Leng Yu

Leng Yu (; June 22, 1882 – August 18, 1959), courtesy name Yuqiu (御秋), born Leng Xiaolan (晓岚), was a Chinese politician, revolutionary, educator, and rural reform advocate. A native of Dantu, Jiangsu, Leng participated in the revolutionary movement during the late Qing dynasty, joined the Tongmenghui, and later became active in educational reform, democratic movements, and agricultural modernization. During the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, he emerged as an important figure among China's non-party democratic forces and later participated in the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Biography Qing Dynasty period Leng was born on June 22, 1882, in Huangxu Town, Dantu County, Jiangsu. In 1902, he entered the Anhui Military Academy in Anqing, where he secretly joined revolutionary circles associated with Bai Wenwei and maintained contacts with the Yuewang Society. After graduation in 1905, he entered military service in the New Army stationed in Nanjing. Influenced by revolutionary officers including Zhao Sheng, Leng joined the Tongmenghui in 1906.

After being removed from his military post in 1907, Leng continued revolutionary activities within the Anhui New Army. In 1908, together with revolutionaries including Xiong Chengji, he participated in preparations for an armed uprising connected to military exercises near Taihu County. The plan failed and Leng was imprisoned before being released in May 1909. He later traveled to Hong Kong and subsequently accepted military and educational appointments in Guangxi, where he became active in the local Tongmenghui organization and participated in publishing revolutionary newspapers.

Republic of China period Following the Wuchang Uprising in 1911, Leng joined revolutionary military campaigns and supported the establishment of the Republic of China. In September 1912, he received the rank of lieutenant general from provisional president Yuan Shikai. The following year he became commander of the Jiangsu Third Division. During the Second Revolution in 1913, his forces were defeated by Beiyang troops, forcing him into exile in Japan.

After Yuan Shikai's attempt to restore the monarchy in 1915, Leng returned to China and participated in the National Protection War. In 1916, he served in the military administration organized by Cen Chunxuan and Liang Qichao in Guangdong. That same year, together with Huang Yanpei and others, he helped establish the Chinese Vocational Education Association, in which he later served in multiple leadership positions. He subsequently joined the constitutional protection movement led by Sun Yat-sen, serving as senior adviser to the military government in Guangdong and later as Vice Minister of the Interior.

Returning to his native Zhenjiang in 1921, Leng shifted his focus toward rural and agricultural development. Supported by figures including Chen Guangfu, he founded agricultural enterprises and sericulture institutions aimed at improving rural livelihoods. In 1925, he briefly served as commander of the Jiangsu Water and Land Security Forces during the political unrest surrounding the May Thirtieth Movement. In 1928, in cooperation with the Chinese Vocational Education Association and provincial authorities, he established the Zhenjiang Huangxu Rural Improvement Experimental Zone and became chairman of its governing committee.

After the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Leng became active in relief and democratic activities. Working with Huang Yanpei and others, he helped organize assistance for displaced youth and supported wartime mobilization efforts. In 1938, he became a member of the National Political Council, where he represented the educational reform community and advocated democratic participation.

In November 1939, Leng joined Huang Yanpei, Shen Junru, Zhang Bojun, Liang Shuming, and Zhang Lan in founding the United Association for National Reconstruction. On March 19, 1941, he became one of the founding central executive committee members of the China Democratic League.

During the later years of the war, Leng supported proposals for a democratic coalition government and opposed one-party rule by the Kuomintang. Together with Huang Yanpei and others, he signed public declarations advocating constitutional government and national reconciliation. In July 1945, Leng joined Huang Yanpei, Chu Fucheng, Fu Sinian, Zuo Shunsheng, and Zhang Bojun in the well-known visit to Yan'an, where they met leaders of the Chinese Communist Party including Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai to discuss cooperation and peace.

On July 1, 1945, six members of the National Political Council, including Zhang Bojun, flew to Yan'an to discuss cooperation between the Chinese Communist Party and the Kuomintang and the establishment of domestic peace. From right to left in the photograph are: Mao Zedong, Huang Yanpei, Chu Fucheng, Zhang Bojun, Leng Yu, Fu Sinian, Zuo Shunsheng, Zhu De, Zhou Enlai, and Wang Ruofei. In December 1945, Leng participated in the establishment of the China Democratic National Construction Association and was elected standing supervisor. After returning to Zhenjiang, he resumed agricultural development efforts and supported reconstruction initiatives in eastern China.

People's Republic of China period In 1949, Leng attended the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference as a representative and participated in the ceremony marking the founding of the People's Republic of China. In March 1950, he became Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Conservancy of the East China Military and Administrative Committee. In 1952, he was appointed one of the vice chairmen of the newly established Jiangsu People's Government, later redesignated as vice governor.

Leng also served as a delegate to the first and second National People's Congress, vice chairman of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the CPPCC, standing director of the Chinese Vocational Education Association, and a member of the first central standing committee of the China Democratic National Construction Association.

Leng died in Nanjing on August 18, 1959, from acute myocardial infarction.