In the early morning of April 10, I changed my clothes, disguised myself as an ordinary pedestrian, rented a wooden wheelbarrow to accompany me (I took and walked on the way), quietly left Taizhou City, and went straight to Xuanjiabao in Taixing, where Chen Yusheng's department was stationed. To be on the safe side, I stuffed the letter of introduction from the party organization into the soles of my shoes.
On the way, I crossed Dasizhuang, arrived at Kongjia Bridge, crossed the middle bank before dawn, arrived at Xuanjiabao at noon, met Qian Baokang, the former head of the AFS, and handed him the letter of introduction.
When I arrived at the Yinjia Courtyard, where the 8th detachment was stationed, a soldier led me to meet the detachment leader Chen Yusheng. He and I hit it off and he held my hand tightly. I felt that his big hands were rough and powerful. This was my first handshake with "Commander Straw Shoes".
Chen Yusheng is legendary, and I had heard about his experience before I came. When he was younger, he used to cook steamed rice for yarn mill trainees (girl workers) in Shanghai. In the spring of 1936, he joined the "Shanghai Anti-Japanese Salvation Association", and in 1937, he was arrested and imprisoned by the patrol house of the imperial main concession. After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Kuomintang was forced to release a number of political prisoners under the pressure of the current enemy and the Communist Party's anti-Japanese national united front. In September of the same year, Chen Yusheng was released from prison on bail.
After being released from prison, Chen Yusheng organized an anti-Japanese rescue brigade in his hometown and served as the captain. He led this unit to be active in the Jing (Jiang), Tai (Xing), and Ru (West) border areas, waiting for an opportunity to take the initiative to ambush the invading small group of Japanese troops. He insisted on actively resisting Japan, but was constantly attacked by the Kuomintang diehards Han Deqin and He Keqian. For the survival of the troops, the troops led by him were incorporated into Li Mingyang's department and organized into the 2nd Brigade of the 3rd Vertical and 8th Detachment, with Chen Yusheng as the captain.
At the beginning of 1939, the Communist Party of China sent Jin Qiuzhen, a member of the Communist Party, to Chen Yusheng's troops to rebuild the Taixing Party organization. In April of the same year, due to Chen Yusheng's active resistance against Japan and demand progress, he joined the Communist Party of China through the joint introduction of Hui Yuyu and Jin Qiuzhen of the Northern Jiangsu Working Committee, creating favorable conditions for the party to further control this army. In the autumn of the same year, Chen Yusheng was promoted to the captain of the 8th detachment.
The 8th detachment of the field service regiment was stationed in the small courtyard of the Yin family. At that time, there were more than 40 members of the working group. I served as the head of the regiment and secretary of the party branch, Zhou Ze served as the branch organization member, and Zhang Ren served as the propaganda member. They were responsible for recruiting party members and building underground party organizations. There are three deputy league heads, Zhang Pengju is responsible for social education, Liu Wanli is in charge of drama and singing, and other recreational activities; Huang Lingqiang is in charge of youth sports, and he is also responsible for liaison work with the league headquarters. AFS's main place of activity is in the area on both sides of the Boundary River. From the Pilu Temple (town) of Jingjiang in the west to Guangling Town in the east, the south of the boundary river is the Jingjiang River, and the north of the boundary river is Taixing.
AFS is the party's propaganda team. One of our important tasks is to propagate the masses, that is, to propagate anti-Japanese propaganda in the form of literature and art. We often go to nearby villages and towns to perform live newspaper short dramas on the spot, such as "Three Rivers Are Good", "Put Down Your Whip", "Big Sword King Five" and other dramas, and at the same time teach the common people to sing anti-Japanese salvation songs.
Another task of AFS is to carry out social education. We have set up evening schools for people in nearby villages. The evening school was also an anti-Japanese political school. The evening school insists on reasoning first and literacy second. We preached the anti-Japanese doctrine to the people, which was well received by the masses. AFS also has the task of uniting young people, and we work with local youth to carry out various mass sports activities to attract more progressive young people to join the anti-Japanese ranks. In a word, our work is to make ideological, political, and organizational preparations for the eastward advance of the New Fourth Army.
AFS also played the role of a semi-political power: first, it served the masses, carried out propaganda and mobilization of the masses to resist Japan, defend the country, and protect their hometowns, and was responsible for mediating civil disputes; second, they punished traitors and enemy spies. Once, the 19th Division of Cai Xinyuan of the Taixing puppet army sent spies to infiltrate the control area of the 8th detachment to spy on the military situation, and was captured by us.
When the troops are fighting, the AFS is also a political work team, doing political work on the battlefield. The 4th Security Brigade of the anti-communist diehard He Keqian built many strongholds along the river, actively anti-communist, passively resisted Japan, and tried in vain to eliminate Chen Yusheng's troops. One day, He Yan attacked Chen in the area of Zitong Palace, and Chen Yusheng was forced to command the troops to counterattack in self-defense. Our members of the Field Service Corps lay down in the back of the house and shouted to the recalcitrant army with a lead-skin canter: "Chinese will not fight Chinese!......." Our political shouting has boosted the fighting spirit of our army and shaken the morale of the recalcitrant army. During the battle, Chen Yusheng was shot in the thigh, but did not hurt the bones, he bandaged the wound, continued to direct the battle, and finally repelled the enemy.
In June 1940, Li Changjiang, deputy commander-in-chief of the Kuomintang Lusu-Anhui Border Region Guerrilla General Headquarters, at the instigation of the anti-communist diehard Han Deqin, treacherously prepared to launch an attack on the advance column of the New Fourth Army of Guan Wenwei and Ye Fei, who had been transferred to Guocun. At that time, Tingzong insisted on carrying out a counter-"sweep" against the Japanese invaders south of the Tongyang Canal and on the north bank of the Yangtze River, from Xima, Daqiao (Town) to Wujiaqiao, and temporarily moved to Guocun in the north of the Tongyang Canal.
On 27 June, Chen Yang, secretary of the Taixian County CPC Committee, learned that Li Changjiang's department was preparing to attack the Tingzong in advance, and immediately sent Zheng Shaoyi (female, then 21 years old), an underground party member of our party, to wade across the river in the starry night and rush to Guocun to report to the leaders of the Tingzong, thus enabling our army to gain several hours of precious time to prepare for war.
Chen Yusheng categorically rejected Li Changjiang's order to transfer 8 detachments to "return to Taizhou to serve as the city defense" (in fact, Li Changjiang tried to solve Chen Yusheng's detachment with 4 detachments), and sent Huang Lingqiang to Guocun to report to the head of the Standing Column. The 4th Regiment of Qiu Yuquan and Liu Wenxue was sent to meet and arrived in the area where the 8th detachment was located, and cooperated with the action to prevent accidents.
At dawn on June 28, Li Changjiang attacked Guocun with 13 regiments, and the New Fourth Army in Guocun had only about 4,000 men, and the situation was very critical. The Special Committee of the Communist Party of China in Northern Jiangsu and the Advance Column sent an urgent telegram, asking Chen Yusheng to lead 8 detachments to revolt in Taixing Hatowei on July 1, and the troops rushed to Guocun to participate in the defense battle after the uprising.
Chen Yusheng expressed his resolute obedience to the decision of the special committee and led the rebel troops to Guocun overnight. In fact, Chen Yusheng had already had this desire and led this unit to openly return to the troops of the New Fourth Army. At the end of 1939, he led his troops to deliver bullets to Li Mingyang's troops, and he made this request when he met Commander Chen Yi. However, Chen Yi took into account the overall situation of the united front and did not allow it. After I came to the 8th detachment, he also talked to me about it. Our party soon held three short meetings, which were attended by Zhou Wenzai, Chen Yusheng, Liu Ronghua, and me. The meeting made specific arrangements for the uprising of the troops. Among them, it was decided that most of the members of the Field Service Regiment would move west with the troops, leaving only a small number of comrades to work in the same place.
The situation is urgent, and time is of the essence. We arrived at Guocun one minute earlier, and the victory in the battle of Guocun was one more point.
We discussed the timing of the departure of troops, the personnel left behind, and contingency measures that may encounter complications. It was decided to leave a squadron for Chen Yusheng's wife, Yang Guifang, who was pregnant with Liujia, and she would lead the activities in the local area, instructing her to increase her vigilance and preserve her strength in order to cope with the New Fourth Army's eastward advance against Japan.
In accordance with the decision of the meeting, the members of the AFS took part in the uprising and were given a short gun to each member. Because the composition of Chen Yusheng's troops was relatively complicated, in order to ensure the success of the uprising, we decided to send the members of the service regiment down to various squadrons, ostensibly to do propaganda and agitation work, but in fact, more importantly, to play a kind of "supervision" role. Throughout the uprising, the members of the Service Corps were loyal to their duties and played their due role.
That night, the 8th detachment set off with the 4th Regiment of the New Fourth Army. When I walked to Yangjiazhuang in the northeast of Taixing, it was raining heavily. At this time, it was already the second half of the night, and we camped temporarily in Yangjiazhuang. When passing through the Madian blockade line, Qian Hongbu, the vacillating elements in the unit and the commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 8th Detachment, mutinied, and Ding Weiru, the deputy head of the 8th Detachment, and the battalion commanders Wang Qinghai and Huang Yulin also deserted. But this did not have a great negative impact on the troops, because in each company there were party organizations, and the leading comrades of the party organizations still firmly grasped and led the troops.
At dawn, the rain stopped. I continued the march with Chen Yusheng and led the troops. When passing through the enemy's blockade line at Kou (Shore) and Tai (Zhou), it was blocked by the column of Ding Jutang (Kuomintang diehards) of Li Changjiang's department. In self-defense, we engaged in a fierce battle with Dingbu, defeated their resistance, and rushed through the bloody path. In the evening, we rushed to the west end of Wujiaqiao in Jiangdu County and camped on the spot. Wujiaqiao is also known as Qili Changzhuang, there is a place to dry grain in front of each house, one after another, very long.
On the morning of the next day, it was discovered that the column of Chen Caifu, a subordinate of Erli and an anti-communist diehard, was at the east end of Wujiaqiao Village. In order to relieve the siege of Guocun, Chen Yusheng and his comrades studied and decided to immediately launch an attack on Chen Caifu's troops, fighting from morning to 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and finally crushing Chen Caifu's troops. That night, our troops crossed the Baita River and rushed to Guo Village. At that time, near our troops' positions, there were patches of peach orchards, and peaches hung on the branches, but the soldiers of our troops did not eat a single peach, and strictly implemented the "three major disciplines and eight points of attention." It became a momentary talk.
This time, my comrades and I of the AFS Corps were tempered and tested in the battle of blood and fire, and we also received a baptism of battle, leaving an unforgettable impression for a lifetime.
On the morning of July 3, 1940, when I heard that Chen Yi, commander of the Jiangnan Command of the New Fourth Army, was coming to Guocun, my comrades-in-arms and I were very happy and looked forward to seeing him as soon as possible.
I have admired Chen Yi for a long time. From August 1939 to the spring of 1940, when I was working in the Taixian County Party Committee, Chen Yi went to Taizhou three times to negotiate with Li Mingyang and Li Changjiang on cooperation in resisting Japan. Whenever Chen Yi came to Taizhou, our county party committee always acted in accordance with the instructions and requirements of the higher-level party committee, conscientiously arranged the security work, prevented sabotage by the enemy and the Kuomintang diehards, and ensured his safety in case of accidents. My father, Dai Langxuan, had the privilege of meeting Chen Yi before me. In the spring of 1940, Chen Yi went to Taizhou for the third time, and at that time, Chiang Kai-shek asked Han Deqin to attack the New Fourth Army in northern Jiangsu with all his might. In order to eliminate the misunderstanding, stabilize Er Li, and ensure neutrality, Chen Yi decided to enter Taizhou for the third time and have an interview with Er Li. The special committee of northern Jiangsu asked Taixian County to appoint someone to respond. Because my father was highly respected and familiar with the situation in Taizhou, the county party committee chose my father to receive him. On a morning with thick spring fog, my father went to the West City Gate of Taizhou to greet Chen Yi and other comrades as agreed in advance. He led Chen Yi and others through Mingjiang Road, turned a corner to his house, and arranged for Chen Yi and others to live in my house first. Then, through Ji Kai's connections, he found Li Mingyang and connected all aspects of the relationship, so that Chen Yi and other comrades could smoothly interview Li Mingyang that night, and left Taizhou safely overnight and returned to Wujiaqiao, where Tingzong was stationed.
At noon, everyone and I finally saw Chen Yi in disguise at the door of the headquarters of the Standing Column, and saw him wearing an old-fashioned cloth coat, holding a straw hat, and sunglasses on his nose. Chen Yi was warmly welcomed by the leaders of the Tingzong and Suwan detachments, military and political cadres, and the main local responsible persons who participated in the battle in Guocun. Chen Yi met with Ye Fei and other comrades, and as soon as he met, he said: "You daredevils, I'm really worried that you have taken prisoners for others!" Then, amid the sound of artillery fire, the advancing column and the Suwan detachment held a welcoming meeting in the playground of Guocun Primary School. At the meeting, Chen Yi said: The comrades fought very well in the battle to defend Guocun! I was originally going to come to collect the corpses, but I wanted to scold you, but one or more regiments had a mess with 13 regiments, which was so dangerous, comrades! Now that you have won, I will not criticize you much. The cadres and fighters laughed when they heard this. Chen Yi also said that victory in battle and tactics is not equal to victory in strategy. If we want to open up the situation in northern Jiangsu, we must defeat Han Deqin, and if we want to defeat Han Deqin, we must win over the neutrality of Erli and prevent him from defecting to Han Deqin. However, Er Li is a local force, not a descendant of the diehards, and there are contradictions between him and his descendants, so it is entirely possible to make him neutral. Li Changjiang launched an offensive and it was necessary to punish him a little, but now that he has broken his head and learned a lesson, according to the principle of "reasonableness, advantage, and moderation," it is all the more important to win over him to resist Japan, and only in this way can it be beneficial to fight against Japan and open up base areas in northern Jiangsu. After listening to Chen Yi's speech, we truly understood the cleverness and great significance of his strategic decision of "uniting with Li, isolating Han, and attacking the enemy."
In July, under the pseudonym of "Jiangfu", Chen Yi wrote the lyrics of "Defending Guocun" for the victory of the battle of Guocun:
On June 28, artillery fire soared, and the diehards attacked and surrounded Guocun in ten directions.
It is necessary to cut off the people's way of life, and to eliminate the lone army of the War of Resistance,
The diehards launched three general attacks, unable to break through the Great Wall of flesh and blood of military-civilian cooperation;
The "sweep" of the diehards and reactionaries led to an uprising and revolution in the anti-communist camp;
The lone army roared angrily, turned defense into offense, and the diehards were beaten to the ground!
Heroic lone and strong leadership are the core of victory.
The unity of the army and the people and the uprising of friendly armies are the guarantee of victory.
The anti-communist conspiracy was smashed again. The Japanese invaders are emboldened, and the Wang faction is shocked!
We defended Guocun and created the light of the War of Resistance.
We have defended Guocun, and we must move forward fearlessly.
Forward, forward, forward!
Soon, musician Zhang Mei composed the music for this song. This triumphant song of victory soon spread among the troops, encouraging the cadres and fighters to continue to fight for the opening, construction, and consolidation of the anti-Japanese base areas in northern Jiangsu.
On July 8, Su Yu led the Jiangnan Headquarters of the New Fourth Army and the main force of Jiangnan to the north and arrived at Tangtou Town. The troops rested and recuperated on the front line from Guocun to Tangtou. In order to strengthen the building and management of the organs, the CPC Special Committee for Northern Jiangsu selected and transferred some comrades from the army to work in the organs of the Special Committee, and I was also selected and transferred to the Youth Department of the Special Committee for Northern Jiangsu as an officer.
In late July, in accordance with the instructions of the central authorities, the Northern Jiangsu Command of the New Fourth Army was set up in Tangtou, with Chen Yi and Su Yu serving as the principal and deputy commanders respectively, Liu Yan and Zhong Qiguang serving as the chief and deputy directors of the Political Department respectively, and the troops under the Northern Jiangsu Command were reorganized into three columns and nine regiments of about 7,000 people.
After the reorganization of the troops, the Northern Jiangsu Command decided to march east to Huangqiao and establish an anti-Japanese base with Huangqiao as the center. On the night of July 25, the moon was bright and the stars were scarce, and the summer breeze was blowing, in the south of Tangtou, on the north bank of the Tongyang Canal, on the threshing field of the Wangjia River, Chen Yi stood on a large table, and gave the order to wave the army to the east to resist the Japanese. We are a shipwreck, fighting against the water, and will never return to the west. Comrades must be determined to strive for victory. In the bright moonlight, I listened to Chen Yi's speech again and left a deep and unforgettable impression.
That night, taking advantage of the moonlight, the troops began to move eastward. I am the instructor of the cadres of the organs of the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu, Comrade Xie Kedong is the team leader, and there is also Lin Kai, a young officer, and we lead the cadres of the organs of the Special Committee to march eastward to Huangqiao together with the troops of the New Fourth Army. Shi Yueqin, the women's minister of the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu, had unbearable abdominal pain and could not walk. At this time, the battle had already begun, and there were enemies on both sides of the eastward road, and if our army left behind in the eastward advance, it would inevitably be in danger. Therefore, she must not be left behind. Seeing that there were a few houses nearby, I went to knock on the door gently, and after a while, a fellow opened the door and came out, and we explained the situation to him, and he was very sympathetic to our situation, and decided to send Shi Yueqin to Huangqiao in a wheelbarrow. We are very grateful, and it can be seen that in times of crisis, we relied on the vigorous support and selfless help of the masses of the people.
The main force of the New Fourth Army entered the town from the west of Huangqiao, and the cadres and families of our special committee organs also arrived safely in Huangqiao from Yinjiazhuang in the south of the town.
After the New Fourth Army was stationed in Huangqiao, it dispatched cadres, democracy movement work teams, and field service groups to assist local party organizations in mobilizing the masses and actively opening up and building the Huangqiao anti-Japanese democratic base area. At the beginning of August, the Huangqiao Civil-Military Joint Office was established, and in late August, the Tongrujingtai Provisional Administrative Committee was established, with Guan Wenwei and Chen Tongsheng serving as the principal and deputy directors respectively. During this period, the main task of the Youth Department of the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu is to publicize and mobilize progressive youths and set up a youth resistance team.
In the youth department, I met my old comrade-in-arms Zhou Bofan, and we have only been separated for a month, but we are as happy as if we have been reunited after a long absence. When the 8th detachment revolted, he and the comrades of the Taixing County Party Committee stayed behind and insisted on working in place, but we did not expect that after only a month of separation, we met again, and moreover, we were working in the same department of the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu, and our joy was self-evident.
Comrade Zhou Bofan and I immediately set about youth work. In January 1930, the Taixing County Committee of the Chinese Communist Youth League was established; in December 1938, after the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Taixing County Youth Wartime Work Group was established, with a maximum of more than 2,000 members; and in February 1940, after the Youth Labor League was forcibly disbanded by the Kuomintang Taixing County Party Headquarters, in February 1940, the progressive youths established the Taixing County Three People's Doctrine Youth Work Corps in Hetouzhuang Primary School. There are more than 200 progressive youths in the Huangqiao area. I discussed with Zhou Bofan and wanted to do a comprehensive launch and publicity. Therefore, we suggested to the Special Committee that a big parade be held on 1 September as Youth Day to publicize and mobilize the vast number of young people in the Huangqiao area to plunge into the anti-Japanese struggle. The Special Committee approved our proposal.
On September 1, the autumn was crisp and the wind was beautiful, and the youth parade was held as scheduled. Zhou Bofan and I are both tall and organizers, and we are at the forefront of the team, followed by the drum band, and then the youth representatives. Huangqiao Town on that day was unprecedentedly beautiful and unprecedentedly lively. Under the blue sky and white clouds, red flags are unfurled, drums are sounded, and slogans are heard one after another. With Huangqiao as the center, we launched a mass movement, carried out anti-Japanese propaganda, and mobilized and organized the vast number of young people.
Zhou Bofan was active and versatile, good at work, he made extensive contacts with young people from all walks of life, did a lot of work, and made various preparations for the establishment of the Youth Resistance Team.
At the beginning of October, under the command of Chen Yi and Su Yu, the New Fourth Army won the decisive battle of Huangqiao, and then sent the 2nd Column to the north and successfully joined the 5th Column of the Eighth Route Army going south at the Baiju Shishikou Bridgehead in Dongtai. I was ordered to go north from Hai'an to open up Dongtai and Dafeng, and later to serve in Xinghua and Liankang areas, while Zhou Bofan stayed in the three local committees of the southern line.
After the New Fourth Army was stationed at Huangqiao, Han Deqin, an anti-communist diehard of the Kuomintang, was in the throat, and he mobilized 20,000 men and horses to attack the New Fourth Army in two directions on September 3. As a result, the Han army was defeated in Yingxi, and he lifted a stone and shot himself in the foot. After Han Deqin suffered a setback in the Battle of Yingxi, he ordered Zhang Shaohua's division of the Ninth Security Brigade, which insisted on anti-communism, to be stationed in Jiangyan Town, the former defense area of the tax police regiment. After Zhang Shaohua arrived in Jiangyan, relying on the Yunyan River, he built a strong fortification with 36 pillboxes as the core, added a power grid, dug deep trenches, and tightly blocked the grain passage for the military and civilians in the Huangqiao area, in a vain attempt to trap the New Fourth Army and the local people.
In order to relieve the urgent difficulties of the military and people in Jiangyan, the Northern Jiangsu Command of the New Fourth Army decided to attack Jiangyan. In the early morning of September 13, the 2nd and 3rd columns of the New Fourth Army besieged Jiangyan, fought fiercely for a day and night, and captured Jiangyan on the 14th to dredge the grain road.
At this time, the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu decided to temporarily transfer me to work in the working group of the Special Committee. The other members of the working group include my old superior, Chen Yang, secretary of the Taixian County Party Committee, Sun Gu, director of the Women's Department of the Taixian County Party Committee, and Li Shan, a female section chief of the Democracy Movement Section of the Political Department of the 2nd Column, and a veteran of the Red Army Li Shan (Duan Huanjing's wife, who was the secretary of the Soviet District County Party Committee).
On September 14, with the smoke of gunpowder and sporadic gunfire, our working group entered Jiangyan Town with the organs of the New Fourth Army's Northern Jiangsu Headquarters.
Jiangyan is located between Taizhou and Qutang, is an important town on the communication line of Hai (An) and Tai (Zhou), and is also one of the outposts of Han Deqin's vain attempt to attack our New Fourth Army; Jiangyan is also the land of fish and rice, a famous grain distribution center in northern Jiangsu, and has always been a place where soldiers must fight.
When the New Fourth Army arrived in Jiangyan, people from all walks of life, school teachers and students, and the broad masses of the people beat gongs and drums, ate pot pulp, and lined up on West Street to welcome the troops. Mr. Cai Daren, principal of Jiangyan Private Tongyu Primary School, on behalf of people from all walks of life, extended cordial greetings and warm welcome to Chief Chen Yi and the commanders and fighters of our army. Mr. Cai was a progressive intellectual, he was committed to universal education in the countryside, and he also ran a correctional center for orphans, and his eldest son had long since joined the New Fourth Army, and he was very influential in Jiangyan Town. Subsequently, a welcome meeting was held at Daiyuesi Primary School, and Cai Daren delivered a welcome speech on behalf of the people of Jiangyan, expressing support for the New Fourth Army to resist Japan and save the country, respond to the call of the New Fourth Army, unite to resist Japan, and so on. Chen Yi also made an impromptu speech, saying: We came to Jiangyan this time because we were forced by the Kuomintang. Finally, he said that the New Fourth Army was determined to resist Japan and was willing to go to the national disaster with the people, and thanked the people of Jiangyan for their warm welcome and reception.
In the afternoon of that day, local circles held a mass welcome meeting. In the evening, the art troupe of the headquarters staged a theatrical program in the Daiyue Temple Square to entertain people from all walks of life and representatives of the masses in Jiangyan; the Yangge and harmonica troupes also took to the streets to perform theatrical programs to propagate the anti-Japanese struggle and the salvation of the country. On this night, Jiangyan was very lively, like a major festival. On the streets, red lights hung high in every house, crowds of people gathered in the streets and alleys, and the whole town was filled with an atmosphere of unity and joy between the army and the people.
The Northern Jiangsu Headquarters of the New Fourth Army is stationed in Jiangyan Dongqiao, Henan Pan Yitai Pig Xing (now Taoyuan Village, Dongqiao, Jiangyan Town), the Political Department is stationed in Hongjietan, the 3rd Column Headquarters is stationed in Bakou Hat Shop, and the 2nd Column Headquarters is stationed in Guanzhuang Ling's house. Our team is based in the South Pawnshop.
The main task of our working group is to cooperate with our army, publicize to the people of all social strata and the broad masses in Jiangyan town the proposition of our party and our army in resolutely resisting Japan and saving the country and the people, and expose the conspiracy of Han Deqin, an anti-communist diehard, to passively resist Japan and actively oppose communism, and to implement the party's principles and policies among the masses.
After the New Fourth Army was stationed in Jiangyan, the common people sent a large number of condolences and goods. The headquarters instructed all departments that everything needed should be paid by the logistics department at the market price. We have strictly followed the instructions of the headquarters, strictly abided by discipline, and did not take a stitch from the masses. Chen Yi also gave special instructions: All comrades in the army are not allowed to go into the local baths to take a bath, so as not to infect the masses with scabies. At that time, our organizational concept and mass viewpoint were very strong. Although I did not have scabies, I and some other comrades who did not have scabies also strictly carried out the order, and I never went into the bathroom to take a bath in Jiangyan for more than half a month, and always rinsed with cold water in my accommodation.
During his stay in Jiangyan, Chen Yi did a lot of work to unite Li Mingyang and Chen Taiyun of the Tax Police Corps, isolate Han Deqin, and unite people from all walks of life to fight against Japan. Under his inspiration, some well-known representatives of the gentry and businessmen in northern Jiangsu, such as Han Jun, Huang Yifeng, Zhu Luxian, Lu Xiaobo, Hu Xianbo, and others, openly expressed their support for our army's proposition of "stopping the civil war and uniting to resist Japan."
Han Deqin seized the opportunity to propose that "if the New Fourth Army is sincere in its cooperation, it should withdraw from Jiangyan first" in a vain attempt to confuse the public and create a new excuse to attack the New Fourth Army. In order to expose Han Deqin's deception and further win over the middle forces, on September 27, Chen Yi convened a military and civilian representative meeting of eight counties in northern Jiangsu (that is, the first peace conference in northern Jiangsu) in Qujianglou, Jiangyan. Chen Yi said that in order to take into account the overall situation, as long as there is a slight benefit to the war of resistance, as long as the provincial side is politically guaranteed to change its attitude, treat the New Fourth Army as a friendly party and friendly army, and negotiate the issue of resisting the enemy in northern Jiangsu, our army is willing to make concessions and withdraw from Jiangyan. If the provincial and Korean continue to attack the New Fourth Army, we will have to be forced to fight back in self-defense.
At the same time, they also complained about the grievances of the New Fourth Army, condemning Han Deqin's coercive attitude and exposing his ugly face.
During this period, the people of Jiangyan also raised more than 6,000 yuan for the New Fourth Army to show their support for the New Fourth Army that persisted in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.
On September 30, the New Fourth Army withdrew from Jiangyan in the rain. In order to further win over the middle forces, Chen Yi asked Huang Yifeng (a member of the CPC), a lieutenant general and member of the Lusu Theater Party and Government Branch of the Nationalist Government's Field Party and Government Committee, to stay behind and convey to Li Mingyang the decision of the New Fourth Army to hand over Jiang Yan to Li Bu for defense, and asked Member Huang to go through the handover procedures. Lee is grateful for this. In this way, the relationship between the New Fourth Army and the Second Li was further improved. On the same day, the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu instructed our working group to also withdraw from Jiangyan. Li Shan returned to the army, Chen Yang and the Taixian County Party Committee returned to the Jiangduo area, Sun Gu returned to Taizhou City, and I returned to the organs of the Northern Jiangsu Special Committee.
On October 3, 1940, the Kuomintang diehard Han Deqin's troops began shelling the outlying positions of the New Fourth Army at Huangqiao. At 4 a.m. on October 4, Han's 89th Army launched a fierce attack on the east side of Huangqiao. Under the command of Chen Yi and Su Yu, our army and people launched a self-defense counterattack, opening the prelude to the war. On the same day, Chen Yang and I received instructions from the Party Committee of the Northern Jiangsu District (established in mid-September 1940 to exercise unified leadership over the party organizations in the central Jiangsu region, and the Special Committee of Northern Jiangsu was renamed the Taixing Central County Party Committee), asking us to take charge of the battle situation on the northwestern periphery of Huangqiao and the Gugaozhuang line in the southeast of Jiangyan Town during the decisive battle, pay attention to the movements of Li Mingyang and Li Changjiang's troops, especially the Chen Taiyun Department of the Kuomintang Tax Police Corps, guard against enemy spying activities, and provide accurate information for the Huangqiao Campaign, so as to ensure the victory of the battle.
"You have a heavy responsibility!" Before setting out, Chen Pixian, deputy secretary of the party committee of the northern Jiangsu District, briefly explained to us the situation of the enemy and us before the war, and repeatedly told us, "We must not only do our work well, but also protect ourselves." You are far away from the army this time, and any situation may be encountered, it is very dangerous, so you should be cautious. He held our hands tightly, shook and shaken, looked at us for a long time, and once again admonished: "Be brave and be careful!"
Listening to him, we know the weight of the responsibility we shoulder. In the decisive battle of Huangqiao, Han Deqin's total strength was 26 regiments and more than 30,000 troops, while our New Fourth Army had only more than 7,000 men and only 5,000 combat troops. Due to Chen Yi's outstanding united front work, 19,000 troops of Li Mingyang and Chen Taiyun, who served as the Right Route Army of the Korean Army, were stationed on the front line of Gu Gaozhuang, expressing their "willingness to defend neutrality." In this way, the New Fourth Army, backed by friendly forces Li Mingyang and Chen Taiyun, could concentrate its limited forces and fight to the death with Han Deqin's main force. But Li Mingyang and Chen Taiyun are middle forces after all, and Han Deqin is also coercing and enticing Li and Chen step by step, and once they waver, the consequences will be unimaginable. Therefore, on the one hand, Chen Yi sent Zhu Kejing, Huang Yifeng, and others, the commanders of the Field Service Regiment of the New Fourth Army, to Taizhou to stabilize Er Li, and to be vigilant against the deception of Er Li by Chiang, Han, and the Japanese puppet side. On the other hand, it also asked the party committee of the northern Jiangsu district to arrange reliable people to observe the movements of Li and Chen's garrisons on the periphery. In this way, Chen Yang and I, who are familiar with the situation in this area, were selected. Chen Pixian also told us that Chen Yi set up a command post in Yanxuzhuang, northwest of Huangqiao Town, to command the overall situation, and Su Yu commanded at the front. I feel sincerely happy that I can cooperate with Chen Yang again and fight side by side on the front line of Gu Gaozhuang.
At the beginning of the decisive battle, Chen Yang and I rode our bicycles on the road. We changed to a cheongsam and deliberately protruded the barrel of the pistol from inside the kaftan to move around. The two of us rode bicycles, rang the bells very publicly, and rode around and through, making people feel that there were quite a few "secret agents" of the New Fourth Army who were active here. Our action is like Zhang Fei riding alone to rescue soldiers in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" on Changban Slope. At that time, we also learned that Li Mingyang also sent scouts to the front line to understand the situation. Of course, they also have their plans, and in the event of the defeat of the New Fourth Army, they will not remain "neutral". We are glad to see that all the good news is coming from the front of our army.
On the afternoon of the 4th, Han Deqin's 89th Division of the 33rd Army launched a fierce attack on the east gate of Huangqiao. The 3rd Column of the New Fourth Army, under the command of Commander Tao Yong, repelled the 33rd Division's repeated charges, and at the most critical time when the 33rd Division broke through to the East Gate, Tao Yong fought hard and personally led his troops to fight with the enemy, and finally repelled the enemy and held the Yellow Bridge. At this time, the 3rd Battalion of the 4th Regiment of the New Fourth Army rushed to the south of the Yangtze River and arrived near Huangqiao to coordinate with the 3rd Column. On the afternoon of the 5th, with the coordination of the 2nd column, most of the 33rd Division of Han Yan was annihilated. At the time of the fierce battle at the east gate of Huangqiao, more than 3,000 people of the 6th Independent Brigade led by Weng Da crossed the high bridge and went straight to the Huangqiao, and completely entered the ambush area of the 1st and 2nd columns of our New Fourth Army, and our army annihilated it in sections, and after several hours of fierce fighting, it completely annihilated Han Deqin's ace unit, the 6th Independent Brigade, and the lieutenant general and brigade commander Weng Da committed suicide.
On the night of the 5th, the New Fourth Army launched an attack, and after a night of fierce fighting, the military headquarters of the 89th Army of Han Yan was annihilated for the first time. Immediately, the New Fourth Army narrowed the encirclement, attacked continuously, and annihilated most of the remnants of the enemy in the area of Yeyaji, among which the general commander Li Shouwei fled in a hurry and fell into the water and died. On the 6th, the 2nd Column of the New Fourth Army pursued and annihilated the unit at Yingxi, and took advantage of the victory to capture Hai'an, Dongtai and other places. Han Deqin led the remnants of more than 1,000 people to flee to Xinghua.
While our comrades-in-arms in front were fighting with the enemy, we were also engaged in a tense battle on the battlefield without gunsmoke. For a few days and nights, we didn't close our eyes, didn't have a good meal, and always insisted on fighting on the front line of Gu Gaozhuang.
In the early morning of the 6th, the underground traffic officer was out of breath, and he quietly told us: "Victory!" Looking at the dust on his body, we knew that in the days and nights of the decisive battle, he must have been running on this traffic line like us!
Hearing the news of the victory in the Battle of Huangqiao from the front, Chen Yang and I were very excited. So we went south to reconnoitre, and it was morning fog and visibility was very low. Suddenly, we noticed a team of about 10 people in front of us approaching us, and the pace was very chaotic. In order to prevent the defeat of the recalcitrant army, we immediately shouted: "Password!" (in fact, we did not know the password of our army that night) and ordered it to stop advancing. After inquiry, I found out the situation, and it turned out that the other party was my own person. Therefore, we followed them to the town of Jiangduo in the south of Gugaozhuang, where there was the government of our newly established anti-Japanese democratic regime. There, we met Li Jin, Zhou Ze, Xu Jiatun and others. Like the two of us, the three of them were also ordered to take charge of the war situation within the theater of operations. That night, after we finished our mission, we rested at the district office. At dawn the next day, Chen Yang waved goodbye to me and quietly returned to Taizhou City, while I returned to Huangqiao.
[Dai Weiran (May 1916 ~ August 2011), a native of Taizhou, Jiangsu. He joined the Communist Party of China in 1939. He used to be the director of the Propaganda Department of the Tai County Working Committee of the Communist Party of China, the secretary of the Xinghua County Party Committee, the deputy secretary of the Xingdongtai Prefectural Committee, and the director of the Organization Department of the Second Prefectural Committee of the Jiangsu and Central Governments. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he successively served as deputy secretary of the Yangzhou Prefectural Committee of the Communist Party of China, secretary of the Nantong Municipal Party Committee and prefectural Party Committee, president of the Party School of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee, director of the Propaganda Department of the Provincial Party Committee, and deputy director of the Standing Committee of the Fifth Jiangsu Provincial People's Congress. Deputy to the Fifth National People's Congress. 】