Hu Zongnan
In early July, 1946, nationalist commander-in-chief of the 2nd War Zone, Yan Xishan, ordered the nationalist 34th Army under his command to attack communists from Jiexiu (介休) to help Hu Zongnan's attacks on the communists. The nationalists planned to annihilate their communist enemy in the regions of Hongdong and Zhao (赵) City in southern Shanxi. However, Hu Zongnan, the nationalist commander-in-chief of the 1st War Zone was soundly defeated by the communists in the Wenxi–Xiaxian campaign by late July, 1946, and was forced to retreated to Yuncheng and Wenxi (闻喜) regions to regroup and thus could not support Yan Xishan's effort. Communists accordingly launched their Northern Shanxi campaign to further expand their victory.