To Ye Jianying and Others[1]

(November 17, 1937)

The Eighth Route Army is still conducting operations north and south of the Great Wall and in the area east of the Tongpu Railway up to the Beiping–Hankou Railway line, with its forward elements pressing close to Beiping, Baoding, and Zhangjiakou. Not a single person has retreated back to northern Shaanxi. However, it is true that a portion of the Central Army has withdrawn to the west of the Yellow River.

[1] This is the main content of a telegram from Mao Zedong to Ye Jianying, with a copy to Lin Boqu.