When General Chen Geng participated in the revolution in his early years, he was seriously injured many times, although the injuries were controlled after treatment and did not endanger his life, he also left serious sequelae. In 1933, when Chen Geng was engaged in underground activities in Shanghai, he was accidentally arrested and imprisoned by the enemy, during which he was brutally electrocuted, which caused great damage to his cardiopulmonary system.
In the middle of 1933, Chen Geng took advantage of the inattention of the enemy guarding and secretly escaped, and in the second half of that year, he was ordered to work in the Central Soviet District, and successively served as the head of the cadre regiment and the commander of the 1st Red Division, and was deeply trusted and favored by the Party Central Committee. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he led the Eighth Route Army to establish the Taiyue Military Region, which opened up a new situation of resistance against Japan in North China, effectively counterattacked the Japanese invaders, and defended China's territory.
After the outbreak of the Liberation War, he was first ordered to protect the safety of the Party Central Committee, and after the Party Central Committee left northern Shaanxi and moved to Xibaipo, he quickly led his troops eastward to join Liu Deng's army. In late 1948, he led his troops to participate in the Huaihai War, and cooperated with Huaye to annihilate the last mobile force of the Kuomintang army, which completely established the victory of the Liberation War.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Chen Geng wanted to recuperate for a period of time, take care of his mental and physical strength, but Chairman Mao sent him to Vietnam at this time to help the Viet Cong fight against the French invaders, in 1952, the Viet Cong through a series of tough battles, has beaten France to the ground, and is about to achieve the final victory, Chen Geng This is also considered to have completed the mission, at this time his physical condition is not optimistic, his right leg slowly lost his mobility, and must be on crutches to assist walking. But he didn't complain about it, but naughtily gave himself the nickname of "three legs".
In the middle of 1952, he was sent to North Korea by the Party Central Committee to replace Mr. Peng as the commander of the Volunteer Army, but later Chairman Mao suddenly changed his mind and transferred him to Harbin to build the mainland's first military academy, the Harbin Military Industry, to train special talents for the mainland, land, and air, and to improve the overall quality and combat effectiveness of the PLA. In 1957, General Chen Geng suffered two consecutive strokes due to overwork, which seriously damaged his physical health, and since then, his ability to act and logical thinking has declined significantly, and he can no longer engage in the heavy work of the first line, so the Party Central Committee arranged for him to retire to the second-line unit.
In 1961, Chen Geng was ordered to go to Shanghai for recuperation, when General Su Yu was also in Shanghai, the two lived very closely, Chen Geng usually visited Su Yu in order to pass the boring time. Su Yu was accidentally involved in a political storm at the end of the 50s and was forced to resign from the post of chief of the General Staff. Seeing this, Chen Geng repeatedly encouraged and comforted him, helping him dispel a lot of negative emotions and cheer up again.
However, what Su Yu never expected was that only a month later, Chen Geng's condition suddenly deteriorated, and although his family sent him to the hospital in time for rescue, he eventually died at the age of 58. Chairman Mao, who was far away in Beijing, was shocked when he learned of this, and hurriedly suspended his work, and arranged for people to instruct the funeral committee to take care of Chen Geng's funeral.
Three days later, the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee held a memorial service for Chen Geng in Puxi, and a large number of military and political cadres headed by Premier Zhou were present to lay wreaths and couplets for him as a sign of respect and mourning. After the memorial service, the Party Central Committee was ready to transport Chen Geng's ashes back to Beijing and bury them in Babaoshan, Su Yu suddenly applied at this time, wanting to personally escort Chen Geng's ashes north, and the Party Central Committee agreed to approve it after careful consideration, so Su accompanied Chen to the last journey of his life as a friend.
Chen Geng has had two marriages and has a total of five children, of which the eldest son is named Chen Zhifei, he was born in the period of the agrarian revolution, grew up with his grandfather and grandmother since he was a child, until 1946, he was reunited with his father Chen Geng, in 1947, he was sent to North China University to study, after graduation was assigned to a heavy factory in Northeast China as an engineer, in the early 60s, he was transferred to work in the aerospace department, and participated in the research and development of a number of key projects, at the beginning of the new century he retired honorably, in 2020, he died of illness, He was ninety-two years old.
The other three sons signed up for the army one after another, and finally became major generals and senior cadres, making immortal contributions to the reform and development of the PLA. The only daughter named Chen Zhijin, she has been very interested in medicine since she was a child, after the college entrance examination, she resolutely applied for the military hospital, and after graduation, she was assigned to work in the General Hospital of the People's Liberation Army, and with her excellent medical skills, she saved countless injuries and patients. In 1995, she was sent to France for further study and study, and returned to China in 1996, so she was named the chief physician, and also taught in several top universities, and has cultivated countless outstanding medical talents.