Telegram from the Military Commission on Not Allowing the Enemy Troops in Guangdong to Flee into Guangxi (October 13, 1949)

Lin, Deng [1], Ye, Chen [2]:

According to a telegram from Hong Kong dated October 10, it is stated, “(1) According to information from high-ranking air force personnel, Jiang [3] telegraphed Li and Bai [4] to abandon the defense of Guangzhou and hold fast to Guangxi; and expressed that henceforth he will not interfere with Li and Bai’s methods. (2) According to people familiar with the Guangxi clique, if the remnant troops of the Guangxi clique retreat into Guangxi territory, they will largely flee and scatter, losing their combat effectiveness. Currently, the Bai bandits are selling firearms to landlords in large quantities at low prices, intending to organize local reactionary forces on a large scale, and are practicing scorched-earth tactics in eastern Guangxi, even intending to destroy grain seeds,” etc. Please pay close attention, and you must not allow the Guangdong enemy to flee into Guangxi.

The Military Commission
October 13

Published based on the manuscript of Mao Zedong.

Notes

[1] Lin refers to Lin Biao, then Commander of the Fourth Field Army of the Chinese People's Liberation Army and Commander of the Central China Military Region. Deng refers to Deng Zihui, then Second Political Commissar of the Fourth Field Army of the Chinese People's Liberation Army and Second Political Commissar of the Central China Military Region.

[2] Ye refers to Ye Jianying, then Commander and concurrently Political Commissar of the Guangdong Military Region of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. Chen refers to Chen Geng, then Commander and concurrently Political Commissar of the Fourth Army Group of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.

[3] Jiang refers to Jiang Jieshi.

[4] Li refers to Li Zongren, who became Acting President of the Kuomintang government on January 21, 1949. Bai refers to Bai Chongxi, who was appointed Chief of the Central China Military and Political Affairs Administration of the Kuomintang government in April 1949.