Annotation on a
〈Situation Brief〉[1]
(January 1965)

Which opinions exactly are not entirely correct? Such an equivocal note is tantamount to saying nothing, or deliberately pouring half a ladle of cold water on the author of the letter.

This annotation was written in the note to the article "Is There a Frame" published in *Situation Brief* No. 497, compiled and printed by the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on December 30, 1964. Qu Yusheng, a work team member of the Maxihu Brigade, Xiaolongma Commune, Yongnian County, Hebei Province, wrote a letter on December 19 titled "Is There a Frame" to the leading comrades of the Handan Prefectural Party Committee's "Four Clean-ups" Work General Regiment, reporting that the work team had been in the village for 18 days, isolating itself in rooting and linking up, visiting the poor and asking about their hardships, without explaining its purpose to the broad masses of poor and lower-middle peasants, nor daring to explain policies to them. The masses did not understand the intentions of the work regiment, and the movement was cold and cheerless. The leadership of the work sub-regiment adopted the method of "unified action" across the whole commune, requiring all brigades and production teams to march "in step," to hold whatever meetings together, and to do whatever work together. He expressed doubts as to whether the guiding ideology and leadership methods of the Xiaolongma Sub-regiment Party Committee conformed to the spirit of the instructions of the Central Committee and the Chairman, and put forward his own opinions. The General Regiment Office printed and distributed this letter to all sub-regiment Party committees for reference, adding a note saying: "In Comrade Qu Yusheng's letter, some opinions are correct, and some opinions are not entirely correct," but his "spirit of courageously reporting the situation to higher Party committees and putting forward views is a manifestation of responsibility for the revolutionary cause and deserves encouragement." Mao Zedong wrote this annotation in parentheses after the sentence "In Comrade Qu Yusheng's letter, some opinions are correct, and some opinions are not entirely correct."