Chapter 13 4. Chinese and Western Weddings

On September 17, 1927, the "New York Times" published an astonishing news on the front page: "Commander-in-Chief Chiang is about to marry Ms. Song Meiling", and published the recent marriage between Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling in the upper left corner of the newspaper. film. At that time, Misselwitz, the newspaper's reporter in Shanghai, sent back a report saying: This unprecedentedly grand wedding in China is in full swing. It is said that Jiang has invited a famous British tailor to make a dress for him. Top hat, the Song family is rushing to make a dowry for their younger sister.It is said that this dowry is worth 35,000 US dollars, which is the highest among Chinese girls.

Misselwitz also said in the report: There are indications that the upcoming wedding of Soong Meiling has not been postponed because of the existence of all kinds of Mrs. Chiang, and their marriage is entirely based on the love of both parties.Jiang's romance with Song Dynasty will double Jiang's worth and become the first person in China... Misselwitz said that it was neither Commander-in-Chief Chiang himself nor Soong Meiling who provided him with this important news, but the well-known Mrs. Kong—Song Ailing.Mrs. Kong was in charge of the whole thing.She held a press conference at her apartment on West Edhams Road, where she "introduced" Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling

To a group of reporters, announce: "The general is marrying my little sister." Public opinion propaganda has undoubtedly contributed to people's attention to this political marriage.At the same time, it also painted a layer of mystery to this upcoming grand wedding.It is like a billboard, attracting audiences all over the world, eagerly looking forward to that day. On December 1, 1927, Chiang Kai-shek's long-awaited wedding was grandly held in Shanghai. The wedding was held twice: one was in the Song family's mansion on Seymour Road in Shanghai, which was quiet and conformed to Christian customs, and the time was relatively short, and Song Ailing organized it.

The other time was at the luxurious Majestic Hotel on Gordon Road in Shanghai, which had a taste of Chinese tradition.The wedding was very long, from 4:20 pm to 12:00 pm that night. In the early morning, when the dull bell of Moore Church rang, relatives and friends of the Song family had already gathered at the private residence on Seymour Road.They are Song Ailing, Kong Xiangxi, Song Ziwen, Song Ziliang, Song Zian and other 51 Christians and close relatives and friends.Soong Ching Ling did not attend the younger sister's wedding. When the church bell rang again, the wedding officially began.People gathered in front of the statue of Jesus, a new couple - Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling stood in the front row.The second row is people from the Song family, followed by relatives and friends of the Song family.Mrs. Song's hair is already grey, but she is in good health and in good spirits. She is very satisfied with today's arrangements.It can be said that she is the most satisfied with the third daughter's wedding.After she closed her eyes and prayed, the pastor who presided over the wedding entered the church through the back door. He was none other than Pastor Yu Rizhang of the Southern Methodist Church and Allen Memorial Church.This person is Huang Renlin's father-in-law, capable of handling affairs, and well-known in Jiangsu and Zhejiang.The church was originally quiet, but after he coughed dryly, the church became even more silent.

The first item of the wedding was the wedding congratulations from the officiant Yu Rizhang: Dear brothers and sisters, today we celebrate the sacrament of marriage for Mr. Chiang Kai-shek and Ms. Soong Meiling in front of God and the relatives and friends of the Chiang Kai-shek Second House.Marriage is the biggest relationship among our Chinese relationships. It is said that there are husbands and wives and then fathers and sons, monarchs and ministers. Its sacredness and nobility are incomparable.When Christ was alive, he specially went to the wedding banquet in Cana, which also meant to respect marriage.St. Paul said that marriage is very precious and should not be hasty. We should respect God's will and accomplish this great event.

After the speech, Yu Rizhang gave the pre-drawn oath to the bride and groom.The bride and groom recited successively: I, Jiang Zhongzheng, are willing to obey God's will and marry Song Meiling as his wife.From now on, regardless of happiness or adversity, health or disease, everything is with you.All my life I have tried to love and protect you, and I will keep you forever, and God will learn from you, and this is what I promise you with all sincerity.The ring is hereby bestowed upon you now, as a token of our alliance. I, Song Meiling, would like to obey God's will and marry you Jiang Zhongzheng.From now on, regardless of happiness or adversity, health or disease, everything is with you.All my life I have tried to love and protect you, and I will keep you forever, and God will learn from you, and this is what I promise you with all sincerity.The ring is hereby bestowed upon you now, as a token of our alliance.

Next, the two parties exchange rings.Yu Rizhang, the officiant, began to read out his edict: Mr. Chiang Kai-shek and Ms. Song Meiling have exchanged rings in front of God and the relatives and friends of the Jiang and Song Dynasties today, made a covenant with each other, and became husband and wife. I hereby solemnly announce that they are officially married couple. Then came the audible sound of Bible prayers, as melodious as a chorus song, filling the solemn silence of the church. Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling carried out various ceremonies under the command of the pastor until the wedding came to an end. Everyone surrounded Chiang and Song and walked out of the solemn and spacious church, and then moved to the ballroom of the Dahua Hotel on the Bund, where guests were invited to participate again wedding.

This time the wedding banquet was of a diplomatic nature and the occasion was unprecedented. The "Shanghai Times" reported: "This is the most brilliant and eye-catching wedding in China in recent years. One party is the former commander of the Nanjing Army and a popular strongman in China; the other party is the Consortium of Kong and Song Dynasties, which straddles the political and economic circles and calls the wind and rain. " If the church is too serious, then the Dahua Hotel is extremely lively.The huge Dahua Ballroom is second to none in Shanghai.A yellow and green glass eaves outlines the majestic Dahua Hotel and Ballroom from the blue sky. The magnificent colonnade, elegant tones, and surrounding buildings with various layers form a colorful picture; On the luxuriously decorated ceiling in the house, multicolored palace lanterns with golden tassels are hung, and there are small lanterns to match the palace lanterns, just like stars holding the moon.The splendid hall was lavishly furnished, and the Lewis Foundry formed a huge wedding bell with ribbons and white flowers.A large portrait of Sun Yat-sen hangs on a temporary platform, with the Kuomintang party flag and the national flag on both sides of the portrait.There are white flowers on the stage, and a big "Xi" character occupies a prominent position.On another stage sat the Belarusian orchestra, all of them dressed in white coats, and they were all in one piece; next to the orchestra were reporters from more than 30 newspapers and magazines from all over the world, and they were patiently waiting for the wedding ceremony with their cameras in hand. The beginning; the hall was already filled with more than 1,300 invited guests, and they were waiting with excitement.

There were more than 1,000 spectators outside the ballroom, blocked by guards; 10 rows of colorful firecrackers hung from the roof of the sixth floor of the Dahua Hotel, all the way to the ground.At that time, the spectators were watching and laughing.Just waiting for the firecrackers to ignite is the beginning of the grand wedding. At 4:15 p.m. that day, the firecrackers were lit and the band began to play music, which was very lively for a while. The sound of "peeling" firecrackers woke up the Dahua Hotel, which had been silent for many days, and pushed people's interest to a climax.If it was lively outside, it was even more lively inside the ballroom.When the wedding host, Mr. Cai Yuanpei, the former president of Peking University, stepped onto the stage and stood under the portrait of Sun Yat-sen, there was endless applause from the audience.The applause was deafening.Mr. Cai Yuanpei was a very influential figure in China at that time, and was the Minister of Education of the Nanjing government.Originally the wedding was supposed to be presided over by Zhang Jingjiang, but it was temporarily changed to Mr. Cai Yuanpei because of Zhang's illness.At this time, Mr. Cai looked around and saw consuls from Britain, the United States, Japan, Norway, France and other countries among the guests.Including the Consul General of the United States, Mr. and Mrs. Clementine, the US Envoy, Mr. and Mrs. Pandey, the reporter of "Miller News", Mr. Powell, the National Association of the YMCA, Werburg, Mr. and Mrs. Brandy of Zhongye Office, Mr. and Mrs. Olman, Mr. and Mrs. Li Ming, and the Mr. and Mrs. Mr. and Mrs. Loudens, the wife of Mr. Madi, the general manager of Madi Company, Mr. and Mrs. Shayi of the Shanghai Times, Fryer, a school for blind children, Baldwin of the International Chamber of Commerce, Mr. and Mrs. Yada, the Japanese Consul General, Baer, ​​the German Consul General, etc.Accompanying these distinguished guests were the veterans of the Kuomintang and leading figures from all walks of life in Shanghai. The political circles included Wang Jingwei, Wu Zhihui, He Xiangning, Dai Jitao, Ye Chuxie, Chu Minyi, Chen Guofu, Zhang Shouyong, Miao Bin, Shao Lizi, Wu Tiecheng, Shen Junru, Chen Bulei, Zhu Jiahua, Pan Gongzhan, Zhou Fohai, Zeng Yangfu, Han Shiyuan, etc.; in the military, there are Bai Wenwei, Chen Mingshu, Ma Fuxiang, Xiong Kewu, Jiao Yitang, Chen Jialu, Li Zuohui, Yang Zhenchun, etc.They sit in the first three rows respectively.Naturally, there is also Song Ailing-the matchmaker and her husband Kong Xiangxi.At this time, the Kong couple was in charge of reception, and left after all the guests sat down.

So Mr. Cai greeted the guests in both English and Chinese.There was another burst of warm applause from the audience. "Gentlemen and ladies, today is a day of great joy. The hall is full of guests. Let me introduce all the guests and foreign guests." The ballroom was suddenly silent.Mr. Cai then introduced the guests to the audience one by one, which lasted for more than half an hour.Finally, he announced: "Welcome the bride and groom to enter, and thank you all the guests!" At the same time, Mr. Cai also directed the dancers to dance and the Belarusian band to play.I saw Chiang Kai-shek wearing a European-style dress, accompanied by Kong Xiangxi and the chief secretary who was the best man, and the ballroom was full of excitement.Chiang Kai-shek was wearing striped trousers, shoe covers, tuxedo, silver tie, and his eccentric peanut-shaped head was shaved brightly.He smiled and waved to the guests.People applauded warmly to welcome the military leader who had left the field, and the cameraman kept turning his camera to take pictures of him.

There was another round of applause, and the people behind climbed into their chairs again and craned their necks.With "Here Comes the Bride" The bride walked into the ballroom from the back of the porch holding the arms of her sister Song Ailing and her brother, Mr. Song Ziwen, the former finance minister of the Wuhan government.The porch is covered with a big red carpet, with white flowers on both sides. Soong Meiling is wearing a white long dress and silver-white georgette. The white soft gauze is fastened with an orange flower and gently draped over her body. Very charming. At that time, there were 4 bridesmaids accompanying the bride Soong Meiling, and the two in front were wearing pink soft satin dresses with diamonds and peach-colored beads on them.The satin sleeves were just elbow length, with wide cuffs at the elbows of a fair shade of peach georgette.The other two, the younger bridesmaids, were dressed in the same dress, but with pleated georgette around the neck and pleated cuffs.Behind the bridesmaids, followed by two little girls, Miss Zhou and Miss Chen, who sprinkled flowers.They wore flared peach taffeta dresses and carried small flower baskets filled with petals.And last, the two little squires, Mademoiselle Conjenny and Master Conlouis, also in black velvet and satin waistcoats. The bride walked to the groom's side and stopped, the spotlights were flickering, and the touching pictures were taken... Then, Mr. Cai Yuanpei read out the marriage certificate.After the reading is completed, a large seal will be affixed on the marriage certificate, in duplicate, one for each bride and groom.When accepting the certificate, the couple bowed to the officiant Mr. Cai Yuanpei.Then they saluted the witness Chiang Kai-shek and the surrounding audience. Two little girls held flowers in their hands and ran to the stage to offer flowers to the bride and groom. Accompanied by the orchestra, American tenor Hall sang "Oh, Promise Me!" ".So the loud singing, accompanied by the rhythmic applause of the people, permeated the hall. "Gentlemen and ladies! Congratulations to the bride and groom! Let's sing! Let's dance!" Immediately, the ballroom became lively, and couples of dancers walked out together, arm in arm, singing and dancing gracefully. The dance party in the afternoon lasted until 7 o'clock in the evening, and then the Majestic Hotel held a grand banquet for the guests.During the banquet, the bride and groom raised their glasses to thank more than 1,000 guests... At 12 o'clock in the middle of the night, Mr. Cai announced the end of the dinner.Amid thunderous applause, Chiang Kai-shek and the bride walked quickly across the corridor to the chairs under the big clock made of flowers.The ribbon was pulled away, and hundreds of thousands of rose petals fell from the flower clock and sprinkled on the bride and groom. Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling withdrew.They quietly went out through the back door and drove to Song's house on Seymour Road to change their clothes.Immediately, Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling took 200 guards on a special train that had been prepared, and went to a monastery in the Green Gang of Moganshan.There, they started their honeymoon life. The "New York Times" reported on the grand occasion of the wedding on the front page of the next day: This is a glorious event in recent years, and it is also a prominent wedding ceremony for the Chinese... The KMT will hold a plenary session on Saturday.The newspaper also said: "If the meeting is successfully held, Chiang will once again become the real power in China." Soon after, Chiang Kai-shek also issued a statement saying that he was ready to regain command: "After we get married, the revolutionary work will undoubtedly achieve better results." Great progress. Because I can take on the heavy responsibility of the revolution with peace of mind in the future! From now on, the two of us are determined to make the greatest contribution to the cause of the Chinese revolution. " Onlookers did not ignore the entire diplomatic corps attending the wedding.It was noted that Admiral Bristol of the United States attended the family wedding at Seymour Road and the public wedding at the Majestic Hotel, and his men attended the Majestic Hotel wedding with him.This showed that the new member of the Soong family, Chiang Kai-shek, had received international recognition, and the United States was satisfied. The morning after Song Meiling and her new husband arrived at the Moganshan Monastery, Chiang Kai-shek was called to attend what was said to be an "important party meeting."The meeting was open that day from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm. As Soong Ching Ling pointed out at the time: "The combination of the two is politics, not love." On December 10, 1927, the ninth day after Chiang and Song's marriage, Chiang Kai-shek resumed his position as commander-in-chief of the National Revolutionary Army, and was later elected chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the Kuomintang.