In July 1921, He and Mao traveled to Shanghai to attended the 1st National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, as representatives of Changsha.

He then entered Moscow Sun Yat-sen University, where his classmates included fellow party members Xu Teli, Wu Yuzhang, Dong Biwu, and Lin Boqu.

In July 1930, He went back to China, and took charge of the National Huji Institute and organized the rescue and transfer to safe places of arrested communists.

Later, with his appointment arranged by Mao Zedong, he served as a member of the People's Committee of the Chinese Soviet Republic as a secretary of worker-peasant inspection.

However, he was dismissed from this position because he was targeted for criticism on the context of the campaign against the "Luo Ming Line" launched by Bo Gu.