ABSTRACT
A conflict between different factions over issues of ideology characterized political life in China during the two and a half years that elapsed between the death of Mao Zedong on September 9, 1976, and the Chinese offensive into Vietnam on February 17, 1979. Wang Dortgxing had emerged as a fan of "palace intrigue" during the "Cultural Revolution. On October 6, 1976, a month after Mao's death, Hua Guofeng, Ye Jianying, and Wang Dongxing joined forces to arrest the "Gang of Four". He commanded Army Unit 8341 at the time of the flashlight arrest of the Gang of Four, a bloodless coup. This great exploit allowed him to advance to Party vice chairman and become a sort of all -powerful right-hand man to Hua Guofeng. At the beginning of the Central Work Conference held in March 1977, certain members, such as Wang Zhen, brought up the problem of Deng Xiaoping's eventual return.
