Chapter 5 Chapter V Joining the Communist International

Sun Yat-sen decided to unite with Russia and the Communist Party, and sent Chiang Kai-shek to the Soviet Union for inspection.While in Moscow, Chiang Kai-shek read a Comintern document on the Kuomintang and immediately said: "I am so desperate! Look what it has to say? How can a friendly party be so neglected that it can become the center of world revolution Woolen cloth?" Chiang Kai-shek wrote: "...I am more convinced than ever that the Soviet political system is a ruling tool of dictatorship and terrorism, and it is completely different from the political system of the Kuomintang based on the Three People's Principles...".

After Xu Chongzhi was defeated, he led the rest of his troops to flee to Fujian. On October 13, 1922, he occupied Fuzhou. Sun Yat-sen immediately rewarded him and appointed him commander-in-chief and Chiang Kai-shek as chief of staff. Thanks to the cooperation of other troops, this loyal army reached Guangzhou on November 15, and Chen Jiongming had to go into hiding.A few weeks later, the situation became clear. On January 21, 1923, Sun Yat-sen returned to Guangzhou and resumed his military government. The capricious Chiang Kai-shek always had to be ordered or summoned to return to Sun's side.

Before regaining Guangdong, he went to Shanghai with an excuse.So Sun Yat-sen wrote him another letter, which was the most severe of all letters, criticizing and advising Chiang. When Chiang Kai-shek returned to Guangzhou, Sun Yat-sen had just resumed the military government, and Chiang Kai-shek asked for leave to go to Shanghai to treat his eye disease.At that time, he did suffer from eye disease, although it is not clear what disease. Shanghai, a port city, has its own charm, and it has always attracted Chiang Kai-shek. Chen Qimei, Chiang Kai-shek’s leader in the revolution, once took him to the site of the underworld "Qing Gang", and the street was full of brothels.

There, Chiang met a prostitute, Chen Jieru, and became smitten with her.Chiang Kai-shek married Chen Jieru soon and lived together. It was not until Chiang married Song Meiling that the romantic marriage between Chiang and Chen came to an end. During the Northern Expedition, Chen Jieru played in certain aspects of Chiang's life the role that Song Meiling would later play in Chiang's life.Chen Jieru was beautiful and well-educated, and Jiang's friends and subordinates respected her very much. The "Green Gang" became Chiang's protector. In the autumn of 1927, Du Yuesheng, the leader of the notorious "Green Gang", sponsored Chen Jieru to go to the United States.After Chen Jieru settled in the United States, she entered Columbia University in New York to study and obtained a Ph.D.After that, she headed to the West Coast and bought a house near San Francisco to live in.

In 1967, she finished writing her autobiography and handed it over to a publisher in New York for publication, but the Taiwan authorities bought the copyright of the book at a huge sum of money, and her publishing plan was aborted. After receiving the money, Chen Jieru was very rich, and she emigrated to Hong Kong until her death in 1971.Her ashes were returned to California, where they were buried. At that time, apart from his eye disease, other things kept him in Shanghai, and he did not return to Guangzhou until April 20.He then immediately went into battle with the rebels there, a period of chaos, of attack and counterattack, loyalty and betrayal, good fortune and bad luck, hostility and rivalry, intricate and unpredictable.

But one thing is certain, that is, Sun Yat-sen's power is becoming more and more unstable. It was during this time that Sun Yat-sen decided to change his luck by joining a new ally, the leader of the new regime in Moscow. On July 4, 1918, shortly after the establishment of the Soviet regime, Chicherin, the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union announced that Soviet Russia unilaterally abolished the agreements and unequal treaties signed by successive tsars with China and with Japan and other countries at the expense of China. .In addition to the declaration on July 25, 1919, Soviet Russia issued a second declaration to China on September 27, 1920, and officially notified the Beijing government.

This series of friendly statements has been welcomed by the Chinese people.Initially, Soviet Russia did not pay much attention to Sun Yat-sen and his Kuomintang, and only regarded it as a small group in the south.Soviet Russia frequently put forward various suggestions to the Beiyang government, but all the Beiyang governments under the control of Western powers and Japan rejected them. Therefore, the Soviets decided to develop relations with the Kuomintang.At the same time, Sun Yat-sen realized that his power base was so weak that it was impossible to count on the Western powers, so he decided to follow the Soviets' advice.

Soviet interests were not necessarily represented by Soviets. In 1919 Lenin established the Communist International to push the revolution to every corner of the world. The first representative of the Comintern sent to China was Snefleet, aliased as Ma Lin. He came to China in the spring of 1921 as a tourist and went to Guangxi to meet Sun Yat-sen. This meeting, Sun Yat-sen gave Ma Lin Lin was so impressed that Ma Lin realized that the Kuomintang was the main representative of Chinese nationalism. In January 1922, seamen's strikes broke out in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, and Marin found that the Kuomintang had organized this new type of Chinese labor movement well.

After returning to Moscow, Marin suggested that the Chinese Communist Party should join the Kuomintang in order to control it from within.This suggestion was completely contrary to the content of the report of another Soviet representative sent to China after the October Revolution, which was in favor of developing relations with the northern warlords. In August 1922, Marin and Sun Yat-sen held talks again in Shanghai.Marin advised Sun Yat-sen to absorb the Communist Party's experience in mass propaganda and mass organization; while Chiang Kai-shek always advocated military action.It seems that Sun Yat-sen adopted all of Marin's suggestions.

So what about the Chinese Communist Party?None of the founders of the Chinese Communist Party knew Russian, and no one had received a Marxist-Leninist education in the Soviet Union. The Communist International led by Lenin played an important role in the founding of the Chinese Communist Party. In fact, it was Marin and Weijinski, another representative of the Comintern, who brought together scattered Marxist groups and held the first National Congress of the Communist Party of China on July 1, 1921, thus marking the Communist Party's established. Both Marin and Weijinski were in attendance. Twelve representatives of the Chinese Communist Party attended the meeting, including Mao Zedong.

However, Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao, the true founders of Chinese communist ideology, were not present. Chen Duxiu was elected as the first general secretary, but he broke away from the CCP soon after. Later Li Dazhao was killed by Beijing warlords. At least 6 of the 12 representatives broke away from the Communist Party, and it was for this reason that Marin's career was hindered. Initially, the CCP was weak and weak, and was basically controlled by the Communist International. In August 1922, after the second meeting with Sun Yat-sen, Marin formally suggested that members of the CCP should join the Kuomintang.The proposal was implemented despite strong opposition within the Chinese Communist Party.Sun Yat-sen welcomed the Communist Party members to join the Kuomintang in their personal capacity. The "matchmaking" has been made, and the wedding ceremony is just short of the formal marriage.Moscow sent an experienced diplomat, Joffe, the former ambassador to Berlin, to complete this mission. Joffe arrived in China in August 1922, and after yet another setback in his efforts to establish relations with the Beijing government, he traveled to Shanghai for talks with Sun Yat-sen. On January 26, 1923, the two sides issued the "Sun Yue Communiqué". The two sides stated that China does not yet have the conditions to realize the social system of communism or the Soviet model; the current primary issue is to achieve national unity and independence.The communiqué once again announced that the Soviet Union would renounce any privileges in China, but still retain the Eastern Railway-this railway was acquired by the Russians in 1917. A tacit agreement was reached between Sun Yat-sen and Yue Fei that the Communist Party of the Soviet Union would reorganize the Kuomintang along the communist line. On October 6, 1923, the Politburo of the Soviet Union appointed the capable Borodin to carry out this work.Like many Russian revolutionaries of this period, Borodin assumed the false identity of being a Jew born in Lithuania. In January 1924, the first National Congress of the Kuomintang was held in Guangzhou, completing the task of reorganization. From then on, the Kuomintang decided to hold a National Congress every two years and hold a meeting of the Executive Committee every six months; in addition, set up a small-scale Standing Committee , consisting of five to nine people, which is equivalent to the standard Communist Party Politburo. This series of measures greatly benefited the Communist Party, and although it was still small in number, it began to play a role in the large Kuomintang. All of the above was the historical background of Chiang's activities in the next phase. Sun Yat-sen had decided to unite with Russia and the Communist Party. He planned to send his subordinates to the Soviet Union to investigate and report to him. He chose Chiang Kai-shek. On August 5, 1923, Chiang discussed the arrangements for the visit with Ma Lin in Shanghai. On September 2, Chiang, accompanied by three assistants, arrived in Moscow.He spent most of his time in the Soviet Union in the capital Moscow. They left the Soviet Union on November 29 and returned to Shanghai on December 15. Chiang Kai-shek and his party went to investigate the party system, political and military organization after the successful Soviet revolution. According to the biography of Chiang, Chiang was very disappointed and dissatisfied with the Soviet revolution he witnessed in the Soviet Union.In his own article, he explains why.In the Executive Committee of the Communist International, Chiang Kai-shek expressed his confidence in the revolution. He believed that the Chinese revolutionary movement based on Sun Yat-sen's Three People's Principles would achieve success within two to three years.He claimed that the Comintern did not understand the nature of the Chinese revolution, and suggested that the Comintern send more people to investigate. While in Moscow, he read a Comintern document on the KMT and immediately said: "I am in despair! Look what it says? How can a friendly party be so neglected that it can become the center of world revolution Woolen cloth?" Chiang Kai-shek and his party visited the Naval Research Institute in Petrograd and some other military schools, and visited the naval base in Kronstadt.No one talks about a mutiny that took place here two years ago.But judging from the attitudes of locals and naval personnel, the incident has left deep marks. They met with some ministers and some local officials and participated in the General Congress of Soviets in Moscow.Chiang wrote: "I soon became aware of the fierce open and secret struggles in all sectors of Soviet society and within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. I was more convinced than ever that the Soviet political system was an instrument of dictatorship and terrorism, and it was incompatible with the Three People's Principles. The political system of the underlying Nationalist Party is completely different, and this is what I came to the conclusion of my visit to the Soviet Union. If we had stayed at home, we probably would never have discovered this.” Some of the KMT's more tactful references to the Soviet Union did not change Chiang Kai-shek's views on the Soviet system. There was another reason for Jiang's disappointment and dissatisfaction.Chiang attempted to resolve with the Soviet Union the Russian occupation of Chinese territory, especially Outer Mongolia.In the "Sun Yue Communiqué" in January of the first year, the Soviet representative clearly stated that the Soviet Union "has no intention of continuing to pursue an imperialist policy on the Outer Mongolia issue, nor has it any intention of separating it from China." However, as soon as Chiang Kai-shek raised this question, the Soviets either avoided answering it, or took a tough attitude without compromise.In fact, it was under the scheming of the Soviet authorities that the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Government was established on July 6, 1919; and there is no sign that the Soviet Union would relinquish control of it. Chiang Kai-shek wanted Lenin to meet him, but the Bolshevik leader was in a coma at this time, Chiang Kai-shek met with Chicherin, Kamenev, Zinoviev, Radek and Trotsky and especially had several long talks with Trotsky. To Chiang Kai-shek's surprise, many Soviet leaders respected Sun Yat-sen very much, and most of the people who cooperated most sincerely with the Kuomintang were Jews. Trotsky quoted Lenin as saying that the Soviet Union would give full moral and material support to the anti-imperialist struggle of the colonial and semi-colonial people. He asked Chiang to tell Sun Yat-sen: "The Soviet Union will support his national revolution and will give Active military and economic aid, but the Soviet Union will not send troops directly." Lenin's condition worsened day by day, and Chiang noticed that the struggle for power between the international faction headed by Trotsky and the domestic faction headed by Stalin had become increasingly prominent (Chiang Kai-shek did not seem to have met Stalin at the time). What worried Chiang Kai-shek was that Sino-Soviet cooperation was built on a fragile foundation, and Chiang believed that once the Soviet regime was consolidated, it would resume the imperial ambitions of the tsarist era. Chiang Kai-shek wrote them all down on his way back to Shanghai. On March 14, 1924, he sent a letter from Fenghua to a senior Kuomintang official, in which he wrote: The Communist Party of the Soviet Union is not trustworthy, and the party members he met in the Soviet Union only slandered and doubted Mr. Sun.He goes on to write: The only policy of the Russian Party towards China is to make the Chinese Communist Party its orthodoxy, and it is absolutely unbelievable that our party can always cooperate with it. As far as its policy towards China is concerned, in the Manchu, Mongolian, Hui, and Tibetan tribes, it is its soviets. One, as for the headquarters of China, it has never had any intention of meddling. Chiang Kai-shek's letter was circulated among the Standing Committee of the Kuomintang.However, his letters and reports had no effect in the warm atmosphere of cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. When Chiang Kai-shek was not in Guangzhou, Borodin just arrived, and at Liao Zhongkai's suggestion, Sun Yat-sen appointed Borodin as the political adviser of the Kuomintang. Sun Yat-sen seemed completely captivated by Borodin's personal presence and character. Borodin was a typical cosmopolitan and revolutionary adventurer.He was sent to the United States as a child, where he was educated.He later opened a business school in Chicago and read a lot of Marxist works. Borodin is his pseudonym. The Comintern sent him to Mexico, Scotland (where he was expelled) and Turkey. When Borodin came to Guangzhou, he also brought a letter from the Soviet Union announcing the abandonment of the Chinese territories occupied by the Tsar. Borodin quickly won the trust of the Kuomintang leaders, not only because of his personal demeanor, his sincerity, but also because of his personal beliefs and full support for the Three People's Principles. Chiang Kai-shek did not return to Guangzhou until mid-December.After he returned to China, he went back to Xikou first.Sun Yat-sen was again displeased with Chiang's lack of discipline. On December 24, 1923, he sent a telegram to Chiang, saying that his trip to the Soviet Union was a heavy responsibility, and he should return to Guangdong to report on the situation in the Soviet Union as soon as possible, and to formulate a Sino-Soviet cooperation plan in detail.He also wrote that we respect your opinions on the political situation and your suggestions, and we would like to discuss this matter with you. Chiang Kai-shek reluctantly broke off his personal arrangements and returned to Canton.He explained to Sun Yat-sen that before he went to the Soviet Union, he believed that the Russian Communist Party was sincere and willing to help the Kuomintang.However, the trip to the Soviet Union disappointed him.From the perspective of short-term interests, "union with Russia and the Communist Party" may form a force against Western colonialists; but in the long run: the Soviet Union's world revolution plan poses a greater threat to China's independence than the old colonists. As in the past, Sun Yat-sen once again rejected Chiang Kai-shek's proposal.He believes that the current revolutionary situation urgently needs the cooperation of the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, and the only way to deal with the Communist Party is to place them under the leadership and control of the Kuomintang.In this way, the Northern Expedition can be carried out, and once the Northern Expedition is successful, the Three People's Principles can be realized. Chiang Kai-shek's futile efforts made the Kuomintang leaders wary, and he was answered with a series of rhetorical questions: Did the Soviet Union not recognize the Kuomintang as the only party capable of leading the national revolution?Wasn't the Soviet Union urging CCP members to join the KMT and accept its leadership?Didn't Joffe admit that communism is not suitable for China? According to the official archives of the Kuomintang, Sun Yat-sen's initial policy was to "unite with Russia and accommodate the Communist Party", but the CCP interpreted it as "unity with Russia and the Communist Party" according to its own practice. A few days after Jiang returned to Guangzhou, the first National Congress of the Kuomintang was held in Guangzhou.A worried Chiang Kai-shek attended the meeting, and he found that the Kuomintang members had begun to be influenced by the newcomers to the Communist Party. These CCP members made good use of their special relationship with the Soviet Union. Li Dazhao, the first CCP member to join the Kuomintang, said at the meeting: “We joined the Kuomintang as an individual rather than an organization. Some people may say that we have dual party membership, but it cannot be said that the Kuomintang is a party within a party...We joined the Kuomintang while retaining the qualifications of the CCP. This is an open and commendable act, and Not a sneaky operation." Jiang recalled that Li Dazhao's speech had the desired effect.All doubts of the KMT disappeared, and the KMT took no precautions.However, CCP members quickly expanded its sphere of influence through secret organizations. The conference formally adopted the charter drafted by Borodin, and eight Communist Party members including Li Dazhao and Mao Zedong were elected to the Kuomintang Central Executive Committee and Central Supervisory Committee. On January 24, when the conference was about to close, Chiang was appointed chairman of the Preparatory Committee for the Army Military Academy, planning to open a school on Huangpu Island, 14 miles from Guangzhou, and was nominated as the principal of the military academy.Jiang expressed more and more doubts about cooperating with the Communist Party, resigned again, and left the preparation work to Liao Zhongkai, and went back to his hometown in Xikou by himself.Sun Yat-sen sent letters and telegrams to urge him again, reminding him to obey the needs of the revolution.It was not until April that Chiang heeded the urging and returned to Guangzhou. Sun Yat-sen believed that military academies were an indispensable tool for national unity.He urgently needs a well-trained team to wipe out the warlord forces. The Soviet Union promised to support the military academy with weapons and trainers.While in Moscow, Chiang Kai-shek discussed the relevant details with senior Soviet Red Army generals. On his way back to Vladivostok, he also met with General Galen, commander of the Siberian Military District. Chiang Kai-shek finally agreed to serve as the principal of the Whampoa Military Academy, and he proposed that General Galen be his chief of staff.The Soviet Union agreed to this request, so Galen came to China. Liao Zhongkai was appointed as the representative of the Kuomintang Party in the Whampoa Military Academy, and his deputy was Zhou Enlai, a young and promising member of the Communist Party of China who was studying in France. Jiang had great respect for Galen. "In my opinion," Chiang wrote, "he was an outstanding Soviet general, a very reasonable man and a good friend. The most extraordinary thing is that he has no trace of Bolshevik in him." In the following days, Jiang repeatedly asked Stalin to send Galen to China again, but most of these requests were not answered. In 1939, Stalin told the Kuomintang ambassador to the Soviet Union that Galen had been executed because he was infatuated with a Japanese female spy and was not loyal to the country. On June 16, 1924, Sun Yat-sen announced the official establishment of the Whampoa Military Academy, which indicated that military and political cooperation between China and the Soviet Union and between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party had begun.