A Cultural Revolution Story

I think I am a sucker for Chinese propaganda stories.

While going through Chinese sources for a paper that I am working on, I came across a book about the offspring of top Chinese officials. One such offspring was Liu Yunbin (刘允斌), son of Liu Shaoqi (刘少奇).

After his father was derided as "China's Khrushchev" and "the number one capitalist roader" during the Cultural Revolution, it came as no surprise that Yunbin and his siblings were also attacked and prosecuted.

Yunbin and his wife apparently had a nanny for their children known as Grandma Wang and a chef known as Grandpa Wang. Of course, having domestic helpers were seen by the Red Guards as a bourgeois crime and both the Wangs (not sure if they were related) were ordered to leave Yunbin's family so that they would not be "further exploited."

Even though Grandma Wang and Grandpa Wang had no choice but to leave, their sense of devotion and loyalty were so strong that they could not bear to leave Yunbin's two young boys behind, especially since the boys' parents were constantly facing "struggle sessions" and had no time to look after the boys. When the boys were taken away, Yunbin's wife Li Miaoxiu (李妙秀) apparently told the children "never to forget the kindness of Grandma Wang and Grandpa Wang."

When Grandma Wang died in 1977, the two boys reportedly cried their hearts out, wore the mandatory Chinese hemp gown that were customary for children whose parents had died, and saw to her burial rites.

Li Miaoxiu also reportedly said, presumably to the authorities: "Please allow me to, in the name of Grandma Wang's daughter, purchase a urn for her to store her ashes."

I cannot even be sure if this was an authentic account, yet I still shed a tear or two. Told you I am a sucker for sob stories!

As for Yunbin, well, apparently he killed himself on a railway track during the Cultural Revolution.