In 1979, a military tribunal was officially convened on the situation of the "self-defense and counterattack war against Vietnam".
In the courtroom, a company commander in military uniform stood in the dock, his eyes calmly cast forward. He was prosecuted for leading an entire company to surrender to Vietnam during the battle. His name is Feng Zengmin, and he is the company commander of the 50th Company of the 448th Regiment of the 150th Division of the 8th Army.
At the moment of life and death, he chose to go against the original intention of the soldiers and led 202 comrades-in-arms to surrender to Vietnam. Upon his return, he was sentenced to ten years in prison for his actions.
Someone once asked him why he made the choice of being so sorry for the military uniform on his body. However, he could only say four words with a wry smile to express his true feelings.
The inner monologue of the officer, who was ruled by a military tribunal, caused many to think. Why did the company commander choose to surrender? What did those four words mean?
In February 1979, the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam officially broke out. The war began quickly, but it ended quickly in a short period of time. Before the capture of Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, the Central Military Commission issued an order for the counterattack forces under the command of General Xu Shiyou to begin retreating.
However, in the process of retreating, Vietnam, with its inflated ambitions, actually set many traps and traps on the path of our retreat.
The 50th Regiment of the 150th Division of the 448th Army fell into this dangerous trap.
Initially, the order from the division headquarters was for all members to retreat along the road by car. Vietnam's roads are relatively wide, and it is not easy for the enemy to set up ambushes in such an environment that is not easy to detect. Therefore, retreating by road is relatively the safest option.
However, the orders of the higher authorities made the head of the army hesitate. Whether it was a translation error by the interpreter or a mistake in the judgment of the commander on the combat situation, in short, the 448th Regiment received an order to abandon the road retreat route and retreat from a small road with few traces instead.
This decision is tantamount to directly confronting the weakness of the PLA itself with the strength of the Vietnamese army. Our enemies were very familiar with the terrain, so that inaccessible path instead provided them with favorable conditions for an ambush.
It is conceivable that if our army retreats from the path, the enemy will inevitably take the opportunity to outflank us.
Although the 448th Regiment may have hesitated, as soldiers who obeyed orders, they still chose this most dangerous path. As an experienced veteran, the regiment commander may well have long been aware of the actions of Vietnam. Since the enemy was able to intercept the telegraph messages of our troops, it was almost inevitable to set up an ambush on the retreating path of our troops.
In order to ensure the safety of the main force, the deputy regiment commander personally led the team and led the second battalion to carry out reconnaissance missions. On the rapidly changing battlefield, the 2nd Battalion took on the responsibility of scouts and moved forward bravely to pave the way for their comrades.
Sure enough, as the regiment commander expected, the second battalion encountered an ambush by the enemy. Although the deputy regiment commander had led his comrades to make adequate preparations, in a relatively unfamiliar combat environment, the disadvantages of our army were obvious. In the face of the enemy, we are like a live target, sending them to aim.
"The PLA troops will definitely not leave their comrades behind!" Therefore, after learning that the second battalion had fallen into an ambush, the first and eighth companies were immediately ordered to go to the rescue.
Feng Zengmin is the company commander of the Eighth Company.
Due to the blockade by enemy fire, he and the commander of the first company could not jointly lead the team to break through. In a very critical situation, they could only make a decision like a strong man breaking his wrist, and the two teams broke through separately, and finally converged in the area where the second battalion was surrounded.
However, breaking through the enemy's blockade line was not an easy task.
Regarding the situation of the first company, Feng Zengmin is not clear at present. He only knew that the Eighth Company he led was in a desperate situation.
Perhaps because it was because it knew that this was the only way to block the retreat of the PLA, the enemy paid a huge price and went all out to bombard the battlefield indiscriminately. Due to the lack of military battle maps, our generals could not even find a suitable place to take refuge, and had to allow the enemy to attack.
The 1st and 8th Companies were originally set out as reinforcements, but now, both units are caught in the enemy's encirclement and are in a difficult situation from which they can not extricate themselves.
Feng Zengmin was the mainstay of the Eighth Company, and in the face of the enemy's encirclement, he calmly said to his comrades: "Comrades, listen to me. We have enough supplies on hand to support three or four days, and within two or three days we have lost contact, and reinforcements will definitely be sent to the rear to come to the rescue. The enemy's fire, while fierce, gave us an advantage in numbers. So we must keep our faith and get through this difficult time together. ”
As a company commander, his speech had a positive encouraging effect on the fighters. Originally, everyone was a little discouraged, but after hearing his encouragement, everyone's eyes became firm again, and they clenched the weapons in their hands one after another, and threw themselves into the battlefield again.
Despite all the difficulties, he and his comrades persevered. They gave full play to the advantages of guerrilla warfare, attacked and harassed the enemy by surprise, successfully carried out the attack from the east and the west, encircled and outflanked, got rid of the enemy's pursuit, and temporarily achieved stability.
However, Feng Zengmin understood that the enemy's encirclement was gradually shrinking. Once the place where they are hiding touches the edge of the encirclement, no matter how secretive they are, they will become prisoners of the enemy.
Therefore, the only way out is to break through.
However, it was not possible for them to break through until reinforcements arrived.
Caught in a dilemma and faced with difficult choices.
The first day passed, and the troops he personally led lost dozens of people, and Feng Zengmin was heartbroken. Perhaps the main force, he thought, had learned of their danger and was urgently mobilizing their forces.
No matter how hard it was, he still insisted on comforting his comrades.
The next day passed, and he learned that Ichiren was also in trouble. The first company was already unable to protect itself, and they could not wait for the support of their brother troops. At the moment, we can only wait for instructions from the regimental and division headquarters.
As long as someone came to their aid and fought in concert with them, they had the confidence to defeat the murderous Vietnamese enemy.
However, the third day passed, and there was still no sign of reinforcements.
There was a look of frustration on the faces of the fighters, and almost everyone had expressions of disappointment. Feng Zengmin himself felt very uncomfortable, he couldn't bear to watch his comrades die here.
The outbreak of this war was really unexpected.
In 1978, Vietnam secretly reached an agreement with the Soviet Union to impose a so-called "abnormal blockade" against China. To make matters worse, Vietnam has repeatedly crossed the border and forcibly set up military posts within Chinese territory.
The Vietnamese government's actions have seriously violated the mainland's sovereignty and touched the mainland's bottom line. The mainland government has issued many solemn warnings, but they have not relented.
Therefore, in December 1978, the Central Military Commission made a decision on a self-defense counterattack against Vietnam. The Guangzhou Military Region was led by Xu Shiyou, and the Kunming Military Region was led by Yang Dezhi, which became the main force in this counterattack.
The war was so raging that many soldiers didn't even have time to say goodbye to their families and rushed to the battlefield.
They advanced smoothly, destroying Vietnamese sentry posts all the way to Hanoi, and even made the Vietnamese government consider the possibility of moving the capital.
However, it was not wise to go deep alone, so the Central Military Commission urgently ordered a retreat.
From the point of view of the state, retreat is undoubtedly the best option. If we forcibly invade the capitals of other countries, I am afraid that China will be accused of being an unjust aggressor country in the international community.
But from the perspective of individual soldiers, everyone undoubtedly felt helpless. It was clear that the results of the battle were about to be harvested, but they had to give up, which made people helpless.
What is even more sad is that our troops were repeatedly ambushed on the way to retreat. The casualties in the second stage were even more heavy than in the frontal combat in the first stage.
Although Qingshan buries the soul of the hero, Feng Zengmin has never been able to avoid considering the actual life situation of each soldier.
Some of these young people are still so young, some are only children in the family, some are just getting married, and some of the children have not yet met their father. If these young lives are sacrificed on the battlefield, what will happen to the loved ones left behind?
Here, there are more than 200 lives, and behind these 200 lives are more than 200 families.
Feng Zengmin may not be afraid of his own sacrifice, and even before joining the war, he has prepared for his sacrifice. However, people are not grass and trees, who can be without feelings, and he can't watch the soldiers he has cultivated with his own hands die like this.
Sometimes, he sees these comrades as his younger brothers, or even children. He would rather suffer for all than see them die on this land for no apparent reason.
Faced with the current dilemma, Feng Zengmin was troubled. Is there only one way out, surrendering to Vietnam?
This decision made him think deeply. Surrender may be able to ensure the safety of more than 200 comrades-in-arms, but this is tantamount to a betrayal of the original intention, the military uniform, and the honor of the motherland.
If they choose to hold out to resist to the end, all can pay with their lives, especially when there is little chance of escape without reinforcements.
At either end of the scale, on one side are more than two hundred lives, and on the other side is his personal responsibility. Faced with a difficult decision, he chose the former and led everyone to surrender to Vietnam.
Before the operation, he told everyone: "Instead of letting everyone die in vain at the guns of the enemy, let me lead everyone to surrender, and I will bear the blame." But let us remember that the choice we make today is not to avoid responsibility in the future, but to take responsibility to the country and make the most of the value of our limited life. So, 202 people officially surrendered.
Military sentence, helpless. According to the principle of not killing prisoners, the soldiers of the Eighth Company ensured the safety of their lives after surrendering. After the end of the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam, the Vietnamese side returned all the more than 200 soldiers captured through negotiations between the two countries. However, Feng Zengmin, who led the surrender, undoubtedly took full responsibility.
At the military court, the judge asked him: "Do you realize that your actions have damaged the honor of the country, and why do you insist on this choice as a company commander, knowing that surrender will bring shame to the country?"
Faced with questioning, he could only smile bitterly and ask rhetorically: "With so many lives in my hands, what can I do?"
According to the law, he was sentenced to ten years in prison. In addition to bearing the responsibility of punishment, he also has to face the incomprehension of his family and the discussion of the society.
After being released from prison, people still talk about this past. However, he didn't say a word, only four words: "Helpless." ”
Under the circumstances at that time, he made the most helpless decision. He would rather bear all the faults alone than see more than 200 of his comrades-in-arms die innocently.
Because in the face of the unbearable passage of more than 200 lives, he could only choose the most terrible ending.
Conclusion: Although the act of surrendering in battle is outrageous, considering the situation at the time, Feng Zengmin's choice makes people feel irrepressibly sad.
On the battlefield, life is unusually fragile. What he did was made after repeated questioning of human nature, and it was also the most difficult decision.