October 19, 1976 was a big day for New China, and on this day, the General Office of the Central Committee issued Document No. 16, entitled "Circular of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on the Incident of Wang Hongwen, Zhang Chunqiao, Jiang Qing, and Yao Wenyuan's Anti-Party Clique." The document was quickly transmitted to the whole country, and the grass-roots party members and the masses of the people learned of the smashing of the "Gang of Four".
Time back to 13 days ago.
On October 6, the four men and their henchmen were arrested in Zhongnanhai.
At 22:00 that evening, in the conference room of Building 9 of Yuquan Mountain in the western suburbs of Beijing, Hua Guofeng, Ye Jianying, Li Xiannian, Wang Dongxing, Wu De, Chen Xilian, Ji Dengkui, Chen Yonggui, Su Zhenhua, Ni Zhifu, Wu Guixian, and 11 other members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, including Li Xin, deputy director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee (attending as observers), and Zhou Qicai, director of the Secretariat Bureau of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee (attending as observers), were holding an emergency meeting of the Politburo (Liu Bocheng was seriously ill and absent, and Xu Shiyou, Wei Guoqing, Li Desheng, and Sai Fuding were absent on a business trip).
Yuquan Mountain, Beijing
The meeting was chaired by Hua Guofeng. He first informed the participants of the arrest of Wang, Zhang, Yao, and Jiang.
Earlier in the day, relevant personnel examined Wang, Zhang, and Yao in isolation at Huairen Hall on the pretext of discussing the publication of the five volumes of Mao Xuan and the construction of a memorial hall for Chairman Mao. Subsequently, Jiang Qing was quarantined and examined at the Zhongnanhai residence. For Mao Yuanxin, a protection review was adopted.
In the whole course of the operation, Wang Dongxing was responsible for directing the specific implementation of the combatants according to the plan, and the process was very smooth, and it successfully achieved the goal without causing too much alarm.
The central authorities also sent Geng Biao to lead the working group to the Central Radio Station and CCTV, and Chi Haotian and three others were stationed in the People's Daily to take control of the situation in a timely manner.
Marshal Ye Jianying played an important role in this process.
At a critical moment, he stepped forward, deployed properly, did not cause conflict or bloodshed, and peacefully resolved the arrest of the counter-revolutionary clique.
Chairman Mao, who died a month ago, has not forgotten the solution to the "Gang of Four" problem. After his death, Ye Shuai and Hua Guofeng co-presided over the smashing operation against the Gang of Four.
The next thing is the question of the new president.
After Chairman Mao's death, because of the various acts of the "Gang of Four," the position of chairman has been unresolved. A country cannot be left without a master for a day, and such a large country urgently needs a wise navigator.
From the perspective of seniority, experience and prestige, Hua Guofeng proposed that Marshal Ye Jianying serve as the chairman and preside over the overall work. His proposal represented the voice of most of the participants.
Ye Shuai was born and died in the war years, and his meritorious deeds were outstanding; after the founding of the People's Republic of China, he always adhered to the guidance of Chairman Mao's thought, worked hard for the country and the people, and selflessly forgot himself. And this just-concluded arrest of the "Gang of Four" operation, he played the role of "fixing the needle of the sea god". Having Ye Shuai as the chairman and leading the Chinese nation to carry forward the past and open up the future is undoubtedly what everyone expects.
Marshal Ye Jianying, who has made the greatest contribution, confessed his heart at the meeting --
The smashing of the "Gang of Four" was a group victory guided by Chairman Mao's last wishes, and he personally assumed his share of responsibility, and all the credit was attributed to the collective and the people. As for the highly concerned chairman candidate, he thought that he did not have the energy to take on such a heavy responsibility in his advanced age and infirmity. Out of a highly responsible attitude toward the country and the people, he recommended Comrade Hua Guofeng to be the chairman and to do his best to assist himself and other comrades.
"I'm old, I'm 79 years old... I propose that Comrade Hua Guofeng serve as chairman of the Party Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission. Comrade Hua Guofeng is now the first vice chairman of the CPC Central Committee and presides over the daily work of the CPC Central Committee, and I think he is a more suitable candidate. This burden is not light, we can all assist, please consider. ”
Regarding Hua Guofeng's appointment as president, Ye Shuai vociferously expressed his support:
At Ye Shuai's suggestion, the meeting unanimously adopted the decision that Comrade Hua Guofeng should serve as chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and chairman of the Central Military Commission (submitted to the plenary session for adoption after the meeting).
After the meeting, the resolution formed was personally called by Wang Dongxing to the absentees, and all of them expressed their resolute support for the central decision.
Twelve days later, Document No. 16 was officially released.
On October 22 of the same year, People's Daily published a headlined "1.5 million soldiers and civilians in the capital hold a huge celebration parade to warmly celebrate the great victory of smashing the "Gang of Four" anti-party clique and usurping the party's power", reporting on the grand mass celebrations of the previous day. Since then, spontaneous celebrations across the country have gradually appeared in the news media.