The Long March Diary

Dear Diary,

Chiang Kaishek is drawing near, and Russian Agent Otto Braun has informed us that we should retreat as soon as possible. They surrounded us; we are unable to have our food, clothing, and ammunition. They cut us off, and it was time we broke out marching to Yanan, where we can finally be able to rebuild and be prepared once again. But in the last seconds, Mao was appointed once again. Many of us looked up to him, he was charismatic, and had a heavy accent that was unclear to some. He promised us a new China, and the things he tell us about a new China, where everything is “We” not “I”. That gave us hope for the long journey, the journey that will later create the new China.

I was one of the men that carried a gun up front, to protect my family from the enemy, while they are in the back drenched in sweat. It was a hard walk, going up mountains, crossing long rivers, and many other things that we’ve encountered along the way. Finding Chiang Kaishek men along the way, those brave men who lost their lives protecting us while we ran around.

Many of us didn’t make it. Some died from the battles, other died of diseases. Others just died from exhaustion, while some died from lack of food and water. It was unbearable, forcing to leave a friend behind, knowing they were unable to carry on, as if it was pointless to try. After countless days of hiking to our destination, not many of us survived the whole way. But we all had a goal for China, and maybe it was worth dying for. This is where we established a camp, and this is where the start of Communism starts, again.

A Diary Entry: The Long March

Dear diary,                                                                                                October 21, 1935

It has been 2 years that I have written. I now have a chance because we have finally marched our way to our destination, the Shaanxi Revolutionary Base. I cannot begin to describe the fatigue and obstacles we went through.

This Long March, as Mao Zedong calls it, started when the Guomindang trapped us in Jiangxi with lines of blockhouses. The German general, Otto Braun, lead us crashing straight through the lines of blockhouses and marching straight on forward. Breaking through those lines of blockhouses was our first difficult task. Otto Braun’s military tactic of marching forward made it so easy for the Guomindang to predict our movements! At each line of blockhouses we fought a battle against Chiang Kaishek’s army. At this early stage of our march, we had already lost many men.

From then on, Mao Zedong and Zhu De lead us forward. The 2 years of marching was difficult, we were always tired, sick, hungry and cold. We encountered dozens of obstacles. The one that made us heroes was when we swung across the Dadu River using suspension bridge chains. The Nationalists took many of the wooden boards off and therefore we courageously swung across, one by one. Then immediately after that complication, we trekked through the 4000 feet tall snowy mountains. It was here that the inadequate food supplies affected us most. We walked through the cold and we walked for almost 50 miles a day. All we saw was white all around and we really had no idea where we were heading. I passed by many dead men lying in the snow, a result of bitter coldness and extreme hunger. From the snowy mountains we marched through swampland, large areas of mud and water. By then our First Red Army had trickled down to a small number of men. Those who survived the obstacles still had the will to proceed through the difficulties because Mao Zedong, our great leader, encouraged us.  When times could not seem worse, he would proclaim: “Comrades! Look ahead! Keep on marching!” He reminded us of what we were marching for, revolution, freedom and equality.  I, coming from a poor peasant family, persisted because I truly believe in Communism; I believe that that is the only fair system there is.

And now I am at the base, we are waiting for the other Red Armies to join us. All of us are resting, even though we know there will never be enough rest to replace our fatigue. We have now finished the Long March. Hopefully this will change the course of history and may this be a reminder to the people in the future that long struggle can achieve greatness.

王國維
wang guo wei

Timeline: 1919 - 1935

Timeline: 1900 - 1927

Boxer's Rebellion

European leaders dividing a pizza labeled China

“What shame, what shame! Our country is falling. Our country of 5000 years of great history is being invaded by foreign devils. What good have they done? They have taken our villages, our homes, to make a closed off area for themselves. They have tried to change our culture with their European ways and make us follow their alien religion. They come into our own country and tell us that what we believed for centuries was wrong. They have put our sons out of work by bringing in their machines. It seems like these foreign devils are taking one of our cities every single day with their unequal treaties. Son, join the Yi-Ho Tuan. Don’t you want to support your Chinese heritage?” My mother, disturbed by the European influence, had told me the same thing everyday. She tried to convince me to fight against the Europeans by joining the Yi-Ho Tuan.

Chinese Christian converts seeking refuge

Everybody knows about the Yi-Ho Tuan’s intents to destroy foreigners and Christians. Although I knew about the horrifying changes brought about by foreigners, I didn’t find it necessary to be violent against them. It wasn’t after the foreigners affected me personally that I began to feel the anger to revolt. Unfortunately, my own brother was pulled into their evil ways. Those missionaries converted him to follow the Christian religion. For some reason, he willingly left the beliefs, those that our father, our grandfather, our great-grandfather believed in, behind. He brought chaos and embarrassment into our family. My mother couldn’t believe that her own son had become one of them. She had told me one last time: “What are you going to do now? Are you going to fight to get your brother back?” It was then that I listened to her, I lost my brother to those devils and I decided that I was going to revenge.

Six-nation force in Beijing

A few months after joining the militia, I marched towards Taiyuan with the others of the Yi-Ho Tuan. We felt the same anger. We marched strong knowing that what we were doing was right. We marched strong keeping our slogan in mind. “Support the Dynasty, Destroy the Foreigners!” We went into Taiyuan doing just that, we destroyed foreign Christian missionaries. Following that massacre were many other attacks. As we attacked more and more foreigners, the European governments grew more and more furious. A six-nation force was assembled just to stop our massacres.

All of this that I think about has lead to this moment as I wait for my turn to be beheaded. Under the unforgiving sun, crowds and crowds of people stand around watching the execution. They have tied my body to a pole and my hands behind my back. I lift my head unafraid to encourage the crowd to stand for themselves as I have done. In moments I will leave this world but I am not afraid. I know that I have shown the other Chinese men that you can revolt.

Puyi's Emperor Life

Named Emperor of China around the age of four,

Chosen by Empress Cixi from her own deathbed.

During the time when the Europeans demanded the shores,

Even “Unequal Treaties” or they threatened that they will spread.

As Emperor of China ruling over 10 millions souls,
There was too much going on for him, since he was a child.
Waking up in the morning to check what’s in his bowl,
If it wasn’t his favorite he’ll go very wild.

There was a man who wanted to overthrow me named Mr. Sun,
Starting rebellions against the Emperor, losing my men.
It was his time to step down being China’s number one,
Going to miss scribbling with my favorite pen.

When the time came to resign as the chosen kid,

Crying as his Daddy told him to step down.

Losing people’s faith of China as it surely did,

He’ll never forget his favorite, special crown.