In the tortuous years of the Anti-Japanese War in Yan'an, a seemingly inconspicuous incident caused an interesting anecdote. The sturdy apple tree in Zhu Deyuan, an important leader of the Party Central Committee, slowly lost its fruit. And the culprits are actually Zhu De's two close comrades-in-arms - Chen Geng and Chen Xilian. Whenever they went to Zhu De's house to "report work", the apples on the tree would mysteriously disappear. This made the surrounding comrades secretly look sideways, and in the end, some people couldn't help but tell Zhu De the truth. In the face of this "fruit stealing" incident, how will Zhu De, as the commander-in-chief of the Red Army, react? Will he severely punish Chen Geng and the others, or turn a blind eye? What's the story behind this? Why are Yan'an apples so valuable? Let's find out.
Gaps in the vibrant border area
After the full-scale outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army under the leadership of the Communist Party of China fought bravely to kill the enemy, and at the same time established a solid position in the base areas behind enemy lines. As the seat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Yan'an has undoubtedly become a central city that stands out from the crowd. However, as a small border city in the hinterland of the Loess Plateau, Yan'an's economic strength is too weak.
Although some foreign aid and relief food and wages from the allied forces came in a steady stream early on, as the competition between the enemy and the enemy became protracted, the Nationalist Government actually began to suppress the CCP's behavior. They imposed a tight blockade on the Yan'an base in an attempt to put the bastion of anti-Japanese democracy in a difficult position. Sure enough, Yan'an did fall into a serious lack of resources.
In order to sustain the long-term War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the leadership of the CCP resolutely put forward the slogan of "self-reliance and self-sufficiency". The whole country made a concerted effort to support Yan'an, and Yan'an itself began a huge "large-scale production movement". Countless party members and cadres rolled up their sleeves and personally went to the barren land to cultivate and plant.
The "large-scale production movement" ignited in the countryside on the outskirts of Yan'an is like a red sun, shining on this long-blocked base area, making it rejuvenated. Soon, new farmland was spread over the mountains, and orchards and vegetable gardens were built. As a result, Yan'an has an initial self-sufficiency capacity, and the unified deployment of the Party Central Committee can also be better implemented.
Chen Geng and Chen Xilian's unique "Stealing Fruit"
Time goes back to Yan'an in 1943. This year, two generals, Chen Geng and Chen Xilian, were transferred to Yan'an Party School for further study because of their outstanding performance on the front line. Previously, they had been stationed in the Taihang Mountains, where at least fresh fruits could be eaten in autumn despite the harsh environment. But after coming to Yan'an, Chen Geng felt an indescribable "drought".
There is hardly a single fruit tree to be seen on the plateau of Yan'an, and fresh fruit is nowhere to be found. As Chen Geng, who has always been delicious, he is naturally quite dissatisfied with this. So he looked around to find out where there was still a fruit orchard, and finally found the fruitful apple tree in Zhu De's house.
Chen Geng was salivating when he saw it, and immediately moved his mind to get some apples. He first found his old friend Chen Xilian and secretly laid out this "fruit stealing plan". Chen Geng's idea was to pretend to inadvertently pick a few apples while going to Zhu De's house to "report work" to quench his long-cherished thirst for fresh fruits.
Chen Xilian, who has always been honest, was reluctant at first, but after Chen Geng's several "offensives" of both soft and hard, he was finally convinced. The two agreed on the details of the operation: Chen Xilian knocked on the door first, and after Zhu De welcomed him indoors, Chen Geng took the opportunity to shake the trunk vigorously and knock all the apples down. Immediately afterwards, Chen Geng would also knock on the door and enter, pretending to "accidentally" bump into Chen Xilian, and the two would "report work" to Zhu De together.
The plan was soon put into action. Chen Xilian knocked on the door first, and Zhu De invited him indoors. Chen Geng immediately waved the branch and knocked down a large number of apples in one fell swoop. Then he also knocked on the door and entered, pretending to be surprised and said, "Brother Chen Xilian, are you also there?" What a coincidence. The two of them reported their work in front of Zhu De.
After the work report was over, Chen Geng pretended to be amazed again: "Mr. Zhu, why did so many apples fall in your yard?" Wouldn't it be a shame not to pick it up? When Zhu De heard this, he immediately said boldly: "Since you are here, you can pick up some apples and bring them back to eat." ＂
There is no meaningful punishment
Zhu De boldly asked Chen Geng and Chen Xilian to take away the fallen apples, which seemed to be a tacit approval of the two people's "fruit stealing" behavior. But in fact, there is a deeper intention behind this. As a veteran general who has been on the battlefield for a long time, Zhu De naturally knows the importance of military discipline and military orders. He is extremely disgusted with violations of discipline and law, and it can even be said that he is not merciful.
However, Zhu De did not severely punish Chen Geng and the others for their "fruit stealing" incident, but instead showed grace. This contains Zhu De's tolerance and understanding of human weaknesses. He knows very well that especially in such a difficult environment of the Anti-Japanese War, human nature will inevitably produce some small mistakes and desires. Zhu De is not harsh on this, but has empathy and gives appropriate care.
However, Zhu De's "punishment" of Chen Geng and the others was by no means laissez-faire. He intentionally or unintentionally gave the two of them a very educational punishment. That is to let them pick up the apples on the ground themselves, rather than sitting by and watching. First, it can make the two of them taste some bitterness, and know that many things are not something that can be done quickly and easily. Second, it also made them realize how irresponsible and shameful it is to waste food.
Zhu De's action undoubtedly contains extremely high educational wisdom. Instead of resorting to simple and harsh punishments, he gave appropriate corrections with his own wisdom. In this way, it not only punished the former and the latter, but also benefited Chen Geng and the others a lot in the process of being punished, and learned lessons from it.
Only by doing so can the greatest punishment effect be achieved. It can also be seen from this that the reason why Zhu De was able to become an outstanding military strategist and leader was due to his kindness and benevolence. He not only has military command skills, but also takes into account the education and guidance of his subordinates, embodying an excellent leadership combination of foresight, wisdom and charisma.
The past and present life of the apple tree
The devastated but still fruitful apple tree in Chu Teh's Courtyard has actually gone through a period of eventful years. It has witnessed the difficult struggle of the small city of Yan'an in the smoke of war, and also witnessed the light of hope for the rebirth of the hot land here.
Back in the early 30s of the last century, Yan'an was still just an obscure small city. At that time, American missionaries had a church school here, and this apple sapling was planted in the yard. Although the saplings are small, they are very popular with local residents. They often look forward to the future when they will be able to pick delicious fruits from this tree.
The good times were short-lived, and due to the spread of the war, the church school soon ceased to exist. The apple saplings were also destroyed in the looting and almost died. It was not until 1937 that the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the generals of the Red Army came here to take refuge and take root, and they discovered the existence of this sapling, and carefully protected and cultivated it.
A year later, the sapling slowly grew and finally blossomed. When the first red apples hung on the branches, everyone rejoiced. Because this is not only an ordinary fruit tree, but also symbolizes the hope that the small city of Yan'an will eventually regain its vitality in difficult years. Since then, Zhu De and other party and military leaders have regarded it as a valuable wealth and spiritual strength.
The apple tree was repeatedly destroyed by the smoke of war. One year, it was badly damaged by heavy machine-gun fire from enemy aircraft, and the next year it miraculously survived and blossomed. In the face of all kinds of tribulations, this tree was reborn again and again with tenacious vitality and became an "immortal fruit tree" in everyone's minds.
To this day, although Zhu De's apple tree bears stump branches, it still stands proudly, exuding indelible vitality. It has become an iconic landscape of the heroic city of Yan'an, witnessing the difficult years here and heralding a brighter future.
The spirit of Yan'an is immortal
Although the "fruit stealing incident" is just a small interesting incident, it reflects the rich connotation of the Yan'an spirit. This spirit is precisely the precious quality forged by the Chinese communists and the cadres and masses in Yan'an during the arduous years, and has become a powerful force for them to overcome all difficulties.
First of all, this spirit embodies the selflessness and the work style of the communists who are diligent and thrifty. Despite living in an environment of extreme scarcity, Chen Geng and other generals were still able to restrain their desire for fresh fruits, never extravagant and wasteful, reflecting a hard and simple style of life. At the same time, Zhu De and other leading cadres did their best to meet the reasonable needs of the officers and men under their command, showing great empathy and care.
Second, this spirit also embodies the quality of communists who dare to face mistakes head-on, set strict demands on themselves, and combine leniency and severity. Although Chen Geng and others violated discipline by "stealing fruits", Zhu De did not punish them harshly, but guided them step by step. This just shows their wise attitude of trusting the masses and patiently educating them. At the same time, Chen Geng and the others also sincerely accepted the punishment and education from their superiors, instead of taking matters into their own hands and evading blame.
Thirdly, the spirit of Yan'an embodies the flesh-and-blood ties between the party and the masses. In difficult circumstances, the leading cadres of the Party are almost the brothers and sisters of the masses, and through this affectionate relationship, they unite the entire people around them. This has not only strengthened people's support for the party, but also won the party a broad mass base. Therefore, this is also the fundamental strength of the Communists who were able to resist the war for a long time and finally overcome all difficulties.
In addition, the spirit of Yan'an also contains the indomitable courage of the Communists and the tenacious perseverance of never giving up in the face of adversity. Just like Zhu De's "immortal fruit tree" that has been repeatedly destroyed but has always been reborn, the cadres and masses of Yan'an have experienced great hardships again and again, but finally won the final victory with their tenacious will.
It can be said that although the "fruit stealing incident" is only a small anecdote, it shows the rich connotation of the Yan'an spirit vividly. This precious spiritual strength will always inspire us to continue to forge ahead on the new Long March.