Site of the Battle at Lanpu Ancestral Hall

Site of the Battle at Lanpu Ancestral Hall

The Site of the Battle at Lanpu Ancestral Hall is a classic red tourism attraction.

The Lanpu Ancestral Hall, site of the battle, is located at the Lin Clan Ancestral Hall in Lanpu Village, Xiangqian Town, Minhou County.

In early 1949, in Lanpu Village, Linsen County (in 1944, Minhou County was renamed Linsen County and reverted to Minhou County in 1950), there was a local tyrant and landlord named Lin Ketan who owned thousands of acres of land and immense wealth. Seeing the growing storm of peasant resistance, and in order to protect his own interests and safety, he took advantage of the "welcoming the gods" festival on the 14th day of the second lunar month in Lanpu Village—a three-day theatrical celebration—and specially invited the county security squad stationed in Huyu Township to visit his residence. He prepared a lavish feast to entertain Security Squad Captain Liu Zhaochun and his soldiers, hoping to use the security forces to intimidate the public.

Upon receiving this information, the underground Party branch of Lanpu Village immediately reported the situation to the Minzhong guerrilla unit. The leadership of the Minzhong guerrillas immediately decided: “Take advantage of the security squad watching the play at the Lanpu Ancestral Hall, launch a surprise attack when they least expect it, and wipe out the enemy in one fell swoop. But the operation must be swift, the annihilation precise, carried out in one go without harming civilians, ensuring absolute success.” They immediately dispatched 12 guerrilla fighters including Chen Zhenbiao, Shen Zuxia, Zheng Shucheng, and Huang Jianguo, who disguised themselves as theatergoers. Relying on underground Party members within Lanpu for inside support, they coordinated inside and out to strike and eliminate the enemy. The 12 guerrillas arrived overnight at the home of Zheng Xiaoquan, an underground contact in Pan’yang Natural Village, two li away from Lanpu Village. To ensure an accurate and decisive strike, they further discussed the battle plan. They all agreed: based on the enemy’s movements during the festival in Lanpu—where they dined at Lin Ketan’s house every evening—the best time would be when the enemy was at the ancestral hall watching the play. They would set up an ambush, catch them off guard, and strike suddenly.

On the 15th day of the second lunar month, as night fell and the all-night “welcoming the gods” opera began, the soldiers at Lin Ketan’s house were all drunk, puffing on “Hademen” cigarettes, carrying rifles and handguns, swaggering arrogantly as they escorted Lin Ketan into the Lin Clan Ancestral Hall in Lanpu. They sat concentratedly on the balconies on both the east and west sides of the hall to watch the performance. Observing that the enemy was deeply engrossed in the show and their guard was down, the 12 guerrillas mingled with the audience, closely monitoring the enemy’s movements. According to the prearranged plan, they split into two groups of five, with Chen Zhenbiao and Shen Zuxia in command. The two combat teams hid behind the stage. When the opera reached its climax and the audience erupted in cheers, a sudden “Bang!”—the command signal—was fired. The 10 guerrillas hiding behind the enemy simultaneously raised their weapons and fired. With lightning speed, they shot and killed Security Squad Captain Liu Zhaochun and several machine gunners on the spot. Enemy Vice-Captain Xue was wounded, jumped off the building, and fled in panic among the crowd, mixing with the audience, while Lin Ketan also escaped in terror. Those who couldn’t run away immediately knelt down begging for mercy and surrendered their weapons.

In this battle, a total of 5 enemies were killed, 3 injured, and one Czech-made light machine gun, more than 10 long guns, and several hundred rounds of ammunition were captured. Not a single civilian was harmed, and none of the guerrillas were injured. After the battle, the guerrilla leaders educated and released the captured soldiers. A brief public reassurance speech was given on the stage, after which the guerrillas evacuated Lanpu Village overnight, returning triumphantly to their base with the spoils of war.

The Battle at Lanpu Ancestral Hall eliminated an armed enemy stronghold in the Qili area of Minhou, dealt a blow to the enemy’s morale, and boosted the people’s fighting spirit and confidence in resisting the enemy.

The Lanpu Lin Clan Ancestral Hall was originally built in 1919, funded by villagers such as Chuanjin and Fangqing. In the 1950s, it was requisitioned as a grain storage facility, later converted into a village cultural activity space, enduring many changes. In July 2000, it was rebuilt with funding from villagers, completed in October 2001, with a construction area of 2,000 square meters, and is currently well preserved.

Lanpu Village: Located on both sides of National Highway 324, Lanpu Village is 23 kilometers north of Fuzhou, backed by Yingqian Town of Changle to the east, and borders Qingkou Town—a pilot town for small-town development in Fujian Province—to the south. The village has 2,049 households, 6,893 residents, and covers a land area of 10,195 mu, including 1,381 mu of farmland and 5,827 mu of forest. There are 36 villager groups, 55 villager representatives, and 156 Party members. The village has two clinics, one market, one primary school, one kindergarten, four senior centers, one “Sunset Red” group, two dragon boat teams, and four medium-sized supermarkets, among other facilities... More detailed information about Lanpu Village++