In 1982, Liu Zhilan, the widow of General Zuo Quan, finally waited for the news that he had been running for a lifetime.
When she received the notice, she looked at him in the photo and cried bitterly. Forty years, forty years since he left! From the young woman to the old woman, he finally fulfilled his last instructions, and if he went underground, he could also say to him: I have not failed our short but deep love in this life.
Note: In 1982, the relevant departments of the central government issued a written document to rehabilitate Zuo Quan's persecution by Wang Ming's line, abolished the punishment of "staying in the party probation" against Zuo Quan, and put the document in Zuo Quan's archives (not published to the public).
01 You are the most beautiful flower bathed in the storm of revolution
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Liu Zhilan and a group of other revolutionary youths came from Beijing to Yan'an, the holy land of revolution. Everything here is so hard and simple, but everyone is full of hope and enthusiasm, and Liu Zhilan decided to stay here.
In the yellow land, this white-skinned and beautiful girl with a slender figure is particularly eye-catching, and she is called "Yan'an Sanmei" together with Pu Anxiu and Ye Qun.
However, this is already accustomed to Liu Zhilan. She was well-born, not only had a beautiful face, but was also quite knowledgeable and wrote well. During her studies at the Beijing Normal University Girls' High School, she was still the captain of the "Minxian", and she did not know how much she had received from the admiring eyes of everyone.
Everyone has speculated about who will end up spending, and the answer is General Zuo Quan, and everyone is convinced. General Zuo Quan, who is mature and promising, can be described as a talented woman, and the big matchmaker of this good marriage is Commander Zhu De.
In 1939, after graduating from Shaanxi Northern Public School, Liu Zhilan followed the Central Inspection Group from Yan'an to southeastern Jin. At this time, Peng Dehuai, Zuo Quan, and others were commanding the army to negotiate with the Japanese army in the southeastern Jin Dynasty.
At the revolutionary propaganda meeting, Liu Zhilan on the stage was full of vigor and liveliness, and zhu De and his wife clapped their hands and praised, and they smiled and looked at each other.
That's her!
Commander Zhu wanted to introduce Liu Zhilan to Zuo Quan. Zuo Quan had been busy with the revolution and delayed marrying his daughter-in-law. The old comrades-in-arms really can't bear it.
Liu Zhilan felt very sudden, but when she heard that it was Zuo Quan, she had some inexplicable expectations in her heart. In these days in Yan'an, I don't know how many times I have heard this name!
Some people say that he commanded the forced crossing of the Dadu River, attacked Lazikou, and led his troops to participate in the Battle of Zhiluo Town and the Red Army's Crusade, and was a handsome man; some people said that he graduated from the Whampoa Military Academy and studied at Sun Yat-sen University and the Frunze Military Academy in Moscow, and was the most highly educated Confucian general at that time; some people said that he was outstanding in military theory; even Chairman Mao praised him as a "sharpshooter" and said that he was "a general with 'two poles'."
After all, Liu Zhilan was her daughter's family, and she said with some embarrassment: "Everything is arranged by the commander-in-chief." "Mr. Zhu saw a play! He joked: "In war, I am the commander-in-chief, you listen to me, find the object, you are the commander-in-chief, I listen to you." Don't think that it is the commander-in-chief's introduction, and ask for 'power'. ”
On April 16, 1939, in the courtyard of Lucheng North Village, the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, Liu Zhilan and Zuo Quan held a simple and lively wedding.
On that day, the weather was very good, the villagers came with potatoes, cabbage, turnips, steamed buns, and liquor, and the courtyard roared with excitement, and a song of "Danfeng Chaoyang" turned the sky lively, and the whole North Village was like a festival. Zuo Quan wore a large red flower on his chest, and although the bride in front of him was simply dressed, it was difficult to hide her amazing beauty. He couldn't resist leaning over to her ear and saying a love word to his bride in Russian: "Honey, you are the most beautiful flower bathed in the storm of revolution!" ”
Whoever said that the iron man was ruthless, when it came to love words, was the most moving.
02 Extravagant happiness in war
After the marriage, Liu Zhilan came to work in the Women's Committee of the Northern Bureau of the Taihang Mountains, while Zuo Quan continued to work at the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army.
Zuo Quan was a heroic general on the outside, but at home, he was the most gentle and affectionate husband. Under his careful care, Liu Zhilan felt as if the independent and capable self before had become weak and liked to make unreasonable trouble.
Every time I looked forward to his return, he came back and couldn't help but lose his temper with him, and when her husband comforted him, he immediately turned from anger to joy.
Soon they were greeted with the crystallization of love. In April 1940, Liu Zhilan gave birth to his daughter Zuo Taibei, and Zuo Quan took the two women to his side.
Commander-in-Chief Zhu, who came to celebrate, gave Zuo Quan and his wife a red birthday ticket sent by the headquarters organ on his 54th birthday. Liu Zhilan used this red cloth to make swaddling for her daughter. The name was taken by Deputy Commander-in-Chief Peng Dehuai, who said: Liu Bocheng's child is called Liu Taixing, and I think it is of great commemorative significance! Your little girl is called Zuo Taibei!
At the age of 35, he finally had his own child, and Zuo Quan was overjoyed. After dealing with military affairs every day, he was eager to hold his daughter in the palm of his hand. Liu Zhilan looked at her husband and daughter and felt contentment and joy. Although she has not fully adapted to her new mother, zuo quan always accepts everything according to the order and responds gently to her small temper. He said that when the invaders were driven out, I would accompany you well.
That period of stability was probably the happiest day of their lives.
However, happiness in times of war is always short-lived and momentary. So precious is not real.
The battle situation became more and more severe, and the Japanese army frantically attacked the Taihang Mountain base area. The headquarters of the Eighth Route Army had to be transferred frequently, and it was extremely inconvenient for family members to accompany them. On August 30, 1940, according to Zuo Quan's arrangement, Liu Zhilan prepared to take his daughter back to Yan'an. Before parting, they left a unique family portrait.
Liu Zhilan smiled and stood shoulder to shoulder with her husband, and Zuo Quan, who has always been calm, held her daughter in her arms and showed a rare smile.
If you know that this time is a trick to say goodbye, Liu Zhilan would rather accompany him and not go anywhere!
In the next two years, the War of Resistance entered a critical moment, and Zuo Quan did not return home. The only thing that can ease the thoughts is to write a letter. The paper is short and long, and the words are as good as the face. In his letter, Liu Zhilan could read his guilt about himself and his thoughts about his daughter. She secretly prayed that the war would end early, that he would come back safely, and that the family of three would see each other as soon as possible.
"There are quite a few comrades who are amazed that we can separate, and that you really went to Yan'an, which would have been painful, but for the sake of work, for the sake of progress, and for the benefit of the party, there is nothing to be separated." After the separation, I can't help but miss each other, the smart and lively Taibei little guy left far away, and I couldn't see her for a long time, of course, it increased my miss. ”
"At this time, the weather in Yan'an must have been very cold." Don't chill this little baby, our little baby. ”
In May 1942, Liu Zhilan received the twelfth letter from Zuo Quan.
In the letter, Zuo Quan said: Bring you a dozen more words. Say it is a dozen words, but I write my thoughts all over the paper.
"I am worried about you and Beibei, I hope that you will be able to recover well after entering school, and when you have time to visit Taibei, the children < are > and they need to be taken care of."
"Zhilan! Honey, don't be easy to see sometimes, sometimes difficult, separated for twenty-one months, when will we meet? Read, read, read, read! We are willing to work hard under the wind of the party's rectification and strive for progress! Comfort yourself with progress, and reward yourself with progress. ”
How pitiful is not a husband! Ruthless may not be really heroic!
This was Zuo Quan's last letter before his death. When Liu Zhilan received the letter, he had already made a heroic sacrifice.
03 Even if there is no rest of your life, you are still in your heart
In May 1942, the Japanese army launched a major "sweep" of the Taihang Anti-Japanese Base Area, and the situation in the Taihang Mountains was critical. On May 25, 1942, five days after writing the letter, in the process of covering the evacuation of the headquarters organs, Zuo Quan was unfortunately shot in the head and died on the spot, at the age of 37.
When the news of Zuo Quan's sacrifice reached Yan'an, the whole of Yan'an fell into great sorrow, and Mr. Zhu sighed: "We have lost a rare talent in China's military circles!" ”
The saddest person was Liu Zhilan. She was heartbroken, although they had only been husband and wife for three years, and the time together was only three months, but Zuo Quan's sincere, simple, and inclusive love made her unforgettable. Liu Zhilan, under the repeated comfort and encouragement of Commander-in-Chief Zhu, forcibly endured his grief and wrote an article in Yan'an's Liberation Daily to commemorate Zuo Quan. The words wept blood, wrote all the thoughts, pain, and read people moving.
Between husband and wife, what is thought to be a lifelong partner is actually just a long or short companionship. Knowing this, every moment together, we must be a little better for you.
After the most uncomfortable days, Liu Zhilan stayed away from the circle of her husband's life. Although she knew that as long as she proposed it, the organization and comrades would help her, but she had promised him,
"In any difficult situation, I have to grit my teeth and pass through. If there is a little disappointment and wavering, you are not worthy to be your wife. ”
She had to be as strong as he was, to rely on her own efforts, to take care of herself, to take care of the children, to comfort the deceased.
But in those difficult years, it was not easy for a woman to raise a child. Someone advised her to take advantage of her youth and find a reliance earlier. But she knew that her heart was full of him, and she couldn't tolerate anyone else.
At this time, Zuo Quan's former secretary and comrade-in-arms Chen Shouzhong appeared. He was once born and died with Zuo Quan, and he was in love with his brother. He took care of Liu Zhilan and the child as if he were his own relatives. For Zuo Taibei, it is even more as if it were his own. No matter the gossip, no matter how difficult the years are, he will not abandon them and guard them.
In the 6th year after Zuo Quan's sacrifice, Liu Zhilan finally came out of grief and accepted Chen Shouzhong.
But in Liu Zhilan's heart, she will always be Zuo Quan's wife and the daughter-in-law of the Zuo family. She has always supported Zuo Quan's parents and performed filial piety for him, and Zuo's family has always regarded her as a relative.
Even though I don't have you for the rest of my life, I still have you in my heart.
04 Forty years of running, sinking into the snow
In Liu Zhilan's heart, there is still a heavy responsibility. That was General Zuo Quan's last instruction.
It turned out that when Zuo Quan married her, he considered her youth and did not tell her about his being defiled as a "Trotskyist". It was not until after Zuo Quan's sacrifice that Liu Zhilan learned that her husband had been defiled as a "Trotskyist" and had been fighting for more than ten years with "crime". So she began to run for the restoration of Zuo Quan's innocence.
Zuo Quan, as one of the top commanders of the Eighth Route Army, why did he have such a punishment? It's all about one person.
When Zuo Quan was studying at Sun Yat-sen University in Moscow, the Soviet Union, Wang Ming happened to be engaged in sectarianism at Sun Yat-sen University to suppress dissidents, and he slandered the unsociable Zuo Quan as a member of the "Jiangsu and Zhejiang Hometown Association" and a Trotskyist. Although Qu Qiubai, head of the CPC delegation to the Comintern at that time, after investigation, denied the existence of the so-called "Jiangsu and Zhejiang Hometown Associations." But the Soviet Union was running a massive campaign, and all Chinese students were subject to strict scrutiny because of Wang Ming's small report that Zuo Quan had been punished with an internal party warning.
In January 1931, Wang Ming and others returned from the Soviet Union and gradually gained the leadership of the CPC Central Committee. Immediately after coming to power, a struggle began within the Party, and those who disagreed with their line were to be suppressed.
In 1932, it was reported that Zuo Quan had once collected a Trotskyist publication, and the commander of Zuo Quan's Red 15 Army was immediately dismissed and subject to organizational review. Wang Ming and his gang gave Zuo Quan a punishment of "staying in the party on probation" for 8 months, and was also determined to be "not reusable" and transferred to the Ruijin Workers' and Peasants' Red Army School to teach.
Later, although the punishment had long been revoked in fact, it did not fall to the conclusion on paper, which made Zuo Quan always panic.
Peng Dehuai once came forward for Zuo Quan, hoping that the party organization could draw a clear conclusion. Zuo Quan also wrote a letter of complaint,
"Make a request to the Party, please draw a conclusion to my question, wash away this injustice, and revoke the punishment of my probation in the Party."
Just as the Central Committee was preparing to solve the problem of left power, he suddenly sacrificed, which was the most important thing in his life, but it was unresolved.
Since then, Liu Zhilan has repeatedly reflected the issue of left power to the central authorities, but the responses received have been almost unanimous. After the sacrifice of the left right, the party Central Committee gave a very high evaluation, and before the sacrifice of the left power, it has always been reused, in fact, the unjust case of the left right has been rehabilitated.
But Liu Zhilan could not accept such a result, because there was no written document explaining the issue of left power. She wanted to reassure Zuo Quan, so she insisted on constantly reflecting upwards. Under her unremitting efforts, finally in 1982, the central government issued a written document canceling the punishment of "staying in the party probation" against Zuo Quan and putting the document into Zuo Quan's archives.
In this way, Zuo Quan was saddled with "staying in the party on probation" for 10 years to work for the revolution, and after 40 years of sacrifice, he finally gained his innocence.
05 Conclusion
In 1982, Liu Zhilan took her daughter Zuo Taibei into the Jinji Luyu Martyrs' Cemetery, and she pounced on Zuo Quan's tombstone and cried.
Back in Beijing, Liu Zhilan sent his daughter 11 family letters that he had treasured for more than 40 years, and the dates of these 11 family letters were neatly arranged, although the paper had turned yellow and the handwriting was somewhat blurred, but the love of General Zuo Quan for his wife and daughter contained in them was timeless.
At that time, time was very slow, so slow that I could only love someone with my whole life. You have promised the kingdom and gone for the great righteousness, and I will think of you in my heart.
When we enjoy peace and quiet, we must not forget that so many people have given up their parents, wives and children, families and even their lives for all this. We will always miss them.