Northwest Years 西北岁月 Episode 32

Now that Nanjing has been completely liberated, it means that the Kuomintang has been defeated. However, Hu Zongnan is still stubbornly resisting, and it will be difficult to liberate Xi'an. Xi Zhongxun told everyone a good news. Zuo Xiezhong sent a representative to negotiate, and this person was the chief of staff Zhang Zhiyin. The other party was a patriotic person with progressive ideas, so he first considered whether he could instigate the 22nd Army to revolt and strive for the peaceful liberation of Yulin.

However, just halfway through the negotiations, Zhang Zhiyin was suddenly stopped by Zuo Xiezhong. When Xi Zhongxun heard the news, he first asked someone to make clothes for Zhang Zhiyin and others and sent them to them, and then sent Secretary-General Cao Liru and others outside Yulin City, hoping to visit them. Under the persuasion of Zhang Zhiyin and others, Zuo Xiezhong agreed to restart the negotiations. When he understood Xi Zhongxun's attitude and sincerity, he was very moved.

On the other hand, the Northwest Bureau established a preparatory committee for receiving Xi'an, and the liberation of Xi'an was put on the agenda. Xi Zhongxun arranged for the guard Han Zhu to report to the public security department in the future, and said that the new China was about to be established, and there were spies lurking in the Kuomintang everywhere. Their mission and responsibility as public security would be extremely important.

The First Field Army was discussing the timing of liberating Xi'an. The focus of the debate was on Hu Zongnan's army. The disparity in strength between the enemy and us was huge, but Zhang Zongsun thought there was no time to wait any longer. Xi Zhongxun suggested using the vanguard of the 18th and 19th Corps to confuse the enemy, so that there would be no need to march covertly, and they could directly advance to the northwest with great fanfare. Everyone agreed.

Soon, Hu Zongnan announced that the main force would withdraw from Xi'an, and all departments would move to Hanzhong, leaving only part of the troops to control Xi'an and Qinling Mountains, with the western part of Guanzhong and Longdong as the defense focus, and let the two Ma cooperate with them to keep the northwest and shield the southwest. That night, Wang Chaobei, the director of the Xi'an Intelligence Department of the Communist Party of China, brought Li Maotang to Qin Mulan to deliver intelligence, informing her that Hu Zongnan had withdrawn from Xi'an and retreated to Hanzhong.

For this reason, Zhang Zongsun and others decided to liberate Xi'an ahead of schedule. Xi Zhongxun ordered Han Zhu to lead the comrades of the Public Security Department of the Military Control Commission immediately to enter Xi'an with the advance troops of Luo Yuanfa of the Sixth Army, and to protect the important facilities and urban construction in Xi'an to prevent them from being destroyed by Kuomintang spies.

Commander Yang was also ready to run away. Before leaving, he appointed Wei Hai as the commander of the Sixth Anti-Communist National Salvation Corps, and handed over all the Xi'an military and police to him for command, and asked him to immediately set up the Flame Rangers to cooperate with the commander of the Xi'an Garrison District, Xiao Shaowen, to defend Xi'an. Wei Hai saw that these high-ranking officials had all run away, and he was full of anger and had nowhere to vent, but he knew that he had no background and no way out, so he decided to take this opportunity to compete with the Communist Party.

On May 20, 1949, Xi'an was liberated. Facing the Kuomintang army that could counterattack at any time, and the enemy spies who were destroying everywhere in the city, the First Field Army was also waiting for reinforcements from the 18th and 19th Corps. Wei Hai hid in the crowd and ordered his men to hide for a few days to recuperate. The two were angry that Hu Zongnan was a coward.

Soon, Chiang Kai-shek called Hu Zongnan to cooperate with the two Ma to recapture Xi'an. Hu Zongnan had no choice but to order Pei Changhui to take the Fifth Corps to set off first. The action did not need to be too fast, just stay where it was, forcing the two Ma to retreat to Longdong and enter Guanzhong in disguise, creating a good opportunity for a smooth retreat to Sichuan in the future.

Peng Dehuai returned to the First Field Army and learned about the situation of Hu Zongnan and Qingyang Ma. The biggest difficulty they faced at present was that the enemies outside the city were eyeing them covetously, and the spies in the city were sabotaging everywhere. If the war started before the two corps arrived, Xianyang and Xi'an would be in danger.

Then Xi Zhongxun called everyone together and announced the central government's decision on the candidates for the leading cadres of the Xi'an Military Control Commission, the Municipal Party Committee and the Municipal Government. Before He Long, the director of the Military Control Commission, came back, Jia Tuofu was responsible for presiding over the Military Control Commission and taking over Xi'an. In addition, everyone discussed the issue of Kuomintang spies. Xi Zhongxun told everyone that Xi'an was a strategic location in the entire northwest. Its liberation was of great significance both militarily and politically, and he proposed that all cadres bring their families with them.