Order to Proceed to Fujian
to Work and Collect Revenue
(September 23, 1931)
I. Following our complete victory in the Third Campaign, the White army is
already retreating along the whole front. The Sixtieth and Sixty-first divisions of
Cai Tingkai's forces withdrew from the town of Xingguo on September 19 and
set out for Ganzhou. Chen Cheng's Fourteenth Division, Luo Zhuoying's Elev-enth Division, Wei Lihuang's Tenth Division, and Qu Shounian's Seventy-eighth Division are all in Ji'an. The Seventy-seventh Division of Luo Lin's
forces is planning to leave for Changsha at once. The remnant forces of Jiang
Dingwen's Ninth Division have fled to the other side of the river opposite Ji'an.
Zhou Hunyuan's Fifth Division, Zhao Guantao's Sixth Division, and Li
Wenyan's Fifty-third Division are all retreating toward Ji'an. The Twenty-fifth
and Twenty-seventh divisions of Sun Lianzhong's forces are in the Ningdu area.
Li Yunjie's Twenty-third Division is in Toubei. Xu Kexiang's Twenty-fourth
Division and the remnant forces of Mao Bingwen's Eighth Division are in
Guangchang, under the leadership of Zhu Shaoliang. The Forty-ninth Division of
Zhang Zhen's forces from Fujian is in the area of Nanyan and Baisha.
II. The Front Army has resolved to go to Fujian to work and collect revenue
and has moreover decided that we should set out on September 25 from the
present location (the area of Liantang, Longgangtou, Changxin, and
Shuitouzhuang) and arrive and concentrate our forces in the town of Tingzhou
after seven daily stages (the fifth day will be a day of rest).
III. The itinerary for the advance of each of the armies is as follows:
A. The Third Army Group and the Seventh Army constitute the right
wing. They should set out on the 25th from the present location (Changxin),
by way of Jiangbeidong, Qiaotou, and Yinkeng, cross the river at Quyang,
continue their march via Xiaba, Sanzai, Wencun, Gangmianyu, Yangjiaoxu,
and Hekengkou, and arrive at Ruijin City. This trip should be divided into
four daily stages. On the fifth day (the 29th) they should rest for one day in
Ruijin City. On the 30th they should set out again from Ruijin City, and by
way of Gucheng, arrive at Changting after two days' march for the concentration of forces.
Our source for this order is Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 1, pp. 253-56, where it is
reproduced from Junshi wenxian, issued in 1942.


B. The Fourth Army constitutes the central column and should set out on the
same day (the 25th) from Longgangtou, advancing after the unit directly attached
to Headquarters. After passing through Shuitouzhuang, Shuibei, Bazishang,
Xinxuzi, Pibalong, Ping'anzhai, Datianxu, and Huangwuqian, it should cross the
river at Changsha.' The crossing must be completed on the morning of the third
day (the 27th), and it should then march by way of Liuminba, Shangtian,
Dutouxu, and Guancang to Huangbaixu in four daily stages. On the fifth day (the
29th) it should rest for one day in Huangbaixu. On the 30th it should set off again
from Huangbaixu, by way of Yunjixu, Helongshi, and Liudongnao, arriving at
Changting City in two days for the concentration of forces.

C. The Third Army constitutes the left wing. It should set out on the 25th
from its present location (Liantang) and reach Changsha by way of Guantian,
Zhongzhou, Gulonggang, Sanliao, Chengjiangyu, Yangmeitou, and
Huangwuqian. It should cross the river after the Fourth Army and then proceed by way of Ruilinzhai, Yangkeng, Shanhexu, and Yuanxicun, arriving at
Rentianshi in four days. On the fifth day (the 29th) it should take a day's rest
in Rentianshi. On the 30th it should set out once again from Rentianshi, and
by way of Jiugongpai, Hubei, Baixia, Yangang, Huang,² and Luobaiping,
arrive at the city of Changting in two days for concentration.

D. General Headquarters and its directly attached unit should set out at
4:00 in the morning on the 25th from its present location (Shuitouzhuang). It
should advance ahead of the Fourth Army, along the itinerary of the Fourth
Army. After it has crossed the river at Changsha on the second day (the 26th),
it must choose a suitable place to camp on the southern bank of the river. On
the third day, it should arrive in the vicinity of Guancangxia and on the fourth
day it should arrive at Ruijin City and encamp there. Thereafter, it should
follow the itinerary of the Third Army Group to Changting.

IV. While crossing the river at Quyang and Liuminba, each army should
appoint someone as river crossing commander to exercise command in matters
related to the crossing. Special attention must be paid to keeping a close watch
on the air (send out air raid watchers, set up a number of machine guns to
defend against air raids). The directly attached unit of General Headquarters
must complete the crossing at Changsha (that is, at the place opposite
Liuminba) on the 26th. The Fourth Army must begin crossing the river rapidly at daybreak on the 27th, and the crossing must be completed by noon on
the 27th. The Third Army should cross the river after the Fourth Army at the
same place (Changsha).

V. The temporary hospitals left behind by every army should all be put under
the command of the Rear General Hospital of the Red Army (Director Dai Jimin,

1. The Changsha referred to here is not the capital of Hunan Province, but a small
town on the Mei, a river running between Yudu and Ruijin xian, which the Red Army was
obliged to cross in proceeding eastward toward Fujian.

2. A character is missing here from the available Chinese text.


Political Commissar He Cheng).³ Every army must deal independently with the
large baggage stored in the rear and in the local areas.
VI. General Headquarters will arrive at Ping'anzhai on the first day, in the
vicinity of Liuminba on the second day, at Guancangxia on the third day, and at
Ruijin City on the fourth day. Thereafter, its location will be determined separately. Every day, on reaching its place of encampment, each army should send a
report to Headquarters.

Supplementary Notes:
a. For the detailed itinerary of every army, see the attached map, but this
must be kept absolutely secret and must not be transmitted below the
divisional level.
b. Each army can lay down its own itineraries for the advance to Ruijin City,
Huangbaixu, and Rentianshi, but these should not be transmitted below
the regimental level.
c. The area to the right of the right wing army should be further divided into
parallel routes for the advance by the Third Army Group and the Seventh
Army themselves. The area on the left of the left wing army should be
further divided into parallel routes for the advance by the Third Army
itself.
d. Each army should choose a location in the vicinity of the crossing point
for antiaircraft defenses. At least eight machine guns should be set up, and if
the enemy's planes fly low (below 800 meters) to disrupt our crossing, the
river crossing commanders in charge of each crossing, or the commander of
each army (the commander-in-chief) should give the order to fire at them.
e. During the march, each army should assign capable staff officers to investigate the roads we have passed through on the way, and the houses,
mountains, rivers, topography, and so on near the route. Whenever you
stop and camp, you must investigate the social situations at the place of
encampment and the roads that extend in all directions. After reaching the
place for concentrating our forces, the results of these investigations must
be reported to the staff office of General Headquarters.

In all, there are six orders and five supplementary notes.

Commander-in-Chief Zhu De
Political Commissar Mao Zedong

³ He Cheng (1901-), a native of Santai (Shehong) in Sichuan, joined the Party in
1925, participated in the Guangzhou Uprising in 1927, and then did medical work in
Guangdong base areas before coming to the Jiangxi base areas in early 1931. No biographical information has been located on Dai Jimin.