In the long history of the Whampoa Military Academy, it is generally believed that the students of the first and fourth phases are the best and of the highest quality. These outstanding figures such as **, Chen Geng, Zuo Quan, Liu Zhidan, Hu Zongnan, Du Yuming, Chen Mingren, Huang Wei, Zhang Lingfu and Xie Jinyuan are all from these two issues.
In fact, the fifth phase has also cultivated many outstanding generals, especially in our army, General Xu Guangda, General Zhang Zongxun, Song Shilun, Yang Zhicheng, Lieutenant General Tan Xilin, Major General Liao Yunzhou, and the famous red ** Guo Rugui.
In addition, there is a higher status figure in the fifth issue, that is, Tao Zhu.
Tao Zhu was born in Taojiawan Village, Qiyang County, Hunan Province, and was known as a "prodigy" since he was a child with his father who read poetry and books. However, his father was hated by the local warlords for supporting Sun Yat-sen's righteous deeds in the ** movement, and was finally killed on the charge of "fornicating with the party".
Tao Zhu, who was only 10 years old, had to give up studying and began to run around for life. Later, he came to Guangzhou to join the National Revolutionary Army, where he was highly regarded.
The next year, he entered the fifth phase of the Whampoa Military Academy under the protection of many commanders. At the Whampoa Military Academy, many students joined the Kuomintang, believing that following the headmaster, Chiang Kai-shek, would definitely have a bright future, but Tao Zhu scoffed at this, and he made it clear on many occasions that he had independent thinking and firm beliefs.
Tao Zhu was extremely brave during the Nanchang Uprising, not only participated in the battle, but also led the spy company to successfully eliminate one of the enemy's regimental headquarters. His bravery and fearlessness were admirable, and General Xiao Ke, who fought side by side with him, once praised: "After the Nanchang Uprising, Tao Zhu first returned to his hometown of Qiyang, Hunan, and later entered the western Fujian region according to the organization's arrangement to engage in underground work. ”
At the beginning of 1930, Liu Ruisheng, secretary of the Xiamen Municipal Party Committee of the Communist Party of China, Chen Baisheng, secretary of the Provincial Youth League Committee, and other 40 important cadres were betrayed by traitors and imprisoned in Siming Prison in Xiamen.
Tao Zhu was the secretary of the Fujian Provincial Military Commission at the time, and he discussed with Luo Ming, the secretary of the provincial party committee, and others how to rescue them. Since the end of February, Tao Zhu and others have repeatedly visited the Siming Prison area to conduct investigations, and have set up secret training classes on Gulangyu Island to train relevant personnel for prison robbery.
After three months of careful preparation, on May 25, Tao Zhu led 11 team members to start the prison robbery operation. From entering Siming Prison to successfully rescuing more than 40 ** people, the whole operation took only 10 minutes, and there was no **!
This successful prison robbery fully demonstrated Tao Zhu's wisdom and courage and outstanding leadership skills.
Tao Zhu is heroic and unyielding, and he will not give in even if he is imprisoned. He was finally rescued from prison after the outbreak of the all-out Anti-Japanese War in 1937, and accepted the dispatch of ** to carry out anti-Japanese war work behind enemy lines in central Hubei.
Under Tao Zhu's leadership, the Hunan and Hubei independent guerrillas achieved a major victory in Yunmeng County, annihilating more than 50 Japanese troops, including a member of the Japanese imperial family. This victory greatly boosted the morale of the New Fourth Army in the early days of the Anti-Japanese War, and Tao Zhu said to the soldiers: "As long as we are united and not afraid of sacrifice, we can defeat any powerful enemy." ”
Tao Zhu did not directly participate in military operations during the Liberation War, but was busy with propaganda and investigation work in Northeast China, North China, and Central and South China. In January 1949, he was appointed deputy director of the Political Department of the Fourth Field Army and served as plenipotentiary representative of the PLA Front Command, responsible for negotiations with Fu Zuoyi.
During the negotiation process, Tao Zhu showed an impressive sense of rationality and composure. Later, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, he served as the first secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee, serving for a total of 15 years, visiting 105 counties in the province.
As someone who grew up in the countryside, he knows that the most important thing for farmers is to eat. Therefore, from the beginning of his tenure, he paid attention to the rural areas, and every time he took office, he would go to the poorest and most miserable villages, and eat and live with the peasants, and work together without any special treatment.
Tao Zhu once was having a meal, and the local cadres saw that he was working too hard in those days, so they gave him a dish of "white chopped chicken". After Tao Zhu saw it, he said humorously: "This is a dish with local characteristics. ”
Later, when he returned to Beijing to report to work, he mentioned this matter to ***, and ** couldn't help laughing when he heard it, saying: "Tao Zhu's performance in local work is also very good!" ”
When the title was conferred in 1955, Tao Zhu did not participate in the award because he was transferred to the local work. So, what rank should he be awarded? At that time, the title evaluation group discussed awarding *** the rank of general, but after hearing about it, *** said with a smile: "I don't want to steal the limelight from Tao Zhu, he deserves a higher honor." ”
Of course, this is just a joke, but Tao Zhu's qualifications should not be underestimated.
Tao Zhu is a veteran with rich revolutionary experience, he has participated in the Nanchang Uprising and the Guangzhou Uprising, and has a lot of experience. However, in his later years, he was mainly engaged in local work, and he also spent four years in prison, missing an important period in the development of the Red Army.
Although during the Anti-Japanese War, he held important positions such as the secretary general of the ** Military Commission and the secretary general of the General Political Department, but due to the limited role of the secretary general in the army, his influence was not great.
In the later period of the Liberation War, he served as deputy director of the Political Department of the Fourth Field Army, and after the founding of the People's Republic of China, he served as director of the Political Department of the Fourth Field Army and the Central South Military Region and political commissar of the Guangzhou Military Region.
Judging from his qualifications, it is unlikely that he will be awarded the title of marshal or general, but it is more appropriate to be awarded the title of general. Referring to Tan Zheng, director of the Political Department of the Fourth Field Army, he surpassed Tao Zhu in his time and role in the army, and only won the title of general.
Tao Zhu's main battlefield was in politics, he served as secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee, first secretary of the Central and Southern Bureau, vice premier and other important positions, and in 1966 he was also elected to the Politburo Standing Committee, becoming a national cadre.
Tao Zhu, as a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, his status and influence among the party and the people cannot be ignored. His essay "The Style of the Pine Tree", with its profound connotation and inspiring slogan, is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people and is well known by the majority of young people.
However, he died of illness in 1969 at the age of 61, which was undoubtedly a major loss to the party and the people. His spirit and qualities will always inspire us to move forward.