Lao Xiucai helped the Red Army cross the river
On the bank of the Dadu River in Shimian County, Sichuan Province, there stands a memorial hall commemorating the Red Army's forced crossing of the Dadu River, and the story of its director, Song Fugang, is also a precious memory of the Red Army's Long March.
Song Fugang is not a special person, but when the reporter followed the footsteps of the Red Army's Long March to the Dadu River, he learned a story about his great-grandfather Song Dashun and the Red Army's Long March.
In 1935, when the Red Army came to the banks of the Dadu River, it was precisely because of the advice of the old Xiucai Song Dashun that the lives of 20,000 Red Army soldiers were finally saved.
Let's look back at the thrilling history that took place by the Dadu River in 1935. Song Fugang's Red Army encountered an existential crisis by the Dadu River, ** and *** sat solemnly in the temporary headquarters of the Red Army's Anshun Field, they understood that this could be the most difficult battle since the Long March, but they did not flinch at all.
So, how did they come up with the battle plan? What did Song Dashun say? Next, let's take a look. This is a story about racing against time to cross the river with a bridge.
At 7 o'clock sharp, the battle was in full swing. Xiong Shanglin and other vanguard troops struggled to advance in the turbulent river, and even standing firm became a luxury, let alone counterattacking. They could only bow their heads and row as hard as they could, hoping to reach the opposite shore as soon as possible, even if it was only a second earlier, and they could reduce the damage by a second.
For those who cross the river, every minute and every second is torment; And for the covering troops on the shore, every second is as painful as being pricked with a needle.
Facing the pressing of the Sichuan army on the other side, Xiong Shanglin and others continued to approach the enemy position. Seeing this, the Sichuan army immediately turned around and launched an attack on the ferry. The Red Army gunners showed great courage and successfully repelled the Sichuan army and held the ferry with difficulty.
In order to capture the ferry, the Sichuan army had to divide part of its forces, which allowed Xiong Shanglin to seize the opportunity and cross the river smoothly under the cover of his teammates. After going ashore, Xiong Shanglin and others quickly took control of the positions on the shore, and the remaining Red Army also successfully crossed the Dadu River with their help.
After the successful crossing of the Dadu River, ** immediately received a new task, he led the team non-stop to the Luding Bridge, which was 160 kilometers away, and at this time the main force of the Red Army was also marching quickly towards the Luding Bridge.
This 160-kilometer journey not only challenged the fatigue limit of the soldiers' continuous march, but also was hindered by the Sichuan army, and the difficulty of the march is self-evident.
However, time is of the essence, and the sooner you get to Luding Bridge, the greater your hope of successfully escaping the pursuers. The long march made the soles of the warriors' feet blistered with blood, but none of them stopped their advance.
Finally, on May 29, the Red Army, which had been working day and night, finally arrived at the Luding Bridge, but at this time the Luding Bridge had been destroyed by the enemy, and only a few iron cables remained.
The enemy at the Luding Bridge was still complacent on the other side, and they could not believe that the Red Army could successfully cross the bridge with only a few iron cables, after all, there was a raging river under their feet, and the slightest carelessness could fall off the iron cables and break their bones.
However, it was at such a life-and-death juncture that the Red Army did not hesitate to choose to cross the bridge. At four o'clock in the afternoon of May 29, the battle on the Luding Bridge officially began. Liao Dazhu led 22 warriors to step on the iron rope of the Luding Bridge first, and they had to stabilize their position on the Luding Bridge, so that the team carrying the planks behind could lay the bridge deck more smoothly.
The iron cable was cold and slippery, and in order not to fall, Liao Dazhu and the others could only hold on tightly to the iron cable with both hands, allowing themselves to be exposed to the enemy's guns. Some people were unfortunately hit and fell into the Dadu River, never to be found again; Although some people were shot, they still dragged the iron rope to death, just hoping to become the pedal of future generations.
At the moment of life and death, the moment when the Luding Bridge was captured, everyone's thoughts were condensed on the goal of moving forward. The enemy took turns **, stopping the advance of the Red Army, the wounded and falling planks were increasing, but the Red Army was not discouraged and firmly moved towards the other side of the bridge.
Seeing that the Red Army was approaching, the enemy chose to set fire, and once the fire spread to the bridge, the previously erected planks would be reduced to ashes. At this critical moment, Liao Dazhu led the team to speed up, successfully reached the other side of the bridge before the fire spread, and successfully extinguished the fire.
Flying to capture the Luding Bridge, Liao Dazhu became famous in the first battle, which greatly boosted the morale of the Red Army. Subsequently, the team led by ** also arrived in time and fought side by side with the Red Army, causing the enemy to retreat one after another.
In the end, the main force of the Red Army successfully crossed the Luding Bridge. After the battle, when ** and others reviewed the entire combat process, they couldn't help but sigh: "Mr. Song Dashun has contributed a lot to this victory.
Without his help, we could have made a repeat of Shi Dakai's mistakes. ”
So, what does ** have to do with Song Dashun in this battle? And by the Dadu River, what did Shi Dakai experience? Let's go back to May 25, 1935, when ** arrived at Anshun Field on the Dadu River with his 20,000 Red Army.
After more than seven months of arduous trekking and constant encirclement and interception by the enemy, the Red Army was exhausted, but the 200,000 enemy troops behind them still pursued them relentlessly.
The Anshun field on the Dadu River was a way of life for the Red Army. Only by successfully crossing the Dadu River could they temporarily avoid the pursuit of the enemy. However, May is the flood season of the Dadu River, the water is turbulent, and the environment on both sides of the river is precipitous, so it is not easy to cross the river.
The Red Army had 20,000 men, and it would take at least a few months to cross the river by building their own boats. However, the pursuers behind them could not even give them ten days.
Once caught up by those 200,000 pursuers, the Red Army, with only 20,000 men, could be in a desperate situation.
Thoughtful, but still haven't found a way to crack it. However, Chiang Kai-shek was not idle. He pursued and killed *** for seven months in a row, believing that the Red Army had run out of ammunition and food.
Coupled with the steep terrain of the Dadu River and the bitter lessons of Shi Dakai, he firmly believed that the Dadu River would be the end of the Red Army. In order to exert more pressure on *** and others, Chiang Kai-shek also specially produced many leaflets with the words "Dadu River is the place where the Red Army was destroyed" and distributed them everywhere by airplane.
Naturally, the ranks of the Red Army also saw these leaflets, so there was a part of the population that was full of anxiety about the future. But, seeing through Chiang Kai-shek's insidious intentions, he told all the Red Army: "We are not afraid of difficulties and will never be disrupted by the enemy's machinations." ”
** is not the second Shi Dakai, he knows that blind encouragement may not help, so he chose to share Shi Dakai's story and tell everyone: "I will not be trapped here like Shi Dakai." ”
Shi Dakai was one of the outstanding leaders of the Taiping Movement, and his military and political talents were highly praised, especially his benevolence and generosity, which won the love of the people, and he was hailed as the most perfect person in the Taiping Movement.
Shi Dakai not only won many amazing battles through the Eastern Expedition and Western War, but also brought tangible improvements to the lives of the people under the jurisdiction of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom with his outstanding political skills.
However, it is a pity that this remarkable man died at the age of 32.
Shi Dakai, a heroic soldier who experienced the baptism of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement led by Hong Xiuquan. Although his life was short, he devoted 32 years, almost half of his time to this revolution.
Shi Dakai is shrewd and decisive, but his fate has taken a turn on the banks of the Dadu River. On May 14, 1863, Shi Dakai led his subordinates to the Dadu River.
The enemy army is still some distance from them, and Shi Dakai should seize this opportunity to cross the river quickly. However, he felt that there was enough time and did not show enough urgency.
He let the vanguard troops who had already crossed the river return to their original paths, and even missed a great opportunity to hold a banquet by the river because of the successful birth of the concubine. Despite this, Shi Dakai's bravery and determination are still commendable.
His deeds will always be remembered in our hearts.
At the critical moment of crossing the river, Shi Dakai chose to sacrifice himself in the face of the water level of the Dadu River and the pursuit of the enemy. However, his last-minute decision-making mistakes not only ruined his own life, but also failed to bring the desired ending to his subordinates.
Although Shi Dakai was an outstanding general, at the moment of life and death, his judgment was skewed, and the lives of himself and his subordinates paid a heavy price.
After listening to Shi Dakai's story, ** warned the soldiers to learn from history and avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. The fighters rested, but *** is still thinking about how to cross the river safely.
At this time, the director of the Political Department *** brought good news. Visiting late at night to seek countermeasures*** Thinking about countermeasures by the river, others are also taking active action. **When the director learned that there were people nearby, he sent someone to visit him to see if the locals had a good way to cross the river.
**I happened to meet an 83-year-old old Xiucai in the late Qing Dynasty, who was very familiar with this period of history. **Quickly reported to ***, the chairman was full of excitement about the matter, thinking that Lao Xiucai would not tell a lie, and would definitely be able to provide more details and ways to cross the river.
However, ** reminded the chairman that two guards had been sent to invite Lao Xiucai, and *** had been following the soldiers on a rapid march for many days, and there must be blisters on his feet, so it was recommended not to go out tonight.
Shouldering the heavy trust of the lives of 20,000 Red Army soldiers, ** cautiously waited for the arrival of Lao Xiucai. Late at night, ** finally saw him, that was Song Dashun. Without directly asking about the method of crossing the river, ** recalled the story of Shi Dakai crossing the river with Song Dashun.
In the face of such an important matter, ** dare not easily trust any method.
In the conversation, Song Dashun seemed calm and moderate, he coincided with ***'s views, and they both believed that there were two main reasons for Shi Dakai's failure: one was that the banquet missed the opportunity, and there was enough time to cross the river, but he chose to celebrate at a critical moment, and as a result, enough time was wasted.
The second is that the team that crossed the river first was not allowed to meet on the opposite bank, if someone on the other bank answered, whether it was encountering the enemy or the water level, Shi Dakai still had a chance to counterattack, but he asked the vanguard to return, which was equivalent to destroying his only way to retreat.
**The dialogue with Song Dashun was very harmonious, and they agreed that Song Dashun was a creative person, so they were full of anticipation for the strategy he was about to propose to cross the river.
** Song Dashun was given a detailed description of the current predicament of the Red Army, with a rushing river in front and pursuers in the rear, who believed that it was almost impossible to cross the river directly.
However, Song Dashun put forward his own opinion: "To cross the river, all you need is a bridge." Hearing this, a glimmer of hope arose in my heart: "Do you know that there is a bridge?" ”
1. "Although the road is difficult, we are not afraid of hardship. " "Please rest assured that we will go all out to reach Luding Bridge as soon as possible. " "According to Song Dashun's guidance, we believe that we can successfully cross the river. "
** and others expressed their gratitude to Song Dashun for his help. On the occasion of parting, Song Dashun reminded *** again"Always keep moving forward on the road and don't stop. "
2. "The Luding Bridge is ahead, although there are many difficulties, but we are not afraid of hard work. " "Song Dashun has shown us the way, and we will definitely do our best to seize control of the Luding Bridge. "
**Thank you to Song Dashun for his help. Before leaving, Song Dashun told *** again"Don't waste time on the road, get to Luding Bridge as soon as possible. "
3. "Although the bridge is not far, the task is daunting. " "We are not afraid of hard work, as long as we can reach the Luding Bridge one step ahead of the enemy, it is possible to successfully cross the river. "
** and others expressed their gratitude to Song Dashun for his help. Before leaving, Song Dashun reminded *** again"Keep up your speed on the road and don't stop. "
4. "The Luding Bridge is just ahead, and although the road is tortuous, we are not afraid of hard work. " "Song Dashun has already pointed us in the direction, and we are confident that we will seize control of the Luding Bridge. "
**Thank you to Song Dashun for his help. Before leaving, Song Dashun told *** again"Don't waste time on the road, get to Luding Bridge as soon as possible. "
Song Dashun's last warning has always lingered in his heart. In the face of danger, the Red Army did not dare to stay for a moment, and worked out a plan to seize the Luding Bridge overnight.
It took them two days to cover what would have taken them three days. The persistence along the way allowed the Red Army to rush to the Luding Bridge in time and achieved the heroic legend of "flying to capture the Luding Bridge".
In 1935, a reminder from Song Dashun saved the lives of 20,000 Red Armymen. In 1983, the monument to the forced crossing of the Dadu River was completed, and 13-year-old Song Fugang followed his father and became an assistant manager.
In 2004, the memorial hall of the Red Army's forced crossing of the Dadu River was completed, and Song Fugang returned here again and became a staff member of the memorial.
Since 1935, the story of the Soong family has been closely linked to the Red Army, and today, their legend will continue, and we look forward to writing a new chapter for them.