Celebrating Mao's Death: The Tumultuous Life of a High Official's Son

Left: Mao Zedong, Right: Lin Biao (Dajiyuan composite)

[People News] On September 9, 1976, Mao Zedong, who had caused immense suffering to countless Chinese people, finally passed away, meeting Marx. In the midst of a nationwide atmosphere of mourning and fear, some individuals quietly celebrated at home, eagerly anticipating the arrival of change. In the book "Prison Notes" by the late researcher Wang Xuetai, there is an account of a young man named Hu Zhi, who was imprisoned for daring to hold a celebration.

Hu Zhi's father was a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Foreign Trade of the Communist Party of China and was not spared from persecution during the Cultural Revolution. When the Hu family was raided, the teenage Hu Zhi was locked in the kitchen, experiencing an unprecedented sense of fear. Later, his father was sent to a cow shed and demoted, enduring this for seven or eight years, which caused Hu Zhi's own fate to fluctuate. Consequently, he developed a deep-seated animosity towards the Cultural Revolution and a strong dislike for its architect, Mao Zedong.

After the announcement of Mao's death, twenty-year-old Hu Zhi had a sudden inspiration to organise a celebration with a few friends. Wang Xuetai once asked him how he came up with such an idea, and he replied: "You say that the people of Beijing are all very sorrowful, but that’s not necessarily the case. If he had died at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution, it might have been different. However, too many people were wronged during the Cultural Revolution. As a result, people naturally lowered their respect for Mao out of their hatred for the Cultural Revolution."

Indeed, the calamity of the Cultural Revolution initiated by Mao not only devastated traditional Chinese culture on a spiritual level but also destroyed numerous cultural relics and historical sites, and harmed countless lives.

Professor Fei Zhengqing, a leading authority in American Sinology from Harvard University, estimates in his book "China: A New History" that more than one million people were persecuted to death. Meanwhile, overseas Chinese scholar Professor Ding Shu employs historical material analysis to conclude that the number of abnormal deaths during the Cultural Revolution is around two million.

Professor Su Yang from the University of California, Irvine, has dedicated ten years to gathering death statistics from publicly available county records published by the Communist Party and internal documents. He infers that during the Cultural Revolution, at least 750,000 to 1.5 million people in rural China were persecuted to death, with a similar number suffering severe injuries from beatings, and at least 36 million people experiencing various degrees of political persecution. Notably, this victim count does not include those from major cities.

Professor Rumi Er, a recognised expert on genocides worldwide, estimates in his book "A Century of Bloody China" that approximately 7.73 million people died during the Cultural Revolution.

In the 1997 publication "Clearing the Innocent—Redressing Wrongful Convictions," co-authored by Associate Professor Dong Baoxun from Shandong University and Deputy Director Ding Longjia of the Shandong Party History Office, a speech by then Vice Chairman of the Central Committee Ye Jianying was cited. In this speech, delivered at the closing ceremony of the Central Work Conference on December 13, 1978, he stated: "After two years and seven months of thorough investigation, the Cultural Revolution resulted in 20 million deaths, with over 100 million people politically persecuted, accounting for one-ninth of the national population, and wasting 800 billion RMB." Interestingly, Ye Jianying's speech was not included in the Central Committee's official documents, but it did appear in the "Selected Works of Ye Jianying" published by the People's Publishing House in March 1996, although the specific figures were omitted.

According to the 'Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping', Deng Xiaoping remarked during an interview with Italian journalist Faraci in August 1980, 'The number of people who truly died during the Cultural Revolution is astronomical, a figure that can never be estimated.'

The Cultural Revolution, which caused immense suffering, clearly implicates Mao and the Chinese Communist Party as the main culprits. Hu Zhi's assertion that 'the natural decline in respect for Mao due to hatred of the Cultural Revolution' is not without merit.

Wang Xuetai then inquired, 'Aren't you afraid of your own thoughts?' Hu Zhi responded, 'I was just twenty years old at that time, and I didn't really understand what fear was.'

Following the labelling of the 'April Fifth Movement' as 'counter-revolutionary', Hu Zhi, who was idling at home, developed a new sense of discontent. Mao's death provided him with a sense of relief, leading him to contemplate organising a celebration.

At Hu Zhi's suggestion, a few close friends with similar personalities planned to gather on September 10 to celebrate in the earthquake shelter where Hu Zhi resided. At that time, it had only been a little over a month since the Tangshan earthquake, and many people were still living in the shelters.

Hu Zhi's friends were quite daring, bringing a guitar and casually riding their bicycles to his place. Their actions during the national mourning period were clearly conspicuous, attracting the attention of police and militia on the street. Consequently, before their celebration could officially commence, a police officer arrived at the earthquake shelter, accompanied by several militia members and a few 'small-footed investigation team members'.

Upon entering, the police and militia were taken aback to discover fragments of a plaster statue of Mao Zedong scattered on the ground. It was clear what these young individuals had just done. The police and militia quickly surrounded them, summoned additional officers, and bound Hu Zhi and the others for transport. This incident became one of the most significant 'current counter-revolutionary cases' in Beijing following Mao's death.

As expected, this case was treated as a major issue, undergoing numerous interrogations over time. The young people involved endured considerable suffering. Hu Zhi recounted that the initial interrogation was massive in scale, sometimes involving dozens of individuals. Due to the cramped interrogation room, there was no seating available, forcing everyone to stand, while only Hu Zhi, the one being interrogated, was allowed to sit. This situation appeared somewhat absurd.

At that time, Hua Guofeng was in power, emphasising the two 'whatevers.' Consequently, Hu Zhi was taken to various large meetings throughout the city to be publicly criticised, serving as a 'negative example' for public education.

In October 1977, Hu Zhi was officially announced as arrested. Interestingly, the interrogation was conducted by the Supreme Court of Beijing, but the verdict was delivered by the Beijing Xicheng District Court. On April 10, 1978, Hu Zhi was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve. The judgment included phrases such as 'Hu's thoughts are extremely reactionary, harbouring animosity towards our party and the socialist system,' 'spreading reactionary remarks, viciously attacking and slandering Mao, damaging Mao's glorious image,' and 'great public outrage.' Had this occurred during the Cultural Revolution, Hu Zhi would have undoubtedly faced execution; however, the court ultimately issued a suspended death sentence, likely recognising the changing times and leaving themselves an escape route. Fearing execution, Hu Zhi did not dare to appeal.

Shortly after Hu Zhi was imprisoned, the Chinese Communist Party initiated a campaign to 'redress wrongful convictions,' led by Hu Yaobang, who was then the head of the Organisation Department. Hu Zhi's case was re-evaluated, and a new ruling issued at the end of December 1979 declared that he did not commit a 'counter-revolutionary crime' and ordered his release. Reports indicate that the Central Committee of the Communist Party issued documents concerning this case, and both the municipal public security bureau and the Foreign Trade Department, where Hu Zhi's father worked, also released documents.

Less than a week after his release, Hu Zhi was assigned to a factory under the Ministry of Aerospace (七機部, later known as the Ministry of Aerospace). He worked there for thirteen years, taking on roles as an electrician and in supply and marketing. Following Deng Xiaoping's southern tour speech in 1992, Hu Zhi resigned and launched a factory that produced water disinfection tanks for high-rise buildings. At that time, Beijing was rapidly developing with skyscrapers, and Hu Zhi's business flourished.

Later, Wang Xuetai learned that Hu Zhi was struggling to collect payments for the water tanks, often having to resort to backdoor methods to retrieve debts. After thirteen years, he closed the factory and focused on debt collection, spending his spare time travelling and reading, leading a simple and content life. If he were still alive today, he would be in his seventies, and he might have been able to document his experiences for future generations to learn from.

This article is reprinted from The Dajiyuan △