The battalion commander defectedyear, Zhou Chiping wanted to punish severely, but Jiang Hua disagreed.
FigIn 1940, the Shandong Column of the Eighth Route Army carried out two army reorganization plans and realized the regularization of the main force. However, during the critical period of the development of the Shandong Column, a serious defection occurred in the 1st Brigade and 1st Regiment under its jurisdiction.
On the twentieth day of the twentieth month of December 1941, when the regiment commander Li Fuze assembled the team in the playground, he found that the place that should have been in the second camp station was empty. He immediately sent someone to find Hou Zhilin, the commander of the second battalion, but found that the second battalion was gone, and there was not even ** ammunition left.
Only then did Li Fuze realize that more than 300 soldiers of the second battalion had defected.
FigGeneral Wang Jian'an during the Anti-Japanese War was faced with a sudden crisis, and he immediately went to the brigade headquarters to report the situation to Brigade Commander Wang Jian'an and Political Commissar Zhou Chiping. After discussion, they decided to send Wang Fang, the head of the hoe and traitor section and the head of the enemy engineering section, to lead the team to recover the second battalion.
Wang Fang did not hesitate to stand up and salute, promising to chase them back before dark. Wang Fang, who served as minister of public security after the founding of the People's Republic of China, was very impressed by the defection of Hou Zhilin in the Shandong column in his early years.
He said in his recollection: "Early that morning, Li Fuze, the commander of the 1st Regiment, saw on the playground that the other battalions had gone out to exercise, but the 2nd battalion did not move.
This is because under the conditions of the treacherous environment of struggle and the harsh living conditions, incidents of individual fighters and cadres deserting and slipping away from time to time have occurred. But it has never been the case for a cadre to lead an entire formed battalion of several hundred people to escape. ”
However, when Wang Fang led his troops to set off, Wang Jian'an asked: "Try to bring them all back, how many people do you think you need?" As the commander of the 1st Brigade, Wang Jian'an participated in the revolution for many years, and he did not think that more than 300 people in a whole battalion would approve of defection.
Therefore, for the deserters of the second battalion, he adhered to the principle of saving if he could, and tried to avoid fire clashes with them.
When Wang Fang accompanied the inspection, political commissar Zhou Chiping mentioned that the instructor of the second battalion was not in the camp, which made Wang Jian'an suspect that the battalion commander Hou Zhilin may have bewitched the cadres and soldiers.
Wang Fang knew that this operation might be dangerous, especially since Hou Zhilin had defected with a battalion, and he might induce the soldiers to exchange fire with the pursuing troops, which would be a great loss for both the Eighth Route Army and the revolutionary forces.
So Wang Fang begged for a cavalry company to chase them back before dark. Although the incident happened suddenly, everyone realized the seriousness of the situation, and Wang Fang immediately led the cavalry company to set out to catch up.
Fortunately, there was a heavy snowfall the day before, and the snow was very deep, and the second battalion left sparse footprints along the way.
Although the snow caused the horses to not run fast, the second battalion did not walk fast either. In order to race against time, Wang Fang did not dare to rest for a moment, and chased until three or four o'clock in the afternoon, and finally found the team of the second battalion.
The 2nd Battalion as a whole stopped advancing. ”
The cavalry of the Shandong Column advanced to the anti-Japanese front, and the soldiers of the second battalion suddenly stopped and were shocked by a voice. Wang Fang, riding a horse and crossing the middle of the ranks, announced the order of the commander and political commissar: "The troops of the second battalion immediately cease their operations.
Communist Party members and revolutionary fighters must take a firm stand and obey the orders of their superiors; We must be firm in our faith and not run away. When the warriors heard the word "run away," they all stopped and exchanged words.
Wang Fang continued to shout: "Everyone participates in the revolution early and late, but we have all received revolutionary education. The revolution is glorious, and the Communist Party is bound to win the revolution under its leadership.
The more the Japanese imperialists and puppet army traitors are, the more it shows that their end is coming. Our difficulties today are temporary, and the more difficult times are, the more our resolve will be tested.
A true revolutionary is not intimidated by difficulties. The most difficult time is when victory is imminent. Fear of difficulties, shaking the revolutionary position, this is a sign of cowardice.
If someone apostasy, deceives the soldiers, and tries to escape, he will definitely be severely punished, and the end will be very shameful. Party members and comrades, you have all gone through the baptism of the battlefield and the test of revolution, and you are the most conscious, and your stand is also firm.
It doesn't matter if you have been deceived for a while, you should come to your senses quickly, play the role of the backbone, help us do a good job in the ideological work of all the soldiers, and quickly return to the troops. ”
The soldiers around Wang Fang soon gathered together, and it turned out that the battalion commander Hou Zhilin deceived everyone, saying that his superiors agreed to go home on vacation and return to the army after the New Year, and many soldiers believed it.
However, after the team set off, several company cadres wondered why the regimental leaders did not participate in such a big operation, and why the battalion instructors were not there. It wasn't until Wang Fang caught up with the team that everyone understood that they had been deceived by Hou Zhilin.
This well-planned defection incident was actually planned by Hou Zhilin, commander of the second battalion, and Chai Yantai, company commander. Hou Zhilin, a native of Shouguang County, Shandong, served as secretary general in Han Fuqu's army, and later joined the Eighth Route Army.
He is indeed a commander with great combat ability and has made many achievements, but there are still many deficiencies in his personal thinking. In an anti-sweeping operation, Li Fuze led his troops to attack Zhu Wei, and Hou Zhilin was responsible for blocking the enemy in Luqi in the north, but he dragged and delayed the fighter plane, causing the enemy to flee from the north gate, and was severely criticized by Li Fuze afterwards.
In 1941, Li Fuze led the first regiment and the second battalion to Sun Zu to rest, and considering Hou Zhilin's mistakes, it was decided to transfer him to Yan'an Kang University to study. This would have been a good thing, but in Hou Zhilin's view, he was no longer trusted.
It happened that Chai Yantai, the commander of the 4th Company of the 2nd Battalion at that time, was also pessimistic and disappointed in the revolution, and the two smelled like each other and were ready to pull the team to join the enemy. One night in Layue, Hou Zhilin and Chai Yantai coaxed and deceived the troops to quietly deceive the troops out of the camp, braved the howling cold wind, and went straight to the direction of Yishui City.
Halfway through the march, many soldiers began to discuss: "Is this forced march going to **?" Why didn't you hold a mobilization meeting in advance, and even the squad and platoon commanders were confused? ”
In the past, every operation was led by the regiment leader, why didn't you see a regiment leader this time? ”
When Dong Liangzhong, a cultural instructor of Lian, heard some strange discussions, he quietly went to the third platoon commander to inquire. However, the commander of the third platoon also did not know anything about this. This sudden operation was led only by battalion commander Hou Zhilin and company commander Chai Yantai, and the battalion instructor Cao Punan and deputy battalion commander Zhuang Zhongyi did not participate.
Dong Liangzhong asked another question: "What about Instructor Ma?" The third platoon commander told him that Instructor Ma asked Battalion Commander Hou to call to the back of the line. In fact, Ma Hongnan was shot as soon as he was called to the back of the team by Hou Zhilin, and in order to prevent information leakage, Hou Zhilin did not let him leave his side, and lied that the 5th and 6th companies behind the team had not yet followed.
Fortunately, Mahonan escaped with his alertness and joined the pursuing forces on the way. At the same time, Cao Punan, the instructor of the 2nd Battalion of Sun Zu, and Zhuang Zhongyi, the deputy battalion commander, found that the 4th Company was missing, and immediately reported to the regiment headquarters.
Cao Punan reported a situation to the regiment commander Li Fuze, the regiment's political commissar Wang Wenxuan, and the chief of staff Gao Wenran: "Recently, I found that Hou Zhilin and Chai Yantai often muttered something together, and the relationship was not normal......Hearing this, Gao Wenran's heart moved, and he asked Cao Punan if they had the possibility of defecting to the enemy.
Cao Punan shook his head, indicating that he had not found any contact with unidentified persons. Subsequently, Li Fuze sent a pursuit team led by Gao Wenran, chief of staff of the regiment, and reported to the brigade headquarters.
General Gao Wenran was the commander of the second battalion, and he was familiar with the camp and had a very high prestige. Fortunately, he met Ma Hongnan, who had escaped, on the way and learned about the whole incident. At the same time, Dong Liangzhong also noticed the abnormality in the team.
The team was taken to a village seven or eight miles away from Yishui City to rest, and Hou Zhilin immediately ordered the blockade of the intersection on all sides. After a night's march, although the soldiers were tired and hungry, the doubts made them anxious, and Dong Liangzhong couldn't sleep even more, so he discussed with several platoon commanders and decided to ask the battalion commander about the situation.
However, when Dong Liangzhong came to Hou Zhilin's residence, he was stopped by the guards, saying that the battalion commander was sleeping and did not let anyone in. Dong Liangzhong asked Company Commander Chai again if he was there, hoping that he could come out to talk, but the guard replied that Company Commander Chai said that he would talk about it later.
Before Dong Liangzhong left, he heard the quarrel between Hou Zhilin and Chai Yantai, but the sound was far away, and he couldn't hear the specific content of their quarrel. After that, Dong Liangzhong told several platoon commanders about the situation, and they all felt that something big might happen, and now it was too close to Yishui City, and once there was a stir, it was possible to attract the enemy.
In order to prevent accidents, Dong Liangzhong discussed with several platoon commanders and decided to send a platoon to occupy the high ground north of the village, to guard the direction of Yishui, and to shoot and warn when encountering the enemy.
After the platoon commanders returned, they held their own group meetings to discuss coping strategies. Dong Liangzhong continued to go to the company headquarters to inquire about the situation. A platoon seized the high ground north of the village, after Chai Yantai learned of the situation, he thought that the news of his defection had been leaked, and hurriedly went to Hou Zhilin to discuss, at this time Dong Liangzhong also shouted loudly to enter the company headquarters, Chai Yantai almost said to Hou Zhilin with a crying voice: "Quick!
Battalion Commander Hou, it looks like we've been discovered. The first platoon has occupied the high ground north of the village, the second and third platoons have also begun to surround the company, Ma Hongnan has fled back to Sun Zu, Xiao Dong is shouting outside to rush in, let's run! ”
When the Eighth Route Army of the Shandong Military Region was carrying out an intense blasting operation, it suddenly received news that a soldier named Hou Zhilin had defected with a team of men. At this time, Dong Liangzhong immediately shouted loudly: "Fight quickly, Hou Zhilin has defected." ”
But instead of chasing, the crowd chose to return. Regiment commander Li Fuze and political commissar Wang Wenxuan also rushed to do ideological work for the soldiers of the second battalion. They decided to set up camp on the spot, and that night they went deep into the army to carry out ideological education, because "there is only one Hou Zhilin, but there may be more than one person with Hou Zhilin's thoughts."
Although at this time, the Japanese army strengthened its sweep of our army's base areas behind enemy lines, and the life of the Eighth Route Army became more and more difficult, but this situation was the first time for the Eighth Route Army.
On the map of Shandong's anti-Japanese base areas, Hou Zhilin and other defectors were finally punished as they deserved. After breaking through, they passed through the Yibei base all the way, wanting to take a break in the areas of Linqu and Boshan.
Chai Yantai even told the village chief that he was the Eighth Route Army of the old regiment in Luzhong, and he had a task to do, and asked the village chief to kill chickens and buy wine to receive him. However, the village chief became suspicious and notified the new regiment of the Eighth Route Army stationed in Boshan.
In the melee, Hou Zhilin was killed on the spot, Chai Yantai and several others surrendered, and were escorted back to the regiment headquarters by the soldiers of the new regiment. Brigade Commander Wang Jian'an personally presided over the trial, and Political Commissar Zhou Chiping made a speech, and after the convictions of several people were announced, Chai Yantai and the others were sentenced to be shot and executed immediately.
Although the defectors were dealt with, the 2nd Battalion suffered a huge blow as a result. From the bottom of the hearts of the soldiers of the second battalion, they were unwilling to defect, but they were coerced by the battalion commander Hou Zhilin and inexplicably became deserters, and they were psychologically burdened with heavy burdens.
Zhou Chiping, political commissar and director of the political department of the brigade, decided to seriously deal with the desertion behavior of the soldiers. He believes that for soldiers who make mistakes, leaders should first care about their growth and their lives like parents and brothers, and get along with them and be close to them.
He decided to shoot several people who organized the escape, and asked Wang Fang to ask Jiang Hua, director of the political department of the column, for instructions. After listening to Wang Fang's report, Jiang Hua did not immediately express his position, but asked two questions: "How many Hou Zhilin are there in your troops?"
How can we manage the troops well and lead the soldiers well? Wang Fang was stopped by Jiang Hua's question, and Jiang Hua did not urge, but took a book "Commander and Soldier" and handed it to Wang Fang, asking him to go back and read it.
After reading "The Commander and the Soldier", Wang Fang understood why the chief asked him to read this book. This book was translated from the Soviet Union and mainly talks about how to strengthen the political and ideological education of the troops.
With regard to cadres and fighters who have made mistakes, we should not simply adopt the method of locking up and killing them, but should conduct in-depth investigations and studies to find out the causes of the problems and their solutions. Even if the person who makes a mistake is dealt with severely, the purpose is not to punish, but to save him and educate everyone.
Generally speaking, in dealing with problems in the troops, we should not be simple and rude, but should pay attention to ideological and political education, show concern for the growth and livelihood of the soldiers, conduct in-depth investigation and study, and find out the causes and solutions of the problems.
Only in this way can we really do a good job in managing and leading troops.
FigDuring the Liberation War, Jiang Hua took a group photo with his wife Wu Zhonglian, and the next day, Wang Fang talked with Jiang Hua to discuss the book "Commanders and Soldiers", Wang Fang talked about Hou Zhilin as a special case, and his ideas may still be held.
The main reason why they fled again was because they made mistakes and feared that the future would have no future in the troops. Jiang Hua said: We should attach importance to ideological education and should not focus on punishment.
Wang Jian'an and Zhou Chiping listened to Jiang Hua's opinions and thought it was very reasonable. They carried out in-depth political and ideological education within the second battalion and readjusted and enriched the leading cadres at all levels.
After this lesson, the soldiers of the 2nd Battalion deeply reflected and raised their ideological and cognitive level. The team has been revitalized and strengthened.
Li Yu, then secretary of the Shandong Provincial Party Committee, summed up the incident afterwards and pointed out: "The old 1st Regiment has shown strong combat effectiveness and excellent fighting quality in this serious test, which fully proves that it is a trustworthy and praised young party army!" ”