Is it possible for a single location to embody courage sacrifice and unwavering dedication? It is indeed possible here at the Former Residence of Martyr Li Bai. This unassuming three-story brick house in Shanghai’s Hongkou district holds the key to a remarkable story. This is the Former Residence of Martyr Li Bai.
Let’s step inside and discover the life of Li Bai. He was no poet but a telegrapher and a communist operative. He risked everything for his beliefs. Born in 1910 Li Bai yearned for national salvation. He joined the Chinese Communist Party at 15. He participated in armed uprisings. He mastered radio transmission.
Shanghai became a lone island after the battle between the KMT and Japanese troops in 1937. The Communist Party needed information. They sent Li Bai to Shanghai to reconnect underground Party units with their leaders in Yan’an.
Being a spy in Shanghai was dangerous. Japanese military vehicles constantly patrolled the streets seeking suspicious radio waves. Li Bai sent intelligence in the dead of night when Japanese policing was lightest. He covered the light bulb with a dark cloth to avoid being seen. He pressed the radio button gently to mute the tapping noise.
Qiu Huiying a cotton mill worker and Communist Party member “married” Li Bai. This provided cover for his activities. They shared the same ideals. They later became a true couple. Li Bai worked as a bookkeeper at a local radio company to learn more about radio techniques. This proved significant.
Li Bai and his wife were arrested in a Japanese raid in September 1942. He insisted the radio was for private use. Li Bai’s son Li Hengsheng recounted that the Japanese released his father. They lacked evidence he was a spy. Li Bai had removed a small metal coil from his radio transmitter before the Japanese broke in. This coil worked as an antenna. It allowed sending and receiving telegrams. He disposed of the coil depriving the enemy of evidence.
China began to regain lost land in 1944. Intelligence became crucial. Li Bai traveled with his wife between Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces. He used the pseudonym Li Jingan. He posed as a KMT official passing information to superiors.
His radio was discovered on a fateful ferry ride. KMT police arrested him. The KMT and Communists were still collaborators against the Japanese. Li Bai was rescued from KMT incarceration.
Japan surrendered in September 1945. Li Bai wrote to his father “victory is ours”. He hoped for domestic solidarity and a new China. China plunged back into civil war. Li Bai returned to Shanghai with a new mission in October 1945. He worked as a researcher with a KMT institute during the day. He sent intelligence at night. He contacted superiors through weak radio waves to avoid detection.
The KMT grew desperate in 1948. They cut power sporadically seeking Communist radio stations. Li Bai was arrested in the early hours of December 30 1948. He was sending information about the KMT’s defensive works along the Yangtze River.
He was tortured for over 30 hours. His fingernails were pulled out. Bamboo sticks were driven into his fingers. He refused to talk.
The KMT held him until May 7. He met his wife and young son for the last time. Qiu stood on a balcony opposite the prison. She saw Li Bai emaciated and disheveled through a tiny cell window. He told her not to come again. He said she and other countrymen would soon be free. He promised to hug his son in a few days.
Li Bai was executed with 11 other comrades near a temple in Pudong that very night. It was his 39th birthday. This occurred only 20 days before Shanghai’s liberation.
These Communists’ remains were exhumed in June. They were interred in a cemetery and recognized as revolutionary martyrs.
The Former Residence of Martyr Li Bai encourages visitors to tap a button on a desk. This helps imagine working under grave pressure. Li Bai sent the eternal wave with his life and zeal. He sounded the last note of his life to the Party and people.
The eternal wave goes on. The Former Residence of Martyr Li Bai stands as a testament to his unwavering spirit.