Republic of Korea in Yeokcheon - Chapter 266
Only Krnovel
#266. If this continues, we’ll all die!
A quiet house in Beijing.
Two old men were having a secret conversation.
“formation!”
“Why are you doing that?”
“Let’s pull it down!”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“I can’t stand it anymore! If this continues, all the people will die!”
“Shh! Lower your voice!”
“… … .”
There was a brief moment of silence when the old man, who looked to be in his seventies but was at least fifteen years younger than him, made a stern expression and told him to lower his voice.
This old man, called the Big One, is none other than Marshal Zhu De, the number one ranking member of the People’s Liberation Army of the People’s Republic of China.
And the middle-aged man who called Zhu De “big” was Peng Dehuai, the second-ranking military officer in the People’s Liberation Army and the Minister of National Defense. Since Zhu De, the first-ranking military officer, was practically retired due to old age, Peng Dehuai was effectively the highest-ranking officer in the military.
Officially, the two were first and second in the military hierarchy, but privately, Zhu De regarded Peng Dehuai, who was twelve years younger than him, as his own younger brother, and they were closer than most real brothers.
“How many necks do you have? Why are you talking so carelessly?”
“We’re all going to starve to death anyway, so what can I say?”
“Oh! But still?”
“Don’t worry, this house is safe.”
“Okay! I got it. Anyway, what are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“What are you talking about? You have eyes and ears, so you know what’s happening in this country right now. Tens of millions of people have starved to death! In just two years since that damned Great Leap Forward or something crazy! Did we suffer for decades and fight for revolution just to see this happen?”
“Huh!”
“Big brother! If we keep doing this, we’ll all die!”
“so?”
“Chairman Mao must be brought down. No matter how brilliant his achievements during the revolution were, this is not right!”
“… … .”
Although Peng Dehuai was furious and insisted that Mao Zedong must be brought down, Zhu De simply kept a serious expression and remained silent.
“formation!”
“I’m listening, so don’t yell. So, what did Chairman Mao say?”
“What can I say? Since last year, all the party cadres have been advising us to stop the Great Leap Forward, but it has not worked.”
“What about Zhou? I don’t know about other people, but I’ll listen to what Zhou has to say.”
“Comrade Zhou’s words are useless. Not long ago, Zhou said he would risk his life to advise me, but he hasn’t said anything since.”
“Well, given Zhou’s personality, he said he would risk his life, but he probably wouldn’t have said it so strongly. He would never go against Chairman Mao.”
As Zhou De said, this was Zhou Enlai’s limit.
No matter what, in the end he always took Mao Zedong’s side.
Even in situations where millions or tens of millions are dying due to Mao Zedong’s stubbornness.
“That’s what I’m saying. We can no longer trust and wait for Zhou. That damned Great Leap Forward continues, and this year’s crops have been ruined. Tens of millions of people have already starved to death, and if we continue like this, even more people will die! Big! No matter how great Chairman Mao’s contributions, this is not right. We must bring him down!”
“hmm…….”
After Peng Dehuai finished speaking, Zhu De closed his eyes and remained like that for a while.
and.
“How far have we progressed?”
“Except for Zhou, all the party cadres have agreed. In particular, Chen Yun, Liu Shaoqi, and Comrade Deng Xiaoping will take the lead.”
“Zhou?”
“I didn’t tell him.”
“That’s good. It’s better for him not to know. Then what about Lin Biao?”
“I would like you to take care of that guy, sir.”
Lin Biao is the third-highest ranking military official in the military, and his support within the military is considerable.
“And what am I to do?”
“Just make sure Lin Biao doesn’t move. And come to the expanded meeting of the Central Politburo next week to support us.”
“Is that all there is to it?”
“Yes, large.”
“Okay, I’ll do that. But you really have to be careful. You have to keep in mind that Chairman Mao’s eyes and ears are everywhere.”
“Don’t worry.”
“Whew! What is this world really becoming… … .”
“… … .”
“So then, what happens to Chairman Mao if he falls from power?”
“For now, I plan to just step down from the chairmanship. Chairman Mao is still greatly admired by the people.”
“Are you saying you plan to do that?”
“Yes, that’s right. Other comrades think the same.”
“Tsk tsk!”
“Huh? Large? Why are you like that?”
When Zhu De suddenly clicked his tongue, Peng Dehuai was taken aback and asked:
“You guys, don’t you know Chairman Mao that well?”
“yes?”
“Do you think Chairman Mao would be treated like that and just sit back and do nothing?”
“No, that’s… … .”
“You are such fools. After spending decades with Chairman Mao, how can you have such foolish thoughts? Don’t you understand? Did you ever see Chairman Mao as someone who would just accept insults and let them go? No, did you see him as someone who would step back?”
“… … .”
That wasn’t it.
Mao Zedong was the one who eliminated anyone who challenged his authority, by any means necessary.
And he was not the type of person to give up power.
“Chairman Mao will definitely return once this crisis is over. Can you imagine what will happen then?”
“… … .”
“If you’re going to do it, do it right! Otherwise, your words will be miserable later on!”
“Oh, I understand.”
Anyway, the die has been cast.
The fate of 400 million people is at stake.
September 17, 1958.
Central Political Bureau expanded meeting.
Mao Zedong flinched as he entered.
His ghostly political instinct had kicked in.
“Comrade Zhou, what’s the matter?”
“Well, well? The economy is not doing so well, so the mood seems to have become gloomy… … .”
“hmm…….”
Mao Zedong looked closely at Zhou Enlai, but did not see anything particularly unusual.
It was clear that he also had no idea what was going on.
“Well, whatever it is, you’ll know when the story comes up.”
I felt uneasy, but decided to just let it go.
It was impossible to turn back after coming this far, and Mao Zedong believed that nothing much would happen because he was confident in his absolute power.
Soon the meeting began and formal reports were being made.
Suddenly, Liu Shaoqi raised his hand and requested the right to speak.
“Okay, Vice Chairman Ryu, go ahead.”
“I would like to introduce a letter from my hometown at this meeting today!”
“Huh? A letter?”
Regardless of whether Mao Zedong was shocked or not, Liu Shaoqi took the letter out of his pocket and began to read it.
“Our hometown person has risen to the high position of Vice Chairman of the State, which is a great honor for the village. But Vice Chairman Liu! Do you know that your hometown people are starving to death? Even if you are hungry and sick, you cannot tell the party officials. You cannot let your descendants say that a high-ranking person came from our village, and because of him, many people starved to death. Vice Chairman Liu! I beg you earnestly! Please help your hometown people!”
“… … .”
“… … .”
While Mao Zedong and others were shocked by Liu Shaoqi’s sudden statement, Liu Shaoqi himself was already shedding tears as he read the letter.
“Do you understand, Chairman? Our people are starving to death! Tens of millions have starved to death because of your Three Red Flags (the general line for building socialism, the Great Leap Forward, and the people’s communes)!”
“What nonsense! It is true that a small number of people starved, but that was only a genius!”
“Genius? Yes, there were geniuses. But talent was much greater! If genius is 30%, talent is 70%!”
“Talent is your own words! Where did you get the courage to talk nonsense!”
“Is your Majesty truly ignorant of reality? Or are you aware of it and yet turning a blind eye? So many people have starved to death! History will judge you and me! Even cannibalism will be recorded in history books!”
“Are you crazy? Then what on earth have you been doing? The Three Red Flags have fallen to the ground, and now you are going to redistribute the land? Is that it? So you are going to blame me? Okay, let’s say I take responsibility. What will happen to this country when I die?”
“… … .”
Mao Zedong realized that the atmosphere was tense and tried desperately to avoid this situation, even making a subtle threat that the country would fall into chaos again in his absence.
But a second strike following Liu Shaoqi’s first strike was waiting for him.
“What are you saying? The commentator is dying? What kind of miserable words are you saying?”
“Oh, right?”
Mao Zedong felt a sense of relief when Peng Dehuai spoke as if he was defending him, thinking, “Well, that’s how it is.”
But that was his mistake.
“Even without you, our country will run well. No, at least for now, I think you should step down and take responsibility for starving tens of millions of people to death!”
“What, what is it!”
“Vice Chairman Liu Shaoqi is absolutely right! The newspapers and radio stations run by the Party are talking about the achievements of the Great Leap Forward every day! But is that true? Is there anyone among us who doesn’t know that the Three Red Banners have already failed miserably and tens of millions of our people are starving to death? Our people are starving to death right now! Even our People’s Liberation Army soldiers are starving to death! And are you saying that the Chairman is not responsible? Because of that damned earthwork, we are defending the border with weapons made of shit iron! What are we going to do if Chiang Kai-shek invades from the south?”
“Yes, you dare… … !”
“Is this why we overcame so many hardships and made the revolution? To kill all the people? Don’t you know that if we continue like this, we will all die!”
“That’s right! The Minister of Defense is right!”
“Huh, huh?”
Mao Zedong, now completely embarrassed, hurriedly looked for someone to defend him.
I looked at Lin Biao, third in the military hierarchy.
But he coldly ignored Mao Zedong’s gaze, and Zhu De, who rarely attended meetings, sat next to him with an indifferent expression.
And then Tian Yun came forward.
“Comment! It’s true. If this continues, we’ll all die! This year, the crops were ruined again because of that damned Great Leap Forward. So before this winter passes, more people will starve to death than last winter! How can you take responsibility for this?”
“The Chairman must take responsibility!”
“Right!”
“No matter how many contributions you made during the revolution, this one cannot be overlooked! Even though you are the chairman, you must take responsibility!”
“You have to self-criticize!”
“Do some self-criticism!”
“Self-criticism!”
Only then did Mao Zedong realize that he had been overthrown.
That afternoon, Mao Zedong resigned as chairman, citing health reasons as an excuse to no longer perform his duties, and was succeeded by Vice Chairman Liu Shaoqi.
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