Female soldiers have always been a beautiful landscape in the military. In the volunteer army in the 1950s, there were many female soldiers who undertook tasks such as medical care, logistics support, and literary and artistic propaganda, and made indelible contributions to victory.
During the war, the women soldiers of the Cultural and Labor Corps were extremely popular among the volunteers, and they often risked their lives to perform programs on the front line to encourage the soldiers. In the eyes of the vast number of commanders and fighters, they are angels.
However, war is cruel, and these "angels" also encounter dangerous baptisms in the fires of war.
For the female soldiers of the 42nd Army of the 13th Corps of the Volunteer Army, the early spring of 1951 in North Korea has their unforgettable memories.
The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea lasted two years and nine months and was divided into two stages. The first stage is the stage of strategic counter-offensive with mobile warfare as the main form, and the second stage is the stage of stalemate with position warfare as the main form.
The first phase was fought five consecutive battles, and it was in the fourth campaign that the 42nd Army's Cultural and Industrial Corps encountered trouble.
It turned out that after the end of the third battle, the enemy lost Seoul and retreated to the area near the thirty-seventh degree line, and the internal chaos became more and more chaotic.
After three consecutive battles of victory, our army's morale was unusually high, but the attrition was so great that the number of soldiers was not replenished.
At the same time, as the front line moved south, our transport line was 550 to 700 kilometers long, and coupled with the indiscriminate bombardment of enemy aircraft, transportation became more difficult, and the supply of grain, ammunition and materials was seriously insufficient.
According to the actual situation, the commanders of the Volunteer Army planned to take a two-month rest from January 8, 1951, and then launch a spring offensive in March.
However, our side has just come out of the victory of the "millet plus rifle", and its understanding of the impact of modern equipment on combat is not deep enough, resulting in insufficient estimation of the enemy's ability to counterattack quickly.
Air superiority, rapid replenishment, rapid maneuvering, all-weather operations, etc., are somewhat far away from us.
On the other hand, through the contest of several consecutive battles, the enemy has gained a certain understanding of the combat characteristics of our army, found that it is difficult to supply food and ammunition to our army, and can only maintain seven to ten days of offensive in each campaign, which is the so-called "prayer offensive."
On January 15, 1951, in order to exhaust our army and find out the situation of our army, the enemy began to use "magnetic tactics" to carry out a tentative attack between Suwon and Icheon.
Every day, they carry infantry in cars, with a small number of tanks, in the form of multiple small strands, with wide frontal power searches, and constantly carry out small attacks on me.
(Magnetic tactics mean that after the enemy has found the weakness of our army's supply difficulties, he relies on the advantages of his modern equipment to be fast and mobile and has strong firepower, and always maintains contact with us, so as to restrain our army by means of a war of attrition.) ）
After the test, the enemy relied on modern technical conditions, quickly completed the deployment adjustment and replenishment, and began to counterattack fiercely.
Beginning on 25 January, the enemy gradually launched a large-scale offensive across the entire line from west to east. While adopting "magnetic tactics" and "fire tactics", they always maintained contact with me and waged a war of attrition against me; on the other hand, they carried out heavy bombardment of our transport lines in an attempt to cut off our rear supply.
After identifying the enemy's intentions, the volunteers stopped resting on January 27 to prepare for battle, and changed the ongoing joint meeting of senior cadres of the Chinese and North Korean armies into a mobilization meeting to prepare for the fourth campaign.
The meeting decided: On the western front, a defensive force should be organized with one unit to clamp down on the enemy's main offensive forces; the eastern front, allowing the enemy to go deeper, and then concentrating the main force to carry out a counterattack, striving to annihilate one or two divisions of the enemy, and then making a deep assault on the enemy, threatening the enemy's main offensive forces on the western front from the flank.
Among them, the 42nd Army of the Volunteer Army, together with the 39th, 40th and 66th Armies, was responsible for operations on the Eastern Front.
On 9 February, the 23rd Regiment and the French Battalion of the enemy U.S. 2nd Division on the Eastern Front were stopped by us in the Area of Tongpingli, and the 5th and 8th Divisions of the Confederate Army advanced to the front north of Hengcheng.
On the entire front, the enemy in the areas of Hengcheng and Pingli has become prominent, forming a favorable situation for us to counterattack.
On the morning of February 13, after the enemy at Hengcheng was defeated, our army judged that the enemy in the Pingli area might flee south, and decided to launch an attack that night with a total of 8 regiments of the 39th, 40th, and 42nd Armies.
At that time, the area of Tongpingli gathered the 23rd Regiment of the US 2nd Division, 1 French battalion, 1 artillery battalion and 1 tank squadron, about 6,000 people, and built a fairly strong fortification.
After the enemy took advantage of the favorable conditions to form a stronghold-type defense, the strength and firepower were concentrated; while our army had few artillery and insufficient ammunition, it was unable to settle the battle that night.
With the continuous reinforcement of the enemy troops and the full pressure of tanks and aircraft, our army decided to withdraw from the battle and move north.
During the retreat, the 42nd Army ran into trouble.
The US troops on the Eastern Front were addicted to using "magnetic tactics", clinging to the 42nd Army, and constantly organizing troops to intersperse the rear of our army.
Wu Ruilin, commander of the 42nd Army, was a fierce general of the Four Fields, with a tenacious style and rich combat experience, while arranging for the artillery regiment to cover the troops on the rear guard line with artillery fire, while firmly controlling the front line and fighting and walking.
However, if it continues to fight like this, the artillery regiment cannot afford to consume it.
In the later stages of the fighting, most of the artillery of the artillery regiment was cooked, and the regimental commander even ordered the preparation of explosive canisters, stuffed in the barrels, and once the cannons were captured, they were immediately blown up, so as not to be able to use the enemy.
The chief of staff of the artillery regiment had no choice but to run to the headquarters of the 42nd Army to "cry poor" to see if he could step up to send a batch of shells up.
Unexpectedly, when I came to the military headquarters, I found that the atmosphere inside was in full swing.
Commander Wu Ruilin was tapping on the map on the table and cursing: "Long capable, throw the female soldiers to the enemy, you have fallen back... Shame on you! ”
Several cadres covered in gun dust stood in front of the commander, shrugging their heads, and some were still sniffing their noses.
Wu Ruilin was an old Red Army, and this iron-blooded general had been fighting horses all his life and threatening the "multinational army".
Years later, he attended a secret meeting with Kissinger. At that time, Zhou Enlai, Ye Jianying, and Qiao Guanhua were present.
When Qiao Guanhua introduced Kissinger to him, "This is General Wu Ruilin," Kissinger shook hands with Wu Ruilin tightly and said with a smile: "We Americans are not unfamiliar with General Wu's name, and we Americans are more familiar with your nickname!" ”
Zhou Enlai and Ye Jianying asked, "What is your nickname?" ”
Wu Ruilin replied: "Those are many memorials left to me by Chiang Kai-shek and Japanese devils during the war years, calling me 'Wu Lame'." ”
Everyone in the room laughed, and the air was very relaxed.
Kissinger said: "General Wu is an all-rounder, who can fight land and naval battles, and can also command air battles!" In those years on the battlefield, our American generals felt a headache when they met General Wu! MacArthur and Ridgway were troubled by General Wu..."
……
After Wu Ruilin finished scolding, the chief of staff of the artillery regiment finally figured out what was going on.
It turned out that during the retreat of the 42nd Army, due to the complex terrain, the positions of the two sides were staggered, and a small group of American troops infiltrated the rear of the 42nd Army.
Originally, a small group of US troops infiltrated and was just completely annihilated. But unfortunately, that was the territory of the literary troupe. The cultural and labor corps itself, centered on literary and artistic work, did not have much weapons and equipment, and although it also engaged in shooting training in peacetime, it really could not defeat this US military.
A few cadres reluctantly brought out a few regiment members and ran back to ask for help, and they were greeted by the commander's headache.
Scolding returns to scolding, saving people returns to saving people. The 42nd Army is being pressed by the enemy step by step, and the front line is also very tense, and it is not easy to transfer back to the rear to save people.
Wu Ruilin immediately gave the order and explained to the guard battalion: "Leave a platoon of guard radios, and the others will go to me to save people." ”
The guard battalion is the fire brigade of the 42nd Army, which is extremely strong in execution and combat effectiveness. The battalion commander replied "yes" and then went outside.
Wu Ruilin looked at the chief of staff of the artillery regiment and stopped the commander of the guard battalion, and asked the chief of staff of the artillery regiment: "Do you still have shells for that artillery?" ”
"There are dozens of more rounds."
Originally, the artillery regiment wanted to come to "change the fate", but when they heard the commander ask such a question, they didn't say anything and knew the bottom of the family.
Wu Ruilin told the guard battalion commander: "When you move, you contact the artillery directly and ask for fire support. You discuss and see how to fight. ”
After a pause, Wu Ruilin said firmly: "Smash the pot and sell iron, anyway, you have to save people for me!"
The attack of the guard battalion was very rapid, but it was empty, and there were no American troops found in the place where the cultural and labor regiment was attacked, only three single regiment members were found.
The three regimental members could not tell the movement of the enemy, and could only provide vague information, and the American troops were evacuating on foot in the direction of their front with our captured personnel.
This is a bit troublesome, if you just bury your head and rush over to meet the enemy's large troops, not only can you not save people, but even you will take it yourself.
What to do? This trouble did not overwhelm the soldiers of the guard battalion.
The guard battalion was the "sharp knife battalion" of the 42nd Army, and these young men trained by Commander Wu were all special soldiers, and they decided to grab the "tongue".
However, one thing is really troublesome. For the guard battalion, it is not difficult to catch the "tongue", but it is indeed a little difficult to capture effective intelligence.
With the flames of war and the vast sea of people, what kind of "tongue" will know the whereabouts of the female soldiers of the Literary and Labor Corps?
Time is of the essence, and stepping on the smoke that had not yet dissipated, the guard battalion sent a reconnaissance detachment to break in the direction of the enemy, and the artillery and others followed quietly.
Shortly after the squad set off, a strange radio signal came back: they were asked to fire a salvo at a certain area in a certain direction. But there are no specific targets.
The artillerymen are strange, this is not blind. However, since he had been given the task, there was no ambiguity, and everyone muttered in their hearts while the shells were loaded.
What they did not expect was that this platoon of cannons made a great contribution, and after the "rumbling" sound, the "tongue" was automatically sent to the door.
It turned out that the squad had covertly penetrated to the rear of the front for a distance, and the squad leader found an interesting target, a section of signal troops most familiar with the overlying line snaked in front of the eyes, which was the main means of communication between the adjacent positions of the US army.
The signal soldier came forward to test it, and there was a signal.
Thus, a unique plan to capture the "tongue" was formed.
The squad sent back the signal: Fire! Hit a salvo!
With a roar of artillery fire, the scouts slashed the overlying line.
After a while, two American signal soldiers came to check the line, and after they connected the line, they were suddenly attacked.
It was my guard battalion squad that took the shot. Two American soldiers, one tried to resist and was killed on the spot, the other tied up.
The "tongue" of the temporary arrest is only written in just a few lines, and the action can catch up with a wonderful blockbuster.
The guard battalion first created the illusion of firing shells at the enemy's rear, so that the American army mistakenly believed that the telephone line had been blown off by the blind bullets of our artillery, so that the personnel who came to repair it relaxed their vigilance.
Then, wait until the other side repairs the line before arresting people, so as to avoid the US military from prematurely discovering the disappearance of the signal soldiers, leaving ample time for our side to operate.
Finally, the key point comes, it is simple to arrest people, and it is difficult to understand intelligence.
Why arrest signal soldiers?
Because this is the most gossipy branch of the US military and even the world's armed forces, its information holding ability is no less than that of an intelligence officer.
The radio of the US military is generally allocated to the lowest unit, and the content of communications often uses very low-level code words when there is no tactical and strategic value.
Therefore, in addition to the complicated task communication, listening to the tidbits and nonsense between the various units has become a pleasure for the US signal corps to pass the battle time.
Sure enough, during the interrogation of the captives, they received valid information: a U.S. military reported that they had captured a group of Chinese prisoners, "including a group of unarmed female soldiers."
It was a hot topic, and many American soldiers discussed it on the phone since noon.
The American troops who encountered the cultural and industrial regiment were an infantry reconnaissance team, and because of their negligence, they inadvertently came to the position of the cultural and industrial regiment, almost causing the lone army to go deeper.
After coincidentally capturing the members of the civilian regiment, some of the frightened American reconnaissance teams were anxious to return and were marching from the mountains to the road, preparing to meet the convoys left there.
After confirming the news, the guard battalion rushed towards the enemy assembly area. When they arrived, the time was just right, and the American soldiers "were carrying one of them and throwing our female soldiers into the car."
Later, it was learned that this American army was advancing quickly, and retreating was much slower. Because the captured soldiers of the Cultural and Labor Corps did not have weapons, they refused to leave when the American soldiers dragged them along the way. The soft and hard bubbles dragged down the operation of the US military.
A few hours later, under the continuous kicking and beating of the US soldiers, they finally came to the side of the road, and the US troops called for two large trucks to prepare to load and transport these special "booty" away.
Seeing that they were about to be caught by the American soldiers and put on the car, the members of the literary and labor corps were very frightened and took out the last bit of strength to stubbornly resist. Some female soldiers tore and bit and struggled desperately.
The angry American soldiers beat them up and carried one of them on the other, and threw the captured members of the literary corps hard into the car.
Just then, the men of the guard battalion arrived...
The Americans in Korea are afraid of night fighting and second fear of close combat, and the outcome is very clear.
The guard battalion suffered very few casualties, captured two more live mouths, and captured the two large trucks.
It was getting late, and on the Korean battlefield, the night was a friend of the volunteers, and the front positions of the American army had begun to shrink.
With the rescued members of the cultural and labor corps, riding on the captured large trucks, the officers and men of the guard battalion were on the way to retreat, all the way to the wind.
This operation, from the beginning of the US military attack on the cultural and labor corps, to the successful rescue, less than 10 hours, a real "thunder operation".
The rescued members of the cultural and industrial regiment were sent to the artillery regiment and retreated in artillery vehicles. This encounter brought them an unforgettable mark.
Chief of Staff Liu of the Artillery Regiment, who participated in the rescue, recalled that the rescued members of the cultural and labor regiment "were all frightened, and when they arrived at our place, they were still shivering vigorously." There was a female soldier, just a few hours, and she lost her hair in a big way. ”
There was a girl surnamed Qiao with two big braids, who came back like a fool, pulling the railing of the gun cart with one hand deadly, her eyes empty, and she saw everyone hiding behind, not saying, not crying, and not laughing.
Commander Wu specially instructed the comrades of the artillery regiment: Do not stimulate them, let them recuperate well.
Could it be that the American soldiers did something bad? Some warriors are worried.
Listening to other members of the literary and labor corps, at the beginning, the American soldiers were still civilized, and when they found that they had caught the female literary and labor corps members, they were more curious and ran to watch.
However, when they were reluctant to follow, the American soldiers began to become rough, two racks, put their feet off the ground to "slip" away, and then simply smashed the butt of the gun who did not leave.
At that time, the U.S. military found that it had taken the wrong path and was eager to withdraw to its side, always maintaining a combat formation.
For several hours, their attention was focused on vigilance, until they saw their own cars, and they were relieved.
Then, the soldiers of the guard battalion suddenly appeared like heavenly soldiers.
Listening to the members of the cultural and industrial regiment recounting this, the officers and men of the artillery regiment were relieved.
However, seeing the "Flower of the Volunteer Army" was frightened and discolored, especially some female soldiers had their heads full of marks of being injured by the butt of a US military gun, and their blood was stained, and many soldiers were angry.
In particular, a few soldiers and a beaten member of the literary troupe were fellow villagers and simply ran to the place where they were captured.
One of the guards was afraid of an accident and hurried to report to the chief of staff, and before the chief of staff arrived, several soldiers had already returned.
They had strange expressions, as if they did not dare to laugh. Asked if they had beaten the American captives, they said absolutely not, and in disbelief, asked the sentries to go.
The chief of staff was not reassured and ran over with the guards to ask the sentry.
The sentry said that it was indeed all right, and the soldiers came, originally menacing, looked in through the crack in the window, covered their mouths, and then left, and nothing happened.
The chief of staff was puzzled, and he also leaned on the window with the paper paste, and found a hole to look inside:
I saw that the house was lit like a bean, and three American soldiers were sitting on the bed, their upper bodies were stripped naked, and their lower bodies were wearing only a pair of pants, and they were choosing lice from each other.
The sanitary conditions of the American soldiers were very good, and there were no lice on them, but after staying in the artillery regiment for half a day, they were patronized by lice.
The chief of staff laughed and said, "Those Americans... Choose lice around each other... The whole body is hairy..."
During the day, the artillery car was marching, and The chief of staff of the artillery regiment, Liu, suddenly heard someone asking, "What is in the muzzle of your cannon?" Clanging. ”
Chief of Staff Liu looked up and couldn't help but laugh, it turned out that when he came to the military headquarters two days ago to "change the edge", some of the cannons were almost out of shells.
In order to prevent the cannon from falling into the hands of the enemy, the artillery filled the muzzle of the gun without shells with a blast canister, so that the cannon was also ready to "martyr the country".
As a result, everyone forgot about the incident, and as soon as the gun truck marched, the blast canister was in the muzzle of the gun.
The reacting chief of staff, Liu, hurriedly shouted: "Oh, this is too dangerous, quickly ask someone to take out the explosive canisters." ”
This side is busy, and the other side is a smirk.
Chief of Staff Liu looked back, and it turned out to be the girl who had just asked the question.
In an instant, we are relieved, this, it's all right. When he recalled this, Chief of Staff Liu of the Artillery Regiment also smiled and squinted.