Wow, he is undeservedly obscure, isn't he? Personally, I think he could have had a considerable impact if he had somehow managed to hold the forces together. Looks like the escape was his idea at least partly. The question is, could he have managede to stay relevant in the fasce of so much more talented military leaders? The Chinese revere intellectuals, but a peasant-born librarian as commander of a revolutionary army? I can't see it.
Still, with his connections to Moscow, that makes a real chance of a divided China post-WWII instead of a bloc-free hegemonial rival for India. Delhi coulkd end up dominating the Indian Ocean basin from Madagascar to Singapore in this TL.