After the troops of the 14th and 11th armies successfully recovered Laoshan and Zheyinshan, the Central Military Commission decided to rely on the Laoshan battlefield to organize the whole army to conduct rotational battles. Half a year has passed since the 14th Division of the 40th Army entered the Laoshan Theater. During this period, they experienced the battle to regain Laoshan, and also encountered the "6.11" regiment-level counterattack and the "7.12" reinforced division-scale counterattack. The troops were exhausted from the long battle and were in dire need of a change of defense. Under these circumstances, the Central Military Commission and the Kunming Military Region ordered the 11th Army to take over the defensive combat mission in the Laoshan area, and at the same time, the 1st Army of the Nanjing Military Region was also ordered to go to the theater to carry out combat training.
The 11th Army led the 32nd Division, the 91st Regiment of the 31st Division, and the Army Artillery Regiment to the Laoshan Theater, which were preparing for the recovery of Miao Emperor Mountain, and transferred to the 41st Army Division, the 4th Artillery Division, the 49th Regiment, the 213th Regiment, the 5th Regiment and the 2nd Battalion, the 9th Artillery Division, the 16th Regiment of the 9th Artillery Division, and the 15th Frontier Regiment. On August 4, 1984, he took over from the 14th Army as the defense of the Laoshan area, and at the same time commanded the defensive combat operations in the direction of Yinshan.
During the more than four months of Lao Son defense operations of the 32nd Division, the officers and men of the division were brave and fearless, stubbornly resisted, and withstood the wanton and indiscriminate bombardment of more than 40,000 shells of the Vietnamese army. On November 21 alone, more than 8,500 shells fell on our positions. The division's subordinate units have successfully resisted counterattacks on the scale of the enemy's regiment or below 17 times, and have repeatedly smashed the attacks of enemy agents. On November 20, the enemy, with the strength of one regiment, launched a fierce attack on our positions 102, 114, 146, 168 and so on. However, after 3 hours of fierce fighting, our troops managed to push back the enemy troops and firmly held their positions.
In the entire Laoshan defensive operation, including the attached units, the 32nd Division achieved a brilliant record of killing and wounding 1,698 enemy officers, capturing 1 enemy officer, destroying 120 artillery pieces, 35 military vehicles, 1 tank, destroying 235 fortifications and shelters, and laying 989 meters of trenches. Seventy-three officers and men of the division died heroically.
The 11th Army held its position for 126 days in defensive operations in the Laosan area. From November 29 to December 9, it was handed over to the 1st Army of the Nanjing Military Region. In the process of changing shifts, the 11th Army of the Army adopted the scientific steps of first in-depth and then forward, artillery first, infantry second, secondary direction first, and then main direction, and the whole army was divided into 35 echelons and handed over one by one. The entire shift change operation was tightly organized, methodical, and covert, until the 11th Army withdrew from the battlefield, and the enemy was unaware that our troops had carried out the handover operation in the Laoshan area.
After the 32nd Division of the 11th Army was evacuated from Laoshan, the divisional organs temporarily lived in Xichou County. On the morning of December 13, 1984, Commander Zhang Gongxiu, Chief of Staff Zhang Jinghua, Deputy Chief of Staff Zhang Xiuming, and several heads of operations, artillery, and engineers of the Kunming Military Region went to Xichou County to inspect the 32nd Division temporarily stationed there.
In the "war room" of the large conference room on the third floor of the Xichou County Cultural Palace, Commander Zhang first emphasized the importance of summing up experiences and lessons. He pointed out that the 14th Division of the 40th Army summed up 10 guiding lessons after conquering Laoshan......
Division Commander Liu Yuzun gave a detailed report to Commander Zhang and other leaders on the problems existing in the defensive operation: First, there were inappropriate differences in the distinction between the artillery firepower of the higher levels, and the 32nd Division, as the main defensive direction of Laoshan, failed to obtain the due guarantee of the artillery firepower in the theater; Second, it was limited by the principle of "three non-initiatives" for a long time, the superiors controlled the use of artillery firepower too tightly, and the division lacked the initiative, resulting in the inability to strike at the suppressed targets in a timely and effective manner, and basically no artillery counterattacks were carried out, which made the defensive operations more passive and increased casualties. Third, during the "sortie against the 968 Heights," the army and the military region agreed to "quickly evacuate after capturing and erecting barriers," but the army demanded that it "withdraw after being ordered to do so." Although the attacking detachment finally withdrew on the morning of the same day, the delay was long, thus increasing the casualties.
After listening to the report, Commander Zhang made a four-point evaluation of the 32nd Division's operations. First, the 32nd Division successfully completed the defensive combat mission in the main direction of Laoshan, and did not lose an inch of ground in its position; Second, more than 1,000 enemies were annihilated, achieving a one-to-three victory, which met the requirements of the Central Military Commission for a big victory at a small cost; if the battlefield management was better, it could further reduce casualties and expand the results; Third, through unremitting efforts, the defense system in the main direction of the Laoshan battlefield has been strengthened, the flexibility of defense has been enhanced, and good positional conditions have been created for the receiving troops to continue to hold on. Fourth, after several months of actual combat, the troops have been fully tempered, and although they were temporarily ordered to go into battle in a hurry, they have withstood severe tests in more than four months of fighting. Commander Zhang also mentioned what the enemy called "the third wave hit the stone", which may mean that the enemy's offensive operation after October 18 ended in failure, which was undoubtedly a high praise for the 32nd Division.
Commander Zhang went on to say that the 32nd Division should not be satisfied with the status quo, let alone be complacent, and should fight the next battle on the basis of summing up lessons and lessons -- the Miao Emperor Mountain. In terms of playing style, you can consider eating the enemy in one bite, two or even three bites, and at present it is necessary to find out the situation, including the enemy situation, fortifications, terrain, etc. The number of troops interspersed should not be too large and the distance should not be too far, the forces to launch the attack should not be too crowded, the tactics of small groups, multiple routes, and small echelons should be adopted, and it is also necessary to do a good job in sand table operations. The artillery should study in depth the methods of destroying the enemy's fortifications, first carry out direct sabotage fire, and then use mortars to monitor the fire, and strive to destroy two-thirds of the enemy's fortifications before the attack. At the same time, it is necessary to study how to strike at the enemy in the fortifications, the key is not to have too many people fighting in the fortifications and trenches, but also to conduct an in-depth study of the support points and the way of counterattacking. Although a large enemy counterattack is not expected to be likely, it is necessary to be well prepared.