Note: June 30, 1947, under the command of Liu Bocheng and Deng Xiaoping, the main forces of the People’s Liberation Army of the Shanxi–Hebe i–Shandong–Henan Field Army crossed the Yellow River in a daring operation, advanced a thousand li into the Dabie Mountains, and carried out Mao Zedong’s strategic plan for securing overall victory in the War of Liberation.

Intruduction to the Poet:

Qian Laisu (1884–1968), originally named Qian Qilong, courtesy name Shuchang, later renamed Qian Zheng, courtesy name Laisu, also styled Taiwei, was born in Fenghua County, Changtu Prefecture, Fengtian (today’s Lishu County, Jilin Province).

Born into a prosperous family, he obtained the qualification of jiansheng (a degree-holder in the Qing dynasty) through purchase at the age of eight, and at fourteen similarly purchased the title of xiancheng (county assistant magistrate). At nineteen he entered the Beiyang Higher School in Baoding, and later went to study at Waseda University in Japan at his own expense. With the Russo-Japanese War escalating and the nation facing internal and external crises, he abandoned his studies abroad and returned home, enrolling instead at Baoding Superior Normal School.

In the winter of 1906, when his father Qian Zongchang was transferred to Jilin by the provincial governor-general Da Gui to implement new reforms, Qian Laisu accompanied him there and helped establish the Jilin Law and Politics School, forming close ties with revolutionary activists. Declining official posts offered by the provincial government, he became a teacher of Chinese literature at the Jilin Normal School.

In 1907, Jilin saw the launch of its first newspapers, Jilin Vernacular News and Jilin Gazette. Soon afterward another paper, the Jilin Daily, began circulating in the streets of the provincial capital. It was a privately funded newspaper established by his father Qian Zongchang, then deputy head of the Jilin High Court, with the aim of “enlightening the people and spreading revolutionary ideas.” Qian Laisu and Liu Dejun, then a candidate county magistrate, served as editors. Though the paper ceased publication within a year due to lack of funds, it left a lasting mark on the history of journalism in Jilin.

During his years in Jilin, besides teaching and engaging in revolutionary activity, Qian also wrote many poems. In the Yan’an period, he was an important member of the Huai’an Poetry Society, and together with Zhu De, Dong Biwu, Xu Teli, Lin Boqu, Xie Juezai, and Li Mu'an was known as one of the “Ten Elders of Yan’an.” Over his lifetime he composed more than 2,000 poems and published works such as 《Gu Fen Cao》 (“Grass of Lonely Indignation”), 《Chu Xi Ji》 (“Collection of First Joy”), and 《Selected Poems of Qian Laisu》. His poems were also included in 《Selected Poems of the Ten Elders》.

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Qian Laisu served as a member of the Central Research Institute of Culture and History.