Chapter 9 Chapter 9 Jiang's Remarriage

Founder of Ta Kung Pao.Lin Hu said: "Chiang's marriage was a well-premeditated political move. He hoped to win Mrs. Sun Yat-sen (Song Qingling) and Soong Ziwen by becoming their brother-in-law. At that time, Chiang also began to consider seeking Western support. If Meiling became his wife, he would He had a 'mouth and ears' when dealing with Westerners. In addition, he had always appreciated Ziwen's talent in finance. However, it would be unfair to say that Jiang did not fall in love with Meiling". The Shanghai massacre aroused great indignation among the leftists of the Kuomintang and among the Communists within the Kuomintang, who sought to discredit Chiang.

At a meeting in Wuhan on April 17, 1927, the Central Executive Committee passed a resolution listing Chiang Kai-shek's twelve crimes—among them the massacre of people and the suppression of party activities.Chiang was expelled from the party and relieved of all posts. The general order to arrest Chiang was also issued, with the purpose of "punishing him according to the decree to suppress counter-revolutionaries." Even his head was valued, and there were two prices: 250,000 taels of silver for those caught alive , 100,000 taels if caught dead. Do the leftists really think that Chiang Kai-shek will stop there and the situation is over?If they really think so, they underestimate him.

Under Chiang's auspices, KMT right-wing leaders held meetings in Nanjing from the 15th. That night, on Chiang's orders, police and troops surrounded the trade union and Kuomintang offices in Guangzhou.All Soviet advisers were detained, and a total of about 2,000 people were arrested.Several Whampoa Military Academy cadets and some female students were executed.Chiang also ordered that all fleeing Communist Party members must surrender themselves within a 10-day period, or they would be sentenced to death. On the 18th, the day after Wuhan offered a reward for Jiang's arrest, he announced his answer: "Establish a rival government in Nanjing." That day, standing beside him was Hu Hanmin.

In a lengthy statement, Chiang Kai-shek reiterated Dr. Sun's Three People's Principles, calling for a clean break with communism. “If we allow their horrible politics to spread,” he said, “it will all be in vain.” A week later, on the 25th, 300,000 people gathered in Wuchang to denounce Chiang Kai-shek and his government.China is back in the worst state of chaos, as it was in China after the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty in 1911.Both governments claimed the legitimacy of their revolution and carried on Sun Yat-sen's legacy.In the north, Zhang Zuolin was in power, but he still acted on his own.

The Communist Party is also at a critical juncture at this moment.Should they take advantage of the split within the Kuomintang to draw the left into this violent struggle?Or should we bide our time and continue to preserve partisan alliances?There were also divisions within the Communist Party. On April 27, 1927, 80 delegates, representing 58,000 Communist Party members, held the Fifth Congress in Wuhan.In a resolution, it was decided to expropriate the property of the big landowners and counter-revolutionaries in the areas controlled by the Communist Party.But a special exemption was granted for land belonging to nationalist army officers.

In Changsha, a group of Communists had become active in both the city and the countryside, and local army commanders arrested and executed nearly a hundred "troublemakers," some of the leaders evading arrest in time.Among them was Liu Shaoqi, who later served as President of the People's Republic of China. The Northern War had begun again. On April 24, Chiang Kai-shek presided over a navy and army meeting and decided to resume the Northern Expedition.However, at almost the same time, Nanjing discovered that the Wuhan regime had the same plan, so the Northern Expedition ran aground again.

The army in Wuhan began to advance towards Nanjing, and the army in Nanjing also marched towards Wuhan. General Feng Yuxiang, who believed in Christianity, seemed to realize that this was an opportunity, and took the opportunity to occupy the eastern section of the Longhai Line.In this way, Wang's northern side was surrounded by flanks, while the southern side surrounded the other side. This situation is very deadlocked, and only Feng Yuxiang can break this deadlock.Whether it is Wang Jingwei or Chiang Kai-shek, without Feng Yuxiang, no one can do anything.So, both of them changed their tactics.

At this juncture, Chiang Kai-shek encountered good luck.Stalin's Comintern representative, Indian MN Roy, showed Wang Jingwei a telegram from Moscow, which clearly stated that the Communist Party would take over the regime.Luo Yi obviously hoped that Wang would be happy with such a broad revolutionary prospect and bright future, and go hand in hand with the Communist Party, but this telegram made Wang feel anxious instead.Because in his view, cooperation with the Communist Party was doomed to failure (as Chiang always insisted). Jiang and his colleagues on the left were very worried. They pinned their hopes on Feng Yuxiang, hoping that he would come up with a solution.Feng asked Wang and other left-wing leaders to come to Zhengzhou to discuss.

The talks started on June 10, 1927 and lasted for three days.The leaders in Wuhan made some border concessions to Feng Yuxiang, but in fact they were just empty promises. Subsequently, Feng Yuxiang went to Xuzhou in the east on the 19th to meet with Chiang Kai-shek.Two days later, the two reached a complete agreement.This meant that Feng had decided to support Chiang and put pressure on Wang Jingwei. On the 21st, Feng sent a telegram to Wang, urging him to immediately release Borodin from custody, and said that officials in Wuhan who were interested could join the Nanjing Nationalist Government.He also added that prospective members should use the occasion to visit foreign countries.

Wang remained hostile to Chiang, but the balance of power had now tilted against Wang. On July 15, Wang decided to oppose the Communist Party, and on the 16th, he ordered the massacre of Communists. Roy left on the 3rd, Borodin on the 27th. Galen came to Shanghai to bid farewell to Jiang.Although he was appointed as the chief military adviser to the Wuhan government, the personal relationship between the two is good.Many years later, Jiang once wrote: "This is the most touching parting in my life." The Chinese Communist Party is trying to make a violent comeback from the difficult situation.From August until the end of the year, they held three armed uprisings, but all failed.

The first uprising on 1 August was doubly historic.The Communist Party now celebrates it as the founding day of the People's Liberation Army, and Western historians see it as the start of the first civil war between nationalists and communists (Communist historians also agree that the Civil War It started on August 1st, but they called it the Second Civil Revolutionary War, seeing the Northern Expedition as the First Civil Revolutionary War. Zhou Enlai is now in Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi Province.He learned that some units led by Communist officers were stationed and operating around the city.He and his colleagues believed that if these Communists staged an uprising and pulled their troops over, the Communist Party might have a core armed force of its own.Moreover, the leader of the Nanchang Public Security Bureau at that time was General Zhu De, who later became the commander-in-chief of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. Others later became famous, including Lin Biao and Chen Yi. The Communists took Nanchang, but then lost it because a Nationalist officer did not approve of the plan as they had previously expected. Although Wuhan also began to persecute the Communists, there was no sign of support for Chiang Kai-shek. Taking advantage of the hostility between Wuhan and Nanking, Eastern warlord Sun Chuanfang launched a counteroffensive that drove Chiang's forces from nearly all of the territory they held on the north bank of the Yangtze River.The Wuhan army continued to attack Chiang to the south, so that Chiang would not be able to draw out troops to defend against Sun Chuanfang. For his own benefit and for the sake of Jiang, Feng Yuxiang tried to play a little role at this moment.He suggested that representatives of the two opposing governments in Wuhan and Nanjing hold talks in Anqing, which he considers to be a "neutral" auspicious place. According to Feng's wishes, he held a second meeting with Jiang in Zhengzhou in August.At the beginning, Chiang had sent Muslim General Ma Fuxiang with a friendly message: "Jiang is willing to sworn brotherhood with you," to which Feng replied, "That's great." Feng Yuxiang continued: So, Jiang and I exchanged the horoscope of birth dates and became sworn brothers. At that meeting, we kowtowed to each other four times (in order to complete this sworn ceremony). Jiang asked me, "Now that we have become best friends, how are you going to enlighten me?" I told him, "The people are our masters. We should do what they want and not what they hate thing." "Is there anything else, brother?" Jiang asked again.I said, "If we can do what I just said, then we can implement Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Three People's Principles. Since you asked me again, let me tell you this, we must be unequivocal with our soldiers Share thick and thin. What they eat, we eat; what they wear, we wear. If you can do that, our revolution will succeed." Jiang replied: "Very well, we must do this." Chiang Kai-shek probably saw that there was only one way to break the deadlock: since he was the real source of controversy, he had to go.Perhaps most notably, he has repeatedly offered to resign. On August 13, 1927, he issued a statement of resignation.The statement said: "The eyesight and hearing of ordinary people have begun to lose their previous sharpness and sensitivity. In the past three to four months, the Northern Expedition has almost reached the border of Shandong. Why are we moving forward so fast? And why are we moving at the current speed? So slow again? Please think about it quietly and carefully, the reason is easy to understand." As for himself, he has been considering the matter of resigning, but he cannot resign prematurely.If he resigns prematurely, "then, our party will suffer as follows. First, we will lose our souls and only our bodies will be left. The stars will lose their places, and things will be transformed into each other. I am afraid that even the name Kuomintang no longer exists..." He said he hoped that his colleagues in Wuhan would join the Nanjing side, that the Northern Expedition would resume, and that the Communists in Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi would be "completely wiped out."And said that although he has resigned from all positions, as a member of the Kuomintang and a Chinese citizen, he will continue to perform his duties "as long as I have a breath." That last sentence is a little ominous.However, very few people have heard this last vow.In Chiang's view, and he always believed so, his resignation showed that he was an essential man, the only reliable "China's savior." However, Chiang's departure did ease tensions at the time.General Feng's proposal to convene the Anqing Conference now seems to be meaningless. On August 14, 1927, five major politicians in Nanjing, headed by Hu Hanmin, jointly wrote a letter to Feng Yuxiang in an ironic ancient style.Is it ridiculous, they ask, to hold talks when the two sides are still fighting? "Isn't jade and silk—gifts of friendship—together with bayonets and spears—the weapons of war, used alternately and simultaneously, the laughingstock of the world?" When Jiang's resignation was announced, he had left Nanjing by August 12 and was on his way back to his hometown of Fenghua, accompanied by two hundred bodyguards.He stayed in Shanghai for a few days; then, Hu Hanmin and others followed him all the way. The mountains in his hometown are tall and quiet, which deeply attracted him.He placed his residence in Xuedou Temple.This is a Buddhist monastery on a mountain ridge in Zhejiang.The entourage lived at Xikou, his birthplace, about six miles from where Chiang lived, more than 3,000 feet lower. Perhaps with instant sincerity, Chiang declared to his American guests following him that he intended to spend the next five years traveling abroad to study politics, economics, and military strategy. "His retirement is a myth," wrote one journalist. Dressed in a Chinese-style robe, Chiang projected a scholarly air and an old-fashioned appearance that belied the breezy image of a military statesman.A large number of letters were delivered to him. At that time, he was not completely removed from the affairs of state, but anyway, his stress was reduced, and he could concentrate on the aspects of his personal life. His first marriage was a tragedy; despite having a son, Chiang Ching-kuo. This implies that he has only a minimal intimacy with his wife.He barely knew his wife Mao Fumei.His military training first, and the revolution second, consumed his energies and attracted his interest. During his few home visits, Mao repeatedly persuaded him to give up his military career, but this was almost tantamount to letting him give up life.Such mutual lack of understanding may be the reason for his rough treatment of Mao.Her interests are housework, and she is bewildered and unimpressed by politics. In 1921, perhaps because Chiang met his second wife, Chen Jieru, he decided to divorce. Holrington Tang declared the arrangement to be very friendly and generous to her.But this comment is not in line with the facts.In Jiang's view, the move was intended to get rid of his ex-wife. At that time, in a letter to his brother-in-law, Jiang wrote: "In the past ten years, I can hardly bear the sound of her footsteps or her shadow. So far, the concept of home has existed in name only. I and The main reason for her divorce was the result of ten years of pain. This is not a decision taken lightly.You are a wise and wise man, and I think you can think about my happiness and save me from lifelong pain. " About a year later, at Dr. Sun's home in Guangzhou, Chiang Kai-shek met a young woman whose father was wealthy and had an American education. She has a deep understanding of politics, she loves her country, and he probably thinks her aspirations coincide with his.For a political-military activist, it was the perfect combination.She is Song Meiling. Her father, Charlie Song, had been a Christian from a young age and was a passionate convert.As the first Chinese to receive higher education in the United States, he returned to China and served as a pastor. What he didn't realize, however, was that his windfall as a manufacturer and his fortune selling Bibles were incompatible with evangelism.His wife shared his devotion to the Christian cause.She bore him three daughters and three sons, all of whom were successful, which enabled him to have a balanced family. Soong Ching Ling became Sun Yat-sen's second wife and sided with the Communist Party. The eldest daughter, Ai Ling, married the banker Kong Xiangxi, who later served as Minister of Finance.One son, Song Ziwen, served in the Wuhan government but later became Jiang's finance minister, and the other two sons, Song Ziliang and Song Zian, were well-known figures in Shanghai's financial and business circles. The three Song sisters are all very beautiful, intelligent and strong-willed.After Jiang made up his mind, he acted quickly as always. When he proposed marriage, Soong Meiling listened meekly, but, according to Chiang later, she was "not interested."In fact, she was engaged to Liu Jiwen (later the mayor of Nanjing) at that time.But she agreed that she could correspond with Jiang.In the following turbulent five years, he insisted on writing letters and proposing to her. In May 1927, shortly after the Shanghai coup, Chiang formally proposed to Soong Meiling.The Song family held a family meeting for this purpose.Song Ailing agreed, but Song Ziwen totally disagreed.Although the Soong sisters were highly independent and sought liberation, Soong Meiling had made it clear to Chiang that she would not marry him without the consent of Soong's mother, who did not place much importance on the marriage. Many questions were also raised during this family meeting.By the standards of Chinese society, as a soldier, Chiang was traditionally low-ranking, and besides, he was married—once, maybe once again—unless he could prove that he was divorced.Mrs. Song then heard rumors about other women in Chiang's life.It is also important to note that Chiang is not a Christian. Was it love or political ambition that led Chiang Kai-shek to propose so firmly?Maybe both. Hu Lin (one of the founders of Ta Kung Pao, which is generally considered to be the only independent newspaper in China before 1949) said in a talk: "Chiang's marriage was a well-premeditated political move. He hoped to win Mrs. Sun Yat-sen (Song Qingling) and Soong Ziwen by becoming their brother-in-law. At that time, Chiang also began to consider seeking Western support. If Meiling became his wife, he would He has a mouth and ears when dealing with Westerners'. In addition, he has always admired Ziwen's talent in finance. However, it would be unfair to say that Jiang did not fall in love with Meiling. Jiang obviously regarded himself as As a hero, and in Chinese history since ancient times, heroes love beauties. For political considerations, Jiang could do anything. Under the circumstances at that time, it was very reasonable for Jiang to marry a new wife. " However, "love" can be seen everywhere in Jiang's love letter to Song Meiling.The letter was published in a Catholic newspaper in Tianjin on October 19, 1927. "I don't have any interest in political activities anymore. If there is anyone I admire in my life, you, my love, are the only one. I asked someone to bring you a letter as early as in Guangzhou. Brother and sister (possibly Song Ziwen and Mrs. Sun Yat-sen) expressed my wish, but there was no response. At that time, it may be because of political connections. Now, I have lived in seclusion in this mountain wilderness.I felt abandoned by the whole world, full of despair.Looking back on the hundreds of battles I have seen at the front and my own heroism, I feel only that the so-called exploits were nothing more than a dream.However, your talent, beauty and character will never be forgotten by me.The only question is what my lover thinks of me, a late soldier who has been abandoned by the world. " When Jiang announced his "retirement" in the late summer of 1927, Soong Meiling finally let Jiang know that she agreed with him to be her husband, but it also depended on whether he could convince her mother. On September 23, 1927, Jiang left the monastery in the mountains and arrived in Shanghai with a small entourage.People ask him: Does this mean he's back in public life?He replied: totally not.He has come to win and seek his bride.If all goes well, they will hold their wedding in Shanghai and travel abroad for a year. On the 28th, Chiang arrived in Japan by boat.The Tokyo press ignored what he said in his resignation statement about Japan's obstruction of his Northern Expedition, and gave him a lot of lavish publicity.Hearing that he was coming, Mrs. Song hid in eastern Japan to widen the distance between them.However, in Kamakura, Jiang still found her, and under Song Ailing's pressure, she finally agreed to see him.Chiang had brought papers proving his divorce from his first wife (the second wedding was apparently considered invalid) and had "quieted other rumors created by the tawdry-mongers." But is he ready to be a Christian?Jiang smiled as usual and said that he would do his best and prepare to study the Bible.He couldn't make promises in advance, but he did say he would give it a try. Mrs. Song's objections collapsed, and soon she agreed to the marriage. On December 1, 1927, two ceremonies took place simultaneously.The first is a religious ceremony, conducted at the bride's home by Dr. David.The second ceremony was held at the Majestic Hotel, with a large number of guests. On the same day, Jiang and his wife went on their honeymoon together.They lived in Hangzhou first, and then went to Moganshan in Zhejiang.There are rippling lakes and lush trees. , the mountains and rivers complement each other. In a way, Soong Meiling had a softening influence on her husband, who learned to refer to her as "Daling" in English.But his accent was so strong that no one could really understand what he was saying. It is said that his guards kept overhearing the word "Darling" and assumed it must be a fashionable upper-society way of addressing "Too Big" or "Madame". One day, Soong Meiling asked a guard to carry a message to Jiang. The unfortunate guy stood at attention with both feet, respectfully said: "Sir, Darling, let me tell you..." Jiang could hardly believe his ears. But he soon realized that the guard didn't really understand the meaning of the word. He waved the guard away. In the summer of 1946, Eric Zhou went to Guilin to interview the Marshall Mission.On several occasions, standing beside Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling, he clearly heard them call each other "Da Ling".This is probably the only English word he uses frequently. Another later comment may be cited here; in a private conversation with Eric Zhou in the summer of 1948, Holrington Tang commented: "Madam (referring to Song Meiling) has done many good things for the president. She has made him more familiar with international affairs, but more importantly, since they got married, he has become a devout Christian. Every chapter of the Bible is so familiar that it is qualified to be a missionary." On the morning of Chiang's wedding in 1927, he issued a statement.He wrote in the statement: "After we get married, the revolutionary work will undoubtedly make greater progress. Because from now on, I can take on the heavy responsibility of the revolution with peace of mind... From now on, the two of us decided to do our best. to fight for the Chinese revolution with all our strength.” After Chiang arrived in Japan, two Guangxi generals, Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi, together with He Yingqin, repelled Sun Chuanfang's army approaching Nanking.The Christian general Feng Yuxiang is fiercely fighting against the Northeast warlord Zhang Zuolin at this moment.And another warlord surnamed Zhang also started to attack Henan Province from Shandong Province.Thinking of his brother Chiang Kai-shek, whom he had just sworn, Feng persuaded the Shanxi warlord (“Model Chief” Yan Xishan) to send a telegram with him, inviting Chiang to come back.However, Chiang had his own ideas and ignored them; as Chiang had predicted, the situation had gone from bad to worse since he left Nanking. On the 29th, a new government—nominally "union"—was formed in Nanking.Its cabinet included KMT right-wingers and administrators of the defunct Wuhan government: In November, Wang Jingwei, together with the unreliable Hu Hanmin (after all, Hu had been his former friend and collaborator), set up a separate "National Government" in Guangzhou, and Song Ziwen was among them. In Beijing, Zhang Zuolin proclaimed himself Grand Marshal of the Chinese Navy and Army on June 18, even as his rule was still in turmoil.China seems harder to rule than ever. At this time, the Communists were struggling to regain their strength. On August 7, a few days after the failure of the Nanchang Uprising, the Comintern sent special envoy Rominaz to China to hold an emergency meeting of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. The Communist Party followed Moscow's lead and abandoned Mao's plan for rural Soviets. In fact, the era of Mao Zedong has not really come yet.At this time, Mao was limited to carry out activities in Hunan, and the new revolutionary armed forces, including Zhou Enlai and Liu Shaoqi, were looking forward to a new revolutionary process. On September 9, the famous Autumn Harvest Uprising broke out.One of the strategic goals of this uprising was Changsha City. On the 15th, realizing that the attack was doomed, Mao canceled the plan.At this time, he had been dismissed from all party positions. However, due to the extremely poor communication conditions, he did not learn the news until the spring of the following year. In December, the Communist Party bravely staged another uprising.Although Mao had been removed from office, the party had re-accepted his idea of ​​the rapid establishment of Soviets.However, this time they decided to start in the city, the traditional center of the great Chinese revolution - Guangzhou. On December 11, well-trained Red Guards captured the police station, disarmed them, and established a local Soviet government—later known as the "Canton Commune." On the 12th, the Kuomintang launched a powerful military counterattack, backed by naval bombardment, and thousands were massacred (the exact number is unknown), including ten Russians. On the 14th, the Kuomintang closed all Soviet consulates and commercial institutions, and Sino-Soviet diplomatic relations broke down.All over China, Communism is in retreat. Chiang Kai-shek became active again.Wang Jingwei went to Shanghai when Chiang held his wedding, and the two shook hands to make peace. While Chiang was on her honeymoon, the KMT Central Executive Committee met in Shanghai from Dec. 3-10, and Chiang was reinstated as Commander-in-Chief on the last day of the meeting.Datang Chinese School Scanner