 Although Mao Zedong had reportedly wanted to appoint Wang Hongwen as Zhou Enlai's successor, he ended up naming Hua as acting premier.At the same time, the leftist-controlled media began denouncing Deng once again (he had been purged during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, and was only returned to power in 1973).Popular affection for Zhou was underestimated, however, leading to a confrontation between the radicals' militia allies and Beijing citizens seeking to honor Zhou during the traditional Qingming festival.