Control Yingkou and Block the Enemy’s Sea Escape Route[1]

(October 24, 1948)

Lin and Luo, and inform Gao and Wu[2]:

Your Jiong telegram[3] received. Since the main forces of the 52nd Army, 53rd Army, and 207th Division are still in the Tieling, Shenyang, Fushun, Benxi, and Anshan area, and a part of the 52nd Army has already advanced and occupied Haicheng and Niuzhuang[4], it is already very clear that the enemy is preparing to use Yingkou as one of its two retreat routes. When the enemy’s main force is being attacked and wiped out by our forces in the Heishan and Beizhen area, its routed and fleeing troops may also retreat toward Yingkou. Therefore, you should still detach a part of your forces from the various independent divisions to move south, annihilate the enemy at Anshan, Haicheng, and Niuzhuang,

[1] This is a telegram drafted by Mao Zedong for the Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee to Lin Biao, commander of the Northeast Field Army, and Luo Ronghuan, its political commissar.

[2] Gao and Wu refer to Gao Gang and Wu Xiuquan, who were then respectively the first deputy commander and the second chief of staff of the Northeast Military Region.

[3] This refers to the telegram sent by Lin Biao, Luo Ronghuan, and Liu Yalou to the Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee on October 24, 1948. The telegram stated: “(1) Yesterday a small enemy advance force reached the vicinity of Heishan and made contact with our troops. The New 1st Army, New 6th Army, New 3rd Army, 49th Army, 71st Army, one brigade of the 207th Division, and three cavalry brigades are all in the area south of Xinlitun and north of Heishan. The headquarters of the 207th Division has already moved from Shenyang to Xinmin, while the other two brigades seem still to be in the Fushun and Benxi area. One regiment of the 52nd Army already occupied Haicheng and the vicinity of Niuzhuang yesterday. (2) Our 6th Column occupied Zhangwu yesterday and continues to advance south today. A part of our forces moving north from Jinzhou has already reached the line of Dahushan and Beizhen, while the remaining forces are moving toward Qinghebianmen, Fuxin, and Xinlitun, preparing to coordinate in a pincer attack on the enemy from the front. The advance elements of our 12th Column can reach the vicinity of Tieling today.”

[4] Niuzhuang, a town located in the western part of Haicheng County, Liaoning Province.

and control Yingkou, blocking the enemy’s escape route to the sea. In addition, all available local forces in the Nanman[1] area should be used to deal with the enemy in the Anshan, Haicheng, and Niuzhuang area.

The Military Commission
24:00, October 24

[1] Nanman refers to the area east of the Shenyang-Dalian section of the Chinese Changchun Railway, including Andong (now Dandong), Zhuanghe, Tonghua, Linjiang, Qingyuan, and the area southwest of Shenyang such as Liaozhong.