Chapter 81 Letter to Yan Xishan[1]

(December 22, 1936) Baichuan Vice Chairman Medal: The Shaanxi Mutiny [2] was prominent, and the incident was extraordinary.From the telegram, I know that my father is against the civil war, and he has the words of "together maintain the overall situation", which is a wise saying, which I admire.Our side advocates the deletion of Hao's two telegrams [3] and the copying of Chen Taijian.For the sake of the overall situation, we do not advocate a split, nor do we seek revenge on Nanjing at all. We are willing to mediate between Ning and Shanxi with our father and all parties in the country. We sincerely believe that if this is not the case, all losses will belong to the country, and all gains will belong to Japan.At present, the Ning army [4] is in a hurry to attack Shaanxi, and I hope that my father will use powerful mediation methods.As for the Red Army, as long as Nanjing stops its policy of "suppressing communism," agrees to a united front, unites in the resistance against Japan, and demarcates suitable areas of defense, it will never attack the territory under Nanjing's jurisdiction.For the Jinsui[5] side led by my father, Peng Yufeng[6] was sent to pay a visit to Jin, and he has already expressed his disdain.Over the past few months, my father and General Fu have fought the enemy bravely in Suidong[7], cooperated with the Open People's Patriotic Movement, and abolished the Anti-Communist Association, which is especially admirable.However, the stalemate between Ning and Shaanxi is very urgent. If the Ning side insists on attacking without any room for turning around, it will be difficult for the Red Army to sit idly by.The scope of the war has expanded, and there are many places where we need our assistance.How to make the four provinces of Shanxi, Sui, Shaanxi, and Gansu closely united and united as one, so that the speech on state affairs can be more powerful, and I pray for tin to show the south needle.It is urgent to establish communication between the station and our station as soon as possible, and then set up foot communication stations from Jixian and Yanchang.If Holland agrees, the radio station will start sending reports from January 15th.The pedestrian communication station was appointed at Zhezun's office in Jixian County, and at Yanchang Zhewei's office. One ferry was prepared on each side of Pingdu Pass, and it was agreed to be a full-time correspondent. The armed forces of both sides could not cross the river.Shanxi-Shanxi economic and trade cooperation is also expected to be implemented as soon as possible to restore normal relations.Mr. Qu Xiangxian, the magistrate of Ji County, came to Shaanxi with the army this spring, and Qu worked for the Ministry of Education in my place for several months.Mr. Qu is an honest gentleman and knows a lot about our anti-Japanese united front policy. If you can contact us at any time, you are very welcome.Peng Yufeng has received many favors from the respected place, and he feels deeply, and prays for guidance at any time, so that he can be followed.Pray for details.Congratulations to Gongqi!

Sincerely, Mao Zedong December 22 According to the "Selected Letters of Mao Zedong" published by People's Publishing House in 1983. -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ note [1] Yan Xishan, courtesy name Baichuan, see note [14] on page 371 of this volume. [2] The Shaanxi Incident refers to the Xi'an Incident.On December 12, 1936, Zhang Xueliang, the leader of the Northeast Army, and Yang Hucheng, the leader of the 17th Route Army, detained Chiang Kai-shek in Xi'an, demanding to stop the civil war and unite with the Communist Party to resist Japan. This incident is commonly known as the Xi'an Incident.

[3] Deleted telegram refers to the telegram sent by Mao Zedong and other Red Army generals to the Kuomintang and the Nationalist Government regarding the Xi’an Incident on December 15, 1936, see pages 468-469 of this volume.Haodian refers to the telegram that the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic proposed to convene a peace conference to resolve the Xi'an Incident on December 19, 1936. [4] After the Xi'an Incident, the army under the command of He Yingqin, a pro-Japanese faction of the Nanjing Kuomintang government, marched towards Shaanxi.

[5] Sui refers to Suiyuan Province, see note [16] on page 371 of this volume. [6] Peng Yufeng, also known as Peng Xuefeng, see note [2] on page 454 of this volume. [7] In August and November 1936, the Japanese imperialists ordered the Puppet Mongolian Army to attack the northeastern region of Suiyuan (now part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region) twice.Fu Zuoyi and other departments of the Suiyuan Garrison fought bravely, and recovered Bailing Temple and other places in November.Fu Zuoyi was the chairman of Suiyuan Province and the commander of the 35th Army of the Kuomintang Army at that time.