Chapter 145 After the publication of "Historical Elegy: The Beginning and End of the Anti-Rightist Movement"

On August 8, 1996, late at night, just as I lay down, the phone rang loudly.Upon hearing it, it was Fu Min, the second son of Fu Lei, calling from Beijing.He told me that he had just received a call from his brother Fu Cong from London asking if he could get a copy? Since the publication of "Historical Elegy: The History of the Anti-Rightists", I have received such calls and letters constantly asking for books. During the "Cultural Revolution", the cadres who were "decentralized" to the "May 7th Cadre School" were often referred to as "May 7th Warriors".However, the term "May 7th Warrior" now has a new meaning: people who were included in the "Right" register in 1957 jokingly called themselves "May 7th Warrior".

Since the book "Historical Elegy - The Beginning and End of the Anti-Rightist Movement" is a very detailed book about the "Anti-Rightist Movement", it has attracted the attention of many readers since it was published.Neizhong, especially the "May 7th Warriors", were very concerned about this book.Even those pirated booksellers "cared" about this book, and soon after the book was published, pirated editions were "on the market" quickly. I found that China's "May 7th fighters" seemed to have formed an invisible network of contacts.This book was not advertised in the inland newspapers, nor was there any news of its publication, but the "May 7th Warriors" told each other, and even in very remote places, they knew that such a book had been published.It's just that "Historical Elegy - The History of the Anti-Rightists" cannot be bought in these places, so they wrote to me, hoping to see this book.

There are also many "May 7th fighters" who bought this book, talked with me about their impressions after reading it, and recalled that historical tragedy. What impressed me the most was on January 13th and 14th, 1996, when two "May 7th fighters" were the wife of the largest "party rightist" in China and the youngest "rightist" in China. Rightists”, confided to me their respective experiences of suffering, reflecting the historical elegy from a special angle. On January 13th, Chen Xiuliang, a "May 7th soldier" who was hospitalized in Shanghai East China Hospital, asked someone to tell me that he wanted to have a talk with me.

Chen Xiuliang's husband was Sha Wenhan, then governor of Zhejiang Province, the largest "rightist" in the party in 1957.She herself was the head of the Propaganda Department of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China at the time, and she was also labeled a "rightist" and became a "rightist couple in the party". I met the 89-year-old Chen Xiuliang at Huadong Hospital.She has a good memory and is in good health. She talked with me for more than two hours at a stretch.She told me that after the publication of the book "Historical Elegy - The End and End of the Anti-Rightist Movement", someone told her that she asked someone to buy the book "Historical Elegy - The End and End of the Anti-Rightist Movement". After reading it, she was filled with emotion.She said that it was not easy for a writer to have the courage to write this book.No one dared to touch or write about such a "left" movement in 1957. If you can write about it, it shows that you have a strong sense of historical responsibility.Young people today should know the truth about 1957, so that such historical tragedies will never happen again in the future.

She has cataracts and poor eyesight.As soon as I bought this book, I asked someone to read to her the section about Savannah in the book.She said that it has been nearly 40 years since Sha Wenhan was labeled as a "rightist". This is the first time that this book has written about it in detail, and she is very happy. She said she was born in 1907.In 1925, at the age of eighteen, she had already become the leader of the student movement in Ningbo.She joined the Chinese Communist Youth League in 1926 and the Communist Party of China in 1928. When she was studying in Moscow, she was classmates with Yang Shangkun and Chen Boda.After returning to China, she has been engaged in underground work for a long time, and once served as secretary of the Nanjing underground party committee of the Communist Party of China.

Chen Xiuliang told the author that she was a "rightist" twice in her life.The first time was in the Soviet Union, because she opposed left opportunism, and she was labeled as a "right opportunist", that is, a "rightist"; the second time was in 1957. Chen Xiuliang said that in 1957, she was first labeled as a "rightist" in September.In December, Sha Wenhan was also branded a "rightist". After Sha Wenhan was branded a "rightist", he still had the vacant title of "member of the Zhejiang Provincial Political Consultative Conference".In his extreme depression, he immersed himself in the study of ancient Chinese history.He wrote the book "Discussion on Chinese Slavery".

The mental torture made Cha Wenhan fall ill.On January 2, 1964, Savannah died of emphysema at the age of fifty-five! In September 1979, Chen Xiuliang's "rightist" injustice was vindicated. Sha Wenhan's "rightist" injustice was rehabilitated in 1980. Chen Xiuliang said that he hoped that when "Historical Elegy - The History of the Anti-Rightists" is revised and republished, many of the new contents she talked about will be added. The author has followed her advice and added her talk to the book "Historical Elegy - The History of the Anti-Rightists".

The day after the interview with Chen Xiuliang, the doorbell rang at my house.When I opened the door, I saw an uninvited guest who had never met before.He is thin and has white hair. He said that he had read the book "Historical Elegy-The History of the Anti-Rightists" twice and found out my address, so he came to look for me. I invite him to sit down in the living room.He said that he was a "May 7th Warrior" back then, and had suffered for 20 years. Now that he read the book "Historical Elegy-The History of the Anti-Rightists", he suddenly realized it. He said that the book quoted the full text of the "Notice of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Not Classifying Rightists Among Workers and Peasants" dated September 4, 1957.It was the first time he had seen this "Notice".He is a worker. According to the provisions of this document of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, he is not classified as a "rightist" among workers.However, he was classified as a "rightist" on September 29, 1958, one year and twenty-five days after this document was issued!

He sighed, if he had seen this "Notice" at that time, he would not have suffered so many years! He said that he has two "most" among the "rightists" in China: One is the smallest "Rightist" - because he is a worker; The second is to be classified as a "rightist" at the latest - because it was at the end of June 1958, the "anti-rightist movement" had been declared over, and even the "anti-rightist remedial classes" had been "made up" and had begun to enter The "Great Leap Forward" movement started.But he was labeled as a "rightist" in September 1958!

He said that after reading the book "Historical Elegy - The Beginning and End of the Anti-Rightists", most of the people written in the book were "big rightists", and compared with them, he was insignificant.However, since he has two "most" credits, can he, the "smallest and latest" "rightist", be included in the revised and republished book "Historical Elegy-The History of the Anti-Rightist"? Pen? I agreed.I took out the tape recorder and asked him to explain in detail... His name is Chen Zhongxing, born in 1926 in the countryside of Caohejing, Shanghai, with only a primary school education.He grew up in the countryside and later worked as a worker at the Shanghai Communications Equipment Factory of the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications.From September 29, 1958 to December 15, 1978, twenty spring and autumn, the golden years of his life, he spent in the shadow of the "rightists"!

He also hopes that when "Historical Elegy - The End and End of the Anti-Rightist Movement" is revised and republished, his suffering can be added.He said that China has written a lot about the "big rightists" but not enough about the "little rightists".I also complied with his wishes and included his ups and downs in the book "Historical Elegy - The History of the Anti-Rightists". At noon on January 7, 1996, I suddenly received a long-distance call from Xiangtan, Hunan. It was from a "May 7th Warrior" named Li Jian. He said that he was very excited to read "Historical Elegy - The Story of the Anti-Rightists". After being a "rightist" for 20 years, he knew for the first time the true background of being labeled a "rightist". He said that he finished reading "Historical Elegy-The History of the Anti-Rightists" with tears in his hospital bed.He has cancer, which is terminal. His opinion on "Historical Elegy - The History of the Anti-Rightists" is also that he has written too much about the "big rightists" and not enough about the "little rightists".He said he was a "little rightist".He is willing to send materials about his own suffering experience, hoping to add them to the reprint. He told me that this book was originally sold by a small bookstall in Xiangtan.His friend, who is also a "May 7th Warrior", saw it, bought a copy, and recommended it to him.He immediately bought a copy.After he read it, he called many "May 7 Comrades" and told him that there was such a book.As a result, the business of that small bookstall was booming. He sent me a Spring Festival greeting card while he was ill, and I wrote back to him to express my gratitude. On the evening of February 26, 1996, he called me again from Xiangtan.He said that he recommended the book "Historical Elegy - The History of the Anti-Rightists" to many people, including the chairman of the Shanxi Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the father of the singer Cheng Fangyuan, and friends from the Hunan press.One of the "Hunan Daily" reporters braved the rain to buy this book, and there was only one left on the bookstall with the corner of the book rolled up, so he also bought it. He said that he originally collected a lot of information about "anti-rightists", but with this book, he didn't have to worry about it, because almost all of them were in this book.This book is a "first of its kind" book. He said his father died when he was nine and he was placed in an orphanage.Later, he participated in land reform.Since being labeled as a "rightist" in 1957, I have suffered enough.Especially during the "Cultural Revolution", he was "criminalized twice".Now life is getting better, but I have fallen ill again, and I live every day.I am a "little rightist", which is really nothing.But, after all these years of suffering, there is much to say on my mind.When the weather is a little warmer, he will write and send his experience. He also said that he would send photos of himself before, during, and after the "anti-rightist movement" as historical materials.It can be seen from the photos that after the "anti-rightists", she lost a lot of weight. The next night, he called again and said that in 1957, Xiangtan was the place where the "anti-rightist movement" was very "intense".At that time, the county magistrate, the director of the Public Security Bureau, the president of the court, and the head of the organization department were all labeled as "rightists" or even "anti-party groups."Mao Tufu, the county magistrate, was also a relative of Mao Zedong, and was labeled as the leader of the "anti-Party group".