At the 1955 PLA award ceremony, there were 19 generals who served as corps commanders in the Liberation War, and 18 of them received military ranks, but one person did not, he was Cheng Zihua, who served as the commander of the 13th Corps of Siye and the commander of the Tashan Resistance Battle.
In the Tashan blockade, ** once said to Cheng Zihua: "I don't want ** numbers, I just want Tashan." Cheng Zihua successfully completed the task of guarding Tashan and made an important contribution to the victory of the Liaoshen Campaign.
So, what are Cheng Zihua's other stories and achievements?
Cheng Zihua was born in 1905. As a young man, he was fascinated by the books of his hometown, which led him to the road of Marxism-Leninism.
In 1926, he joined the Communist Party of China. Soon after, he was sent to Wuhan and admitted to the Wuhan branch of the Whampoa Military Academy, where he devoted himself to fighting in the National Revolutionary Army after graduation.
However, the Great Revolutionary Movement of 1927 failed due to the betrayal of Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Ching-wei, and Cheng Zihua left the Kuomintang forces and began a wandering journey.
He went through a lot of hardships and finally arrived at the ** base.
Cheng Zihua participated in the second to fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" battles during the ** base area. In order to strengthen the construction of the Hubei-Henan-Anhui base area, in January 1934, Cheng Zihua was arranged to go to the Hubei-Henan-Anhui base area, and since then, Cheng Zihua has served as the commander and political commissar of the Red 25th Army, and Xu Haidong jointly led the Red 25th Army to embark on the road of the Long March, and miraculously arrived in northern Shaanxi with the record of no one.
Cheng Zihua's unit was merged with the local Red Army in northern Shaanxi to form the Red 15th Corps, which provided key help for the Red Army to gain a foothold in northern Shaanxi. During the Anti-Japanese War, he actively participated in the war in the Jizhong Military Region and witnessed the arrival of victory.
After the war, Cheng Zihua was transferred to the northeast, and many famous combat heroes emerged from his troops, such as Dong Cunrui. But Cheng Zihua's greatest contribution during his time in the Northeast was undoubtedly the Battle of Tashan.
As the commander and political commissar of the Second Corps of the Northeast Field Army, Cheng Zihua undertook an important blocking task in the Liaoshen Campaign. He resolutely carried out the order and successfully prevented the Kuomintang Eastern Advance Corps from going to Jinzhou for reinforcements.
In this blocking battle in the Tower Hill area, both sides showed firm determination and faith, so it was quite heavy. Despite this, Cheng Zihua still insisted on asking for reinforcements.
However, **'s answer was short and firm: "I just want Tower Hill, I don't need ** numbers." This answer fully reflects the strategic vision and determination of the first class, and also shows Cheng Zihua's loyalty and courage as a commander.
Cheng Zihua deduced the best tactical strategy from this sentence, and then he led the troops to successfully win the Tashan Resistance Battle with the courage of fearless sacrifice, laying a solid foundation for the liberation of Jinzhou and the victory of the Liaoshen Campaign, and making great achievements for the liberation of the Northeast region.
After that, Cheng Zihua was appointed as the commander of the 13th Corps of Siye and actively participated in the battle to liberate the whole of China.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Cheng Zihua successively served as secretary of the Shanxi Provincial Party Committee and director of the National Federation of Supply and Marketing, but he did not receive the rank of military in 1955 because he left the army.
It is worth mentioning that he was the only one of all the corps commanders of the Liberation War who did not have a military rank. However, this did not weaken Cheng Zihua's determination to build a new China, and he later served as deputy director of the National Construction Commission and minister of civil affairs, and achieved a series of notable achievements.
He was also the vice chairman of the Fifth and Sixth National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and a vice-state-level cadre of the People's Republic of China.