Abstract: By 1956, three major socialist transformations had been basically completed in China. In the same year, the convening of the Eighth National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) marked the establishment of the socialist system, signifying that New China began to enter a period of all-round socialist construction. From 1957 the CPC began to repeatedly underscore that although a decisive victory had been secured on the economic front, thorough socialist transformation on the political and ideological fronts were needed for the adaptation to the all-round development and advancement of socialist construction. Therefore, in the process of carrying out the Rectification Movement, the CPC constantly mobilized leading cadres at all levels to take part in physical labor and reiterated the importance of the mass line in overcoming bureaucracy, sectarianism and subjectivism in the hope of properly handling contradictions among the people while further strengthening and closing the relationship between the party and the masses. This historical practice of reconstructing the mass line as a work method reflected the CPC’s conscientious and complex efforts in dealing with the crises and challenges in the process of socialist construction.

Key words: mass line, physical labor, relationship between cadres and masses, socialism