Win a Few Battles to Coordinate with Su Yu’s Troops in Their Rest and Reorganization

(February 17, 1948)

Xiaoping and Xiannian:

Su Yu’s troops have been harassed by the enemy’s Fifth Army and other units, which is unfavorable for their rest and reorganization. It is necessary for Chen Shiju and Tang Liang, Chen Geng and Xie Fuzhi, [1] and your forces north of the Huai River to concentrate their strength and win a few battles to draw away the Fifth Army and other units, so that Su Yu’s troops can rest and reorganize with peace of mind. This unit will need over a month for rest and reorganization and will probably be able to move out around the middle or latter part of the Mao month. During this period, it is precisely the right time for Chen Shiju and Tang Liang, Chen Geng and Xie Fuzhi, and your forces north of the Huai River to concentrate and fight a few battles. Then, when Su Yu’s troops move out, they should coordinate with Su’s operations with full force. At the same time, your main force of four columns (ten mobile brigades) should not all be concentrated; it is advisable to concentrate only two columns (five mobile brigades) to operate together with Chen Shiju and Tang Liang and Chen Geng and Xie Fuzhi. The strength will already be very great. Five mobile brigades should be left in the Dabie Mountains to await opportunities to annihilate the enemy. Therefore, in my opinion, the entire Dabie Mountains area should be handed over to Xiannian for command, and Xiaoping should lead the troops that are to be concentrated and cross north of the Huai River now to join forces with Bocheng [2] and exercise unified command over the field army formed by combining the three armies (with a total of twenty-two mobile brigades). The three areas of Dabie, Tongbai, and Jianghan will all serve as auxiliary battlefields, with the northern area as the main battlefield. What is your opinion? I await your reply.

Mao Zedong

[1] Chen Shiju and Tang Liang were then respectively chief of staff and director of the political department of the East China Field Army. Chen Geng and Xie Fuzhi were then respectively secretary and deputy secretary of the Front Committee of the Chen-Xie Group of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army.

[2] Bocheng, i.e., Liu Bocheng, was then commander of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army.