Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

At the Politburo meeting, Rao Shushi was suddenly attacked.

Organization Department Minister Peng Zhen demanded the suspension of Pan Hannian, Yang Fan, and others, then turned his attention to Rao Shushi. Hu Junhe had already been detained by the Shanghai Public Security Bureau. Peng Zhen's message was that Rao Shushi was guilty of harboring a Kuomintang spy and must sincerely admit his mistakes. However, under pressure, Rao Shushi only admitted to his work mistakes, but refused to acknowledge the crime of harboring a Kuomintang spy.

Because Rao Shushi knew that if he admitted to the crime of harboring spies, then this matter would not be easily dismissed. How could he admit to such a crime as harboring spies? Unless he wanted to give up his political career.

So there was quite a stir at the Politburo meeting.

Some people want to use this opportunity to severely attack Rao Shushi, while others want to protect Rao Shushi.

As for Chen Shuai, he had just been appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs and was currently in Eastern Europe. While Pan Hannian's incident was related to Chen Shuai, it was clearly not the target. Therefore, all the firepower was focused on Rao Shushi.

Some Politburo members disagreed with Peng Zhen's proposal. They all believed that Rao Shushi had problems with his work, but holding a Politburo member accountable for this incident was a bit much. Furthermore, asking a Politburo member to admit such a mistake so soon after the Eighth National Congress was unacceptable. Even if Rao Shushi had problems, it wasn't a crime.

But Rao Shushi's problem was quite serious. After all, the number of Wang Jingwei's puppet regime spies, Kuomintang spies, and gang members admitted by the Shanghai Public Security Bureau was not just one or two, nor ten or eight. There were simply too many of them.

That's why these problems arose.

The Politburo sent a telegram to the Chairman right after its meeting.

The chairman was quite angry.

The Eighth National Congress had just emphasized the issue of "Party unity," and this incident occurred within the Central Committee. If this were to get out, how would others perceive the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China? And the First National People's Congress was about to convene.

It's inappropriate to have this kind of problem arise at this critical juncture.

Although the Chairman is in Guangdong, he has already felt some of the problems behind this matter.

Last year, around this time, Rao Shushi had been fiercely criticizing Peng Zhen. Unexpectedly, a year later, it was Peng Zhen's turn to rip Rao Shushi off. While Peng Zhen was embarrassed by last year's incident, the damage to him was limited. This time, however, Peng Zhen's attack was so severe that Rao Shushi was unable to withstand it.

The Chairman was somewhat annoyed by these things.

But I have to accept this situation.

So the Chairman had no choice but to send a telegram agreeing with the Politburo's idea. He initially halted the work of Pan Hannian and Yang Fan, but he disagreed with the idea of ​​igniting Rao Shushi. The Chairman's message was that this matter would be resolved after he returned to the Central Committee before convening a Politburo meeting. He also told the Premier to have Marshal Chen return from Eastern Europe as soon as possible.

The Chairman was really angry when something like this suddenly happened in the Central Committee.

He was supposed to continue discussing the nature of land, the development of Guangdong's light industry, and arrange a meeting with overseas Chinese with officials in Guangdong. However, the incident in Beijing forced the Chairman to end his trip to Guangdong.

The Chairman had been preparing for the arrangements in Guangdong for about half a month.

But I only stayed in Guangdong for six days in total.

第七天只能是返程回京。主席是1952年5月27日从北京出发的，结果南下这一路花了40来天左右，加上在广东六天时间，所以1952年7月14日返程。

Along the way, the Chairman read the articles compiled by Yang Shangkun and Hu Qiaomu.

These are reports from cadres from all over the place along the way.

Although the Chairman was concerned about what was happening in Beijing, his mentality remained stable. Along the way, he discussed Guangdong affairs with Wei Hongjun. After about a week, the Chairman returned to Beijing.

The Chairman did not immediately convene a Politburo meeting.

The Chairman would not convene a Politburo meeting without any prior knowledge.

On the third day after returning to Beijing, the Chairman convened an enlarged meeting of the Politburo. This enlarged meeting, of course, was primarily to include the participation of alternate Politburo members. At the Eighth National Congress, there were 17 Politburo members, including six alternate members.

They are Deng Zihui, Li Fuchun, Chen Shuai, Chen Tanqiu, Xi Zhongxun and Li Xiannian.

Except for Li Xiannian who was unable to attend due to being away, the other five people attended the meeting.

"This is a very serious matter. The Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau actually reused Hu Junhe, a traitor to our party. He is a big man of the Wang Puppet regime. He was also allowed to recruit Hu Junhe and former Wang Puppet spies, Central Bureau of Investigation spies, Military Bureau of Investigation spies, and Green Gang members, allowing these people to openly form the so-called intelligence committee. Moreover, many of these people later joined the Shanghai Public Security Bureau and became official public security officers. Many Shanghai citizens knew these Wang Puppet spies, Kuomintang spies, and Green Gang members. They turned around and became public security officers of New China. This is a huge smear on the image of our public security officers. The image that our People's Liberation Army has worked so hard to establish cannot be tarnished by these people."

Peng Zhen speaks eloquently.

Initially, due to the Tianjin Party membership expansion, Rao Shushi had prevented Peng Zhen from stepping down. Whenever there was a meeting, especially one at the Secretariat, Rao Shushi would discuss the matter. This led to Peng Zhen making countless self-criticisms in the Secretariat.

If Rao Shushi hadn't been so relentless in his pursuit of Peng Zhen, how could Peng Zhen have brought a capable person like An Ziwen to the Organization Department? An Ziwen's qualifications and rank would have made him a great figure in any department. But Peng Zhen's situation was dire, and to stabilize the Organization Department, he had no choice but to bring An Ziwen over.

Now that he has caught such a good opportunity, how could Peng Zhen give it up?

Even if we cannot get rid of Rao Shushi this time, we must make sure that his reputation within the party is ruined and he loses all face.

"Comrade Rao Shushi, as the First Secretary of the East China Bureau at the time, not only condoned this, but also approved Comrade Pan Hannian's recruitment of Hu Junhe and the establishment of the Intelligence Committee. This was a serious mistake of shielding Kuomintang spies and must be dealt with."

When mentioning Pan Hannian, the Chairman's face turned unhappy.

The Chairman had a very bad impression of Pan Hannian.

This was mainly because when Pan Hannian returned from the Soviet Union, he did not go directly to Yan'an, but instead visited the Kuomintang. In fact, he was there to contact the Kuomintang and discuss the possibility of a joint anti-Japanese war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.

The central government was outraged by this.

Negotiating a joint anti-Japanese war with the Kuomintang was the central government's responsibility, not Pan Hannian's. As for negotiations with the Kuomintang, the central government had not yet fully decided on the specific terms, but Pan Hannian was discussing this issue with the Kuomintang privately.

That’s why the Chairman said, “This person cannot be trusted.”

Pan Hannian’s choice at that time has become a historical mystery.

Why Pan Hannian made this choice, and what the reasons behind it were, are actually unimportant. In the eyes of the Central Committee and the Chairman, Pan Hannian must have had a mission behind the Central Committee's back. Either he received orders from the Soviet Union, or he received orders from Wang Ming in the Soviet Union.

Instead, they ignored the central government's orders.

It was nine months later than the time required by the central government for me to return to China.

Working on the intelligence front, where many things are difficult to explain, the most important thing is the loyalty of intelligence personnel. Pan Hannian had already lost the trust of the central government in this matter.

However, although the Chairman had a very bad impression of Pan Hannian, he did not want to escalate the matter because of Pan Hannian.

Again.

The Eighth National Congress had just concluded, and the First National People's Congress was just around the corner. How to successfully convene the First National People's Congress was the most important issue at the moment, and the central government needed stability at this time.

Peng Zhen's persistence made Rao Shushi really anxious. He immediately said, "We recruited Hu Junhe because the anti-espionage situation in Shanghai was severe. Kuomintang spies were assassinating our cadres and destroying Shanghai's living facilities, affecting the lives of the people. So we recruited someone like Hu Junhe, who was familiar with the Kuomintang spy organization, to quickly eradicate it in Shanghai. I admit that there were mistakes in my subsequent work, allowing some unqualified people to enter the public security system. But these were just work mistakes. Accusing us of harboring spies is completely false."

Rao Shushi was indeed a little nervous.

When he was in the East China Bureau, he was able to use his power to drive out bigwigs like Chen Shuai and become the top leader of the Party, government, and military in East China. However, he had no foundation in the Central Committee. Originally, he was promoted by Comrade Xiu Yang during his time in the New Fourth Army, but their relationship has become very ordinary.

So now that he was suddenly facing such criticism and blows, Rao Shushi was a little flustered.

"Comrade Rao Shushi, how can such a serious problem be explained by a single mistake? You are not just shielding one or two spies and traitors."

Peng Zhen pursued him relentlessly.

Rao Shushi couldn't resist it.

He didn't expect that things that happened after so many years would suddenly come to light.

Bullshit anonymous letter.

Rao Shushi couldn't believe that the Organization Department had suddenly received a so-called anonymous letter. Rao Shushi was also a very capable cadre in the East China Bureau. How could he not see that this incident was aimed at him?

After the founding of New China, there was no cadre who did not have problems in his work.

Even if he made some mistakes, he wouldn't make such a big deal out of it. The Chairman frowned and looked at Chen Shuai who was sitting next to him. He said, "Comrade Chen Yi, what do you think about this matter?"

Everyone's eyes turned to Chen Shuai.

Seeing Chen Shuai's serious expression, Rao Shushi's face turned grim. Although Rao Shushi and Chen Shuai had collaborated extensively and both came from the East China Bureau, their relationship was far from good. Chen Shuai had extensive experience and held a high position in the New Fourth Army. When the New Fourth Army was founded, Chen Shuai was the deputy secretary of the New Fourth Army branch of the Central Military Commission, effectively the second-in-command of the New Fourth Army. As for Commander Ye Ting, he was more of a figurehead in the New Fourth Army; the true power of the New Fourth Army lay not in Ye Ting's hands.

After the Southern Anhui Incident, the New Fourth Army was reorganized.

General Chen was the unanimous and legitimate choice for the position of Army Commander. However, after Comrade Xiuyang arrived in Central China, he promoted Rao Shushi. After Comrade Xiuyang's departure, Rao Shushi became acting secretary of the Central China Bureau and acting political commissar of the New Fourth Army. However, General Chen was also a master of political work. The final appointment of official secretary of the Central China Bureau was uncertain. Consequently, General Chen and Rao Shushi clashed fiercely.

In terms of tactics, Chen Shuai was no match for Rao Shushi. Rao Shushi played a trick and drove Chen Shuai away.

If it weren't for Chen Shuai's seniority, his contributions to the development of the New Fourth Army, and the support of the Central Committee, Chen Shuai would not have been able to return to the East China Bureau. After Chen Shuai returned to the East China Bureau, although the two no longer clashed so fiercely, the incident of the past had left a deep grudge between them, so they always handled official business in a professional manner and their personal relationship was very poor.

Rao Shushi could imagine what Chen Shuai said.

At this moment, if Chen Shuai said a few words, it might cause Rao Shushi to be doomed.

After receiving the Chairman's telegram, Chen Shuai rushed back from his trip to Eastern Europe. Because Chen Shuai was the Second Secretary of the East China Bureau and later the Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, he had ample say.

Chen Shuai said, "This matter is indeed a problem of the East China Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Committee."

As soon as Chen Shuai said this, Rao Shushi felt a little dejected and his legs went weak.

I was also angry.

This time, Peng Zhen's attack on him was steady, accurate, and ruthless, leaving him speechless. However, he heard Chen Shuai continue, "When the Intelligence Committee was established, their job was to provide intelligence on Kuomintang spies and the Green Gang to the Social Affairs Department and Public Security Department of the East China Bureau. They played a significant role in Shanghai's early anti-espionage and anti-gangster campaigns. Although there were some issues with their approach, forgetting to rely on the people, overall the work of the Social Affairs Department and Public Security Department was quite effective. So I don't think there's much of a problem here. There was no such thing as shielding Wang Puppet spies or Kuomintang spies."

"During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, we would incite puppet troops and traitors to rebel and use them for our own ends. This was a common practice in our work. During the Liberation Movement, we also adopted some unconventional methods to quickly eliminate Kuomintang spies. However, simply because we adopted some unconventional methods, we cannot be accused of harboring spies. If this were to be taken too far, how would we, the frontline personnel, continue to do our work?"

Chen Shuai's tone was not so good.

Trivial matters can be exaggerated to such a serious extent.

Rao Shushi instantly perked up. He hadn't expected that despite his terrible relationship with Chen Shuai, Chen Shuai wouldn't take advantage of his misfortune. Instead, he spoke up for the East China Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee.

It was really beyond his expectations.

Chen Shuai didn't finish his speech, but continued, "However, the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Shanghai Public Security Bureau failed to carefully screen these people. Instead, during the subsequent expansion of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau, they absorbed many of them. This was a major mistake in our work. Both the East China Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Committee should reflect on this, as they did allow many Wang Puppet spies and Kuomintang spies to infiltrate our public security forces. As the Second Secretary of the East China Bureau, and later the Mayor and Secretary of Shanghai, I also failed to stop this problem in a timely manner, so I should also take responsibility."

Chen Shuai is not Rao Shushi.

Chen Shuai disliked Rao Shushi. He directly called him a "conspirator," believing him to be anything but upright. However, Chen Shuai wasn't one to dwell on past favors. He wouldn't retaliate against Rao Shushi for matters he wasn't responsible for.

He was not trying to excuse Rao Shushi, but telling the truth.

This incident could be considered a major event, but it wasn't a major one. Pan Hannian, Yang Fan's direct supervisor, could have handled the situation. This was because it was Yang Fan and his team who subsequently deployed numerous Wang Puppet spies and KMT spies. Rao Shushi, already First Secretary of the East China Bureau and Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, had no time for such minor matters. Therefore, Rao Shushi and Chen Shuai, who came from the East China Bureau, bear responsibility, but it wasn't enough to escalate to the level of the Politburo.

Chen Shuai is very annoyed by this kind of thing.

Now that the matter has been exposed, let's deal with it. Why make it so serious and put a big hat on Rao Shushi?

is this necessary?

Chen Shuai never expected that after he was promoted to the Central Committee, the first enlarged Politburo meeting chaired by the Chairman would turn out to be like this.

As soon as Chen Shuai opened his mouth, the tone of the meeting dropped.

Although only an alternate member of the Politburo, Marshal Chen possessed extensive experience and close personal connections with the central leadership. He had been a friend of the Prime Minister's during his work-study period in France. He and the Commander-in-Chief led troops in the Southern Hunan Uprising and traveled to Jinggangshan together, becoming one of the three leaders of the Jinggangshan uprising. From the beginning of the Jinggangshan uprising to the Gutian Conference, the Chairman and the Commander-in-Chief were known for their aggressive tactics. The conflict between the two sides was always intense, and Marshal Chen often helped mediate.

Therefore, in terms of connections in the central government, Rao Shushi cannot compare to Chen Shuai even if he flatters him.

Moreover, the central government knew that Chen Shuai and Rao Shushi had a very bad relationship.

But now that Chen Shuai has said so, and he's also acknowledged his responsibility, continuing to hold Rao Shushi responsible at this point would seem unreasonable. And if you keep pursuing this, you'll be holding Chen Shuai accountable as well.

It would not be easy to hold Chen Shuai accountable as well.

To put it bluntly, Chen Shuai saved Rao Shushi with just one sentence.

Comrade Xiuyang then spoke up, "The leadership responsibility for this incident lies primarily with Comrade Pan Hannian. He failed to carefully identify and allow Wang Puppet spies and Kuomintang spies to infiltrate. Comrade Yang Fan bears direct responsibility, as the incident occurred in the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau, which he led. The work of the East China Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee also has flaws and needs to be reviewed."

Chen Shuai really made the final decision.