Hikiko
*This article is excerpted from the sixth volume of "Weifang Literary and Historical Materials" (December 1990), written by Huang Wennian, and the original title is "Crossing the River to the South"
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One
After the victory of the Huaihai Campaign on 10 January 1949, Chairman Mao of the CPC Central Committee decided to transfer 53,000 cadres from the old liberated areas to cross the river and march south with the army to take over the newly liberated areas in order to prepare for crossing the Yangtze River and marching south to liberate the whole country. The Shandong Bohai District Party Committee conscientiously implemented the decision of the CPC Central Committee and quickly made comprehensive arrangements. The principal cadres of all localities, counties, and districts are required to complete two sets of teams and prepare to go south. Soon, the task of transferring cadres was sent to Yishou County. After receiving the instructions from the higher authorities, the Yishou County CPC Committee first issued a circular to the cadres of the whole county to conscientiously study the Xinhua News Agency's 1949 New Year's message, "Carry the Revolution to the End." In connection with the exciting news of the victories of the Liberation War at that time: the successful conclusion of the Huaihai Campaign on 10 January, the liberation of Tianjin on 14 January, and the peaceful liberation of Beiping on 31 January, the vast number of cadres held heated discussions and enhanced their understanding. Everyone is clear: "The enemy will not destroy itself." Neither the Chinese reactionaries nor the aggressive forces of US imperialism in China will withdraw from the stage of history on their own", which strengthened the determination to carry the revolution through to the end. They unanimously expressed the need to resolutely, completely, cleanly, and completely eliminate all reactionary forces, overthrow imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism, overthrow the reactionary rule of the Kuomintang throughout the country, and establish a republic under the people's democratic dictatorship led by the proletariat and based on the alliance of workers and peasants. Ma Yiquan, secretary of the county party committee, Sun Xingguo, deputy secretary of the county party committee, Liu Huiyun, county magistrate, and other comrades announced to the cadres of the county-level organs the instructions of the party Central Committee on sending cadres to cross the Yangtze River and go south, liberate the whole of China, and take over the newly liberated areas. Zhao Zimei, chief of the secretary section, Zhang Jiwu, chief of the industrial section, Zhou Yingsan, director of the grain bureau, and other comrades talked with the cadres one by one to carry out in-depth and meticulous ideological mobilization work. Some rural youth activists also registered. At that time, some people also made up and sang a smooth song: "Down to Jiangnan, down to Jiangnan, the people of Jiangnan are waiting for us to ......." At that time, I was working in the Civil Affairs Section of the People's Government of Yishou County, and in the past few years, I often led the stretcher team, shoulder picker, and trolley transport team of migrant workers to fight with the army. He participated in the Zhou (Village) Zhang (Dian) Campaign of the western section of the Jiaoji Railway initiated by the Shandong Corps of the East China People's Liberation Army in March 1948, the Chang (Le) Wei (County) Campaign in the middle section of the Jiaoji Railway in April, and the Jinan Campaign in September. Now, if we want to cross the Yangtze River and go south to liberate the whole of China, I think this is a good opportunity to fight between the north and the south on the land of the motherland and temper and test myself. Within a few days, the county party committee announced the list of cadres who had been approved to go south. I remember clearly that there are Sun Xingguo, Zhu Zhenyan, Fu Chunsan, Li Huacun, Feng Zishan, Wang Jinzun, Zhang Jingyu, Li Liangmin, Huang Zhichang, Liu Daxing, Xu Limin, Li Haorong, Liu Xuwu, Feng Jun, Dong Zijun, and other cadres at and above the district level, as well as Li Tianen, Zhong Leyu, Su Jinyin, Huang Wennian, Wang Panting, Wang Ruming, Yan Tianhua, Sun Laicheng, Du Mingkui, Li Shiyong, Shi Kaiwen, Zhang Hongqing, Li Lingyun, Jia Yangeng, Yuan Liren, He Zhijie, Wang Jiaxun, Liu Zhengping, Shi Gaowen, Wang Lingchun, Wang Lingxing, Sun Zhenhua, Zhang Xiangming, Sun Guixiang, Duan Shiwu, Xia Yuqi, Li Changshou, Tang Yongming, Wei Jintang, Shi Wenchen, Cui Chuanyu, Wang Xiwu, Dang Yousheng, Dang Guojun, Wang Xiaoliang, Gu Hongtu, Gu Yuetu, Xu Anxiang, Sun Guanghui, Yang Huatang, Sun Ronghua and other staff members, officers, district assistants and other cadres of more than 90 people.
The county party committee demanded that all cadres be given an account of their work by mid-February, that preparations be made for their journey to the south, and that each of them should go home to visit their relatives once before going south, but they must return to the county government on time to assemble. At that time, I, Li Liangmin, and Huang Zhichang from Guangrao County could directly report to the three local committees of Suozhen after visiting relatives. At the end of February, the southbound cadres gathered in Cuijiazhuang, the seat of the Yishou County Government, and the county party committee held a farewell party in the Malan Village Primary School, and the principal leaders of the county party committee and county government made important speeches. On 1 March, under the leadership of Comrade Sun Xingguo, deputy secretary of the county party committee, the southbound cadres of Yishou County arrived at the three local party committees of Suo Town, Huantai County, via Linzi County, to report for duty and assemble on 3 March.
After the southbound cadres of the counties arrived in Suozhen on time, the three prefectural committees carried out a reorganization of these cadres, and the cadres of the three prefectural committees were organized into the third brigade (also called the third detachment) of the southbound cadre column of Bohai District. The cadres of each county were organized into squadrons, and the cadres of Yishou County were organized into the ninth squadron, with instructor Sun Xingguo, squadron leader Zhu Zhenyan (former deputy county magistrate of Linzi County), clerk Zhang Xiangming, secretary Yan Tianhua, and sergeant Wang Panting. There are also nine classes, each with about 10 students.
On 7 March, the three prefectural party committees held a meeting to send off the southbound cadres in Wulidian Village, west of Suozhen, at which Wang Xiaoyu, secretary of the prefectural party committee, Wang Yunsheng, commissioner, leading comrades of the military sub-district, and Wang Lesan, political commissar of the southbound cadres brigade, made important speeches at the meeting. After the farewell meeting, all the southbound cadres set out under the leadership of political commissar Wang Lesan and captain Liu Boquan, and walked more than 240 miles through Huantai, Changshan, Zouping, Zhangqiu, and other counties on the way, and arrived at Jinan Huangtai Railway Station in the middle of the night on 10 March. Such an open-top truck, without a seat, had to sit on the floor of the car and use its own backpack as a seat. After the train started, the dust was flying, and the wind blew everyone out of breath, but everyone held their heads high and their emotions were high. The vast majority of comrades took the train for the first time and said happily: We have never seen what a train is like in the past, but now we are on our own train. The train runs for 258 kilometers and arrives at Nanshagou Station on the Jinpu Line the next day. The 3rd Brigade of Southbound Cadres was stationed in villages along the railway line on the east bank of Weishan Lake, and the 9th Squadron of Yishou was stationed in a small village near Shagou Station. The houses they live in are all sheds where ordinary people put firewood, grass, and gray dung, or damp small mud houses that no one has lived in, and more than 10 people in a class live together.
During the rest and recuperation in Shagou, four squad cadres of our team were transferred from the No. 8 Squadron of Guangrao County, including six cadres at or above the district level, including Ma Ciyun, Song Mengbi, Ma Zengxiang, Geng Heting, Zhang Jiasheng, and Song Tongde, as well as Jia Zongxiu, Li Baobang, Li Maoshan, Wang Luqing, Cheng Wenyou, Xiao Donggang, Li Yuemei, Li Qingwen, Hao Yousheng, Meng Zhaohai, Yan Ciliang, Yan Xiangduo, Guo Xixiang, Gao Tingxuan, Li Sumei, Yan Xiuying, Li Mengchun, Zhang Dalin, Li Jiande, Song Jiatan, Gai Maotang, Liu Kuiyuan, Zhao Zizhen, Li Ride, Xue Baoyou, Li Dexin, and other staff members. There are more than 30 officers and district assistants. Later, another squad was transferred from the Gaoqing County Squadron, including Wang Yansheng, Gao Ganfang, Zhang Rongzong and other comrades. The strength of the Yishou 9th Squadron was strengthened, with a total of more than 100 people. Cadres from other counties have also been transferred to each other. At the same time, all squadrons have reorganized their platoons, and the squadron has established a party branch, and the members of the party branch of our squadron are: instructor Sun Xingguo is the secretary of the branch, and squadron leaders Zhu Zhenyan (former deputy county magistrate), Fu Chunsan (former head of the organization department), Li Huacun (former director of the propaganda department), and Feng Zishan (former director of the public security bureau) are the branch committee (that is, members of the county party committee). Each squad and platoon has established a party group, and the squad leader also serves as the leader of the party group. At the same time, it was further clarified that the cadre brigade of a prefectural party committee would take over a special district when it went to a new district, and a squadron would take over a county when it went to a new district, so as to establish county and district political power.
At the same time as the reorganization of Shagou, we also conscientiously studied such articles as "Carry the Revolution to the End," "Eight Chapters of the Covenant," "Rules for Entering the City," and "Orders for Marching to the Whole Country." Through study, we have enhanced our understanding, eliminated the ideological fluctuations brought about by reorganization and personnel transfers, and party organizations at all levels have played a positive role in guaranteeing them. Party members conduct self-examination and carry out criticism and self-criticism through the Party group meeting. After the party group meeting, there was an administrative class meeting to help each other, and then a squadron meeting was held. Comrade Sun Xingguo made a concluding speech, affirming the gains made in the study, pointing out that several existing ideas must be overcome, and putting forward future requirements. Through various meetings and activities, the thinking of the Yu troops was consolidated, and the determination to cross the river to the south, fight to Nanjing, capture Chiang Kai-shek alive, and liberate the whole of China.
In late March, the southbound cadres again studied and implemented the spirit of the Second Plenary Session of the Seventh CPC Central Committee. The issues of completely destroying the rule of the Kuomintang, winning the victory of the whole country, shifting the focus of the party's work from the countryside to the cities, and taking production as the central task were discussed in depth. They expressed their resolute response to the call of the CPC Central Committee that "the whole party must maintain a modest, cautious, not arrogant, not rash, and arduous work style in the face of victory." In addition to ideological, political, and current situation education, education was also carried out on the implementation of policies, observance of discipline, and education on the customs and customs after crossing the river. It is required that when crossing the river and taking a boat, it is not allowed to talk about the boss, you are not allowed to talk about your Excellency, you are not allowed to urinate on the bow of the boat, your pants are not allowed to be placed on the mast, and you are not allowed to talk nonsense when you get on the boat. It is required that when taking over the work, the first notice, the first slogan, the first meeting, and the first thing must be handled in a steady and solemn manner.
Two
At that time, the situation was as follows: The People's Liberation Army's million-strong division and millions of militia and civilian workers had reached a front of more than 500 kilometers on the north bank of the Yangtze River, all remnants of the enemy in the Jiangbei region had been cleared, and the armies of all roads had begun to make preparations for crossing the river. At this time, preparations for crossing the river were combined with negotiations, and the delegation of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the peace talks sent by the Nanjing Government began negotiations in Beiping on 1 April. Our firm stand is that our People's Liberation Army will cross the river regardless of whether it is a peace or a war.
Under such a situation, our column of cadres heading south to the Bohai Sea was ordered to begin to move south with the army in batches and routes. In accordance with the instructions of the brigade, the cadres of the Yishou No. 9 Squadron took a train from Shagou on 29 March to the east via Xuzhou to the Longhai Railway, passing through Nianzhuang and Pixian, and arrived at Xin'an Town (Xinyi) in Jiangsu Province on the morning of 30 March, traveling 168 kilometers.
In Honghuabu is the Qingming season, the weather is gradually warmer, the superior instructed to dress lightly, stipulating that each person brings their own quilts, cotton clothes, cotton pants, cotton wool are pulled out, changed into jackets, cotton centralized handover. Dispose of unnecessary things that you carry with you as well. At the same time, each person was given two sets (one set of coarse cloth and one set of fine cloth) yellow military uniforms, a five-star "Bayi" hat, yellow leggings, and a small enamel bowl, with a small hole at the bottom of the bowl that could be hung up. Yan Xiuying, Li Yuemei and other female comrades used the extra pieces of clothing cloth that had just taken out cotton to make cloth covers for everyone to fill the bowls. The "Bayi" cockade is sewn with thread to the five star horns (there is a small eye on the star corner) and sewn on the military cap. Each person was also given a "Chinese People's Liberation Army" symbol to wear on his left chest. Everyone feels that there is no honor, and this is the veritable Chinese People's Liberation Army.
In order to ensure the smooth implementation of the marching plan, Comrade Zhu Zhenyan, the captain of the army, conveyed the instructions of the Third Brigade of the Cadre Column to the south of the Bohai Sea. "From now on, we're marching long distances on foot," he said. Walk to Jiangnan with your legs to liberate Jiangnan and liberate the whole of China. The march on foot is arduous, and every comrade must make full ideological preparations, resolutely overcome all difficulties, carry forward the spirit of unity, fraternity, and mutual assistance on the march, and at the same time heighten vigilance; some places ahead are newly liberated areas, and there may be remnants of bandits, and it is necessary to guard against the enemy's sabotage activities; if they encounter an enemy situation, they must not panic, they must be calm and courageous, and they must obey orders and obey commands. ”
The captain gave the management team a task, requiring them to stand in batches during the march, go to bed early, get up early and eat early, set off in advance, and everything should be done before the large team moves, and prepare for the large team to eat on the way and camp at night, so as to ensure a smooth march.
The order to march was given, and the goal was the Yangtze River, starting from Honghuabu, passing through Xin'an Town (Xinyi), Muyang, Huaiyin, Huai'an, Baoying, Gaoyou, Fairy Temple, Yangzhou, Liuwei, Guazhou to the Yangtze River, a total of 313 kilometers. The southbound cadres walked mightily on the wide highway in central Jiangsu, and stayed overnight, depending on the situation. The comrades of the management squad all arrived at the designated villages in advance, discussed with the people about borrowing pots and stoves, and the cooks prepared meals in a timely manner, and the team could start the meal as soon as it arrived. After finding a house, one class lived in one place, and there was no bed, so they took some firewood or straw and spread it on the ground to make a bunk. When leaving, everyone put the grass back in its place, and cleaned the houses and yards for the people, carried the water, and then left in line, and if there was any damage, they would be compensated according to the price. The firewood and grass used for cooking in each place are paid according to the price. If there is no grain station, the grain brought by the comrades will be used to go to the grain station to replenish it. Each person brings enough food to feed for three to five days. Food expenses are subject to democratic management, financial disclosure, and accounts are published once every five to ten days.
Special attention was paid to propaganda and agitation work along the march, and signs with the slogan "Comrade! Come on! "Go to Nanjing!" Capture Chiang Kai-shek alive! "Fight across the Yangtze River!" Liberate all of China! "All this greatly encouraged the marching mood of the cadre ranks.
On the highway where we marched, there were also migrant workers' transport teams in front of the branch, carrying burdens and pushing carts, loaded with food, ammunition, military uniforms, military shoes, ordnance and other materials, and there were also PLA strategic trucks towing mountain artillery, field artillery, and howitzers day and night. Add to that the long fleet of transport ships in the ancient canal on the west side of the highway, and the white sails are dotted. Highways and waterways, the soldiers of the People's Liberation Army, the cadres who went south, and the migrant workers who supported the front were mighty and vigorous, and the torrent of the people's war was rolling forward.
When our Yishou No. 9 Squadron marched to the Gaoyou-Yangzhou section of the road, the news of victory came: Nanjing has been liberated! It turned out that the day after the reactionary Kuomintang government refused to sign the peace agreement, Mao Zedong, chairman of the Central Military Commission, and Zhu De, commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, issued an "order to march nationwide" to the PLA. Some troops secretly crossed the Yangtze River at night, while others, under the cover of powerful artillery fire, broke through the blockade of the enemy's firepower and carried out a forced crossing, breaking through the Yangtze River defense line with fierce attacks and lightning-fast actions. The Kuomintang army fled for its life in a hurry, and on 23 April, the People's Liberation Army occupied Nanjing, announcing the end of the reactionary rule of the Kuomintang. When all the southbound cadres heard the news, they immediately boiled, and they couldn't help but raise their arms and chant slogans continuously, "Nanjing has been liberated!" Nanjing is liberated! "Long live the Communist Party of China!" "Long live Chairman Mao!" "Fight across the Yangtze River and liberate the whole of China!" The villages on both sides of the highway were also cheering enthusiastically to celebrate the liberation of Nanjing. Slogans and cheers, one after another, the people rejoiced. Like other southbound teams, encouraged by the news of victory, everyone couldn't hold back the joy in their hearts, and marched forward with strong steps.
I remember that at that time, there was a folk song of "a million heroes go down to the south of the Yangtze River" in Gaoyou and Yangzhou: "Chiang Kai-shek, the big villain, refused to surrender and fight the civil war." Chairman Mao, the order was passed on, and millions of heroes went down to the south of the Yangtze River. The People's Liberation Army, as soon as it came ashore, the reactionary dynasty was finished. ”
Three
After the battle to cross the Yangtze River began, I went south to the Yishou No. 9 Squadron of the Third Brigade of Cadres and went to Yangzhou, a historic city on the north bank of the Yangtze River, on 29 April, and lived in a village in the southern suburbs. On 1 May, he was ordered to continue the march and assemble at Guazhou, 20 kilometers from Yangzhou, and decided to cross the river in the afternoon.
After having lunch on the road not far from Liuwei, the higher authorities informed them that in order to prevent the enemy planes from commotion, the squadrons were scattered and marched one after another in squads and platoons. When we arrived at the river, the riverbank road was full of bushes, which was very beneficial for us to rest in hiding.
From Liuwei to the west, a few kilometers more is Guazhou. On the riverside of Guazhou Port, Comrade Sun Xingguo, instructor of the No. 9 Yishou Squadron, spoke to all comrades on the matter of crossing the river. He said: "Comrades! Nanjing is liberated! However, the common people and class brothers on this large area of land on the south bank of the Yangtze River are still living a miserable life under the oppression of the three mountains. Chairman Mao, the great leader, commanded us to 'carry the revolution through to the end'! We, the Communists and revolutionary cadres, should we answer this question with what actions? All the comrades raised their arms and shouted: "Fight Changhui and liberate the whole of China!" ”
As the day came, the cadres of our Yishou No. 9 Squadron lined up in a neat line and boarded the ship according to the designated cabin. It is a large passenger ship that can accommodate hundreds of people. The ship went from north to south, facing Zhenjiang on the south bank of the Yangtze River, and we had to land from Zhenjiang. When our ferry sailed to the center of the river, we could look back at Guazhou and Zhenjiang in front. At this moment, I am reminded of Wang Anshi's famous poem "Docking Guazhou" in the Song Dynasty: "Jingkou Guazhou is a water, and Zhongshan is only separated by a few mountains. The spring breeze and the south bank of the Green River, when will the bright moon shine on me. "It is only sixty-five kilometers from the newly liberated Nanjing, and our Chinese People's Liberation Army, like a spring breeze, quickly liberated Jiangnan and liberated all of China after liberating Nanjing: after an hour or so of sailing, our ferry arrived at Zhenjiang Port, and it was getting dark. After getting off the boat, we sat on the high hill on the side of the road, ate some dry food that we had brought with us, and then marched overnight and went straight to Danyang according to the orders of our superiors. Thirty kilometers from Zhenjiang to Danyang, there are undulating mountains, and it is a newly liberated new area. There was no moon that night, and it was all about the stars in the sky and marching towards Danyang. The first time I crossed the river, I was unfamiliar with the place, I turned around in the mountains, I don't know how many rugged paths I walked, and some sections of the road were full of gravel. There were several comrades with small blood blisters on their feet, and it was not easy to walk, but for a common goal, none of them complained bitterly, and none of them fell behind. At dawn, I triumphantly arrived at my destination, living in a village north of the Shanghai-Nanjing Railway on the outskirts of Danyang County.
Four
After crossing the river, the situation developed rapidly, and the PLA marched at great speed. On 3 May, Hangzhou was liberated, and the vanguard of the Second Field Army had arrived near Nanchang and Pucheng and Chong'an counties in northern Fujian. On 12 May, our army launched the Battle of Songhu. At this time, the 9th Squadron of the 3rd Brigade of my southbound troops was ordered to take a train from Danyang to Wuxi, live in a village in the eastern suburbs of Wuxi, and wait for the liberation of Shanghai to take over immediately.
On our way from Danyang to Wuxi, we encountered an air raid by enemy planes. The train whistle whistled and then came to a slow stop. When people stuck their heads out of their windows to observe the movement, someone shouted: "The enemy plane is coming: get out of the car and hide quickly." Everyone immediately got out of the car and hidden. After a while, I saw a Kuomintang reactionary plane in the sky, which swooped down from east to west, flew westward, flipped back again, strafed a shuttle of bullets, did not hit the train, did not hit anyone, and the plane flew westward in a hurry. This is the dying throes of the Kuomintang army in the Shanghai area, and it is also the last wail.
On 28 May, the Battle of Songhu ended victoriously and Shanghai was liberated. From then on, the reactionary rule of imperialist and Kuomintang reactionaries in Shanghai was ended, and Shanghai was reborn. The Third Brigade of our southbound cadres marched to Shanghai in batches. The Guangrao No. 8 Squadron and the Changshan County Squadron took a train from Danyang to the outskirts of Shanghai before Shanghai was completely liberated, and took over the two suburbs of Dachang and Zhenru respectively; A part of the squadron was stationed in Luzhen, Suzhou, to rest and be on standby. My Yishou No. 9 Squadron and a part of the squadron rushed from Wuxi to Shanghai by train at night. It was dinner time when the car arrived in Shanghai, the city was brightly lit, and the streets were like day. That night, I camped on the 17th floor of the city's tallest and largest Broadway building outside the confluence of Suzhou Creek and Huangpu River, and slept on the smooth floor of my room.
Broadway Building
On the 17th floor of the Broadway Building, you can overlook the various ships moored in the Huangpu River and the scene of the city. I remember that some comrades said at that time: Shanghai is the largest city on the mainland, a place that everyone yearns for, the birthplace of our Communist Party, with a glorious revolutionary tradition, but also a world-famous "adventurer's paradise." After we liberated Shanghai, we must take over, transform, and build this big city.
One day in early June, after breakfast, instructor Comrade Sun Xingguo conveyed the instructions of his superiors: The cadres of our Third Brigade are assigned to the Shanghai Municipal Military Control Commission, and the cadres of our Yishou No. 9 Squadron are assigned to the working group of the Financial and Economic Takeover Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Military Control Commission, and Comrade Zhu Zhenyan is the leader of the task force. I remember that Comrade Liu Daxing went to the East China Agriculture and Forestry Department to take over the work of the Shanghai Fishery and Salt Market Supervision Office and the East China Fisheries Experimental Institute. In short, according to the needs of the work, the comrades went to various departments in the urban area to take over the work. From this time on, most of the cadres in Yishou County acted collectively, and a small number of comrades acted in a scattered manner. At this time, each person was given a cloth "Shanghai Military Management Commission" armband, which was uniformly required to be worn on the upper end of the left arm. The task of the work is to be responsible for the takeover of the Jing'an Temple area. This area is centered on Nanjing Road and Xizang Road, and is one of the most prosperous areas in Shanghai.
Under the leadership of Captain Zhu Zhenyan, when we took the tram from Waibaidu Bridge to Jing'an District to accept the mission, a comrade accidentally dropped his backpack through the window and outside the car. Immediately shouted: "Stop!" Stop the car! The backpack fell outside the car1 "The tram driver was a foreigner, he ignored it at the time, a comrade walked to the driver and told him to stop, the driver saw that it was the Chinese People's Liberation Army talking to him, so he stopped the car, and we picked up the backpack. The citizen in the same car said: "If it weren't for your People's Liberation Army, he wouldn't have stopped." This time it broke the rules for foreigners and increased the morale of the Chinese.
Shanghai's Baidu Bridge, the Bund on the banks of the Huangpu River, Nanjing Road, Xizang Road, all bridge piers and public buildings are all garrisoned by our troops, and there are patrols of three or five people of the People's Liberation Army on all roads. "Ta Kung Pao," "Declaration," "Current Affairs News," and "News" all published reports full of support for our army. Six of the obstacles built by the enemy to resist our army, such as various fortifications, deer villages, and sacks filled with sand, were demolished and cleared by our army, and the city was in order.
The office of our team is located in the alley of Wusheng Road, South Xizang Road, and the famous "Racecourse Hall", "Great World", "International Hotel", "Yongan Company", "Daxin Company" and "MGM Ballroom" are all located in this area. All our comrades insisted on studying the "Rules for Entering the City" and the "Three Major Disciplines and Eight Points of Attention" that they studied before crossing the river. With regard to the takeover of affairs, we have drawn up a specific plan, further studied the takeover policy, conducted in-depth investigation and study among the masses, carried out meticulous organizational work, and resolved not to be corrupted by the fancy world and to do a good job in the takeover work. According to the instructions of the higher authorities, we should take over the various types of enterprises in Shanghai at that time, and we should win the cooperation of thousands of technicians and intellectuals with us, and we should pay attention to protecting the private entrepreneurs, so that they feel that they have been politically and spiritually liberated, and they will wholeheartedly cooperate with us.
On the eve of liberation, the working class and the broad masses of Shanghai protected factories and schools, protected important facilities in the city, smashed the enemy's sabotage plots, and cooperated with the Chinese People's Liberation Army in the battle to liberate Shanghai.
After the liberation of Shanghai, the working class and the people of Shanghai, under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, cooperated with the working group of our Financial and Economic Takeover Committee to take over and investigate and understand the bureaucratic capital enterprises and enemy counterfeit materials in Jing'an District. Quite a few agents of the capitalists have been busy from morning to night when they have approached the task force office to report on the situation and receive instructions, or to assist in the transfer of specific matters.
In their spare time, the comrades of our work team sometimes go to Xizang Road and Nanjing Road in groups of three or five to take a stroll around the roads to see what the "horse racing hall" is. Not far from the office, you can see a large field in the middle of Xizang Road in the east, Huangpi Road in the west, Nanjing Road in the north, and Wusheng Road in the south, which is surrounded by a very high bamboo fence. This is the "Horse Racing Hall".
Shanghai Racecourse
There is a gate on this side of the Tibet Road, where an Indian stands and guards the gate, and the bamboo fence is very gloomy, and a few beautiful buildings can be seen faintly from the woods. It is said that this racecourse was built by the British and has a history of about 100 years. The racecourse is 1.25 miles long and 60 feet wide, and a track covers more than 50 acres. This was built by the imperialists forcibly seizing China's land. Everyone knows that this land is a symbol of the humiliation and oppression of the Chinese people, and it is also an irrefutable proof of the hegemony of imperialism in China. Now that we have liberated Shanghai, the racecourse is back in the hands of the people. (It is reported that on August 27, 1951, at the request of the people, the Navy Management Commission issued an exciting order to nationalize the racecourse.) A 100-meter-wide People's Avenue was built in the middle of the Houjing Racecourse, with the People's Square on the west side and the People's Park on the east side. The racecourse really belongs to the Chinese people who stand up.
Five
As the various field armies of our People's Liberation Army swept away by the autumn wind, they continued to march southward. Soon after we took over the work in Shanghai, we received new instructions for us to continue south with the Sanye 10th Corps and march to Fujian. At this time, the leaders of the three brigades of the southbound cadre column in Bohai District and the cadres of various counties made major changes. Wang Lesan, Liu Boquan, the former leaders of the Third Brigade, and cadres from Guangrao, Hengtai, Linzi, Shouguang, Changshan, and Boxing all stayed in Shanghai to work. The cadres of Yishou, Gaoqing, and Qidong counties reorganized the three brigades, with Comrade Wang Jingyu (Ren Yuemiao) as the captain and Comrade Hu Weixin as the political commissar of the brigade. A few days later, some of the main cadres of the counties and districts were led by Hu Weixin's political commissar to participate in the work of the southbound service group formed by Shanghai college students to march into Fujian; Some of the cadres were led by Captain Wang Jingyu and some Shanghai college students to form the Seventh Brigade of the Southbound Cadre Column; Comrades Zhu Zhenyan, Su Jinyin, Huang Wennian, Gao Ganfang, Wang Yansheng, Li Yuemei, and other cadres of Yishou County, who worked in the Financial and Economic Takeover Committee of the Shanghai Municipal Military Management Commission, were directly transferred to work in the supply department of the southbound cadre column marching into Fujian. Comrade Zhu Zhenyan served as deputy director. When the cadres from the Bohai Sea went south to reorganize the brigade, Comrade Huang Guozhang, director of the Organization Department of the Fujian Provincial CPC Committee at that time, made a special trip from Fujian to pick us up and held a meeting at the teaching building of Fudan University in Shanghai. The comrades present applauded warmly. He also introduced the general situation of Fujian Province: "Fujian Province has high mountains and dense forests, and there is a saying that there are eight mountains, one water and one field. However, there is Marxism-Leninism in the ravine of Fujian...... This is the foundation for liberating Fujian and building Fujian. On July 1, to commemorate the 28th anniversary of the party's birthday, Chairman Mao published an important article "On the People's Democratic Dictatorship". We studied and discussed Minister Huang's report and strengthened our confidence in the victory of the revolution.
At this time, the Yishou County cadres who were transferred to work in the supply department of the Southern Vertical Command lived on the sixth floor of the Fuzhou Hotel at the intersection of Fuzhou Road, Xizang Road. It is both an office and a place to stay. In accordance with the scope of work of the Supply Department, we actively prepared the funds, clothing, daily necessities and other materials needed for the cadres going south to Fujian, which was the key to ensuring a victorious march.
On 12 July, a column of southbound cadres marching toward Fujian set out from Shanghai in the rain. At that time, the Shanghai-Hangzhou Railway had not yet been opened to traffic, so the troops took a mixed train (open car) from the Shanghai-Nanjing Railway to Suzhou. In Suzhou, I saw the cadres of Bohai Yishou County, which was organized into the Seventh Brigade, and although they had only been separated for a few days, everyone seemed to be relatives who had been reunited after a long absence, and they were very affectionate. The large army stayed in Suzhou for two days, and at this time, more than 3,000 people from six brigades of southbound cadres from Taihang and Taiyue districts of Shanxi Province, as well as a southbound service group composed of brigades directly under the column headquarters and college students from Shanghai, marched south from Suzhou on foot and by civilian ships from the ancient canal, arrived in Jiaxing, and then took a train to Hangzhou.
A part of the cadre brigade (including the Yishou County cadres of the newly formed Seventh Brigade of Bohai Cadres) got on the train from Hangzhou to the Shangrao Railway Station in Jiangxi Province via Jiangshan County, Zhejiang Province.
After passing Shangrao, go to Chishi Village on the west bank of Chongyang River to cross the river. Then hiked up the Wuyi Mountains, which is the boundary between Jiangxi and Fujian, and the main peak of Huanggang Mountain is 2,158 meters above sea level. In July and August, the weather was particularly hot, and there were no straw hats, so the comrades braved the scorching heat, climbed mountains and waded through rivers, and marched hard to enter Fujian Province from here. Later, it arrived in Nanping through Chong'an, Jianyang and Jian'ou.
The other group was the headquarters of the southbound column and some cadre brigades, including the Yishou cadres who were transferred to the supply department, who took the Zhejiang-Jiangxi line train from Hangzhou to Xintangbian Station, 21 kilometers west of Jiangshan County, Zhejiang Province, and lived in Xintangbian Village.
There are also some cadres who got off the train at the Jiangshan Railway Station and lived in the area of Sitou and Hecun in the south of Jiangshan City. Although these villages belong to Zhejiang, they are very close to Fujian. It is understood that Chiang Kai-shek, Hu Zongnan, Chen Guofu, Chen Cheng, Dai Li, and other reactionary figures were all from Zhejiang, and the head of the secret service, Dai Li, was Xiakou Town, Jiangshan County, so the social situation in this area at that time was complicated. Therefore, the headquarters asked all cadre brigades to be more vigilant. Whenever you go out for business, you must go with two people to prevent sabotage activities by spies and bandits.
One day, Comrade Wang Xinggang, chief of staff of the column, gave me a task, and with his handwritten letter, I went to Comrade Shen Ping, director of the Fujian Provincial Department of Finance, who was more than 10 miles away from the headquarters to ask for funds, and sent a PLA soldier to accompany me for safety. His surname is Zhang, and he is a native of Lunan Yishui. The two of us crossed the mountains, forests and ridges, found Director Shen in a village in a mountain col, and successfully completed the task.
I remember that there were more than a dozen brigades of cadres marching into Fujian, and most of them marched on foot in batches and separate roads. The headquarters of our Southern Column and its directly subordinate units carried a lot of baggage, deployed dozens of vehicles, and the People's Liberation Army (PLA) transferred a battalion to escort them and marched mightily toward Fujian. The car pulls away the distance, there are dozens of miles long, driving in the deep valley of the Xianxialing mountain range, passing through Hecun and the gorge, the mountain is getting higher and higher, sometimes driving in the clouds and mist, sometimes driving in the clouds and mist, it is really like driving the clouds and driving the fog.
It was not until noon that I arrived at the southernmost twenty-eight capital of Zhejiang Province, looked south, and saw a mountain pass, with dense forests and majestic mountains.
That is one of the ancient and modern traffic arteries of Fujian, Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces, Fengling Pass, with an altitude of 2,000 meters, the highway here is winding, winding around the mountains, and gradually upward. The car climbed up Fengling Pass, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. However, the situation is dangerous, and the winding mountain road is not ruled out, and the car sliding from the top of the mountain to the mountain is even more dangerous. The drivers concentrated on the steering wheel, and smoothly passed through several villages and towns before arriving at Pucheng, the first county seat in northern Fujian.
Since the deployment of the 10th Corps to Fujian in early July, the armies of the 10 th Corps of the Chinese People's Liberation Army have liberated many county towns, villages and towns in northern Fujian, eastern Fujian, and western Fujian, and have besieged the enemy in Fuzhou. Under such circumstances, our cadres marched south as quickly as possible, continued southward from Pucheng, and arrived at Jian'ou County through Shuiji and Jianyang.
Jian'ou County is an ancient mountain city in northern Fujian and one of the old bases of our party in Fujian. In 1926, the first CPC branch was established, in 1929 the CPC Jian'ou County Committee was established, in 1936 the Northeast Fujian Special Committee was established here, and in 1947 it was changed to the Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi guerrilla columns. The old provincial party committee organs were also sometimes stationed in Jian'ou County. Beginning in April 1949, Comrade Zeng Jingbing of the provincial party committee (a member of the Seventh CPC Central Committee) and Comrade Zuo Fengmei, commander of the Fujian, Zhejiang, and Gan guerrilla columns, led the military and people of Jian'ou, Gutian, and Nanping to cooperate with the Chinese People's Liberation Army in the river-crossing campaign and the Songhu campaign to ambush and encircle the Kuomintang army, the county police, and the township self-defense units. The vanguard unit of a certain corps of the Second Field Army of the People's Liberation Army liberated Jian'ou on 13 May. On 28 May, the party committee of Fujian, Zhejiang, and Jiangxi districts and a certain corps of Erye held a ceremony to enter the city. On June 3, the Jian'ou County Military Management Committee was established, with Zeng Jingbing as its director. When we came here, we saw that the urban and rural residents of Jian'ou County were living and working in peace and contentment.
On 17 August, Fuzhou was liberated, and the headquarters of the southbound cadre column and its subordinate brigades quickly advanced south to Nanping County (now Nanping City), an important town in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River. According to the original plan, the cadre brigades went to Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Jianyang, Minhou, Fu'an, Yong'an, and other areas in batches to take over the work.
The Southern Column Headquarters and some cadres and personnel of the service regiment sailed 166 kilometers on the Minjiang River steamer into Fuzhou, and the supply office of our Southern Column Headquarters was first stationed at Fuhua Middle School on Shanlu. Later, he moved to the old site of Qilu University on Wushan Road, that is, in the compound of the Provincial Party Committee.
After the southbound cadre column entered Fuzhou, in order to quickly carry out various tasks, all departments of the southern column headquarters were merged and organized into various ministries, commissions, and offices of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China. The South Longitudinal Supply Office was merged into the Administrative Office of the Provincial Party Committee (later changed to the Secretariat), and seven cadres of Yishou County, including Zhu Zhenyan, Su Jinyin, Huang Wennian, Gai Maotang, Wang Yansheng, Gao Ganfang, and Li Yuemei, who originally worked in the Supply Department, stayed in the Administrative Office of the Provincial Party Committee. Comrade Zhu Zhenyan served as deputy director. Comrade Fu Chunsan stayed in the party committee of the provincial organ. The cadres of the three counties of Yishou, Gaoqing, and Qidong of the Third Brigade of the former Bohai South Cadres were led by Ren Rimiao and Hu Weixin, and the demobilized cadres of the 28th, 29th, and 31st armies of the 10th Corps and the underground party cadres led by Comrade Lin Zhiqun, a local guerrilla fighter, formed the Yong'an Prefectural Committee, the special office organs, and the leading groups of Yong'an, Datian, Qingliu, Dehua, Ningyang, Sanyuan, Mingxi, and Ninghua counties. Comrade Hu Weixin served as the head of the Organization Department of the Prefectural Party Committee (later the Secretary of the Prefectural Party Committee) and took over the Yongan area. Most of the district-level cadres and ordinary cadres of Yishou County went to take over Datian County, and Comrade Sun Xingguo was appointed deputy secretary of the county party committee (later secretary of the Mingxi County Party committee). Some cadres have also been transferred to work in prefectural party committees, special administrative organs, and other counties.
After the southbound cadres went to work in various counties and districts. The first difficult problem is the language barrier. There are too many dialects in Fujian, including Hokkien, Hokkien, Hokkien, and Fuzhou. Even in some places, due to the high mountains and dense forests, traffic is blocked, and people in front of and behind a large mountain do not understand each other very well. When we go to the countryside to carry out mass work and hold meetings, we have to bring an interpreter with us in order to clear the language. The living environment is not used to it, in the mountainous areas of western Fujian, sometimes all day long clouds and mist, drizzle continuously, too humid.
When I first entered Fujian, I passed through Nanping County and lived in a middle school on a hill west of the city, and on the first morning, I encountered a fog covering the entire mountain and the school building, and everyone was surprised that it was a miasma!? Later I learned that this was the case in the mountains. Comrades with arthritis are deeply unwell in such a climate. In the Yongan area, there were about 7,000 remnants of the Kuomintang, bandits, bullies, and ruffians and hooligans, who often came out to make trouble. In Ninghua, Sanyuan, Datian, Ningyang and other counties, bandit activities were rampant, and there were incidents of bandit riots, attacks on our district offices at night, roadblocks and robberies, and shooting and killing cadres in our county and districts. In order to thoroughly accomplish the tasks of the new democratic revolution, under the unified arrangements of the Fujian Provincial CPC Committee, the cadres of all counties and districts worked hard to suppress the bandits with the help of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) with the cooperation of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). For example, Comrade Wang Panting, head of the second district of Ningyang County and head of the armed forces team (former cadre of Yishou County and from Yidukoubu), developed armed forces on the spot and cracked down on bandits. He carried two pistols without leaving his body, every day on the top of the door fire, but also carried a big gun on his shoulder, led the military engineering team in the mountains and mountains to suppress bandits, during the suppression of bandits, every day in the mountains and rural areas to mobilize the masses, night and night into the mountains to encircle and suppress bandits, found bandits, immediately tracked down, and finally exterminated the bandits. The 84th Division of the 28th Army of the People's Liberation Army suppressed bandits in the high mountains and dense forests of Shaowu County, encircled and killed the bandit commander Liu Wubo. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the District Military Engineering Team that were fighting in Datian County killed the bandit battalion commander Chen Mingbiao, the bandit company commander Gao × Bang, and the female bandit leader Lu Youyue and her bandits were all annihilated. The masses applauded and the people's minds were stable, which created conditions for the later land reform, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the suppression of counter-revolution, the development of industrial and agricultural production, and the construction of a new Fujian.
The cadres of Yishou County crossed the Yangtze River with the army and went south, realizing Chairman Mao and Commander-in-Chief Zhu De's "Order to March to the Whole Country" and liberating Jiangnan. The victory of the People's Revolution throughout the country prepared sufficient conditions for the birth of New China. The southbound cadres of Yishou County set out from Yishou County to Datian County, Yong'an Prefecture, Fujian Province, which lasted more than half a year, passing through six provinces and cities including Shandong, Jiangsu, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, and Fujian, traveling more than 2,600 kilometers, writing a magnificent page in history.
It has been 40 years since the army crossed the river and went south, and now I write this experience as a commemoration of the 40 years of the victory of crossing the river to the south.
Author's note
Writing this material, I received the enthusiastic encouragement and support of Comrade Wang Lesan, the former political commissar of the Third Brigade of the Bohai South Cadre Column and the former secretary of the Party Committee and president of Shanghai Normal University. It was also sent to Comrade Hu Weixin, political commissar of the Third Brigade of the Southbound Cadre Column marching from Shanghai to Fujian, and who is now working at the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade of the Central Committee in Beijing, who reviewed the full text, made revisions, and supplements, and gave me great encouragement and support. Comrade Fu Chunsan, who is currently the director of the Fujian Provincial Labor Bureau, and Comrade Li Huacun, former member of the Yishou No. 9 Squadron Branch Committee (head of the Propaganda Department) of the No. 3 Brigade of the Bohai Cadre Column and now secretary of the Party Committee of the Academy of Sciences of the Central Committee of the Ministry of Light Industry in Beijing, corrected the list of cadres going south. Also: Comrade Liu Daxing (now Secretary General of the Fujian Sanming Municipal Party Committee), Comrade Wang Panting (Fujian Machinery Repair Factory), Comrade Li Tianen (Director of the Taxation Bureau of Datian County), Comrade Zhang Hongqing (now Director of the Environmental Protection Bureau of Qingzhou City), Comrade Yan Xiuying (now the principal of the Ninth Middle School of Xiamen City, Fujian); Former Zouping Squadron of the Third Brigade of the Bohai South Cadre Column, and currently Comrade Wang Zhaosheng, Secretary of the Longquan County Party Committee of Zhejiang Province; Comrade Liu Qingsheng, former southbound cadre of the Yangtze River Detachment of Shanxi Province, and currently Secretary of the Party Committee of the Hydrological Brigade of the Fujian Provincial Geological Bureau; Comrade Yu Yaowen, former secretary of the People's Government of Yishou County, and later director of Ning School in Linzi District, Zibo City; Comrade Huang Gongzhen, the former director of the Highway Section of the Huimin District, was formerly a regiment of the 84th Division of the 28th Army of the 10th Corps of the People's Liberation Army; Comrade Huang Zhendong, manager of the Hydropower Engineering Company of Jian'ou County Hydropower Bureau in Fujian Province, and others have provided information and valuable opinions, which have helped a lot, and expressed heartfelt thanks.
(Contributed by the Literature and History Section of the Qingzhou CPPCC)
Sources:
Selected Weifang Literary and Historical Materials, Volume 6 (December 1990)