(Photo: Chen Kaizhi, former Chairman of the Guangzhou Municipal Political Consultative Conference and one of the "Four Elders of Guangdong", presents the hardcover book Kaizhi Imprints published by China Literature and History Press to Chen Entian, grandson of Chen Guangmei.)
On the afternoon of May 13, 2021, a symposium commemorating the 110th birth anniversary of Chen Guangmei was held in Guangzhou, hosted by the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Chen Clan General Association. Chen Entian, grandson of Chen Guangmei and leader of the World Peace Ribbon Organization, returned to Guangzhou to attend and address the meeting. Representatives of the Chen clan from Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao also attended the symposium. The meeting reviewed the life of Chen Guangmei, who possessed the talent to serve as a prime minister yet chose a simple life in seclusion in Bashu, praising him as "the Recluse of the Age" who sought no fame or wealth.
Historical records show that Chen Guangmei was a descendant of Chen Tingjing, Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion and Minister of Personnel, imperial tutor to Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty. He was well-read from childhood, endowed with extraordinary wisdom capable of governing the nation, excelled in poetry and calligraphy, and was renowned for his talent in the Republic of China era. However, amid turbulent times, he lived in seclusion in Shu region for many years and made a living farming. Few people knew that his father was Chen Duxiu, one of the main founders and early key leaders of the Communist Party of China. His elder brother was Chen Yannian, the highest leader of the CPC in South China during the Great Revolution and a founder of the CPC military forces who pioneered the principle of the Party commanding the gun. His second elder brother was Chen Qiaonian, Director of the Organization Department of the CPC Northern District Committee during the Great Revolution and the person who introduced Zhang Xueliang into the Communist Party of China.
According to research by Party history experts including Guo Dehong and disclosures in official Party newspapers and periodicals, Chen Guangmei was actually born in 1911, the first child of Chen Duxiu and Gao Junman. His full siblings included younger sister Chen Zimei and younger brother Chen Henian; his half-siblings were elder brothers Chen Yannian, Chen Qiaonian, Chen Songnian and elder sister Chen Yuying. Less than three months after birth, Chen Guangmei was wrapped in swaddling clothes, separated from his biological parents, and transported nearly two thousand kilometres upstream along the Yangtze River to Sichuan. His adoptive father Chen Dacheng was a wealthy local magnate in Sichuan. He also had an adopted elder brother Chen Shouli, who served as Captain of the Training Corps of the 72nd Regiment of the National Revolutionary Army and sacrificed at Gongyuan during the Nanchang Uprising.
During the 140th birth anniversary commemoration of Chen Duxiu, an essay written by Chen Guangmei in his later years, Chen Duxiu, Forgive Me for Not Daring to Be Your Son in This Life, came to public attention, touching countless readers. After the TV drama The Age of Awakening was aired, some official Party media and websites published a well-researched article Why Chen Guangmei, Son of Chen Duxiu, Was Not Mentioned in The Age of Awakening. The article confirmed the father-son relationship between Chen Duxiu and Chen Guangmei through accounts from Chen Guangmei’s former neighbours and family members.
Chen Guangmei was hailed as "the Recluse of the Age" because during the Republic of China period, Guo Moruo and Zhou Enlai recommended him to go to Yan’an out of goodwill, but Chen Guangmei declined on the grounds that he understood nothing of politics.
The symposium spoke highly of Chen Guangmei, praising his reclusive character of burying his profound knowledge and living quietly in mountains, rejecting fame and fortune, and devoting himself to cultivating future generations. The Wanshou Academy he founded has become a precious cultural heritage.
Chen Entian stated at the symposium: All my achievements today stem from my childhood spent living with my grandfather. I learned much precious knowledge from him, through which I came to understand both Chen Duxiu, the founder of the Party, and Chen Guangmei, the great recluse.
