Conversations from March 17 to 20, 1966
After liberation, we implemented a policy of "taking over" intellectuals, which had both
advantages and disadvantages. Bourgeois intellectuals now hold real power in academia and
education. The deeper the socialist revolution deepens, the more they resist, and the more
their anti-Party and anti-socialist nature becomes apparent. Wu Han, Jian Bozan, and others
were Communist Party members, but they were also anti-Communist, and in reality, they
were Kuomintang members. Currently, many places still have a poor understanding of this
issue, and academic criticism has yet to develop. All localities must pay attention to who
controls schools, newspapers, periodicals, and publishing houses, and conduct a thorough
critique of bourgeois academic authority. We must cultivate our own young academic
authorities. We should not be afraid of young people breaking the law, and we should not
withhold their manuscripts. The Central Propaganda Department should not become a rural
work department. [2]
Frontline was also written by Wu Han, Liao Mosha, and Deng Tuo [3] and was anti-Party and
anti-socialist.
Literature, history, philosophy, law, and economics require a Cultural Revolution and resolute
criticism. How much Marxism is there in this?
2. Talks from March 28-30, 1966
The Tenth Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee made the decision [4] to carry
out class struggle. Wu Han published so many articles, never asking for permission, never
seeking approval. Why did Yao Wenyuan's articles require permission? [5] Doesn't the
Central Committee's decision count?
What are academic cliques? Those who shield anti-communist intellectuals are academic
cliques. Those who shield "middle school cliques" like Wu Han and Jian Bozan are "university
cliques." The Central Propaganda Department is the "Heavenly Palace." We must overthrow
the "Heavenly Palace" and liberate the "little devils."



If Peng Zhen, the Beijing Municipal Committee, and the Central Propaganda Department
continue to shield bad people, the Central Propaganda Department, the Beijing Municipal
Committee, and the Five-Man Group must be disbanded [6].
I have always advocated that whenever central government organs engage in bad behaviour,
I call on local governments to revolt and attack the central government. Everywhere should
produce more "Sun Wukongs" to wreak havoc in Heaven.
In September [7] of last year, I asked some comrades, "What should we do if revisionism
emerges in the Central Committee?" This is very likely and extremely dangerous. We must
protect the left and cultivate a leftist contingent during the Cultural Revolution.
We are all old, and it's hard to say whether the next generation can withstand revisionist
trends. The Cultural Revolution is a long and arduous task. I cannot complete it in my
lifetime; I must carry it through to the end.
3. Speech of April 22, 1966
I don't believe the problems during the Cultural Revolution were solely related to Wu Han,
with a whole series of "Three-Family Village" [8] incidents following. The Cultural Revolution
was a revolution that touched people's souls, an ideological struggle that touched a wide
range of areas. There were people within the government. For example, the Central
Propaganda Department and the Central Ministry of Culture both had these issues. There
were people within the government. There were people within the government, in every
major region, province, and city.
In all departments of the Party Central Committee, including the major regions, provinces,
and cities, is the government truly clean? I don't believe it.
Whether revisionism emerges in China or not, there are two possibilities: it doesn't happen,
or it does, and it happens sooner or later. If it's handled well, it might not happen sooner.
Even if it does happen sooner, it will go in the opposite direction.
IV. Speech of April 29, 1966
Not a single needle can penetrate Beijing, not even a drop of water can drip. Peng Zhen
wants to reshape the Party according to his worldview. Things are developing in his opposite
direction, and he has prepared the conditions for his own downfall. His mistakes must be
thoroughly attacked. This was inevitable; they were exposed by chance and deepened step
by step. Not everyone learns from historical lessons. This is the law of class struggle, and it
cannot be changed by human will. Whenever anyone in the central government engages in
mischief, I will call on the local governments to attack them, like Sun Wukong wreaking
havoc in Heaven, and to target those who protect the Jade Emperor. Peng Zhen was a minor
figure who had infiltrated the Party. He was nothing special; a single finger could have
brought him down. "The west wind blows down leaves in Chang'an" [9] tells comrades not



to worry endlessly. Dust will accumulate until it is swept away, and class enemies will not be
defeated until they are fought.
Phenomena are visible, but the essence is hidden, and the essence will also be revealed
through phenomena.
Peng Zhen's essence remained hidden for thirty years. Revisionism is not limited to the
cultural circles; it will also emerge in the Party, government, and military. Especially when
revisionism emerges in the Party and military, the problem becomes serious.
[1] This is a conversation between Mao Zedong and some members of the Politburo in
Hangzhou.
[2] On November 9, 1962, the CPC Central Committee issued the "Decision on the
Dissolution of the Rural Work Department of the CPC Central Committee". The Rural Work
Department of the CPC Central Committee was disbanded.
[3] Deng Tuo, who was the Secretary of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee Secretariat and
the Alternate Secretary of the CPC North China Bureau Secretariat, was in charge of
ideological and cultural work and the editor-in-chief of the Beijing Municipal Committee
theoretical journal "Frontline". He refused to reprint "Comment on the New Historical
Drama "Hai Rui Dismissed from Office"" in Beijing.
[4] The Decision on Class Struggle refers to the communiqué issued by the Tenth Plenary
Session of the Eighth Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, held in Beijing
from September 24 to 27, 1962: "The Tenth Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee
pointed out that throughout the historical period of proletarian revolution and proletarian
dictatorship, throughout the historical period of transition from capitalism to communism (a
period that will take decades, if not longer), there will exist class struggle between the
proletariat and the bourgeoisie, and a struggle between the two paths of socialism and
capitalism. The overthrown reactionary ruling classes are unwilling to resign themselves to
extinction and will always attempt a restoration. At the same time, the influence of the
bourgeoisie and the habitual influence of the old society still exist in society, and there are
spontaneous capitalist tendencies among some small producers. Therefore, among the
people, there are still some who have not undergone socialist transformation. Their number
is small, only a few percent of the population, but they will try to abandon the socialist path
and take the capitalist path at the first opportunity. Under these circumstances, class
struggle is inevitable. This is a historical law long ago articulated by Marxism-Leninism, and
we must never forget it. This class struggle is complex, tortuous, constantly rising and falling,
and sometimes even intense. This class struggle inevitably finds its way back into the Party.
Foreign imperialist pressure and the influence of the bourgeoisie at home are the social
roots of revisionist thinking within the Party. While waging a struggle against class enemies
at home and abroad, we must remain vigilant and resolutely oppose all forms of opportunist
ideological tendencies within the Party.”



[5] On March 11, 1966, Xu Liqun, Executive Vice Minister of the Central Propaganda
Department, acting on Peng Zhen's advice, called Yang Yongzhi, head of the Shanghai
Municipal Party Committee's Propaganda Department, to question why they hadn't
informed the Central Propaganda Department before publishing Yao Wenyuan's article. Peng
Zhen replied, "In the past, Shanghai published Yao Wenyuan's articles without even
informing us. Where has the Party spirit of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee gone?"
[6] In July 1964, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China established a "Five-
Man Group" to carry out Cultural Revolution work under the leadership of the Political
Bureau and Secretariat. The group was led by Peng Zhen (First Secretary of the Beijing
Municipal Committee of the CPC), and Lu Dingyi (Vice Premier of the State Council, Minister
of the Central Propaganda Department, and Minister of Culture). Members included Kang
Sheng (Secretary of the CPC Central Secretariat), Zhou Yang (Deputy Minister of the Central
Propaganda Department), and Wu Lengxi (President of Xinhua News Agency and President
of the People's Daily). Initially, this "Five-Man Group" was not called the "Cultural Revolution
Five-Man Group" but was always referred to simply as the "Five-Man Group." The term
"Cultural Revolution Five-Man Group" only emerged on February 12, 1966, when the
"Outline of the Report of the Cultural Revolution Five-Man Group on Current Academic
Discussions" (later known as the "February Outline") was circulated throughout the Party.
[7] The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China held a working conference in
Beijing from September 18 to October 12, 1965. During the conference, on October 10, Mao
Zedong spoke with the first secretaries of the major regions, proposing war preparations. He
urged all provinces to build up their "small third lines." He urged them not to be afraid of the
enemy not coming, not to be afraid of mutinies, and not to be afraid of rebellions. He also
said, "What will you do if revisionism emerges from the Central Committee?" It's very likely,
and it would be the most dangerous. If revisionism emerges from the Central Committee,
you will rebel. If the provinces have "small third lines," they will rebel. In the past, some
people simply blindly believed in the International and the Central Committee. Now, you
must be careful: no matter who says it—the Central Committee, the Central Bureau, or the
Provincial Party Committee—if it's incorrect, you don't have to follow it.
[8] On September 20, 1961, the Beijing Municipal Party Committee's publication, Frontline,
launched a column for essays titled "Notes from Three-Family Village." Wu Han, Deng Tuo,
and Liao Mosha took turns writing for the column. Wu Han used the pen name "Wu," Deng
Tuo used the pen name "Nan" (under the pen name "Ma Nancun"), and Liao Mosha used
the pen name "Xing" (under the pen name "Fanxing"). They all signed their names as "Wu
Nanxing." The "Three-Family Village" here referred to the anti-Party, anti-socialist revisionist
group.
[9] The Tang Dynasty poet Jia Dao famously wrote in his poem "Remembering the Hermit
Wu on the River," "The autumn wind blows upon the Wei River, and fallen leaves fill
Chang'an." Mao Zedong, writing on January 9, 1963, in a poem titled "A River Full of Red: In



Response to Comrade Guo Moruo," included the line, "As the west wind blows, fallen leaves
descend upon Chang'an, their wings rustling." This refers to the revisionists' desolate and
bleak situation, and the impending clarion call for our offensive.