The content of this article is based on authoritative historical data, and there are citations at the end of the article.
On a spring evening in 1973, Yang Dezhi, a senior general of the Wuhan Military Region, drove to a remote village in Hubei.
The purpose of this trip is extraordinary, he wants to visit an old comrade-in-arms who fought side by side with him on the Long March, Li Xiang.
Many years ago, the two saved each other's lives in the most difficult years of the revolution and experienced the baptism of blood and fire together. But the calm of the peacetime did not seem to favor the old soldier, and Li Xiang's life fell into an embarrassment, and he even looked down on seeing a doctor.
To make matters worse, due to an unknown misunderstanding in history, he was suspected of being a spy by the local government, a label that made him ostracized. What will be the fate of Li Xiang?
The reunion of Li Xiang and Yang Dezhi
One day in 1971, Li Xiang walked through the bustling streets and arrived at the gate of the Jinan Military Region.
His figure looked a little tired in the afternoon sun, holding in his hand an old letter, the corners of which had been worn out by many flips. Li Xiang stood in the doorway, hesitated for a moment, and then stepped forward, passing through a pair of huge iron gates.
In front of the door, Li Xiang was stopped by a young sentry. The sentry, dressed in uniform and with a serious expression, stood at the gate with a rifle in hand, his eyes scanning everyone who approached him warily. Li Xiang took a few steps forward and politely reported his intention to the sentry.
"I am Commander Yang Dezhi's old subordinate, and I am here to visit. Li Xiang's voice revealed a hint of urgency, despite his efforts to remain calm.
The sentry bowed slightly, turned around and entered the booth to make a phone call to confirm. A brief conversation came from the other end of the line, and the sentry's expression gradually changed from doubt to respect. After hanging up the phone, the sentry turned to Li Xiang with a hint of apology on his face.
"I'm sorry, man, Commander Yang just went on a business trip and may not be back until a few days later. ”
When Li Xiang heard the news, the expression on his face was a little lost. He nodded, gave the sentry a deep look, turned and slowly walked out of the military district gate.
On that day, Li Xiang was not able to see his comrade-in-arms Yang Dezhi, who he had not seen for many years, and he returned to the hotel where he was temporarily staying with his unfulfilled wishes.
At night, Li Xiang sat alone in front of the window, and the old letters in his hand were repeatedly flipped, which recorded some of the past events between him and Yang Dezhi, and every line carried a deep friendship and difficult years.
A few days later, Yang returned from a business trip. A staff member of the military region told him the news of Li Xiang's visit. Hearing Li Xiang's name, Yang Dezhi was very surprised.
Since Li Xiang's disappearance in 1939, Yang has always thought that he had died, and even reported his name to the Military Museum of the Chinese Revolution, hoping to leave some memories for this old comrade-in-arms.
Knowing that Li Xiang was still alive, Yang Dezhi immediately ordered to find out Li Xiang's whereabouts, and personally wrote a letter and sent someone to the hotel where Li Xiang lived. In the letter, Yang Dezhi implored him to return to the military region again so that the two could be reunited.
Memories of heroic years
Li Xiang, formerly known as Hou Lixiang, a native of Hubei, served as a battalion commander in the first division, one regiment and one battalion of the Red First Army, while his immediate boss Yang Dezhi served as the regiment commander. They fought side by side during the Long March, experienced countless hardships and obstacles together, and formed a deep friendship.
In 1939, during an important military operation, Li Xiang was unfortunately wounded, and his condition was urgent, and he was quickly evacuated to the rear for treatment.
When he first arrived in Wuhan, Li Xiang was sent to a temporary office set up by the Eighth Route Army, where poor conditions and poor medical facilities slowed progress.
The Wuhan Eighth Route Army office is located in an old building in the city, with mottled walls, simple wooden beds and medicine boxes in rooms, and medical equipment stacked in the corners.
Despite the difficult conditions, the medical staff treated Li Xiang with great care and responsibility to ensure that his injuries were cared for in the best possible way.
During the treatment, due to the drastic changes in the war situation, Wuhan faced a strong threat from the Japanese army, and Li Xiang had to move again.
Under the organization's arrangement, he was secretly transferred to a remote village in Hubei Province and began to work underground. At this stage, Li Xiang's life was full of difficulties and challenges.
Under a pseudonym, he kept his name incognito, contacted the local underground party, and participated in the planning and execution of many anti-Japanese activities. Despite living under constant pressure and danger, Li Xiang has always maintained a high level of vigilance and organizational discipline.
Throughout his secret career in the Anti-Japanese War, Li Xiang paid great attention to protecting his identity. He carefully kept his identification, medals, and other items that attested to his military honor.
The items were placed by him in a small wooden box, which he personally carried with him every time he was transferred. The wooden box has an inconspicuous exterior and is painted with dark brown lacquer, while the interior is covered with a soft cloth to protect the medallion inside from collision damage.
Li Xiang attaches great importance to this wooden box, because it is not only a proof of his past glory, but also the only proof of his military status.
Whether in a remote mountain village in Hubei Province or in another temporary hiding place, Li Xiang will find the most hidden corner and place the wooden box as safely as possible.
He often checks the locks and planks of the wooden boxes to ensure that no matter what happens, these precious items are best protected.
Even in the most difficult times, these objects never left him, they bear witness to his struggle and sacrifice, and they are an important support for his will to fight.
A tragic twist
Li Xiang started running a small chess and card room, which became a favorite gathering place for locals. Located in the heart of the village, the card room attracts many guests from the nearby area every day.
Li Xiang's family made ends meet in this way, and the family's financial situation gradually improved. Although the store is small, the traffic makes business boom, and the store is often full of people laughing and laughing.
Just when life was about to get on track, misfortune struck. Due to the booming business in the chess and card room, which attracted the attention of thieves, there was a theft in Li Xiang's home.
The thieves quietly entered Li Xiang's home and stole the wooden box that contained all of Li Xiang's important documents and belongings.
The wooden box contained not only his identification and medals, but also a number of other personal valuables, including some old photographs and letters, which were direct evidence of his past military career.
After the theft, when Li Xiang found out about all this, the whole family was in chaos. Although he quickly called the police and tried to find clues through various means, hoping to recover the priceless items, in the end, to no avail.
The items in the wooden box may be just old things for ordinary thieves, but for Li Xiang, they are important proof of his identity and a symbol of past honor.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, because Li Xiang briefly served as the joint security director of the Kuomintang during the Anti-Japanese War, this historical background became a burden for him in the new political environment.
The KMT's joint security director was primarily responsible for maintaining security and order in the villages, but the new regime had a harsh interpretation of the historical role of this position.
In the absence of evidence to prove his background in the Communist War of Resistance, this part of Li Xiang's history was misread as having deep ties to the Kuomintang.
Since all the documents and medals in the wooden box that could prove his Communist Party identity and contributions had been lost, Li Xiang was unable to provide sufficient evidence to prove his innocence.
In the tense political atmosphere of the time, his past and unverifiable identity became factors against him. After a series of scrutiny and investigations, Li Xiang, lacking evidence to support him, was wrongly labeled as a "counter-revolutionary."
Innocence is hard to prove
In order to help his old comrade-in-arms Li Xiang clear up his grievances, Yang Dezhi deliberately left him to stay in the Jinan Military Region for a few more days, and tried to make proper arrangements for him.
When Li Xiang was about to leave, Yang Dezhi personally wrote a letter of introduction, hoping that this written proof could help Li Xiang confirm his identity with the local government and explain the past misunderstanding.
Li Xiang returned to his hometown with this letter of introduction, hoping to restore his reputation through this letter. However, soon after he returned home, the local government learned of his return from Jinan.
In the tense political atmosphere at the time, there were still great doubts about Li Xiang's history and identity. Soon after, a team of government workers came to Li Xiang's home and conducted a thorough search.
During the search, the staff rummaged through every corner, including Li Xiang's bedroom, storage room, and the small warehouse behind the chess and card room.
They examined Mr. Li's personal belongings, including clothing, documents, and other places where information might be hidden.
During the search, they found a letter of introduction written by Yang Dezhi himself. The staff expressed doubts about the authenticity of the letter, believing that it may have been forged by Li Xiang in order to clear his suspicions.
The letter was confiscated and sent to a higher authority for identification. At the same time, all of Li Xiang's other belongings, including some household items and items from his personal memories, were also confiscated.
The serious attitude of the government workers and the thorough search operation made Li Xiang feel helpless and powerless, and his home was turned upside down, adding a bit of desolation.
After the letter of introduction was suspected and confiscated, Li Xiang's situation became more difficult. Without this last hope, it would be even more difficult to prove his innocence there.
Li Xiang could only wait, hoping that the relevant departments could verify the authenticity of the letter of introduction.
In the days that followed, Li Xiang's life was severely affected. Labeled a "counter-revolutionary", his daily life and social activities in the village were restricted, and many of his former friends and neighbors kept their distance from him, lest they themselves be implicated.
Finally, it will be snowed
In 1973, with Yang Dezhi being transferred to the Wuhan Military Region to take up important positions, the scope and influence of his work expanded accordingly.
In the spring of that year, Yang Dezhi inspected all counties and cities under his jurisdiction in accordance with his work arrangement. The purpose of the inspection is to inspect the combat readiness of the local troops, as well as to understand and guide the work of the local party committees in the areas of military-civilian integration.
After a detailed inspection of a number of counties and cities, Yang Dezhi's itinerary took him to Jiangling County. Gangneung, as a city with a long history, is not only important for military purposes, but also for politics and economy. In the conference room of the local county party committee, Yang Dezhi held a formal meeting with the leaders of Jiangling County.
Halfway through the meeting, a local official who attended the meeting raised an old issue concerning an elderly man accused of being a "counter-revolutionary" that had not been satisfactorily resolved.
When mentioning the situation of this old man, Yang Dezhi suddenly realized that this old man was not his comrade-in-arms Li Xiang for many years?
Immediately, Yang Dezhi interrupted the discussion in the meeting and began to tell the story of Li Xiang. He described in detail his experience with Li Xiang during the Long March, how Li Xiang saved his life at the last moment, and Li Xiang's heroic performance in the Red Army.
Yang Dezhi's voice was firm, and his tone was full of deep respect and trust for his comrades-in-arms, and he told everyone present that Li Xiang was a real revolutionary fighter and by no means a so-called "counter-revolutionary".
After hearing this, the leaders of the county party committee present were very shocked. It turned out that the grievances that had plagued Li Xiang for many years had such deep historical ties with a high-ranking military commander in the region.
Yang's testimony, combined with his military and political clout, made the meeting an important turning point.
Subsequently, the Jiangling County Party Committee acted quickly and organized special personnel to conduct a comprehensive review of Li Xiang's case. Under the direct influence and impetus of Yang Dezhi, the results of the investigation were quickly concluded, confirming Li Xiang's revolutionary history and his loyalty to the party and the people.
Soon after, the Gangneung County Party Committee officially rehabilitated Li Xiang, announcing that he had fully restored his reputation, and all previous charges were dropped.
After learning the news, Li Xiang was officially invited to the conference room of the county party committee. In the presence of many officials and local residents, the secretary of the county party committee personally apologized to Li Xiang and publicly declared his innocence, and Li Xiang cleared up his grievances for many years and regained his honor and freedom as an old Red Army.
Yang Dezhi, a general who always maintains the true character of a communist[J].New Long March,2022(12):48-48