After Chairman Mao passed away, people found several patched clothes among his belongings.
These clothes are very old and very old. They don't look like the clothes worn by a leader at all, but they are indeed Chairman Mao's most common clothes.
According to the memories of the guards around Chairman Mao: Chairman Mao was very frugal. All his clothes were new for three years, old for three years, and mended for another three years. In fact, from 1953 to 1962, for nearly ten years, Chairman Mao did not buy any new clothes.
Chairman Mao often said: "If I save a piece of clothing, the soldiers at the front will have one more bullet!"
Diligence and frugality
Chairman Mao is famous for his diligence and frugality. In 1949, the People's Liberation Army had just entered Peking. In order to meet Mr. Zhang Lan, Chairman Mao specially asked Li Yinqiao to pick out better clothes for him.
However, Li Yinqiao searched in the box for a long time and couldn't find any unpatched clothes. This made Li Yinqiao very worried. Should Chairman Mao go out wearing tattered clothes?
Li Yinqiao wanted to make a new one for Chairman Mao, but after Chairman Mao learned about it, he refused.
In the end, Chairman Mao still wore patched clothes and completed a series of interviews before the establishment of New China.
This is true for dressing, and it is also true for eating. Chairman Mao was well aware of the country's difficulties, so in private, he would never see big fish or meat on his dinner table. What he ate most often was cheap cabbage and tofu. During the revolutionary years, he even ate wild vegetables and drank gruel with everyone.
In 1960, because the country suffered from famine, Chairman Mao issued an "order" to the cooks:
"I practice the 'three noes', no meat, no eggs, and no more than the ration!"
added: "I only need rice and vegetables to eat. The meat and eggs are exported and replaced by machines."
However, the staff around me felt that it was inappropriate. Chairman Mao was old and weak. If the food he ate had no oil or water at all, how could he bear it?
After much thought, the chef chopped the minced meat into fine pieces and mixed it with the food, hoping to coax Chairman Mao to eat some.
But when Chairman Mao found out about this, he, who had always been very kind, got angry: "If you continue to act like this, we won't eat!"
Seeing Chairman Mao being so angry, everyone had to do what Chairman Mao said. Chairman Mao always adhered to this principle, and in order not to waste state funds, much of his food and clothing expenses were met with his own royalties.
The life of Chairman Mao’s family could not be described as rich and luxurious, but could even be described as miserable. Since Chairman Mao's two daughters, Li Min and Li Ne, moved out of Zhongnanhai , Chairman Mao has not allowed them to eat canteen food, because this is also a national resource.
Could it be that Chairman Mao didn’t feel sorry for his children, so he just liked the life of an ascetic?
Of course not, everyone likes to enjoy themselves, but Chairman Mao always maintained the sobriety of a revolutionary. He has the responsibility of a country on his shoulders, and he can sacrifice his own interests for the sake of the overall situation of the motherland.
Looking back on Chairman Mao's life, he has always been giving, but he has never asked for anything from the country. Being in a high position, it is easy to seek fame and wealth, but Chairman Mao never pursued these worldly things.
When he was "going to Beijing to take the exam," Chairman Mao said to the comrades: "Comrades, we are about to enter Peking. We are not entering Peiping as Li Zicheng entering Beijing; they will change when they enter Beijing. When we Communists enter Peiping, we must not consider ourselves heroes, do not engage in corruption, and are not allowed to enjoy ourselves. We must insist on continuing the revolution."
He did this.
In fact, before the founding of the People's Republic of China, Chairman Mao encountered three opportunities to make a fortune. However, he did not "take advantage" of these opportunities.
Selfless
The first opportunity came in 1920, when Chairman Mao was still a poor student.
He came to Beijing in 1918 to study, and his living expenses were extremely low.
In order to save money, Chairman Mao and his classmates rented the cheapest house in Beijing. Eight people crowded into the Datong bunkhouse and the house was ventilated on all sides. In winter, when the cold wave comes, everyone's hands are covered with frostbite.
Chairman Mao was working as a librarian in the Peking University Library at that time, and his monthly salary was only eight yuan, while the professors' salary was nearly a hundred times his.
This meager salary was used by Chairman Mao to publish magazines and organize revolutionary activities, so his life became even harder. But Chairman Mao enjoyed it, being poor and getting stronger, and not falling into the clouds.
At this moment, an opportunity to make a fortune suddenly came.
This opportunity came from Zhang Shizhao. As early as 1918, Zhang Shizhao once mentioned to Chairman Mao and other progressive students that Hunan youth should pursue "external development."
Zhang Shizhao
To put it simply, the progressive young people at that time all had a goal of studying abroad. The goal of Chairman Mao and others was France, which had the most advanced democratic revolutionary ideas.
However, it was difficult to go to France in those days.
Chairman Mao and his classmates were all poor students, and no one could afford such a huge sum of money.
In desperation, Chairman Mao went to Shanghai in early 1920, partly to see off several classmates and partly to raise funds.
Zhang Shizhao was in Shanghai at the time. Chairman Mao found this highly respected scholar and embarrassedly brought up the matter of funding.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Shizhao learned that everyone was in difficulty, and without saying a word, he came forward to launch a fundraiser in Shanghai. After a period of time, Zhang Shizhao handed over 20,000 yuan to Chairman Mao, a large part of which was Zhang Shizhao's own money.
With this money, Chairman Mao was frightened. In that era, 20,000 yuan was money that many people would never earn in their lifetime. If it were someone else, they would probably have to keep some of it quietly.
However, Chairman Mao was aboveboard. He did not take any of the money himself, and gave it all to Cai Hesen and other overseas students.
What is even more admirable is that Chairman Mao himself did not choose to study in France. In other words, he did not get any "benefits" from this money.
In the winter of 1963, Mr. Zhang Shizhao suddenly received a letter from Chairman Mao containing two thousand yuan. Zhang Shizhao was very surprised and quickly wrote to inquire.
Chairman Mao told Zhang Shizhao that this was to repay his support that year. The two thousand yuan was Chairman Mao's own royalties. From then on, he would send money once a year for a total of ten years to repay.
Zhang Shizhao quickly refused. He thought that he was just doing his best, not to mention there were many donations from caring people.
But Chairman Mao insisted on Zhang Shizhao accepting it. Because without Zhang Shizhao's money, Premier Zhou, Cai Hesen and others would not have the opportunity to study abroad. Perhaps our party would lose many talents.
Not in love with wealth
The second time was the period of cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
In 1924, Mr. Sun Yat-sen personally decided to appoint Chairman Mao as the acting propaganda minister of the Kuomintang.
This is a great trust. For a period of time, Chairman Mao even held a higher position in the Kuomintang than in the Communist Party.
It may seem strange today that Chairman Mao was an official in the Kuomintang, but in the general environment at that time, this was actually a very common thing.
The first cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party brought confidence to everyone. Therefore, many people hold memberships in both parties and hold positions in both parties, and everyone works together for the success of the revolution.
Especially a rare talent like Chairman Mao will not be ignored in any position. Chairman Mao performed very well in the position of Propaganda Minister. Later, Chairman Mao became the Shanghai Executive Secretary of the Kuomintang.
While working in Shanghai, Chairman Mao was appreciated by Wang Jingwei , and his career prospects were bright.
In order to do a good job in publicity, Chairman Mao founded a large number of magazines jointly published by the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, which were popular across the country. For a time, everyone knew that the Propaganda Minister of the Kuomintang was a capable person.
Chairman Mao stayed in this position for more than a year. It was not until 1926 that the Kuomintang left the propaganda department because the Kuomintang wanted to open the Sixth Peasant Movement Workshop and Chairman Mao wanted to serve as the director.
During this period, Chairman Mao's monthly salary was as high as 120 yuan, and with the funds provided by the Kuomintang for running the training center, it was not a problem to live a life of excellence.
However, with the development of history, people know very well that Chairman Mao did not miss the 120 yuan salary in the end.
With the deepening of the study of the peasant movement, Chairman Mao became increasingly aware of the backwardness of the Kuomintang.
In 1927, Chiang Kai-shek launched the 412 incident, which made Chairman Mao determined.
Facing the fierce enemy, Chairman Mao adhered to one principle, that is, political power comes from the barrel of a gun.
He led the Autumn Harvest Uprising team to Jinggangshan and began his strategic layout of surrounding the city from the countryside.
Jinggang Mountain is remote and poor, and the people can't even afford food. One can imagine how difficult it is to develop a base in such a place and deal with a steady stream of enemies.
In order to survive, Chairman Mao personally led the Red Army soldiers to cultivate land in Jinggangshan, dig wells and build canals. At the same time, through his extraordinary military command, he smashed four enemy counter-encirclement and suppression campaigns.
Chairman Mao in Jinggang Mountain ate wild vegetables and wore tattered clothes with patches on top. Hungry was a common occurrence. Moreover, once caught by the Kuomintang, it will end extremely tragically.
Because of the difficult conditions, Chiang Kai-shek initially believed that Chairman Mao would not be able to persist for a long time. From time to time, the Kuomintang came to the outskirts of the base area to persuade them to surrender, hoping to use fame and wealth to shake Chairman Mao's revolutionary determination.
However, Chairman Mao never compromised. If Chairman Mao was a person who liked glory and wealth, then he would not have chosen to join the party from the beginning.
People like Chiang Kai-shek, relying on their superior status, turned the country into their own money bag, frantically squeezing oil and water from the people, making people miserable, and Chiang Kai-shek's family was extremely wealthy.
Based on Chairman Mao's ability, if he only had the goal of promotion and wealth, he could become a bigger official than Chiang Kai-shek and earn more money than Chiang Kai-shek. After all, it is difficult to adhere to revolutionary ideals, but it is too easy to choose to pervert.
But Chairman Mao did not do this. He still maintained poverty and chose the most difficult road. Wearing patchwork clothes, he is far more admirable than those "big men" wearing brocade clothes.
Gongzhe Eternal
The third chance appeared when attacking Zhangzhou .
In the early 1930s, the 49th Division of the Kuomintang was entrenched in Zhangzhou and was eyeing the enemy, which made it impossible for our army to open up the situation in southern Fujian.
Therefore, Chairman Mao believed that it was imperative to attack Zhangzhou. In order to ensure victory, Chairman Mao personally directed the battle.
It only took six days for the Red Army to conquer Zhangzhou. The enemy troops in Zhangzhou City fled upon hearing the news, and the people cheered and welcomed the Red Army into the city.
After entering the city, Chairman Mao and his brother Mao Zemin conducted a comprehensive inventory of the supplies in Zhangzhou City. Because Zhangzhou is a key city, it has abundant supplies.
The Red Army found a large number of guns, ammunition, medical supplies, and also found one million silver dollars .
A full million is enough for ordinary people to enjoy for several generations. Even Chairman Mao has never seen such a huge sum of money.
This is a great temptation. You know, Jinggangshan has not received the news at this time, and Mao Zemin is the president of the National Bank of China. If the two brothers join forces, this million can disappear silently, and no one will notice the clues.
This kind of thing has long been a common practice in the Kuomintang. As the Minister of Finance, Kong Xiangxi is the number one rich man of the Kuomintang. Every penny in the national treasury is actually the private property of the four major families of Jiang, Song, Kong and Chen.
Kong Xiangxi
Chiang Kai-shek certainly got the most benefits. The four major families making money in this way harmed the national interests. The economic collapse left the country unable to make ends meet all year round, but Chiang Kai-shek didn't care.
Chiang Kai-shek was a standard comprador . Throughout his life, he had not thought much about the rise and fall of the country. He was only interested in power and money.
Therefore, a strange phenomenon occurred in the Kuomintang government. The Finance Minister took the lead in corruption, but Chiang Kai-shek not only did not stop it, but also used his power to provide Kong Xiangxi with the greatest convenience, for fear that he would get too little money.
Because of this, Chiang Kai-shek probably has never worn patched clothes in his life, let alone what it tastes like to eat cabbage and tofu. No matter how miserable the people are, he can turn a deaf ear.
Chairman Mao was different. He would never put the country's money into his own pocket. Therefore, this huge sum of one million silver dollars has all entered the national bank of our party, and the accounts are clear, and every penny is not a penny.
This matter reached Chiang Kai-shek's ears, and Chiang Kai-shek did not believe it anyway.
Because up and down the Kuomintang, there are not even a single honest official. Those who do not take bribes will become aliens in the eyes of everyone. Besides, if Chiang Kai-shek took the lead in corruption, the people below would naturally follow suit.
Later Du Yuming suspected that Guo Rugui was a Communist spy. The reason was that Guo Rugui behaved too cleanly and even had patches on the sofa at home. He did not look like a Kuomintang member at first glance.
When Chiang Kai-shek heard this, he was furious and drove Du Yuming out. He did not suspect that Guo Rugui was a communist spy, but thought that a "loyal minister" with clear sleeves finally appeared beside him.
Guo Rugui
But he never expected that Guo Rugui, who was not corrupt, was indeed a red agent, so his performance was incompatible with the Kuomintang.
This is precisely determined by the different atmospheres between the two parties. The hemp is growing in hemp, but it is straight without support, and the white sand is in nirvana, and it is black with it. As a leader, Chairman Mao could take the lead and set an example. Of course, everyone behaved with ease. On the contrary, it would be a ridiculous situation like the Kuomintang.
Chairman Mao had very low material requirements throughout his life. After the founding of New China, his salary was not much higher than others.
Many of Chairman Mao’s family members participated in the revolution and died on the battlefield. Most of the remaining relatives were poor. Chairman Mao felt sorry for them, so he often gave them money to support them, but he used his own royalties and never touched a penny of public money.
Moreover, every time when he said goodbye to his relatives, Chairman Mao would repeatedly emphasize that he must not use his status to be special.
Chairman Mao knew that the Kuomintang turned against the people because of the entangled nepotism.
Under his request, the descendants of the Mao family all lived an ordinary life. There were no high-ranking officials, let alone wealthy businessmen. Most of them chose jobs such as medical care and education.
Although Chairman Mao is gone, the teachings he left behind still influence future generations.
The power of money is powerful. People often say that money can make the world go round. However, in front of a noble-minded revolutionary like Chairman Mao, money seems so weak.
Chairman Mao is a man who has escaped from vulgar interests. What he pursues is far better than money.
References:
Edgar Snow "Red Star Shines on China"
Li Sida "Growing up in the Revolutionary Era: How did Mao Zedong become the Minister of Propaganda of the Central Committee of the Kuomintang? 》
Kang Huayi "Culture丨Who introduced Mao Zedong to work at Li Dazhao"
