In 1968, Jiang Qing announced Liu Shaoqi as a major special agent and traitor when receiving the Peking Opera Troupe. During the Cultural Revolution, numerous political figures and intellectuals suffered brutal persecution.
A mass rally to criticize Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping was held in Tiananmen Square. Liu Shaoqi held up the Constitution to protest and was beaten by Red Guards, while Wang Guangmei was also publicly humiliated and subsequently arrested.
After the Cultural Revolution began in 1967, Jiang Zemin was subjected to two years of reform through labor due to his family background and inappropriate remarks.
Not long after the Cultural Revolution broke out in 1967, Han Xiu arrived at the Xinjiang Corps, and thanks to his proficiency in Russian was able to communicate and interact with local Uyghur residents who spoke Russian.
During the Cultural Revolution in 1967, with Mao Zedong's approval, Red Guards posted two slogans on both sides of Xinhua Gate at Zhongnanhai — “Long live the great Chinese Communist Party” and “Long live the invincible Mao Zedong Thought” — and they remain in place as of 2025.
In 1967, Wang Guangmei, wife of Liu Shaoqi, was publicly denounced at Tsinghua University, with Tsinghua President Jiang Nanxiang and Bo Yibo accompanying her in the struggle session.