In 1962, at an ordinary central work conference, Liu Shaoqi publicly justified Peng Dehuai's name at the conference, which attracted widespread attention.
As one of the founding marshals of the mainland, Peng Dehuai made great achievements during the revolutionary war and was one of the main military leaders of our party.
At the Lushan Conference in 1959, Mr. Peng was severely criticized for his opposition to the problems of indicators and exaggerations in the Great Leap Forward movement, which was regarded as a "right-leaning" mistake.
This incident brought a huge turning point in Peng Dehuai's personal destiny and profoundly affected the political atmosphere at that time.
In the early sixties, Peng Dehuai was a sensitive topic, and Liu Shaoqi chose to mention him publicly on such an important occasion, for what purpose?
Once, Liu Shaoqi's son Liu Yuan talked about the relationship between his father and Mr. Peng, and said in particular:
"My father and Mr. Peng are both open-minded people, and the respect between them is not only the relationship between leaders and subordinates, but also based on the high recognition of each other's character."
These words let us see the deep friendship between the two leaders and feel their firm belief in thinking about the interests of the country and the people.
Although there are controversies in the concept of work, the gentleman is harmonious but different, and the heart of the two people to work hard for the cause of the party and the country is unchanged, and this kind of revolutionary friendship is indeed commendable.
At the beginning, Peng Dehuai raised his own doubts about the Great Leap Forward, which was criticized by many people, so he ended his political career early. As time passed, more and more results slowly emerged, and a large number of facts proved that Peng Dehuai's view was correct.
This also enabled the central leadership to realize its mistakes, sum up in-depth experience and self-criticism, and after a series of adjustments and reform measures, the national economy ushered in a turnaround.
At such a historical juncture, Liu Shaoqi stood up, mentioned Peng Dehuai's views at the conference, and justified his name.
This move was undoubtedly a bombshell, at that time, Peng Dehuai was still a sensitive topic in the political environment at the time, but Liu Shaoqi dared to talk about him publicly on such an important occasion and defend it, which required a lot of courage.
At the conference, Liu Shaoqi, with his wealth of knowledge and eloquence, skillfully used Peng Dehuai's proposal three years ago as an argument, especially emphasizing the view that "the conditions of the office are not mature enough".
Liu Shaoqi's speech was not only an affirmation of Peng Dehuai, but also a question and challenge to the political atmosphere at that time.
In the audience, many comrades who had fought with Peng Dehuai were very excited when they heard these words, and everyone began to re-examine their past decisions and judgments.
It was not until the Third Plenum of the 11th Central Committee in 1978 that Peng Dehuai was truly rehabilitated, and Deng Xiaoping played an important role in this process.
Deng Xiaoping insisted on restoring Peng Dehuai's reputation, and put forward a view similar to that of Comrade Liu Shaoqi in 1962:
I once criticized Mr. Peng's behavior as a mistake in the context, but now it seems that Lao is always right, and we are wrong.
This view not only justifies Peng Dehuai's name, but also deeply reflects on past political movements.
Looking back at this period of history, it is not difficult for us to see that as a revolutionary, he dared to speak out for truth and justice, and actively recognized and corrected his mistakes.
The old revolutionaries set an example for us, to face the facts, to learn to raise their own doubts, to face injustice, to dare to fight for truth and justice. Learning to think independently and not following others is the only way to be truly responsible for yourself and grow into a truly independent person.