Storms and Weathers of Pengmen (Peng Dehuai's Family Style and Family Affairs)

Author: Teng Xuyun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-02-01
Features: The extraordinary life and turbulent fate of the old-generation proletarian revolutionary, statesman, and military strategist Peng Dehuai, Marshal of the People's Liberation Army, have moved generations of Chinese people. His noble character and unwavering integrity have also educated generations. To date, literary works about Peng Dehuai (including commemorative collections) are the most numerous and influential among the works about leaders and generals of the New China. Stormy Gates of Pengmen—Peng Dehuai’s Family and Affairs is a biographical literary work that studies and depicts Peng Dehuai’s life from a fresh perspective. Author Teng Xuyun obtained many little-known historical traces and life details about Peng Dehuai through multiple interviews with seven of his nieces and nephews, who were raised and nurtured personally by Peng Dehuai. Additionally, he interviewed many elderly generals and cadres familiar with Peng Dehuai, collected and studied a large amount of historical documents and materials, as well as published works related to him. Based on solid historical evidence, the book uses literary art as a medium to vividly portray the life stories of two generations of the Peng family, centered around Peng Dehuai, who were bound by blood and shared joys and sorrows over half a century. Unlike previous biographical works about Peng Dehuai, this book does not aim to depict every aspect of his life. It avoids repeating the grand scenes of him fighting on the battlefield or recounting the complex events of his humiliation at the Lushan Conference. Instead, it treats Peng Dehuai as an ordinary person, seeking the genuine emotions between him and his two wives and seven nieces and nephews. The book focuses on the subtle details of the family life of the Peng family, capturing their joys, sorrows, and emotions, striving to delve into Peng Dehuai’s rich inner world and present a truly relatable Peng Dehuai—a man with an unyielding backbone in the Chinese revolution and a compassionate heart toward his relatives and younger generations. It recreates the heroic image of Peng Dehuai, full of personal charm, who was willing to sacrifice himself for truth and the people. The book is rich in historical materials, accurate in facts, and well-supported by evidence. It has a high tone, smooth writing, and is vivid and touching. Its legendary storyline and many newly disclosed historical facts make it highly readable. The book has 400,000 words, divided into 30 chapters, and includes over 60 historical photos provided by the Peng family. We dedicate this new book in memory of the great national hero, Peng Dehuai, Marshal of the People's Liberation Army. Learning from Peng Dehuai’s unwavering loyalty, selflessness, and revolutionary spirit for the nation and the people, as well as his open and arduous revolutionary spirit, holds undeniable practical significance for modern Chinese people.