Zhao Jianmin served as governor of Shandong Province and Party Secretary of Yunnan Province. He was persecuted twice: in Shandong, he was sent down to serve as a deputy factory director; in Yunnan, he endured eight years of wrongful imprisonment during the Cultural Revolution. After his release, he served as Vice Minister of the Third Machinery Ministry and a member of the Central Advisory Commission (Zhongguwei). Zhao lived to 100 years old. His funeral was attended by former leaders Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao, and Xi Jinping, along with nearly six hundred others—a remarkably grand ceremony for someone of his formal rank. Mao had never met him personally in life.

Upon learning that Zhao had passed away in 2012 and noting his remarkable longevity, Mao was curious and eager to meet him. The Jade Emperor arranged for Zhao’s and Mao’s spirits to convene.

Mao asked: “I know you were persecuted twice, the second time with eight years of wrongful imprisonment during the Cultural Revolution. Yet you survived, continued to serve, and lived to 100. How did you manage it?”

Zhao replied: “There was nothing special. In Shandong, when they feared I might commit suicide, my wife and secretary confiscated the pistol I had kept for years. I didn’t harm myself. I adhered to my convictions. In prison, I went on hunger strikes three times, wrote blood letters three times, and remained guiltless in my conscience. I believed my innocence would eventually be recognized. That’s why I endured.”

Mao noted: “Most officials no longer get elaborate memorials. Yet when you passed, nearly six hundred people attended your farewell, all generations of leadership. And you were only a mid-level advisory member. Clearly, you were highly respected.”

Zhao reflected: “My life was devoted to justice and the nation. I joined the Party in 1932, entered revolutionary struggle, was captured in 1936 and endured harsh torture, yet remained steadfast. I organized anti-Japanese guerrillas, led campaigns in southwest China, contributed to the first Chengdu–Chongqing railway after the founding of the PRC, resisted leftist extremism in 1958, survived eight years of unjust imprisonment during the Cultural Revolution, and continued serving faithfully after release. I lived simply and left with a clear conscience.”

Mao asked: “How were you persecuted in the 1958 Great Leap Forward?”

Zhao explained: “At the Party’s Eighth Congress, I pointed out that class struggle had become secondary, and that economic construction should not be rushed. Yet in 1958, the Great Leap Forward was launched: communes, steel, massive irrigation, inflated production targets. In Shouzhang County, claims of 50,000 jin per mu of corn; Fan County promised communism in three years. I attended inspections, saw it was all false. Tan Zhenlin criticized me openly, accusing me of opposing you, and for twenty-eight days the provincial committee held sessions attacking me for localism and right opportunism. I wrote three written self-criticisms. Shusong even said I had latent personal ambition. Eventually, Deng Xiaoping intervened: ‘Make a proper self-criticism and keep your Party membership.’ By February, the campaign against me ended, but I was removed and sent down to a factory.”

Mao asked: “Were you the only one targeted?”

Zhao: “Far from it. I was the lead; many others suffered, including eleven provincial committee members and 21% of department-level cadres. Many who shared my views were also persecuted.”

Mao: “You must have attended the 1962 Seven Thousand Cadres Conference?”

Zhao: “Yes. Shandong suffered severe famine—650,000 died in 18 months. Cannibalism occurred in several counties. The central government largely ignored the provincial purges. I was exonerated and restored by October 1962.”

Mao: “And after being transferred to Yunnan?”

Zhao: “I became Party Secretary of Yunnan. In 1967, I proposed holding a democratic-type meeting, similar to the 1962 Seven Thousand Cadres Conference or the Ninth Congress, to resolve Cultural Revolution conflicts. Kang Sheng reported me as opposing the Cultural Revolution, claiming I wanted to use legal channels to let Liu Shaoqi, Peng Zhen, and others seize central power. In 1968, chaos erupted. Tan Furen claimed a fictitious ‘Western Yunnan Advance Column’ was plotting with the Kuomintang. Thousands were arrested overnight. I was taken to Beijing for questioning at the Central Committee, interrogated harshly, and placed under house arrest, beginning eight years of imprisonment.”

Mao asked: “The Kuomintang spy allegations—how did that end?”

Zhao: “Entirely fabricated. 1.387 million people in Yunnan were arrested, excluding family members; 17,200 were killed or forced to death, 60,000 disabled. Deng Xiaoping eventually secured my release in 1975. When I learned of the deaths, I wept. Afterward, I served as Vice Minister of the Third Machinery Ministry, then member of the Central Advisory Commission, and continued reflecting on historical lessons, proposing reforms for political systems and democratic development.”

Mao asked: “What are your main reflections?”

Zhao: “The disasters of the Great Leap Forward, the famine, and the Cultural Revolution—your responsibility as chief orchestrator is clear. Millions died, countless victims remain unrecorded. Their spirits wander in the afterlife. Since you never confessed, the Jade Emperor decrees that the victims’ spirits cannot rest. You must sincerely repent and urge your successors to address the remaining consequences and rectify past wrongs.”

Mao perfunctorily replied: “You speak correctly. I am repenting, continuing reflection, hoping to secure leniency from the Jade Emperor.”

NEXT: 59. Li Da (1890–1966)