Chapter 13 6. The real reason why the representatives of the Kuomintang peace talks were neglected

The Nanjing government delegation took off on the morning of April 1.They took the special plane "Sky Palace" specially prepared by Central Airlines.In addition to Zhang Zhizhong, Shao Lizi, Zhang Shizhao, Huang Shaohong, Liu Fei, and Li Zheng, there are more than 20 members of the delegation, including consultants Qu Wu, Li Junlong, Jin Shan, and Liu Zhonghua, secretary-general Lu Yuwen, secretaries, and translators. Zhang Zhizhong was extremely excited when he boarded the plane. Many people came to see them off. Li Zongren and He Yingqin also came in person. In addition, the Legislative Yuan had a special adjournment for half a day. There was great hope for the peace talks, and reporters from major newspapers were also quite active, surrounding the representatives either to take pictures or to interview them.

He Yingqin shook Zhang Zhizhong's hand and said, "I wish you success in the peace talks!" Zhang Zhizhong said: "Thank you for your support, I will do my best." Li Zongren looked at the members of the delegation and said: "Your trip, heavy responsibility is on your shoulders, and you will pay a lot of hard work. The survival of the party and the country depends on you. I hope that through your hard work, we can usher in a river-diving victory." governing political situation.” There was warm applause from the crowd. Zhang Zhizhong said: "We will do our best to strive for a peaceful situation for the party and the country during this trip, but as far as the current situation is concerned, we should not be too optimistic. Everyone knows that the strength of the Communist Party is not what it used to be, and we are seeking peace after defeat. , On many key issues, it is easier said than done if it is evenly divided with the Communist Party. The eight peace talks proposed by the Communist Party of China are harsh, but please rest assured that no matter whether the peace talks are successful or not, we will go north to deal with the Communist Party again... "

Although Zhang Zhizhong's impromptu speech was a bit bleak, people still had great hopes for them. Among these important officials who held hopes, except for a few, many people still sincerely hoped for peace. The plane took off, high through the thin mist. Zhang Zhizhong's mood has also become more complicated. It can be imagined that his heart is full of contradictions. Although Chiang Kai-shek once said that he would no longer interfere in government affairs, according to the situation he has grasped in Nanjing recently, it is not Chiang's fault. To be honest, he knew that the possibility of success in the peace talks going north this time was very small.

The plane was circling in the clouds, and the other members talked and laughed all the way relatively easily. Only Zhang Zhizhong was taciturn, holding his plump cheek with his hand, staring at the blue sky and white clouds, it seemed very heavy... A few hours later, the plane arrived over Beiping. Compared with Nanjing, the weather here is really clear and there is no wisp of fog. Although there are clouds, they are also faint, giving people a refreshing feeling. Shao Lizi turned around and asked, "Wen Bai, who do you think will come to pick us up from the CCP?" Zhang Zhizhong smiled but did not answer.Qu Wu continued: "In my opinion, at least it is General Ye Jianying."

Shao Lizi said: "It's more than that! When we set off from Nanjing, President Li and Dean He both came to see us off. The Communist Party knows this news, and their welcome standard will not be too low!" Zhang Zhizhong said with a smile: "Maybe Mr. Zhou Enlai will come to pick us up." Qu Wu said: "It is possible. I remember that during the negotiations in Chongqing, General Wenbai went to Yan'an twice to pick up Mao Zedong. It is reasonable for Zhou En to pick us up at the airport this time. He is the chief representative, and Wenbai is also the chief representative! "

Zhang Zhizhong stopped talking. The special plane has already circled over Beiping, how to receive these people?The main leaders of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China are meeting and studying in Shuangqing Villa, Mao Zedong's residence in Xiangshan. Originally, the visit of the Nanjing delegation was also a major event worthy of attention and of great political significance. The welcome standard should be set higher, so that the Kuomintang can see the sincerity of the Communist Party.However, when Zhang Zhizhong left Nanjing, he went to Xikou to meet Chiang Kai-shek. When the incident spread to Beiping, Mao Zedong and other CCP leaders were very angry. Invisibly increased Chiang Kai-shek's prestige, which is very detrimental to the peace talks.

Mao Zedong said: "We sincerely welcome them to come to peace talks, but Zhang Zhizhong is so close to Mr. Jiang who has abdicated. This attitude is very bad. We welcome real peace and oppose fake peace. Enlai arranges people to go to Xiyuan Airport Take it." Under such circumstances, of course Zhou Enlai would not pick up Zhang Zhizhong and his party in person. The special plane of the Nanjing delegation finally landed at Xiyuan Airport. Zhang Zhizhong got down from the gangway first, looking at the dozen or so people who came to welcome them, he felt very unhappy. He thought that no matter what, Zhou Enlai should come to the airport to pick them up, but he didn't come.

The people who came were all dressed in military uniforms, and their faces were very strange. After being introduced, I found out that Ye Jianying was not there. The main officials are: Qi Yanming, secretary-general of the Chinese Communist Party peace talks delegation; Xu Bing, mayor of Beiping; Liu Yalou, chief of staff of the Northeast Field Army. Zhang Zhizhong felt that the standard of reception was too low, and other people felt the same way. After introducing each other, there was silence, and no one from both sides took the initiative to speak.At this time, the security personnel at the airport were doing routine work, checking the luggage carried by the delegation, and Zhang Zhizhong was even more unhappy.

Finally, accompanied by Xu Bing, they checked into the Liuguo Hotel which had been arranged in advance. A striking slogan hangs on the wall of the lobby corridor of the hotel, which read: "Welcome the real peace, oppose the false peace." After seeing the slogan, the delegation felt very heavy and felt that the atmosphere here was not very good. Zhang Zhizhong said a few polite words to the members of the CCP delegation, and then went into the room to rest. It was getting dark, and Zhang Zhizhong and members of the delegation were having a meeting, when suddenly someone came to say hello, saying that Zhou Enlai would come to visit them in the evening.Shao Lizi smiled and said, "Look, I said that Zhou Enlai would definitely come. Maybe he was too busy during the day to meet us at the airport."

Everyone's mood improved obviously. After a while, Zhou Enlai arrived, accompanied by Lin Boqu, Ye Jianying, Lin Biao, Li Weihan, Nie Rongzhen and others. After shaking hands with Zhang Zhizhong, Zhou Enlai stared at him after sitting down and asked, "Why did you go to Xikou to meet Mr. Jiang when you left Nanjing?" This kind of sudden question surprised the people from Nanjing. Zhang Zhizhong hesitated for a moment, and explained: "Although Mr. Jiang has resigned, he is still the president of our Kuomintang. Our delegation must consider his attitude!" Zhou Enlai seemed very angry. He waved his hand and said, "Don't explain any more. You go to see Mr. Jiang. The outside world made a public report. We were very unhappy when we learned about it. Do you know why?"

Before Zhang Zhizhong could answer, Zhou Enlai said in a very serious tone: "You did this entirely to strengthen Chiang Kai-shek's position and enhance his prestige, which played a role in confusing the public and disrupting the peace talks. It is completely false, but in fact he is still manipulating all the power of the Kuomintang government behind the scenes, and the peace talks are completely under his control." The two sides were silent for a while, and Zhang Zhizhong saw that Zhou Enlai's anger had subsided a little, and then continued to explain: "I had to go to Xikou before leaving Nanjing. You didn’t ask me to go either. You may not know why. Although Mr. Jiang has stepped down now, the power is still in his hands. To what extent did Jiang agree to the eight terms of peace talks proposed by Mr. Mao? I have to find out. In addition, there are many rumors about my participation in the peace talks recently, and I will publish a written news after I go to Xikou, which will also have a certain deterrent effect on these people and can remove obstacles to the peace talks.” Zhou Enlai was still not very happy about other people's speech. He looked at Zhang Zhizhong and said, "No matter what you say, we think it can only show that Chiang is manipulating the government and that you are not really peaceful. False peace, in any case we cannot accept it." Zhang Zhizhong's actions had a certain impact on the mood of the representatives during the preliminary talks. But he still insisted on his point of view, saying: "I went to see Mr. Jiang. This is entirely a matter within our party. It is a bit serious for Mr. Zhou to say so." At this time, Zhou Enlai raised his voice again and said, "Who are you representing to negotiate peace with us?" Zhang Zhizhong said: "Of course we were entrusted by Acting President Li Zongren to negotiate peace with you on behalf of the Nanjing government. What we want is true peace!" Zhou Enlai was still a little excited. He said: "In short, we believe that if peace talks are held under the manipulation of Chiang Kai-shek, it will be difficult to achieve real peace. You may know that the bloodshed happened in Nanjing today. Isn't this proof? ?Students took to the streets to demand that the Nanjing government accept our eight conditions for peace talks. What is the crime? Didn’t Mr. Li promise to use the eight conditions as the basis for the peace talks? Why did the military and police still use the military and police to suppress the student movement, causing many Bloodshed is really hard to justify. We welcome Mr. Wen Bai leading a delegation to negotiate with us, but how do you explain the Nanjing tragedy? We cannot but doubt your sincerity.” Regarding the tragedy that happened in Nanjing, Zhang Zhizhong certainly knew about it. On such an occasion, what else can he say when he meets a negotiating opponent like Zhou Enlai!The conversation was deadlocked again. Seeing Zhang Zhizhong bowed his head and said nothing, Shao Lizi looked at Zhou Enlai and said, "We are also very sad to hear this. It is said that Zhang Yaowu, the commander of Nanjing city defense, did it. We really don't know the truth." Zhou Enlai said: "I heard that Zhang Yaowu is Mr. Jiang's confidant, and he is too courageous!" Zhang Zhizhong hurriedly said: "I'm really sorry. We are very angry that such an incident happened, and it is not allowed. Please allow me to contact Nanjing, and report the truth after finding out the truth!" Shao Lizi also smoothed things over, saying: "Please rest assured that we will call Nanjing." Zhou Enlai: "We believe that the Nanjing government sent a delegation to negotiate peace with us and expressed its willingness to accept our eight conditions. It should have a minimum of sincerity. The Nanjing incident should be dealt with as soon as possible and the perpetrators must be severely punished." Zhang Zhizhong said: "I will be responsible for conveying your ideas to Nanjing." Ye Jianying said: "It is really sad that such a tragedy happened in Nanjing before the peace talks started." Zhang Zhizhong noticed that Zhou Enlai's mood had improved, so he asked, "Mr. Zhou, when will our peace talks start?" Zhou Enlai: "We have informed you that you should prepare some materials for the peace talks before you come. Have you brought them?" Although Li Zongren made a secret case when he left Nanjing, it was only within their grasp and he was not going to put it forward in writing. He wanted to find out the bottom line of the CCP first, so he said: "We don't have any plan, and I want to hear your proposal. Let’s talk about the plan.” Nie Rongzhen couldn't sit still, he asked: "Since you are here to negotiate, how can there be no specific proposal?" Zhang Zhizhong said: "The Executive Yuan held a meeting. Based on your eight articles, the opinions were not very unified at that time, but we will propose a motion." Zhou Enlai had seen that they were not prepared for the peace talks, let alone come up with specific proposals, and said with a smile: "We can wait for your proposals, but our principles are based on the eight principles, which cannot be changed. We are looking forward to peace, this is a fact! There is no time to delay, we envisage to fully listen to your opinions through dialogues like today, and discuss it after a few days after the two sides negotiate and come up with a mature plan." Zhang Zhizhong said: "This method is good, we agree."