Jian Xianfo

Jian Xianfo was born in Cili County, Hunan, in 1915. After the 18 September 1931 Mukden Incident, Jian decided that the Nationalists had failed to stand up to the Japanese invaders and decided to join the Red Army at the first opportunity. She joined the 2nd Route Army when guerrillas from that force came to her town in December 1934. Her younger brother, who was then 15, also joined at this time. She married General Xiao Ke, commander of the 6th Army Group. == Long March ==

With Nationalist forces gaining the upper hand in the war, communist forces began a series of retreats that became known as the Long March. Jian climbed glacial mountains on the march during the third trimester of her pregnancy. Her water broke while marching through the grasslands of Sichuan, though she did not initially notice. Her husband and sister assisted her to take shelter in an earthwork by the side of the road where she gave birth to a son on a pile of cloth bundles. It proved to be a difficult birth and mother and child were soaked by a rainstorm. However, both survived and Jian named her son Baosheng, meaning "born in a fort". Jian was carried on a stretcher by four soldiers for the next three days of the march. == Later career ==

The war ended in 1949 with a victory for the communists on the Chinese mainland. Jian joined the in 1979 serving as the Vice-Minister until March 1982. Between September 1982 and November 1987, during the 12th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, she was a member of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. At other points Jian served as an assistant to senior party member Qiao Shi and as deputy director of the Central Organisation Department. == Death ==

Jian Xianfo died due to a lung infection and COVID-19 on 30 December 2022, at age 107. == References ==