During the Cultural Revolution, Jiang Qing and Kang Sheng made a fool of themselves. (Internet photo)
With the release of the reminiscences of Jiang Qing’s secretaries, the public gradually saw the extravagant Life of Jiang Qing, who claimed to be a proletarian revolutionary fighter.
Jiang Qing, the fourth wife of Mao Zedong, was paid grade 14 in 1954, not as high as Ye Zilong (Li Jiaji and Yang Qingwang: “Thirteen Years by the Leader’s Side: Interviews with Mao Zedong’s Defender Li Jiaji (first and second)” Central Literature Publishing House, 2007).
In March 1968, Lin Biao stepped in to raise Jiang Qing’s administrative rank from nine to five at once (quoted in: Tumen and Xiao Sike: Special Trial: The Trial of Lin Biao and Jiang Qing Counterrevolutionary Group, Beijing: Central Literature Publishing House, 2002 edition, p. 163). Public information on when the fourteenth to ninth grades changed is not yet available.
Before the Cultural Revolution, Jiang Qing did not have much work to do. She was Mao’s living secretary, and her main job was to take care of Mao in his life. In 1948, Jiang Qing reprimanded Mao’s staff except for her: “Your task is to serve us. If we are happy, you have done your job well. If we are not happy, it means you are not doing your job well.” This is a clear and concise expression of the so-called superior-subordinate relationship between Mao Zedong, Jiang Qing, and others around them, which is essentially a master-servant relationship.
Whether in Yangjiagou in Mili County, Shaanxi Province, or in Xibaipo in Pingshan, Hebei Province, Jiang Qing, who did an excellent job serving Mao, was so lazy that she didn’t even bother to get the warm water bag near her feet, and rang the bell to let the soldiers come in and take it up to her sitting on the bed. When she was in Yangjiagou, the guard Zhang Tianyi said sadly, “The situation has just improved, and she is like this. If we had won the final victory, she …… would have been dead.” (Li Yinqiao and Han Guixin: “Fifteen Years by Mao’s Side”).
The two of them became closer together politically, but on May 28, 1966, Jiang Qing became the deputy head of the Central Cultural Revolution Group. Although she was the deputy head of the group, Jiang Qing actually had the say, because she was Mao’s wife, flag bearer and spokesman. Tao Cast, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said privately to his wife, Zeng Zhi, “You don’t know, Jiang Qing often reprimanded us as if we were grandchildren, always with a commanding tone, which is really unbearable!” (Zeng Zhi: “A Revolutionary Survivor – Zeng Zhi’s Memoirs”).
Before the Ninth National Congress of the Communist Party of China held in April 1969, Jiang Qing was not even an alternate member of the CPC Central Committee. But at the end of the Ninth National Congress of the CPC, Jiang Qing crossed the three pavilions of alternate member of the CPC Central Committee, member of the CPC Central Committee and alternate member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, and rocketed to the pavilion of member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, gaining an extraordinary political status. This Time, Jiang Qing took a rocket ride, and it was definitely Mao Zedong who made the decision.
At that time, Chen Xilian was the director of Liaoning Provincial Revolutionary Committee and commander of Shenyang Military Region, and Zeng Shaoshan was the first political commissar of the military region. In terms of position and seniority, Mao Yuanxin could not compare with Chen and Zeng, but because Mao Yuanxin was the nephew of Mao Zedong and Jiang Qing, both of whom regarded him as their own son, even Chen Xilian and Zeng Shaoshan treated him with respect and subservience. In fact, Mao Yuanxin became The Emperor of the Northeast.
On February 26, 1975, Mao Yuanxin decided to massacre Zhang Zhixin, who had questioned Mao’s practices in launching and leading the Cultural Revolution.
At the end of 1975, Mao Zedong’s condition was getting worse and his speech began to be slurred. Mao Yuanxin was summoned to Beijing to serve as a liaison between Mao and the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, and became the issuing officer of Mao’s top instructions. The Trial of Lin Biao “Gang of Four” Counterrevolutionary Group”, Anhui People’s Publishing House, 1998).
Li Ne, the youngest daughter of Mao Zedong, graduated from Peking University in 1966 and was appointed editor-in-chief of the powerful PLA Daily in August 1967.
In the 2003 edition of the book “Chronicle of Mao’s Life”, which portrays Mao’s great image, it is said that Mao was very affectionate, but was particularly averse to the corrupt practice of nepotism. In response to visits from relatives and friends who might beg for favors, he said, “Now that I am a big official, if I turn my back on people, they will say that the Communist Party is heartless and unrighteous, not to mention that some people have helped me and our Party in the past. If we respond to requests, we will become like the Kuomintang. If we in the Communist Party engage in nepotism like Chiang Kai-shek and the others, and if one person gains the way, the chickens and dogs will rise to heaven, over time, we will be detached from the masses and will collapse.” He laid down several principles: “Anyone who wants to come to Beijing to see me will be rejected. If you don’t listen, and you want to come, he will pay for his own travel expenses, and I will not see you, and the public will not receive you. Anyone who asks me to find a job, I here is ‘four no’s’: no introduction, no recommendation, no letter, no talk.” With such impersonal measures in place, few people came to Mao’s hometown anymore (Library of the Research Department of the Central Literature Research Office: Chronicle of Mao’s Life).
As for Mao’s indifference to his relatives and friends, and his care for Jiang Qing, Mao Yuanxin, Li Ne, etc., Mr. Zhong Bo once wrote a couplet: “Treating relatives and friends with thin affection and indifference, a chicken and a dog rising to heaven with his wife and daughter” to summarize it. He believes that the key reason is that those friends and relatives could not help Mao Zedong to seek private benefits, so he treated them with little love and justice, and earned a good reputation of being “selfless”, so why not. But Jiang Qing, Mao Yuanxin, Li Ne is completely different, both are the closest relatives, but also to help their own personal interests, take them to the sky and what does it matter. He gave a simple example to illustrate: in 1966, when the Cultural Revolution was in full swing, Jiang Qing, as Mao’s wife, flag bearer and lackey, waved the banner for Mao’s personal gain to defeat President Liu Shaoqi, and fabricated the charges. The reward of 380,000 yuan and 20,000 US dollars in ten years would not have been painful for Mao, but rather a pleasure to throw some bones to his pet dog. When Jiang Qing was tried in 1980, he said, “I am a dog of Chairman Mao, and I will bite whoever Chairman Mao tells me to bite, and you have to look at the master’s face when you beat the dog!”
The hundreds of millions of Chinese people who have no connection with super privileges can hardly imagine the paradisiacal bliss that Jiang Qing enjoyed.
Diaoyutai, formerly a palace for the emperor’s pleasure, is one of the famous gardens in Beijing, with a history of more than 800 years. It was first built in the Jin Dynasty, when Emperor Zhangzong (1190-1208 AD) built his villa “Wanliu Hall” here, which became a popular place to visit for a while. In the Ming Dynasty, it was also the villa of the emperor. In the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Qianlong built the “Wanghai Building” here and inscribed a poem with a plaque, and in 1958, large-scale construction was carried out to build the famous Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, which has become an important place for political, economic and diplomatic activities. It is a quiet and elegant garden villa-style building complex. The garden has curved canals, sparkling lakes, lush trees and fields of lotus leaves. Each of the sixteen villas along the lake is surrounded by woods, birdsong and flowers.
“After the start of the Cultural Revolution, the powerful members of the Central Cultural Revolution Group, mainly Jiang Qing, took a fancy to this state hotel with its luxurious architecture, quiet environment, beautiful scenery and great space for activities. The office of the Cultural Revolution Group was located in Building 16, with Chen Boda, the leader of the group, living in Building 15 and Kang Sheng, the advisor, living in Building 8. Jiang Qing lived first in Building 6, then in No. 11, and then in Building 10. Zhang Chunqiao and Yao Wenyuan shared Building 9.
Jiang Qing woke up every day around one in the afternoon (this is called morning wake up).
Before Jiang Qing got up, she rang the bell to inform the nurse. When the nurse heard the bell, she brought the prepared mouthwash and cereal porridge on a tray to Jiang Qing’s bedside and put them gently on her bedside table.
Jiang Qing was half lying on the bed in her nightgown. The nurse helped her rinse her mouth and eat the porridge, then put on another nightgown and was assisted by the nurse to the bathroom to relieve herself and wash her hands and face. After washing, she took off her robe, put on her clothes, and went to the office to read the documents.
When the office was open, Jiang Qing also ate fruit once. The time spent in the office was more than an hour, less than a few minutes. Then, ring the bell to inform the guards to prepare for a walk. In addition to walking, the car and horseback riding are also counted. After the walk, he went to Building 17 and either played poker, watched movies, or sometimes played ping pong.
The company’s main business is to provide a wide range of products and services to the public. About 8 o’clock back to the residence building to eat dinner.
After dinner, Jiang Qing usually went to Building 17 to watch foreign movies with Chen Boda, Kang Sheng, Zhang Chunqiao, Wang Hongwen and Yao Wenyuan. Sometimes she also asked directors, cameramen and famous actors from the film industry to accompany her, saying that she wanted them to learn the art of foreign photography, lighting and acting. When watching foreign films with original sound, a foreign language interpreter was asked to translate for her while watching. In the large auditorium, there were often only four or five people watching the film, sometimes only Jiang Qing was watching it alone. Sometimes she watched one film, sometimes two films, sometimes a few of several films.
If Jiang Qing went out to attend a meeting, no matter how late he returned to his residence, he would go to Building 17 to watch one or two movies before going back to bed. If you don’t want to sleep, you can play poker for an hour or two. He would go to sleep around 4:00 am.
All year round, every morning, noon and night, the staff had to ask Jiang Qing for good morning.
Jiang Qing did not sit up hard when she got up, for fear of hurting her heart, and asked the nurses to hold her up gently. All the clothes from inside to outside, including her shorts, had to be put on by the nurses in order and flattened. After she was dressed, she was given the wind direction, wind and temperature.
When Jiang Qing put on her shoes and socks, she didn’t even bother to lift her feet, so the nurse had to kneel on the floor to put them on her. When she put them on quickly, she said the nurse’s action was rough, making her nervous and sweaty, so she cursed, saying that there was no tender feelings for her; when she put them on slowly, she said the nurse deliberately dawdled, intentionally making her anxious and sweaty, and also cursed, saying that she was killing with a soft knife.
Before going to bed, the nurse helped Jiang Qing to take off all her clothes, shoes and socks, put on her robe and slippers, carefully helped her to go to the bathroom, and sat her on a special wooden pier in the bath tub to take a bath. The way to take a bath is to let the nurse hold the water spray snake tube, spraying evenly over her body. Requires the water temperature is not cool and not hot, the water flow is not too fast and not too slow. If the water speed is fast, she said the prickly skin pain, the water speed is slow that is deliberately make her anxious sweating, fast and slow she scolded.
Jiang Qing is very picky about what she eats, the Food should be light and nutritious. Stir-fried dishes, Soup is not allowed to use the bones, but also not allowed to put MSG, said the high cholesterol in bone broth, said MSG is a chemical product, containing harmful substances. However, she also requires that the dishes and soups must have the fresh taste of bone broth and MSG. Eggs only need to have egg whites, not a bit of yolk, saying that the yolk is high in cholesterol. Chickens should be half a catty, and old hens should be seven to ten catties. The fish should be cut at the head and remove the tail, and eat only the middle. Crab as long as the male not the female, she said the female crab cholesterol is high. Spinach should be made into a vegetable puree, celery should be taken out of the shreds, peas should be peeled from the old skin, and mung bean sprouts should be pinched off the head and tail. The temperature of the meal is required to be moderate, neither too hot nor not too hot. Not only to eat Chinese food, but also to eat Western food. Eating dim sum should be French, German and Russian style.
Drinking water should neither be slightly colder nor hotter. Once, Jiang Qing wanted water to be anxious, the water temperature is a little higher, on the nurse cursed, said deliberately scalded her, the water sprayed the nurse’s face, but also force the water cup smashed.
Eat fruit also requires a certain temperature. The apple and pear, to be cut into long strips, soaked in warm water, soaked to a certain temperature Jiang Qing then eat, the temperature is slightly uncomfortable mouth cursing.
The clothes of Jiang Qing are many, different styles, Chinese, Western, ancient, everything, and often renovated. The coat alone is long, short, medium, single, clip, cotton, and also divided into civilian and military uniforms. She does not know how many underwear, a slight sweat stains on the body to immediately replace, a dozen times a day to change. Spring, summer, autumn and winter, every day. It was hard enough to change her underwear. After the nurse helped her take off her clothes, she had to use a towel to dry her body, and it was not possible to wipe the strength of the small. The towels for her use were four or five hundred, all of which had to be very fluffy. The nurse always had to carry a large satchel wherever Jiang Qing went, which contained all the clothes and towels.
Jiang Qing paid special attention to the dressing of world celebrities. On TV, she saw the special clothes of Mrs. Marcos, the president of the Philippines, and became very envious. Once, when Mrs. Marcos came to China for a visit, Jiang Qing asked the costume research department to make a black embroidered dress and a pair of cloud-headed shoes for her around the clock, modeled after “Tang Sancai”, and also asked the relevant units to make her three kinds of hair wigs and headgear.
Jiang Qing’s housing requirements were tall and spacious, with large bedrooms, large offices, large bathrooms, large living rooms, large dining rooms, large screening rooms, and large entertainment rooms. Whether in the north or the south, the house she lived in had to be heated in winter and air-conditioned in summer, requiring a constant temperature. Any place inside where she could move around required carpeting, and even the bathroom required carpeting. She said, “Walking on the carpet has a sense of footsteps, and if you accidentally fall down, you won’t break it.”
The windows of Jiang Qing’s living room and office had to have four layers of glass and three layers of curtains (gauze curtains, silk curtains and thick velvet curtains). The color of the walls, roof, curtains, lights, carpets and various furniture were required to have a soft feeling. Before living in, ultraviolet light disinfection is required. (Source: Yang Yinlu: “I was Jiang Qing’s secretary”, “Hundred Years of Tide”, 1998)
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