The rapid development of the revolutionary struggle in Eyuwan caused great panic in the Kuomintang camp. In the summer of 1932, Chiang Kai-shek personally dispatched himself as commander-in-chief of the "suppression of bandits" in the three provinces of Eyu and Anhui, mobilizing a total of more than 390,000 people, including four air units, to launch the fourth "encirclement and suppression" campaign against the Red Army in an attempt to wipe out the Eyu-Anhui base area at once.
In the face of the enemy's attack, Zhang Guotao was blinded by the victory. He refused to adopt Xu Xiangqian's correct suggestion that the troops should be rested, that they should make preparations for opposing "encirclement and suppression," and that they should seek opportunities to annihilate the enemy, but instead blindly underestimated the enemy, believing that the Red Army had fundamentally eliminated the "encirclement and suppression" and advocating "non-stop attacks," and forcing the Red Army to go south to besiege Macheng and push into Wuhan. Xu Xiangqian and others disagreed with this opinion, but they were rejected by Zhang Guotao.
Xu Xiangqian and the Red Army were bound by Zhang Guotao and could not carry out the movement warfare they were good at, not to avoid the real and attack the virtual, but to fight the enemy prematurely, so they fell into passivity from the beginning. In Macheng, Huang'an, Qiliping and other places, they fought hard for more than five months in succession, annihilating nearly 10,000 enemy troops, but it was difficult to crush the enemy's heavy encirclement.
In the face of difficulties, Xu Qianqian personally went to the front line, meticulously commanded, and vowed to coexist and die with the vast number of commanders and fighters. The Xinji Counterattack And the Tuqiaopu Breakout Were two vicious battles in which the Red Fourth Front moved westward. During the battle, the enemy once attacked only 50 meters away from Xu Qiang's command post, and bullets often roared past him. Xu Xiangqian still commanded the troops calmly, showing amazing composure and boldness.
However, the Red Army was unable to change the passive situation. Many outstanding commanders fell in pools of blood. The commander of the Red Twenty-fifth Army, who participated in the Nanchang Uprising and the Guangzhou Uprising, and Xu Qianqian's old classmate cai Shenxi of the Whampoa Military Academy, was killed in battle; The political commissar of the First Red Division, Gan Jishi, was killed; Chen Geng, commander of the Twelfth Division, was seriously wounded...
In early November 1932, Xu Xiangqian led the Red Fourth Front and moved to Manchuan pass at the junction of Eyu and Anhui. It's a perilous pass. When the vanguard of the Red Army reached Manchuan Pass, it was found that three regiments of the Shaanxi Army had occupied Manchuan Pass, stuck at the pass, and blocked the Red Army's way to the west. The enemy Hu Zongnan and other troops caught up with him again, pressing toward Manchuan Pass from all sides. The enemy attempted to annihilate the Red Army in one fell swoop in the deep mountains and valleys of the cliffs and cliffs of more than ten kilometers east of the Manchuan Pass.
The situation is critical. "At this most critical juncture, we meet to study countermeasures. Zhang Guotao was a man who was sparse when he arrived, did not understand military affairs, and often commanded blindly. He proposed that the units should be divided into pieces and the troops should be dispersed to fight guerrillas. How does this work? I said: This force cannot be dispersed, and only together can there be a way. We are like a piece of whole meat, and the enemy can't swallow it; If scattered, cut into small pieces, just to be eaten by people bite by bite. Therefore, in any case, we must not disperse the guerrilla war, and we must do everything possible to break through. Chen Changhao and other comrades supported my opinion and finally decided to concentrate on breaking through. The situation is tense, and every second counts. The so-called meeting is nothing more than a few people meeting each other, discussing it, and deciding to act. ”
The manchuanguan breakthrough of the life-and-death showdown began.
Xu Xiangqian ordered the Red Twelfth Division to be the vanguard of the road and break through with the cooperation of the Seventy-third Division; The Red Tenth and Eleventh Divisions were used to defend against the enemy from the south and west.
The Red Twelfth Division took the Thirty-fourth Regiment as the assault vanguard. This is a particularly capable of fighting hard and vicious battles. The leader of the regiment, Xu Shiyou, is a tiger general.
From the beginning of the battle, it was extremely intense. With a heroic counterattack, the Red Army occupied the favorable position of Yakou. With superior troops, the enemy counterattacked the Red Army positions again and again with the whole company and the whole battalion and even the whole regiment, but the Red Army led by Xu Shiyou was defeated.
After a fierce battle, the Red Army finally tore a gap four miles wide from the enemy's joint. Braving enemy fire, the whole army triumphantly passed through the passage controlled by the Red Thirty-fourth Regiment and escaped from danger.
Luo Yinghuai, who was killed from the Battle of Manchuan Pass, recalled:
"The Battle of Manchuan Pass was a battle that had a bearing on the life and death of the Red Fourth Front. At that time, the situation of our army was dangerous, and the fierce and cruel fighting was rare before. Guns and shrapnel cut the pine branches and leaves of the nameless highlands bare, leaving only half-cut stumps. Of the five or six hundred men in our battalion, at the end of the battle, there were only about eighty men left. The flag I hit was torn into pieces by shrapnel, and even the flagpole was pierced by bullets. When the second battalion withdrew from its position, it was found that more than a dozen comrades of two squads had been killed by the severe cold because they had been lying in the ice and snow for a long time. ...... With the strength of one regiment, we withstood the attack of two brigades of the enemy's Forty-fourth Division, eliminated a large number of the enemy's living forces, and covered the victorious transfer of the whole army. This tenacious fighting style and brave spirit have been passed down as a good story in the whole army. Until today, fifty years later, Xu Shuai recalled the battle scene with us and said with infinite emotion: The breakthrough of Manchuan Pass is really dangerous, thanks to the fact that the Thirty-fourth Regiment resisted at the mountain pass. ”
After breaking through the enemy's siege, the Red Army rode along the mountain path, climbed and waded through the water, and sped north. At the end of December 1932, Xu Xiangqian led the main Red Army of more than 14,000 people to reach the Tongjiang area in northern Sichuan. After two months of westward travel and 3,000 miles, the enemy blocked the front and cut off the rear, the Red Army faced dangerous situations many times, Xu Qianqian did not panic, resolutely commanded, and finally enabled the Red Army to turn the danger into a disaster and turn the danger into safety.
Sichuan, known as the "Kingdom of Heavenly Palaces", was now being ruled by warlords large and small. These warlords and Chiang Kai-shek have contradictions, and they also have contradictions with each other. Each of them occupied a piece of land, claiming the throne and making a blessing.
However, this created a condition for the Red Army to take advantage of and gain a foothold.
Xu Xiangqian later analyzed: "At that time, there were a total of warlord forces in Sichuan, such as Liu Xiang, Liu Wenhui, Deng Xihou, Tian Songyao, Yang Sen, Liu Cunhou, Li Jiayu, and Luo Zezhou, each leading the 'defensive land,' dominating one side, fighting for each other for many years, and making indissoluble disputes. Not only are there contradictions between the Warlords of Sichuan; There were also contradictions between Chiang Kai-shek and the Sichuan warlords. At that time, Sichuan was a 'country within a country', the world of the Sichuan Army. The various warlords nominally accepted the unified appointment and leadership of Chiang Kai-shek's central government, but in fact they were based on maintaining the warlord rule of the Sichuan people. They were afraid that Chiang Kai-shek would 'suppress bandits regardless of region', extend their tentacles into Sichuan, and annex their own army and territory. Therefore, in dealing with Chiang Kai-shek and the Sichuan warlords, there is a common interest, and everyone is a little reluctant to 'open the door and steal'. We entered Sichuan and took advantage of these two contradictions. ”
"The Red Fourth Front's advance into Tongnanba and choose to participate in the 'Battle of Chengdu' at the moment when Tian Songyao poured his main force into the 'Battle of Chengdu' can be said to be a proper move." Praying mantises catch cicadas, yellow finches in the back'. Tian Songyao only cared about participating in the melee in Chengdu and did not guard against this. This allows us to quickly open the war and take root immediately. At that time, did Chiang Kai-shek's forces want to enter Sichuan? I thought so. And the Sichuan warlords? I'm afraid that it's easy to ask God to send God, so I don't want them to come in and help. Therefore, Liu Mao'en's troops entered Wanyuan and soon retreated; Southern Huzong had advanced from Hanzhong to the junction of Sichuan and Shaanxi and climbed up the Bashan Mountains, but he also ate the 'closed door soup' and had to quietly return to the army. Assuming that there was no situation of warlords fighting in Sichuan at that time, our army entered Sichuan, and the Sichuan army united to deal with us, our situation would be much more difficult. Assuming that there was no contradiction between the Warlords of Sichuan and Chiang Kai-shek at that time, and agreed that Chiang Kai-shek's concubine troops would enter Sichuan to "suppress the Communists," then Chiang Kai-shek's army would go from north to south, the Sichuan army would go from south to north, and the two sides would be pressed down, and our army would be overwhelmed by the enemy on its belly and back, and it would be difficult to take care of it, and it would be even more impossible to gain a foothold under the Daba Mountain. ”
The natural conditions of Sichuan are also a natural place for using and raising soldiers. Mountains and rivers crisscross, dangerous peaks, deep road passes, many places are covered by primeval forests, large troops are assembled, hidden, interspersed, and it is difficult for the enemy to find; Blocking the mountain pass with a small number of troops, it will be difficult for the enemy to attack; The land is fertile, things grow all year round, there are many birds and animals, and the problem of eating and wearing the troops is easier to deal with.
However, the objectively favorable conditions still cannot replace the subjective efforts of the Red Army. As a leader of the people's army, Xu Xiangqian was not only good at leading troops to fight, but also deeply understood the great significance of creating revolutionary base areas for the survival and development of this army. Northern Sichuan, on the other hand, has not undergone the baptism of the Great Revolution, the activities of the Communist Party are weak, and the masses know very little about the Communist Party.
At a meeting of cadres, Xu Xiangqian expounded the great significance of the Red Army dividing up the troops to mobilize the masses, fighting local tycoons, and dividing up the fields. He said that the poor people in the world are one family, and only when the masses have feelings for you as a "family" can they believe your propaganda and make a revolution with you; otherwise, he will not move if he is struck by lightning. It is necessary to convince the masses that the Red Army is the poor man in uniform and taking up arms, the ranks of the poor and the poor, and that it is wholeheartedly helping the poor to turn around and liberate. It was precisely on the basis of this idea that Xu Xiangqian, together with the vast number of commanders and fighters of the Red Army, carried out all kinds of work centered on the agrarian revolution.
(1) Divide the troops and mobilize the masses. The Red Army is both a combat team, a task force, and a propaganda team. Thousands of commanders and fighters have been successively dispatched from each unit, led by the directors of the political departments of divisions and regiments, to form a task force to publicize and organize the masses. The task force members went from village to village, went deep among the vast numbers of poor peasants, helped the masses carry water, cut firewood, and carried grain, and soon mingled with the masses and won the trust of the masses.
(2) Opening warehouses and dividing grain equally, and dividing the land equally. This is the basic weapon of the Red Army in mobilizing the masses. The vast number of peasants have been oppressed and exploited by the feudal landlord class for generations, which is really inferior to cattle and horses. Now the Red Army has come, overthrown the local tyrants and gentry, shared the land, had cattle, houses, mountains and forests, and lived a good life that has never been seen before. Their revolutionary enthusiasm was unprecedentedly high, supporting the Red Army, working hard to produce, and contributing to the construction of base areas.
(3) Recruit Party members and establish Party organizations. Here the party's foundation is weak. With the help of the Red Army, local party organizations were soon established. In February 1933, the first party congress of Sichuan and Shaanxi Province was held in Tongjiang County. With local party organizations, there is a backbone force leading the mass struggle in the base areas.
(4) Establish a Red regime. At the beginning of the Red Army's entry into Sichuan, from provinces, counties, and districts to townships and villages, provisional revolutionary committees were generally established to perform the duties of the organs of political power. The Provisional Revolutionary Committee is responsible for the distribution of land, the organization of production, the support of the Red Army, the elimination of reactionaries and the mobilization of the masses. In February 1933, the Provincial Soviet Government was formally established. The Provisional Revolutionary Committees at all levels were also replaced by formal Soviet government institutions. The general establishment of the Red regime marked the formal formation of the Sichuan-Shaanxi revolutionary base areas.
(5) Expansion of the ranks of the Red Army and the establishment of local armed forces. After the agrarian revolution was launched, the vast numbers of poor peasants demanded to join the army one after another to defend the fruits of victory. New battalions and companies have been set up in divisions and regiments, and independent battalions for women have also been formed. The army grew to 18,000 men. Li Xiannian was the political commissar of the Eleventh Division, and Wang Shusheng was the commander of the Seventy-third Division. Independent battalions and companies have been established in all counties and districts, and Red Guard organizations are generally established in townships and villages. The slogan of the local armed forces is "Defend the place, defend the homeland". They were responsible for maintaining local law and order, catching reactionaries, assisting the Red Army in fortifications, repairing bridges and paving roads, and reconnaissance of enemy situations.
In addition, mass organizations such as trade unions and women's committees have been established to abstain from opium and tobacco, eliminate reactionaries, and crack down on and dismantle the ranks of bandits. At the foot of the daba mountain, there was a warm scene of the masses turning over and seeking liberation.
Xu Xiangqian and the vast number of Red Army commanders and fighters relied on the base areas to stand on the edge of Sichuan and Shaanxi and continued to fight heroically for the birth of new China.
The enemy will not sit idly by and watch the Red Army survive and develop. Soon, the sichuan warlords' melee was temporarily over. Chiang Kai-shek appointed Tian Songyao as the inspector of the "suppression of bandits" in Sichuan and Shaanxi in an attempt to eliminate the Red Army.
The headquarters of the Red Fourth Front immediately held an emergency military meeting in Tongjiang.
Proceeding from reality, stipulating the principles of strategic campaigns and tactical principles is an important feature of Xu Qianqian's use of troops. After analyzing the terrain and enemy situation in northern Sichuan, he suggested breaking the enemy's siege with the principles of "tightening the position" and "defending in decisive battles", that is, with a small number of troops, jamming the narrow valleys of the mountains and dangerous passes, holding firm by the risk, resisting step by step, retreating one after another, luring the enemy to go deeper, and exhausting and exhausting the enemy; When the enemy's forces are scattered and the fatigue and depression of the offensive are exhausted, our army will hold a counter-offensive again, focusing on breakthroughs, detouring on both wings, and annihilating the enemy in one fell swoop.
Xu Xiang went a step further and analyzed that northern Sichuan is different from Eyuwan, and the Eyuwan area is suitable for fighting a mobile war, engaging in "encircling points to fight aid," and engaging in long-distance raids.
Xu Xiangqian's unique insights have aroused heated discussion. The meeting fully agreed with this new operational policy and determined that Xu Xiangqian was responsible for operational matters.
According to this strategic policy, from February to April 1933, Xu Xiangqian led an army to fight for four months, crushing Tian Songyao's three-way siege.
Immediately afterward, Xu Xiangqian commanded three offensive campaigns in succession: the Battle of Yinan, which began on August 12 and ended on August 27, annihilated more than 3,000 enemy troops in half a month, captured a large area east and south of the Jialing River, occupied more than 100 salt wells, and solved the difficulties of the army and the people in lacking salt to eat; The Battle of Yingqu, which began on September 22 and ended on October 6, lasted 14 days and annihilated more than 4,000 enemy troops; In mid-October, the Xuanda Campaign was launched, which lasted 10 days, annihilated 6 enemy regiments, and captured more than 4,000 enemy soldiers.
The three offensive campaigns expanded the Sichuan-Shaanxi base area to more than 40,000 square kilometers, and the Red Army expanded to 80,000 people. The Sichuan-Shaanxi base area created by the Red Fourth Front is the second largest red area in the country. Xu Xiangqian's prestige shook Sichuan and Nanjing.
In October 1933, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Liu Xiang, commander of the enemy's 31st Army, as the commander-in-chief of the Sichuan "suppression of bandits", gathered more than 140 regiments, divided the troops into six roads, and launched a six-way siege on the Sichuan-Shaanxi base area.
Xu Xiangqian used the operational policy of "tightening the position and luring the enemy to go deeper", and after 10 months of fighting, Liu Xiang's "six-way siege" was completely bankrupt.
Just as Xu Xiangqian was fighting in Sichuan and Shaanxi, the situation of the Chinese revolution underwent new changes.
In the autumn of 1934, the Central Red Army was forced to leave the Central Soviet Zone and began a strategic shift due to the mistakes of "Left" adventurism in military command.
For this major strategic action, Xu Xiangqian is very concerned. He personally explained to the person in charge of the radio station: We must pay attention to intercepting and deciphering the enemy's telecommunications at all times, and provide information to the Party Central Committee and the Central Red Army in a timely manner. Xu Xiangqian deeply felt that the Chinese revolution was once again at a critical juncture of serious difficulties.
At this time, Chiang Kai-shek, while encircling the Central Red Army on a large scale, stepped up preparations for the "Sichuan-Shaanxi Association" in an attempt to eliminate the Red Fourth Front in one fell swoop. Although the Sichuan-Shaanxi Soviet Region won the victory against the Six-Way Siege, after 10 months of war attrition, the Red Army and the people suffered heavy losses. At the foot of the Daba Mountain, there is barren land everywhere, and there are hungry people everywhere.
The situation is grim. Zhang Guotao frowned all day and couldn't lift his spirits. He had consulted Xu Xiangqian's opinion and wanted to abandon the Sichuan-Shaanxi Su region and go to the Hanzhong region. Xu Xiangqian disagreed. He said: "The Hanzhong region is inaccessible, the south is bashan mountain, the north is Qinling, and there is not much room for maneuver. We still rely on the old district to find a way as well. ”
In mid-November, at a military conference held at Qingjiangdu in Bazhong, Xu Xiangqian put forward the next strategic action plan: relying on the old areas, developing new areas, taking the attack on the south of Huzong as the main goal, seizing the Wen (county) Wu (Du) Cheng (county) Kang (county) area in Gannan and developing the Sichuan-Shaanxi base area into a Sichuan-Shaanxi-Gansu base area. The plan was adopted at the meeting.
After the meeting, the Red Fourth Front, taking advantage of the fact that the southern part of Huzong had just entered Sichuan and had an unstable foothold, launched the Battle of Guangzhao.
Just as Xu Qiangqian was commanding the Battle of Guangzhao, the Central Red Army had left Zunyi and advanced towards Chishui City. On January 22, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Central Military Commission sent a telegram to the leaders of the Red Fourth Front, informing them of the strategic action guidelines of the Central Red Army and asking the Red Fourth Front to actively respond.
In order to prepare for and welcome the central Red Army into Sichuan, on March 28, 1935, Xu Xiangqian led his army across the Jialing River, and within 24 days, nine counties including Lianke Langzhong, Southern, Zhaohua, Jiange, Pingwu, and Beichuan controlled a vast area stretching from the Jialing River in the east to the FuJiang River in the west and 300 miles in length.
On June 8, the vanguard of the Red Fourth Front led by Li Xiannian and the vanguard of the Red Front met at the northern foot of Jiajin Mountain.
On June 12, Xu Xiangqian personally drafted a letter to Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De, and other central leaders on behalf of the leaders of the Red Fourth Front in Lifan. The letter gave a detailed account of the enemy's situation in northwest Sichuan, holding out: "The Western Expeditionary Army has marched thousands of miles, repeatedly conquered famous cities, and destroyed the enemy one after another, but it is not without fatigue, and rest and replenishment are also necessary. He also enthusiastically said: "The Red Fourth Front and the masses of workers and peasants in northwest Sichuan are preparing to welcome with 120,000 points of enthusiasm our Central Western Expeditionary Army, which has won every battle and every victory." This confidential letter, Xu sent a guard to bring a guard squad to Maogong. He also repeatedly instructed: "The letter must be delivered to Chairman Mao."
On June 14, Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De and other central leading comrades arrived in Dawei Town. In the evening, the two fronts held a victory meeting. Mao Zedong delivered a speech at the meeting, calling on all comrades of the Red First and Fourth Fronts to learn from each other, unite closely, and fulfill all the tasks entrusted by the Party under the leadership of the Party Central Committee.
On the issue of the strategic course of action after the meeting, Zhang Guotao had differences with the party Central Committee. On 26 June, the Party Central Committee held a meeting at Lianghekou and made the "Decision of the Central Committee on the Strategic Guidelines After the Convergence of the First and Fourth Fronts", which pointed out that the strategic principle after the meeting of the two armies was to concentrate the main forces to attack the north, eliminate a large number of enemies in the movement, and first take southern Gansu to create the Sichuan-Shaanxi-Gansu Region.
Although Zhang Guotao expressed his agreement with the Party Central Committee's policy of going north at the Lianghekou Meeting, after the meeting he put forward the idea of going south to Chuankangbian, which was completely contrary to the decision of the Central Committee, and created rumors, slandered the central line, attacked the central leaders, provoked the relations between the Red Fourth Front Army and the Central Red Army, and carried out activities to undermine the unity of the Party and the Red Army. When the Red Army was divided into left and right routes and marched north from Mao'ergai, Zhang Guotao again carried a telegram from the party Central Committee to order Chen Changhao to lead the right route army south and attempt to endanger the party Central Committee.
In order to implement the policy of going north, the Party Central Committee decided to lead the First and Third Armies to go north first. When the main force of the Red Army was advancing northward, someone in the Red Fourth Front had asked whether to send troops to block it, and Xu Xiangqian was furious when he heard it, and said categorically: "Where is the reason for the Red Army to fight the Red Army!" Tell them to listen to the command, and they can't fight under any circumstances!"
Xu Xiangqian made special meritorious contributions to safeguarding the unity of the Party and the Red Army at a crucial moment.
During the period of going south, Xu Xiangqian, Zhu De, Liu Bocheng, and others resisted and struggled against Zhang Guotao's criminal act of splitting the party. Zhang Guotao held a meeting of senior cadres in Zhuo Mu diao and announced the establishment of a pseudo-central committee. Xu Xiangqian had a serious expression, sitting in the corner and smoking a dull cigarette, without saying a word. After the meeting, Zhang Guotao talked to him, and he made it clear: There are differences within the party, who is right and who is wrong, we can talk slowly, talk about it in general, scold the central authorities to no money, expel this, want that, can only make the relatives hurt and the enemies fast, even if the central authorities have some improper practices, we cannot do so. Now make it into two centers, as if the enemy knows what the benefits are!
During the period of going south, the Red Fourth Front successively launched the Sui (Jing) Chong(Hua) Dan (Ba) Mao (Gong) Campaign and the Tian(Quan) Mang (Shan) Ming (Shan) Ya (An) Qiong (Lai) Da (Yi) Campaign, fighting bitterly for half a year, although annihilating nearly 30,000 enemy troops, but also losing half of its troops, only one battle of 100 Zhangguan, the Red Army suffered nearly 10,000 casualties. The Red Fourth Front was in a desperate situation on the side of Chuankang.
Due to the failure of the southward policy and the correct policy of inner-party struggle adopted by the Party Central Committee, Zhang Guotao was forced to abolish the pseudo-Central Committee. In July 1936, the Red Second and Fourth Fronts met the division in victory in the Ganzi area.
In order to promote the unity of the Party and the Red Army, Ren Bishi, political commissar of the Second Red Front, talked to the leaders separately. Xu Xiangqian agreed with Ren Bishi's basic propositions and frankly expressed his opinions to the effect that:
(1) The central authorities and Comrade Mao Zedong's policy of going north is correct. At that time, he did not follow the central authorities, because he did not want to divide the Red Fourth Front into two halves, and the main force could not be moved by one person.
(2) The great enemy is present, and unity is the most important. Zhang Guotao set up another central committee, which is very undeserved. But he did not listen to anyone who spoke, nor did he listen to the words of President Zhu, and now that the "Central Committee" has been abolished, it is beneficial to unity. During the northward advance, it is best not to talk about the past, so as not to cause new disputes.
(iii) We are very happy that the second and fourth fronts will meet. However, some comrades in the Central Committee said that the Four Fronts Army was a warlord, a bandit, a fugitive, a political backwardness, that it was too much, that it hurt the feelings of the Four Fronts, and that I and many commanders and fighters of the Four Fronts Army could not figure it out.
(iv) From the moment we joined the revolution, we expressed our support for the Third International, and that is what is written on our armbands. I am in favour of the Communist International coming forward to resolve past differences.
Ren Bishi believes that Xu Xiangqian's views are positive and his attitude is sincere. He expressed with full confidence that he was willing to work hard to promote the unity of the Party and the Red Army.
In October 1936, the three main forces of the Red Army met the division in Victory in Huining.
On October 25, Xu Xiangqian was ordered by the Central Military Commission and Chen Changhao to lead more than 20,000 Red Army troops to cross the Yellow River from the mouth of the river in Jingyuan County, with the task of implementing the Ningxia campaign plan decided by the Central Military Commission.
Due to the change of circumstances, the Ningxia Campaign plan was forced to be suspended. On November 10, the central government ordered the Red Army in Hexi to form the Western Route Army, with Chen Changhao as the chairman of the military and political committee and Xu Xiangqian as the vice chairman.
Xu Xiangqian experienced the tragic and magnificent course of the Western Route Army.
In May 1937, Xu Xiangqian returned to Yan'an after suffering hardships. In his "Review of History", he recalled: "As soon as I arrived in Yan'an, Chairman Mao received me. He briefly asked about the Situation of the Western Route Army, and I answered truthfully. He said: Stay in the green mountains, and don't be afraid of running out of firewood. If you can come back, there are chickens and eggs. I was very touched by these words. ”