Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

A thorough investigation will reveal not a single basis for the so-called "Trotskyist" charge. All the accusations are fabricated.

"Comrade Ma Mingfang, your investigation team's report must undergo a comprehensive review by the Politburo and the Secretariat."

Wei Hongjun spoke to Ma Mingfang very seriously.

Ma Mingfang understood Wei Hongjun's meaning. Historically, he and Guo Hongtao had clashed, especially over the revolutionary line in northern Shaanxi and the issue of anti-counterrevolutionary activities. The contradictions between the two sides were not small.

This investigation involved Guo Hongtao, the then secretary of the Shandong branch.

Ma Mingfang immediately said, "I guarantee with my Party spirit that this investigation will be objective and fair, and there will be absolutely no retaliation. Furthermore, I wasn't the only one conducting this investigation. Comrades Xia Houwen, Wang Congwu, Wang Jinxiang, and Liu Zhijian all participated in the investigation. We compiled all the evidence together, and the final conclusion was also reached by all of us."

Ma Mingfang doesn't like Guo Hongtao.

But those were grudges from more than 20 years ago, and he couldn't just hold on to them.

Furthermore, while he was the head of the investigation team, it was only because he was the Deputy Minister of the Organization Department, not because his rank was higher than the other cadres. The other officials represented their respective departments, especially Xia Houwen, who was a cadre who could attend Secretariat meetings. He was also from the Jin-Cha-Ji region and had close ties to Wei Hongjun. How could Ma Mingfang tamper with the investigation based on a grudge from over twenty years ago? It was completely unnecessary.

After hearing what Wei Hongjun and Ma Mingfang said, the other members of the investigation team also nodded.

Xia Houwen said, "Secretary Wei, we didn't prejudge our stance on this investigation. We based our conclusions entirely on the data we gathered. This report will stand the test of history."

Xiahou Wen is very confident.

Because of the "Huxi Sutuo" incident, many original files were full of loopholes after a simple check. In addition, they went to investigate the parties involved, and the data they compiled was already very obvious.

As long as one can make normal judgment, they can come to this conclusion.

"Ah."

Wei Hongjun put down the information in his hand and asked, "Comrade Chen Tanqiu, what do you think?"

"The conclusions of the Shandong branch back then can be overturned. The 'Huxi Suppression of Trotskyism' was not a case of over-expansion; rather, it was wrong from the outset. There were no 'Trotskyists' within the Huxi Party, government, and military systems. The 'Huxi Suppression of Trotskyism' was a mistake. Local leaders were deceived and made erroneous policies. The Shandong branch did not conduct an in-depth investigation during the war years and only made erroneous conclusions based on Comrade Bai Ziming's report. These conclusions should now be completely repudiated."

Chen Tanqiu expressed his views.

The issue of the "Huxi Suppression of Discrimination" can only be fully resolved by resolving the Shandong Branch's conclusions. If this time, it is confirmed that the "Huxi Suppression of Discrimination" was itself a mistake, then all Party members and cadres troubled by the "Huxi Suppression of Discrimination" issue will be able to completely break free from this heavy shackle.

Tan Zhenlin, standing nearby, said, "This issue should have been resolved long ago. Completely rejecting the Shandong Branch's conclusion will allow the Huxi cadres to put aside their historical baggage, move forward with ease, and continue the revolution. This is a responsibility we owe to history and to our Party members and cadres."

"I think so too."

Several people in the Secretariat support it.

Everyone had their own understanding of revolution and their own work styles. But regarding the resolution of the "Huxi Suppression of Trotskyists" incident, everyone had roughly the same ideas. This was a misguided "suppression of Trotskyists."

We must ensure that those Party members and cadres who have been deeply hurt by this incident are completely rehabilitated.

And everyone has another idea.

That means it’s better for the big boss Kangsheng not to come back.

Kangsheng is really amazing.

Even though Kang Sheng only handles simple intelligence matters and rarely appears in public, no central leadership dares to underestimate him. After all, he is a cadre who has long led China's intelligence front and the discipline within the Chinese Party.

Who knows if there is any big news.

Moreover, Kang Sheng is very capable and resourceful. If he were to return to power, many officials would have trouble sleeping.

Such cadres are doing quite well now. Kang Sheng was rather cautious after the Seventh National Congress because he had provoked public outrage during the Rectification Movement and offended so many people. Now that the issue of "suppressing traitors" has been brought up again, people like Guo Hongtao are simply ignored by the top brass in the Secretariat. Only leaders of Kang Sheng's caliber would attract the attention of the Secretariat cadres.

There were Trotskyists in China, and there were some within the Party, but they were definitely not present in the various anti-Japanese base areas during the War of Resistance. However, because Kang Sheng wanted to "suppress Trotskyists" back then, many people were accused of being "Trotskyists."

Raising the issue of "suppression of traitors" this time will once again drag Kang Sheng into it.

While Kang Sheng won't be widely criticized, it will remind many central leaders of his reputation. This will further hinder his chances of a comeback. Kang Sheng is already 59 years old. If he can't make further progress by the next Tenth National Congress, he'll have to retire.

This is what many people think.

Seeing that everyone agreed, Wei Hongjun said, "Then let's draw a conclusion on the 'Huxi Suppression of Troops' matter and report it to the Politburo."

While Wei Hongjun was dealing with the "Huxi Suppression of Trotskyists" incident, Charles de Gaulle also returned to France. After returning to France, he began to interact with a number of people. This was because many French troops in the colonies had begun to become disobedient and dared to oppose the French government's orders. They believed that the French government was too weak and was betraying French interests.

Therefore, the calls for Charles de Gaulle to come out of retirement are getting louder and louder.

Because everyone believed that only Charles de Gaulle could save France, French President René Coty visited Charles de Gaulle several times after his return. He wanted to hear his thoughts and express his sincere desire to invite him back to power.

Charles de Gaulle's words carried increasing weight. After speaking with Charles de Gaulle, many French business leaders formed a French business delegation to China. The last such large-scale European business delegation to China was organized by British businesspeople, but this time, it included not only French businesspeople but also French government officials.

They all believed in de Gaulle.

So everyone wants to come to China and Asia to find an opportunity for cooperation.

1022 Party Development

Everyone originally thought that work would be easier after the Ninth National Congress determined the development guidelines.

The result is that everyone is busier than before the Ninth National Congress.

Comrade Xiuyang is in charge of the preparations for the National People's Congress. Compared to the First National People's Congress, the content to be discussed at this meeting is more important. Moreover, there are more matters to be dealt with than at the First National People's Congress.

Because the First National People's Congress was primarily concerned with confirming the decisions adopted by the CPPCC, power shifted from the CPPCC to the NPC. Most of the matters that needed to be confirmed at the meeting had already been decided by the CPPCC, so the NPC only needed to approve them by a show of hands.

But there are many new things to be discussed at this National People's Congress meeting.

Then there's the issue of the retirement of so many cadres, especially those from the democratic parties. Comrade Xiuyang needs to be on top of this, figuring out how to stabilize their emotions and prevent any incidents during the National People's Congress. Therefore, after the Ninth National Congress, Comrade Xiuyang has focused most of his energy on this. As the National People's Congress draws closer, Comrade Xiuyang's work becomes busier.

And the Prime Minister.

After the Ninth National Congress, it seemed that the Premier’s power in the State Council was greatly reduced, but in fact the Premier was busier than before the Ninth National Congress.

Although the State Council's power has been weakened, it still has a lot to deal with. With the upcoming 40th anniversary of the October Revolution in the Soviet Union, China will undoubtedly send a large delegation to the Soviet Union. Especially during this period of instability in the socialist camp, how can China and the Soviet Union cooperate to stabilize it? Strengthening communication is essential, and this issue falls under the Premier's responsibility. Continued engagement with France also requires the Premier's oversight. Furthermore, the Premier is the head of the Central Special Committee responsible for developing the "two bombs," coordinating matters both large and small, and handling any issues arising from the Military Commission.

The Prime Minister's job is not just this.

He is also the chairman of the preparatory committee for the upcoming CPPCC meeting. The work involved is even more tedious. The Premier must appease the democratic parties and non-partisan democrats to ensure the smooth convening of the National People's Congress and CPPCC meetings.

The Premier has to be involved in all aspects of central government affairs and has to be involved in everything. As a result, the Premier now has even less time to rest.

But no way.

Many of the central government's coordination tasks require a central leader like the Premier, who possesses prestige and can coordinate various forces. Currently, no one in the central government can replace the Premier.

Chen Yun and Deng Xixian were not only responsible for the national financial affairs, but Deng Xixian was also fully responsible for the negotiations with the French delegation, because the French delegation came to China to cooperate with China in the economic field.

So Deng Xixian, Li Fuchun, Li Xiannian, Zhou Bin and others formed a team specifically responsible for connecting with the French side.

Let’s see what kind of formal agreement can be reached through this cooperation.

Marshal Nie was busy building the Political and Legal Affairs Commission across the country.

At the Ninth National Congress, the Central Committee acknowledged Marshal Nie's report on strengthening political and legal work. However, it also imposed higher requirements on political and legal work, namely, improving the quality of personnel in political and legal units. At the very least, personnel in political and legal units must be familiar with the laws enacted by the state. Even the personnel in political and legal units cannot be unfamiliar with the law.

But that's the way it is.

Currently, many staff members in political and legal units across the country are unfamiliar with the law. Their work relies primarily on experience. Therefore, the Ninth National Congress requires the Political and Legal Affairs Commission to change this situation.

This is not something that can be resolved overnight.

So Marshal Nie is also very busy now.

Following the establishment of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, provinces also began establishing provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commissions. To improve the quality of personnel in political and legal units, many provinces sought to establish provincial political and legal schools. Since formal universities were insufficient, provinces proposed establishing provincial political and legal colleges. This would train more political and legal personnel from formal institutions.

Marshal Nie needs to examine and confirm them one by one.

Some provinces do not have the strength and cannot blindly open such schools.

Everyone is so busy.

Wei Hongjun was no exception. However, whether dealing with the issue of "dogmatism" or the issue of "Trotskyism," these were temporary matters. Wei Hongjun prioritized establishing a mature Party organization, Party propaganda, and cadre management within the Secretariat.

Therefore, while dealing with these matters, Wei Hongjun has been discussing issues such as party membership, inspection, and supervision with Chen Tanqiu.

"Comrade Chen Tanqiu, an increase in the number of party members is a good thing, but an increase too quickly is not a good thing."

Wei Hongjun looked at the information and talked to Chen Tanqiu.

Chen Tanqiu nodded.

"When we founded the Communist Party, our biggest concern was expanding the party organization and increasing the number of members. I never expected that more than 48 years later, our party already has tens of millions of members. I've been thinking about this recently. When the People's Republic of China was founded in 400, the number of our party members was only about 1000 million. But less than ten years after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the number of our party members has swelled to million. During the period since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the number of our party members has increased at an extremely rapid rate."

"Our party's history has seen rapid increases in membership several times. During the first Northern Expedition, when the Kuomintang and the Communist Party collaborated, our party went from having only a few hundred members to nearly 1934 in less than three years. However, after Wang Jingwei's betrayal of the revolution and the massacres, a large number of members chose to leave the party, and the number of members plummeted to around 30. But the more such moments there were, the more determined revolutionaries joined the party. Just one year later, our party had over 4 members. In , our party membership recovered to . However, under the erroneous left-leaning leadership, our party membership dropped again to around before the Anti-Japanese War."

"During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, our Party also started with just over 1940 members, reaching over 80 by 1945. However, with the attacks from the Japanese and puppet troops and Chiang Kai-shek's bandit army, it wasn't until 140 that our Party had million members. It can be seen that whenever the situation improves, the rate of membership increase accelerates. However, when faced with difficulties, the number of members decreases rapidly. The more difficult the situation, the more the revolutionary nature of Party members and cadres becomes apparent."

Chen Tanqiu reviewed the history of the Party.

When the revolution thrives, the number of party members swells. However, when the revolution hits a low point, the number of defectors surges. It can be said that wartime is a relatively easy time to test a person's revolutionary spirit.

Because he is testing your revolutionary nature with his life.

"The biggest problem is actually at the back."

Chen Tanqiu frowned and said, "After the outbreak of the Liberation War, North China and Northeast China quickly gained the upper hand, allowing the war to proceed very smoothly. As a result, in the four years of 1946, 1947, 1948, and 1949, the number of our party members increased by an average of 1948 to 1949 per year. In particular, in and , the number of party members increased by millions."

"After the Eighth National Congress, our party membership reached 600 million. This round of expansion in membership had certain hidden dangers. During the Agrarian Revolution and the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, our party members were tempered by the brutality of war. Some members with weak wills left the party and gave up the revolution. However, starting in 1947, the number of members expanded greatly without experiencing many tests. Even you know that the number of underground party members in 1948 was far greater than the Central Committee had originally estimated. Many of them joined the party by taking advantage of the victory of the revolution. Although we later carried out some cleansing, it was impossible to eliminate them all."

"Comrade Rao Shushi initially criticized the Organization Department for lax controls on Party membership, which caused quite a stir. Although his report contained some personal grudges, the overall message was not incorrect. He had grasped some of the problems that were occurring in the Organization Department at the time."

Only Chen Tanqiu could say such words.

Other leading cadres would avoid mentioning Rao Shushi. Even if they did mention Rao Shushi, they would not say anything good about him.

In fact, these are some of Chen Tanqiu's recent thoughts. Rao Shushi's initial criticism of the Organization Department included some attacking of Peng Zhen. But Chen Tanqiu now recalls many of his points, which still make sense.

Blindly expanding the party's influence and increasing the number of party members will lead to endless troubles.

"The problem at the time was with the Tianjin Organization Department. But apart from Tianjin, were there no problems elsewhere? Of course not, there were serious problems elsewhere as well. Joining the Party was so difficult during the war years, but after the revolution was victorious and New China was founded, joining the Party became so easy."

"Can you put some limits on it?"

“It’s quite difficult.”

Chen Tanqiu shook his head and said, "After I took charge of the Organization Department, I also considered imposing some restrictions. But after the founding of New China, we established so many rural cooperatives, and they must be managed by party organizations. And so many factories were established, and each factory should have its own party organization. And every government agency in the country must have its own party organization. The Central Committee has repeatedly emphasized the leadership of the party, so the demand for party members is high, and every agency needs party members. This will definitely lead to an increase in the number of party members."

Chen Tanqiu pointed out the current problems.

Unlike wartime, when Party members were used as sharp swords, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, various units and institutions multiplied. Each unit and institution must have a Party organization, or at least a Party group leader.

There are now millions of rural cooperatives. Can you allow them to develop freely?

Of course not.

Rural cooperatives must be under the leadership of the Party.

Rural cooperatives must have party members. As a result, the demand for party members will increase, and the number of party members will naturally expand.

“I think there’s still a problem.”