On April 22, 1951, the Chinese Volunteers and the U.S. Army fought the fifth battle on the Korean Peninsula. Due to logistical problems, our army gradually shifted the battle line to the vicinity of the 38th parallel, but the 180th Division of the 60th Army of the Volunteer Army, which was responsible for covering the main force at that time, finally fell into the enemy's encirclement.
Wu Chengde, acting political commissar and director of the Political Department, was captured and did not return to China until the end of the war.
As the highest-ranking personnel of the Volunteer Army captured in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Wu Chengde was not only expelled from the party and removed from his post after returning to China, but was even thrown into the "Southern Wilderness" for reclamation.
On July 27, 1953, the Korean War came into effect with the signing of the Korean Armistice Treaty between China and the United States.
China and the United States also began to exchange a large number of prisoners of war, including the captured Wu Chengde.
Fourteen months of guerrilla warfare and nine months of detention transformed him from a sturdy general into a patient with a withered face and a rickety body.
But Wu Chengde, who was sitting on the train back to China, didn't care about these at the moment, he was full of only the pride of the motherland's victory and the excitement of the wanderer's return to his hometown.
However, the reality is cruel, and there are only eight words to welcome this batch of returned prisoners of war"Explain to yourself and help each other".
After arriving in Shenyang, the prisoners of war led by Wu Chengde were temporarily arranged into the guest house of the Northeast Military Region, and then moved to the "Personnel Management Office for Returned Personnel".
They are temporarily housed in a "return to custody" where they can recuperate and repair the wounds they have suffered during their previous detentionOn the other hand, it is also to give them cultural training, so that they can quickly integrate into the motherland after more than two years of absence.
However, these eight words make some people feel that something is inappropriate.
What do you mean by "confession"?
This made Wu Chengde and the others feel extremely harsh, but for a while they were a little powerless to refute. After all, although they understand their perseverance, there is really no way to prove their innocence without revealing information.
At that time, we looked at "prisoners of war" with some special colors, and subjectively we were even able to equate them with "traitors" and "spies".
In China's first investigation of these returned prisoners of war, many people believed that Wu Chengde should bear the main responsibility for the defeat of the 180th Division, and Wu Chengde never gave a satisfactory "explanation" at that time, so in the end he was expelled from the party and dismissed from the military.Not only that, but he was also sent to Panjin Dawa Farm, Liaoning, which had the title of Southern Wilderness at that time.
On May 21, 1951, because the main force of China's volunteers had to be relocated and recuperated, Wu Chengde's 180th Division took on the task of covering the retreat of the main force, and the order given to Wu Chengde by his superiors was to hold the position for 3 to 5 days.
At that time, the US offensive led by Li Qiwei was very fierce, and Wu Chengde fully carried forward the indomitable, heroic and fearless spirit of the volunteers, and finally completed the task with difficulty.
However, just as the 180th Division was preparing to retreat, the US army suddenly had two troops surrounding from both sides and directly launched a flanking attack on the 180th Division, and by May 26, the 180th Army had been completely besieged.
The intention of the US military is very clear, that is, to constantly shrink the encirclement and eventually completely eat the 180th Division, and the 180th Division has almost run out of ammunition after holding its previous position and making many attempts to break through in a roundabout way.
The troops were out of food for three or four days, the ammunition was only enough for one or two days, and the sharp increase in the number of troops was greatly dragging down the combat effectiveness of this unit, and in such a passive situation, the 180th Division could only choose to break through separately.
But just when Wu Chengde was about to break through with the division headquarters, he suddenly noticed the eager gazes of hundreds of wounded soldiers.
In the case that the troops choose to break out separately, there is no doubt that hundreds of wounded are a burden, and this group of soldiers who have little combat effectiveness, if no one stands up to organize, I am afraid that it will be difficult for anyone to survive in the end.
What to do?Is it to increase the chance of survival to follow the main force, or to stay and take this group of wounded to survive?
Wu Chengde didn't hesitate much, and answered directly with his actions - he shot his mount.At that time, the main force had already broken through first, and Wu Chengde, who had no horse, was undoubtedly unable to catch up, and the wounded who were originally nervous saw that the political commissar was so decisive, and their mood was initially stabilized, and then they began to break through in groups according to Wu Chengde's arrangement.
In the process of leading a group of wounded to break through, Wu Chengde often met his companions who were also looking for a way out, and whenever this time he would encourage them not to give up. And it is precisely with this never-give-up spirit that Wu Chengde was able to deal with the US military in the mountains for 14 months.
It's a pity that with the gradual narrowing of the encirclement of the US military, Wu Chengde is still ** after all.
In the Korean War, more than 20,000 volunteer officers and soldiers were captured, and the 180th Division was encircled this time, nearly 7,000 people were captured at one time, which accounted for almost one-third of all prisoners of war of the volunteers.
After learning Wu Chengde's identity, the U.S. military was eager to coerce and lure him and get relevant information about the Volunteer Army from himIt's a pity that they finally underestimated Wu Chengde's backbone, how could a soldier who was willing to give up the chance to survive to protect his comrades and insist on fighting would go along with their wishes?
Whether he was imprisoned in a small black room by the US military, used a loudspeaker day and night**, or was physically tortured by brutal electrocution, Wu Chengde gritted his teeth and survived.
Finally, the signing of the Korean Armistice Agreement gave Oh Sung-deok hope.
In fact, before the exchange of prisoners between China and the United States, the United States also tried to wash and beautify my ** people to create the illusion of "kindness", but the tortured Wu Chengde not only did not appreciate it, but also threw away all the clothes and shoes sent by the US military.
During the 14 months of the guerrilla war and the nine months of captivity, Wu Chengde wore the shoes he had brought from China on his feet.
Even if it is a sewing and mending, he will never throw it away, because it is the sustenance of his hometown. Later, the old shoes were collected by the Memorial Hall of Resisting US Aggression and Aiding Korea in Dandong.
In fact, even before China and the United States exchanged prisoners of war, the United States still did not give up on wooing Wu Chengde.
Because the United States lost the Korean War and lost face greatly, they tried to smear our country through some shady means, and the main method was to coerce and lure Wu Chengde and others, so that they refused to return to China and choose to go to the Taiwan region to enjoy glory and wealth.
The iron-clad Wu Chengde did not surrender under all kinds of torture to extract confessions, and naturally it was impossible for him to defect to our party and army because of his wealth, so he directly refused, so that the US measures fell into ruin before they were implemented.
After returning to China after some setbacks, although Wu Chengde did not agree with the final result of the preliminary screening, he still followed the country's arrangement.
During his time at Panjin Dawa Farm in Liaoning Province, Wu Cheng was diligent and hardworking, not only winning wide acclaim within the farm, but also expressing his own ideas in action.
Of course, while working hard, Wu Chengde did not give up appealing about the first screening.
It was also with his continuous efforts that in 1980, the Communist Party of China issued Document No. 74, stating that it would comprehensively and correctly re-examine the returned personnel captured by the volunteers.
After a new round of appraisal and analysis, not only did Wu Chengde re-investigate, but also conducted a comprehensive investigation of the returned personnel who were captured by the Volunteer Army, and gave these returnees a fair and just treatment.
After the 1980 review, Wu Chengde's military and party membership were restored, and he could also enjoy the treatment of a military-level cadre in the army, and he finally proved to his Shanxi fathers that he was by no means a "traitor".
After recovering his identity, Wu Chengde led his family back to his hometown in Yuncheng, Shanxi, and was responsible for relevant work in the Yuncheng Military Cadre Station until his death in March 1996.
From our perspective today, although Wu Chengde is a "prisoner of war", this status is by no means shameful, but should be glorious
This is because whether it was resolutely abandoning a large unit for the sake of the wounded or stubbornly waging a guerrilla struggle for 14 months in a desperate situation, they have fully developed the excellent qualities of our People's Liberation Army.
Not to mention that he was unmoved by the enemy's torture and temptation, and still firmly chose his original position, which all shows that Wu Chengde is a great hero.
In 1996, the old man Wu Chengde, who always adhered to the blood of soldiers, died.
While sorting out the relics for Mr. Wu Chengde, his children accidentally found some documents from the hidden cabinet in the room, as well as a thick stack of thank-you letters.
It can be seen that Mr. Wu Chengde has been silently contributing to the country during his lifetime, and the amount of donations exceeded 40,000 yuan just from the receipts, and 40,000 yuan at that time was not a small amount, which represents the love of an old man who has experienced ups and downs and frosts for the country.