Chapter 34 Crazed Delight Rascal, Movement Surge 1926-1927, 33-34 years old

Mao continued: “Hunan was the first stop of the Kuomintang’s Northern Expedition. The goal of the Northern Expedition was to eliminate local warlords and overthrow the Beijing government. During this long journey of over two thousand kilometers, the Kuomintang’s army was accompanied by Soviet advisors. The Soviet Union opened a consulate in Changsha and directed the Kuomintang authorities to support the Peasants’ Association and provide financial aid. In just a few months, the majority of rural areas in Hunan established Peasants’ Associations, disrupting the social structure.”

At this time, the warlords were in intermittent conflicts for the past ten years since the establishment of the Republic of China in 1912. The Beijing government had undergone numerous reorganizations, but the warlords did not change the inherent social structure, and the lives of the common people remained the same. Now, due to the Kuomintang’s implementation of Soviet-style revolution, the social structure collapsed. By the end of 1926, chaos and violence engulfed the countryside in Hunan. It was in such a situation that I, as the leader of the Kuomintang’s Peasants’ Movement, returned to the rural areas of Hunan to guide everything.”

Journalist: “The Hunan Peasants’ Movement was actually initiated and directed by Soviet advisors in Changsha?”

Mao: “Yes. At the end of 1926, I returned to Hunan from Wuhan to investigate the Peasants’ Movement for over a month. In March 1927, I wrote the ‘Investigation Report on the Hunan Peasants’ Movement.’ I witnessed the participation of a large number of rascals causing trouble in the countryside. I was greatly inspired and resonated strongly. I gained inspiration and became wildly delighted in finding my ‘revolutionary path.’ I enthusiastically praised the rascals as ‘revolutionary vanguards.’ People referred to the Peasants’ Movement as the ‘Rascals’ Movement,’ and I boldly affirmed it as the Rascals’ Movement. I said that rascals were excellent revolutionaries. Li Weihan and Chen Duxiu said I went too far, my language was too outrageous. Chen Duxiu withheld my report and prohibited its publication in the party journal. Later, it was included in the ‘Selected Works of Mao Zedong,’ but Hu Qiaomu and others also deleted many of the more radical statements. However, in August 1927, when I led troops up the mountains, marched into Jiangxi, and established base areas, I implemented this approach. I relied on the rascals to serve as vanguards and used the ‘Rascals’ Movement’ to make breakthroughs. How could we incite a rebellion relying solely on law-abiding and respectable peasants?”

Journalist: “Oh, your revolutionary secret is relying on rascals as vanguards?”

Mao: “Yes, we cannot achieve it solely relying on law-abiding peasants.

At that time, Changsha was filled with children’s teams running around singing, ‘Down with the imperialists, down with the warlords.’ The melody of this ‘National Revolutionary Song’ was a French children’s song. There were paper hats invented, placed on the heads of those who were paraded through the streets as a symbol of shame.”

Mao: “The ‘Rascals’ Movement ignited the rebellious dreams I had in my twenties. The ecstatic feeling of revolution was right before my eyes, resonating strongly within me. Witnessing the peasant uprisings allowed me to see the future direction and path of revolution. At that time, most people in society would say, ‘Things are going downhill,’ but I would say, ‘Things are going great.’ When society said that killing was too terrifying, I would say that revolution requires terror. When society labeled it as the ‘Rascals’ Movement,’ I would say that rascals are good, rascals are the bravest in revolution, leading the way. When society said that everything was in chaos, I would say that chaos is necessary. Revolution is not a fancy dinner party; it cannot be so elegant, gentle, and polite. Revolution is a rebellion. Chen Duxiu opposed, and I accused him of right-wing tendencies.”

Journalist: “Chen Duxiu couldn’t stand it, and you criticized him for being right-leaning?”

Mao: “Yes. However, in 1926, during my speeches in the city streets, I still had to be somewhat restrained. On December 20, 1926, over 300 people gathered at the lantern show in Changsha to listen to my speech. I spoke for nearly two hours, saying that it was not yet the time to overthrow the landlords. In the national revolution, we should gradually move towards overthrowing imperialism, warlords, and landlords, usurers, reducing rent, reducing interest rates, and increasing wages for tenant peasants. A Russian companion who used the pseudonym Bu Licai later thought that my speech was generally acceptable, just a bit too mild.”