Letter to Hu Qiaomu
(April 30, 1957)

Source: Kau & Leung, The Writings of Mao Zedong 1949-1976, Vol. II
Pages 514-514
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30. Mao is using here a colloquial and somewhat vulgar saying, shane lido zeit chuan,
which refers to people who have unwittingly boarded a ship that turns out to be steered by
pirates or dishonest sailors whose intentions are to rob or even murder the passengers. The
saying has come to mean finding out that one has put oneself in a perilous position or even,
more specifically, unwittingly put in one’s lot with people, or a faction, with whom one
does not have common cause, and yet being unable to do anything about the mistake. We
have not been able to trace the origin of the saying.

31. See text May 20, 1951, vol. I, note 3; text Feb. 14, 1957, note 1; and text Mar. 20,
1957(1), note 15.

32. On Lin Zexu, see text Feb. 14, 1957, note 1.

33. See text Mar. 18, 1957, note 39, on the founding of the CPC.

34, Mao is here playing on the aphorism bu xue wu shu, which is used to describe people
who are lacking both in learning and in skills (here, “technique.”) The phrase that Mao uses
IS you Shit wu xue (have skills, but not learning). The aphorism is derived from the ancient
history Han shu (History of the Han Dynasty), where it was originally used in reference to
Huo Guang (d. A.D. 68), a famous official of the time of Emperor Wudi of the Han dynasty.
On the criticism that the Communists cannot lead in the area of science, see text Jan. 27,
1957(1), paragraph 35, and text Mar. 20, 1957(2), note 19 and surrounding text.

35. See text Mar. 20, 1957(1), note 111.

36. See text Mar. 31, 1955, vol. I, note 3; text Aug. 30, 1956, note 2; and text Jan. 1957,
note 9,

37. See text Nov. 1951—Mar. 1952, vol. I, note 7, and text Jan. 27, 1957(2), note 63: see
also note 18 here.

38. See text Feb. 27, 1957, source note; text Mar. 17, 1957(2), source note; text Mar.
18, 1957, paragraph 21; and text Mar. 20, 1957(1), source note and note 7.

39. This is an aphorism, z/ao ling zhi gai, that describes inconsistency and whimsical inconstancy in policymaking. The saying is derived from an essay written by Chao
Cuo (200-154 B.C.), a grand minister of the Western Han dynasty of Emperor Jingdi’s
time who was famous for his agronomistic policies.

40. The phrase that Mao uses here is hao da xi gong (having a hankering for great things
and for achievements). It is derived from the Ming-dynasty opera Wansha ji (Tale of the
Washerwomen) written by Liang Shenyu. In the opera, which deals with the story of the
famous historical romance of Fan Li and Xi Shi, the phrase was used to describe Fu Cha,
the king of Wu, who is the villain of the piece. See text Jan. I 1, 1958, note. 20.

4]. Again, see text Apr. 25, 1956. Note again, however, that the occasion for this famous
“On the Ten Major Relationships” speech was not a Supreme State Conference, but an
enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau.

Letter to Hu Qiaomu
(April 30, 1957)

Source: Shuxin, p. 526.

Hu was alternate secretary at the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the CPC at this
time. See text May 22, 1950, vol. 1, note 2.