Zhu Jiamu: Inspirations from Comrade Chen Yun's Methods of Investigation and Research
General Secretary Xi Jinping, in his speech at the symposium commemorating the 120th anniversary of Comrade Chen Yun's birth, pointed out: "We must study Comrade Chen Yun’s scientific ideological and working methods," noting that "he regarded investigation and research as an essential prerequisite for decision-making, emphasizing: 'Leading organs formulating policies should devote more than 90 percent of their time to investigation and research.'" As a key member of the first generation of the Party’s central collective leadership with Comrade Mao Zedong at its core, and the second generation with Comrade Deng Xiaoping at its core, Comrade Chen Yun participated in the formulation and implementation of a series of major decisions by the Party Central Committee across different historical periods. Relying on investigation and research to make decisions was the manifestation of Comrade Chen Yun’s adherence to the ideological and working method of seeking truth from facts. Before every major decision, Comrade Chen Yun would invariably conduct extensive investigation and research and listen to opinions from multiple parties.
At the 1962 Enlarged Working Conference of the CPC Central Committee (known as the Seven-Thousand-Cadre Conference [1]), Comrade Mao Zedong remarked that regarding socialist construction, we still possessed a great deal of blindness, there remained many "realms of necessity" [2] yet to be understood, and he admitted there were many issues he himself did not grasp. Speaking of this, he said: "Others understand better than I; Comrade Shaoqi [3] understands better than I; Comrade Enlai [4] understands better than I; Comrade Xiaoping [5] understands better than I. Comrade Chen Yun, especially he, understands quite a bit more." He added: "His (referring to Chen Yun) method is investigation and research." Facts have proven that Comrade Chen Yun was indeed a paragon of excellence in investigation and research. The scientific ideological and working methods he summarized regarding investigation and research remain a precious treasure for us forever. We must earnestly study and apply them, carrying them forward in combination with actual conditions.
I. Avoiding Preconceived Notions is the Prerequisite for Effective Investigation and Research
The purpose of investigation and research is to clarify facts and to make decisions and formulate policies based on those facts. If one approaches the task with preconceived "frames" (框框 kuàngkuàng) or preemptive judgments, it will inevitably hinder the adherence to seeking truth from facts during the investigation, making one "shut one's eyes and stop one's ears," seeing and hearing nothing of the actual situation. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Regarding bureaucratism, the main issues are being divorced from reality and the masses, acting high and mighty while ignoring reality, and being self-important and self-inflated"; "some treat the deployments of higher levels by swallowing them whole or taking them out of context, implementing higher-level decisions by merely reciting texts or following old routines [6], or mimicking others without understanding, doing exactly what was done before or what others are doing, completely disregarding the actual conditions of their own locality or department." Those who conduct investigation and research in such a manner cannot possibly avoid preconceived notions and therefore cannot obtain the true situation.
Adherence to seeking truth from facts was a distinctive characteristic of Comrade Chen Yun. He pointed out: "To lead our Party and country well, the most vital thing is to ensure that the ideological methods of leading cadres are correct." During the Yan'an period, after repeated discussions with Comrade Mao Zedong on how to avoid making mistakes, Comrade Chen Yun distilled a uniquely characteristic "fifteen-character formula": "Not only the superior, not only the book, only the reality; exchange, compare, repeat" (不唯上、不唯书、只唯实，交换、比较、反复). In a conversation during his later years, Comrade Chen Yun provided a complete and detailed explanation of "Not only the superior, not only the book, only the reality." He said: "'Not only the superior' [7] does not mean that the words from above should not be listened to. 'Not only the book' does not mean that documents and books should not be read. 'Only the reality' means starting only from the actual situation, studying and handling problems by seeking truth from facts—this is what is most reliable." When we examine Comrade Chen Yun’s practice of investigation and research, we find that the reason he could avoid preconceived notions was precisely because he achieved these nine characters.
Comrade Chen Yun said: "Being able to hear different voices is by no means a bad thing. This is not in contradiction with maintaining alignment with the Central Committee." It is evident that his meaning of "not only the superior" is that while one must resolutely implement the instructions of superiors and the Central Committee and maintain alignment with the Party Central Committee in thought, politics, and action, one must never be divorced from reality or copy instructions mechanically. Instead, one must proceed from the actual conditions of one's own department or region. Only in this way can one truly seek truth from facts and effectively implement the spirit of the instructions from the higher levels and the Central Committee.
During the Three Years of Economic Difficulty [8], due to natural disasters and the "leftist" errors of the "Great Leap Forward," grain production dropped significantly, leading to widespread malnutrition and many people suffering from edema. At that time, the Central Committee decided that Comrade Chen Yun should resume leading financial and economic work. Through investigation and research, he felt that the "contracting output to the household" (包产到户 bāochǎn dào hù) in Anhui and the "distributing land to the household" (分田到户 fēntián dào hù) proposed by Comrade Tian Jiaying [9] were extraordinary measures for an extraordinary period. Whether called one or the other, the nation had encountered such immense natural and man-made disasters that it was necessary to mobilize all peasants to carry out the call in The Internationale: "It all depends on ourselves." Comrade Chen Yun first exchanged views on this matter with the individual members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau, and then proposed to report his views to Comrade Mao Zedong in person. Some comrades advised him to consider carefully and suggested there was no need to rush in offering his opinion. He replied: "I am tasked with the mission of leading the nation's economic work; I must be responsible to the Party and to the people. Whether this matter is raised or not, and whether it changes or not, concerns the reputation of the Party and the support of the people. Since I have seen it clearly and found a solution, how can I delay?" Later, he did meet with Comrade Mao Zedong and presented his views in person.
It is clear that for investigation and research to grasp the true situation, the prerequisite must be the absence of preconceived notions. And to avoid such notions, one must achieve "not only the superior, not only the book, only the reality." This is certainly not easy, but if one wants investigation and research to yield real results, there is no other way. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "If there are different opinions regarding the Party's resolutions and policies, one may, while resolutely implementing them, declare a reservation and present one's own opinion to the Party's higher organizations up to the Central Committee"; "Party organizations at all levels must support and protect those Party members and cadres who speak the truth and report the actual situation to the organization." It is not difficult to see that so long as we act strictly according to what General Secretary Xi Jinping has said, we can follow the principle of "not only the superior, not only the book, only the reality," and allow investigation and research to return to its authentic essence.
II. Depth and Meticulousness are the Keys to Effective Investigation and Research
General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "Investigation and research must never involve formalism; we cannot have 'dragonfly-skimming-the-water' style research that is superficial and lacks mental engagement; we cannot have 'imperial envoy' style research that gives many instructions but asks few questions; and we cannot have 'being researched' style research where autonomy is poor and initiative is lost." Comrade Chen Yun was particularly opposed to such formalist practices in investigation and research. At a meeting in his later years, he once said: "As for the method of investigation and research, I don't think it involves more than a hundred departments each taking a notebook and reading it once at a Secretariat meeting, with everyone chiming in here and there, and finally passing it after a few words from the person chairing the meeting. The method of investigation and research is also not running through twenty-two counties in one week—that is nothing more than taking a car ride in a circle. This kind of working method is too simplistic."
In the 1950s and 60s, Comrade Chen Yun went to the countryside four times to conduct investigation and research. The fourth time, from late June to late July 1961, he conducted research in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai. He spent 15 days eating and living in the homes of peasants in the Xiaozheng Commune of Qingpu County to conduct a thematic study on the adjustment of rural policies during the Three Years of Economic Difficulty. At that time, the Central Committee had already decided to change the collective pig-rearing system implemented during the "Great Leap Forward" to a policy of "simultaneous public and private rearing, with private rearing as the primary focus," but there were no clear regulations on whether sows should be raised publicly or privately, and those at the grassroots were waiting to see. Therefore, a key focus of Comrade Chen Yun's rural research was to clarify whether it was better to raise sows publicly or privately.
During that period of research, in addition to observing pig-rearing, the cultivation of private plots, and the living conditions in peasant homes, and visiting fields and pig farms to check the land, crop growth, and collective pig-rearing, Comrade Chen Yun also listened to two reports from the commune Party committee and held 10 symposiums with peasants, listing 10 questions for discussion. During the investigation, he discovered that the places where the collectives raised pigs were a complete mess, with piglets, large pigs, sick pigs, and healthy pigs all eating the same thing. In contrast, pigs raised in peasants' homes were clean, and peasants even caught loaches to feed them. During his field observations, he also noticed that peasants often placed thin and weak piglets at the sow’s third teat to nurse; upon asking, he learned that this teat had the most milk. This single instance reveals the depth and meticulousness of Comrade Chen Yun’s investigation. Ultimately, he reached the conclusion that sows should also be handed over to peasants for private rearing and wrote a research report to the Central Committee.
Comrade Chen Yun always "poked the pole all the way to the bottom" in his work, never staying on the surface or engaging in "looking at flowers from horseback" or "dragonfly-skimming-the-water" styles. He paid great attention to detail when understanding problems, particularly focusing on figures. In the 1961 Qingpu investigation report, to demonstrate that planting double-crop rice was inferior to planting broad beans and single-crop rice, Comrade Chen Yun cited a large amount of data, letting the numbers speak. He stated that planting double-crop rice yielded a total of about 800 jin [10] per year, while single-crop rice generally yielded about 580 jin. On the surface, double-crop rice increased production, but when calculating the full account, it was not economical. First, the late rice of the double-crop cycle occupied the seedling beds of the single-crop rice, leading to a reduction of about 150 jin in single-crop yield. Second, each mu [11] of double-crop rice required 55 jin of seed, while single-crop required only 15 jin, saving 40 jin. Furthermore, after planting double-crop rice, one could not plant summer-harvested crops, whereas with single-crop rice, one could still plant broad beans or wheat, yielding 80 to 100 jin per mu, or 60 to 80 jin net of seed. Totaling these three items, although double-crop rice yielded about 220 jin more than single-crop rice, the actual loss was 250 to 270 jin. Additionally, double-crop rice required more fertilizer and labor. If these resources were applied to single-crop rice, production could increase by 60 jin. Comparing the two, planting double-crop rice clearly resulted in more loss than gain. After reading the research report, Comrade Mao Zedong said: "In doing investigation and research, we should learn from Comrade Chen Yun, using data to speak so that people are thoroughly convinced."
III. Listening to Opinions is the Focus of Effective Investigation and Research
In the "fifteen-character formula" distilled by Comrade Chen Yun, the last six characters are "exchange, compare, repeat." The so-called "exchange" refers to the exchange of differing opinions. He said that people often tend to be one-sided in their view of problems, mistaking a partial reality for the whole reality. If one pays attention to exchanging opinions with others, especially listening to differing opinions, it helps in grasping the full reality, thereby truly achieving the goal of seeking truth from facts. Accordingly, Comrade Chen Yun proposed that the main task in investigation and research is to listen to and understand differing opinions, further noting: "There are various methods for investigation and research; seeking out people with different views to exchange opinions is also a method, and an important one at that." He spoke earnestly to cadres: "Leading cadres must pay special attention to listening to opposing views. Everyone dares to voice identical opinions, and they are easy to hear; differing opinions are often not voiced because leaders are not modest, and thus they are difficult to hear. Therefore, we must be modest and listen more to different opinions. We should also see that things are very complex; to obtain a relatively comprehensive and correct understanding, we must listen to all kinds of different opinions and, through thorough analysis, synthesize them."
During the rural investigations of the early 1960s, Comrade Chen Yun repeatedly spoke on the issue of listening to the truth. He pointed out that it is extremely dangerous if the grassroots do not speak the truth and the actual situation is not reflected upward, as it makes it impossible for the leadership to make correct decisions. "It is very dangerous for a leading organ to be unable to hear opposing opinions. We advocate telling the truth, but there must be conditions that allow for the truth to be told." The reason Comrade Chen Yun preferred to do "base-point" (蹲点 dūndiǎn) research in his hometown or places where he had engaged in the peasant movement was so that he could hear the truth. The locals there knew and trusted him and were willing to speak their minds to him. For example, during the Three Years of Economic Difficulty, the peasants of Qingpu were dissatisfied with cadres who did not participate in labor, talked big, and lacked self-criticism, saying of the cadres: "With two lips, they can talk their way into being right either way"; "When cadres brag, the commune members starve"; "When cadres show off, the commune members suffer." Regarding these opinions, Comrade Chen Yun not only listened patiently but also took responsibility. He told a cadre symposium that many problems still existed in our work because some of us in the Central Committee had not done our jobs well, and he was one of them.
In 1959, when Comrade Chen Yun was conducting an industrial investigation and held a symposium on the coal industry, he encouraged everyone to set aside their concerns, considering that since the "Anti-Rightist Deviation" campaign, some people were afraid to speak the truth. He said at the start of the symposium that this was a meeting for investigation and research, not a speech in front of a trumpet (referring to a microphone), and that they should "speak freely without hesitation, consider problems from all angles, and not fear anything like 'Rightist opportunism' or 'Leftist opportunism'." He specifically instructed that "reporting the situation at the symposium is not about listing achievements, but mainly about speaking on existing problems." With his encouragement, the symposium was both lively and substantive; everyone spoke their minds, expressing views on a series of issues and identifying the crux of various problems in the coal industry at that time, providing a clear direction and a good start for the industry's adjustment.
General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized...
"Go to places where work is going well and the situation is advanced to summarize experience, but also go to places where the masses have many complaints, where work is poorly done, and where difficulties are many, situations are complex, and contradictions are sharp to conduct investigation and research. Truly devote effort to observing the actual situation, proposing practical measures, performing concrete deeds, and seeking real results." In March 2023, the General Office of the CPC Central Committee issued the Work Plan on Extensively Conducting Investigation and Research Throughout the Party, which cited the first nine characters of Comrade Chen Yun's "fifteen-character formula," requiring that throughout investigation and research, one must "listen to the truth, observe the actual situation, uphold the truth, correct errors, call a spade a spade [12], and report both good and bad news—relying not on books or superiors, but only on reality." This demonstrates that the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core highly identifies with Comrade Chen Yun’s proposition that one must emphasize listening to differing opinions during investigation and research.
IV. Correcting One's Purpose is Fundamental to Performing Effective Investigation and Research
The fundamental purpose of investigation and research is to solve problems. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized the need to "grasp the problems that are most urgent, worrying, and grievous to the common people; resolve the most direct and realistic interest issues of most concern to the masses"; and "effectively transform the fruits of investigation and research into practical measures for solving problems and improving work, preventing the phenomenon of much investigation but little research, much information but little analysis, and preventing the proposal of countermeasures that are over-generalized, hollow, abstract, and fail to solve practical problems."
When Comrade Chen Yun conducted research—whether staying at the grassroots for extended periods [13], making inspection tours across various regions, sending subordinates down, or inviting people up—it was always to verify the situation reflected in documents and to understand what those documents failed to reflect. Consequently, he took very few staff with him, never notified the press, and did not bring reporters. To avoid disturbing local cadres, he rarely requested their accompaniment.
On the eve of the national liberation, Comrade Chen Yun was appointed Director of the newly established Central Financial and Economic Commission (hereafter "CFEC"). Upon taking office, he faced the critical issue of how to stabilize prices in the newly liberated areas, especially in Shanghai, to ensure the People's Liberation Army could continue its southward campaign and to stabilize the lives of the urban population. To this end, he led a small group of CFEC cadres to Shanghai for research, traveling in a single train car. At the time, given the difficulties in Shanghai’s land and water transport and frequent bombings by enemy aircraft, raw materials such as coal, grain, and cotton could not be brought in, and factory products could not be shipped out. There were temporary deliberations about relocating factories and schools elsewhere. Through his research, Comrade Chen Yun discovered that while moving factories might solve the raw material problem, it would create new, insurmountable issues regarding factory buildings, electricity, and mechanical maintenance. Therefore, he decided that the main portion of Shanghai's industry should remain, and ways must be found to overcome the difficulties. Subsequent events proved that this decision was of vital significance for Shanghai’s role as an economic center during the recovery of the national economy and in various later periods. Yet, from such an important research activity, not a single photograph remains.
Comrade Chen Yun understood deeply that investigation and research were for the purpose of clarifying situations and devising solutions. Therefore, he believed that the research itself could employ different methods. He once said: "There are two methods of investigation and research: one is to personally lead a work team or send a work team to the countryside or factories—this is, of course, absolutely necessary. The other is for every high- and mid-level leading cadre to have close friends and staff members who dare to speak the truth, through whom one can regularly hear the voices of grassroots cadres and the masses. This latter type of investigation and research is characterized by being 'true, fast, and broad.' By 'true,' I mean they dare to reflect the actual situation and speak from the heart, because they trust you and know you will not target them [14]. I have such friends. By 'fast,' I mean problems can be discovered promptly while still in the bud. By 'broad,' I mean there are many high- and mid-level cadres (including those who are retired or on leave) in every province, city, and industry across the country. In a sense, the latter type of investigation and research is even more important than the former. Both types are necessary; neither can be dispensed with."
In 1953, to resolve contradictions in grain procurement and marketing, Comrade Chen Yun selected "unified procurement and marketing" [15] as the state’s major grain policy from eight proposed schemes developed through research. Later, through rural investigations, he learned that in some places, "output was over-estimated," "excess grain" was requisitioned, grain for adjustment could not be traded, and there were no standards for retained rations. Consequently, he pointed out on one hand that the policy of unified procurement and marketing must be upheld—defects and loopholes could be supplemented and reformed, but the policy must not waver. On the other hand, he demanded "remedial lessons" for the policy, suggesting the "Three Fixes" method—fixing production, fixing procurement, and fixing marketing—based on unified procurement and marketing. This greatly steadied the people’s minds and made unified procurement and marketing the basic policy for resolving grain contradictions in China for a long period.
Precisely because Comrade Chen Yun was clear that the purpose of research was to solve problems concerning the interests of the people, he always placed people’s livelihoods at the forefront of economic construction and showed constant concern for the interests of the masses, no matter the difficulty.
In 1956, while concurrently serving as Minister of Commerce, Comrade Chen Yun proposed that to do commercial work well, one must strengthen political and mass perspectives. He said: "Commercial work, including selling chickens and eggs, has political significance. Whether commercial work is good or bad directly affects the vital interests of 600 million people and determines whether the vast urban and rural population is satisfied with us." In 1957, at a vegetable conference involving 13 provinces and cities, he pointed out: "Ensuring vegetable supply and stabilizing prices is a universal demand of the urban population. The lower a person’s purchasing power, the more they care about this issue... The significance of the supply of vegetables and other non-staple foods is by no means less than that of building factories; it should be placed on an equal footing. If we only pay attention to industrial construction and ignore the living conditions of workers and staff, the workers might stir up trouble, and we would still have to solve it in the end."
In 1961, through an investigation in his hometown of Qingpu, he proposed that since China’s collective farmland accounted for more than 90% of total acreage, slightly increasing the proportion of private plots [16] would not shake the socialist economic base. He said: "Given the current shortage of rations, the farmers’ primary concern is not 'socialism or capitalism,' but 'eating rice or eating porridge.' Allocating a bit more for private plots allows farmers to obtain more rations; this benefits the consolidation of the worker-peasant alliance and the socialist system, and serves as a necessary supplement to the socialist economy." During the three years of hardship [17], there was a nationwide grain shortage and widespread malnutrition. Through consulting experts, Comrade Chen Yun learned that the primary cause of edema was protein deficiency, and since soybeans are high in protein, they could be used as a supplement in the absence of meat and eggs. He thus proposed allocating 3 billion catties [18] of soybeans annually to provide 3 catties per month to each of the 60 million urban residents. He also suggested using some steel to build motorized junks for deep-sea fishing and reducing pig exports to increase the meat and fish supply for urban residents by half a catty each per month. He remarked: "At present, such issues are major national affairs. If the health of over 60 million people is poor and we do not find practical solutions, the masses will have complaints. The people will look to see whether the Communist Party actually cares about them and whether it has ways to solve their living problems. This is a political issue." He further noted: "Agricultural and market issues are major issues concerning the lives of over 500 million farmers and 100 million urban residents; they are issues of people's livelihood. Solving these should become a key national policy."
General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "We must improve the quality of investigation and research, accurately grasping new situations, problems, and trends in economic and social development through various channels and methods. We must accurately grasp what the grassroots need and what the masses expect, ensuring that decisions better conform to reality and the wishes of the people." Currently, as the changes unseen in a century accelerate, global issues are intensifying, and China’s reform, development, and stability face many deep-seated contradictions that cannot be dodged or bypassed. We must further utilize the "heirloom" of investigation and research, use deepened research to promote the resolution of developmental difficulties, master more of the actual situation, and gain a more thorough understanding of objective laws. This will lay a solid foundation for performing all tasks with responsibility and continue to push forward the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era.