There is a legendary member in the long march team
He Long once called him the "Red Army of Xiucai"
He was a landlord
I have studied Marxism-Leninism for 10 years
He was nearly 60 years old when he joined the Red Army
Chairman Mao Zedong spoke highly of him
"It's one of us
Very kind and respectable
Friends and comrades of the revolution"
He has been constantly searching for the light of saving the country all his life
Mr. Zhou Suyuan
A landlord who reads Marxism-Leninism
In February 1936, after the Red 2 and Red 6 Armies entered Bijie, in the operation of fighting local tycoons and inferior gentry, a large number of Marxist-Leninist works and progressive books were found from the home of a local squire named Zhou Suyuan.
Amazingly, Zhou Suyuan was not afraid of the Red Army, saying: "My landlord is different from other landlords, I support the Red Army and the revolution. ”
After the instructor returned, he immediately reported to Wang Zhen, the political commissar of the Red 6 Army, and this situation attracted the attention of the leaders of the corps.
After talking with Zhou Suyuan, Wang Zhen learned that Zhou Suyuan was a patriotic democrat who, when he was young, was determined to improve politics, look for ways to save the country, actively propagated democratic ideas, and not only founded Guizhou's first daily newspaper, Qianbao, but also founded Guizhou's first political party, the Autonomous Society, actively engaged in revolutionary activities, joined the League, and participated in the Xinhai Revolution.
Zhou Suyuan, who hated the warlords for scuffles, resigned in 1925 and returned to his hometown of Bijie, using his savings to "buy a field of 2,000 yuan and a house of 800 yuan." He studied behind closed doors in frustration and wandering, inadvertently came into contact with Marxism-Leninism, immersed himself in the study of Marxist-Leninist original works such as "Capital" and "The State and Revolution", and in his research he also had a preliminary understanding of the Communist Party and the Red Army guided by Marxism-Leninism.
Speaking of reading Marxist-Leninist books, Zhou Suyuan affirmed: "I have been studying Marxism for 10 years, I think Marx is right, I believe in Marxism. ”
Wang Zhen then said: "It is good for you to study Marxism. Now that our Communist Party's policy is to resist Japan and oppose Chiang Kai-shek, do you approve of it? ”
Zhou Suyuan said in a loud voice: "Yes, totally yes." ”
Wang Zhen immediately decided to return the confiscated things of Zhou Suyuan's family, and later talked to him several times, which enhanced their understanding and trust. At the same time, Wang Zhen reported to He Long and Ren Bishi on the situation of Zhou Suyuan.
He Long and Ren Bishi were also very concerned, and went to the door to talk with Zhou Suyuan on their knees, introduced the Communist Party's anti-Japanese and anti-Chiang Kai-shek policy, and asked him for his views on the current situation, believing that he was a trusted ally of the CCP's establishment of an anti-Japanese national united front.
"To die is to die in the Red Army"
During the Red Army's stay in Bijie, Deng Zhige contacted Xi Daming, Zhou Zhifu, Ruan Junchen, and other local anti-Chiang Kai-shek armed forces totaling about 5,000 people, and the Red Army reorganized it into the Guizhou Anti-Japanese National Salvation Army, appointing Zhou Suyuan as commander-in-chief, Deng Zhige as chief of staff, and the military headquarters was located in Zhou Suyuan's mansion. He Long tightly held Zhou Suyuan's hand and said, "Welcome, 'Xiucai Red Army'!" ”
On February 14, 1936, the Guizhou Anti-Japanese National Salvation Army was established in northwest Qianxi, and Zhou Suyuan was officially inaugurated as the commander of the Guizhou Anti-Japanese National Salvation Army.
In the past month, under the influence of Zhou Suyuan, a large number of enlightened democrats in Bijie have also expressed their support for the Red Army, and more than 5,000 young people have enthusiastically signed up to join the Red Army.
On March 1, 1936, Zhou Suyuan, who was already 57 years old, insisted on continuing the Long March with the Red 2nd and 6th Armies led by Deng Zhige and the second detachment of the Guizhou Anti-Japanese Salvation Army, despite his old age and infirmity. Under extremely harsh conditions, Zhou Suyuan's body was weakening day by day, but he gritted his teeth and persevered.
Ren Bishi, He Long, Wang Zhen, and others were worried that he would not be able to withstand the hardships of the long journey, and under the condition that it was very difficult to provide for him, they were ready to allocate a sum of gold to send him to Hong Kong, on the one hand, to treat his illness, and on the other hand to do united front work. After Zhou Suyuan listened, he said excitedly: "I am almost 60 years old this year, and I have not found the light before." Joining the Red Army today is the most glorious moment of my life, and I will die in the Red Army. I do not want to leave the Red Army. ”
During the arduous Long March, when Zhou Suyuan fell ill, the soldiers carried him on a slippery pole to march; when his health improved slightly, Zhou Suyuan insisted on marching on horseback, and he also crossed a snowy mountain at an altitude of more than 5,000 meters in Growan Bay without support.
Zhou Suyuan insisted on traveling nearly 10,000 miles with the commanders and fighters of the Red Army, and met the Red Army division in Huining.
After the army arrived in northern Shaanxi, Zhou Suyuan was received many times by Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and other central leaders. Among the elders who participated in the Long March, Zhou Suyuan was only 2 years younger than Xu Teli, 5 years older than Xie Jueya, and 7 years older than Dong Biwu, and he was not a communist, but only a democrat.
"The Light Has Come"
After arriving in Yan'an, in addition to serving as an instructor in the Red Army, Zhou Suyuan also took the initiative to assume the responsibility of doing the united front work of the upper echelons of the Kuomintang. In order to promote the peaceful settlement of the Xi'an Incident and the formation of the anti-Japanese national united front, Zhou Suyuan successively wrote letters to He Yingqin, Zhang Xueliang, Wu Zhongxin, and dozens of other people, hoping that they would put the interests of the nation first and unite with the Communists to resist Japan.
In Yan'an, Zhou Suyuan has been ill and the local treatment conditions are very poor. He thought he had become an organizational burden and had the idea of returning to Guizhou to continue working for the party, so he wrote a letter to Chairman Mao Zedong.
On October 6, 1937, Chairman Mao wrote back to him.
Mr. SuYuan:
Show me the respects. We feel that you are a very kind and respectable friend of ours and a comrade of the revolution, and we do not feel that you are "sitting on your laurels". Mr. Husband's behavior and work are completely determined by His health and interests, because Mr. Is an old man, no younger than a young man. This should be taken into account not only by us, but also by sir himself. Only in more appropriate conditions and environments, health is more assured, the work will be better.
I agree with the plan proposed by sir to return to Qian and work, if I have made up my mind and thought that it would be better. The road fare is proposed to be donated 300 yuan, I don't know if it is enough, please calculate it yourself to sue me. In the future, when we have more funds, we can help mr. a little living expenses every month, which is roughly equivalent to living in Yan'an. This is entirely because Mr. Is a struggling man, and it is not for anything else. Please leave the communication desk when you leave and tell me. When to go, I'll see you.
salute!
Mao Zedong October 6
Before leaving Yan'an, Mao Zedong, Zhu De, and other leaders set up a banquet for Zhou Suyuan and invited him to the southwest to continue carrying out united front work.
On October 23, 1937, Zhou Suyuan left Yan'an with a letter from Chairman Mao Zedong to military and political leaders in the southwestern provinces of the Kuomintang. As a senior senator of the Eighth Route Army, he began his anti-Japanese united front work, and Zhou Suyuan visited the authorities of the southwestern provinces and demanded that the conditions of the second Kuomintang-Communist cooperation be fulfilled, that political prisoners be released, and that they unite against Japan.
In November 1949, the People's Liberation Army advanced into Guizhou, and the Kuomintang soldiers were defeated. In spite of his old age and illness, Zhou Suyuan organized the bijie branch committee, personally serving as the chairman of the committee, to prepare grain and grass for the People's Liberation Army and maintain local order. On November 27, he and the masses ushered in the liberation of Bijie. On this day, he renamed his "Diary of Waiting" as "Diary of Light" and wrote on the title page: "Looking forward to the light, waiting for the light, seeing the light, the light has come." ”
Zhou Suyuan also sent a telegram to Chairman Mao Zedong: "Chairman Mao of Beijing, don't come for twelve years, decay for the rest of your life, and see the success of liberation, you are overjoyed, and I would like to congratulate you on your victory." ”
From 1950 to 1958, Zhou Suyuan studied more than 30 kinds of Marxist-Leninist and Mao Zedong works, and every time he had any experience, he wrote articles and published them in newspapers and periodicals. During his lifetime, he left more than 3 million words of writings, some of which are included in the Zhou Suyuan Anthology.
On February 1, 1958, Zhou Suyuan died of illness at the age of 80.
Pictured: Statue of Zhou Suyuan in Guizhou Institute of Engineering and Applied Technology
Wang Zhen once wrote in the "Preface to the Collected Works of Zhou Suyuan": "The life of Zhou Suyuan was the life of a patriot who pursued the road of saving the country and the people, experienced difficulties and setbacks, and finally found the truth. ”
Column Editor-in-Chief: Zhang Wu Text Editor: Li Linwei Title Map Source: Guizhou Institute of Engineering and Applied Technology Photo Editor: Shao Jing
Source: Author: National Memory CCTV