(October 10, 1936)

To Song [Shilun] and Song [Renqiong], and for them to inform Peng [Dehuai]:

1. It does not seem likely at present that Enemy Gao Shuangcheng will
advance westward. The enemy forces in Hengshan and Shiwan are now busy
building blockhouses, and, because of delay and harassment by our guerrillas,
their progress is extremely slow. If the Thirtieth Army maneuvers in the direction of Mi[zhi] and Heng[shan] it will give rise to new deployments and create a
confrontation. Moreover, there is a shortage of food in this area, and they will
not be able to hold out for long, so it would be better for the Thirtieth Army to
engage in eliminating bandits and turning the area Red south of Liu'an and
Jingbian.

2. In the next month and a half, the Twenty-ninth Army will move to the
north of Tiebian City to eliminate bandits and raise food supplies, move gradually to the north, and arrive at the end of the month in the area between Anbian,
Dingbian, and Jingbian so as not to be exposed too early.

3. I agree with the current deployment of the Twenty-eighth Army.

Mao

Soliciting Opinions on the Draft Agreement
Between the Guomindang and the Communist
Party on Resisting Japan and Saving
the Nation

(October 11, 1936)

To Comrades Zhu [De], Zhang [Guotao], Xu [Xiangqian], Chen [Changhao],
Ren [Bishi], He [Long], Guan [Xiangying], Liu [Bocheng], and Peng [Dehuai]:

When the telegram of the draft regarding collaboration between the Guomindang
and the Communist Party to resist Japan and save the nation arrives, please put
forward your suggestions. This is our side's draft, which it is planned that [Zhou]
Enlai will take to the negotiations. It is still not fully known what restrictions the
other side will ultimately accept.

Luo Fu [Mao] Zedong

1. The Central Executive Committee of the Chinese Guomindang and the
Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, cognizant of the fact that
the Japanese imperialists' aggression against China continues to intensify without abatement, threatening the preservation of China's territorial sovereignty and
the survival of the nation, are united in the view that only through cooperation
between the two parties, calling upon the popular masses to arise, and uniting
with all parties, all factions, and all circles throughout the country, and with
those nations and states throughout the world that treat us on an equal basis, to
carry out armed resistance against Japan, can we achieve the objective of driving
out Japanese imperialism, protecting and restoring China's territorial sovereignty, and striving for national independence and survival. For this reason, both
sides have sent plenipotentiary representatives to carry out negotiations and conclude this agreement on resisting Japan and saving the nation.

We have translated this telegram from Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 1, pp. 625-26,
where it is reproduced from a copy in the Central Archives.

Our source for this document is the 1985 annual compendium of Wenxian he yanjiu, pp.
184-87. An identical text of the draft agreement, dated simply "October 1936," without
the telegram transmitting it to Zhu De and others, appears in Mao Zedong junshi wenji,
Vol. 1, pp. 640-42. According to Nianpu, Vol. 1, pp. 589-90, the agreement was drafted
by Mao Zedong in September and was used as the basis for subsequent talks with the
Guomindang and other influential factions. (See above, the letter of October 5, 1936, to
Zhang Xueliang.) The text reproduced here was, however, never formally adopted.