Location: Chairman Mao’s Conference Room at Wangjiaping in Yan’an.

The officials responsible for defending the Border Region first reported to Chairman Mao on the soldiers’ resolve to defend Yan’an and the entire Border Region—to the very last man, they would not allow Chiang Kai-shek to occupy Yan’an.

Such determination among the troops is most commendable. We have lived in Yan’an for ten years, dug cave dwellings, eaten millet, studied Marxism-Leninism, and led the national revolution. Yan’an is known throughout China and around the world; your deep affection for it is entirely understandable. We must, with a spirit of resolute struggle, defend and develop both the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region and the Northwest Liberated Area.

At present, the Kuomintang has dispatched over 200,000 troops to attack the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region. They enjoy the backing of U.S. imperialism and are equipped with aircraft and tanks. By contrast, our forces in the Border Region number only 20,000, and our armament consists mainly of millet and rifles. Although the enemy enjoys a clear advantage over us in terms of numbers and equipment, we should also recognize that the Border Region boasts rugged terrain, strong popular support, and ample room for maneuver. Provided we adopt a sound operational strategy, we will surely defeat the enemy. Our strategy is to lure the enemy deep into our territory, leading them by the nose through the mountains in a protracted game of cat-and-mouse. When they are thoroughly exhausted and severely short of food, we shall seize the opportunity to annihilate them—this is what we call the “mushroom tactic.” Chiang Kai-shek’s occupation of Yan’an will by no means constitute a victory for him; rather, it will be like lifting a rock only to drop it on his own feet. He will soon come to grief.

Our primary objective in warfare is to destroy the enemy’s living forces, not merely to hold onto any given position. As long as we can inflict heavy casualties on the enemy, we will eventually be able to retake lost ground and capture new territory. Hence the saying: Lose the land, but keep the people; keep the land, but lose the people; lose both land and people. It is precisely for this reason that we have now chosen to withdraw from Yan’an of our own accord.

Please go back and explain this to the soldiers. Within one year, at most two, we shall return to Yan’an. By then, Yan’an will belong forever to the people.