Tian Maogen, an artilleryman from the Miao ethnic group, and his comrades built a seemingly impregnable artillery position out of wild banana trees. But all this is nothing more than a well-planned phantom. In the night, the cannon fire of the Vietnamese army began to roar, and the dense artillery fire seemed to tear apart the silence of the night, and the shells landed accurately and accurately covered the false gun positions arranged by Tian Maogen and them. However, the real artillery positions, hidden on the other side away from artillery fire, were unharmed.
Tian Maogen held the artillery lever tightly, his eyes fixed on the darkness ahead, and the roar of the explosion of Vietnamese artillery shells echoed in his ears. He knew that every shelling by the Vietnamese army was one step closer to the truth. As time passes in the light of fire and smoke, will the Vietnamese army discover the truth, and will their shells turn to the real target?
1. The background and strategic importance of the Battle of Laoshan
In April 1984, as tensions escalated along the Sino-Vietnamese border, the strategic importance of the Lao Son area became more prominent. The region is not only a complex terrain with high mountains and dense forests, but also a strategic location, controlling many important communication lines and material supply routes in the surrounding area. As a result, the Chinese leadership decided to take action with the goal of regaining and consolidating this key position in order to ensure the security of the state border and the long-term stability of the region.
Against this background, Tian Maogen's unit was given an extremely challenging task: they needed to secretly place artillery positions halfway up the old mountain under the close surveillance of the enemy. This task requires a high degree of concealment and rapid action in case of early detection and attack by enemy forces.
By the time the troops arrived at their designated positions, it was already dark. The darkness of the night and the dense forests of the mountains provide a natural cover for their movements. The soldiers moved quickly according to the predetermined plan, carrying the necessary equipment and artillery shells, and carefully navigated the forest path to avoid attracting the attention of the Vietnamese troops.
2. Concealment and Temptation: The Clever Use of Wild Plantain Trees
After arriving at their destination, Tian Maogen and his comrades-in-arms began to use the surrounding natural environment for camouflage, and they took advantage of the dense trees and natural terrain to carefully design a seemingly real artillery position. First of all, they chose several high-lying positions, so that these "gun emplacements" appeared more reasonable in the line of sight of the Vietnamese army. They cut off the large leaves and branches of the wild plantain tree, and used these natural materials to construct the outlines of the gun carriages and gun emplacements.
The work was carried out with great care and meticulousness. The soldiers played their respective roles, some in charge of cutting down vegetation, others focusing on building and camouflage. They used dirt and foliage to cover the ground, ensuring that these false positions could blend in with their surroundings when viewed from the air or from a distance. In addition, some obvious human traces, such as ruts and footprints, were deliberately left to guide enemy scouts or reconnaissance aircraft to notice these "signs of activity".
In order to make the deception more realistic, Tian Maogen's team also simulated artillery operations. They used flashlights and lights at night to simulate the operation of artillery at night, and these light sources were cleverly masked so that only the light was faintly visible enough to be observed by the enemy, but not so much that the exact location was revealed. In addition, they played recordings near the dummy gun emplacements, which included the sounds of artillery operations, such as the sound of shell loading and the commander's command.
This series of tactics combines to form a complex network of spoofing. The attention of the Vietnamese army's scouts and reconnaissance planes was attracted by these fake military activities when they were carrying out reconnaissance missions. As a result of these camouflage measures, the Vietnamese were convinced that they had discovered the main Chinese artillery positions, so they concentrated more reconnaissance resources and firepower on these false positions.
While the attention of the Vietnamese army was successfully diverted, Tien Maogen and his comrades-in-arms quickly and silently completed the arrangement of the real artillery position in another hidden position. They dug deep artillery pits in the dense forest, built actual batteries, and fully camouflaged them. The real gun emplacements were designed to be extremely concealed, covered with a large number of fallen leaves and branches, almost indistinguishable from the ground, even from the air.
With the completion of the preparations, Tian Maogen and his team entered the waiting stage. They remain silent in their hidden locations, maintain contact only by radio, and strictly control the security and secrecy of communications. Their patience and discipline are especially important at this critical time, and any small mistake can lead to the failure of the entire operation.
- Fierce Artillery Cracking: Precise fire suppression
In the early hours of April 28, as the night faded, the silence in the Laoshan area was broken by the sound of impending artillery fire. Tian Maogen and his artillery battery were already in a state of combat readiness. The moment the commander gave the order to open fire, Tian Maogen quickly jumped onto his gun position and began a heavy artillery bombardment of the 662.6 heights controlled by the Vietnamese army.
They targeted a number of strategic points on high ground, including enemy artillery positions, command centers, and several supply depots. Tian Maogen operated a medium field gun, which was chosen as the main force of the operation because of its accurate range and reliable power. With the firing of the first shells, the next action became more rapid and orderly. The artillerymen precisely adjusted the angle of fire and the direction of the muzzle to ensure that each shell accurately hit the intended target.
The smell of gunpowder and dust filled the air, and an overwhelming sound echoed through the valley as shells were fired one after another. Tien Maogen and his artillery battery continuously adjusted their gun positions to strike at the positions of the Vietnamese troops with precision. Almost every single of the 74 shells they fired caused huge explosions and smoke on the high ground, effectively destroying the Vietnamese army's defenses and causing chaos.
At the same time, the Vietnamese army quickly reacted to the sudden shelling. They mistakenly regarded the fake artillery positions set up earlier by Tian Maogen and his comrades as the source of the attack. The Vietnamese artillery began to counterattack those false positions, and round after round of artillery fire tried to suppress the "firepower" there. The shells exploded in the woodland near the false gun emplacement, stirring up patches of soil and broken branches, but in reality Tian Maogen and his companions were not there.
This misartillery, which lasted for half an hour, not only consumed a large number of shells of the Vietnamese army, but also exposed their own fire positions, providing more targets for the real artillery company where Tian Maogen was located. Whenever a Vietnamese artillery shell fell, Tian Maogen and his comrades-in-arms were able to quickly adjust the muzzle of the cannon according to the light and sound of the explosion, and counterattack the enemy's artillery position.
Fourth, the sacrifice and injury of heroes
In the fierce exchange of shelling, Tian Maogen's performance was indeed heroic. Unafraid of difficulties, he continued to control the forts, and launched round after round attacks on the positions of the Vietnamese army. Every time the shell was fired, the huge recoil and vibration tested his physical strength and endurance. As the battle continued, heavy gunpowder smoke and dust began to fill the air, and vision gradually blurred, not only because of the obscuration of the smoke and dust, but also because Tian Maogen's vision was gradually impaired.
As the artillery fire continued to sound, a huge wave of sound echoed on the battlefield. Prolonged exposure to high-intensity noise, coupled with a lack of effective personal protective equipment, caused Tian Maogen's hearing to deteriorate severely. Even though he felt like his ears were stuffed with cotton, he continued to operate the turret and continue his mission. Every time he adjusted the muzzle and loaded the shells, he acted with extreme caution and speed, ensuring that each shell hit the target accurately, contributing all his strength to the victory of the battle.
During the battle, the heat and vibration caused by the frequent firing of artillery shells made the operating environment extremely difficult. The artillery comrades around Tian Maogen also fought in the same fierce environment, but under Tian Maogen's firm command, they performed their duties and maintained efficient firepower output. In between battles, Tian Maogen took advantage of the short ceasefire period to quickly check the state of the battery and the stock of shells to ensure the normal operation of the weapons.
Although Tian Maogen paid a huge personal health price, his perseverance and courage greatly inspired his comrades-in-arms around him. They witnessed how an ordinary soldier stood up to the battlefield in the face of adversity, unyieldingly supporting the combat effectiveness of an entire company. This courageous spirit and unremitting efforts brought a strong combat motivation and morale boost to the entire artillery company.
The battle eventually advanced in the direction of victory with the continuous artillery support of Tian Maogen and his artillery battery. The Vietnamese army's firepower points were suppressed one by one, and the balance of battle was clearly tilted in favor of the Chinese. Under the cover of artillery fire, the infantry units were able to move forward, gradually clearing the remaining resistance and regaining lost ground.
5. Final victory and praise
As the battle entered a critical moment, Tian Maogen once again proved his tactical talent and operational skills. During a critical artillery sequence, he received an order to strike precisely at the retreat routes being used by the Vietnamese army. This tactical decision was aimed at cutting off the enemy's retreat routes, thereby trapping the enemy forces and preventing them from reorganizing their forces for a counterattack.
The artillery unit operated by Tien Maogen quickly adjusted its gun positions and aimed at the retreat of the Vietnamese army. The route, located in a small valley and sandwiched on either side by steep mountain walls, was an ideal interception point for artillery fire. He carefully calibrated the firing parameters to ensure that each shell was at its most effective.
With the order given, Tian Maogen decisively fired the first round of shells. The shells accurately hit the ground near the entrance to the valley, causing a huge explosion that exploded through earth and debris and partially blocked the mouth of the valley. The next few shells hit key points on the route in succession, effectively destroying the road and making it impassable.
At this time, a small detachment of Vietnamese troops was trying to retreat through this route, and their vehicles and infantry were forced to stop on the blened road. Tian Maogen did not let his guard down, he continued to direct the artillery to fire, followed by another round of artillery bombardment, which landed precisely in the ranks of the Vietnamese troops, and the light of artillery fire and explosions illuminated the entire battlefield in the valley. The continuous shelling caused a fatal blow to the Vietnamese detachment, and the entire detachment was almost completely wiped out in this sudden artillery fire.
The dust of the battle is gradually settled, and the battlefield is filled with the smell of gunpowder and scorched earth. Having ensured that the enemy was no longer capable of effective resistance, Tian Maogen and his artillery battery began to withdraw from the front line, reorganize and resupply. The comrades-in-arms admired Tian Maogen's performance, and they witnessed how he single-handedly changed the situation of the battle. They praised him for his skill and calm decision-making and execution at critical moments.
After the battle, Tian Maogen's comrades-in-arms and superiors gave him high praise and honor, and he was called the "Miao Sharpshooter".
- Zheng Haitian.1979:My self-defense counterattack against Vietnam[J].Shi Lin,2012(B11):63-73