Former Site of the “Central Henan Investigation Group”

Former Site of the “Central Henan Investigation Group”

The former site of the “Central Henan Investigation Group” is a classic red tourism attraction.

The former site of the “Central Henan Investigation Group” is located in the middle section of Bayi Road in downtown Changge (within the old municipal Party committee compound), consisting of nine tiled houses covering an area of 180 square meters. It served as the workplace and residence of the “Central Henan Investigation Group” during their research and investigation in Changge from April to August 1961. The current exhibition content at the site mainly includes the group’s investigative work in Changge, a restored office of Xi Zhongxun during his time in Changge, an exhibition on Xi Zhongxun’s life, and more. In July 2014, it was designated as a Party member education and study base in Changge; in January 2015, it was named a patriotic education base in Changge; in June 2015, it became a field teaching base for cadre education and training in Xuchang; and in early 2016, it was designated as a Party history education base in Xuchang.

At the Ninth Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the Central Committee called on the entire Party to promote the practice of conducting thorough investigations and research, and designated 1961 as the “Year of Seeking Truth from Facts and Year of Investigation and Research.” Soon after, a wave of enthusiasm for investigation and research swept across the Party.

In order to promptly understand the implementation of two directives issued by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China—the “Urgent Directive Letter on Current Policy Issues of Rural People’s Communes” and the “Regulations on the Work of Rural People’s Communes (Draft)”—and to correct the “communist wind” and revive the rural economy, from April 10 to the end of August of the same year, Xi Zhongxun, then Vice Premier and Secretary-General of the State Council, led a team of 12 members of the Central Henan Investigation Group to Changge to carry out research.

During the investigation process, Xi Zhongxun took the lead in going deep into the grassroots, seeing himself as one of the people, and the masses quickly accepted him as one of their own. The investigation revealed many issues. In response to these problems, Xi Zhongxun did not wait or rely on others but took responsibility, and in accordance with the spirit of the Central Committee and the demands of the people, he disbanded public canteens and compensated the masses for property wrongfully taken by collectives... resolving many practical difficulties and issues for the people. During this time, the investigation group produced a total of 14 investigative reports. Based on the information gathered, and in order to provide a reliable basis for Central Committee decision-making, Xi Zhongxun submitted two detailed written reports to Deng Xiaoping, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, and to the Party Central Committee on April 23 and May 9, 1961, respectively. These laid the foundation for correcting the influence of “Left” leaning thinking and promoting the development of various rural initiatives.

Xi Zhongxun’s image as a public servant who delved into reality, cared for the people, and was close to and loved by them has always inspired generations of Changge residents to forge ahead. His courageous, truth-seeking work style has left a valuable spiritual legacy for the people of Changge, and his bold, action-oriented, and people-saving sense of responsibility has erected a historical monument in the hearts of the people of Changge. To enable future generations to understand this history and learn from the work ethic and style of the older generation of proletarian revolutionaries, in 2014, the Changge Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China decided to restore the site where Comrade Xi Zhongxun and the “Central Henan Investigation Group” worked in Changge to its original appearance, and to display information about the investigations conducted at that time through text and images indoors. It has now become a base for Party members and cadres to receive revolutionary traditional education.

Address: Middle Section of Bayi Road, Changge City (within the old municipal Party committee compound of Changge City)

Transportation: Take bus No. 102 from the South Bus Station of Changge City and get off at Bayi Road Friendship Times Plaza, then walk 500 meters west to the north side.

Opening Hours: Open Monday to Friday; from April to October, opening hours are 9:00–18:00; from November to March, opening hours are 9:00–16:00.

Phone: 0374—6189598

Source: Party History Research Office of the Henan Provincial Committee