Chapter 82 Congratulatory letter for Xu Teli[1]'s 60th birthday

(January 30, 1937) Comrade Xu: You were my husband twenty years ago[2], you are still my husband now, and you will definitely be my husband in the future.When the revolution failed and many Communists left the Communist Party, some even went to the enemy's side, you joined the Communist Party in the autumn of 1927, and your attitude was very positive.In the long and hard struggle from then to now, you are more active than many young and middle-aged party members, you are not afraid of difficulties, and you are more open-minded in learning new things."Oldness", "poor physical and mental health", and "difficulties and obstacles" are all subdued in front of you.But in front of some people? It is an excuse for being timid.You know a lot but always feel that you don't know enough, while some people originally only have "half a bucket of water", but they want to "drip a lot".What you think in your heart is what you say and what you do, but some people hide some dirty things in a certain corner of their hearts.You are always with the masses, but some people seem to take pleasure in being separated from the masses.You are always showing that you are a model of obeying the party's and revolutionary discipline, but some people seem to think that discipline is only for restraining others, not including yourself.You are revolution first, work first, and others first, but to some people, you are first in the limelight, rest first, and yourself first.You always choose difficult things to do, and you never shy away from your responsibilities, whereas some people only choose easy things to do, and evade when it comes to taking on responsibilities.I admire you in all these aspects, and I am willing to continue to learn from you, and I also hope that all comrades in the party will learn from you.I am writing this letter to congratulate you on your sixtieth birthday, wishing you good health and longevity, and wishing you a model for all revolutionaries and all the people.

Sincerely, Salute to the Revolution! Mao Zedong In Yan'an on January 30, 1937 According to the "Selected Letters of Mao Zedong" published by People's Publishing House in 1983. -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ note [1] Xu Teli (1877-1968), born in Changsha, Hunan.At that time, he was the Minister of Education of the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic. [2] When Xu Teli taught in Hunan Provincial First Normal School from 1913 to 1919, Mao Zedong studied there.