Prepare to Block the Enemy Forces that
May Flee from Tianjin toward Qingdao
through Ji’nan
(December 13, 1948, 4:00 A.M.)
To the East China Bureau; and for the information of Su [Yu] and Tan [Zhenlin],
and Lin [Biao] and Luo [Ronghuan]:1
The main force of the Northeast Field Army has entered the [Shanhai] Pass
and is now deploying forces to cut off connections between the various points of
Beiping, Tianjin, and Tanggu. They are preparing to attack Beiping, Tianjin, and
Tanggu (the enemy forces in Tangshan are now retreating). If the enemy forces
have no other escape routes, you must take responsibility for blocking them when
they flee from Tianjin toward Qingdao through Ji’nan, coordinating with our large
pursuing and attacking forces to wipe out the enemy in the area around Ji’nan on
the north shore of the Yellow River. How many forces do you still have in the area
around Ji’nan that could be used? Can you block the south shore of the Yellow
River? Where is Wu Huawen’s2 unit at present? Could He and Zhang’s unit3 be
used in this location? We hope you will plan and prepare in advance and keep us
informed by telegram.
The Military Commission


Our source for this text is Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 5, pp. 391–92, where it is
1.  Mao Zedong drafted this telegram on behalf of the Central Military Commission.
Su Yu was the acting commander and acting political commissar of the East China Field
Army, and Tan Zhenlin was the deputy political commissar of the East China Field Army.
Lin Biao and Luo Ronghuan were commander and political commissar, respectively, of the
Northeast Field Army.
2.  Wu Huawen was formerly commander of the Guomindang’s Reorganized Ninetysixth Army. After his revolt in September 1948, he became commander of the Thirty-fifth
Army of the East China Field Army.
3.  On November 8, 1948, He Jifeng and Zhang Kexia, deputy commanders of the Guomindang army’s Third Pacification Zone and underground members of the Chinese Communist Party, led a revolt by one army, three divisions, and one regiment, totaling 20,000
personnel, in the Jiawang-Taierzhuang area of northeastern Xuzhou.


DOI:  10.4324/9781315719436-208

reproduced from Mao’s handwritten manuscript preserved in the Central Archives.