Hold Fast to the Line of Shanhaiguan, Suizhong, and Xingcheng
Cover the Concentration of Our Main Forces at Jinzhou[1]

(November 14, 1945)

Li and Sha:

(1) The United Press reports that Chiang’s forces have occupied Shanhaiguan. Report immediately on the actual situation. (2) The line of Shanhaiguan, Suizhong, and Xingcheng must be firmly held to cover the concentration of our main forces, Huang and Liang, at Jinzhou. The required time is at least three weeks, and at most two months. It is hoped that the masses will be mobilized to construct multiple lines of defensive fortifications. (3) In all places that must be abandoned out of necessity, roads must be destroyed before withdrawal to obstruct the enemy’s advance. In destroying railways, the policy of giving consideration to both public and private interests must be adopted (enabling the masses to obtain timber, rails, and other materials), and the roadbeds must be dug up and wrecked (digging wide and deep pits to make repairs difficult for the enemy). (4) Report immediately on the total strength of our forces along the line of Shanhaiguan, Suizhong, and Xingcheng, their combat effectiveness, the state of mass mobilization, the organization of guerrilla forces and militia, and whether the terrain is favorable for operations.

Military Commission
14:00, 14th

[1] This is a telegram drafted by Mao Zedong for the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China, addressed to Li Yunchang, Second Deputy Commander of the Northeast People’s Autonomous Army and Deputy Commander of the Hebei-Rehe-Liaoning Military Region, and Sha Ke, Chief of Staff of the Central Hebei Military Region. On the same day, in a telegram drafted by Mao Zedong for the Central Military Commission and addressed to Huang Kecheng and Liang Xingchu, orders were given for the Third Division of the New Fourth Army and the First Division of the Shandong Military Region to “rapidly advance in multiple columns along parallel routes and arrive in full at the Jinzhou area before the 24th. Division Huang shall rest and regroup at Jinzhou; Division Liang shall rest and regroup in the area from Jinzhou toward Xingcheng and prepare to support Division Yang Guofu’s operations.”