Wen Jing

Wen Jing, born in 1916, originally named Li Shufang and also known by the pen names Li Ruowen and Li Yan, was the wife of Zhang Chunqiao.

She was best known by the name Wen Jing during the Cultural Revolution. She met Zhang Chunqiao when he was deputy editor of the Jin-Cha-Ji Daily, where he arranged for her to work, and soon they became a couple.

In December 1943, while serving as a district propaganda committee member in Pingshan County, Hebei, she was captured by the Japanese army, surrendered, and became an informant. Although this was later discovered, due to Zhang Chunqiao’s influence, she was still assigned to work at the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee Office.

During the Cultural Revolution, as Zhang Chunqiao’s political position rose, Wen Jing also assumed important roles in Shanghai, working in the Revolutionary Rebel Liaison Station Materials Group, the Municipal Revolutionary Committee’s Materials Group, and the Office Liaison/Research Group. She effectively led these groups and enjoyed political treatment equivalent to a standing committee member of the Municipal Party Committee.

In 1968, during the campaign to criticize Zhang Chunqiao, big-character posters exposed Wen Jing’s past. Zhang Chunqiao, in anger, dismissed officials who accessed her file and sealed her records, though the information continued to leak. After the Ninth Party Congress, she disappeared from public view, and her past remained a sensitive issue for Zhang Chunqiao.

In family life, Wen Jing and Zhang Chunqiao had four children (three daughters and one son). Their household was relatively harmonious. Wen Jing often accompanied Zhang in smoking and drinking, and she arranged meals for him when he worked at night. Zhang’s decision to keep political distance from her was mainly for political reasons.