A 'Journey to the Roots' Spanning a Thousand Li — Receiving the Ideological Baptism of On-Site Instruction
An Army unit organizes political instructors to carry out on-site instruction activities in the revolutionary old base areas of southern Jiangsu —
A 'Journey to the Roots' Spanning a Thousand Li
■ Sun Chengye, Tang Chengye, Liu Qian
In early summer, a light rain gradually subsides. Ten political instructors from an Army unit set out for the revolutionary old base areas of southern Jiangsu, embarking on a 'journey to the roots' spanning a thousand li, to receive the ideological baptism (思想洗礼) of on-site instruction.
The unit's predecessor was a New Fourth Army force led by veteran revolutionaries of the older generation. From the flames of anti-Japanese resistance in Jiangnan to the bloody battles of central Jiangsu, from the Tangma breakout to the Huaihai decisive campaign, from the advance into northern Jiangsu to the Yangtze River Crossing Campaign, this heroic force experienced more than 2,000 engagements of varying scale, was thoroughly tempered through fire and blood, and achieved brilliant results.
"Brave sons from eight provinces converge into an iron torrent of anti-Japanese resistance — advance eastward! Advance eastward! We are the iron New Fourth Army…" To the stirring melody of the "New Fourth Army March," the political instructors, clad in military uniform, strode with firm steps into Shuixi Village, Liyang City, Jiangsu Province.
"During the War of Resistance Against Japan, Chen Yi and Su Yu commanded the New Fourth Army right here to open up the southern Jiangsu anti-Japanese base area centered on Maoshan Mountain." Inside the New Fourth Army Jiangnan Command Memorial Hall, a guide recounted that history of raging warfare in unhurried detail.
"The stories of our revolutionary forebears who, in harsh conditions, showed no fear of a powerful enemy and fought with valor, reminded me of the experiences our unit went through in overcoming difficulties during our transformation and development." Looking at the artifacts on display in the memorial hall, Peng Wugang, a company political instructor (指导员) from the unit, said with deep feeling: during that period, in order to thoroughly master the basic principles of a certain type of system, officers and soldiers drilled practical operations during the day and studied theory at night; every person applied themselves to the utmost to learn genuine skills and hone genuine abilities, and successfully completed the tasks assigned by higher authorities.
In recent years, the unit has continuously driven a transformation and upgrade from a single-arm force to combined-arms operations (合成作战), and from aggregated specialist "small-scale coordination" (小协同) to integration into the system's "large-scale combined arms" (大合成). The unit's combat capabilities have steadily improved. In one live-force confrontation exercise, the officers and soldiers of Peng Wugang's company were high in morale and grew more valiant with each engagement. In encirclement and annihilation operations, their tactics were flexible and their coordination seamless; in seizing and controlling key terrain, they raced against time and pressed forward with one sustained effort… This well-fought battle was assessed by the exercise control headquarters as: "the best engagement posture, the greatest results achieved, and the best operational effectiveness."
Tangma Village, located in the northwest of Liyang, was once the center of the anti-Japanese resistance in southern Jiangsu and the location of the headquarters of the New Fourth Army's 16th Brigade and the Suwan District Party Committee. The Tangma Battle Martyrs' Cemetery sits on a hillside embraced by pine forests. At the center of the cemetery, a martyrs' memorial stele stands tall. When the political instructors entered the cemetery, the sky was overcast and dark clouds hung low.
On November 28, 1941, the Japanese Army's 15th Division and puppet troops advanced in three columns to encircle Tangma, attempting to annihilate the Party and government organs of the southern Jiangsu anti-Japanese base area and the 16th Brigade headquarters. To cover the withdrawal of the Party and government organs and the people of the southern Jiangsu anti-Japanese base area, Brigade Commander Luo Zhongyi and Political Commissar Liao Haitao led their officers and soldiers in blocking an enemy force several times their own size. After repelling more than ten enemy assaults, both men fell heroically in battle.
Listening on-site to the heroic deeds of the revolutionary martyrs, Jin Weiqian, a battalion political educator (教导员), was deeply shaken. After the activity concluded, he wrote in his diary: "Standing here today, I have truly come to understand the absolute resolve (决绝) of our revolutionary forebears — knowing full well they faced near-certain death, they still chose to advance toward death in order to live."
More than eighty years have passed, and the mountains and rivers have long taken on a new appearance, but one kind of choice has remained constant — stepping forward for the people. Last July, the garrison area was struck by severe flood disaster caused by heavy rainfall. The unit's officers and soldiers moved at the order, rapidly rushing to assist in emergency rescue and disaster relief. Confronting the tests of raging floodwaters, damaged roads, and trapped civilians, the officers and soldiers used their flesh and blood to build a "human levee," faithfully fulfilling in the crests and troughs of the waves their solemn oath to "be ready at all times to dedicate everything to the Party and the people."
"Drawing the bow to shoot the sun, arriving in Jiangnan — through the night, shouts and clamor made the enemy's courage run cold." At Weigang in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu, two mountain peaks lie across the north and south, with a road passing between them. On June 17, 1938, Su Yu commanded the New Fourth Army's Anti-Japanese Advance Detachment to set an ambush here, firing the first shot of the advance into southern Jiangsu and dealing a heavy blow to the arrogance and aggression of the Japanese forces.
"The New Fourth Army's Anti-Japanese Advance Detachment that fought in that battle was the predecessor unit of our own 'Tiger Regiment'!" Speaking of this glorious chapter of battle history, Chen Zexin, a company political instructor, spoke with unmistakable pride. In those days, the old regimental commander Wang Bicheng led his troops to victory after victory, and was called "Wang the Tiger" by local people, from which the unit took the name "Tiger Regiment."
The spirit of the "iron torrent" (铁流) is passed down from generation to generation, inspiring officers and soldiers to strive and forge ahead. In the finals of an all-army bayonet fighting competition, unit soldier Wang Weiping suffered a flare-up of an old injury yet endured the severe pain to see it through to the end, winning the championship in one stroke. "Compared to the revolutionary forebears who shed their blood on the battlefield, this little pain is nothing," Wang Weiping said with conviction as he stepped off the competition floor.
"The times have changed, conditions have improved, but the forebears' fighting spirit (战斗精神) of pressing forward with no hesitation, and their patriotic sentiment (家国情怀) of sacrificing themselves for the people — these have always flowed on through the bloodlines of our officers and soldiers, transformed into the courage and strength with which we fulfill our mission and are determined to strengthen the military." Discussing the gains from participating in the "journey to the roots" activity, Zhang Yafei, a staff officer (干事) in the unit's propaganda section, said.
From the victory of annihilating the enemy at Dongwan, to the surprise raid at Yanling; from yielding not an inch of ground in the Shangxia Hui battle, to defeating the many with the few in the Huangqiao Campaign… the political instructors visited site after site, pursuing their search step by step, drawing rich spiritual nourishment from the weighty history of the red heritage.
"History is the best textbook. The red genes (红色基因) forged by our forebears with blood and life are our most precious spiritual wealth." The unit's leadership introduced: after the "journey to the roots" activity concluded, they encouraged the political instructors to compile what they had seen, thought, and understood into a volume, to serve as vivid teaching material for carrying out ideological and political education, and to better drive red education (红色教育) into the minds and hearts of officers and soldiers.