Chapter 30: Reassessing Qu Qiubai: Superfluous Words Are Not Superfluous; A Communist Leader Repents While Confucius Lives On

I. Mao Said: “Begging Forgiveness from the Enemy, Surrendering, Betraying”

Qu Qiubai (1899–1935) served twice as the de facto leader of the Chinese Communist Party between 1927 and 1931, making him an early party leader. In 1935, he was captured and executed by the Kuomintang in Changting, Fujian, at the age of 36. He was buried nearby and reinterred in 1955 at the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery.

In 1963, Mao said: “Qu Qiubai’s Superfluous Words is unreadable; it is nothing but begging forgiveness from the enemy, surrendering, and betraying.” During the Cultural Revolution, Qu was criticized on this basis, and in 1967 his grave was destroyed by the Red Guards. In 1980, the Central Committee rehabilitated him, confirming that Superfluous Words did not constitute betrayal or capitulation. Qu’s grave was rebuilt at Babaoshan.

II. Chiang Kai-shek Said: “He Could Be Released to Work, No Need for a Statement”

Qu was imprisoned, but Chiang Kai-shek, considering his dignity, suggested he could be released to work in the Russian language department without writing any confession. Qu refused, preferring to accept his fate.

III. Last Meal and Gentlemanly Portrait

Before execution, Qu wrote Superfluous Words. General Song Xilian, who carried out the execution, had been taught by Qu at Shanghai University. Before the execution, he prepared a lavish four-course meal and wine for Qu. A photographer was even invited to take a portrait, preserving his image as a composed gentleman. Along the way, many citizens accompanied him as if attending a festive event in a park.

IV. Execution as a Martyr; Superfluous Words as a Gentleman

At the execution site, Qu chose a patch of grass, sat cross-legged elegantly, and requested the firing squad carry out the execution from behind. As he went to the execution, he was a martyr; in writing Superfluous Words, he was a gentleman. His life drew a perfect closing line.

V. Qu Said: “Superfluous Words Reflects My True Nature, Prevents Misguidance”

In Superfluous Words, Qu wrote: “I am fragile, I took a wrong path, and there is no going back. I fall here and it ends; this prevents misleading the world. My Superfluous Words express my true nature.”

VI. Qu Said: “I Fear Not Criticism, But Admiration”

Decades later, Superfluous Words still resonates with young readers. Qu wrote: “I do not fear reproach or blame; I fear admiration. I hope future youth will not follow my example. I merely fully exposed my inner truth, which Bolsheviks dislike. I could never overcome the gentlemanly consciousness in me, which conflicted with the proletarian fighter—this was my inner vulnerability. Speaking this before the Party is, undoubtedly, ‘superfluous.’”

VII. Qu Said: “The Communist Path Wore Me Down, Leaving Me Discouraged”

Qu wrote: “I struggled and failed along the communist path, tortured for over a decade, exhausted, disheartened. After the failure of the Great Revolution, Mao Dun’s trilogy Disillusionment, Vacillation, Pursuit resonated with me, especially Vacillation, which exactly described my mindset.”

VIII. Qu Said: “I Had to Follow Soviet Advisors; I Was a Mediator; Leadership Was a Historical Mistake”

Qu wrote: “The Party despises ‘vacillation,’ yet honestly, my heart wavered between gentleman and warrior, intolerable to the proletarian fighter. After the Great Revolution failed, I fell. I am not a ‘political animal’; I could not focus on promotion or wealth; I had no great ambitions. I had to follow Soviet advisors, oppose Chen Duxiu, yet being asked to replace him felt inappropriate. I am a mediator. When they removed me, I breathed a sigh of relief. I am a ‘scholarly man with lingering habits’; being asked to lead was a ‘historical mistake.’ A weak horse dragging a few thousand pounds uphill—I cannot bear this weight.”

IX. Qu Said: “To Be a Killer Communist Leader Is Ridiculous; I Am a Hesitant Scholar”

Qu wrote: “Later, I followed whatever the Central Committee said. When they said I was wrong, I immediately admitted it. I did not want any opinion contrary to the Central Committee. I did some routine tasks; calling it ‘struggle’ is flattery. Being a Communist leader committing ‘killings and arson’ is laughable—I am indeed a hesitant scholar, unable even to kill a mouse, indecisive.”

X. Qu Said: “Confucius Took Root in My Mind; Not Uprooted”

Qu wrote: “I still hold Confucius’ principle of loyalty and forgiveness, self-reflection and correction. Looking back, I think of Confucius.” He concluded: “If my words are not entirely superfluous, it is thanks to Confucius. He took root in my mind and was not uprooted by ‘revolution.’”