Whether Xu Tan’s Corps Should Enter Southwestern Shandong Depends on the Situation[1]

(May 28, 1948)

Chen and Su, with copies to Liu and Deng, and Xu and Tan[2]:

Your telegram of the 27th at 9:00 a.m.[3] has been received. (1) Chen Xilian’s Corps[4] is tasked with pinning down the 18th Army to ensure it cannot reinforce the east. Liu and Deng are requested to deploy and execute this according to the situation. (2) Whether Xu Tan’s Corps should send one column into southwestern Shandong to assist in attacking the 5th Army depends on whether the 84th Division, the 12th Division, and others reinforce the 5th Army in southwestern Shandong. If Xu Tan’s Corps’ operations along the Jinan-Yanzhou section of the Tianjin-Pukou Railway[5] can pin down the 84th and 12th Divisions, preventing them from reinforcing westward, then if the corps withdraws one column to move west and join the attack on the 5th Army, it might draw the 84th or 12th Division westward as well (i.e., our concentration could lead to the enemy’s concentration). In that case, it would be more advantageous to pin down these two divisions from a distance. If Xu Tan’s operations along the Jinan-Yanzhou section fail to pin down the 84th and 12th Divisions, resulting in one of these divisions reinforcing westward, then Xu Tan should naturally use the main force to pin down the enemy’s main force along the Jinan-Yanzhou section while withdrawing one column to move west. Alternatively, if Xu Tan’s main force can already pin down the 84th and 12th Divisions so they dare not move, and there is a surplus column available for use on the western front, then one column can also be withdrawn to move west. This matter is to be handled by Su Yu, who will issue temporary orders to Xu Tan based on the above circumstances. Central Military Commission, noon of the 28th.

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[1] This telegram was drafted by Mao Zedong for the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China and addressed to Chen Yi, commander and political commissar of the East China Field Army, and Su Yu, deputy commander.
[2] Liu and Deng refer to Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, who were then commander and political commissar of the Central Plains Field Army, respectively. Xu and Tan refer to Xu Shiyou and Tan Zhenlin, who were then commander and political commissar of the Shandong Corps of the East China Field Army, respectively.
[3] Refers to the telegram sent by Chen Yi and Su Yu to the Central Military Commission at 9:00 a.m. on May 27, 1948. The telegram stated: To coordinate with the East China Field Army’s main force’s operational plan to annihilate the enemy’s 5th Army in southwestern Shandong, the actions of Xu Tan’s and Chen Tang’s units should be determined based on the movements of the enemy’s 5th Army. They must not miss the opportunity to engage and should intercept the 5th Army as it reinforces southwestern Shandong, coordinating with the 1st Corps to annihilate it. Xu Tan’s Corps should designate one column as a reserve force, ready to enter southwestern Shandong for combat upon orders.
[4] Chen Xilian’s Corps refers to the temporary combat group formed by the 1st, 3rd, and 6th Columns of the Central Plains Field Army, under the unified command of Chen Xilian, commander of the 3rd Column.
[5] The Jinan-Yanzhou section of the Tianjin-Pukou Railway refers to the section of the railway from Tianjin to Pukou between Jinan and Yanzhou, now part of the Beijing-Shanghai line.