Background
Xiao was born Xiao Kesen (萧克森) in Xiangxiang, Hunan, on October 10, 1896, the second son of Xiao Yueying (萧岳英), a Chinese educator.
萧三, 蕭三
Xiao was born Xiao Kesen (萧克森) in Xiangxiang, Hunan, on October 10, 1896, the second son of Xiao Yueying (萧岳英), a Chinese educator.
Xiao San attended Dongshan School and Dongshan High School. He graduated from Hunan First Normal University, where he studied alongside Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, and his brother Xiao Zisheng.
He was fluent in Russian, French, German, and English. Xiao San was the first writer to write biography of Mao Zedong. His birthname was Xiao Kesen (萧克森).
His style name was Zizhang (子暲), his given name was Xiao Chunsan (萧莼三), and he also known as Xiao Zhifan (萧植蕃).
His pen name included Emi Siao (埃弥·萧), Ai Mei (爱梅), and Tianguang (天光). He had an elder brother, Xiao Zisheng (1894-1976), a Chinese educator and scholar.
In 1918, he founded New People"s Study Society with Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, and Xiao Zisheng. In 1920, he traveled to France for the Work-Study Program.
He joined the Communist Party of China in 1922.
In 1923, he went to Moscow to studied at Communist University of the Toilers of the East. He returned to China in 1924 and served as Secretary of Hunan Provincial Committee of the Communist Youth League of China. He suffered a concussion and got rest in Vladivostok in 1928, he studied at Moscow Sun Yat-sen University and then taught at Far Eastern Federal University.
Xiao returned to China in 1939 and worked in Yan"an, he once served in various political roles in the Communist Party"s government.
In April 1945, he attended at the 7th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. Xiao was arrested by the Chinese government in 1961 during the Sino-Soviet split.
He was politically rehabilitated in 1979 by Hu Yaobang and died in Beijing on February 4, 1983.