Marshal Peng Dehuai is shown in the field with an Aide in North Korea. Marshal Peng was the overall Supreme Commander of the Chinese Forces in Korea. Mao Zedong's first choice was Marshal Lin Biao but he pleaded illness and flew to Russia. According to the Marines, later Lin came to Korea to command the 124th Chinese Division and suffered his first and only defeat at the hands of the Marines. While the Marines declare Lin Biao was in Korea, the Chinese insist that he was not there.