The 11th Column May Assemble at Sanhe and Attack the Tongxian Area as Opportunity Offers[1]

(October 29, 1948)

Lin, Luo, Liu, and inform Rehe[2]:

Your telegram of 0800 hours today[3] received. Since you have already withdrawn the garrison units from Tashan for rest and reorganization, it seems possible to transfer the 11th Column for use on the Beiping front. If you agree, please order this column to take the shortest route via Zunhua and Jixian to assemble at Sanhe, attack the Tongxian area as opportunity offers, and temporarily come under the command of Yang, Luo, and Geng[4]. In order to achieve their objective of destroying the central authorities and the North China government organs in the Pingshan-Shimen[5] area, Jiang and Fu[6] are employing three of their strongest armies, one cavalry division, one cavalry brigade, one tank unit, and one engineer demolition squad. Their advance elements have already occupied Wangdu today. After Yang, Luo, and Geng have returned for reinforcement, the balance of forces is still

[1] This telegram was drafted by Mao Zedong for the Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee and addressed to Lin Biao, commander of the Northeast Field Army, Luo Ronghuan, its political commissar, and Liu Yalou, its chief of staff.
[2] Rehe, name of a former province covering the northeastern part of present-day Hebei Province, the southwestern part of the Liaoning Province and the southeastern part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. It was dissolved in 1955. Here it refers to the Rehe Military District.
[3] This refers to the telegram of 0800 hours, October 29, 1948, from Lin Biao, Luo Ronghuan, and Liu Yalou to the Military Commission of the CPC Central Committee and the Northeast Bureau. The telegram stated: Yesterday, three of our columns reached the banks of the Liaohe River but could not cross because there were no pontoon bridges and few ferry boats. Bridge construction is now being pressed forward. Our 10th Column yesterday completely wiped out the 116th Division (minus one battalion). We have ordered our Tashan garrison units to withdraw for rest and reorganization.
[4] Yang, Luo, and Geng refer to Yang Dezhi, Luo Ruiqing, and Geng Biao, who were then respectively commander, political commissar, and chief of staff of the Second Army of the North China Military Region.
[5] Shimen, i.e., Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province.
[6] Jiang refers to Jiang Jieshi (Chiang Kai-shek). Fu refers to Fu Zuoyi, then Commander-in-Chief of the Kuomintang’s “Bandit Suppression” General Headquarters in North China.

insufficient to annihilate this enemy force. At present, the Tongxian-Beiping area is weakly defended. The 4th Division of the 13th Army, originally stationed at Tongxian, has also been transferred to the Beiping-Baoding line[1]. If the 11th Column can appear in the Tongxian sector and compel a part of the southward-moving enemy troops to turn back, then our forces under Yang, Luo, and Geng can deliver a crushing blow to the remainder.

Military Commission
You hour, Yan day[2]

[1] The Beiping-Baoding line refers to the railway between Beiping (present-day Beijing) and Baoding, i.e., a section of the present-day Beijing-Guangzhou line.
[2] You hour, Yan day: You hour = 5:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m.; Yan day = 29th day of the month, by the traditional Chinese telegraphese date code.