Zhang Yingcai: The super "soldier king" in the Liberation War, he was neutralized nine times in his lifetime, was received by Chairman Mao four times, and was the only one in the millions of PLA. Some people say that the third class sweats a lot,

Zhang Yingcai: The super "soldier king" in the Liberation War, he was neutralized nine times in his lifetime, was received by Chairman Mao four times, and was the only one in the millions of PLA.

Some people say that the third-class merit sweats a lot and leads standing; the second-class merit has a disability and lies down to lead; the first-class merit takes the life in exchange, and the family receives it.

It can be said that those who can make first-class merit are basically heroes who lie down in the hall of Yama, in fact, there is a special merit in the first-class merit, which was cancelled in 1955.

If the first-class merit is to do what others dare not do, then the special merit is to do what others dare not think, not only to walk in the Hall of the King of Yama, but also to make a big fuss in the Hall of the King of Yama, which is the difficulty of the special merit.

However, in the People's Liberation Army, there was a soldier who made nine special merits, a record that is not only unprecedented, but also absolutely unprecedented (now the special merit has been abolished), and even Chairman Mao marveled at his deeds and personally received him four times.

This warrior's name was Zhang Yingcai, a native of Wanquan, Shanxi.

In July 1939, at the age of 15, Zhang Yingcai joined the Eighth Route Army.

However, throughout the War of Resistance Against Japan, Zhang Yingcai was mainly engaged in civilian work, serving as a member of the propaganda team, a clerk, and a political instructor. If someone told Zhang Yingcai at this time that he was the King of Soldiers, I am afraid that even Zhang Yingcai himself would not believe it.

After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Zhang Yingcai began to emerge.

In the Battle of Lüliang in November 1946, Zhang Yingcai served as the commander of the 9th Company of the 38th Regiment of the 13th Brigade of the 4th Column of Taiyue. At that time, Zhang Yingcai led more than 30 officers and men to Dongyang Village to raid the enemy position. At that time, the Nationalist army had an absolute numerical superiority, and they surrounded Zhang Yingcai's department from the front, east and west, and planned to eliminate Zhang Yingcai.

However, Zhang Yingcai commanded the troops to fight to the death, and also skillfully used the terrain to launch a counterattack, which repelled 22 enemy attacks and eliminated more than 300 enemies, creating an opportunity for the follow-up troops to arrive and completely annihilate the enemy army. After the war, Zhang Yingcai made special contributions.

One of the most legendary experiences took place at the Battle of Huaihai.

At that time, Zhang Yingcai was already the battalion commander of the 38th Regiment, and on this day, Zhang Yingcai suddenly received an order from his superiors to take a battalion to block the reinforcements of the enemy's two brigades, and at the same time to prevent the enemy's two divisions from breaking through. The difficulty of this task is very great, and it can be said that it is even more difficult than ascending to the heavens, because from the perspective of organization, the strength of a battalion of the People's Liberation Army is generally four or five hundred people, while the two divisions of the Nationalist Army plus two brigades have a strength of 20,000 people, and the difference between the two sides is exactly 40 times.

In addition to the strength of the Nationalist army, which is 40 times that of Zhang Yingcai, their equipment is also luxurious, with a tank battalion equipped with 24 tanks and 12 armored vehicles, and two artillery battalions equipped with 48 American-made howitzers. This configuration is uncommon even in the national army.

Although the strength was completely unequal, Zhang Yingcai did not say a word, and as soon as he received the order, he set off with a battalion of five hundred people.

Because the strength is too disparity, Zhang Yingcai believes that the conventional way of playing must not be able to fight, and can only take risks, attack instead of defend, and send out to attack to have the possibility of winning. Therefore, Zhang Yingcai first formed a commando team, led by him personally, directly into the heart of the enemy, captured the enemy's army headquarters in one fell swoop, and killed the commander Xiong Shouchun on the spot.

After taking the rank of general directly among the ten thousand troops, the enemy who had lost the command center was like a scattered sand, and while the enemy was in chaos, Zhang Yingcai again commanded the troops to boldly penetrate and destroy an enemy artillery position. Later, after a series of interspersed divisions and one-by-one breakdowns, Zhang Yingcai's troops actually captured more than 3,000 enemy troops.

Under the command of Zhang Yingcai, the first battalion achieved remarkable results, killing more than 1,400 enemies in the Battle of Huaihai alone, capturing 30 artillery pieces of various kinds, 32 light and heavy machine guns, one flamethrower, more than 400 rounds of various shells, and more than 200 mules and horses.

After the war, Zhang Yingcai once again made special meritorious service, and the battalion he commanded each recorded a great merit and was awarded the honorary title of "Steel Battalion".

At this time, Zhang Yingcai had already won the glorious title of battle hero four times, three of which were special combat heroes, and this year, Zhang Yingcai was only 24 years old and nine years old.

In 1950, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zhang Yingcai was invited to Beijing to participate in an important event: the National Congress of Combat Heroes.

Only 350 deputies from the people's liberation army in the country participated, and the lowest of these 350 deputies had won first-class merit, and 78 had won special merit.

Among the 78 people who have won the special merit, only Zhang Yingcai has won the special merit 9 times, and this is the only one among the 4 million people in the people's liberation army in the country!

Therefore, at this meeting, Zhang Yingcai also toasted chairman Mao on behalf of the fighting heroes of the whole country, and after Chairman Mao learned that Zhang Yingcai was a native of Shanxi, he also specially instructed the staff to prepare a bottle of vinegar for Zhang Yingcai. Chairman Mao marveled at Zhang Yingcai's deeds, met Zhang Yingcai four times, and has always been concerned about this legend.

When the "Central Reading Class" was launched in 1973, because Zhang Yingcai's name did not appear in the list of students in the first phase, Chairman Mao also specifically asked Premier Zhou why he was not on the list.