Chapter 34 Successor: Liu Shaoqi? Lin Biao? 1960-1965

Journalist: “Lin Biao was in the midst of the famine and you condoned him to hold high the Mao flag and propagate it nationwide, what was your intention?”

Mao: “In the 1960 famine, 11.55 million people died of starvation. In September 1960, Lin Biao chaired a meeting of the military commission, and I connived at his proposal to raise the red flag of Mao Zedong Thought and make a resolution of the military commission. Mao Zedong Thought was deleted from the 8th Congress, but now Lin Biao wanted to raise the red banner of Mao Zedong Thought, which actually formed another command, different from the Central Committee chaired by Liu Deng, and challenged Liu Deng. In this way, the entire party, according to the tune of the military commission, to promote Mao Zedong Thought. Since the flag of Mao is held high, no one dares to hold me responsible for starving people, but only to correct the mistakes down the road.”

Journalist: “Oh, Lin Biao exonerated you of the Great Famine and exalted you, wrong down there?”

Mao: “Yes. In September 1961, I received British Field Marshal Montgomery in Wuhan, and he asked me who my successor would be. I said if necessary, I would be the honorary chairman, Liu Shaoqi would be the chairman, and after my death, it would be him.”

Journalist: “Your heart is in your mouth? The heart is thinking of Lin Biao, the mouth said Liu Shaoqi?”

Mao: “I said that on purpose. Lin Biao saw the Foreign Ministry’s briefing, nervous for a while, headache, irritability, sitting and lying down, creating a sense of fear of being abandoned at any time, said to Ye Qun: ‘it is bad that I am Gao Gang down.’

In fact, I have no intention of letting Liu Shaoqi take over, but the current situation is serious, starvation reports keep coming, economic chaos goes on, two chairmen are surnamed Liu, is his business. When there is food, I will change the statement.”

Journalist: “Oh, you deliberately said Liu Shaoqi take over, the current famine responsibility is his?”

In October 1963, I copied Cao Cao’s poem ‘Although the tortoise lives’ to Lin Biao, the First Front ‘Although the tortoise lives, there is still time,’ I compared myself to the tortoise, but there is always the end of life. The Second Front, ‘The snake that rides on the fog will eventually turn to dust,’ is an allusion to Liu Shaoqi. The last four sentences, ‘The period of surplus and shrinkage is not only in the sky, but also the blessing of nourishment, which can be obtained in heaven.’ The last four sentences, ‘The period of surplus and shrinkage is not only in the sky, but also the blessing of happiness, so that we can have a good life. Lin Biao took many days to understand, and was excited for a few days.’

On March 3, 1964, I asked Lin Biao for another confidential talk. I asked him to pay attention to political changes and to be more involved in leadership work. What if he did? It took Lin Biao by surprise.”

Journalist: “You are giving Lin Biao a hint that Liu Shaoqi is a Chinese Khrushchev revisionist?”

Mao: “Yes. December 26, 1964, my birthday, I invited Lin Biao, Chen Boda, Kang Sheng to dinner, I said to Lin Biao face to face: someone in the Central Committee to seize power, how to do? The army will not follow the revisionism, right? The Central Committee wants to exclude Mao, I am still the chairman, want to force me to rebel? I will make a rebellion. But the next day, I called him again, saying that his birthday mood is comfortable, drinking too much, a hair, not count. I vague up, staged false.”

Journalist: “You are playing tricks, two-sided manipulation?”

Mao: “Yes. By the time I met with French presidential envoy Marlowe in the summer of 1965, talking about the issue of successors, I said: people like de Gaulle and me have no successors.

Between Lin Biao and Liu Shaoqi, I pulled the Lin Biao bailout and played the Lin Biao card on one side; on the other, I played the Liu Shaoqi card and held Lin Biao in check, making them both nervous and scrambling to show their loyalty.”

Journalist: “You say good things on both sides, then with manipulation? In fact you want to do until death?”

Mao: “Yes, the 7,000-strong conference, I secretly decided in my mind that I would rather have Lin Biao than Liu Shaoqi. But I do not want Lin Biao to take over when. I actually do not want the real successor, I want to do until death. What successor is a momentary plan, a false statement.”