30, 1982), 76; Shuxin, pp. 366-367. ,

Wen Nansong is Mao Zedong’ s cousin on his mother’ s side of the family.

Cousin Nansong:

Your letter of January has been received. Thank you for your good wishes.
Cousin Yunchang' has written me many times and I have responded with one
letter which was addressed to Baipangkou, Nan xian. Do you know if he has
received it? Regarding the appointment for Cousin Yunchang, it would not be
appropriate for me to make a recommendation; rather, it would be more
appropriate for him to impress others with his performance among the people,
and when he has gained people’s confidence he will be given the opportunity
to take part in the work. Are Tenth Cousin and Seventeenth Cousin still alive?
I am very gratified to know that Eleventh Cousin is still alive and well.” He
wrote a letter to me and I have sent one back to him. I wonder if he has
received it? You said that there was a shortage of grain in our home village
and the government was not distributing any. How are things now? Is there
Still a grain shortage? Has the government come up with nothing at all? When
You write again, please tell me in detail.

In reply, and with concern for your recent well-being,

Mao Zedong
May 12, 1950
Notes
1, :
ao cording to the footnote in the HQ source, this refers to Wen Yunchang, an elder cousin of

t, Wen died in 1961.
dieq in Cousin (i.e., Shige, or Tenth Brother in the Chinese) refers to Wen Banxiang, who

1S Wen 1. Seventeenth Cousin (Shigige) is Wen Meiqing, who is a peasant. Eleventh Cousin

anquan. See text May 7, 1950(1).


84 / MAO ZEDONG