At the 1955 award ceremony, Zhang Lixiong was awarded the rank of colonel, and in 1961, he was promoted to the rank of major general, and won many medals.
After his retirement, he still did not forget the original intention and mission of a party member, and still struggled on the front line. The publication of memoirs and the establishment of scholarships are still contributing to society.
And the story of his youth is even more legendary, he served as the political commissar of the Red Army twice, crossed the grassland three times, and escaped death six times.
Zhang Lixiong was born three years after the outbreak of the Xinhai Revolution, at a time when China was still in a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, despite the overthrow of thousands of years of feudal monarchy.
In this era, people are still struggling with the misery.
In 1924, at the age of 11, Zhang Lixiong was forced to leave his warm family and join a local paper mill as a child laborer in order to support his family.
In the paper mill, Zhang Lixiong faced a difficult working environment and mechanical labor. Every day, he has to repeat the work of baking and fishing paper tens of thousands of times, and these seemingly simple actions are actually a test of his young body.
The life experience of child labor has become a tempering of Zhang Lixiong's tenacity, and every day is a struggle for a livelihood.
This experience profoundly affected his understanding and perception of life.
In the mechanical work, Zhang Lixiong learned how to maintain concentration and perseverance in the midst of boring repetitions. He gradually understood that life is not easy and realized that life requires hard work and perseverance.
These early adversities shaped his strong character and cultivated his resistance to adversity. Despite his young age, Zhang Lixiong has cultivated maturity and tenacity beyond his years through his experience as a child laborer.
This arduous period of child labor became an important chapter in his life and laid a solid foundation for his later career and life.
Six-year-old Zhang Lixiong was filled with curiosity and anticipation when he learned that the Red Army had opened a warehouse to release grain in Huilong Town, not far from his hometown.
With a yearning for the Red Army, he did not hesitate to muster up the courage and ran to Huilong Town, wanting to witness the demeanor of the Red Army with his own eyes.
As soon as he arrived in Huilong Town, Zhang Lixiong began to carefully look at the Red officers and soldiers in front of him. The members of the team spoke a variety of accents, making it difficult for him to distinguish between the officers and the soldiers.
Although they were plainly dressed, they were energetic, amiable in their dealings with the people, and showed great discipline. All this made Zhang Lixiong feel deep admiration and touch.
What moved Zhang Lixiong even more was that the officers and men of the Red Army selflessly distributed the property they had seized from the local tyrants to the suffering people, relieved the poor families, and even distributed the fields to the working people.
He was deeply touched by this selfless dedication and care for the people.
The ideals of justice and equality displayed by the Red Army were deeply imprinted in Zhang Lixiong's heart and aroused his strong desire to join the Red Army.
In 1932, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Provisional Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic issued a call to expand the ranks of the Red Army.
At this historic moment, Zhang Lixiong responded positively and smoothly joined the ranks of the Red Army. He joined not only to fight, but also to gain a wealth of knowledge and experience in the Red Army family.
Zhang Lixiong was not satisfied with just learning Xi cultural knowledge, he deeply understood that political and military literacy were equally indispensable on the road to revolution. He not only studied Xi in class, but also actively participated in field work, eagerly absorbing fresh nutrients and accepting the baptism of advanced ideas.
This all-encompassing approach to learning Xi allowed him to make significant progress in a short period of time and make a name for himself in the Red Army.
One day in January 1934, Zhang Lixiong, who was fighting in northwest Fujian, received a notice from the Political Department of the Corps, asking him to go to Ruijin to attend the National Political Work Conference on behalf of the Red 34th Division.
It was a momentous moment that was important for him personally.
What made him even more excited was that Chairman Mao Zedong was also present at the closing ceremony.
At the meeting, Chairman Mao had a cordial conversation with Zhang Lixiong, and this close contact made Zhang Lixiong more firm in his revolutionary belief.
However, with the failure of the anti-encirclement campaign, the Red Army had to start the Long March, and this period has become one of the most valuable experiences in Zhang Lixiong's memory.
In the course of the Long March, he experienced many hardships and obstacles, among which the stage of crossing the grassland was particularly difficult.
In Zhang Lixiong's recollections, crossing the grassland was the most arduous part of the Long March. Unlike the heroic scene of climbing the snowy mountain, the Sanguo grassland is full of indescribable suffering.
All this stemmed from the evil consequences of Zhang Guotao's splitting of the party and the Red Army.
As a result of Zhang Guotao's separatist behavior, Zhang Lixiong's unit was forced to cross the grassland three times, which led to avoidable pain and undeserved losses.
The so-called meadow is actually an endless swamp in which it can get bogged down in a quagmire at any moment.
Every step is a test of life and death, requiring tremendous physical effort.
Due to the harsh terrain, the Red Army soldiers suffered great distress in this area, and they were constantly threatened with unexpected situations.
In this difficult process, Zhang Lixiong witnessed the tremendous efforts made by his comrades-in-arms to break through many difficulties, and also felt the strength of closer unity among comrades due to difficulties.
On January 1, 1937, Zhang Lixiong and Pi Dingjun commanded the Red 5th Army to conquer Gaotai City in a lightning way, eliminating an important stronghold of the Japanese puppet army.
However, on January 21, the enemy concentrated its forces and firepower to frantically counterattack Gaotai City, and Zhang Lixiong and Pi Dingjun led their troops to resist stubbornly and repelled the enemy's attacks in turn, but Zhang Lixiong was wounded in the battle.
After the enemy's frontal attack was blocked, they tried to break through from the flank, but Zhang Lixiong and Pi Ding both adjusted their deployment in time and pounced on the roundabout enemy, forcing the enemy to retreat.
Due to the fact that the bad elements who infiltrated the 43rd Regiment during the expansion of the Red Army opened the West City Gate and lured the wolves into the house, the officers and men of our army fought with the enemy for several hours, and more than 3,000 soldiers spilled their blood on the high platform, including Zhang Lixiong's good partner Ye Chongben, the head of the regiment.
This battle also became a lifelong pain for Zhang Lixiong.
In the Battle of Funiu Mountain in the summer of 1945, Pi Dingjun served as the former commander and Zhang Lixiong served as the political commissar, and with the tacit cooperation of the two people, they fought a perfect battle.
After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Zhang Lixiong and Pi Ding both worked in the 1st Column of the Central Plains Military Region, Pi Dingjun served as the commander of the 1st Brigade, and Zhang Lixiong served as the political commissar of the 3rd Brigade, both of which were the main forces of the Central Plains Military Region.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zhang Lixiong was awarded the rank of colonel.
Although he worked in a number of leadership positions, he always maintained the same vigor as during the revolutionary war years.
He is a revolutionary hero who is loyal to the party, has the courage to sacrifice, is not afraid of difficulties, and never gives up, his life is a glorious legend, his deeds are a precious wealth, and his spirit is an eternal strength.