Yuan Wencai (original) (raw)

Yuan Wencai (Chinese: 袁文才; pinyin: Yuán Wéncái), also Yuan Xuansan (simplified Chinese: 袁选三; traditional Chinese: 袁選三; pinyin: Yuán Xuǎnsān) was a former bandit chieftain who operated in the Jinggang Mountains of Jiangxi, from 1923, and then joined the Chinese Communist Party, becoming a protégé of Mao Zedong during their formative period in the Jiangxi Soviet. However, it cost his own life in the following power struggle within the Chinese Communist Party.