Preface
When it comes to the most senior people in the army of the People's Liberation Army, Chairman Mao, Premier Zhou, President Zhu and others will inevitably come to mind. Among them, Mr. Zhu has the reputation of "the father of the Red Army".
In the award ceremony after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Mr. Zhu was awarded the rank of marshal for his outstanding military exploits. He is at the top of the list of China's top ten marshals, but he is such an army leader with outstanding contributions, and his rank number is only 004.
At that time, the people had the impression that the numbers 001-003 should be Chairman Mao, Premier Zhou and Comrade Shaoqi respectively, but since they did not participate in the evaluation of military ranks, this matter was just a guess.
What happened at the investiture ceremony?
Who is the identity of 001?
On September 26, 1955, Mao Zedong was smoking a cigarette in his residence, he recalled every important moment in the revolutionary war, remembered the various experiences along the way, and remembered the countless martyrs who died in the revolutionary war, these loyal and brave men used their lives and blood to build the "Great Wall of Steel" of the republic.
On this day, Chairman Mao stared at the report on the nomination of the top ten marshals, and he was considering how to arrange the ranking of the marshals to be more reasonable.
The most special of the many numbers is "001". Who should belong to this particular number is the reason why the chairman tossed and turned and stayed awake all night.
After Ye Zilong urged repeatedly, Chairman Mao finally wrote 001 on a military rank appointment certificate.
According to our conventional logic, "001" means the head of all marshals. Judging from the nominations of the top ten marshals, the one most qualified to get the 001 number is definitely Marshal Zhu De.
Zhu De is the oldest, the most senior, and the most prestigious, he followed Mao Zedong in Jinggangshan to establish the famous "Zhu Mao Red Army" in the early years, and he once participated in the Nanchang Uprising, and led the work of the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army during the War of Resistance against Japan, and achieved a brilliant victory.
During the War of Liberation, he assisted Chairman Mao in directing the war across the country. Among the many battles, Mr. Zhu guided the "Shimen Battle" to a complete victory, and the tactical tactics of this battle are still talked about today.
At that time, Mr. Zhu personally came to the front line, and he gave detailed guidance to the siege troops, successfully conquered the first big city, and accumulated experience for the liberation of the big city later.
Because of this, everyone thinks that the number 001 should be Mr. Zhu De. But what people didn't expect was that Mr. Zhu's rank number was only 004.
So who will be the first three people in line? Some people speculate that it should be Chairman Mao, Premier Zhou and Chairman Liu Shaoqi.
During the events of the investiture ceremony, something interesting happened. Next, let's take a look at the basis of the parties' guesses.
On February 8, 1955, the sixth meeting of the Standing Committee of the First National People's Congress passed the Regulations on the Service of Officers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.
The Regulation clearly stipulates that:
The Supreme Commander-in-Chief who has made outstanding contributions to the creation of the National People's Armed Forces and the leadership of the National People's Armed Revolutionary War shall be awarded the rank of Generalissimo of the People's Republic of China.
At the same time, senior generals who have made outstanding contributions to the creation and leadership of the people's armed forces or the operation of campaign corps will be awarded the "rank of marshal" of the People's Republic of China.
Chairman Mao, as an important leader of the party and the state, led the revolution in the whole of China, and can be awarded the "rank of generalissimo".
So the relevant personnel in charge of this work at that time wrote Chairman Mao into the list of awards.
Soon, the list was presented to Chairman Mao's case. After careful consideration, Chairman Mao thought that it would be better for him not to accept the rank of generalissimo and leave this place to a more suitable person. At the same time, Chairman Liu Shaoqi also openly stated at the meeting that he would not want to nominate the "rank of marshal."
However, most people at the time insisted that the chairman should be awarded the rank of "generalissimo". In a report, everyone once again raised the relevant matters related to the award of the chairman, and after listening to the report, the chairman said emotionally:
"It's a very important job for you to do the award, and it's also a complicated job, and you need to take into account all aspects. I don't want to be a generalissimo, and it's not convenient for me to wear the generalissimo's uniform to speak among the people. ”
After listening to the chairman's words, Liu Shaoqi immediately said that he would not comment on it. Subsequently, Chairman Mao asked Premier Zhou and Comrade Deng Xiaoping, as well as several other comrades who were originally on the list of awards. Because the chairman suggested that those who worked in the localities should not be evaluated for the rank of marshal, and took the lead in saying that they would renounce the rank of generalissimo, they also said that they should not be evaluated!
When some readers saw this historical material, they could not help but be moved by the noble feelings of the revolutionaries of the older generation.
Of course, Chairman Mao knew the benefits of being a generalissimo, but considering that there were many problems in the evaluation of military ranks, some people thought that their military ranks were set low, and the existence of these problems also led to the fact that the work of determining military ranks has always been difficult and difficult.
The move of the chairman and the central leaders to "not evaluate military ranks" has undoubtedly brought a good start to the whole party and the whole army, and everyone has begun to obey the central authorities' policy decisions and no longer add trouble to the party's work.
However, in the end, since the chairman did not accept the rank of generalissimo, he did not accept the rank number of 001. So who will end up with this 001 rank number?
At that time, the comrades who collected the information still thought it was incredible, they confirmed each other, and some comrades even rubbed their eyes with their hands, repeatedly making sure that they were not mistaken, but the number "001" was indeed awarded to Marshal He Long.
This caused people to be puzzled, judging from the ranking of the top ten marshals, He Long only ranked fifth. How did Marshal He Long get this special honor?
Next, let's take a look at Comrade He Long's legendary experience!
The legendary revolutionary He Long
In 1896, He Long was born in a peasant family in Hongjiaguan, Sangzhi County, Hunan. Like most of the people in the country at that time, He Long's family had a very difficult time.
He Long's father, He Shidao, worked as a tailor in addition to farming. He often made clothes for others to earn money to support his family. He is very bold, ambitious, and has the ability to take care of the house.
Moreover, He Shidao dared to confront the local rich and inferior gentry, and this courage and fearlessness made him prestige in the village.
He Long is the fourth child in the family, and he has three older sisters, two younger sisters and a younger brother.
He Long was born at the time of the defeat of the First Sino-Japanese War and the wanton partition of China by the imperialist powers. The corrupt Qing government was able to endure insults and trampling by foreign enemies, but it fiercely suppressed and persecuted its own people. He Long, who lived in this environment, had already planted a revolutionary "seed" in his heart.
The "seeds" of this revolution broke through the ground when he was 18 years old. He joined the Chinese Revolutionary Party at that time under the introduction of Chen Tunan, and he believed in Sun Yat-sen's doctrine of the Three People's Principles, and since then embarked on the road of democratic revolution led by Mr. Sun Yat-sen.
After joining the revolutionary party, He Long studied hard and learned knowledge to enrich himself, while secretly developing the masses, and even organized the masses to make a revolution, for which he was also arrested and imprisoned by the local authorities!
In 1915, the profit-hungry Yuan Shikai attempted to establish an "Yuan Shikai Empire", which caused an uproar across the country. In order to oppose the Chinese Empire established by Yuan Shikai, Sun Yat-sen immediately issued the famous "Declaration of Seeking Yuan", and contacted the armed forces of various provinces to carry out a campaign to protect the country and fight against Yuan.
The Chinese Revolutionary Party in Hunan also took immediate action, and He Long received the task of mutiny in Nisha Town, Shimen County.
He immediately responded to Sun Yat-sen's call, smashed the local police station and established the "Xiangxi Yuan Independent Army". This incident also made He Long's reputation gradually louder.
In August 1917, Sun Yat-sen convened an extraordinary session of the National Assembly. He organized the "Military Government of the Republic of China" in Canton and became Generalissimo. At the same time, he also put forward the idea of opposing Duan Qirui's unification of the whole country by force.
When He Long, who was far away in Xiangxi, heard about it, he immediately gathered hundreds of people to form the "Xiangxi Protector Army". After organizing his manpower, he led his soldiers to fight against the Beiyang warlords and won a great victory.
And just when He Long's revolutionary career was thriving, his superiors detained and incorporated his revolutionary team for their own selfish interests, and He Long was also imprisoned. However, how could He Long, who was both wise and brave, allow himself to be detained? He quickly figured out a way out of prison.
He Long, who was released from prison, couldn't understand why his boss would stop him from making a revolution and detain himself?
At this time, Wu Yulin, the niece and grandson of his former revolutionary comrade-in-arms Wu Peiqing, came to Changde to join him. He Long asked Wu Yulin why he came to join him, and Wu Yulin expressed his hope to follow He Long to rob the rich and help the poor, and eat a mouthful of food.
After listening to his intentions, He Long explained with a smile that what he wants now is not only to rob the rich and help the poor, but also to fight the world for the poor and the people, he hopes that the poor people will no longer be oppressed and bullied, and that they can eat enough with their hard-working hands.
Wu Yulin was very moved after hearing this, he excitedly took out the two kitchen knives hidden on his body, and firmly expressed his willingness to go up the knife mountain and down the sea of fire for He Long, and follow him to fight the world for the poor.
He Long was amused by this stunned young man, he knew that this young man was really following him to make a revolution. So the two talked about revolution on the mountain path.
At this time, He Long found that several people were clustered around a county magistrate's sedan chair and walked in the direction of Changde, after the county magistrate took office, not only did not think about the people, but searched for the people's fat and people's ointment, He Long was not used to it, plus those people happened to have guns, He Long and Wu Yulin totaled to snatch the guns.
They used two kitchen knives to kill the group and seized two rifles. He Long's righteous act was not only harmful to the hearts of the local people, but their story soon spread throughout the village.
Subsequently, he and Wu Yulin embarked on a new revolutionary journey, and He Long also made a name for himself in Hunan with the story of two kitchen knives. He reorganized the revolutionary ranks and became a brave general in the ranks led by Sun Yat-sen.
During the period of the democratic revolution, he came into contact with Marxist ideology and gradually strengthened his belief in following the party. During the Northern Expedition, He Long took the lead and made great achievements.
In 1927, He Long became the commander of the Twentieth Army. In the same year, Chiang Kai-shek and Wang Jingwei rebelled against the revolution, and the Chinese Communist Party decided to launch an armed uprising in Nanchang.
On July 31, 1927, He Long attended a meeting held by the military headquarters of the 20th Army, which decided to launch an armed uprising at 2 a.m. on August 1.
In the afternoon of the same day, He Long convened a general meeting of officers to mobilize all commanders and fighters to participate in the uprising with him.
That night, in the name of the commander-in-chief, He Long ordered the road to be blocked, traffic to be cut off, and the alert detachment entered a combat state.
On August 1, our party fired the first shot of an armed uprising, and Chiang Kai-shek was so shocked that they began to mobilize troops to encircle and intercept our revolutionary troops in an attempt to prevent our army's movements.
In 1935, the fifth "encirclement and suppression" of the Kuomintang deprived our army of its revolutionary base areas. In November of the same year, He Long led his troops on the 25,000-mile Long March.
After going through hardships and hardships, they finally arrived in northern Shaanxi, where He Long and Comrade Mao Zedong would meet for the first time in the near future.
Chairman Mao and Mr. He
In the winter of 1936, He Long, who had arrived in northern Shaanxi for a period of time, went to the cave where Mao Zedong lived under the leadership of relevant personnel.
Comrade Mao Zedong had long heard the heroic story of He Long's "two kitchen knives making a revolution", and the two hit it off at first sight. During the conversation, Chairman Mao spoke highly of He Long's correct command during the Long March. He said that the Red Second and Sixth Front Armies led by He Long were 10,000 before the Long March, and when they came out, they were still more than 10,000, which was a victory. This experience is worth summing up!
On July 7, 1937, Japan launched the "Lugou Bridge Incident". According to the agreement signed between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, the Party Central Committee decided to reorganize the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army into the Eighth Route Army of the National Revolutionary Army.
In September 1937, the 120th Division held a reorganization and anti-Japanese pledge meeting in Zhuangli Town, northern Shaanxi. When the soldiers in the audience heard that they were going to change out of their Red Army uniforms, they were silent. Seeing that the soldiers did not move, He Long naturally knew that these heroic revolutionary fighters were not only reluctant to wear clothes, but also reluctant to their revolutionary beliefs.
In order to dispel the concerns of the soldiers, He Long said that he had worn the Kuomintang hat and the officer's uniform, but the Kuomintang had betrayed the revolution and the people, so he hated it very much and took off the Kuomintang military uniform.
However, now is the time of national crisis, and he himself is willing to wear this Kuomintang military uniform for the sake of the party and the people. He emphasized that it is not important what clothes you wear, but what matters is the faith and direction in your heart. The fighters very much agreed with He Long's opinion.
In the end, He Long said even more surprisingly:
As long as we follow the party and Chairman Mao, Lao Tzu can wear floral pants!
After the swearing-in meeting, He Long led the 358th Brigade of the 120th Division into the anti-Japanese front line and fought to the death against the Japanese invaders. The 120th Division insisted on applying Comrade Mao Zedong's correct strategy and tactics, and in less than a year, it fought more than 500 battles with Japanese devils and killed more than 20,000 Japanese puppet troops.
He Long attached great importance to mobilizing the local people to wage a people's war, and the number of troops of the 120th Division increased by leaps and bounds, from more than 8,000 to more than 20,000.
However, at this time, there was still controversy within the party about the implementation of Mao Zedong's mountain guerrilla strategy, and some people headed by Wang Ming advocated the idea of "everything goes through the united front and everything obeys the united front" within the party.
The transmission of this order became a stumbling block for the 120th Division, and everyone did not dare to let go of the masses, and even more did not dare to implement the mountain guerrilla strategy.
Seeing this situation in the troops, He Long was very anxious, and at a meeting he attacked Wang Ming's wrong line. He also said that the Kuomintang should implement the principle of "no one will offend me, I will not offend anyone, and if anyone offends me, I will offend others" and carry out a needle-to-needle struggle against Mai Mang, and moreover, the troops should continue to carry out Comrade Mao Zedong's correct strategy with indomitable indomitability.
Some cadres felt that He Long's speech seriously deviated from the party's line, and they reported their opinions to the Central Committee and signed a letter of report. Afterwards, Guan Xiangying, the political commissar of the 120th Division, who had signed the report letter, thought that it was inappropriate for him to do so, so he went to Yan'an to find Mao Zedong.
Mao Zedong, of course, knew what he was coming for, and he denied the action of writing the whistleblower letter and said:
"He Long has three rare and valuable things, the first is loyalty to the party; the second is to fight fiercely against the enemy; The third is to be able to connect with the masses at all times. ”
Mao Zedong's attitude further strengthened He Long's position in the 120th Division. Under the leadership of He Long, the 120th Division annihilated more than 100,000 Japanese puppet troops and fought more than 10,000 times during the War of Resistance Against Japan.
During the War of Liberation, Chiang Kai-shek's troops launched a key attack on the central base area of our party, and Mao Zedong had to "circle in circles" with Hu Zongnan in northern Shaanxi every day. He Long immediately gave his two foals to Mao Zedong to travel.
Comrade Mao Zedong was very moved, and he said to the comrades who sent Malay:
"I have received Mr. He's gift, but Mr. He always likes to run forward when he fights in front, and he needs a thousand miles. Please rest assured, Mr. He, I can walk as a car! ”
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, He Long was appointed as the director of the National Sports Commission, and under his leadership, China's sports industry has developed rapidly.
Under the leadership of He Long, New China Sports has embarked on a new stage. Some of the measures proposed by He Long have also improved the quality of all the people!
In view of Mr. He's immortal exploits in the revolution, the chairman felt that the military rank number 001 He Long was well-deserved.
In the long revolutionary war, He Long had already tied his fate to the fate of the party. His life was as the chairman commented: "Loyalty to the party!" ”