The Fourth Outstanding Person of Huangpu Military Academy

He Long quite liked this song.

The three divisions of the First Army now have their own nicknames.

The First Division was the Sword of Revolution, the Second Division was the Pig of Revolution. When Japanese newspapers learned that the Third Division had become the Third Division of the First Army (Communist) after the Nanchang Uprising, and based on the fact that its commander was He Long, they gave it a shocking nickname:

Dragon Division (Dragon Division)

The Battle of Miluo ended. The 3rd Division, like the 1st and 2nd Divisions, had inflicted heavy casualties in the battle. The Asahi Shimbun gave the 3rd Division a new and more explosive nickname:

Red War Dragon (Red War Dragon)

But Chen Tianheng had his own ideas. According to the principle of serialized nickname naming, the Third Division should obviously be called "Revolutionary Chopper".

"Old He, I think you should be able to read the regulations and manuals by yourself now.

Chen Tianheng looked at He Long, who hesitated for a moment and said, "Don't we have Xu Jishen?

Xu Jishen: "We are implementing both the regulations and the manual. Where the regulations are used, such as in the daily training, operations, and management of the 3rd Division, the General Staff has corresponding departments responsible.

Chen Tianheng: "Printing regulations and manuals and distributing them to the troops isn't just about having them execute them. Our army only truly broke away from the old system and became independent after the Nanchang Incident. There's a lot we need to figure out from scratch, and I can't do it alone. We need to work together, with everyone contributing bricks and tiles, to build a brand new army. Old He, you're very skilled in troop management and making decisions on the battlefield, so I'm hoping you can help out."

Chen Tianheng searched the table in the division headquarters and found several booklets. These were printed by the printing factory after the occupation of Changsha. They were much more formal than the roller mimeograph machine.

Infantry Division Combat Regulations and Staff Operations

He Long: “I haven’t even started looking at this yet.

"Infantry Regimental Combat Regulations"

"I haven't started yet. Actually, I read this one, but I couldn't get past the first few pages."

He Long picked up the thinnest volume, "Infantry Company Organization and Regulations." "I thought, 'This is the thinnest, so I'll read it first.' But when I turned to the third page, I suddenly saw foreign words. I was so scared that I dropped it. I'm struggling to learn Chinese, so foreign words are like a mystery."

Chen Tianheng picked up the "Infantry Company Organization and Regulations" and turned to the third page: "Oh, I'm scared by the soldier and non-commissioned officer organization table. Actually, Lao He, these are not foreign words. You can treat them as symbols. Just look at the appearance and recognize them.

“For example, these three: Private, Private First Class, and Private First Class.

"These three, Corporal, Sergeant, and Staff Sergeant, don't need to look at the foreign words, the Chinese next to them means the same thing."

"First-class non-commissioned officers, from here on there are professional divisions. This is the first-class technical non-commissioned officer, and this is the first-class management non-commissioned officer, that is, the platoon sergeant major. In fact, the platoon sergeant major also has technical skills. Currently, the company volley of infantry is coordinated by the platoon sergeants."

"Second-level non-commissioned officers include second-term technical non-commissioned officers and second-term management non-commissioned officers. The second-term management non-commissioned officer is the company sergeant major. In fact, as we often said before, he is mainly responsible for the soldiers' committee within the company.

He Long: "Wait a minute, the head of the soldiers' committee should also be given an official title now."

Chen Tianheng: "It's not an official title, it's a formal position within the Soldiers' Committee. Besides, NCOs are not officers. Old He, remember before the Battle of Lei Luo, when the Third Division was about to be deployed to the front lines, the Soldiers' Committees of some of your companies held meetings and resolved to refuse to participate in the battle, right?"

"Hmm, hmm! ... These cowards. When they heard that the Second Division and I were going to fight an army, they didn't want to go.

Chen Tianheng: "The Third Division had just begun its reorganization, and the establishment of the Soldiers' Committee was a temporary measure, which led to this situation. In a military that is now heavily reorganized, the Soldiers' Committee is a management tool, not a command tool. Even the Sergeant Major is a management position, not a command position. This institutionally prevents situations where the Soldiers' Committee decides, 'I won't fight this battle.'" Of course, at the next level, the Battalion Sergeant Major is still a management position, but there is also a Command Sergeant Major at the battalion level. The Command Sergeant Major assists officers of the same rank, such as the Battalion Commander, in conducting operational command and decision-making.

He Long: "Now the First and Second Divisions are doing it this way? Okay, then the Third Division will do the same.

Chen Tianheng: "You just mentioned it, Xu Jishen is already working on it. Actually, I hope that when the Third Division implements and implements it, they will express their own opinions on the current hierarchy of soldiers and officers..."

In addition to major adjustments to the 3rd Division starting from the grassroots level, the 3rd Division also acquired an artillery battalion after the Battle of Miluo.

It was sent by Tang Shengzhi's 36th Army. However, the 36th Army's Guantui Mountain Artillery Battalion did not have 12 guns, but only 8 Hanyang-made K-75s. But no matter what, let's support the mountain artillery battalion first.

The other artillery battalion sent by the 36th Army was equipped with 10 retreating mountain guns. These 10 guns could not be wasted as the Second Army's artillery battalion already had them.

The recoil-type mountain gun had a slow rate of fire due to the time-consuming and laborious process of pulling the entire gun back and returning it to its original position. Furthermore, its accuracy was inconsistent, requiring recalibration after each shot. However, for the Second Army, having one was better than nothing. Furthermore, the recoil-type mountain gun was lightweight (lacking a large hydraulic recoil tube), making it easy to disassemble and transport.

Chen Tianheng: "Have many soldiers deserted the Third Division recently?"

Xu Jishen: "After the victory in the battle to capture Changsha, the number of people deserting without permission decreased significantly. Winning a battle is truly the best way to boost morale and cohesion. There was another small peak before the Battle of Miluo, with over 20 soldiers deserting without saying goodbye in a single day, but this was also within our expectations. After all, when we were still the 15th Independent Division, our troops would lose three-digit men a day just on the march, even without fighting tough battles.

Chen Tianheng: "The Party group will continue to play a core role and continue to enforce discipline. When we enter the next stage, we will face tests similar to those before the Battle of Miluo. At that time, we will see the effectiveness of the recent military reorganization.

"Report! Commander, the General Headquarters has notified us that the Military Commission has an important meeting. Please return to Changsha as soon as possible.

Gan Street Clock

Chen Tianheng rushed back to Changsha from the suburbs of Changsha. Chen Duxiu, Mao Runzhi and Deng Yanda were already waiting there.

"Today, Chairman Wang Jingwei from Nanjing spoke to us," Chen Duxiu said. "He proposed to us to hold peace talks."

"Wang Jingwei had just removed Tang Shengzhi, who had called for peace, and then he proposed a peace plan himself?" Chen Tianheng asked. "What were the specific terms of Wang Jingwei's peace plan?

Deng Yanda: "Both sides have reached a truce. The Communist Party of China and the left-wing Kuomintang are allowed to establish a regime in Hunan. However, the regimes we have established in Jiangxi and Hubei must withdraw. Prepare to reorganize the national army. We are allowed to retain the First and Fourth Armies.

Chen Duxiu: "Before you came, Comrade Deng Yanda and I discussed this issue. Basically, there is no possibility for us to agree to Wang Jingwei's request.

"We definitely can't agree to this," Chen Tianheng said. "But! General Secretary Chen, Director Deng, I've thought of something else. Wang Jingwei's peace proposal could lead to a serious power crisis within the Nanjing government, or even impeachment."

Chapter 116: Lin Biao, where are you running to?

Hunan No. 1 Normal University. Auditorium.

Hunan First Normal School is the alma mater of Chen Tianheng in this dimension, and it is also the alma mater or place where several people present here, including Mao Runzhi, Guo Liang, Chen Wangdao, etc., have taught.

Wang Jingwei's initiative to propose peace was not enough for the Central Military Commission to discuss, and an enlarged Central Military Commission meeting in Changsha was needed. Fortunately, even if Wang Jingwei did not want peace, the Nationalist army would not be able to capture Changsha in a short time, so the Central Military Commission could calmly hold a meeting on August 2 to discuss the matter.

"Since the Nanchang Uprising in May, the entire nation has been paying close attention to the war situation in the Hunan-Hubei-Jiangxi region. Calls for peace have long been present and are growing louder. Wang Jingwei previously ignored these calls, but now he has finally come to his senses and proposed peace. We must respond."

Li Dazhao is the chairman of today's meeting.

"However, this time we should respond is a matter that requires discussion in a meeting. We need to clarify two issues: first, whether Wang Jingwei and the Nanjing government are truly peaceful or sham; second, whether we need to reach a peace agreement with the Nanjing government. Only by clarifying these two issues and reaching a consensus can we set the tone for our response.

Chen Duxiu was not the chairperson of the meeting because it had to be chaired by a neutral person, and he was firmly opposed to the peace talks.

I see no need for peace talks with the Nanjing government, nor will they sincerely seek peace with us. Wang Jingwei has now completely defected from the revolutionary camp. Our only task is to establish our own revolutionary regime, manage it, continuously strengthen the revolutionary forces, and overthrow this reactionary government.

Chen Duxiu held this view: we must fight and follow the southern base area route. Mao Runzhi and Chen Tianheng also held this view. However, the delegates attending the meeting had other opinions.

One opinion is that the peace talks can provide the revolutionary government with a peaceful environment, which is very important for the current team.

Another opinion also did not believe that the peace talks could succeed, but that what the revolutionary government should do was not to establish a base in the south, but to attack Wuhan, then go down the Yangtze River to capture Nanjing,... and win victory for the national revolution.

Chen Tianheng: "Comrade Peng Shuzhi, how can we defeat 50 armies with only 4 armies?"

Peng Shuzhi: "We are recruiting soldiers in Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi. These areas have a population of tens of millions. After we capture Wuhan, we can also seize the Hanyang Arsenal. We have men and guns, and we can recruit enough soldiers to form 40 armies. Isn't this the climax of the national revolution?

Chen Tianheng: "Let's talk about each place one by one. First, in the Hunan-Jiangxi border area that we currently occupy, conscription of 30,000 soldiers has reached the manpower limit of the base area. Secondly, the southern Jiangxi base area has 22,000 soldiers, which is also the limit. This was clearly mentioned in the reports written by Guo Liang and Xia Minghan, the leaders of the two base areas. In the rural areas of central and southern Hunan, we had just completed policy reflection and adjustment. Before the reconstruction of grassroots government, the peasants cursed and threw stones at us when they saw us, and we couldn't recruit a single soldier.

"As for the Hanyang Arsenal, it has been in operation for decades since it was established in the Qing Dynasty. The guns and cannons it produced were not even enough to arm the hundreds of thousands of warlord troops in the country. Most of the guns and cannons used by the warlords were imported or produced by other arsenals. How could it provide guns, cannons and ammunition to 40 armies? Comrade Peng Shuzhi, Wuhan is not the Ruhr area.

Peng Shuzhi said: "Whether we use Hunan and Jiangxi as our base areas or advance to Guangzhou in the future, this kind of isolated regime cannot exist for long. The revolution must liberate all of China in one fell swoop, otherwise it will fail.

Mao Runzhi: "How can armed separatism by workers and peasants be doomed to fail? Chinese history is full of examples of armed separatism leading to the seizure of power. Are we Communists any worse than Liu Bang? Or Zhu Yuanzhang?"

Peng Shuzhi: “If a regime is established in only one or a few provinces while the rest of the country remains a capitalist society, then this regime is doomed to be corrupted by the bourgeoisie and then destroyed by the Nanjing government.

Chen Tianheng: "I don't see any logical necessity in this statement. Why is it that the Red regime is destined to be corrupted by the bourgeoisie? Why can't we, the regime, influence the areas ruled by the reactionaries and transform them?"

"Haha, haha," Peng Shuzhi laughed, "It's impossible to evolve them."

"Let me interpret your words," Chen Tianheng said. "I don't think you've finished your point. You said our regime would be destroyed by the Nanjing government, which is very clear. But the statement that it's 'destined to be corrupted by the bourgeoisie' is obviously untenable. I think, Comrade Peng Shuzhi, what you really mean is that the Red regime will ultimately fail, it will only deteriorate and eventually be overthrown by the bourgeois government. To avoid this, we must strike first and eliminate the enemy. That way, there will be no reference point, and the people will not realize that we are deteriorating."

Peng Shuzhi: “No, this is not my view, it is mentioned in Marx’s theoretical works.

Chen Tianheng: "The so-called mention is just a few words. The creator of this entire theory was not Marx, but Trotsky. I can say with certainty that Trotsky was the same. He also had these thoughts in his mind that he 'wanted to say but couldn't say.' This extreme advocacy of struggle and abnormally reckless theory definitely hides a core of defeatism."

The Trotskyist tendency that emerged did not gain much momentum and was quickly suppressed by Mao Zedong and Chen Tianheng.

However, there were also many comrades who advocated sincere peace talks, and the leading figure among them was Chen Tanqiu, a representative of the First National Congress.

"Guangdong is geographically advantageous, but it is one of the places in the country where anti-communist forces are most stubborn. Not only are the cities against us, but the countryside is also fiercely opposed to us," Chen Tanqiu said. "We fought all the way to Guangdong, but we encountered resistance everywhere. It would be better for us to operate and develop in the area where we are now.

Mao Runzhi: "Comrade Tan Qiu, although I am from Hunan, I also oppose the argument that we can carry out the revolution based on Hunan. Why are we helpless in Guangdong where anti-communist forces are stubbornly strong? In the future, we will unify the country and liberate the people. Should we then liberate other provinces and leave Guangdong alone because 'anti-communist forces in Guangdong are stubbornly strong'?"

Chen Tanqiu: “Not really, but there should be a sequence.

Chen Tianheng: "Commissioner Chen, I have my own understanding of the order of priority. This order is not based on the intensity of anti-communism in each province, from smallest to largest. Instead, we should first explore the appropriate methods and paths for national revolution through practice, and then use these methods to liberate other regions one by one. General Secretary Chen Duxiu and comrades from the Central Committee frequently conducted research and discussions in central and southern Hunan in order to explore a path. Central and southern Hunan, like Guangdong, was once covered by the "revolutionary axis." If we can explore the correct path in central and southern Hunan, then the rural areas of Guangdong will definitely be able to solve this problem.

"Also, I'd like to discuss this from a military perspective. The area we currently control encompasses most of Hunan Province, western and southern Jiangxi, parts of the southeastern Hubei mountainous area, and parts of the western Fujian mountainous area. This area is quite isolated. If we decide to establish an armed separatist regime within a province, but all communication with the outside world must pass through the reactionary areas, materials, industrial machinery, and equipment cannot be brought in, and our own products cannot be shipped out, then the development of our separatist territory will encounter considerable difficulties, or even be impossible.

"Of course, some people say that Hunan isn't completely isolated. With the Xiang River and Dongting Lake, we can use water transportation. But water transportation is definitely different from sea transportation. If we receive machinery and other material aid from a foreign country, in order to get these materials into the Yangtze River and then into Dongting Lake to be delivered to us, unless that foreign country has already formed a military alliance with us and is willing to risk its life to open such a transportation route for us, even at the cost of offending the Nanjing government. If our base has a seaport, we only need to maintain normal maritime trade relations."

Mao Runzhi: "Whether it is the Soviet Union or other foreign countries, I still agree with this principle: equal exchange. The same is true with the Soviet Union.

The enlarged meeting of the Central Committee concluded, and the tone of future policy was determined: peace talks can be discussed, but peace will not come, and armed struggle will not stop.

"It's been some time since the Fourth National Congress was held. In the past two years, too many things have happened inside and outside the Party, at home and abroad," Chen Duxiu said. "Once things have stabilized, we should hold the Fifth National Congress.

Li Dazhao: “However, one thing is gratifying: the Fifth Congress will no longer represent only a few hundred party members across the country.

Chen Tianheng: "A few hundred are the number of party organizations around the Central Committee when the Party just separated from the Communist International. In fact, I think there were more than a few hundred people in the party at that time. It's just that many party organizations did not have the conditions to immediately contact the Central Committee in Shanghai..."

"Commissioner Chen, Commander Chen. The meeting is over. I'd like to go to the First Army to visit my relatives. Is this permitted?"

The person who spoke was Lin Yunan. Chen Tianheng smiled and said, "It's Lin Biao, right? Of course we can arrange it. Let's go now?"

Hengjie Law

At the headquarters of the First Division of the First Army, Lin Biao, who had just arrived at the General Staff Headquarters as a combat staff officer, stared at the map as usual, occasionally flipping through the booklet in his hand.

"Lin Biao! Someone is here to see you!"

Lin Biao: "Oh, who is it?"

As soon as he asked this question, a loud voice outside the room shouted: "Lin Yurong! Lin Yurong! Come out here!"

Lin Biao carefully identified the voice and his face suddenly changed: "Oh no! My brother is here!"

A moment later, a second voice appeared outside the room: "Lin Yurong! How long are you going to coax us two brothers?"

Lin Biao threw the book away, stood up and tried to slip away through the back door.

Fan Hanjie: "Xiao Lin, where are you running to?"

"Lin Biao! It's too late for you to escape now!

Liao Yaoxiang, who was closest to Lin Biao, grabbed Lin Biao's arm. Fan Hanjie ran over and grabbed the other arm. The two of them controlled Lin Biao and led him out of the staff room.

Outside, Lin Yuying was smiling, but it was a bit stiff: "So you joined the party a long time ago, right?"

Lin Biao: "Not long after I enrolled, I submitted my application to the War Research Association and was accepted."

Lin Yunan: "I wrote to you several times asking you to get closer to the Party organization, but you replied saying you didn't want to. I wrote another letter criticizing you for not being progressive enough, and hey, then you stopped replying!"

Lin Biao: "...

Chapter 117: Wang Jingwei Resigned

"Declaration of the Revolutionary Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Kuomintang on the Current Situation"

"Four months ago, just as the Northern Expedition had achieved decisive victory, Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Jingwei ungratefully betrayed the revolutionary alliance between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, betrayed Sun Yat-sen's revolutionary Three Principles of the People and the Three Great Policies, conspired to establish a dictatorship representing the big landlords and compradors, and raised the butcher knife against the workers and peasants who had made invaluable contributions in the Northern Expedition.

"Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, the National Revolutionary Army, which had played such a distinguished role during the Northern Expedition, rose up in Nanchang, resisting the massacre perpetrated by the Wang Jingwei and Chiang Kai-shek reactionaries. To this day, the revolutionary army has crushed the offensive of the Wang Jingwei and Chiang Kai-shek governments and achieved initial victory in the people's revolutionary war. Wherever our army marches, the enemy is utterly defeated and the people cheer with joy.

“The current civil war policy of the Nanjing Nationalist Government is not accidental; it is the inevitable result of the consistent anti-people policy of Wang Jingwei, Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang reactionaries.

"Following the appeals of peace-loving people from all walks of life and all classes across the country, and in the face of the courageous resistance of our army, the Wang Jingwei government recently put forward a 'peace initiative.' Our party and our army, guided by the will of the Chinese people and the interests of the Chinese people, have decided to respond to this peace initiative in order to stop the civil war, alleviate the suffering of the people, and reduce the dreadful loss of national wealth."

"The Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese Kuomintang respectfully propose the following suggestions to Nanjing:"

2. Abolish the dictatorship of the big bourgeoisie, implement people's democracy, and safeguard the people's freedom of speech, publication, assembly, and association. Abolish the feudal system of exploitation and implement the system of land to the tiller.

Second, arrest, try, and punish the criminals headed by Chiang Kai-shek and Li Jishen who massacred workers and peasants and provoked civil war...”

The declaration was issued in Changsha and spread across the country within a day.

Responding to the peace initiative shows that the CCP is not keen on civil war, but hopes to achieve national peace and reunification.

There were five conditions proposed, and in theory, they were exactly what the Communist Party should have proposed, making perfect sense. However, the second one essentially killed the competition.

Punish Chiang Kai-shek and Li Jishen... Well, I just want to ask you whether to punish them or not.

The basic process of the purge since April was as follows: Wang Jingwei (who was still in Wuhan at the time) took the lead in the purge, expelling all Communist Party members, and arresting a large number of Communist Party members, left-wing Kuomintang members, and key members of the peasant movement in rural Hunan and Hubei. A total of more than 4 people were arrested, and an estimated 100 to 300 people were shot.

Then Chiang Kai-shek carried out a purge in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Jiangxi, and the intensity of the massacre was more than 10 times greater. Now, news has been coming in from the grassroots level in various places that at least 1.5 party members and workers and peasants have been killed.

Almost at the same time as Chiang Kai-shek's purge, Li Jishen and Hu Hanmin launched an abstract version of the purge in Guangdong. They not only massacred Communists, but also people who looked like Communists (such as those wearing glasses). It is estimated that the number of people killed in Guangdong province alone was over 10,000. He even wanted to take advantage of the situation and break into the Whampoa Military Academy on Changzhou Island to cut off Chiang Kai-shek's base. Fortunately, Ye Jianying and the 20th Division deployed tight defenses on Changzhou Island, and Li Jishen could not find an opportunity.

Chiang Kai-shek and Li Jishen were far ahead in their purges. The Guangxi clique's actions in their homeland of Guangxi were similar to those in Hunan and Hubei. Feng Yuxiang expelled all Party members and Soviet advisers from the country. In the north, Zhang Zuolin also considered killing Communists in the countryside, but the Party organization in the north had not yet reached the countryside. Zhang Zuolin only purged the Party organizations and trade unions in the cities.

Since they are leading by a huge margin, of course the two of them must be singled out in the declaration.

Zhuzhou.

“Zhuzhou is a great place.