Seize the Section Between Suide and Qingjian Before the Enemy to Block Their Southward Advance[1]

(August 30, 1947)

Peng:

The enemy has decided on a full-army retreat southward. The 90th Division may use a portion of its forces to feint eastward to draw in our army, thereby facilitating the rapid southward movement of its main force. Our army must by all means shake off the enemy currently facing us, and by a three-day forced march seize the section between Suide and Qingjian[2] before the enemy, blocking their southward advance. Thereafter, use a portion of our forces to block the enemy step by step, while the main force moves southward in great strength along the highway (do not leave the highway), pointing directly at Xianyang, to deal the enemy a death blow and effectively coordinate with Liu-Deng and Chen-Xie.[3]

Central Military Commission

30th, 13:00 hours

[1] This is a telegram drafted by Mao Zedong for the Central Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee to Peng Dehuai, commander and political commissar of the Northwest Field Army.
[2] Suide and Qingjian refer to Suide and Qingjian in Shaanxi Province.
[3] Liu-Deng refers to Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, then commander and political commissar of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army, respectively. Chen-Xie refers to Chen Geng and Xie Fuzhi, then secretary and deputy secretary of the Front Committee of the Chen-Xie Group of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army, respectively.