1945 The liberation of Huaiyin and Huai 'an in September was the last battle of the New Fourth Army against Japan in northern Jiangsu. I was lucky enough to take part in this campaign. During the general attack, I climbed the ladder with the commandos and climbed to the head of the enemy city. That was the only time I was a reporter of Xinhua News Agency.
I almost lost such a rare opportunity.
1945 15 when Japan announced its surrender on August 5, I held a meeting in another strategic place-Suzhong District. At the beginning of May this year, fascist Germany was defeated and the Japanese invaders were dying. However, Japan surrendered so quickly, which was somewhat unexpected.
1943 There is an inspiring slogan called "Beat Germany this year and beat Japan next year". But Hitler was not defeated this year, the important reason is that Britain and the United States delayed the opening of the second front. Even so, defeating Germany first and then Japan is deeply imprinted in our minds.
On the eve of Japan's surrender, as a representative of northern Jiangsu journalists, I attended the Congress of Northern Jiangsu Journalists. They want to elect deputies to the people's congresses in the liberated areas. Because the Kuomintang reactionaries decided to hold a pseudo-National Congress in an attempt to monopolize the fruits of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, regardless of the opposition of the China Producer Party, we opposed it by holding a People's Congress in the Liberated Area.
The Japanese Emperor announced his acceptance of the Postan Proclamation, surrendered unconditionally, and the situation changed greatly. Commander-in-Chief Zhu De ordered the People's Liberation Army, the New Fourth Army and other people's anti-Japanese armed forces to immediately March into the cities and traffic arteries occupied by the enemy and accept the surrender of the Japanese puppet troops. If the enemy does not surrender, it will be destroyed. Xinhua head office also issued an announcement, instructing journalists from all over the country to set off nearby with the army and quickly report the news of the big counterattack and the acceptance of the surrender of the Japanese puppet troops.
The situation changed greatly, and the Soviet Union remembered that Congress had been stopped. The delegates are ready to go. Representatives from Huaibei and Huainan and I immediately bid farewell to our hosts and rushed back to our respective regions. At this time, there was no enemy blockade between the middle and northern Jiangsu. I returned from northern Baoying County by boat, anxious to return. I have no intention of enjoying the picturesque scenery along the banks of the river in the northern Jiangsu Plain in autumn. I only suspect that the small wooden boat, which is only rocked by a penny, is going too slowly.
I hurried back to the Yanfu newspaper station on the coast of the Yellow Sea, and more than half of the people had already left. Many comrades in the newspaper went to the front. Four reporters from Xinhua Jiangsu North Branch interviewed outside and followed the nearby troops. A comrade who stayed in the club didn't wait for me to come back, leaving a note saying that the opportunity was rare, and he also went to the army. He left me the transceiver and asked me to stay in the club and be responsible for sending articles to the general manager.
How can I stay? I immediately inquired about the movements of the troops, and learned that Huang Kecheng was leading the main forces of the Third Division and the Second Division of the New Fourth Army to assemble and stand by in the southern section of Jinpu Road. I have to be on duty in the sub-bureau for a while. A few days later, news came from the front that the Third Division had returned to Huaibei (Huaiyin and Huai 'an) to prepare for the liberation of Huaibei.
In this way, if I stay at the seaside, the timeliness of external reporting will be affected due to inconvenient transportation. It is better to take the radio and relevant personnel to the front line and strive for direct participation in the report of Huaibei liberation.
By the time we catch up with the main force, the tenth brigade of the third division and local armed forces have cleared the outlying strongholds of Huaiyin and surrounded Huaiyang City. Our army issued an ultimatum to the enemy on the defensive, urging them to surrender. Appointed by the Kuomintang, Pan Yuchen, the commander of the enemy puppet army, claimed to be the winner of "curve saving the country" and refused to surrender. After some preparations, our army launched a general attack on Huaiyin at 2 pm on September 6. After an hour and a half of fierce fighting, more than 9000 defenders were wiped out, and Pan Ganchen, the commander of the puppet army, was killed on the spot. Huaiyin declared liberation. Comrade Xu Ming, a reporter from our bureau, accompanied the 10th Brigade and reported on the Huaiyin Campaign.
After a short break, our army began to step up the siege of Huai 'an City on September 13. Huai 'an is an ancient city in Jiangsu, second only to Nanjing. The wall is high (12m) and thick, so it is easy to defend but difficult to attack. The enemy relies on canals in the north and fortifications in the south. I went to the front line of the sixth brigade and the eighth brigade of the third division to let him. I saw that a dozen semicircular "watchtowers" facing the enemy city have been built with sandbags on a large open land in the south of Huai 'an, which is higher than the city head and has become a commanding height that can direct fire to cover our army's sprint. At the same time, an underground tunnel with a length of about1500m was excavated through tunnel operation, leading to the southwest of the city. In order to get ready, our army launched a general attack on Huai 'an on the morning of September 22nd. _ all the way through the underground tunnel to the southwest foot of the city, ready to blow up the wall with explosives; The other road is in the southeast of the city. Under the cover of fire, the commandos climbed the ladder and broke into the city. After asking for instructions, the headquarters approved me to enter the city with the siege commandos. At eight o'clock, under the general attack order, the bugle sounded and the underground went hand in hand with the sky. I wrapped a red cloth around my shoulder, followed the commandos and ran straight ahead. Members of the art troupe sang and shouted slogans behind the simple bunker to cheer us on. As soon as the commandos rushed to the city gate, there was a loud noise in the southwest, flames and smoke billowed, a big hole was blasted in the city wall, and siege troops poured into the city. Under the cover of gunfire, we climbed the ladder leading to the city from the southeast. Because all commanding heights have the firepower of heavy and light machine guns, commandos appear at the head of the city like flying generals and enter the city. Troops from all walks of life swept the remnant enemy from south to north. At 10 in the morning, all the lines carefully set by the enemy relying on the tall city walls were destroyed by our army, and most of the defenders were wiped out. At noon, the puppet army brigade commander Wu Shuquan and the puppet army Commissioner Li Yun need to lead the remaining troops to use the fortifications of the Drum Tower and the Chu Palace to fight back. By 3 pm, I was completely annihilated, and Wu Shuquan was killed. The so-called "iron Huai 'an" was declared liberated.
As soon as the battle was over, I quickly climbed out of the city wall from the north of the city and made mental notes during the running. As soon as I ran to the radio station, I immediately dictated the news of the liberation of Huai' an, a famous city in northern Jiangsu, to Xinhua News Agency's Huazhong General Branch and Corporation. The head office broadcast by express telegram, and Yan 'an Liberation Daily was published as the first headline news.
After the liberation of Huaihe River, * * * wiped out 15000 people, captured 15 cannons, 180 light and heavy machine guns, more than 8400 long and short guns, and a large number of ammunition and military supplies. After the liberation of Huai River and Huai River, our army won the victory of destroying the remnants of the enemy in Yancheng and other places. After the liberation of Huaihe River, our army controlled a canal route, which unified the four liberated areas of Central Jiangsu, Northern Jiangsu, Huainan and Huaibei. It created the necessary conditions for countering the rampant attack of Kuomintang troops in the summer of 1946.
1944 Started to be a reporter of Xinhua News Agency. I interviewed the battle to recover Funing County, Shitang Town outside Huai 'an and Cheqiao. I witnessed the heroic killing of the enemy by our officers and men, but as a member of the battle, I went to the city with the commandos, just this once. Afterwards, a comrade asked me what kind of mental state I was in. I said that after eight years of hard fighting, I finally looked forward to this final victory day, and I was very excited to win with the combatants. Joining such a big battle, together with thousands of commanders and migrant workers, the battlefield is in full swing, and I only feel small. After the "Southern Anhui Incident", I transferred from western Zhejiang to the New Fourth Army. I have been a soldier in the combat troops, an instructor, a mission officer and a reconnaissance staff officer of the brigade. I have some experience in military life. I asked to join the commando team not on impulse, but on certainty.