(December 1, 1935, midnight)

Luo Fu:

I have received your two letters of the 20th and the 25th.
1. I am in complete agreement with the general policy of positioning the Red
Army close to Outer Mongolia, for this policy is the correct policy, which will
make China's revolutionary war, and especially the anti-Japanese national war
that is coming soon, develop more forcefully and faster. What I do not agree
with are the time and the itinerary. First of all, the Red Army must now add ten
thousand new recruits. Within four months, relying on the soviet region in northern Shaanxi, we must make unprecedented efforts to achieve this goal. Second,
we had best take the route of Shanxi and Suiyuan. This is the orientation of
getting closer to Outer Mongolia by means of war and development without
separating the soviet region in northern Shaanxi from us. In order to fulfill the
aforementioned two tasks, I think that about six months will be enough. Therefore, we should move closer to Outer Mongolia next summer or fall. At the
moment we should set out at once to organize Mongolian guerrillas.
2. I am in complete agreement with the tactical contents of the united front to
oppose Chiang and resist Japan, as well as with the concrete slogans and program. Please publicize the manifesto at once.¹
3. I basically agree with changing the tactics toward the rich peasants, but the
resolution² should point out that when the struggle has developed and the poor
and middle peasants demand the equal distribution of the land of the rich peasants, the Party should support this request. The rich peasants may get land of the
same kind as the poor and middle peasants; the former policy of giving them bad
land was wrong. On the other hand, the principle of not touching the land of the
rich peasants in the soviet regions, particularly in the soviet regions in the south,
is not correct either. As regards the land question, there should be some difference between the policy toward the rich peasants and that toward the middle

peasants. The Party in the rural areas should be good at leading and supervising
the rich peasants, and strictly guard against being led by the rich peasants. We
must point out that when the struggle deepens, the rich peasants are sure to join
the ranks of the landlords. This is a peculiarity of the semifeudal rich peasant
class in China. As far as the petty landlord stratum of those who have the
capacity to work but have gone bankrupt are concerned, they should be treated as
rich peasants, with the agreement of the masses.
4. The policy of generally not executing captured enemy officers, treating
them kindly, and releasing them has already been carried out here. My letter to
Dong Yingbin³ has already been widely publicized, and right now we are carrying out an extensive campaign of disrupting the White army.
5. I may go back to the rear for a visit in a few days.

Zedong

Our source for this text is Mao Zedong wenji, Vol. 1, pp. 372-73, where it is reproduced
from a copy in the Central Archives.

--- Notes

1. The reference is to the Manifesto of November 28, 1935, translated above.

2. The reference is to the resolution on changing the policy toward the rich peasants
adopted by the Central Committee on December 6, 1935.

3. For an extract from this letter, see above, the Introduction.