars were blocked, and supplies were interrupted. The construction troops ran out of food, and the soldiers had to rely on the feed of military horses to feed themselves. On January 13, an extremely rare strong cold current in the history of Ili struck, and layers of white frost formed on the wild grass and branches. Cotton clothes and cotton pants are as thin as paper, the biting cold wind penetrates as soon as they are pierced, and the soldiers on the construction site suffer frostbite more than 370 people a day.
The Thirteenth Regiment (the predecessor of the current Seventy-second Regiment), with its glorious tradition, united brother troops, braved the cold, and insisted on construction. In May of that year, a total of 33 kilometers of east-west trunk canals were built, irrigating 130,000 mu of fertile land. In the autumn, more than 40,000 acres of wheat harvested. Two years later, the Fourth Agricultural Division (now the Fourth Division) already has 8 regimental farms, cultivated land of 290,000 mu, and a total grain output of 21.695 million kilograms.
From the swamp alkali beach to the good land of 10,000 acres, from the nest of the ground to the high-rise buildings, decades have passed, the seventy-two regiments have long been the canal system, the field is strange, the former deserted alkali beach wasteland, now the road canal into a network, the field is picturesque, the livestock is rich in grain, and all industries are prosperous. The new city of Shorebulak has risen, with green trees, wide streets and flat roads, and buildings.
During the Liberation War, the commanders and fighters of the 359th Brigade turned Nanniwan into a "good Jiangnan in northern Shaanxi." The red gene of Nanniwan was passed down all the way to the Seventy-second Regiment. The barren land of that year has long become the "Saiwai Jiangnan".
"Born in Jinggangshan, grew up in Nanniwan, turned tens of thousands of miles, and reclaimed in tianshan." Red is the background color of the Seventy-second Regiment, but also the background color of the Corps, this red gene has long been deeply integrated into the blood of the Corps, and it will be passed down from generation to generation.