Little Yan’an in Beijing

The other day I was invited to visit Beijing Exhibition Center of Yan’an Culture. The exhibition was conveniently called Little Yan’an by those who had been in Yan’an, the major revolutionary base where the CPC headquarters operated in the 1930s and 1940s.

The compound is in Beijing and Little Yan’an is more than a name. The duplicated landmarks such as the Yan’an Pagoda and a dozen of cave houses in Yan’an architectural style can be seen on the site.

Also invited to Little Yan’an that day were a lot of VIP guests and relatives of the the family of late Chairman Mao from Shaoshan, his home village in central China’s Hunan Province. Unexpectedly, I spotted the 93-year-old Chai Zemin, the former Chinese Ambassador to UN, among the guests present at the facilities. I greeted him.

The first exhibition hall highlighted “Yan’an Spirit”. The pictures and texts in the 800-m2 hall explained how Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De and all the other founding fathers of the People’s Republic of China, coordinated CPC-led armed resistance against Japanese invaders. It was also in Yan’an that the CPC leaders fought the civil war which was started by Chiang Kai-shek. The victory of the civil war brought down the KTM regime and paved way for the founding of the New China. The exhibition hall displayed key events during this period of time.

What concerned me especially were the pictures of the Red China News Agency and Yan’an Xinhua Radio, the predecessors of Xinhua News Agency and Central People’s Radio, now full-fledged national media.

The second hall showcased Yan’an of today in the nationwide modernization drive. In addition to development in all respects, Yan’an is now a “red” tourism attraction for those who want to see how the revolutionary outpost contributed to the birth of the New China.

The third hall is about the Beijing youths in Yan’an in the late 1960s and early 1970s. More than 28,000 young men and women migrated to Yan’an during the Cultural Revolution. They were back to the capital after the Cultural Revolution was over in 1976. Since these people in Beijing are unable to revisit Yan’an on a regular basis, Yan’an has come to Beijing to stay with them. The center has hosted ten celebrations held by those of the 28,000 youths. The biggest reunion was attended by hundreds who were in Yan’an. Xi Jingping, now vice president of China, was one of those who came to Yan’an to receive so called reeducation. A picture taken in 1975 shows villagers saw him off to study in Qinghua University.

The 4th exhibition hall shows something more material: agricultural products which many people in Beijing are quite familiar with. On display are millet, jujube, buckwheat flour, pumpkin seeds, apples and other regional produce.

In addition to the four exhibition halls, on the compound are 36 brick cave houses. The cave houses display different architectural characteristics in the 13 districts and counties in Yan’an.

Behind the success of Little Yan’an, an investment of 20 million yuan, is the entrepreneur Zhao Wenzhong from Yan’an in Shaanxi Province. Little Yan’an is more than an exhibition center that displays the typical cultural heritage of China’s revolutionary cradle. It is a venue for people to meet and reminisce, and it is a special restaurant where people can sample the Yan’an cuisine and local food, and it sells food stuff from Yan’an.

Zhao Wenzhong is from a family of revolutionaries. His grandfather worked as a stretcher bearer for the army. His father worked as a party chief for a local construction team. His mother used to be a female model worker, rarely seen in Shaanxi Province. Zhao joined the army in 1978 and served three years in Xinjiang. He was honored seven times in the military for his brilliant service. Half a year after he was demobilized from the army, he purchased a cart for 40 yuan and started his private transportation venture. Six months later he earned 1,000 yuan. With the profit, he bought a second-hand tractor to transport heavier equipment for a construction site. Two years later he bought a truck and carried fruit and vegetable to Inner Mongolia in the north. In 1985, he set up a retail business in Xi’an where he sold construction materials. Within two years, he earned 200,000. His business in construction materials and transportation took off. He stepped into the new millennium with a total assets more than 10 million.

He never forgot about his roots in Yan’an. His dream of setting up a Little Yan’an in Beijing received support from Yan’an government and Beijing Government. In 2008, more than 100,000 people visited the center. In January 2009, ten reunion parties were held at the center in celebration of the 40th anniversary of Beijing youths in Yan’an. Each get-together attracted more than 300 attendees.

After our visit to the four exhibition halls, we went to the Beijing Educated Youths Club. The site has a large hall and 14 private rooms where people can sing revolutionary songs.

It was here that we enjoyed a dinner of Yan’an cuisine. Before the banquet, Wang Jingqing, Mao Zedong’s son-in-law, spoke on the behalf of all the guests. He reminisced about his first impressions of Yan’an a long time ago. The seat name beside me spelt Kong Dongmei, a granddaughter of Mao Zedong and the author of “The Seven Days that Changed the World”. I realized that Mao’s relatives were the VIP of the occasion.

Zhao Wenzhong has plans to promote his Little Yan’an as a red tourism attraction and a business. With Yan’an as his resources, he indeed has a lot to offer to the people in Beijing.

After the dinner, 93-year-old Chai and many others inscribed for the center. Li Na, daughter of Mao Zedong, also wrote an inscription. The event ended with a group photo.