Chinese Communist Party and the
Central Soviet Government of China
i
If The Enemy Is Determined to Start a War,
the Red Army's Main Force May Advance
in Three Stages
(January 8, 1937, at midnight)
Peng [Dehuai] and Ren [Bishi]:
1. Upon arrival at Sanyuan, prepare to rest for three days, and extend this to
five to seven days if the situation permits. Please set the work agenda. The same
goes for the Fifteenth Army Group at Xianyang.
2. If the enemy is determined to start a war, the best plan for the Red Army's
main force would be to go to Shang[zhou] and Luo[nan] as the first step, go to
western Henan as the second step, and go to the [Bei]jing-Han[kou] railroad as the
third step. Only by so doing can we change the whole situation, cause division in
Nanjing, and force Chiang into submission. The Second Front Army should remain behind north of the Wei to support the friendly forces¹ in doing battle on the
interior lines. Subsequently, the Red Army and friendly forces on the interior lines
and the Red Army's main force on the exterior lines will provide mutual support
to engage in strategic coordinated combat. For the moment, however, try to rest
for a few more days at Sanyuan and Xianyang. If the enemy does not disrupt the
peace, we shall not advance eastward for the time being.
Mao Zedong

--- Notes

Our source for this text is Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 1, pp. 777-78, where it is
reproduced from a copy in the Central Archives.

1. "Friendly forces" refers to the Guomindang Northeastern Army and Seventeenth
Route Army, commanded respectively by Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng.