Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

I understand what Wei Hongjun means.

During collectivization, North China did not want the extreme egalitarianism of a "big pot" system. Even within collectivization, internal differentiation was necessary. The most basic labor unit of collectivization was defined as the natural village, or the brigade in rural New China.

Deng Zhihui asked some more questions about rural areas in North China.

Then write it down.

He continued, "Comrade Red Army, I have another question. North China has been liberated for a long time, and the bureaucratic capitalists have confiscated a lot of property, including many of their own factories. How do you handle the relationship between the factory owners and the labor unions in those factories?"

"union?"

"Correct."

Deng Zhihui said, "I've discussed this with Secretary Gao Gang. After all, there are many factories in Northeast China. Secretary Gao Gang's point is that there's no longer any exploitation in state-owned enterprises, and the working class is in charge. Therefore, the positions of the factory management and the trade unions in state-owned enterprises are consistent."

Wei Hongjun became very serious.

Because Wei Hongjun suddenly realized that what Deng Zhihui was talking to him about today was the debate in the early days of New China about the "status, position and responsibilities of trade unions."

Wei Hongjun is not very clear about this issue.

I've only read some simple information before.

So Wei Hongjun asked, "What do you think, Secretary Zhihui?

"Why did so many workers follow us when we were involved in labor movements? Because we were acting in the interests of the vast majority of workers. The very purpose of establishing a trade union is to protect workers' interests. Trade unions should clearly stand on the side of the working class. Everything they say, do, consider, raise, and address should proceed from this standpoint. Even in state-owned enterprises, this stance should remain unchanged."

Deng Zhihui expressed his views on trade unions.

Seeing Wei Hongjun didn't say anything.

Deng Zhihui continued, "If we abandon this principle, the union will become a vassal of the factory management. Do you understand what I mean? Who will speak for our workers then?"

From a theoretical point of view, Wei Hongjun supports Deng Zhihui.

But Wei Hongjun didn't say anything.

This was primarily because Wei Hongjun knew that theories from books often differed significantly from reality. He still didn't fully understand the source of the disagreement between Gao Gang and Deng Zhihui. Gao Gang's assertion that state-owned enterprises and unions shared a common perspective, while Deng Zhihui's assertion that unions were based on the interests of workers, was based on the same perspective.

Wei Hongjun is no longer an ordinary civil servant who can speak freely on the Internet.

Rather, it was a senior CCP cadre in charge of the North China Bureau.

Don't say anything casually.

So Wei Hongjun thought for a while and said, "Secretary Zhihui, I understand what you said. But I can't answer your question. I need to understand the situation here. I haven't thought about this before."

Deng Zhihui nodded.

Dao: "It should be investigated and studied."

After talking with Deng Zhihui, Wei Hongjun fell into deep thought.

The trade union issue isn't just a theoretical one. It also touches upon numerous economic policy issues since the founding of the People's Republic of China. Historically, this issue had led to a serious disagreement between Comrade Xiu Yang and Comrade Gao Gang, ultimately leading to the reorganization of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions. As a newly appointed member of the Central Committee, Wei Hongjun might be inevitably drawn into such a serious issue. Therefore, Wei Hongjun immediately arranged his itinerary, preparing to allocate time to conduct research at various factories.

At this time, the Central Committee began to prepare to enter Beijing. The Party meeting set the general direction, but if the new China was to be established, the Central Committee still needed to convene a CPPCC meeting.

Don’t underestimate the CPPCC meetings of this era.

The CPPCC meeting is the most legitimate meeting at present, and it has been deeply rooted in the hearts of scholars across the country.

When Chiang Kai-shek agreed to convene the CPPCC meeting, countless leaders at the central government were ecstatic, thinking that peace was coming.

Even Comrade Xiuyang, who was in charge of the Central Committee's work at the time, in an internal Party directive titled "Current Situation and Tasks," issued in the name of the Central Committee, boasted about the significance and role of the CPPCC. The directive even stated that Chiang Kai-shek's decision to convene the CPPCC was a great victory for China's democratic revolution. From then on, China entered a new stage of peaceful democratic construction. The form of China's revolutionary struggle shifted from armed struggle to unarmed mass and parliamentary struggle. Domestic issues were being resolved through political means. Armed struggle had generally ceased.

All the work of the Party must adapt to this new situation.

At that time, many cadres in the North China Bureau and the Northeast Bureau expressed dissatisfaction.

Comrade Xiuyang criticized everyone, saying, "The main dangerous tendency within the Party at present is the narrow isolationism of some comrades." He added, "We must effectively overcome the 'leftist tendency' that does not believe the civil war will end, that peace can truly be achieved, that Chiang Kai-shek, under pressure from all sides, can implement democratic reforms and cooperate with us in building the nation, and that a new stage of peace and democracy has arrived. Our army will become the National Army, and our Party will cease direct leadership of the army; command will be unified under the Ministry of National Defense."

It was this internal party directive that disrupted the reorganization of the field armies in various base areas at the time.

This led Gao Gang to criticize Comrade Xiuyang for being immature, not fully grasping policy, and having only experience in the White Area. After the three major battles, Zhang Xiushan even said, "Comrade Shaoqi is sometimes left, sometimes right. When he's right, he's incredibly right, and when he's left, he's unstoppable."

But it can also be seen that the consensus of many people in this era is that the CPPCC is the legitimate way to establish a new China.

So the central government also began to prepare for the CPPCC meeting.

The CPPCC became an important organ of power at the beginning of New China.

Therefore, the new CPPCC meeting must be held in Beiping. The central government has been working in Yi County for more than half a year, and Beiping is now much safer than before.

So all central government agencies have to move.

Before the Central Committee moved into Beijing, the Central Committee made some new arrangements for Beijing. Although the North China Bureau had always been in charge of Beijing, its administrative power over Beijing was rapidly weakened as the Central Committee was about to move into Beijing.

Although Beiping was still under the jurisdiction of the North China Bureau, its personnel relations began to shift to the Central Committee. Zhao Zhensheng, who had been appointed as a member of the Central Committee, was officially appointed by the Central Committee as the Secretary of the Beiping Municipal Party Committee.

Han Wei, commander of the Shanxi Military Region, was transferred to serve as deputy commander of the North China Military Region and director of the Beijing Military Control Commission. Yang Yuxiang, formerly secretary of the Zhangjiakou Municipal Party Committee and current secretary of the Chahar Provincial Party Committee and director of the Administrative Office, was transferred to Beijing to serve as mayor.

Han Wei, a general who had come down from Jinggangshan during the Autumn Harvest Uprising, was highly trusted by the central government. This time, he was appointed Director of the Peking Military Control Commission. Of course, this was largely symbolic, as the liberation of Peking had already occurred nearly ten months earlier. The work of the Military Control Commission had largely been taken over by the Peking Municipal Government.

Wei Hongjun judged that the Military Commission had most likely begun considering establishing the Weicheng District in Beiping. Han Wei was the Military Commission's preferred choice for future commander of the Weicheng District.

After returning to Jin-Cha-Ji from the Hebei-Rehe-Liaoning advance in 1942, Yang Yuxiang began working in Zhangjiakou, serving as mayor and then Party Secretary of Zhangjiakou. He later became Party Secretary and Director of the Administrative Office of Chahar. Chahar served as the most stable rear base for Jin-Cha-Ji and North China. Zhangjiakou and Xuanhua, in particular, were among North China's top industrial cities. While not as strong as Tianjin, Zhangjiakou and Xuanhua boasted a more robust heavy industrial base than major cities like Shijiazhuang. Chahar, therefore, held a crucial position in North China.

Therefore, this time the Central Committee accepted the recommendation of the North China Bureau and appointed Yang Yuxiang as the mayor of Peiping.

Compared to the historical period when Peng Zhen, Ye Shuai, and Nie Shuai took turns serving in Beijing, the current level of Beijing's cadre configuration is much lower than in history. However, Beijing is currently very stable and has not had many problems.

After adjusting the cadres in Peiping, the Central Committee established the Security Department of the General Office of the Central Committee in Yi County, with Wang Dongxing as the director of the Security Department.

The Central Guard Column was then established.

It is under the command of the 1st Guard Division, the 2nd Guard Division, and the 3rd Guard Division.

The Guard Division of the Public Security Central Column, which was formed by merging the Central Guard Regiment and the Second and Third Public Security Columns of the North China Military Region, was reorganized into the First Guard Division. The First and Second Guard Divisions of the 84th Army were reorganized into the Second Guard Division and the Third Guard Division.

Liu Huishan was appointed commander of the 1st Guard Division, and Zhang Tingzhen was appointed political commissar of the 1st Guard Division. Wu Lie was appointed commander of the 2nd Guard Division, and Zeng Mei was appointed political commissar of the 2nd Division. Tian Jingmin was appointed commander of the 3rd Guard Division, and Li Gan was appointed political commissar of the 3rd Guard Division.

Liu Huishan, Zhang Tingzhen, and Wu Lie all served in the Central Guard Corps. Zeng Mei was a veteran of the Red Army, and her name was changed by Comrade Wu Hao. Tian Jingmin, on the other hand, was a former commander of the Guard Battalion of the 8th Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Column. Li Gan was also a cadre of the 8th Column.

They are cadres who emerged from the "grievance movement" promoted by Wei Hongjun.

Wei Hongjun did many things in Chahar, but three of them truly contributed to the large-scale training of cadres. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, he established the "Chahar Rural Training Institute" and the "Chahar Cadre School." During the War of Liberation, he oversaw land reform in the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei region and even in North China, training a large number of rural cadres.

Furthermore, starting during the Anti-Japanese War, industrial courses were offered at cadre schools, allowing the Eighth Column's cadres to learn basic industrial knowledge. The Eighth Column subsequently captured numerous cities, providing these cadres with opportunities for practical experience. This effectively trained a significant number of grassroots cadres in the industrial sector.

Another example is the "grievance campaign" within the military, including the subsequent "merit campaign," which trained a large number of military political cadres. The most typical examples are Zhang Chao, currently serving as the political commissar of the Qinghai Military Region, and Lu Weisheng, the political commissar of the Southern Anhui Military Region.

However, in addition to them, many outstanding political cadres emerged from participating in these military political movements.

Li Gan is one of them.

At the time, he was still an ordinary student, participating in the "Grievance Movement" and gradually learning how to be a political cadre. He now serves as the divisional political commissar. This time, the Second Guard Division was renamed the Third Guard Division, and it was difficult for Tian Jingmin to serve as both division commander and political commissar. Therefore, Li Gan was transferred to serve as the political commissar of the Third Guard Division.

This is the central government adjusting Beijing’s defense.

Immediately afterwards, the central government abolished several of the original directly-administered cities of the North China People’s Government, retaining only the two cities of Beijing and Tianjin.

The Military Commission agreed to establish the Peking Public Security Corps and the Tianjin Public Security Corps in Peking.

The Second and Third Public Security Divisions under the Public Security Command of the North China Military Region were under the command of the Peking Public Security Corps and the Tianjin Public Security Corps.

The 1st Public Security Division continues to be under the command of the Public Security Command.

As the Central Committee prepared to enter Beijing, Wei Hongjun also began his own research.

Take a look at the current situation of each factory.

There is also the issue of unions.

Chapter 756 Research

The trade union issue raised by Deng Zhihui deeply touched Wei Hongjun.

Although the debate about the union has not yet been brought to the surface, Wei Hongjun knows that once this issue is discussed publicly, the impact will be huge.

Almost all central government officials involved in the development of New China's industry were affected. This was because the Party's next major task was to transform China from an agricultural nation into an industrial one. All issues concerning industry were of paramount importance. Industrial development policies touched upon the economic direction of New China, and any central government official who sought to advance their political ideals would not shy away from such debates.

The same is true for Wei Hongjun.

Wei Hongjun is now a member of the Central Committee. Although he is still in charge of the North China Bureau, it is likely that the first local bureau to be abolished by the Central Committee after the founding of the People's Republic of China will be the North China Bureau.

At that time, all cadres of the North China Bureau will be rearranged.

Wei Hongjun would undoubtedly be transferred to the central government. Although he didn't know which department he would be assigned to, he didn't want to lose his voice in the industrialization of New China. Therefore, it was difficult for him to avoid these issues.

Since it was unavoidable, Wei Hongjun had to be prepared. He didn't want to be caught off guard.

The union issue may not be an issue in the new century.

Because what is a union?

Forget about discussing the role of unions; even if they were to abolish them, there wouldn't be much of a stir. In those days, having unions was indistinguishable from not having them.

But things are different now. The trade union is a very powerful institution, and one that the CCP has always valued. Many of the CCP's senior leaders come from the labor movement.

Trade unions are the second front of the Chinese Communist Party and a crucial stronghold. However, the current challenge is that, with the ownership of many factories changing, how to define trade unions in the new era will directly impact the future development of Chinese industry.

So while Wei Hongjun was preparing for the relocation of the central government, he was also investigating the current situation of the factories and trade unions.

Wei Hongjun not only sent people to investigate the actual situation, but also personally took Xu Daben, Deputy Minister of Enterprises, and Lai Ruoyu, Secretary of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee, to visit the factories in Shanxi to see what the situation was like.

"You completed your mission well last year."

Wei Hongjun read the report.

When Wei Hongjun conducts research, of course he has to investigate the most representative factories.

That is Datong Coal Mine.

Of course, Wei Hongjun did not go to Datong in the name of investigating the situation of the trade union.

The current union issue was only being considered by individual leaders, and it had not yet reached the point of formal central consideration. Wei Hongjun was reluctant to ignite the topic himself, so upon arriving in Datong, he first met with the local leaders.

Talk to them about the recovery of Datong's economy.

Datong is an important industrial city in Shanxi.

Because Datong Coal Mine was the largest coal mine in Shanxi, the North China People's Government established the Datong Mining Bureau around it. The Datong Mining Bureau had a large staff, not only managing the Datong Coal Mine but also establishing the Datong Mine Machinery Factory and technical schools such as the Coal Mining College to train coal mining technicians.

Almost all enterprises, schools, and even hospitals related to coal mining are under the leadership of the Mining Bureau.

Wei Hongjun then met with the leadership of the Datong Mining Bureau and then spoke with the factory union leaders. Datong Coal Mine was undergoing renovations, either by expanding the old mine shaft or by adding more mining machinery.

Mining machinery brought from the Soviet Union gradually entered Datong.