Chapter 19 Chapter 19 The Failure of Marshall's Mission

Hurley's self-confidence was born of ignorance, while Mao's and Chiang Kai-shek's immense self-confidence was of a different type: they both had a firm belief that they represented China. Marshall scathingly accused Chiang Kai-shek of undermining his mediation work with military action, and accused him of spending 70 percent of the budget on the military, crashing the country's economy, which in doing so would only provide fertile ground for the spread of communism.The speed with which Japan collapsed left Chiang Kai-shek and his government unprepared. One thing that Eric Zhou told can prove this point. In August 1945, he was the personal secretary of Tianjin Mayor Xiao Zhenying. On the 15th, Xiao Zhenying was playing mahjong with General Chen Cheng, then chief of staff of the Kuomintang, and two other people in his country villa.At this time; the phone rang, and the call was from the presidential residence, looking for the chief of staff.Chen Cheng stood up from the mahjong table, complaining in his mouth that the phone interrupted their game.The others were listening, trying to guess the content of the conversation from Chen Cheng's reaction.However, he only said "yes, yes" repeatedly.After putting down the receiver, he turned around and said suddenly, "Okay, it's him. Why—the Japanese had to surrender today? Now I'm going to the Victory Parade, just in time for my fun. "Others said: "That's right, the victory is coming so fast, we haven't had time to make any preparations." Xiao Zhenying seemed more excited than the others, he said: "If you don't believe me, just wait and see, taking over the Northeast will be our last opportunity." A headache."

Sure enough, in the next few days, his country villa was full of people, and politicians from the northeast came in an endless stream.Except for Xiao Zhenying, everyone agreed that the young marshal should be released and asked him to be the supreme commander of the Northeast.Their main reason is that no one in the Northeast is as popular as Zhang Xueliang. However, they did not expect that Chiang Kai-shek would hold a grudge against Zhang Xueliang for life.Zhang betrayed Chiang Kai-shek and even humiliated him.Chiang Kai-shek decided not to release Zhang Xueliang—— Or don't think about it at all.As a result, a dilemma appeared in front of the chairman. Among the capable and prestigious politicians in the Northeast, no one could be found who was loyal to him.

Since there was no ready-made "commander", Chiang Kai-shek decided to divide the territory and rule.Therefore, he re-divided the original three provinces into nine provinces, with Harbin and Changchun as special cities directly under the administration of the Executive Yuan.In this way, he created nine vacancies for governors, and he left these positions to second- and third-rate politicians in the Northeast who had connections with the CC faction, but the people in the Northeast had never heard of these people. Not only did Chiang Kai-shek not release the young marshal, he was not allowed to work, and even none of the young marshal's colleagues were allowed to return to the Northeast, even in an unofficial capacity.Unexpectedly, Eric Zhou, who is a Manchu, was favored by Yang Chuoan, the new mayor of Harbin who had never met before. Yang Chuoan asked him to be his first secretary-general, but he politely refused. .Yang Chuoan is also a loyal Kuomintang member --- a member of the Department of Political Science.

Since a supreme commander was still needed, Chiang Kai-shek appointed another member of the political science department, Xiong Shihui, as the supreme governor of the nine northeastern provinces—this made the CC and Huangpu departments very unhappy. While appointing Xiong Shihui, the chairman also appointed his son Jiang Jingguo as a special diplomatic commissioner, responsible for dealing with the Soviet occupying forces. A few weeks later, Chiang Kai-shek invited the veteran journalist Hu Lin to an informal private meeting in Chongqing to solicit his opinion on the resumption of reconstruction work after the war.It now appears that Hu Lin was beneficial to Jiang at the time, but the Chairman did not listen to it.

Hu Lin's suggestion is: 1. Move the capital back to Beiping and change its name to Beijing. Its purpose was to win the support of the people north of the Yellow River to the Kuomintang, since the party had chosen Nanjing as its capital.As a result, northerners felt that they were separated from the mainstream of political life and became second-class citizens. Two, either seriously negotiate with the Communist Party, or openly declare war on them, and ignore the advice of the US government. 3. The superior who takes over the Japanese-occupied area must show fairness and compassion.Do not engage in political persecution.Because the vast majority of people who cooperate with the Japanese support the puppet government against their will.When the Japanese invaded, the Kuomintang withdrew in a panic, while most of the others were left alone.

4. Since the Japanese occupied the Northeast for fifteen years from 1931, special care should be given to the Northeast. 5. Implement agricultural reforms in the rural areas previously occupied by the Japanese. Sixth, attach great importance to the re-education of youth in the Japanese-occupied areas. Chiang Kai-shek was indifferent to this suggestion. The young marshal could not be released because he had been a "rebel".Similarly, those who have worked under the Japanese, or even just lived in the Japanese war zone, cannot gain the understanding and trust of the chairman. The people thought they were liberated, but they soon discovered that what was riding on them was just another wave.

As soon as Japan surrendered, Chongqing immediately sent officials to take over Nanjing, Shanghai, Peiping and Tianjin.These "liberators" who came to do their best, suddenly rode on people's heads like greedy hungry wolves.They have no sympathy, no concept of recovery at all in their minds.Everything was confiscated: gold, houses, cars, women. In their mouth, the word "Chongqing" means: "Sesame, open the door!" They can do whatever they want. Everyone who had worked for the Japanese was arrested and imprisoned.But they can often be released on bail, or avoided arrest, if they offer bribes of cash and property.The relatives and friends of those who had sacrificed their lives for the Wang Jingwei regime were also implicated.

The bribes of these people are often easy to work, and they can keep them from being behind bars. It wasn't just Chongqing officials who made a fortune from receiving them. At that time, there was a British official who flew back and forth between Chongqing and Shanghai once a week, bringing boxes of Chinese banknotes to Shanghai, and converting them into Chinese banknotes at the official exchange rate. foreign currency.After a few back and forths, he made $100,000, and then resigned from official duties.When this person was an official of the "Allied Powers", he also occupied two beautiful houses in the original French Concession in Shanghai. It is said that when he left his post and went to Hong Kong to enjoy Qingfu, he sold the houses and got a lot of money.

In addition, there was a man who was working for the U.S. Information Service at the time, and it is said that in the name of the U.S. Information Service, this person bought the Enemy Property Administration, a branch of the "receiving" agency, and got 12 empty houses.These houses are all on a small street beside Diswell Road in Hongkou District, and they used to be Japanese people from Shanghai.Generally speaking, each of these English-style three-story buildings with gardens and balconies should charge 200 ounces of gold as the relevant fee.But this person got these houses without spending a penny.

He picked the best one for himself to live in, and shared the rest with his friends. In the eyes of Shanghai people, the British official and the person working in the US Information Service belonged to "officials from Chongqing." ". At that time, some folk songs were so popular that even children could sing them: Think of the central government, look forward to the central government, and suffer even more when the central government comes. After a while, it was the turn of the Northeast.The receivers took away tools from the workshop and equipment from the hospital, which soon turned up at street vendors' stalls.Roofs, doors, windows and water pipes of residential and office buildings were also looted.

The situation in Taiwan is the same as in the Northeast.In this most affluent colony of the Japanese Empire, groups of Kuomintang members plundered wantonly for self-interest. In all these places, the actions of Nationalist officials shocked and alienated the local population even more. The word "central government" carries contempt in the mouths of ordinary people.Before long, those who worked for the government were reluctant to identify themselves. Chiang Kai-shek turned a deaf ear to these atrocities. After Japan surrendered, his mind was preoccupied with political issues from above—especially how to maintain the support of the United States while keeping his distance from the Chinese Communist Party.Because the Americans want him to embrace a sworn opponent.He was prepared to meet the demands of the Americans in some way.For eighteen years he had not seen another man who could hold China's destiny in his hands. And now, on August 28, 1945, Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong shook hands and met in Chongqing. Under the pressure of the US State Department, Chiang Kai-shek extended invitations to Mao Zedong three times after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War.Mao Zedong said that if Hurley came to pick him up and guarantee his safety in his own name, he could go. When Hurley visited Yan'an a year ago, Mao Zedong had met him.Just like when he arrived in Yan'an, Hurley also danced the Indian military training dance on a whim in Chongqing, screaming "Yah, yah", which startled the Chinese hosts.He is said to have spoken the Aktao dialect, which he had learned as a young man in Oklahoma. He was simple-minded, unwilling and unable to conduct research on Chinese issues, so at first he thought that there would be no problem in promoting the alliance between the Communist Party and the Kuomintang. In 1944, just when he thought that success was within easy reach, he did not expect that all previous efforts were in vain.However, this did not weaken his confidence in the slightest.This time he was convinced that the cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party is just around the corner. Hurley's self-confidence was born of ignorance, while Mao's and Chiang Kai-shek's immense self-confidence was of a different type: they both had a firm belief that they represented China. Of course, they each have good reasons to distrust the other.In this case, the talks between them are doomed to failure.The Soviets held the key to the solution. Although Chiang Kai-shek - through Song Ziwen and Wang Shijie - was weak in negotiating the Sino-Soviet treaty, the treaty gave him a clear political advantage over Mao Zedong. However, from a geographical point of view, Mao Zedong's march into Yanbei was more convenient than Chiang Kai-shek's. On August 9, the day after the Soviets entered China, Mao Zedong launched a nationwide counterattack against the Japanese. On the 10th, General Zhu De asked the Japanese and puppet troops to lay down their weapons. But only a few Japanese and puppet troops surrendered to the Communists, while most surrendered to the government forces.In this way, in addition to the thirty-nine divisions commanded by General Wedemeyer, which were trained and equipped by the Americans, the Kuomintang army received from the Japanese enough equipment to arm forty divisions. After the Soviets entered the Northeast, they did not allow the Americans and the central government to gain a foothold in this important industrial area. They only allowed the Red Army to enter the Northeast. Among the Soviet troops entering the Northeast from the north and east, there was also a group of Chinese Communist Party troops carrying baggage. They could establish local governments and set up defense facilities in small towns.Another Soviet army entered the southern part of Manchuria through Inner Mongolia and northern Hebei. They joined the Communist army commanded by Lin Biao and provided rail transportation for it.Lin Biao's forces soon established many administrative and defensive facilities in the south to complement the strongholds already established in the north. At this critical moment, Chiang Kai-shek faced not only the obstacles set up by the Soviet Union and his own opponents, but also the attitude of the American allies that hindered him from implementing his strategic approach. In August and September, his main concern was to recapture the important cities in eastern China, such as Nanjing, Shanghai, Hankou and Peiping. The Central Army entered these cities on planes and warships provided by the United States. Indeed, in the process of accepting the surrender and arranging the repatriation of the Japanese army, Chiang Kai-shek received the full support and assistance of General McCarthy, General Wedemeyer, Admiral Barbie and other American military officers. But when Chiang Kai-shek's forces were about to reach Zhangjiakou and Chifeng in the northwest of Peiping - from where they could prevent Mao Zedong's army from entering the northeast - General Marshall put a lot of pressure on Chiang Kai-shek to order a ceasefire and stop the advance .This decision allowed the Chinese Communist Party to enter the Northeast relatively smoothly. It was these troops who, after being reorganized, trained and armed by the Soviets, returned to the Central Plains and completed the occupation of the entire continent. Undoubtedly, General Wedemeyer was very concerned about the consequences of General Marshall's actions. In terms of military affairs, he believed that the Central Army was unable to seize the Northeast after a long and arduous war. He suggested that Chiang Kai-shek consolidate his existing territory. But he also realized that a barrier needed to be built in northern and northeast China to hold back Soviet troops.For this purpose, he asked Washington to send another 17 divisions of US troops to China.However, he only got the strength of two Marines. This was the situation when Mao Zedong first arrived in Chongqing.He stayed in Chongqing for more than six weeks. The talks were conducted at two levels, namely the Mao Zedong-Chiang Kai-shek talks and the lower-level bipartisan talks.Among them, Zhang Qun, Wang Shijie and Shao Lizi participated in the Kuomintang, and Zhou Enlai and Wang Ruofei participated in the Communist Party.At the beginning of the talks, the two sides expressed their respective views. Chiang Kai-shek insisted that the Communist Party disband the army and incorporate it into the National Army as a condition for joining the Nationalist government. And Mao Zedong was equally determined.He insisted that when the Communist Party was formally incorporated into the National Army, it should maintain its original establishment and be commanded by current officers.Moreover, the Communist Party also participates in the Kuomintang Military Committee. Hurley, who is always so optimistic, had hoped that before he returned to the United States on September 22 for medical treatment and a report on his duties, the KMT and the Communist Party could reach an agreement. He sent a letter to Mao Zedong explaining what he meant, and then sat down with Zhang Qun to wait for the communist leader to hear back. He planned to get on the plane as soon as he got an answer. The letter was answered, but nothing about the agreement was mentioned. Mao Zedong just asked Hurley to suspend his return to China until he accompanied him back to Yan'an safely.Hurley found Chiang Kai-shek, who said he would guarantee Mao's safe return.However, Mao Zedong insisted that the ambassador give a written guarantee to ensure his safe return.He got that guarantee. Hurley flew out of China disappointed. Chiang Kai-shek did not adopt Wedemeyer's suggestion. He decided to exercise the power conferred on him by the Sino-Soviet treaty to occupy the Northeast. However, the news that troubled him kept coming: the Soviet army was dismantling the industrial facilities in the Northeast step by step and transporting them back to the Soviet Union.On the face of it, if the Soviets were preparing to hand over the Manchuria to his nemesis, the Communists, as Chiang Kai-shek imagined, the move seemed puzzling.Due to the lack of Soviet sources, one can only speculate. Stalin believed that the Americans were playing tricks just like him. He didn't believe that the Americans would allow him to carry out his plan in Northeast China, so he didn't want the Kuomintang to get the industrial facilities there when they came.On the part of the United States, however, there was no real determination to support the central government's power in the Northeast, despite Roosevelt's pledge at the Cairo Conference. On October 6th (Mao Zedong was still in Chongqing), the US Navy attempted to land Kuomintang troops in Dalian, but was rejected by the Soviet Union.The reason is that Dalian is a commercial port and cannot be used for military purposes. The Americans then less enthusiastically tried two other ports, which were also rejected.It was not the Soviets who rejected them these two times, but the Chinese Communist Party.The KMT did not land at Shanhaiguan until November 1, which gave them a small foothold in the south. October 10th happens to be Double Ten Day.Mao Zedong, Chiang Kai-shek, and their aides drafted a joint communiqué that did not hide the fact that the two sides had a complete lack of common ground. This joint communiqué was not published until after Mao Zedong flew back to Yan'an the next day.On two issues, the communiqué appeared to show some progress.For example, while the government refused to recognize Communist governments in the "liberated areas," it agreed to expand regional autonomy.As for the armed forces, the Communist Party unexpectedly agreed to reduce its strength from 80 to 100 divisions to 20 to 24 across the country.And station the troops in the designated area. These things were not yet arranged, and skirmishes between the KMT and the Communist Party broke out in various places within a few weeks. The failure of the talks between Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong was the death blow for Ambassador Patrick Hurley.Since he took office, there have been disputes with his China experts. The one with whom he argued the most was the hardest-working member of his staff, Hsieh Weiss.He never missed an opportunity to attack Chiang Kai-shek and his government and praise the Chinese Communist Party.He believes that the Communist Party is the real democrat in this country. Xie Weisi has resolutely suggested many times that the U.S. government switch from supporting Chiang Kai-shek to supporting Mao Zedong.At one point, Mr. Hurley warned him: "If you just report back, we can continue to work together. But if you try to meddle in my affairs, I'll kick you out!" Seeing that Seves was still ignoring his warnings, Ambassador Hurley recalled him to Washington in April 1945. Soon after, Xie Weien was arrested along with three other colleagues.Because about 100 telegrams written by him were found in the editorial office of the front-line publication of the Communist Party, the American Asia Magazine. Another person on the embassy staff who shared Xieweisi's views was John Davis.In a secret report dated December 12, 1944, he recommended that the United States suspend aid to the Nationalist forces unless they stopped blocking Communist forces.Davis had served as his temporary political adviser under General Wedemeyer.Hurley called him back, too. On November 26, 1945, Patrick Hurley submitted his resignation to President Truman.In his letter, he accused "career diplomats" in the embassy and State Department of siding with the Chinese Communist Party. Some told the Communist Party that Hurley's efforts to prevent the fall of the Nationalist government "do not represent the policy of the United States," and Mao Zedong was advised to "refuse to merge the Chinese Communist Party's military with the Nationalist Party unless the leadership is transferred to the Communist Party." . On November 27, President Truman announced his acceptance of Hurley's resignation and at the same time appointed General George C. Marshall as his special representative in China in the capacity of ambassador. In the first two weeks of December, Marshall conducted a series of talks with the President, Secretary of State Bernas, and Deputy Secretary of State Deans Acheson, repeatedly studying the next phase of the US policy toward China. Policy was largely unchanged, with a few important explanations, and General Marshall continued to pursue the policy of his predecessor in his efforts to achieve political unity.But if his efforts fail - even if the failure is due to Chiang Kai-shek's refusal to cooperate - The US government will also continue to support the KMT government. In addition, it was agreed that the United States should help Chiang Kai-shek march north "in order to end the repatriation of Japanese troops."Whether the mediation was successful or not, the U.S. government would support Chiang Kai-shek, a decision that would be kept secret. The reason why the United States supported Chiang Kai-shek’s establishment of military power in North China was on the surface just to cover people’s eyes. In fact, it was to enable General Marshall to ensure that the Kuomintang’s military power would always have an advantage in confronting the Communist Party. The President also stated that the Chinese proposal would receive generous economic assistance from the United States, provided that General Marshall could complete his mission of forming a coalition government. Chiang Kai-shek applauded President Truman's appointment of Marshall, Mao Zedong and Stalin were also happy for it, and all parties involved in the China dispute felt that this appointment would be beneficial to them. The President's special envoy came to Chongqing with three specific instructions.He will work to bring about a cessation of hostilities between the Nationalist government and the Communist Party, complete the proportional integration of Communist troops into the Nationalist army, and convene a national conference involving the Kuomintang, Communist Party, Democratic League and other groups to end the Kuomintang leadership, and brought the Communist Party into a coalition government. General Marshall was a great soldier in World War II and a major contributor to the Allied victory.With this prestige, he accepted the mission to China. He has a calm personality, a refined manner, and is of high moral character and integrity.Although he is more intelligent than Hurley, he is no more familiar with the complicated and infighting Chinese political arena than Hurley.As soon as he arrived, he was surrounded by all sides. Among them was the Kuomintang, of course, because he was sent to Chiang Kai-shek's government.In addition, there are Zhou Enlai from the Communist Party, Zhang Lan, Luo Longji and other leaders of the Democratic League.The Democratic League is regarded by the KMT as an organization within the Communist front. One of Marshall's greatest concerns was to ensure that Hurley's successor was both competent and popular.He recommended General Wedemeyer at first because Chiang Kai-shek trusted him very much.It never seemed to occur to Marshall that Chiang Kai-shek's trust was enough to make Wedemeyer unqualified by the Communists. He revealed the appointment of General Wedemeyer at an informal press conference.Zhou Enlai immediately learned of the news, and he strongly protested to Marshall, claiming that Wedemeyer was totally unacceptable to the Communist Party. Embarrassed, General Marshall cabled Acheson in Washington to cancel the appointment. When Marshall asked Zhou Enlai to name an acceptable candidate, the Communist leader recommended Dr. Leighton Stuart, president of Yenching University.Dr. Leighton Stuart has worked in China for most of his life and is quite respected by people, but he is not very familiar with China's political circles. The Kuomintang saw the Communist veto of Wedemeyer's nomination as a short-lived victory for the enemy. General Marshall, with the boldness of a soldier, moved toward the three goals he had declared. The first objective is the cessation of hostilities.On this point, the central government gave half of his request, and they established a three-member committee, led by Marshall, plus Zhang Qun, a representative of the central government, and Zhou Enlai, a representative of the Communist Party. On January 10, 1946, the Kuomintang and the Communist Party reached a nominal ceasefire agreement.Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong ordered their respective armed forces to cease all military hostilities on the 13th.A Military Mediation Executive Department was established in Peiping and eight armistice teams were appointed, each consisting of an American, a government representative, and a Communist. It didn't take long for people to see that this agreement was in vain.While the negotiations were still going on, the armies of both sides fought in Hebei, Shanxi, Suiyuan, northern Jiangsu and Shandong. Zhou Enlai insisted that Chifeng and another fortress in Inner Mongolia should be under Communist control during the ceasefire.To show his sincerity, Chiang Kai-shek reluctantly agreed to this, so that the Communist Party held the key to controlling Rehe.Subsequently, the Communist Party strengthened its forces in the Northeast. 46,000 troops were transferred from Shanxi to northeast to reinforce Lin Biao's forces. In February, another 10,000 and 40,000 troops were transferred from Hebei and Shandong respectively, and another 80,000 troops boarded a port controlled by the Soviets by boat from Shandong. General Marshall didn't know these things, and he quickly rushed to his second and third targets. On February 15, 1946, a military committee under the Political Consultative Conference signed an agreement. This committee included representatives from both the Kuomintang and the Communist Party and General Marshall. According to the agreement, in the next 12 months, the army will be reorganized.The government army was reduced to 90 divisions, and the Communist army was reduced to 18 divisions.In another 6 months, it will be reduced to 50 divisions and 10 divisions respectively.At that time, Chiang Kai-shek suggested that the disarmament should be supervised by a committee of three and that Americans should be present.The Communist Party rejected this suggestion. On the political front, Chiang Kai-shek convened a Political Consultative Conference on January 10, at which specific plans for a National Assembly and a permanent democratic constitution were discussed.At these meetings, the Communist Party agreed with the government's proposals, which made Marshall feel that peace was close at hand. At this time, Chiang Kai-shek's son, Chiang Ching-kuo, was in Moscow. He was invited by Stalin to celebrate Christmas.He had two meetings with the Soviet leader. Stalin expressed his hope that there would be peace between China and the Soviet Union, between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.He also suggested that Chiang Ching-kuo's father should hold a meeting with him in Moscow or somewhere on the Sino-Soviet border. This invitation put Chiang Kai-shek in an awkward situation.If he had accepted the invitation, the result could have been a coalition government of the kind requested by the U.S. government, with "full reliance on the Soviet Union."If Stalin was disappointed by not accepting the invitation, then Stalin might have supported the Chinese Communist Party even more unreservedly. He asked Marshall, and the answer he got was: "I support everything that can help improve Sino-Soviet relations." On March 13, General Marshall returned to Washington, convinced that he had completed the above three missions, and the next goal was to clean up the aftermath.However, when he left China, he must still have doubts in his heart. Because on March 8, he received a memo from Raymond Leden, the second secretary of the embassy, ​​asking him to pay attention to the growing hostility of the Communists in the Northeast.And said.He suspected that the Chinese Communist Party had united with the Soviet Union. It is really not the right time for General Marshall to return to the United States at this time. On March 7, the Soviets had begun to withdraw from the southeast, but they did not announce this.As soon as they withdrew, the CCP drove in.As soon as the news reached Chiang Kai-shek, he immediately decided to occupy every city that the Soviet Union retreated in spite of the resistance of the Communist troops.However, this is no longer possible. On April 15, Zhou Enlai announced that the Northeast had entered a state of "full hostility".The armistice was thus aborted.The Communist Party occupied Changchun, Harbin and Qiqihar, and more importantly, they also occupied Siping Street. In this way, they had the power to block Chiang Kai-shek's troops stationed in the northeast. On April 18, Marshall's policies were out of order.At this time he returned to China. 19th (should be May 19th - Annotation).The Kuomintang attacked on a large scale, occupied Siping Street, and pursued Lin Biao's retreating troops. From a military point of view, a series of events in the Northeast in May and June 1946 had already determined the inevitable defeat of the Kuomintang army in the late civil war. At this stage, the Soviet Union did not provide military supplies to the Communist Party.With the exception of rifles, most of the Communist Party's equipment was taken from government armories. After weighing the situation in Moscow, Stalin decided to invite Chiang Kai-shek to Moscow for talks to discuss the rearrangement of the Northeast; the new arrangement would exclude the Americans. Stalin knew that the United States did not care about being excluded from the Northeast at all. Their main concern was to avoid getting too involved. As Stalin expected, both General Marshall and President Truman strongly urged Chiang Kai-shek to accept Stalin's invitation; however, they also had many concerns, and they worried that the Northeast would be incorporated into the Soviet economy in the future. They believe that Stalin's proposal increased the possibility of the KMT and the Communist Party jointly ruling the Northeast without the intervention of the United States or the Soviet Union.Marshall then redoubled his efforts to persuade Chiang Kai-shek to form a coalition government with the Communists. However, Chiang Kai-shek turned a deaf ear to these suggestions.He was well aware—although the Americans did not yet—that a common strategy against the Soviet Union was no longer possible between his government and that of the United States.Therefore, he made a major decision—— "If necessary, it will resist Soviet aggression alone."He will not agree to a "coalition government" that weakens China.So he declined Stalin's invitation. The direct consequence of Chiang Kai-shek's decision was to put him in a more difficult situation. At the beginning, although Stalin opened the door for the Chinese Communist Party to enter the Northeast, they had transported away the important industrial equipment in the Northeast, and did not allow the Chinese Communist Party to obtain this industrial base, and provided little assistance to the Communist Party in terms of weapons and ammunition. But now, Stalin suddenly changed his approach.In the following months, the Soviet Union sent the Chinese Communist Party 1,226 guns and 369 tanks, all of which were produced by Japan.An additional 300,000 rifles, 4,836 machine guns and 2,300 motor vehicles were also provided.All in all, the aided weapons and equipment could equip an army of 500,000 to 600,000 people. In addition, Li Lisan, the former leader of the Chinese Communist Party in Moscow, was also sent back to China in the winter of 1946 to 1947 in order to send 100,000 North Koreans The army merged into Lin Biao's team. Because the Chinese Communist Party's military needs to be trained to master these new modern weapons, these large-scale military assistance did not play a decisive role at first.But later, these aids gave the Communists an advantage over the Kuomintang. On April 18, the day Marshall returned to China, the Battle of Siping Street was in full swing, (the time is wrong, the Battle of Siping took place in May—annotation).He tried to persuade Chiang Kai-shek to stop the offensive, but to no avail.Chiang Kai-shek saw that victory was in sight, no matter how much he persuaded him to stop the war, he would not look back. In May, Chiang Kai-shek rushed to Shenyang to command the battle. On the 29th, he received threats in a furious letter from Marshall to withdraw from the mediation unless the fighting ceased immediately. When Marshall explained the situation to Zhou Enlai in Chongqing, Zhou Enlai said meaningfully: "They were standing at a turning point in Chinese history." Another meeting with Zhou Enlai was held on June 23, and he was taken aback when he heard the representative of the Communist Party accuse him of pursuing a "dual policy" in China. Zhou Enlai said that the United States supported the Kuomintang while pretending to mediate.Anyone familiar with the Communist Party's negotiating methods will understand what it means to change their tone in negotiations.However, Marshall did not understand that he only took these words as a personal accusation. Negotiations continued, and on June 26, the KMT and the Communist Party reached a ceasefire agreement in the Northeast. Although both sides announced on July 1 that the ceasefire would be extended indefinitely, it soon became apparent that it was as ineffective as the previous agreement. 4th. Chiang Kai-shek announced that the National Assembly would be held on Nov 12th. On the 7th, the Soviet Union and the Communist Party of China simultaneously issued a declaration condemning the United States for supporting Chiang Kai-shek's government.This was the message Zhou Enlai wanted to convey to Marshall when he changed his tone. At this time, Chiang Kai-shek had already understood that there was no point in continuing the negotiations, but Marshall and his superiors failed to see this. Chiang Kai-shek ordered his troops to go on the offensive, and by mid-September the major railway lines in northern China were under Kuomintang control, and the Communist forces retreated into the mountains of Shantung and Shanxi.At this time, Chiang Kai-shek aimed at a larger target, namely Zhangjiakou, which has important symbolic and strategic significance.It is said to have symbolic significance because the Soviet Union once handed over the city to the Chinese Communist Party, and the Communist Party had planned to move its capital here from Yan'an.Its strategic position is that it is the gateway between northern China and Siberia. To this end, the Communists protested to General Marshall and said that if the Nationalist troops did not cease their operations, they would break off negotiations with the government.Marshall became increasingly annoyed that Chiang Kai-shek ignored Marshall's mediation, and he forced Chiang Kai-shek to stop the capture of Zhangjiakou.But Chiang Kai-shek didn't listen at all, and finally occupied the city. Marshall was furious. At this time, he gave Chiang Kai-shek and his government and army a heavy blow. He persuaded the US government to impose a comprehensive arms embargo on the Chinese government. "The United States made a plausible excuse that these military supplies can only be provided to the coalition government. The US government stated that if the embargo is "in the best interest of the United States", it can impose an embargo. However, this crucial decision was neither publicly announced nor informed to Chiang Kai-shek. The first time Chiang Kai-shek heard this news was on August 30, when he learned that the United States had refused to issue an export license to supply weapons to China .Little did he know, the embargo had already been in effect since July 29.The embargo was not officially lifted until May 26 of the following year; in fact, the United States did not resume supplying arms to the Chinese central government until November 1948. In the face of this major blow, Chiang Kai-shek had no choice but to admit that he could no longer continue to attack. On October 10, Double Tenth Day, Zhangjiakou fell. On the same day, Chiang Kai-shek announced in his annual Double Tenth Day speech that he was going to continue to find a solution to the problem through mediation and negotiation. At this time, Marshall naively thought that success was in sight.However, he did not take into account the Communist Party, which made it clear that they had given up hope of a negotiated solution.They demanded that the government's troops withdraw to the positions of January 13 in the Central Plains and June 7 in the Northeast. These demands put Marshall in a dilemma, and he felt that his mediation efforts were "ineffective" with Zhou En.He went on to say: "I've told you that if the Chinese Communist Party thinks they can't believe that I'm impartial, they just need to say something. I'm leaving right away. Now that you've said that, I'm leaving here right now and going to Nanjing. On November 15, the National Assembly called by Chiang Kai-shek was held in Nanking, and neither the Communist Party nor the Democratic League was present. 16日，周恩来指责南京召开国民大会、并要求马歇尔将军提供交通，将他和其他中共代表送回延安。 现在，除了蒋介石之外，马歇尔将军已无人可谈了，他们两人于12月1日进行了一次会谈，双方的分歧已无法弥补。 马歇尔严厉地指责蒋介石用军事行动破坏了他的调解工作，并指责他把70％的预算用于军费，使国家经济陷于崩溃，这样做只会为共产主义的蔓延提供肥沃的上壤。 蒋介石回答说：共产党从来就没打算与国民党合作，在苏联的影响下，他们的目的就是要搞垮政府。唯一的办法只有消灭共产党的军队，这需要八到十个月，至于经济形势，他无比自信地说，不会有崩溃的危险，因为中国是农业经济。谈到这里，两个人不欢而散。 事情发展到这个地步，蒋介石显然不再理会马歇尔将军了。 他自行其是，于11月27日向“国民大会”提交了一部宪法草案，这个草案于1946年圣诞节那天通过，从表面上看，这部宪法处处都是按孙中山的希望制定的，它规定，一切公民和种族都是平等的；实行全民不记名投票；二十岁以上的男女享有选举权；保障权利和自由；总统六年选举一次；只许连任一次等等。 遵照孙中山的临终遗言，政府将分五个部门，即行政、立法、司法，监察和考选部门。大会同意宪法于一年之后生效。 中共和民盟没有参加宪法的制定。除了国民党之外，只有两个很小的党派参加了宪法的制定工作，即青年党和张嘉森领导的民主社会党。 就中国大陆当时的情形而言，这部宪法的规定形同虚设。 在国民党被赶到台湾之后，这些规定才在那里或多或少地得到了某种程度上的执行。 看到事情已毫无希望，马歇尔将军要求将他召回。 1947年1月7日，他回到美国，担任国务卿。 当天，他发表了一份长篇的“个人声明”，说他的失败主要是因为国民党和共产党对对方都有着“几乎无法解除的怀疑”。 两党都是由极端分子操纵的，国民党里的是“一批反动派”，共产党里的则是“顽固的共产主义分子”。 他认为，在共产党里，有一批开明派，特别是那些年轻人，“他们是因为憎恶地方政府的腐败才转向共产党的，”他们会把中国人民的利益放在共产主义思想之上。 他的声明中没有提到苏联，似乎中共从这一年开始出现的强硬态度，与斯大林放弃与美国合作，帮助中共壮大军队的决定毫无关系。 美国对马歇尔使命的失败作了许多反省，这些反省包括马歇尔将军自己的观点，已得到了广泛的传播。但是，中国方面的解释虽然没有引起那么大的注意，但却对马歇尔失败的原因作出了具有新意的分析。 国民党和共产党提出的条件是无法调和的，这就象两条平行线，永远走不到一起。双方都没接受美国调解人的意见。 在谈判中共产党比它的对手更成功一些。国民党的谈判代表并不是些举足轻重的人物。他们的负责人张治中在军方在党内都没有什么人支持，蒋介石对他也不太信任。他的一个姓张的助手，虽然说是代表着CC系，但他的话却代表不了CC系，他得听命于陈家兄弟，并向他们请示。另一位是邵力子，他没有什么作用，挑选他去谈判是因为他有一个“温和派”的名声。 这三个人都不能直接找到蒋介石，只能通过张群间接地向他汇报。 张治中深知，美国希望问题能和平解决，于是他便利用这种希望，常把马歇尔的眼光引向过于乐观的和平前景。 就他个人而言，他是赞成联合政府的。他认为自己将在这样一个政府中起到举足轻重的作用。 在整个谈判过程中，陈立夫和他的CC系在宣传上一直不停地攻击共产党，他们质问谈判会有什么作用。 在宣传战线上，共产党无疑在每个方面都比国民党聪明。 共产党的代表因住在梅园5号，离国民政府大楼只有几百码远（这幢楼在推行宪政之后改为总统办公楼）。中共代表团成为中外记者唯一的消息来源。周恩来对要求进行评论的记者总是有求必应。 埃里克一周有一次早上三点去拜访他，周恩来毫不拖延地接待了他。他的发言人王炳南等也对记者十分热情。从南京发出的有关和谈的消息都是以共产党的说法为根据的，这么说毫不过分。 具有讽刺意味的是，就连国民党的传声筒中央新闻社和《中央日报》，都要靠共产党提供和谈的消息。之所以如此，是因为谈判被认为是秘密的，而且国民党的谈判代表和发言人都害怕说出什么让蒋介石不高兴的话，实在躲不过了，他们才会同意接见记者，但却拒绝发言。这使共产党一方控制了消息报道。 军方的意见是有分歧的，蒋介石直接控制的中央军完全反对与共产党讲和。抗日战争时他们与共产党之间发生的局部冲突仍记忆犹新。另外，他们受的教育一直是让他们去恨共产党，恨了这么长的时间，再让他们去爱共产党，已为时过晚。 而原来的军阀手下的各种地方军队则大多采取中间立场。 诚然，他们不喜欢共产党，但他们同时也恨中央军，因为中央军在装备方面有各种优先权。 阎锡山（山西的“模范省长”）是个例外，对所有的人他都说共产党对和平并不真正感兴趣。和其他的将领不同，阎锡山认为，即使能够成立一个联合政府，共产党也不会放弃将全中国共产化的计划。他在公开和私下的场合都这么说，1947年和谈还没有破裂时，他就在太原的一次记者招待会上说出了这一点。 1946年6月，马歇尔将军曾邀请《大公报》的胡霖，去他在南京宁海路5号的住处作了一次长谈。当时，美国大使司徒雷登也在场，埃里克·周当翻译。 当马歇尔请胡霖坦率地谈谈他对和谈前景的看法时，他指出了下面几点： 一、中国共产党不是“土地改革派'、如果美国人这么看，他们就错了。 二、建成联合政府就象建立一个“德意志法兰西联合共和国”，国共合作是没有基础的。 三、马歇尔最多只能争取到一个暂时的和平。但是，首先他必须保证停战协定起作用，如果没有国际上的监督，停火协定就不会奏效。 四、有一个比较实际的办法就是把东北给共产党，这样他们就可能在那里建立某种自治政府。但问题是国民党和共产党都不愿背上分裂国家的罪名。 五，象民主同盟、青年中国党（青年党）和民主社会党这种弱小的党派既缺乏广泛的支持，又没有对大众的号召力，不应太重视他们。 六、美国所说的那种民主，在中国这样的国家和其他亚洲国家都不可能建立起来。 七、中国出现共产党的政权，对美国来说是弊大于利的。 八、苏联极有可能巩固他们在东北的力量，以达到秘密援助共产党的目的。 马歇尔将军没有理会这些话。 胡霖的这些话讲得比阎锡山还要清楚，在此之前，阎锡山同样没有能使马歇尔从他最初的幻想中醒悟过来。 1946年3月3日，马歇尔曾去太原见过阎锡山，第二天，阎锡山用车把马歇尔送到了机场，路上，马歇尔说：“我想调解，而且我相信自己能够解决国共之间的矛盾，因为我给共产党的条件比苏联给他们的更好。”阎锡山说：“你在谈交易。如果共产党的确想做交易的话，你就能成功。但是，如果他们的目的是接管这个工厂，那么交易就做不成。” 马歇尔问：“你认为中国共产党真的不会妥协吗？” 阎锡山说：“这我不能肯定。这完全取决于共产党是否愿意放弃进行世界革命和无产阶级专政。” 马歇尔说：“至于中国，美国要看调解的进展如何。如果不成功，美国将全盘退出。” 平心而论，马歇尔的处境本来就不妙，美国国务院和美国驻重庆大使馆交给他的那个烂摊子，对国民党十分不利，对共产党却较为有利。他对周恩来所抱有的信心比对蒋介石的大。 现在，他走了，共产党的力量在继续壮大，而蒋介石却得不到他需要的军用物资。 正是在这种背景下，中国的内战于1947年春进入了一个一触即发的新阶段。