It Is Extremely Necessary to Seize the Opportunity to Strike the Enemy’s 7th Division and 74th Division[1]

(November 23, 1946)

Su and Tan, and for the information of Chen, Liu and Deng, and Zhang[2]:

Your telegram of the 22nd[3] has been received. Before the enemy’s newly redeployed forces arrive, it is extremely necessary to deal a heavy blow to the 7th Division and the 74th Division so as to render them incapable of combat. In the area between Changyuan, Hua County, and Puyang, Liu and Deng have annihilated the entire 104th Brigade, a portion of the 125th Brigade, and a part of the puppet troops under Sun Zhen,[4] directly threatening Kaifeng. Qiu Qingquan’s[5] 5th Army has moved from Juancheng westward to reinforce Kaocheng, leaving the counties of Yuncheng, Juye, Jiaxiang, Jinxiang, Yutai, and Shanxian[6] on the eastern flank extremely exposed. Whether the Reorganized 11th Division will temporarily remain in that area still awaits

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[1] This telegram was drafted by Mao Zedong for the Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee and addressed to Su Yu, commander of the Central China Field Army, and Tan Zhenlin, its political commissar.

[2] Chen refers to Chen Yi, then commander and concurrently political commissar of the Shandong Field Army. Liu and Deng refer to Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, then commander and political commissar, respectively, of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army. Zhang refers to Zhang Dingcheng, then commander of the Central China Military Area.

[3] This refers to the telegram of November 22, 1946, from Su Yu, Zhang Dingcheng, and Tan Zhenlin to the Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee, with copies to Chen Yi, Chen Shiju, Zhang Yunyi, Li Yu, and Shu Tong. The telegram stated: The enemy at Lianghuai has advanced to Gaozhuang, Cheqiao, Yugou, and other areas, and the 7th Army has launched an attack east of the Baojia River with three regiments. We plan to seize the opportunity before the obstinate enemy forces have fully assembled to inflict heavy casualties on the Guangxi obstinate troops, and then seek an opportunity to deal an even more devastating blow to the 74th Division, or to use a portion of our main force to locate a weaker point and annihilate the enemy there, thereby preventing the obstinate enemy from concentrating a large force for a sudden assault.

[4] Sun Zhen, then commander of the 5th Pacification Zone of the Kuomintang army.

[5] Qiu Qingquan, then commander of the 5th Army of the Kuomintang army.

[6] Yuncheng, Juye, Jiaxiang, Jinxiang, Yutai, and Shanxian, all counties in Shandong Province.

investigation. In short, the greater the victories won by Liu and Deng, the more helpful it will be to you, but the direct resolution of the northern Jiangsu question depends on your own efforts.

The Military Commission

23rd

In 1946, Mao Zedong together with the people of Zaoyuan.