Talk with Chen Yi[1]

(January 1948)

Since Japan’s surrender, and especially in the year 1947, a fundamental change has occurred; it can be called a great event. The situation on both the enemy’s side and our side has undergone a fundamental transformation. Politically, the orientation of the people’s hearts has completely changed; the people’s hearts turn toward us, they place their hopes on the Communist Party, and they harbor deep-seated hatred for Chiang Kai-shek. Isolating Chiang Kai-shek was a protracted struggle and a problem that remained unresolved for a long time; now it is resolved. During the civil war period, this problem was not resolved. At that time we were isolated; we had only the workers and peasants in the Soviet areas, while other strata were alienated, and Chiang Kai-shek’s base was relatively large. During the anti-Japanese period, we did our utmost to resolve this problem, the situation changed somewhat, and we gained more friends. This was because we adopted appropriate policies, such as resolutely fighting Japan, firmly holding the banner of resistance against Japan, reducing rent and interest, improving relations with the landlords, promoting democracy, and winning over the bourgeoisie and its various parties. Chiang Kai-shek’s main mistakes were passive resistance against Japan, sitting on the mountain and watching the tigers fight, which cost him his status as a national leader. Next came his monopolization of the economy, political use of secret agents, and implementation of one-party dictatorship; these three things cost him the Kuomintang’s realm. Now, the people’s hearts turn toward us, and the problem of isolating Chiang Kai-shek has been resolved; this is mainly due to the appropriateness of our policies. This is the political reason for the fundamental change that occurred in 1947. Militarily, since we shifted to the offensive in July 1947, Chiang Kai-shek has shifted to a defensive position, and thus the military situation has completely changed. For twenty years we had long been in a defensive position, in a position of being “encircled and suppressed,” without attacking the enemy. In July 1947, for the first time in our history, we shifted to the offensive. Do not say “counter-offensive”; counter-offensive carries

[1] This is the main content of Mao Zedong’s talk with Chen Yi at Yangjialing.

Talk with Chen Yi

a defensive connotation and cannot fully capture the content of this situation. The initial period of the war was of a self-defensive nature; our policy then was to delay the civil war. Now it is to eliminate Chiang Kai-shek; it is no longer of a self-defensive nature. Since Chiang Kai-shek convened the bogus National Assembly and enacted the bogus constitution, he has lost the people’s hearts even more. At the same time, a revolutionary offensive (not self-defensive defense) is being carried out nationwide, smashing Chiang Kai-shek’s attacks and creating a great revolution; calling it an “offensive” is more appropriate. It is already impossible for Chiang Kai-shek to return to the past situation; “the yellow crane has gone, never to return.” Henceforth, the question is how we move into Jiangnan, Sichuan, and the two Guangs. The United States advocates abandoning the area north of the 40th parallel, that is, from Andong in the east, passing through the Beining Line, the Pingsui Line, and Datong, to Xi’an in the west; that is, abandoning the Northeast, contending for North China, consolidating the Yangtze, and managing South China. Chiang Kai-shek says he suffers from the inability to abandon; if he abandons one place, the Communist Party will all pile in. Economically, Chiang Kai-shek’s economy in 1947 was even more severe than in 1946, and American aid could not solve the problem. Our economy also has problems, but since shifting to the offensive, with the main forces moving out, the burden has been lightened, large tracts of land have been recovered, we have more methods, and our economic problems have been resolved. Chiang has no land reform; we have land reform. In 1948, Chiang Kai-shek will face even greater difficulties. If we continue our efforts for another year in 1948, it can be said with certainty that even greater victories are bound to come. The war should not be allowed to be interrupted; it must be carried through to the end without giving the enemy a chance to rest. If Chiang Kai-shek, seeing the situation is hopeless, says he will step down, shedding his shell like a cicada, grafting one twig onto another, hoping thereby to gain a chance to rest and plot a comeback, we must foresee this situation and expose it in our propaganda, making it clear to the masses that it is not a matter of eliminating Chiang Kai-shek the individual, but of eliminating the Chiang Kai-shek clique and its class. Imperialist countries will certainly intervene against revolutionary countries; the methods of intervention are diverse, and even sending troops to join the war can be repelled. We do not go out to provoke; we only respond to challenges. The Americans still have a few years of ferocity left; if you are intimidated by them, you fall into their trap. If you are not intimidated, that is the end of it. Previously we could only say “advantageous to us”; now we can say “victory is at hand.” At the time of Japan’s surrender, we still felt both joy and apprehension. Joy that Japan had surrendered, apprehension because the question of superiority was unresolved, we had gained little territory, Chiang Kai-shek was powerful, a severe civil war loomed over us, and the two possibilities of success and failure were still in struggle. Now it is fine; our superiority has been established. This is not an estimate, but a fact.