Zhu Zheng (1931- ), a native of Changsha, Hunan Province, is a publisher and writer under the pen names Mo Guai (莫怪), and Chen Pu (陈朴). Inspired by Lu Xun’s writings when he was in middle school, Zhu decided to follow the Chinese Communist Party. In 1949, Zhu was admitted to the cadre journalism class of the New Hunan Newspaper, the earliest news organization set up by CCP in Hunan since the founding of the PRC, and then worked for the newspaper before being transferred to Hunan People's Broadcasting Station in 1950. In 1952, because of his leading role in reporting and criticizing the leadership of the radio station, Zhu was accused of leading an anti-Party group, expelled from the Communist Youth League, and transferred back to the New Hunan Newspaper to work under supervision. In 1955, Zhu became a target of Mao’s purge of counter-revolutionaries; and in 1957, because of his comments about the purge and Stalin, he was labeled a Rightist, dismissed from public service, and exiled for re-education through labor. After being released in 1962, he was again labeled a counter-revolutionary and sentenced to three years' imprisonment in 1970. After being rehabilitated in 1979, Zhu worked as an editor at the Hunan People's Publishing House until his retirement, and joined the Chinese Writers' Association in 1985.
As a scholar and writer specializing in contemporary Chinese history, Zhu has written about a dozen books, one of the most popular of which is Summer of 1957: From One Hundred Schools of Thought to Two Schools of Thought (held in our Archive), a panoramic description of the Anti-Rightist Campaign. Zhu is also an expert on Lu Xun, and wrote many books about Lu Xun, such as The Biography of Lu Xun, Lu Xun’s Interpersonal Relationship, and Re-reading Lu Xun.
