Page 3 - 《近代史研究》2021第五期

Modern Chinese History Studies

No. 5đ2021

Qu Qiubai and the Chinese Translation for “Hegemony”͇ A Ｒevolutionary Journey of the
Hegemony Concept in China ̵ 1923 －1927̶ ………………………………… Li Fangchun̵ 4̶

The CPC's Strategic Decision and the South Expedition of the No. 359 Brigade of the Eighth Ｒoute
Army ……………………………………………………………………… Huang Zhenglin̵ 19̶
After the Japanese launched the Operation Ichi-go in April 1944đthe CPC Central Committee adopted the South
Strategyđaiming to establish an Anti-Japanese Base in the border area between Hunan and Guangdong． If successfulđit
would link the CPC's base areas in northernđcentral and southern China together． To set this strategy in motion đthe CPC
Central Committee ordered the No. 359 Brigade of the No. 120 Division to go on an expedition to the south． The task of the
No. 359 Brigade was two-pronged͇ firstđit was expected to escort CPC cadres to the No. 5 Division of the New Fourth Army
at the border area between Hubei and Henan͈ and secondđit was tasked to establish a base area along the borders between
Hunan and Guangdong． When the No. 359 Brigade finally arrived at the border area between Hunan and Guangdongđ
howeverđthe Japanese had announced its surrender． So the task to establish an anti-Japanese base area there became out of
the question． To pressurize the KMT to carry on with the peace negotiation in Chongqingđthe CPC Central Committee
decided to voluntarily withdraw its troops from GuangdongđHenan and all the other provinces in between． This was a
testament to the flexible strategic decisions of the CPC Central Committee around the time of the victory of the Ｒesistance
Warđwho timely adjusted its strategy according to changes of domestic and international situations． When the South
Strategy became unfeasibleđit shifted its strategic focus to China's Northeastđa move that turned out to be a success．

In Pursuit of Taxation Equity for the Peasants͇ Patriotic Grain Collection in the Shandong Anti-
Japanese Base Area …………………………………………………………… Zhou Zuwen̵ 34̶

Big Farmers vs Small Farmers͇ Debate on the Optimal Scale of Agriculture in the Late Qing and
the Ｒepublic of China ………………………………………………………… Li Jinzheng̵ 51̶
Under the circumstances of collision and communication between China and the West in the modern erađthe Chinese
society in general and the Chinese academia in particular consistently engaged in the debate on the optimal scale of Chinese
agriculture during the late Qing and the Ｒepublic of China． The debate witnessed a transition from the dichotomy of big
farmer vs small farmer to the juxtaposition of large-scale farming and subsistence farming． Debate on the pros and cons of
large-scale farming and subsistence farming was especially heated． Specificallyđpeople at the time were increasingly
concerned about the prospect of subsistence farming． In contrastđmost people viewed large-scale farming as the only way
forward． To realize large-scale farmingđsome people initially put their hope in commercial farms while others soon believed
that cooperatives would carry the day． Some advocated large-scale farmingđbut they viewed the American-style ranch and
the Soviet Collectivized Farm model with reservation． As a matter of factđlarge-scale farming was a nonstarter in China at
the time and the very dominance of subsistence farming largely persisted． Due to this realityđsome people came to believe
that subsistence farming still had its merits and then oppose the introduction of large-scale farming． This debate mirrors the
complexities surrounding the Chinese perceptions on the optimal scale of agricultural production at the time．

Irrigation ProjectsđPolitics and Local Society͇ A Case Study on the Yuanyangchi Ｒeservoir in the
Period of the Ｒepublic of China ………………………………………… Zhang Jingping̵ 67̶
Built in 1947 in Jinta County of Gansu ProvinceđYuanyangchi Ｒeservoir was the first modern earth-dammed reservoir
in China． Yuanyangchi Ｒeservoir was originally built to cope with the local crisis triggered by irrigation-related disputes．
Howeverđthe political process that endorsed this project was full of setbacks． Proponents of this project finally won the day
by taking advantage of the government's Northwest Policy and Chinese authorities' preoccupation with“maintaining solidarity
with the rear base”during the Ｒesistance War against Japanese Aggression． During the building of the reservoirđlocal
gentries used their local influences to actively engaged in social mobilization effortsđmirroring the transition of organizing
Chinese irrigation projects from a traditional mode to a modern one． During the implementation of this projectđtechnicians
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