From December 1931 onwards, Chiang Kai-shek launched two consecutive "encirclement and suppression" campaigns against the Eyu-Anhui base area, and under the leadership of Xu Xiangqian and others, the Red Fourth Front fought a bloody battle and dealt a heavy blow to the enemy.
While smashing the enemy's "encirclement and suppression," the Red Fourth Front also took the initiative to attack, successively launching battles such as Huang'an and Sujiabu, causing the Kuomintang troops to lose their armor and flee in a daze, annihilating nearly 60,000 Kuomintang troops from the end of 1931 to the summer of 1932 alone.
He did not expect that the "bandits" he despised in his heart and eyes were not scattered in the sand, but a highly united unit, with brave combat, strategic and tactical skills, and a very strong survivability.
Chiang Kai-shek gradually understood that the Red Army could not be eliminated in a short period of time, and if it was not done well, not only would it not be destroyed, but its own losses would be even heavier.
As a result, Chiang Kai-shek relented a lot, began to become modest, and also summoned some front-line officers and men who participated in the first two encirclements and suppressions, held a reflection forum, solicited everyone's opinions extensively, and summed up the lessons of failure.
At the meeting, Chiang Kai-shek called on everyone to speak enthusiastically and personally presided over the meeting. However, many Kuomintang generals were a little jealous and did not dare to say it, and most of them were singing praises to Chiang Kai-shek, which made Chiang Kai-shek very angry.
However, there was one person whose speech attracted Chiang Kai-shek's attention, that is, Zhang Lingfu, who was then the commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 2nd Regiment of the 1st Division.
So, what did Zhang Lingfu say at the meeting that made Chiang Kai-shek attach so much importance to him?
In fact, Zhang Lingfu was only a small battalion commander at that time, and it was very rare to get the opportunity to participate in this meeting, so he made meticulous preparations before the meeting, and in the conversation with Wan Yaohuang, the commander of the 14th Division, he revealed the content of his speech, which also made Wan Yaohuang look at him with admiration.
Originally, Zhang Lingfu wanted to talk about the military and civilian families of the Red Army, and he told Wan Yaohuang, why was the Red Army able to achieve one victory after another? It is because the people support them. When we came, the people helped the Red Army to hide, and when we left, the people not only sent a message, but also gave the grain hidden in the mountains to the Red Army.
Moreover, many of their fellow villagers served as guides for the Red Army. Everywhere our troops went, they were wandering around in the mountains and forests, and when they turned around, they were confused, but the Red Army troops, with the help of their fellow villagers, fought guerrillas with us in the mountains, wanted food to eat, and wanted guides and guides.
Many compatriots also reported our deployment to the Red Army, and the Red Army knew our situation very well, so the unity of the military and the people was the source of the Red Army's victory, and our failure was mainly due to the lack of contact with the people in peacetime.
This viewpoint of Zhang Lingfu is consistent with the viewpoint that Wan Yaohuang wants to talk about the red army, the people, and the people of the Red Army, but if Wan Yaohuang wanted to talk about this point of view, Zhang Lingfu did not talk about it again.
At the forum, Zhang Lingfu made another point of view, that is, the Kuomintang army was too arrogant to study the powerful opponent of the Red Army at all.
Zhang Lingfu gave many examples at this forum, for example, most of the victories of the Red Army were carried out by night raids, and when the two sides were deadlocked for several days, they were very tired, and they felt that when the two sides no longer had the determination and will to organize an effective offensive, the Red Army was often able to launch an offensive, falling from the sky, catching us off guard and rapidly routing.
Zhang Lingfu also talked about the issue of the Red Army's tactical flexibility, saying that the superiority of our troops in terms of strength and weapons and equipment is obvious, but the Red Army has never fought hard with us, and when the war is at its most sticky, they will take the initiative to give up and move into the mountains flexibly and flexibly, and our heavy artillery will not be able to catch up with it, and it will lose its role. And the Red Army did not know when it turned behind us, attacked coldly, and fought with us in close combat, and we often could not fight.
He also gave an example of military uniforms, saying that the uniforms of the Red Army are thick and long, not only a matter of warmth, but more importantly, if the uniform is broken in any place, it can cut off the long place and make up for the broken place, which is completely for the needs of combat. However, on the other hand, although the Kuomintang's military uniforms felt very fit, they were not practical when fighting, and it was not easy to make up for them when they were broken.
To this end, he also specially brought a set of Red Army uniforms and showed them to everyone at the scene.
These speeches of Zhang Lingfu deeply touched Chiang Kai-shek, and he nodded his head continuously, so that Chiang Kai-shek remembered this name from then on, and later cultivated more, and finally let Zhang Lingfu fly Huang Tengda and take charge of the first army under the heavens.