1932: Playing with the Japanese Communist Party with a doll

"Let me be clear. On this matter, I completely support your opinion. We really can't immediately start a full-scale war with the Japanese. Although neither side is ready, we are obviously the less prepared side.

In front of Li Desheng alone, Wu Hao expressed his true thoughts very frankly:

"I agree with your approach of comprehensively mobilizing the masses, establishing bases, accumulating strength, using small forces to exchange for large ones, and using small forces to accumulate large ones. The Ganzhou, Zhangzhou, and Wuhan campaigns have fully demonstrated your military talent. I believe in you."

"Ah."

Seeing that Wu Hao's statement was indeed the same as he had guessed, Li Desheng finally laughed:

"I thought you were worried about the united front."

"It might have been the case in the past, but now we are the Red Army, which has the upper hand. So why should I care whether the Kuomintang reactionaries are happy or not?"

Wu Hao also rolled his eyes like Ma Shiwu:

"Anyway, based on what you did in Wuhan, there's no way they'll like us much."

“Hahahahahahaha…”

Li Desheng laughed heartily, and the slight gloom in his heart instantly disappeared. Wu Hao also laughed for a while, and then his face slowly darkened.

"However, how to convince the comrades is a huge problem. As you saw at today's meeting, the Red Army is eager to fight a major battle. To overcome this mentality, simply presenting facts is not enough."

"I know..."

Li Desheng sighed slightly.

Some people try to force others to do things because they think they are right, hold a position, and have authority. Even if this approach can get people to do things in the short term, it will always cause various problems at the execution level.

Wu Hao understood this principle a long time ago, and now Li Desheng also understood it, which is why he did not confront others when they opposed his correct views.

Even so, he still pounded the Thresh table lightly with some resentment:

"Just because the situation has improved a little, they're already sticking their tails up again!"

Wu Hao also sighed:

"Runzhi, comrades are also eager to win. Everyone hopes to drive out the Japanese invaders as soon as possible, and then completely defeat the Kuomintang reactionaries and liberate all of China. You must understand this feeling."

"I understand, but still..."

A feeling of loneliness and not being understood arises spontaneously.

Li Desheng and Wu Hao didn't know that, let alone the current powerful Red Army, even in history, when the Chinese Communist Party was so weak after the Long March and the Great Purge of the White Areas, when facing the Japanese invaders, many people wanted to "win the victory in one battle"?

for example.

Many people thought that after the Zunyi Conference, Li Desheng, who had fully demonstrated his ability and authority, was the one who had the final say within the party and the army, but in fact this was not the case at all.

After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, facing the Japanese invasion, Zhu De, Zhao Ziqi, Wu Hao, Peng Dehuai, Ren Bishi, He Long, Guan Xiangying, and other senior CCP military and political officials held a meeting to decide how to resolve the chaos in North China.

Zhao Ziqi believed that "Yan Xishan is a loser. North China and Shanxi will fall sooner or later. We don't need to spend a lot of energy to help the Kuomintang resist the Japanese army. Instead, we should quickly mobilize the masses to establish a political power and expand our own army."

As a result, this view, which was almost identical to Li Desheng's, was strongly opposed by others.

Military generals such as Ren Bishi expressed opposition, believing that Zhao Ziqi was a typical example of "national defeatism" and that his theory was wrong, seriously overestimating the Japanese army and underestimating the national army.

Wu Hao and other political leaders expressed opposition, believing that Zhao Ziqi's views could easily lead to a breakdown in the anti-Japanese united front, and thus undermine the overall anti-Japanese situation.

Several parties criticized Zhao Ziqi harshly for her views and even brought the matter to Li Desheng, which made Li Desheng very unhappy. He believed that everyone was targeting Zhao Ziqi on the surface, but was actually targeting him.

Of course, the fact that Taiyuan fell easily in the end proved that Li Desheng and Zhao Ziqi were right. Also because of the fall of Taiyuan, all the above criticisms disappeared.

But does this mean that Ren Bishi, Wu Hao, Peng Dehuai and others are all useless people who only make wrong decisions?

Of course not.

All of the above people were top talents at the time, and their views were the result of careful consideration, but they just started from their own perspectives.

Ren Bishi and others represented the will of the Eighth Route Army.

No matter how difficult the anti-Japanese situation was, it was impossible for soldiers to surrender before the battle even began. Defending Shanxi was the responsibility and determination that Chinese soldiers must shoulder.

At the time, the Eighth Route Army leaders believed that Shanxi was a mountainous region overlooking Tianjin and Beijing, which gave it a geographical advantage. The Shanxi Army, after years of development, was already very powerful, so defending Shanxi should be no problem.

Moreover, the Eighth Route Army must prove its value in the War of Resistance Against Japan by helping the National Army defend Shanxi and fight against the Japanese army.

The "Hundred Regiments Offensive" that took place later also reflected this mentality to some extent.

Wu Hao and others represent the overall situation of the united front.

The strength of the Communist Party of China and the Eighth Route Army at that time was not enough to support the overall anti-Japanese war on their own. Without the support and cooperation of the National Army and local warlords, the already extremely complicated overall anti-Japanese war situation was almost doomed to failure.

Therefore, they did not allow Zhao Ziqi's remarks to spread, causing Yan Xishan to become suspicious of the Communist Party of China and giving Chiang Kai-shek an excuse to suppress the Eighth Route Army.

As for the strategic goal Zhao Ziqi later proposed of "taking the opportunity to develop the base area and expand the Eighth Route Army into a powerful group army with hundreds of thousands of guns", he was criticized to pieces.

Regardless of the views of the two parties mentioned above, one thing is clear:

Li Desheng's emphasis on the guerrilla strategy of "mobilizing the masses with all their strength and establishing extensive bases" and his view that "the Eighth Route Army should be responsible for the battlefield behind enemy lines rather than the front lines" were not fully accepted by the CCP.

You must know that this was none other than Li Desheng, who had experienced the failure of the Central Soviet Area, the Long March with heavy casualties, the extremely important Zunyi Conference, and who had pulled the Red Army out of a desperate situation and brought them to Yan'an to seek survival!

This has always been the case throughout history when the Red Army (Eighth Route Army) was extremely weak, and it is even more so in this worldline;

Rather, it could be said that the successive victories won by Li Desheng, the Red Fourth Front Army, and the Northward Corps, actually fueled the "competitive spirit" of the CCP, especially the Red Army, in this worldline:

Oh, so our Red Army is so strong? Why don’t we quickly organize ourselves and head north to give the Japanese a good beating?

It is pure wishful thinking to think that one or a few victories can make everyone at all have no objections to you.

They are not Krieg, and you are not the Emperor!

Fortunately, unlike in history, this global Wu Hao does not need to consider so many "united front" issues and can wholeheartedly support Li Desheng's views.

Because the "Xi'an Incident" in history was initiated by Zhang and Yang, and the Red Army, which consisted of only tens of thousands of people, was still under encirclement and suppression at the time. It was not strong enough, and was eventually reorganized into the "Eighth Route Army" in a weak position to achieve cooperation;

Now, the "Wuhan Incident" was instigated by Li Desheng, who beat Chiang Kai-shek to a pulp. In the end, the CCP used an absolutely strong attitude to force Chiang Kai-shek to cooperate in the anti-Japanese war. Naturally, the situation was different.

Moreover, because of the existence of the Shireliu Party and the current favorable situation, Wu Hao and Li Desheng became very confident that the CCP would eventually shoulder the overall responsibility of resisting Japan while dealing with the Nationalist Army.

only...

"Well, since ideological issues are difficult to resolve..." Wu Hao lowered his voice:

"Runzhi, about the Northeast situation, should you consider disclosing it to a few key officials? At least a few members of the Politburo..."

As long as the identity of that person is revealed to everyone, all disputes will naturally be resolved.

"this..."

Li Desheng hesitated and felt excited for a few seconds.

"Manchukuo", especially the 386th Brigade, is full of our people. Even the Japanese prince who actually controls the Northeast is a communist. How can we explain this?

Whether anyone believes it or not is secondary. The more people know, the more likely it is to leak the secret, which could put our comrades in the Northeast in danger.

The key question is, if this matter were to be revealed, would it further foster a sense of complacency within the CCP, especially within the Red Army?

Most importantly, will this cause the morale of the CCP, from top to bottom, to "drop," leading them to think, "Since I can win even without doing anything, why not just put in the effort?"

Judging from the current feedback, the probability of these happening is extremely high because the CCP is not mature enough;

Moreover, judging from the fact that Comrade Ma Shiwu only told Li Desheng and Wu Hao these most confidential matters, the attitude of the World Revolutionary Party is clearly inclined to keep silent;

Although they clearly do not want to interfere too much in the internal affairs of the CCP, especially political decision-making, the CCP cannot ignore the ideas of the SRP.

After much hesitation, Li Desheng rejected the simplest way to resolve the dispute:

"No, I think we should not say it. It's too dangerous for the World Revolutionary Party, for our comrades in the Northeast, and for ourselves."

Speaking out might end the dispute, but it's not a good way to temper the CCP.

Wu Hao actually thought the same thing. He heaved a sigh of relief after hearing this. After another in-depth discussion with Li Desheng about the strategic issues of the war against Japan, he asked:

"So, how do you plan to convince the comrades? While there won't be any problems in the short term, everyone will definitely have strong opinions over time."

You can easily guess what some people will think - "I've been expressing my dissent for so long and you still keep doing what you want. What on earth do you want to do?" or something like that.

Again, this does not mean that comrades are necessarily wrong. The breadth of information, the perspective from which they consider issues, and the characteristics of their own personalities will all lead different people to have different views on different things at different times.

Different opinions are not necessarily harmful, but neither is a lack of unity of thought.

Li Desheng had been troubled by this problem for a while. Hearing this, he subconsciously wanted to take out a cigarette and smoke a couple. He glanced at the vague figure in the room in the distance, remembered the cigarettes that had been confiscated from him, put them back, and asked:

"What do you think?"

"I have four ideas."

Wu Hao, who had already had an idea, raised his finger:

"First, we need to theoretically overturn the current thinking of a quick victory and an all-out war. I think you could consider writing an article analyzing the situation to convince more people of your ideas..."

"Well, I already have this idea, and I have a draft of the article in mind. I will write it later..."

Li Desheng nodded and mentioned his half-written "On the Protracted War Between China and Japan" to Wu Hao. After receiving his initial approval, he asked:

"And the second one?"

"Secondly, we could consider allowing some military cadres to appropriately participate in livelihood and economic development to broaden their horizons. After they deeply experience the difficulties of development, perhaps their thinking will change."

Because a few months ago, the Red Army was still in a difficult situation of being tightly blockaded and having no salt to eat, the whole party and the whole army emphasized "everything serves the military", which resulted in another problem now:

Military cadres generally "look down on" political cadres and local cadres, believing that fighting is the most important thing, and that other economic and livelihood construction should be put aside.

But in reality, the work of many political cadres and local cadres, in inconspicuous corners, supports the body and soul of the entire army. If they are not taken seriously for a long time, conflicts will definitely arise between the two sides.

Moreover, it is precisely because of this idea that many military cadres simply believe that as long as they have good guns, good artillery and well-trained troops, they can defeat the Japanese, but they ignore the fact that the gap between the two sides is not just in the military.

"Well, that's a good idea. What about the third one?"

"That's what you're going to do today. We'll go talk to them one by one and convince them one by one. I didn't dare say this to you before because I know your temper, but now..."

Li Desheng laughed silently.

Well, in the past he always waited for others to come to him.

The one who played this role the most was Wu Hao in front of him. "No problem, we'll go after we finish talking... What about the fourth one?"

"Fourth, we must find a way to fight a war. First, to truly prove to the people of the whole country the value of our resistance to Japan, and second, to use facts to educate the cadres. Now is not the time for a decisive battle."

"This... is it a real fight... or is it a fake fight?"

When he said this, Li Desheng felt a little embarrassed.

How did the Anti-Japanese War, which was a good war, end up like this, where we still have to discuss whether it was a fake match or not?

I always feel that since 1932, many things in China have taken a very strange turn.

Ah Xi, how will this part be written in the Party history in the future?

Li Desheng couldn't help but observe a few seconds of silence for the future writers of party history.

Wu Hao was stunned for a moment, his expression becoming somewhat distorted. He paused for a long time before replying:

"That depends on what he's thinking. If he wants to use us to eliminate dissidents in the Kwantung Army, then we have to fight for real. If he has other considerations, then it's hard to say."

"...You don't trust him?"

"To be Comrade Ma Shiwu's superior, to control such vast resources, and to have the audacity to bring down our Provisional Party Central Committee..."

Wu Hao sighed:

"I have no idea how complicated a person's thoughts are, or how big his plans are, so I still need you to find an opportunity to communicate with him in person."

In fact, without a God's perspective, Wu Hao is more than just distrustful.

He even suspected that there was some huge conspiracy behind all this!

It is too dangerous to pin the future of the Communist Party of China on a World Revolutionary Party of unknown origin.

"Okay, I'll talk to Comrade Shiwu about this later. We're just exchanging information about this big show, and we haven't figured out how to perform it yet..."

As he spoke, Li Desheng sighed. It's so difficult...

It's harder than fighting a war.

They had to stage this drama well to avoid unexpected bloodshed, while also making sure no one in the country noticed anything was wrong, and also using it as a lesson for the entire Party and the entire military...

You might as well let me fight the Japanese head-on.

"Well, there are two more things. I haven't had time to tell you in detail because I've been in meetings these days..."

Wu Hao told Li Desheng about the change in the Soviets' attitude, the Americans' sudden "support policy," and his secret conversation with Kruger that night. Li Desheng was immediately overjoyed.

"This is a good thing! Not to mention the Soviet Union, which will support us if it can, but forget it if it can't. If the Americans are truly willing to support us, with their industrial strength, we will definitely benefit greatly!"

“They are capitalist…”