Zeng Liansong

Zeng Liansong (; 17 December 1917 – 19 October 1999) was a Chinese supply chain manager and secret agent of the Chinese Communist Party best known for designing the flag of the People's Republic of China. He also served as the deputy manager of the Shanghai City Daily Necessities Company and a member of the CPPCC Shanghai Committee.

Early life and education Zeng Liansong was born in Rui'an, Zhejiang. He studied at Rui'an County Primary School (now Rui'an City Experimental Primary School) and Rui'an High School in his youth.

In 1936, Zeng was admitted to the Department of Economics of the National Central University. He later joined the Anti-Japanese and National Salvation Federation at the university and devoted himself to the Chinese Communist Revolution. He joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in May 1938, engaged in underground activities, and served as the secretary of the underground student party branch of the CCP at the National Central University.

Career Zeng's proposal for the People's Republic of China national flag. After his graduation in 1940, Zeng served as an underground worker (secret agent) for the CCP. In 1949, he worked as a secretary at the Shanghai Modern Economic News Agency (上海现代经济通讯社), a secret economic news stronghold and intelligence agency led by the Shanghai Underground Party of the CCP (中国共产党上海地下党). In May 1949, the People's Liberation Army gained control of Shanghai. Having completed its historical mission, the Shanghai Modern Economic News Agency was disbanded. Soon after, Zeng saw the solicitation notice for the national flag of the People's Republic of China and devoted himself to the design work.

After the Cultural Revolution, Zeng worked as the deputy manager of the Shanghai City Daily Necessities Company . He also served as a member of the 5th session of the CPPCC Shanghai Committee and a member of the Standing Committee of the 6th session of the CPPCC Shanghai Committee.

Zeng retired in 1983. He authored books including "A Summary of the Development History of Ceramics" and "Knowledge of Daily Necessities", as well as some poems. He once wrote in a poem: "A fool's gift to the motherland, under the Five-Starred Red Flag, the seas and mountains stand magnificent."

On 19 October 1999, Zeng died at the Shanghai Municipal First People's Hospital. He was 81 years old.

Communist Party membership Zeng joined the CCP when he was in college at the National Central University in May 1938. However, due to the White Terror created by the Kuomintang in February 1940, Zeng received an emergency transfer notice and left Chongqing in a hurry without completing the transfer procedures of his party membership organizational relations. As a result, he lost his membership in the CCP.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zeng began reapplying to join the party. In 36 years, he filed five party membership requests. On 1 October 1979, the 30th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Zeng was once again invited to Beijing to participate in National Day activities. He continued to reapply after he retired in 1983. In November 1985, the 68-year-old Zeng was finally approved to rejoin the CCP. As a special case, he did not need a preparatory period before becoming a formal member. By this time, he had suffered a second stroke and struggled to walk.