Chapter 001: Xiao Lao is hospitalized

Rewind the clock to a week ago.

Xiao Lao was hospitalized on March 25 due to an abnormality in his respiratory system, which was not serious at the time and the hospital thought it could be controlled. The hesitation is at the stage of sweeping the end of the two sessions and the beginning of a new job, Xiao Zheng, Xiao Chen and most of the juniors in the family are relatively busy, so after getting the explanation from the hospital, most of them left at more than 11 o'clock in the evening.

At about 5 o'clock in the morning of March 26, the medical staff on duty in Ward 220 of Beijing Hospital called Xiao Chen and said, "The chief has a situation." Xiao Chen hadn't slept soundly all night, and when he heard the words, his heart was like fire, and together with Ye Yiling, he immediately rushed to the hospital. The doctor said that the chief's blood pressure had dropped suddenly, and now that measures have been taken, blood pressure and heart rhythm have begun to stabilize, but they still need to be closely observed. At this time, Xiao Chen and Ye Yiling's highly nervous mood was a little relaxed. At this time, Xiao Zheng and the others also hurried in with dark circles under their eyes.

At around 12 o'clock in the morning, Hou Gutao's confidential secretary called, saying that Hou Lao missed Xiao Lao very much and was going to visit the hospital immediately. At 12:45, Hou Lao came to Xiao Lao's sick Chuáng. When he saw Comrade Gu Tao, Xiao Lao waved his hand and asked Comrade Gu Tao to come to the left side of his sick Chuáng to facilitate his speech. Hou Lao said some words of greeting, especially when everyone (referring to the elders of the Chinese Communist Party) missed Xiao Lao very much, Xiao Lao smiled and thanked everyone, and watched Comrade Gu Tao leave.

After Hou Lao left, Xiao Lao rested quietly, but Xiao Chen and the others did not dare to leave for a while, and they were afraid that Xiao Lao would ask after waking up, so they were busy calling to "ask for leave" - in fact, there was nothing to ask for leave at their level, and it was more accurate to say "reporting", mainly to arrange work, so as not to be beaten up in the busy and close work process.

Before two o'clock in the afternoon, Premier Wen Chengxi hurried to the hospital. Premier Wen learned of Xiao Lao's admission to the hospital at noon yesterday, when he was inspecting Lingnan and immediately called to express condolences and understand his condition, and today he returned to Beijing in advance to visit.

Xiao Lao returned to the capital last year after learning the news that his granddaughter-in-law was pregnant. After returning to the capital from the East, especially after the birth of his great-grandson, Xiao Lao's mood has always been very good. Just as he was in the process of eliminating the fatigue of the journey as he had done in previous years, during a routine safety check-up, the medical staff observed a mild inflammation of his left lung and recommended hospitalization. Mr. Xiao discussed with medical experts and asked if he could be treated at home. After deliberation, the expert group agreed on the method of at-home treatment.

But a few months later, on March 25, medical experts decided that Xiao's condition had deteriorated and suggested that he should be admitted to the hospital in time. Xiao Lao has always been very cooperative with all kinds of staff around him, so he asked if he could listen to the news every day during his hospitalization. The expert replied that yes. So at about 8 o'clock that night, because he didn't think he was from a military background, he didn't want to live in ** (PLA General Hospital), so he was admitted to the Beijing Hospital after dinner. After temporary treatment in the hospital, Xiao Lao may feel that his body is recovering well, so he asks the expert when he will be able to go home. The expert was naturally extremely cautious about Xiao Lao's health, and replied at the time that you can go home when your body fully recovers, but not now, because there is no such medical condition at home. Xiao Lao agreed very understandingly.

Xiao Lao's spirit of fighting against illness is very tenacious. His mind was always clear. His cerebral arteriosclerosis was mild, and the degree of cerebral atrophy was minimal. Xiao Lao always trusted the medical staff, as long as he explained to him clearly the medical measures that must be taken, he happily accepted them, and closely cooperated with the treatment, never questioned the medical staff, and repeatedly enlightened the expert group in charge of his condition: "Do what you want, when I am an ordinary old man." ”

He is still the same as in the past, amiable to the staff around him, but strict and harsh to his family, seeing that the time is 11 o'clock in the evening, he immediately ordered Xiao Zheng, Xiao Chen and others to go home to sleep, not to affect their work. The children and grandchildren were afraid that his anger would affect his condition, so they had to leave one after another.

Xiao Lao's physique was already relatively weak. As early as when he was in Yan'an, he compared his body to a "charcoal car". After the establishment of New China, he had a heavy burden and was busy with work, often holding meetings in the morning and afternoon, or reading documents and dealing with problems, and going to Premier Zhou at 8 o'clock in the evening and Chairman Máo at 12 o'clock. In 1952, he quit the habit of smoking cigarettes during the revolutionary war years, and he quit without ambiguity. He lived a very modest life. In his later years, his recipes were, breakfast: bread, jam, butter, soy milk; Lunch; one meat and one vegetable; Dinner: soy products, vegetables. The staple food is machine rice. In order to ration and not làng to consume food, each meal is weighed rice for cooking. The fruit that goes with each meal, often bananas. His recipes are perennial, even during festivals and birthdays. Unless an old friend came to his house to talk about something and had a meal, he never invited anyone to dinner, never accepted other people's banquets, and always ate his own food. He eats, is not in a hurry, does not talk to people, chews slowly, and also asks Xiao Chen so. Because of the extremely simple food, it became one of the reasons why Xiao Wan laughed at Xiao Chen for "following his grandfather to suffer".

Xiao Lao's work in his later years was at a historic turning point and a period of modernization, and the party's cause needed them, the proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation, who were highly respected and respected, to continue to play a key role at the critical moment. Xiao Lao proceeded from this overall situation, according to his own body, insisted on working according to his ability, and insisted on doing the work he thought was the most necessary. He famously said, "To do more is to do less, and to do less is to do more." It was in this sense that he believed that it was dialectical. He also often reminded the central leading comrades younger than him not to work in three shifts every day, working in the morning, afternoon, and evening. He believes that it is necessary to do what is necessary, when necessary. However, the third shift is often full, which is not always a solution. He also said something that Xiao Chen thought was particularly incisive: Don't hold a meeting with a dead person.

This morning, I rushed to the hospital to visit my grandfather, Xiao Chen brought two more CDs, which were brought to Xiao Chen by the representatives of the two sessions in Wucheng, to be exact, Wang Wenyuan brought them, he knew that Xiao Lao liked to listen, Xiao Chen told him to help him bring some new commenting plates when it was convenient for him, but after the two sessions, Xiao Chen was so busy that he couldn't get his feet on the ground, and the people from all over the country who fought for the support of the central government lined up from Chang'an Avenue to Bohai Bay, and some governors stayed in Beijing and did not leave, Xiao Chen, the deputy director in charge of development planning, employment and security, and local departments, I really can't wait to split myself into halves to deal with it, and the matter of delivering the dishes has been delayed so much, but today I "got free".

Xiao Lao, after work, or when he was struggling with illness, was able to calm down and rest, thanks to listening to the commentary. Pingtan is a kind of rap art popular among Jiangnan folks. Xiao Lao has been fond of listening to Pingtan since he was a teenager, first listening to books with his uncle in the teahouse of the local town, and then he became addicted to listening, sometimes adults don't go and go by themselves, standing against the wall and listening. He once laughed and jokingly told Xiao Chen, this is called listening to the "wall book". Later, due to revolutionary activities, the listening to the bomb was interrupted. In 1959, while recuperating from a heart attack, he began to listen to the commentary again. In the more than 40 years since then, he has listened to a large number of commentaries, which is probably unique in the country, and the commenting circles respectfully call him an "old listener". Xiao Lao also had extensive contact with various genres of Pingtan artists, and worked with them to study the development of Pingtan art. He encouraged the critics to "produce people, publish books, and take the right path."

Whether Xiao Lao goes to other places or is hospitalized when he is sick, he plays tapes and old-fashioned radios are essential items. This time in the Beijing Hospital, of course, is no exception. On both sides of the corridor of the ward are stocked cassette tapes in wooden boxes. The tapes were recorded by the Oriental People's Radio, and the maintenance of the old-fashioned radios was also contracted by a senior engineer of the Oriental People's Radio, and because the machines were so old, they had to be repaired once or twice a year before they could operate properly. This time, Xiao Chen really "didn't want to trouble others" to repair it, that kind of old-fashioned product Xiao Chen couldn't wait to send it to the museum, so this time he bought a new one by himself and played it on a CD. As for the recording he brought, it was mentioned by his grandfather during the New Year, and he wanted to hear "Breaking the King into Beijing". This CD was only found by Mayor Wang Wenyuan after he went to Wucheng Radio Station and Wucheng Pingtan School.

In addition, Xiao Lao is the honorary principal of this Wucheng Pingtan School, which was founded in 1962 by Xiao Lao's suggestion, funded and supported by the Ministry of Culture, and approved by the Jiangdong Provincial People's Political Government.

Xiao Lao was hospitalized, but it was not that he was sick and couldn't move in Chuáng, in addition to listening to the commentary, he also stood every morning, his wrist was hanging in the air, and he practiced big characters with a máo pen, which was also a way for Xiao Lao to exercise his body. He began to practice big characters at the age of 80 and has been practicing for 20 years, 20 years as a day. At first, the time was about half an hour, but later due to my age, according to the doctor's advice, it was reduced to about 20 minutes. Finally, in about 10 minutes, after writing the big characters, he often admires himself, looking for máo disease so that he can improve next time. Because he didn't practice much in the past, he couldn't shake off the pen at first, but then gradually got rid of it, and the calligraphy was getting better and better, and he said happily: "Now the characters have a sense of elegance." ”

And Xiao Chen spent his student days under his "supervision", so he was naturally required to practice máo pen characters, which is also the reason why Xiao Chen can write well - people who can write well with fountain pen characters may not be able to write máo pen characters well; But those who can write well with máo pen characters don't look good without fountain pen words. However, Xiao Lao and Xiao Chen practice characters, but they are not the same font. Xiao Lao has a calm temperament, always decompresses himself, delegates power and does not ask about state affairs, and also follows this style in practicing calligraphy, taking the elegant route out of the dust. Xiao Chen was young, in Xiao Lao's opinion, he was more skinny (this is the ideological generation gap, in fact, who is not skinny now, the smarter the skin), so let him practice Yan Ti, because Yan Ti Kaishu is square and dense, the strokes are horizontal and vertical, the pen is strong and round, and the momentum is solemn and majestic. Later, he even let him practice Lishu, in order to hone and influence Xiao Chen's character, so that he can be more square and harmonious in the future. It's just that sometimes this person's temperament can't be suppressed, Xiao Chen's best writing in the end is willow body, although willow body and Yan body are called "Yan muscle willow bones", there are similarities and contrasts, but the style is also different. In the end, Xiao Chen's characters are evenly balanced and thin, chasing Wei Bei's decisive momentum, dot painting is cool and neat, the bone strength is strong, and the knot is tight and chic and free. This is also one of the reasons why Xiao Chen's subordinates have always been willing to watch Xiao Chen make written instructions, no matter what the instructions are, at least the words look comfortable.

Another way for Xiao Lao to exercise is to take a walk and do tai chi. In his later years, due to the progression of his disease, his walking distances became shorter and shorter. But until he was hospitalized, he still insisted on letting the staff help him move in the room, and when the situation was a little better, he still had to put on a few Tai Chi poses to experience the harmony of nature and man. His perseverance in walking and doing tai chi to move his muscles and bones was amazing. In the hospital, when he was in better spirits, he also put forward a request to go to the courtyard and do Tai Chi again. But in the end, because his body was too weak, he was not able to do so.

Xiao Lao insisted on listening to a half-hour news broadcast every morning and evening, as well as 15 minutes of international news. No matter how busy he is at work, or if he is not feeling well, he never lets go of listening to or making up for news broadcasts. Later, when he was older, his movements were slow, and he couldn't catch up with the listening time, so the confidential secretary recorded him so that it was much more convenient for him. He listened to the news very seriously, and as he did when he read the People's Daily, he never let go of any details. Moreover, he uses his brain very well, and his memory is very strong. Sometimes when he hears important news, he will alert the people around him in time, and sometimes he will even call the relevant people at home. Sometimes, when he didn't hear a piece of news clearly, he would listen to the recording several times until he heard it clearly. If they still don't hear clearly, they will ask the staff around them, and the staff often can't answer because they don't remember it after listening to it, so they have to reply that we will look it up. Later, his hearing could not keep up with the speed of the broadcaster's broadcast, so he asked Yang Jinfeng to borrow the press release to him every day, but he still insisted on listening to the news recording before listening. During the days when he was hospitalized, the first thing he did when he woke up every day was to ask to listen to the news and ask Yang Jinfeng to tell him about major events at home and abroad every day. Sometimes I fell asleep during the day due to fever, but when I woke up at night when the fever subsided, I would also call the secretary to tell the news of the day.

When he didn't come to the capital last year, he heard the news of the central organ's donation for the Hope Project from the news network in the east, and he asked the secretary to immediately take out 50,000 yuan from his savings and donate it to out-of-school children in old revolutionary areas and poor areas.

The money went to 16 out-of-school children in Tanghe Township and Chiyangguan Township, Luchi County, Central Plains Province. In November, the Letters and Visits Bureau of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee forwarded letters written to him by the 16 primary school students. He said that we are a socialist country, and we must not allow children to be out of school, and we should mobilize the forces of the whole society to solve this problem. Soon, when he heard the news of the central government's call to donate clothes and quilts to the forest fire area, he asked Yang Jinfeng to immediately notify Mu Lao and ask her to do it immediately.

In addition to donating dozens of clothes, the family also specially donated a brand-new high-grade silk cotton quilt and chuáng sheet in the name of Xiao Lao, which was a set sent by Xiao Chen's aunt when she came over last time, she didn't say the price, but she thought it would definitely not be cheap, but what she didn't expect was that although the old man accepted it, he didn't think so, he didn't want to sleep on the "capitalist" chuáng sheet. He was glad to hear the news. When Yang Jinfeng reported to him that the donated quilt and chuáng slip had been sent to the home of a former volunteer soldier in the Xiqian Zunyi area, he specially called Mu Lao to the sick Chuáng and told her the news in person. Xiao Lao often said to the staff around him that there was a proverb in the past: "Everyone sweeps the snow in front of the door, don't care about the frost on the tiles of his house." This is a satire on the kind of self-interested people who lack social morality and compassion. I think it should be changed to "sweep the snow in front of his own door, and frost the tiles of his house." "This is the spirit of **. He even deliberately wrote this sentence in large letters into a banner.

In November last year, the responsible comrade of the Central Literature Research Office proposed that June 13 this year was Xiao Lao's 100th birthday.

Xiao Lao's album has been compiled for seventeen or eighteen years, almost twenty years, because he does not agree to publish, so he has been pressed in his office. Yang Jinfeng reported this matter to Xiao Lao, but he still hesitated, saying that he was not in a hurry, and he would wait and talk. A few days later, Yang Jinfeng went to ask for instructions again, and Xiao Chen happened to be there at that time, so he gave his grandfather a few words, and Xiao Lao reluctantly agreed, saying that this time the power was decentralized, and the Central Literature Research Office was asked to decide. At this time, Yang Jinfeng was very happy and immediately conveyed his opinion, and the editing work was quickly restarted. The next day, Xiao Chen left, and Xiao Lao called Yang Jinfeng over again, saying that the photos in the album should not only belong to me, but also Chairman Máo, Premier Zhou, Comrade Shaoqi, President Zhu, and Comrade Nanxun, and there should also be the masses. Yang Jinfeng replied that there were all, and he nodded with satisfaction, and then said very solemnly: "If ** is separated from the masses, it will become degenerate, not **." After saying this, somehow, I became in a bad mood.

Soon after, the responsible comrades of the Central Literature Research Office proposed to prepare a reprint of "Xiao Fei's Selected Works". Because it has been five years since the third edition was published, during this period, Xiao Lao has successively published new manuscripts, and the relevant departments have also discovered some important manuscripts that have not been included in the anthology. Yang Jinfeng then reported the matter to him, and he agreed with this matter, believing that it was necessary for more people to see his views on some things.

Xiao Lao values his several volumes of anthologies very much. While he was recuperating at home, he also asked Yang Jinfeng to take his anthology with him, and he wanted to see it again. Of course, it was no longer possible for him to read the words in the book, but he asked how many words were there? Yang Jinfeng replied that there were more than 700,000 words. He asked how many copies had been printed? Yang Jinfeng told him that in the past 20 years, nearly 120 million copies of the three-volume anthology plus other single editions have been printed. He was very surprised by this print run at the time, and said very unceremoniously that this print run was probably water, was there a political apportionment? But in the end, the matter could not be investigated, because if his anthology was counted as an apportionment, it was not only he who was apportioned. So he instructed Yang Jinfeng to leave Wenxuan in the ward. After he agreed to reprint the anthology, the editorial team began work on additions and revisions.

Xiao Lao spent nearly half a month on his illness at home, listening to the content of the 43 manuscripts that needed to be added every day. When he heard that he had written in 1935 to publicize the Red Army's Long March, "Records of Experiences Traveling Westward with the Army," and was about to keep the original text and include it in the anthology, he said that at that time, in order to facilitate circulation in the Kuomintang-ruled areas, he assumed the pseudonym "Lian Chen" and wrote the Red Army as "Red Army." This situation should be noted. When it came to the final article of the anthology of his 2003 Chūn speech in the East, "Continue to Maintain and Strengthen the Authority of the Party Central Committee", he immediately agreed, and recalled the main content and circumstances of the conversation at that time. Xiao Lao signed his name with a pencil on the supplementary manuscript submitted for review on the reprint of the anthology, and the time was January 19 this year. After he finished signing, he instructed Yang Jinfeng to send it to the central government for review. Of course, Yang Jinfeng complied. Soon after, Yang Jinfeng reported to him that the Central Committee had reviewed the supplementary manuscript and expressed its complete agreement, believing that the republication of the three volumes of the anthology would play an important role in helping leading cadres at all levels improve their ideological, theoretical, and political levels. After listening carefully, Xiao Lao nodded with satisfaction and rested quietly.

Xiao Lao's three-volume anthology is a concentrated reflection of his thoughts, views, and propositions, and is also the precious spiritual wealth he left to the whole party and the people of all nationalities throughout the country. Xiao Lao held the leadership position of the central government, from the first generation to the second generation, and participated in the smooth transition to the third generation, his experience and status are quite rare in the party. Throughout his rich and tortuous experience, his beliefs and opinions about himself have always been unwavering and evolving with the times.

Xiao Lao was indifferent to fame and fortune all his life. He once wrote such a banner: "Personal fame and fortune are as light as water, and the party's cause is as heavy as a mountain." "Xiao Lao is very modest and has always been reluctant to promote himself. The comrades who fought with him and many comrades in the party were very clear about the great and glorious achievements of Xiao Lao, especially the important role he played at a critical moment in history, and they were deeply aware of it. Whenever the party and the country encountered difficulties, they all missed Xiao Lao and wanted to know what his opinions were.

As early as 1945, at the Seventh National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Xiao Lao said in his speech that it is necessary to have a correct view of merit, the first is the power of the people, the second is the leadership of the party, and the third is the turn of the individual. In particular, he stressed that such an order could not be reversed. These words were not just said to others, but he himself took the lead in doing so. In 1982, when editing and publishing his manuscripts for the period 1949 to 1956, he specifically instructed that in the afterword, he should explain that during the period when he was presiding over the work of the Central Financial and Economic Commission, all major policy decisions were made through collective discussion on the basis of investigation and study, including the necessary investigation and study done by him, and were submitted to the Party Central Committee for approval. In specific work, Comrade Hou Gutao (Hou Gutao was the deputy director of the Central Finance Commission at that time) played an important role. Therefore, he stressed, when reading this manuscript, if you feel that there is still a success in that part of the work, you should never take credit for it alone.

In May 1949, Xiao Lao was transferred from the Northeast to the central work, and lived in No. 71 Beichang Street (now No. 58), where he lived for 30 years, and the house was never overhauled. After the Tangshan earthquake in 1976, cracks appeared in the house, and the authorities suggested that the house should be renovated for safety reasons. But Xiao Lao firmly disagreed. He said, my house is much better than the houses of the people around me, why should I renovate it? Tear down such a good house and rebuild it, and the people will scold you to death. If it's for shockproofing, just get a little steel frame to support it. After the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in 1978, Xiao Lao returned to the leadership of the Central Committee, and the number of staff around him increased, but the housing was not enough.

Xiao Lao is introverted and usually doesn't talk much, but he is diligent in thinking. He doesn't like to be polite and pays attention to being practical. He is even more opposed to doing things and giving gifts and going through the back door. He criticized the people who gave gifts, and he didn't say anything about it. A few years ago, someone in his hometown sent him a beautiful copy of the Four Treasures of the Study, and asked him to write an inscription for a company that was about to start but had not yet been officially approved. Xiao Lao was very unhappy when he heard this, so he changed his face at that time, saying that this word can't be inscribed, and as soon as I write an inscription, it will be equivalent to forcing the competent department to approve the establishment of this company. He asked Xiao Chen, who happened to be in sight at that time, to personally return the four treasures of the study sent to him, and instructed Yang Jinfeng to report this matter to the Dongfang Municipal Party Committee.

When Xiao Lao went to other places, he never allowed local leading cadres to greet or bid farewell at the airport. In his own words, it is to "don't pick up or don't send". And "uninvited" is a rule of Xiao Lao's guests, even if old friends come to visit the New Year. He said that it is best to pay New Year's greetings by phone, which saves time and effort. If they all come to visit the New Year, everyone can't stand it. -- 80 years of revolutionary work, 70 years of central leadership, protégés and former officials all over the world, if you say that the number is enough to make people who do not know the details of Chinese politics scared their brains to cramp.

This time he was hospitalized, although his condition was still relatively stable, and his spirit was better. However, Premier Wen and General Secretary Gu Banglan still came to visit him separately, and the general secretary rushed back from abroad ahead of schedule, only three hours later than the premier. They knew Xiao Lao's habits very well, and after a few greetings, they talked about the situation and work, and he listened very carefully and was very happy. When General Secretary Gu said goodbye, Xiao Lao patted his hand and said, thank you. He expressed his trust and high hopes for the fourth-generation central leadership collective with Comrade Gu Banglan as general secretary. When other central leading comrades and many veteran comrades learned that Xiao Lao was in good spirits and wanted to come to visit, he asked Xiao Zheng and Xiao Chen to convey to Xiao Zheng and Xiao Chen respectively that everyone was very busy with their work, and Comrade Banglan and Comrade Cheng Xi had come to see it, so they could represent everyone, and other comrades should not come, thank you for your concern.

However, when Xiao Lao said this, some comrades still felt that it was not good to come, such as Jiang Enguo, Lu Zhanyi, Hong Dingbang, Wei Longxiang and other third-generation leaders of the Party Central Committee who had retired, and they also came to visit Xiao Lao as sī people, and at the same time had some exchanges with Xiao Zheng, and even talked with Xiao Chen about some things about his work with great concern. It seems that former Premier Hong and former Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection Wei Longxiang are particularly concerned about Xiao Chen, and they each talked to him for more than an hour, which is quite rare.

Then, Xiao Lao's condition suddenly worsened, and he couldn't get off Chuáng anymore. Xiao Chen went to visit his grandfather every day after work, until the third day, Xiao Lao suddenly said to Xiao Chen: "You go back to Jiangdong first." ”