The legend of Jiangcheng you don’t know: 70 years ago, General Macheng marched into Wuhan

On May 16, 1949, that day 70 years ago, the Communist troops accompanying our people came to the city, and the Japanese troops fled. Wuhan was liberated, and the three towns rejoiced. *** Entering the city scene On February 25, 1949, the land of the North was still frozen. The Chinese People’s *** Deng Yue, commander of the 118th Division of the 40th Army, led his troops from Peiping and embarked on a journey south. They crossed the Yellow River and reached Zhengzhou. They then accelerated their horses and continued to march south. At midnight on April 20, our one-million-strong army broke through the Yangtze River natural moat and completely destroyed the Japanese army's Yangtze River defense line. Wuhan, where Bai Chongxi is in charge, is facing the pressure of the army, and the liberation of the three towns is just around the corner. On May 15, the Communist Party troops fled Wuhan. On the afternoon of the next day, Deng Yue led the 118th Division from the Liujia Temple on Jiang'an into Hankou. At this time, the bell tower of Jianghanguan also planted a red flag. On the 17th, the 153rd Division entered Wuchang along the Wuye Highway, the Independent First Brigade of the Jianghan Military Region entered Hanyang, and all three towns in Wuhan were liberated. In order to liberate Wuhan, General Deng Yue from Macheng made immortal contributions. By interviewing Deng Yue's descendants and sorting out Deng Yue's memoirs, reporters from Chutian Metropolis Daily reconstructed the process of his marching south to liberate Wuhan. Commanding the troops southward February 25, 1949, less than a month before the peaceful liberation of Peiping. On the same day, Deng Yue led the 118th Division from Peiping and began the journey south. At this time, the land in the North was frozen and the wind was biting. The Japanese soldiers braved the wind and snow and traveled day and night. They crossed the Yellow River on March 23 and immediately arrived in Zhengzhou, which had been liberated. At this time, Wuhan was under the command of Bai Chongxi, commander-in-chief of the Central China "Suppression General". Our soldiers marched towards Wuhan at high speed. After an arduous march of more than 1,200 kilometers, the 118th Division stationed in Yingshan and Guangshui on April 7 , Wuhan is in sight, and the soldiers are excited and look forward to the early liberation of Wuhan. Deng Yue was born in Dahekan, Yunwushan Village, Shunhe Town, Macheng, Hubei Province in the 1940s. He joined the Chinese Workers and Peasants at the age of 12. The Red Army. When he was a child, the folks in his hometown of Macheng often told him that Wuhan was a big and beautiful city. This time, he was extremely eager to liberate Wuhan. At midnight on April 20, the battle to cross the river began. On the 500-kilometer front from Jiujiang to Jiangyin in the east, our millions of troops quickly broke through the Yangtze River defense line of the Communist Party of China and successfully crossed the river. When the good news came, the soldiers were even more excited and faced the enemy's gunfire. Attack on Wuhan. The 118th Division led by Deng Yue gathered on the front line of Huangpi Hengdian, and the 153rd Division of the 40th Army crossed the river from Tuanfeng and Wuxue, approaching Wuchang, and formed a campaign to encircle Wuhan on May 15. , Deng Yue led his troops directly into the suburbs of Wuhan and established a division command post in a private house in Liujiamiao (near today's Danchi River in Jiang'an District). The urban area of ??Hankou was silent that day, except for one or two muffled thunderous sounds from the Yangtze River. The sound of explosions was that the retreating Communist troops were destroying docks and barges on the Yangtze River. That night, the Hubei National Normal University branch of the underground party received an order from the Wuhan Underground Party Municipal Committee and sent Yang Ying, a progressive student, to the riverside. Reconnaissance to confirm whether the enemy has withdrawn from the Ninth Supply Area Headquarters of the Joint Logistics Headquarters, which was the last stronghold of the Japanese Army in Hankou. In the past, the majestic Yang Ying rode a bicycle at Jianghan Pass seen from Wuchang. When he arrived at the Jianghan Pass, he saw that the headquarters of the Ninth Supply District of the Communist Party of China was already empty. Only the wind was blowing papers on the ground. He immediately reported the matter to the party organization. Soon, the head of the Hankou Student Federation, *** Underground party member Wu De'an asked Yang Ying to rush to Daijiashan early on the 16th to contact the Communist Party. At dawn the next day, Yang Ying rode his bicycle and went straight to Daijiashan. At dawn, Yang Ying was arrested by a gunman on guard. ** The soldier stopped him and was then taken to the 118th Division's frontline command post in Liujiamiao. Deng Yue warmly received him. In Yang Ying's memory, Deng Yue was wearing a grass-green military uniform, was of medium build, affable, and had a strong mouth. With a Macheng accent, he said, the *** was already ready, and the vanguard battalion was about to march to the city of Hankou. After completing the liaison mission, Yang Ying returned to school in the afternoon and was notified to contact another progressive student. Gancheng went together to welcome the Communist Party of China into the city. Liberation of Three Towns According to Yang Ying's recollection, when he and Niu Gancheng arrived at Toudao Street at about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, the leading troops of the 118th Division were already waiting here.

Under the guidance of Yang Ying and Yang Ying, the troops marched towards the city. When they arrived at the Army Hospital (today's location of the 161st Hospital of the Communist Party of China), they were warmly welcomed by workers, students and citizens. *** Entering the urban area of ??Wuhan (provided by Wuhan Revolution Museum) On the evening of the 15th, Deng Yue led the main force of the 118th Division into the urban area of ??Hankou. According to Deng Yue's recollection, many students, under the leadership of our underground party, had long organized response committees, established pickets and rescue teams, compiled and printed poems, and rushed to make slogans. Students from more than 30 middle schools posted welcome slogans all over the streets, put big red flowers on the chests of the soldiers, and delivered tea to the soldiers. On the same day, the red flag that underground party members worked on overnight was also planted on the roof of Jianghanguan. On the 17th, the 153rd Division entered Wuchang along the Wuye Highway, the Independent First Brigade of the Jianghan Military Region entered Hanyang, and all three towns in Wuhan were liberated. Citizens of Wuhan celebrate the liberation of Wuhan and protect Wuhan. After entering the urban area of ??Hankou, the 118th Division Party Committee first made a resolution when entering the city, established a convention, and called on all commanders and fighters of the division to resolutely: "Protect everything, and keep everything intact." Enter the city empty-handed and leave the city empty-handed. " On the night of entering the city, many companies did not have time to find a place to live, and the commanders and soldiers slept on the streets. After that, some companies found a place to stay, mostly sleeping on the damp cement floor, without moving a single door panel from the citizens. A company from the 353rd Regiment lived in Next to the People's Park, the soldiers never took a step forward. Two soldiers from the 5th Company of the 352nd Regiment were on guard duty near Tongfengli. Several students stuffed two condolence bags into their hands and ran away. Instead of opening the condolence bags, they hung them high on the guard platform. In the past, the Communist Army dug trenches, built blockhouses, and abandoned bunkers on the embankments of the Yangtze and Han Rivers. On the eve of their escape from the city, they laid mines in many dangerous embankment sections. The Wuhan embankment was already riddled with holes and was in danger of collapse at any time if the floods rose. In order to defend the Wuhan embankment, the 118th Division deployed its strongest company. "The Second Company of Heroes" was transferred to the most dangerous area. The soldiers rushed to Qiaokou Factory, set up tents and set up stoves by the embankment. The river embankment here was dug to only two or three feet wide, which was countless. The river was full of potholes and stinking water, and the trenches were covered with steel bars and wooden piles. Soldiers dug and carried mud overnight to repair this section of the river embankment in the shortest possible time. In June, the 118th Division was ordered to leave Wuhan and continue southward. The commanders and fighters of the entire division fulfilled the oath of "entering the city empty-handed and leaving the city empty-handed." After leaving Wuhan after caring about his hometown, the 118th Division led by Deng Yue participated in the Battle of Hengbao and the Battle of Hainan Island. In October 1950, he led the troops to resist the United States and aid Korea. Returned to China. Later, he served as commander of the 40th Army and the 38th Army, commander of the Brigade University Garrison Area and concurrently director of the Dalian Revolutionary Committee, deputy commander of the *** and ***, and was awarded the rank of Major General Deng Yue in 1955. Deng Yue's fifth son, Deng Jiankun, told a reporter from Chutian Metropolis Daily that his father was extremely strict and seldom spoke at home, and did not mention his previous wars in front of his five children. Only after Deng Jiankun joined the army in 1968 did he hear anyone mention his father. "He is very good at fighting." After his father passed away in 2000, Deng Jiankun learned in detail about his father's turbulent years by reading his father's memoirs. Deng Jiankun said that his father lost his parents when he was young. At the age of 12, he joined the Red Army with relatives and participated in Hubei Province. During the first to fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" campaigns in the Henan-Anhui revolutionary base areas, the Long March passed through snowy mountains three times and two through grasslands. On the eve of the liberation of Wuhan in 1949, my father once returned to his hometown in Dahekan, Yunwushan Village, Shunhe Town, Macheng. That year He left Wuhan and went south in June, and never returned to Macheng and Wuhan. However, Deng Yue always paid attention to his hometown. The good news about the liberation of Wuhan is unique and different from the peace negotiation method of the liberation of Peking, the war method of the liberation of Tianjin, and the agreement and temporary liberation method of the liberation of Suiyuan. The liberation of Wuhan did not go through a bloody battle. It was not through peaceful negotiations, but the result of multiple combined forces. This model is unique. First, the People's Liberation Army's army pressed on the border, and the 12th Corps of the Fourth Field Army advanced into Hubei from north to south, and crossed into Hubei. The three military regions outside Jianghan, Eyu, and Tongbai joined forces and liberated most of the areas surrounding Wuhan. Wuhan was surrounded by a half-moon shape, and Bai Chongxi had to make the decision to abandon Wuhan. Secondly, the underground party organizations in Wuhan and the urban labor ministries at all levels actively carried out underground activities, united front work and instigated rebellion. The patriotic democrats in Wuhan launched a peaceful movement to save Wuhan from the flames of war.

In addition, Zhang Zhen, deputy chief of the Central China Military and Political Chief's Office and commander of the 19th Corps, revolted in Jinkou, further promoting the liberation of Wuhan. Interview compilation: Chutian Metropolis Daily reporter Manda Liu Shan References: "Memoirs of the Underground Struggle in Wuhan" and "Hubei Literature and History"