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In a rural area in Tianjin in 1963, villagers were gathering intently to watch the movie "Little Soldier Zhangga," which was popular all over the country.
Unexpectedly, when the clip of "Zhang Ga" blocking the chimney was played, a middle-aged boiler worker present suddenly burst into tears and muttered in a low voice:
"I really haven't done anything about this chimney..."
People felt that the boiler worker was talking nonsense, and the organization immediately launched an investigation, but unexpectedly found that the boiler worker and "Little Soldier Zhang Xuan" are inextricably linked. What is the origin of this boiler worker, and why did he say such words?
Lost his parents and determined to join the army
The boiler worker's name is Yan Xiufeng, born in 1924 in Houwangyo Village, Renqiu County, Hebei Province, and the villagers call him "Gazi". At that time, when the warlords in the country were in chaos, there was turmoil in various places, and the landlords and gentry also took the opportunity to seize and seize the land. In order to satisfy their selfish desires, they used all kinds of methods to oppress the people, and the slightest disobedience was a punch and kick.
When Gazi was 5 years old, his father, who was working in the landlord's house, was severely beaten and finally ended in indignation. Shortly after her father's death, Gazi's mother was also worried and eventually followed her husband. Overnight, little Gazi became an orphan without a father or mother, but thanks to the help of kind villagers, he was able to grow up safely.
Yan Xiufeng
The skinny Gazi learned early on the skills of climbing trees on walls and going down to the river to catch fish. Although the living conditions were very harsh and he did not have his parents to take care of, he grew up eating a hundred family meals and never complained, but developed a bold and shrewd character under the tempering of hardship.
On July 7, 1937, after the "Lugou Bridge Incident" that shocked China and abroad, the Japanese army invading China launched an all-out attack, and the War of Resistance officially began. The Japanese army successively occupied Liangzhao, Renqiu, Qingta, Zhaobikou and Mozhou, and there was no grass everywhere they went. Under its "three lights" policy of "killing, robbing and burning", hundreds of people were brutally murdered and became the souls of the Japanese army.
"Little Soldier Zhang Ga" stills
The city gate caught fire, killing the pond fish, and the claws of the Japanese invasion soon extended to Gazi's hometown. In order to drive away the enemy, the Eighth Route Army established an anti-Japanese base in the central Hebei Plain, and Gazi was very excited when he learned about it.
Since the Japanese invasion of China, he has witnessed their crimes of burning, killing and looting, and the seeds of revenge have long been planted in his heart. Now, the opportunity to join the military is just around the corner, how can Gazi easily miss it? So the 12-year-old rushed to sign up, but the guerrilla leader said:
"Gazi, you are young and not tall, I'm afraid you can't even carry a gun! Listen to my advice, give up this road, and hurry back! ”
However, Gazi, who touched a gray nose, was not willing. After going back, he secretly pondered that if he could also make great achievements, maybe the guerrillas would allow him to join the Eighth Route Army! In this way, Gazi followed his companions to learn revolutionary knowledge while quietly waiting for the opportunity to express himself. Soon, that day came.
Resourceful and feather repeatedly
One morning in 1937, as soon as the sky glowed hazy, Gazi and the villagers were driven into the clearing by a large group of Japanese puppet troops. It turned out that the Japanese army learned through intelligence that a large number of Eighth Route Army and guerrillas were stationed in Houwangyo Village, and they were plotting to carry out a huge "sweep" here. In this way, they intend to find out the anti-Japanese elements hidden inside.
Gazi stood in the dense pile of people, quietly observing the Japanese commander who was talking endlessly at the front through the gap, his brows furrowed. Although he couldn't understand what the little devil said, judging from the terrified expressions of the villagers, the enemy must be fighting some crooked idea. So, he turned his head sideways and proposed to Du Shuming, a guerrilla in the same row:
"Wait for the two of us to pretend to fight, as soon as you hit me, I will run, and then you catch up, let's run out together!"
Du Shuming immediately understood, the two nodded in tacit agreement, only to see Gazi making an angry glare, and then he and Du Shuming got into a ball. The two children, who were about the same age, became the focus of all the Japanese puppet troops for a while, and even the leading Japanese officers watched with relish.
Gazi and Tutsuk Ming one grabbed each other's hair, and the other muddied in the other's face. The two are splashing and rolling on the yellow earth, and the scene can be described as quite "inseparable". The more the Japanese puppet army looked at it, the more fascinated they felt, completely forgetting the "sweeping" goal of their trip. By the time they reacted, Gazi and Tu Shuming, who were covered in dirt, had long disappeared and successfully escaped.
With a flexible mind, Gazi successfully rescued his companion from the mouth of the enemy. You know, Tu Shuming is a guerrilla, usually with intelligence and a gun. In case of discovery by the enemy, Na Tu Shuming and the entire village of villagers will be doomed. Soon, the guerrilla leader also heard about Gazi's deeds and was very happy, and even when he was specially approved to join the guerrilla.
In this way, Gazi became the youngest fighter in the guerrilla, and was also given the name "Yan Xiufeng" by the captain. Don't look at him at this time, he is thin and small, and he looks malnourished, but he is very bold and has a strong learning ability. Soon after joining the army, Gazi practiced a set of superb marksmanship and began to show his skills on the battlefield.
Because of his quick reflexes, Gazi is usually responsible for tasks such as eradicating traitors and destroying enemy artillery towers during combat. Once, he personally executed the Japanese squadron leader Xiaojiubao and killed more than 100 traitors and Japanese puppet troops. In addition, Gazi and his comrades uprooted 8 enemy artillery towers and captured 40 pistols, 59 rifles, 1 machine gun and 2 grenade canisters.
However, what really made Gazi famous in the battle was his experience of eradicating the enemy army in Shiqiao Village. That day, Gazi and four comrades disguised as gendarmes infiltrated the village of Shiqiao, located at the junction of Anxin and Renqiu. When the political commissar and members of the district squad finished firing their guns, Gazi took the lead in rushing to the enemy guard tower and asked the guard soldiers to call the pseudo captain. After waiting for the other party to come, Gazi made a serious face:
"The imperial army and the gendarmerie will arrive soon, don't you hurry up and go down to greet you!"
When the pseudo-captain heard this, he immediately said yes, and hurriedly walked out of the watchtower with a group of subordinates. Unexpectedly, as soon as they appeared, they were arrested by the guerrillas who had been squatting outside for a long time. Since then, whenever the guerrillas have a difficult task, Gazi will take the initiative to take it and successfully complete it every time.
Because Gazi is haunted every time he moves, it is difficult for the enemy to take precautions, and naturally he can't catch his bullet-free marksmanship. Once, the Japanese army in Mozhou forced the people to go to the town for a "meeting", and the captain learned that the consequence gave Gazi the task of eliminating the enemy in Mozhou. Late at night, Gazi and his comrades sneaked into the Liang Zhao Guard Tower in Mozhou Town in disguise. When the Japanese soldiers standing guard saw them, they decisively stopped them.
"My own family, what do you do when you shoot?"
The two imps looked at each other suspiciously, and at first they didn't react, but when they noticed Gazi's action of pulling the trigger, they quickly regained their vigilance. I saw one of them come forward with a gun and ask Gazi why these "own family" pulled the trigger. Gazi smiled after listening to it, and came lightly:
"I just want to test your guts and have fun!"
The two little devils suddenly became angry, and they picked up the barrel of their guns and were about to attack Gazi and the others. Unfortunately, they were one step slower after all, and almost at the same time as they finished speaking, Gazi had already hit the brains of the two. After solving the enemy at the door, Gazi led his comrades straight to town. Compared to these little minions, what they really have to solve is the leader here, "East Batian".
"East Batian" is a notorious bully in Mozhou, who acts everywhere with his identity as a pseudo-army commander and has a very arrogant temper. However, since eating several defeats in the Eighth Route Army, this Eastern Hegemon, like an eggplant beaten by frost, is no longer as domineering as before, and has become a "shrunken turtle" hiding in the watchtower every day.
However, as soon as they arrived at the market in Mozhou Town, Gazi encountered an unexpected situation - they collided head-on with Dongbatian. The sudden appearance of Dong Batian made Gazi can't help but mutter, according to the characteristics of Dong Batian's greed for life and fear of death, shouldn't it come out so blatantly at this time, could it be that the intelligence is wrong?
In order not to reveal their identities, Gazi had to pretend that they didn't know anything and let Dong Batian take them back to the artillery tower. Along the way, Gazi's mind kept thinking about how to get out. At first, he planned to wait until he reached the vicinity of the artillery tower and wait for the opportunity to launch a surprise attack with his comrades. However, when they actually arrived at their destination, Gazi changed his mind.
It turned out that the terrain around the enemy's artillery tower was extremely complicated, not only with rock-solid drawbridges, but also with a large number of trenches built by the enemy. Even if they can successfully pass through the trench and solve the enemies hiding inside, once trapped by the drawbridge, they will not be able to escape smoothly. You must find a way not to enter the artillery tower! Gazi rolled his eyes, plopped down on the ground, and cried and begged Dong Batian:
"Master Guan, I'm just a child, and I'm most afraid of you in the village. This time I just came with my companions to catch up in the town, you are okay, let us go, I will kowtow to you! ”
Dongbatian didn't react, and still walked in front of himself. Seeing that he was about to step into the artillery tower with one foot, Gazi ruthlessly decided to open up, took out his pistol and hit the back of Dong Batian's head. As soon as the gunshots rang out, Dong Batian quickly fell to the ground, and the puppet army around him was also in chaos in an instant. By the time they reacted, Gazi had already scattered with his comrades.
The enemy could not have imagined that the person who killed the "East Batian" was actually a young yellow-haired boy, and even if they all ran in the direction of Gazi. In order to shake off the enemy, Gazi did not stop for almost a moment, and circled around for thirty or forty miles before throwing them off. When it was dark, the panting Gazi finally returned to the troops, and when everyone learned of his combat experience, they all exclaimed:
"You, you're really a little bold and have a big luck!"
Another time, Gazi was ordered to take down the Japanese artillery tower in the village. Captain Jia, who was in charge of guarding there, relied on his own gun to cause trouble everywhere, which was a major cancer in the local area. Gazi, who knew that the opponent had strong firepower, first disguised himself as a peasant selling vegetables with his comrades. After the enemy was lured out, he struck, and soon captured 7 people. Then, he said to Captain Jia in the artillery tower:
"Captain Jia, I'm Yan Gazi! If you are upstairs, I advise you to come down, otherwise I will have to poke your artillery tower today!" ”
When this Captain Jia heard this, he was also frightened when he boarded. Although he is arrogant, he is also a ghost who is afraid of death, and he never dares to really "coexist and die" with the artillery tower. Moreover, at this time, Captain Jia's subordinates are also dead and surrendered, where is Yan Gazi's opponent if he is alone? In the end, in order to save his life, Captain Jia had to obediently walk downstairs and chose to surrender.
During the entire period of the Anti-Japanese War, "Yan Gazi" Yan Xiufeng made outstanding contributions and made no small contribution. In 1944, the Second Heroic Model Conference of the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region awarded him the honorary title of "First-class Combat Hero". After that, Gazi was appointed as the platoon commander of the 1st platoon of the 4th Company of the 23rd Regiment of the Central Hebei Column, and he was sent to the rear for rescue due to a bullet in the waist during the Liberation War, and has been far from the battlefield ever since.
Yan Xiufeng in his later years
After recovering from his injuries, Gazi has been working as a boiler worker at Ningbo Dao Middle School and has not mentioned his past since. Therefore, everyone around him only knows that he is called "Yan Xiufeng", but they do not know that he is the prototype of the protagonist of "Little Soldier Zhang Ga". After his identity was exposed, many people made a special trip to visit him, and some people persuaded him to apply for subsidies from the leader, but Yan Xiufeng muttered after watching "Little Soldier Zhang Ga" in 1963: We didn't do anything about blocking the chimney of the fellow villagers, but shook his head with a smile and said:
"I can live such a life now, and I am already very content compared to those brothers who died!"
Yan Xiufeng in his later years
In 1987, the organization restored Yan Xiufeng's due leave treatment, and his salary rose to 71.5 yuan per month. In his later years, Yan Xiufeng focused his main energy on the revolutionary traditional education of young people, and in his view, although young people are in a peaceful and prosperous era, they should also constantly strengthen history education. After all, history cannot be forgotten.
In May 2010, 87-year-old Yan Xiufeng died of illness at home, ending his legendary life. Although the hero is gone, his spirit and deeds will live on forever. Tribute to the old hero of Yan Xiufeng!