Chapter 32 (2) A meeting to rewrite history

On the evening of January 15, 1935, the north wind howled and the snow fluttered.Surrounding the Baihuizhang mansion on Loquat Bridge in the old city of Zunyi, security is heavily guarded.The enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was held in the East Wing Room on the second floor of this beautiful building.The weather was cold, there were several pots of charcoal burning in the house, and a few cigarette smokers were constantly puffing out clouds, and the whole house was filled with smoke. The list of participants and those who attended the meeting were all discussed and approved by the three-member group.Zhou Enlai was actually the secretary-general of the meeting and was responsible for the organization of the meeting.Some members of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee and military leaders who were far away from the outskirts of Zunyi still sent telegrams to inform them to attend the meeting.The only surviving meeting notification telegram was sent by Zhou Enlai to the political commissar of the 5th Red Army and Liu Shaoqi, the representative of the 5th Red Army of the Central Committee.The telegram said: "Zhuoran, Shaoqi: The Politburo meeting will be held on the 15th. You should come to Zunyi City on the 14th tomorrow." After more than fifty years, that is, in the 1980s, it was gradually cleared up.

The members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee who participated in the meeting were: Bo Gu (Qin Bangxian), the general manager of the Party Central Committee and member of the three-person group, Luo Fu (Zhang Wentian), secretary of the Party Central Committee Secretariat, and vice chairman of the Military Commission (designated by the Party as Chief of the Military Commission), member of the three-member regiment, Zhou Enlai, general political commissar of the Red Army and general political commissar of the Red Front Army, Mao Zedong, chairman of the Soviet Central Government, Zhu De, chairman of the Military Commission, commander-in-chief of the Red Army and commander-in-chief of the Red Front Army, party secretary of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions , Political Commissar of the Central Column, and Chen Yun, Political Commissar of the Zunyi Garrison Command.

Alternate members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee who participated in the meeting: Wang Jiaxiang, Vice Chairman of the Military Commission and Director of the General Political Department of the Red Army; Deng Fa, Director of the Political Security Bureau of the Soviet Central Government; Kaifeng (He Kequan). Attendees at the meeting: Li De (Walf, Otto Braun), the military adviser of the Communist International stationed in the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and members of the three-member regiment; Li Fuchun, deputy director and acting director of the General Political Department of the Red Army; Yang Shangkun, the political commissar of the Legion, Li Zhuoran, the political commissar of the 5th Red Army, Deng Xiaoping, the former editor of the Red Star Newspaper, the official newspaper of the General Political Department of the Red Army, and the newly appointed secretary-general of the CPC Central Committee, and Wu Xiuquan, Li De's translator.

Five members of the Politburo were unable to attend the meeting. They were: Wang Ming and Kang Sheng, the representatives of the CCP to the Communist International in Moscow; Ren Bishi, political commissar of the 2nd Red Army Corps; Xiang Ying, secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in the Jiangxi Central Soviet Area. Bo Gu presided over the meeting and made a summary report on the fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" war on behalf of the Central Committee. He admitted in the report that Chiang Kai-shek's fifth "encirclement and suppression" campaign against the Central Soviet Area had not been smashed, and that as the main person in charge of the Central Committee, he was responsible.But he did not specifically mention what responsibility he has for himself.He attributed the failure of the anti-"encirclement and suppression" war to the strength of imperialism and Chiang's army. The anti-imperialist and anti-Chiang movement in the white areas did not make significant progress. The work of disintegrating Chiang's army was poor. The cooperation with each other is not close, the supply work in the rear of the Soviet area is not done well, and so on.Regarding the mistakes in military command, he said a few words and didn't even touch the fur.Although he was eloquent and eloquent, judging from the reaction of most of the participants, his report obviously failed to win the audience.

Zhou Enlai made a deputy report on military issues.Contrary to Bogut, he pointed out in his report that the main reason for the failure of the fifth anti-"encirclement and suppression" war was not the strength of imperialism and Chiang's army, insufficient work in the white areas, poor guerrilla warfare, and lack of support in various base areas. Mutual cooperation, insufficient supply of materials in the rear, etc., were due to errors in military command.After making a detailed analysis of military command mistakes one by one, he took the initiative to take responsibility and sincerely conducted self-criticism.

There is no gorgeous rhetoric, no eloquent theories, only an unreserved analysis of military strategy mistakes, only a candid and profound review of one's own mistakes and responsibilities, and an unequivocal statement.However, these simple and sincere words of his made Bo Gu and Li De deeply disturbed, but they inspired and convinced most of the participants. After the completion of the two reports, the next step is for the participants to speak and express their views on the two reports. The first speaker was Luo Fu, who spoke on behalf of Mao Zedong, Wang Jiaxiang and himself.He was holding a speech in his hand, which was actually a counter-report against Bogu's summary report.

The report of Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang believed that the main reason why Jiang’s “encirclement and suppression” could not be smashed was subjective rather than objective, that is, the party’s military leaders committed the mistake of purely defensive line in military leadership, which violated the Fundamentals of Civil War Strategy and Tactics. They severely criticized the "Left" military leaders, and also made mistakes in principle when the Central Red Army was forced to implement a strategic retreat and breakout transfer.He pointed out that after deciding to withdraw from the Soviet area, he still fought desperately with the enemy aimlessly in the Soviet area, consuming a lot of the vital strength of the Red Army.Withdrawing from the Soviet area turned into a panic-stricken escape and relocation action. Among the cadres and the masses, there was no explanation for this strategic shift. The large rear organization made it difficult to march and fight, turning all the troops into cover teams, making the three The months of breakout battles have turned into cover battles almost everywhere.

They solemnly pointed out that the leadership style of Bo Gu and Li De is extremely bad. All the work of the Military Commission has been arranged by Li De himself, and the collective leadership of the Military Commission has been completely abolished. Not only are all different opinions completely ignored, but various methods of suppression are adopted, and the discretion and creativity of the commanders at the lower level are obliterated.In the name of transforming strategy and tactics, many valuable experiences and lessons from previous revolutionary wars were completely discarded, and they were denounced as "guerrillaism." They raised correct opinions more than once to the majority of comrades in the Military Commission, and for this reason there were many incidents. There were many heated debates, but Bo Gu and Li De ignored them.As a result, an extremely abnormal phenomenon within the Military Commission has been caused.

On the issue of responsibility for mistakes in military leadership, they argued.In the past, the Secretariat and the Politburo had insufficient leadership over the Military Commission. The Politburo made mistakes on this issue, and the Secretariat should take more responsibility in this regard, because some important decisions and strategic plans were approved by the Secretariat. of. Regarding personal responsibility, they pointed out that Bo Gu led the work of the Military Commission on behalf of the Central Committee, and he not only failed to correct Li De's line mistakes in combat command and abnormal phenomena within the Military Commission in a timely manner, but also actively contributed to the development of such mistakes , so he should bear the main responsibility.They strongly demand that the mistakes made in the military leadership in the past must be completely corrected and the leadership of the Military Commission should be improved.

The counter-reports of Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang resonated strongly like an earthquake among most of the participants.During Luo Fu's speech, most people nodded and said yes from time to time, with expressions of surprise and appreciation on their faces.Only Bo Gu, Li De, and Kai Feng were sullen and resentful. The meeting on the first night, after listening to Bogu's summary report, Zhou Enlai's military report and Luo Fu's counter-report, had already exceeded the scheduled time and could only be adjourned temporarily. Since most of the military leaders participating in the meeting are busy with military affairs during the day, the meeting can only be held at night.

The meeting on the second night started with a tit-for-tat situation.Bogu was obviously full of grievances, and as soon as he opened his mouth, he loudly reprimanded Mao Zedong, Luo Fu, and Wang Jiaxiang.He resolutely opposed the views of Luo Fu and his three comrades, and believed that it was a one-sided view to describe a partial military defeat as the defeat of the entire war. He asked them, have we failed?Despite how powerful the enemy is, didn't we realize the strategic shift as originally planned?Haven't our elite troops been preserved?What is even more intolerable is that our military line is wrong!We are following the military line of the Communist International. Could it be that the military line of the Communist International is wrong?According to you, is the political line of the Comintern also wrong?Mao Zedong frowned when he saw Bo Gu speak in such a tone. He suggested that discussions should focus on military issues, which are the most pressing issues at the moment.Other issues will be discussed later.Bo Gu refuted Mao Zedong, can this be a good summary meeting?To summarize is to conduct a comprehensive summary.The line of the Communist International is correct, and what we are implementing is the correct line of the Communist International, and we cannot discuss issues apart from this principle. Mao Zedong did not blush with Bogu, but half-jokingly said that it took several months to walk from Jiangxi to Guizhou, and he was already exhausted. Everyone wanted to sit down and discuss a month or two, or even a For half a year, but who can guarantee that Jiang Jun will not come to attack us during our meeting? Zhu De said that you should ask Lao Jiang this question! Mao Zedong followed Zhu De's words, this is difficult, no one can guarantee that Jiang Jun will not come to attack Zunyi the day after tomorrow. Zhou Enlai agreed with Mao Zedong. Due to time constraints, the meeting still focused on discussing military issues.Under the current situation, military issues are the primary one, and other issues are secondary. Seeing Zhou Enlai expressing his support for Mao Zedong, Bogu turned sullen and remained silent. Most of the participants supported Mao Zedong's point of view in their speeches. Kaifeng asked everyone to pay attention when he made a speech, and believed that Bogu's opinion that the discussion of issues cannot be separated from principles was correct.The temporary military defeat cannot be said to be an error in the military line. This is undoubtedly a complete negation of the military line of the Communist International. As soon as Li De saw the support, he immediately regained his spirits.He said to remind everyone to pay attention to the fact that the contact with the Communist International has been cut off. If someone wants to go their own way behind the back of the Communist International, it seems that it is the right time.Such a good opportunity, the conspirators will never let go. In this case, everyone present could tell that he was accusing Mao Zedong, Luo Fu, and Wang Jiaxiang. Mao Zedong was about to light a cigarette, when he heard what Li De said, he blew out the match and asked Li De sharply, this is obviously a meeting to discuss issues, how can it be a conspiracy? Li De said that taking advantage of the severance of contact with the Communist International to attack the Party Central Committee that firmly implements the Communist International line, can this be regarded as a fair thing? Mao Zedong was angry. He said that only those who made mistakes and refused to admit their mistakes dared to face criticism from their comrades at the meeting. After listening to Xiao Wu's translation, Li De blushed with anger, but he didn't know how to fight back. Kaifeng rescued Li De, criticizing Mao Zedong’s accusation of the Communist International’s military advisers as a wrong act. The advisers sent by the Communist International represent the correct line of the Communist International. Victory leads to victory. Again, he used a big hat to suppress people, which Mao Zedong could not tolerate.If he had tolerated it before, then from the Ningdu meeting until now, he has had enough and can no longer tolerate it. So he argued fiercely with Li De and Kai Feng.Seeing that the debate had reached a stalemate, Zhou Enlai's face was sullen.He took a look at Bogu, and was even more annoyed when he saw Bogu's expressionless look. As soon as he spoke, he affirmed that Comrades Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang were correct in their criticism of military command.He admitted that since the five anti-"encirclement and suppression" wars and the Western Expedition, we have indeed made mistakes in military command, which led to the failure of the enemy's five "encirclement and suppression" campaigns in the Central Soviet Area, and successive military defeats since the Western Expedition .We must reflect on these mistakes in order to formulate the correct military strategy for the future. Then, Zhu De, Chen Yun, and Liu Shaoqi spoke one after another, supporting the counter-reports of Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang, and criticizing Bo Gu and Li De for their military command mistakes.Among the members of the Politburo, only Bogu and Kaifeng were stubborn. They only admitted that the military defeats since the five anti-"encirclement and suppression" wars and the Western Expedition were only partial mistakes, and the entire military line was correct. They opposed Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang's actions. criticize.Li De firmly disagreed with his criticism. Deng Fa remained neutral and did not express his support for or against which side.However, judging from the situation of the debate, the counter-reports of Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang obviously gained the upper hand, and the anti-client-oriented approach became the central topic of discussion at the meeting. Bogu was criticized by most comrades, and he was very unconvinced and had nothing to say.He looked depressed and said little.The person presiding over the meeting was speechless, and the meeting on the third night turned out to be a situation where Mao Zedong, Luo Fu, and Wang Jiaxiang played the leading roles. Knowing that he was at a disadvantage, Li De was depressed, so he sat alone, smoking a cigar without saying a word.In addition, Xiao Wu has never been used to his high-ranking and domineering style. In the past, he dared not speak out, but now he has no scruples. He "cut corners" when translating for him, which made him often confused and changed. Be deaf.He didn't understand the speeches of the participants, and the more he listened, the more irritable he became, and he left in dismay before the meeting was over. Since the counter-reports of Luo Fu, Mao Zedong, and Wang Jiaxiang were supported by most of the participants, Luo Fu has naturally played a pivotal role in the latter part of the meeting.When talking about the need for the Political Bureau of the Central Committee to strengthen its leadership over the Military Commission in the future, Luo Fu pointed out that judging from the work during this period, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee is not strong enough.In order to strengthen the power of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee and improve work efficiency, he suggested that Mao Zedong be elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee. Everyone looked at each other, and then turned their attention to Zhou Enlai in unison, as if they were only waiting for him to make a statement.Zhou Enlai nodded and agreed with Luo Fu's suggestion. Except for Bo Gu, Kai Feng, and Deng Fa who did not express their views, all participants agreed with Luo Fu's suggestion that Mao Zedong be elected to the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee. In order to adapt to the new war situation and enable the central government to carry out its work more effectively, Luo Fu also suggested that from now on, members of the Central Secretariat and comrades who are often in charge of the work of the Politburo will be responsible for presiding over the daily work of the central government.After the enlarged meeting of the Politburo, the Politburo will hold another meeting, and the work division of the Central Standing Committee will be adjusted appropriately.The participants agreed. When discussing the issue of military command, Zhou Enlai expressed with a heavy heart that since the three-member regiment has repeatedly made strategic and tactical mistakes in military command since its strategic shift and was responsible for the military defeat, he suggested that the three-member regiment be stopped. Work.Everyone looked at him with admiration, and immediately nodded appreciatively. Luo Fu discussed with Mao Zedong and Wang Jiaxiang for a while, and proposed that the commander-in-chief and the general political commissar should still be in charge of military command in the future.After the abolition of the three-person regiment, Bo Gu, and Li De's military command, Zhou Enlai was entrusted by the party to be the person in charge of the final decision in the military command. Zhou Enlai looked at everyone anxiously, and once again pointed out that he was a member of the three-member regiment, and he was responsible for the military defeat since the Western Expedition just like Bogu and Li De. Now it is wrong for him to hold the final decision on military command suitable. Luo Fu discussed a few more words with Mao Zedong and Wang Jiaxiang, and said to Zhou Enlai: "Comrade Enlai, the responsibility for the military defeat since the Western Expedition mainly lies with Bogu and Li De. You bear certain responsibilities, but the majority of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee Comrade still believes in you." Mao Zedong took Luo Fu's words and said: "Comrade Enlai has been in charge of military work for a long time, and now the role of presiding over the work of the Central Military Commission is none other than you!" Zhou Enlai thought for a while and said: "Now that Comrade Mao Zedong has been co-elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee, he should be in charge of military work." Mao Zedong shook his head and said: "This discussion is inappropriate. Because I have been away from the Military Commission for more than two years, I am not very familiar with the situation of the army, so I am not suitable for this important task. Besides, the military command is unusual, so we should not make such a big change now." Luo Fu said: "I agree with Comrade Mao Zedong's opinion. Of course, Comrade Mao Zedong will participate in the work of the Military Commission, but at present, Comrade Enlai is mainly responsible for the work of the Military Commission. Comrade Mao Zedong assists Comrade Enlai in commanding the military." After Luo Fu and Mao Zedong expressed their views, everyone had no objection to this issue. The meeting also decided to appoint Luo Fu to draft the "Resolution of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China Concerning the Summary of Opposing the Enemy's Five Encirclement and Suppression" and entrust the Standing Committee of the Central Committee to review it and send it to the grassroots party branches for discussion.According to the situation at that time, the meeting adopted the suggestions of Liu Bocheng and Nie Rongzhen, decided to change the resolution of the Liping Conference to establish a Soviet area centered on northern Guizhou, and unanimously decided to cross the Yangtze River to establish a Soviet area in the southwest or northwest of Chengdu. After the enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee held a meeting on the 18th.Two important decisions were made at this meeting: first, adjust the division of labor of the Central Standing Committee, Mao Zedong assisted Zhou Enlai in commanding the military; second, Wang Jiaxiang became a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee. The Zunyi Conference was undoubtedly very important to Mao Zedong, and it was a turning point in his political career.For Zhou Enlai, it is also very important. Prior to this, Bogu represented the central leadership of the Military Commission. After Bogu's military command power was suspended, Zhou Enlai became the person in charge of the final determination of the military command entrusted by the party, which actually replaced Bogu's authority in military command.And Mao Zedong was designated as the helper of Zhou Enlai's military command, and it was obvious that after losing military power for more than two years, he returned to the military leadership position. 62 years later, Yang Shangkun, a participant of the Zunyi Conference, wrote in the article "Acquaintance for Fifty Years - Comrade Enlai I Know": "The Zunyi Conference decided to add Comrade Mao Zedong to the Standing Committee of the Central Committee, and Comrade Enlai was entrusted by the party. Comrade Mao Zedong is Comrade Enlai's military helper to the person responsible for the final determination in military command. But Comrade Enlai proceeded from the highest interests of the Chinese revolution and out of full trust in Comrade Mao Zedong, consciously placed himself as an assistant Comrade Mao Zedong had full authority to command the military operations of the Red Army. It can be said that Comrade Enlai’s efforts during the Zunyi Conference played an irreplaceable role.”