1in July, 973, Mao Zedong pointed out in his conversation with Wang Hongwen and Zhang Chunqiao that Lin Biao, like the Kuomintang, was "respecting Confucius and opposing the law". In his view, Legalists are advancing in history, while Confucianism is driving backwards. Mao Zedong linked the criticism of forests with the criticism of hollowness to prevent the so-called "restoration retrogression" and the denial of the "Cultural Revolution". Jiang Qing and his gang took the slogan put forward by Mao Zedong and, after planning, put forward the so-called "criticism of forests and holes" movement, aiming at Zhou Enlai.

1974 18 10/8 18, Mao Zedong approved the requests of Wang Hongwen and Jiang Qing, and the Party Central Committee forwarded the book "Lin Biao and the Way of Confucius and Mencius" edited by Jiang Qing, and the movement of "criticizing forests and criticizing holes" was launched nationwide.

The movement of "approving forests and holes" lasted about half a year from the beginning of 1974 to June of the same year. During this period, Jiang Qing and his gang used the opportunity of "criticizing the forest and criticizing the hole" to fan the flames everywhere, engage in "insinuating history", criticize the so-called "modern Confucianism" and "great Confucianism within the party" and openly attack the Prime Minister; By criticizing Lin Biao's "self-denial", they insinuated that the adjustment work carried out by Premier Zhou Enlai since 1972 was "retrogression" and "rightist resurgence". They also tried their best to flatter the "queen" and create public opinion for her anti-Zhou conspiracy to form a cabinet. After discovering that Jiang Qing and his gang seized power, Mao Zedong severely criticized them, calling them the Gang of Four, which failed their plot to "form a cabinet" against Zhou Dynasty.

This movement of criticizing Lin and Confucius not only caused confusion in the field of historical research and social ethics, but also caused confusion in people's minds. Under the impact of the so-called "anti-tide" instigated by Jiang Qing and his gang, the improvement of all aspects of work since Zhou Enlai presided over the daily work of the Central Committee was frustrated again.