[1] Peng Ye, with copies to the General Front Committee, the Tianjin Municipal Party Committee, and the North China Bureau, and for circulation to all bureaus and front committees: [2] We have received your telegram of Chou day.


In order to (1) restore commercial links between the North and the South and stimulate production; (2) enable the bourgeoisie in the major southern cities to understand our Party’s policies and measures, thereby facilitating our isolation of the Kuomintang and our smooth takeover, administration, and development of industrial production in those cities upon their occupation; and (3) transfer control of shipping, aviation, postal services, and telegraph communications from the Kuomintang into our hands—on these grounds, we should permit all shipping companies and civil aviation enterprises, including the China National Aviation Corporation and the Central Air Transport Corporation, to resume service first between Peiping, Tianjin, and Qinhuangdao.


The Peiping Telegraph Bureau has not been shut down, and the Tianjin Telegraph Bureau should also prepare to resume operations.


Postal and transportation links between Peiping–Tianjin and the South should likewise be restored.


Interbank and inter-firm money transfers through banks, money changers, post offices, and commercial establishments should also be resumed.


Once shipping, air travel, postal service, telegraph communications, and money transfers have been restored, our inspection procedures must not be overly stringent.


To deal with agents of the enemy, our primary focus should be on mass work and underground activities, rather than on restricting transportation and communications.


The Kuomintang in Peking, Shanghai, and Hankow will inevitably seek to exploit our restoration of transport and communication channels by dispatching agents to Peiping and Tianjin to establish contact with one another.


However, any increase in the number of agents in Peiping and Tianjin will be offset by a corresponding decrease in those cities, so the total number of agents will not rise as a result. Moreover, Peking, Shanghai, and Hankow will come under our control within a few months.


Therefore, you should treat the resumption of shipping, air travel, postal service, telegraph communications, and money transfers between the North and the South as a major undertaking, and refrain from adopting a passive stance.


The recent visit of the Nanjing delegation had an extremely positive impact on us.


Now a Shanghai delegation has arrived, and it is likely that delegations from Wuhan and Changsha will follow. These delegations are composed of representatives of the bourgeoisie and the gentry, some of whom are members of the Kuomintang. Faced with the imminent collapse of the Kuomintang and the impending nationwide victory of our forces, they are compelled to seek a way forward by approaching us. This is a development that serves our interests, and we should handle these delegations with care.


Accordingly, the General Front Committee, together with Dong Biwu and Peng Ye, shall jointly study and formulate specific measures concerning the resumption of shipping, air travel, postal service, telegraph communications, and money transfers between the North and the South, and submit a report for our approval, so that we may resolve related issues in conjunction with the Shanghai representatives, Wei Wenhan, Jin Shan, and others.


Printed by the Central Committee based on Mao Zedong’s manuscript.


Notes [1]Shi Peng refers to Peng Zhen, born in 1902 in Quwo County, Shanxi Province, who at the time served as Secretary of the Peiping Municipal Party Committee of the CPC. Ye refers to Ye Jianying, who at the time was Mayor of Peiping. [2] Chouwen denotes February 12. [3] Zhonghang and Yanghang are the two civil aviation carriers of the Kuomintang government: the China National Aviation Corporation and the Central Air Transport Corporation. [4] Dong refers to Dong Biwu (1886–1975), a native of Huang’an County, Hubei Province (now Hong’an), who at the time held the post of Chairman of the North China People’s Government. Bo refers to Bo Yibo, who at the time was Vice Chairman of the North China People’s Government. [5] Wei Wenhan (1896–?), a native of Tianjin, served as Chairman of the Shanghai Steamship Industry Association and was designated as a representative to travel to Peiping to participate in negotiations on the resumption of north–south shipping. Jin Shan (1911–1982), from Yuanling County, Hunan Province, was then manager of the Tsinghua Film Company and was assigned by the CPC Central Committee to take part in the talks on resuming north–south shipping.