Xu Shiyou, the founding general of the People's Republic of China, had great achievements in his life and rarely met opponents, but in a military dispatch in 1960, the tough General Xu encountered a "counterattack" from a Confucian general, followed by a rare "confession" in his military career, which is still talked about today.
This person is the founding major general - Li Desheng, although his name is not as well-known as the marshals and the top ten famous generals, but those who can "handle" Xu Shiyou are by no means general!
1. Who can suppress Xu Shiyou?
General Xu Shiyou, born on February 28, 1905 in Xujiawa, Xinyang City, Henan Province, has been a "thorn head" since he was a child, but he is righteous and likes to fight grievances.
When he was a child, the bear children of the local tyrant landlord's family were often "served" by him, and because he practiced martial arts in Songshan Shaolin for many years when he was a teenager, he had practiced a body of copper skin and iron bones, especially a big knife to play with a god, and his personality was even more unruly, and few people could look down on it!
In 1928, Xu Shiyou joined the newly established Red Eleventh Army, and with his brave style and proud achievements, he was promoted from a soldier to a regiment commander. Throughout the Red Army period, the only person who could convince him was recorded in the history books as only one person - Chairman Mao!
Because after the end of the Red Army's Long March in 1936, the northern Shaanxi base area launched a campaign to criticize Zhang Guotao's crimes, and Xu Shiyou, who was subordinate to Zhang Guotao, was also implicated. At that time, almost all the public opinion was pointing to the shooting of Xu Shiyou, which even he himself thought.
However, Chairman Mao, who was back in charge of the Red Army, was discerning and benevolent, not only recognized his merits, but also found an opportunity to talk with him all night, breaking and crumbling the goals and concepts of our party in the future, and telling him thoroughly, so that he not only opened his mouth, but also convinced Chairman Mao, and even admired him!
As for this second person, it was not until 1957, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, that he had another "defeat"! And the person who "defeated" him was none other than our Premier Zhou! Since September 1955, after New China officially held a ceremony to confer titles on our generals, General Xu Shiyou was slightly dissatisfied with his rank of "general." After learning of the situation, Premier Zhou issued an invitation to him to "fight for wine" in the name of "heart-to-heart talks"!
Since he was a child, he has been practicing martial arts with his master in the "Children's Training Group", and he is known as the "God of Wine" in the army.
Unexpectedly, Premier Zhou, who seems to be polite and polite, is an out-and-out "thousand cups not drunk", just a simple appetizer, stunned to drink 4 bottles of Moutai with him, and was shocked, Xu Shiyou was also completely convinced! is such a great talent who can be calmed down, but in 1960, he planted a small heel in the body of Li Desheng, who was a "little character"...
II. A "Conflict" Caused by a Misunderstanding
"What do you have to be proud of? You have done a good job in Jinhua, and you don't need to put on such a big score, and you can't wait to take everything with you before leaving, this should not be the style of an old revolutionary general. ”
In July 1960, an angry phone call was connected to the headquarters of the 12th Army, which had just moved to northern Jiangsu, and it was Xu Shiyou who called, and Li Desheng, who was reprimanded at the time.
"I'll talk about it when you're done with the fire." After hearing this, Li Desheng only expressed his appeasement, and did not rush to explain, because he knew the temper of this old chief very well, but he knew even more that his troops had not violated discipline! It turned out that since the victory in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea in 1953, the 12th Army led by Li Desheng was stationed in Jinhua, Zhejiang, for six years.
During this period, tens of thousands of commanders and fighters cooperated with the state's development plan, carried out vigorous reclamation and construction, and carried out large-scale agricultural planting and industrial output in Jinhua.
At that time, considering that the construction of Zhejiang was fruitful, and the adjacent northern Jiangsu region was still in urgent need of development, the Central Military Commission decided to let the 12th Army move to northern Jiangsu to provide assistance for local industry and agriculture. After receiving the order, Li Desheng immediately began to prepare for the troops, and the news quickly reached the ears of the local people.
The common people really don't want the soldiers to leave! After six years of day and night, the soldiers have helped everyone build this place so richly that they are about to leave before they can enjoy the blessings for a few days, and they are really reluctant! How can the commanders and fighters of the 12 th Army be reluctant?
After years of hard work, everyone regarded Jinhua as their new hometown, but the duty of a soldier was to obey orders, and tens of thousands of soldiers were immediately mobilized! On the other hand, the northern Jiangsu region was located in a remote area and was seriously damaged in the war, and in the 10 years since the end of the War of Liberation, the people's livelihood was still withered and the infrastructure was extremely weak.
Tens of thousands of troops have migrated to the past, and they have no food, drink, or even a place to settle down! Taking into account the actual situation, the Central Military Commission gave special instructions to Li Desheng in its dispatch order: Logistics materials can be procured in Jinhua to ensure the supply of troops in all aspects after they are stationed in northern Jiangsu!
Li Desheng was well versed in the principle of "grain and grass go first before the soldiers and horses were moved", and immediately began large-scale procurement, combined with the experience of logistics support during the war, and for a time the industrial and commercial business in Jinhua was booming!
In addition to food, clothing, tents, farm tools, machinery and other items, he had already expected that after the troops first entered northern Jiangsu, they could only "use the sky as a house and the ground as a bed", and he also asked the troops to go to the surrounding barren mountains and mountains to dig back a large amount of wild grass and use it as a "mattress"!
In the days when the march was about to begin, the local people were grateful for the selfless dedication of the soldiers, and held a grand farewell ceremony for this purpose.
It was originally a lively scene of the military and civilian families, but when it reached Xu Shiyou's ears, it became "the 12th Army purchased and forced to buy and sell, the army disturbed the people, plus the crowd ate and drank, and even dug up the turf before leaving"!
3. One of the fiercest quarrels between old comrades-in-arms
Xu Shiyou, who was born in a poor family, where could he endure this kind of exploitation of the people, and after his blood and anger surged, he directly called his old comrade-in-arms Li Desheng, but he didn't think about it, Li Desheng didn't "take the call", but just let him calm down first, Xu Shiyou hung up the phone angrily!
Although he has a hot temper, he is not a reckless person, and after calming down a little, he analyzed: Li Desheng has known him for many years, and he is elegant and moderate, even in difficult times such as war, he has never violated the discipline of the masses, is there some misunderstanding in this......
After adjusting his mentality, he dialed Li Desheng's phone again, and there was a hint of majesty in his slow tone, telling Li Desheng to explain it to him now. Li Desheng still maintained the calm tone just now, and unhurriedly explained the ins and outs in Henan dialect and with his fellow countrymen!
As it turned out, Xu Shiyou finally relented, but with his caution as a high-ranking general, he still decided to go to the two places to investigate in the name of inspecting the work in northern Jiangsu! First, he heard the praise of the people of Jinhua and saw that the local area was thriving and full of vitality.
He then went to the northern Jiangsu region to inspect the garrison of the 12 th Army on the spot, and found that the actual situation was indeed as Li Desheng said, and the production and life of the troops were extremely difficult. After learning that he had indeed misunderstood the "little fellow", he also sincerely apologized to Li Desheng, and the two old comrades-in-arms reconciled as before, and since then they have worked together to continue to fight for the cause of the party and the people!
Fourth, why can Li Desheng accurately "grasp" Xu Shiyou's temper?
is also a fellow villager in Henan, Li Desheng is eleven years younger than Xu Shiyou, although he is behind in age, and before the Liberation War, the two did not have much intersection, but their completely different personalities have created two year-old friends who can complement each other!
In fact, there are not a few fierce generals in our army, but Li Desheng is a complete exception, his temper is gentle, his mind is cool-headed, he is quite thoughtful, his command style is inclined to calm and calm, especially good at grasping the key points from the details, not only offensive and defensive, but also a Confucian general's demeanor!
Therefore, the complementarity of personalities is the key to the two of them becoming close friends, coupled with Li Desheng's original respect for Xu Shiyou, this kind of friendship of mutual respect has also successfully resolved this misunderstanding!
At the same time, as high-ranking generals of our army, the way in which the two men handle problems has also fully demonstrated the superiority of our party's military democratic thinking, that is, if there are doubts, they must be raised, problems must be resolved, and mistakes must be corrected!
Fifth, a generation of Confucian generals also has a strong record!
Having said that, if you think that General Li is a pure and elegant man, then you are very wrong! The following are the author's real achievements recorded in the history of the party, and the author has selected some classic achievements from hundreds of battles large and small, so that you can see what is called "both civil and military"!
1. The period of the Red Army
He participated in many anti-encirclement and suppression activities, and took the lead in the campaign to defend the Red Army base areas, leading his troops to be flexible and mobile, and inflicting heavy losses on the Gui Army, Hunan Army, and Guangdong Army in the encirclement and suppression of the Soviet area several times.
2. Anti-Japanese period
In particular, during the arduous years of the anti-sweep, Li Desheng was always able to calmly face the enemy's heavy pressure, and in many battles to defend the base area, he made extraordinary achievements and made great contributions to the stability of the base area!
The author also found a record of success, that is, at the end of the Anti-Japanese War, the frightened Japanese puppet army cowered in a strong stronghold and did not come out. Li Desheng not only personally went to reconnoiter the terrain and road conditions, but also disguised himself as a peasant who delivered grain to the stronghold, and after infiltrating the stronghold, he quietly recorded the internal situation clearly.
When the battle of pulling points began, he led his troops to cooperate with the comrades who remained in the stronghold to completely eradicate the Japanese puppet army forces that had been entrenched here for many years!
3. Anti-Beauty Morning
In the face of the suppression of the superior firepower of the US army, he dispatched troops and planned the overall situation, and when the Shangganling tunnel was faced with the desperate situation of running off water, food, and ammunition, Li Desheng tried every means to mobilize supplies and maintain the combat effectiveness of the holding troops!
In the end, with the completion of preparations for a large-scale counterattack by our volunteers, the Yankees' delusion of taking the initiative at the negotiating table was also shattered!
Epilogue:
The deeds of Xu Shiyou and Li Desheng are a microcosm of the brilliant generals of the Republic, who not only have the majestic momentum of vertical and horizontal affairs, but also have the brilliance of delicate and uninterrupted human nature, and it is they who have supported the backbone of New China, and it is also they who have left a precious historical moment for future generations, and this is the glory of the Chinese soldiers!
Reference Sources:
1. [CCTV] - Special column [Li Desheng]
https://tv.cctv.com/2016/12/29/VIDEFtxKUytGHGy88XIJlt3o161229.shtml?spm=C55924871139.PGHhECZjcTkS.0.0
2. [People's Daily Online] - [Official Website of Party History Learning and Education]
[Military Talent Xu Shiyou] - Author: Sui Shuqing
http://dangshi.people.com.cn/n1/2021/1220/c436975-32311890.html