preface
As early as 1951, the central authorities clearly instructed that the whole army should determine the rank based on the three criteria of "morality, talent, and seniority" and combined with the current position. A year later, the cadre rating system was introduced, in which the corps cadres were divided into three levels: the main corps, the deputy corps, and the quasi-corps. In 1955, when the whole army assessed the award of titles, it mainly relied on rank to award titles.
Under normal circumstances, if it is a regular corps level, it will be rated as a general, the deputy corps level will be mostly rated as a lieutenant general, a small number of people will be rated as a general, and the final quasi-corps level will be rated as a lieutenant general, such as Cheng Jun, who was then the deputy commander of the air defense army, was awarded the rank of lieutenant general.
However, in the history of New China, there was a cadre named Wen Jianwu, who had participated in the revolution since 1929 and was appointed deputy commander of the Twenty-first Corps, but was not awarded a title after the founding of the People's Republic of China. Normally, he should have been awarded the rank of lieutenant general or general, so why not? What happened?
From peasants to the logistics leadership of the Red Army
From the three criteria of "morality, talent, and capital," we first look at Wen Jianwu, the performance and meritorious deeds of participating in the revolution over the past few decades.
Pictured| Wen Jianwu
Born in a poor peasant family in Hubei Province, Wen Jianwu's father died at an early age and he moved to ZhongPu embankment with his remarried mother. In 1928, a peasant revolt broke out in the Eyu-Anhui region, and Wen Jianwu's hometown also established a peasant association to form a peasant Red Guard army to safeguard the rights and interests of the peasants.
During this time, he became acquainted with some progressives and CCP members. Influenced by them, he gradually accepted progressive ideas and initially understood some revolutionary principles. He understood that peasants are not born to be oppressed, and only by resisting can they protect their rights and interests and obtain a better life.
On May 6 of the following year, the Lixia Uprising broke out. On the night of the outbreak, Wen Jianwu's brother persuaded him to go to Hubei to avoid the wind and not to participate in it, which was very dangerous. But Wen Jianwu did not listen, and said frankly: "I know the Communist Party very well, they are definitely not what you say, they are good people, people who speak for and support the poor." ”
After saying this, he resolutely joined the rebellion and joined the revolution in spite of his family's obstruction. After this uprising, Wen Jianwu joined the peasant association and was elected secretary of the township Soviet government. In the spring of 1930, the Eyu-Anhui Border Special Committee was established, and Wen Jianwu bid farewell to his relatives and joined the ranks of the Red Army.
In November 1931, the Red Fourth Front was established, and Wen Jianwu was appointed secretary of the manager's office of the Eleventh Division, mainly responsible for planning the food and financial affairs of the Red Army. Soon, Chiang Kai-shek mobilized a large army to encircle and suppress the Red Army in various base areas. The Red Army, with the spirit of forging ahead courageously, waged a struggle against encirclement and suppression.
During the battle, Wen Jianwu fought bravely and worked actively, and was quickly accepted by the party organization and became a party member. After the failure of the Fourth Anti-Encirclement and Suppression Campaign of the Red Fourth Front, it was forced to withdraw from the Eyu-Anhui base area and move around Sichuan to open up the Sichuan-Shaanxi revolutionary base area. Under the appointment of the organization, Wen Jianwu served as the chief of staff of the Red Thirty Army, mainly responsible for the logistics of the army.
At that time, the Sichuan-Shaanxi base area had just been established, and the Red Fourth Front was in the blockade of the enemy army, and the supply of various materials was very tight. Comrades in the Department of Culture, Construction, and Logistics, Hospitals, and other departments cannot sleep because of this, and can only actively find ways to overcome difficulties and ensure the supply of the army in all aspects.
Like at that time, the distance between the military department and the various units was very long, and it was difficult to contact. In order to communicate the battle situation in a timely manner, the superiors ordered all units to set up telephone lines with the military department to facilitate timely communication. But they are in lockdown, supplies are already tight, where to find so many telephone lines? Everyone frowned in sorrow and couldn't do anything.
At this moment, the careful Wen Jianwu thought that when the warlord Tian Songyao's troops were defeated and retreated, they had left a lot of telephone lines, which might be useful. So they collected the old telephone lines, measured the distance, rationally used them, quickly solved the problem, and set up telephone lines for hundreds of miles to ensure the communication of the troops.
There is also the resettlement of the wounded and sick in the Sichuan-Shaanxi base area. At that time, the Red Army and the Sichuan Army fought a lot, and the Red Army added a lot of wounded and sick people, and how to resettle them was a big problem. To this end, Wen Jianwu instructed the rear hospital to find a way to build an air raid shelter and ensure the safety of the wounded.
One day, he came to the hospital to check the construction of the bomb shelter. When he saw that the air raid shelter had not been repaired, his heart was anxious, and he found the director of the political department of the hospital and asked anxiously: "Why has the air raid shelter not been built yet?" The director didn't realize anything yet, and just casually said, "There's no wood, so it's not repaired." ”
Wen Jianwu pointed to the mountains to the east and south of the hospital and said solemnly, "You see, aren't there all trees there?" Why not arrange for someone to cut it? What kind of work should be done with a sense of responsibility, and we must take the initiative to find ways to overcome difficulties. The target of the hospital is so large that it is easy to be attacked by the enemy, once it encounters an enemy attack, what should the hospital do with so many wounded and sick people? ”
Under his supervision, the bomb shelter was quickly built, the wounded and sick were well placed, and safety was guaranteed.
And this is only a small matter, in the logistics department, from the soldiers' food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, to the chai rice oil and salt, everything needs to be asked by Wen Jianwu one by one. This is definitely not a simple matter, but he has always adhered to a serious and responsible attitude, meticulously carried out his work, and ensured the normal operation of the troops.
His management of subordinate cadres is also very strict. On one occasion, the troops fought several victorious battles in a row and captured a lot of silver dollars and supplies. The comrades all felt that with these materials, the days of tightness had passed, so they did not care too much about stacking these materials in the warehouse, not counting or properly storing them.
When Wen Jianwu inspected the warehouse, he just found this problem. He unceremoniously criticized: "These supplies were bought by our soldiers fighting in the front and shedding blood." When we do logistics work, we should cherish it as much as we cherish life. Although the troops have captured a lot of materials, we should still save money and use the money on the blade. ”
When winter came, he immediately organized manpower, material resources, and prepared cotton clothes for winter. When he saw that there was a sewing machine in the warehouse, he tried to get the needle and sew clothes to save some money for the troops. Whenever the troops were transferred, he would personally help the wounded and sick carry stretchers and help solve the problem of transporting medical equipment.
It can be seen from this that Wen Jianwu is an outstanding person in terms of virtue. He worked diligently and diligently for the revolutionary cause and contributed his strength.
During the difficult Long March period, Wen Jianwu was promoted to the post of Minister of Supply of the Red Fourth Front. The long march road was extremely arduous and sparsely populated, and the supply of materials for the troops was even more of a big problem. But he did not flinch, running forward and running, and taking up the burden of collecting food and supplies for the whole army.
From galloping south of Hebei to fighting in Eyu and Shaanxi
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan, Wen Jianwu was appointed as the chief of the first section of the headquarters of the 129th Division, and followed the troops to the anti-Japanese front in northeast Jin. In January 1938, according to the order of the Party Central Committee, the 129th Division drew troops to form the Eighth Route Army Eastward Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Column, and Wen Jianwu was transferred to the chief of staff of the column.
Soon, under the leadership of Chen Zaidao, the column rushed to southern Hebei, and after several months of fighting, opened up the anti-Japanese base area in the southern Hebei Plain, and Wen Jianwu was appointed chief of staff of the Ji'nan Military Region. In the winter of that year, the Japanese army carried out a major sweep of the base areas in southern Hebei and occupied some county towns. In order to resist the Japanese army, Wen Jianwu led the troops to carry out guerrilla warfare and made many achievements in battle.
Once, when the troops were active, they unfortunately encountered enemy attacks and came with a menacing force. They fought back and retreated. In order not to expose the organs of the military region, Wen Jianwu ordered the personnel of the organs to retreat first, and he took a unit to cover the transfer of the main force. They were in the desert area, and a dense barrage of bullets was fired, raising dust and sand, and people could not open their eyes.
Because the Japanese fire was too fierce, they were trapped in the desert for a day and a night, with no food and no water to drink. At night, the cold wind whistled and the temperature dropped, and the warriors had to lean on each other to resist the cold.
Wen Jianwu smiled and said, "Comrades, do you feel bitter or not?" In that year's Long March, we climbed snow-capped mountains and crossed meadows, and at that time there was no desert and no wind and sand. Now we are trapped in the desert, this comfortable and soft desert is not a lot of fun! After saying that, everyone laughed out loud, alleviating pessimism and negativity.
Is the desert really interesting? Definitely not. Only in such a situation, he was also able to ease the mood of the warriors with a joking tone, which showed that he was psychologically strong and determined. When dawn came, Wen Jianwu had people drive the cattle around, stirring up dust and pretending they were still in the desert to confuse the enemy's sight. They took the opportunity to move and successfully resolved the crisis.
In May 1940, the Ji'nan Military Region and the EastWard Column were merged, and the former Eastward Column was reorganized into the New Seventh Brigade, with Wen Jianwu as the political commissar. Soon he led his troops to participate in the battle of the deshi road and the famous Battle of the Hundred Regiments, establishing battle achievements. In the autumn of the following year, Wen Jianwu was transferred to the political commissar of the New Fourth Brigade.
At this time, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression also began to enter the most difficult period, and the Japanese army began to encircle, sweep, attack, and launch a large-scale attack on the Eighth Route Army in the southern Hebei region. Its Chinese Jianwu experienced the largest iron wall encirclement of the Base Area in Southern Hebei by the Japanese Army.
Early that morning, the Japanese army dispatched more than 30,000 people to launch a surprise attack on the base area. Due to the suddenness of the incident, the Eighth Route Army did not receive information, did not move in time, and was soon surrounded by the enemy. They pressed forward step by step and further reached the base area of the Eighth Route Army. Wen Jianwu and other soldiers of the Eighth Route Army, not afraid of danger, were resourceful and courageous, and calmly led the troops to break out from all directions and smashed the enemy's encirclement.
A few months later, the Japanese army again encircled and swept away. After several anti-sweeping struggles, Wen Jianwu accumulated experience and immediately organized troops to jump out of the enemy's encirclement and bankrupt the enemy's encirclement plan. Later, he led his troops to attack the enemy on the outer line, annihilating many enemies and capturing a large number of supplies.
After the Japanese army launched the Battle of Yuxianggui, Mao Zedong decided to send troops to open up the anti-Japanese battlefields in Henan and south China while consolidating the anti-Japanese base areas in north and central China. At the same time, some cadres were dispatched to the Central Plains to strengthen the anti-Japanese forces in the Central Plains, of which Wen Jianwu was one of them. He was ordered to lead two cadre brigades south across the Huai River to the new Fourth Army division headquarters and participate in the battle.
After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan, in order to seize the Central Plains, the Kuomintang mobilized a large number of troops to advance to the Liberated Areas of the Central Plains. According to the instructions of the central authorities, the New Fourth Army launched the Battle of Tongbai against the Kuomintang troops, and after the war, it met with other units to form the Central Plains Military Region. Wen Jianwu served as the commander of the column.
For some time thereafter, Wen Jianwu was active in the Central Plains, negotiating with the Kuomintang army while insisting on self-defense and counterattack, containing the strength of the Kuomintang army, and cooperating with the operation in North China. During this time, due to the blockade and encirclement of the Kuomintang army, their lives were very difficult, they were extremely short of materials, and they could only eat wild vegetables and boiled water to survive.
After the outbreak of the War of Liberation, the Kuomintang army immediately shelled the Central Plains Military Region. The Central Plains Military Region formulated a plan and decided to break through in three ways, with Wen Jianwu leading the troops to break through from the north road. They first withdrew from Xuanhuadian, crossed the Pinghan Railway and the Zaoyang Plain, and then crossed the Danjiang River. After several days and nights of rapid marching, it was only after a smooth crossing of the river.
Crossing the Danjiang River, they continued to advance towards Jingziguan. Jingziguan is a natural danger, and the terrain is dangerous. When they came to the foot of Jingziguan, they found that Hu Zongnan's troops had preemptively occupied the key point and blocked the way forward. Wen Jianwu commanded the troops, fought a bloody battle, broke through the pass, and reached southern Shaanxi, only to get rid of the enemy and win the breakthrough battle.
In August 1946, Wen Jianwu was appointed commander of the Yu'e-Shaanxi Military Region and was ordered to lead the troops to carry out guerrilla warfare and create a base area on the border between Henan and Shaanxi. There are many favorable conditions for creating a base here. The local geographical conditions are superior, suitable for guerrilla warfare, and with the local mass base is relatively good, the strength of the guerrillas has developed rapidly.
But there are also disadvantages. It is remote, steep, sparsely populated, and people's lives are very difficult. The same is true of the life of the troops, which is difficult to move, financial support is difficult to guarantee, and they often suffer from cold and hunger. As a result, Wen Jianwu's health was getting worse and worse, and his abdominal pain was often unbearable.
He also had severe neurasthenia, double pain, and was often tortured all night. It turned out that since the breakthrough of the troops, his health had become worse and worse, and the pain was unbearable. It was only the urgency of the war, he chose to hide his illness all the time, quietly endured the pain, and broke through the enemy's encirclement again and again.
After coming to southern Shaanxi, many commanders and fighters asked to leave southern Shaanxi and go to northern China. However, Wen Jianwu was ordered to take up the heavy task of creating a base area with illness. He led by example, sharing the joys and sufferings with the warriors, swallowing the pain alone, and eventually creating a development base.
So is the reason why he was not awarded the title in the end related to his condition?
Regret that the ambition is not rewarded
In fact, after nearly two years of hard fighting, Wen Jianwu's body was indeed extremely weak. After returning to the Taiyue Liberated Area, under the repeated persuasion of the leaders, he left the army and went to Changzhi County for treatment and recuperation.
In July of the following year, the People's Liberation Army entered a strategic offensive, and Wen Jianwu served as the political commissar of the 12th Column of the Jinji-Hebei Chaluyu Field Army. Because he was still recuperating, he did not set out with the troops. After nearly another year, he was appointed first deputy commander of the Western Henan Military Region. At that time, his condition had not yet completely healed, so he hurried to Yuxi to take office.
The Western Henan Liberated Area is located in western Henan, and most of the area has been liberated, but the Kuomintang troops still occupy some cities and resist stubbornly. Especially in the countryside, banditry is rampant, often going down the mountain to burn and loot, endangering the people. For this reason, the Western Henan Military Region decided that Wen Jianwu would lead the troops to Lushi County to eliminate the bandit plague.
Just after arriving in Lushi County, After Wen Jianwu investigated the situation, he led his troops to carry out two tentative strong attacks, resulting in serious losses and had to find another strategy. He looked at the cliff-faced village and pondered bitterly. If they surround this village and cut off all their contact with the outside world, it should be feasible.
He immediately made a decision, surrounded the village, and then took the opportunity to attack, and sure enough, in less than a month, the enemy could not support it because there was no food, and fled in all directions. After completing the task of suppressing bandits, he threw himself into the Huaihai Campaign, served as the commander of the Western Henan Military Region, and presided over the work of the Western Henan Military Region.
After the victory in the Battle of Huaihai, some of the Kuomintang armed forces were still active in the Henan region, and their activities were rampant, seriously endangering the people's lives. Under the organization's arrangement, the Henan Military Region was established, with Wen Jianwu as deputy commander of the military region, and was ordered to lead the troops into the mountains to suppress the bandits and stabilize the social order in Henan.
After careful study, he rushed to the area around Funiu Mountain to prepare for the bandit action. He set up the headquarters in a simple cave and hung maps on the walls as the headquarters and bedrooms. In this small cave dwelling, he and his comrades worked day and night, all night, commanding two months of fighting.
In the process of suppressing bandits, while paying attention to the policy of disintegrating the enemy, he also warned the comrades to correctly implement the party's policy. In every detail, he had to personally review the battle orders and carefully review every newspaper, manuscript, and leaflet. Whenever he found anything wrong, he would correct it and patiently persuade his comrades to realize the importance.
Two months later, Wen Jianwu's campaign to suppress bandits achieved a major victory, eliminating more than 10,000 bandits and capturing a large number of guns and ammunition. His achievements and achievements are enormous, affirmed by the party organizations and affirmed by the broad masses of the people.
However, no one knows that he is enduring unbearable pain for ordinary people. During the period of banditry, his body often ached unbearably, and sometimes he was in so much pain that he kept rolling and sweating profusely. To alleviate the pain, he had the guards take turns pressing their fists against his abdomen to relieve the pain.
This is undoubtedly a kind of torture, not to mention that he still insists on presiding over the work of suppressing bandits. But under such circumstances, with extraordinary perseverance, he insisted on the front line of suppressing bandits until the task of suppressing bandits was completed. No one knows how many days and nights, this 38-year-old commander, has experienced many difficult nights.
In November 1949, the 21st Corps was established in Changsha, Hunan Province, and Wen Jianwu was transferred to the deputy commander of the corps and the chief of staff. At the end of the year, he returned from the bandits and prepared to report to the Central and Southern Military Region in Wuhan. But just as he was about to leave for office, the condition flared up again, and the pain was unbearable.
It turned out that he had been suffering from advanced cancer for some time. That is to say, in the case of terminal cancer, he still insists on working for the party and serving the people. How much pain did he really suffer?
His condition deteriorated further and he had to be transferred to the capital, Beijing, for treatment. After arriving in Beijing, he stubbornly fought against the disease. He hoped that the disease would be cured as soon as possible, that he would overcome the disease, return to work at an early date, and continue to fight for new China. But he did not expect that his cancer had spread throughout the abdominal cavity and he could no longer operate.
That is to say, he has no medicine stone and can only wait for death.
Picture | Li Xiannian
The staff and leaders around them were extremely sad to learn this news. He is an excellent general who is the commander of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, capable of writing and martial arts, and has a sincere heart. Li Xiannian once proudly commented on him: "Wen Jianwu, just like his name, can wen and wu. ”
Although Wen Jianwu was not highly educated, he was knowledgeable, had a wide range of interests, was versatile, loved music, and could write poetry. He loves to read and likes to constantly enrich his knowledge. Once, during the arduous battle period, he often used the gap to study books such as "Sun Tzu's Art of War" to improve his military command ability.
Even during his illness, he insisted on studying Mao Zedong's speech at the Second Plenary Session of the Seventh Central Committee, understanding the party's policies and guidelines, and reading books in various fields in order to better serve the people in the future. On October 1, 1950, Wen Jianwu spent the first National Day of New China in his hospital bed. What should have been a day of celebration was worsening, weak and weak, and his body was becoming more and more emaciated.
He was clearly aware that he was going to die. He looked at the National Day celebrated by the whole country, and everyone's faces were filled with cheerful smiles, and he felt very relieved to see that New China was full of vitality. But when you think of your weak body and can't continue to fight for new China, you feel infinite regret and regret.
Before leaving, he wrote: "Dear children, I am sick nine times a lifetime, originally, I was not afraid of sacrifice, but I did not want to die like this, and the revolutionary cause is not completed, and I want to continue to struggle, but I can't." You must study hard, respect the teacher, listen to your mother's words, and later train to become an excellent revolutionary descendant, and contribute your share of your strength to China in the future, and you will be happy. ”
On January 15, 1951, just as the whole army was about to be rated, Wen Jianwu died at the age of 39. His last term of office was deputy commander of the corps, and he should have been awarded the rank of deputy corps or quasi-corps according to the regulations. Unfortunately, with his death, all this is gone.
If he had not died, according to his decades of contributions to the revolution and his exploits, when he was awarded the rank of lieutenant general or major general in 1955, it is very likely that he would have been awarded the rank of lieutenant general or major general, but unfortunately with his death, all this became history, an irreparable regret.
In his revolutionary career of more than 20 years, Wen Jianwu made major contributions to the victory of the Chinese revolution. At an age when he should have been able to show his ambition and continue to dedicate, he died young, which is regrettable.