Chinese artist Chen Chengqi created this oil painting, entitled "Going to Beijing for Big Exam" in 2010. 

It depicts the CPC Central Committee leaving Xibaipo village in north China's Hebei province and saying goodbye to villagers before their departure in 1949. 

China's civil war between the Kuomintang (KMT) and the Communist Party of China (CPC) began in June 1946. 

In March 1947, under the attacks by the KMT, the CPC Central Committee withdrew from its headquarters in Yan'an in northwest China's Shaanxi province. 

A Front Committee, led by Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and Ren Bishi, decided to continue the nationwide war against the KMT in Shaanxi province while a Working Committee, led by Liu Shaoqi and Zhu De, moved to northern China. 

Their reunion in Xibaipo in May 1948 marks the CPC's successful relocation of its headquarters from Yan'an to Xibaipo. 

In Xibaipo, Mao and CPC army leaders jointly commanded three major campaigns: Liaoshen, Huaihai and Pingjin. 

The battles lasted 142 days and wiped out the main military forces of the KMT which paved the way for the CPC's victory in the civil war. 

In March 1949, the CPC Central Committee held a historic meeting in Xibaipo to prepare for the founding of the People's Republic of China. 

As the KMT troops retreated, the CPC Central Committee traveled to Beijing for a "big exam in the capital city." 

In ancient China, scholars flocked to the capital city for the Imperial Examination, aiming to passing the exam and becoming capable government officials. 

Mao used the "exam metaphor" to highlight the CPC's determination to lead Chinese people to achieve the nation's rejuvenation.

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