Former Residence of Rao Guomu

　　Stepping through the gate of the "Dayou Farm," walk uphill past the banyan tree at the fork in the road, about forty or fifty meters from the buildings of the Southern Bureau and the liaison office, there is a small building made of red bricks on the side of the path. The owner of this building was Rao Guomu, the landlady of the Southern Bureau and the liaison office, as well as the proprietor of the "Dayou Farm." Rao Guomu was a patriotic, intellectual woman of middle age with a comfortable family fortune. As early as the early 1930s, Rao Guomu, who did not seek a comfortable life but was “very eager to do something beneficial for the public” and was committed to saving the nation through industry, purchased three hundred acres of barren hillside land deep in the Hongyanzi valley to establish the "Dayou Farm." In the early days of establishing the farm, in order to manage it well, Rao Guomu built this small red building that combines Chinese and Western architectural styles in the central grassy area of the farm, and settled down there with her three children.

　　The building covers an area of approximately 70 square meters, with a floor space of 180 square meters and a total of ten rooms. From the outside, it looks like a two-story structure, but it actually has three floors inside. Architecturally, the building has a distinct feature: the staircase to each upper floor is hidden within a room and also has a door. Those unfamiliar with the layout may take some time to find the way upstairs. The passageway to the second floor of the liaison office building is similar.

　　In the spring of 1939, after the offices and accommodations in the city were destroyed by Japanese air raids, leaders of the Southern Bureau such as Qin Bangxian and He Kaifeng, who had moved to the "Dayou Farm" in Hongyanzi earlier, briefly lived and worked in this building. During the eight years of the War of Resistance, Rao Guomu often invited comrades from the Southern Bureau and the liaison office here to enjoy tea and flowers, drink wine under the moon, compose poetry, and engage in literary exchanges. Since the building is located beside the essential pathway leading to the liaison office from the outside, it also played a role in protecting the safety of the Southern Bureau and the liaison office, as well as in concealing underground Party members, progressive individuals, and patriotic youths who came to Hongyan. Some comrades from the underground Party would come to report or seek instructions from the Southern Bureau, often first asking to see “Madam Liu” (Rao’s husband’s surname was Liu) of the "Dayou Farm," and then Rao Guomu would escort them to the liaison office or notify someone from the Southern Bureau to make contact. The third floor of this building once served as one of the contact points between the Southern Bureau and the underground Party organization. Before the comrades of the Southern Bureau and the liaison office moved to Nanjing in May 1946, Dong Biwu wrote a poem for Rao Guomu: “For eight years of success in the rear base, Hongyan offered a place with little distress. The hostess had a refined taste for gardens, busy planting flowers and bamboos to entertain guests.” This was to thank her for her support and assistance to the Southern Bureau and the liaison office. Through daily interactions with Chinese Communists, and under the influence and help of the comrades from the Southern Bureau and the liaison office, Rao Guomu gradually transformed from a patriot into a communist. In 1948, during the most difficult times for the underground Party in eastern Sichuan, she joined the Communist Party of China. After the liberation, she held positions such as member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and standing committee member of the All-China Women's Federation. She passed away in Beijing in 1960 and is now buried in Hongyan.

　　Currently, the first floor of Rao Guomu’s former residence hosts an exhibition titled "The Life and Achievements of Rao Guomu" organized by the Hongyan Revolutionary Memorial Hall, while the second floor is arranged as a historical restoration display for visitors. The plaque at the entrance of "Rao Guomu’s Former Residence" was inscribed by a veteran comrade of the Southern Bureau and member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee—Comrade [name omitted].

　　Source: Chongqing Hongyan Cultural Development Management Center Author: Liu Liqun