Chapter 10 Chapter Ten Release Chiang?Buckle up?Disagreements arose within Xi'an
★Jiang's refusal to sign has aroused doubts among the soldiers of the two armies.Zhang Xueliang's idea of releasing Chiang made his subordinates deeply worried. The majority of opinions believed that the Xi'an Incident was carried out by everyone with their heads up, not Zhang and Yang's personal actions. There is no specific guarantee, and Chiang Kai-shek cannot be released easily.
★ Zhang Xueliang bit the bullet and did the work of his subordinates. Zhang and Yang had disputes over this, and the two armies frequently sent out strong messages.In the end, Zhou Enlai came forward to mediate and reached a consensus on the interpretation of Chiang Kai-shek.
★Zhang Xueliang had already made up his mind to release Chiang, but the hasty "unconditional release of Chiang" made Zhang and Yang lose their "hole card" to restrict Chiang Kai-shek
After Chiang Kai-shek accepted the conditions proposed by Xi'an to stop the civil war and unite to resist Japan, the issue of releasing Chiang Kai-shek was put on the agenda.
So, under what circumstances and how should Chiang be released?The soldiers involved in the incident in Xi'an, including Zhang and Yang, had different considerations. These different considerations were normal and had nothing to do with the release of Jiang itself, because Zhang and Yang had already reached a high degree of agreement on the issue of releasing Jiang.However, if she didn't leave Xi'an for a moment, Jiang couldn't let go of her hanging heart.What's more, "different considerations" itself has hidden variables, which once again aroused the uneasiness of the suspicious Chiang Kai-shek and Song brothers and sisters...
★Jiang's refusal to sign has aroused doubts among the soldiers of the two armies.Zhang Xueliang's idea of releasing Chiang made his subordinates deeply worried. The majority of opinions believed that the Xi'an Incident was carried out by everyone with their heads up, not Zhang and Yang's personal actions. There is no specific guarantee, and Chiang Kai-shek cannot be released easily.
In fact, the peace negotiations to release Chiang were carried out in two steps.
The first step was to negotiate and get Jiang to agree to the various conditions proposed by Zhang, Yang, and Zhou to stop the civil war and unite to resist Japan.However, before the negotiations began, Chiang Kai-shek put forward a precondition, that is, an agreed condition, which he guaranteed with "the leader's personality" without any written signature.
Since it is a negotiation, there is a problem of signature.Without a signed agreement, who will guarantee its authenticity and effectiveness.What Chiang Kai-shek said was guaranteed by the "personality of the leader" is the first time in the world, and it cannot but make people worry.
Why didn't Chiang Kai-shek sign it?Is it for the sake of not leaving any words in history, so as to maintain his personal dignity as a so-called leader, or did he lay the groundwork for breaking his promise from the beginning?
At first, Xi’an didn’t think too much about it. For the sake of the national righteousness of resisting Japan, Zhang and Yang believed that as long as Jiang could change the policy of “suppressing the outside world, we must first settle the inside”, stop the “communist suppression” and lead the resistance against Japan, it’s okay not to sign. , Even after signing it, if you want to tear up the agreement, it's easy, and there's nothing you can do with him.Zhou Enlai reported this situation to the Central Committee. When Mao Zedong replied, he also agreed not to sign, and said: "Why do you want him to sign? Signing or not signing is the same thing! If he wants to overthrow it, it is useless to sign."
However, as the negotiations progressed, this problem became prominent, and this led to the second step, that is, how to guarantee and how to impose certain constraints on Chiang Kai-shek's "leader's personality" guarantee.
The CCP has already done this step. The Jiang Zhou meeting on the evening of the 24th was actually asking for further guarantees from Jiang.Song Ziwen recorded this process in his diary on December 25.Song wrote:
Zhou met with the chairman and explained: Over the past year, the CCP has been trying to avoid civil war in order to preserve national strength.They did not claim any capital from the Xi'an Incident, and the proposed measures were the same as those advocated a few months ago.Now they want him to make the following guarantees: (1) stop the "communist suppression"; (2) allow the CCP to resist Japan; (3) allow the CCP to send representatives to Nanjing to explain its propositions to him.
Chairman of the Committee replied: The Red Army has always been a wish in its heart to go north to fight against Japan. If, as Zhou Zhi said, they are willing to stop all red propaganda and follow his command, he will treat his army as his own.In all the years of "communist suppression".He has always remembered the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, many of whom were his subordinates.Since he can be kind to the Guangxi family, he must also be generous to the CCP.He has commissioned Zhang to reorganize the Red Army. If the Red Army is loyal to him, they will enjoy the same treatment as Hu Zongnan's army.After he has fully rested, Zhou himself can go to Nanjing in person to continue the discussion.
Judging from the information in Song Ziwen’s above-mentioned diary, Zhou Enlai asked Chiang Kai-shek to make further guarantees from the overall situation of the anti-Japanese war, which involved more major events of anti-Japanese and “communist suppression”, and it is impossible to go into details about Zhang, Yang and others who participated in the incident. The personal safety of generals.
Zhang Xueliang relied on his special relationship with Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling, especially when he launched the incident, he had no intention of harming Chiang Kai-shek, but purely for the purpose of resisting Japan. Now that Chiang Kai-shek agreed to the request of resisting Japan, he thought he should let Chiang go back.As for personal safety, he has long ignored it. Zhang Zeng said more than once: As long as the Anti-Japanese War can be realized, it is worth sacrificing Zhang Xueliang and even the Northeast Army.Therefore, he gave less consideration to the issue of security guarantees.
As for the soldiers who participated in this incident, the issue of safety assurance is very important.When the news that Chiang Kai-shek refused to sign the agreement came out, it immediately caused an uproar.Many soldiers felt that if Chiang Kai-shek did not sign, he was thinking of not accepting his debt in the future. This was related to the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, and he could not be easily let go.
The generals of the 17th Route Army reacted fiercely.They believed that the relationship between Zhang Xueliang and Chiang Kai-shek was extraordinary, so Chiang Kai-shek might forgive Zhang Xueliang, but he would never forgive the generals of the 17th Route Army who participated in the incident together.They even wanted to kill Chiang Kai-shek altogether.
The officers and men of the Northeast Army also agreed to release Chiang without specific guarantees.
Therefore, Zhang and Yang entrusted their think tank staff to discuss and put forward their opinions. On the afternoon of the 23rd, Gao Chongmin presided over a design committee meeting, attended by Du Bincheng, Shen Bochun, Wang Bingnan, Ying Detian, Lu Guangji, etc.The meeting mainly discussed two issues: one was the conditions for peaceful negotiations; the other was under what conditions Chiang could be released.Participants were concerned with the last issue, so the discussion naturally focused on it.On this issue, the participants debated very fiercely, and they proposed that the following two guarantees must be met before Chiang Kai-shek could be released:
1. The "Central Army" withdrew from Tongguan to lift the military threat to Xi'an.It is suggested that Yan Xishan come out as the guarantor.And the zone between Tongguan and Luoyang was designated as a buffer zone, which was garrisoned by the Jin army, so that Chiang Kai-shek could not retaliate even if he wanted to.
2. First release the "seven gentlemen" who were arrested in Shanghai to save the country and win the trust of the people across the country.
Ying Detian, the recorder of the peace talks, said emotionally: Everyone caught Chiang Kai-shek with their heads in their hands, not Zhang and Yang.If they want to catch them, they can catch them, and if they want to let them go, they can't!Now that Chiang Kai-shek is still in our hands, if we don’t listen to our words, we simply kill Chiang first.
The meeting finally made a resolution: Without guarantees, Jiang cannot leave.
Another protagonist who launched the incident, Yang Hucheng, also advocated conditional release of Chiang.
Yang Hucheng originally did not advocate releasing Chiang, or he advocated releasing Chiang later. On December 18, Zhou Enlai met with him and reached a consensus to resolve the incident peacefully.However, regarding the release of Chiang, he insisted that there must be conditions and guarantees. On the 20th, when Zhang Xueliang discussed formal negotiations with Yang Hucheng and the release of Chiang Kai-shek at the Xincheng Headquarters, Yang Hucheng's first request was that the policy of "to fight against the outside world must first secure the interior" must be changed, and that Chiang Kai-shek should at least make a public statement to the whole country through talks. this attitude.On the same day, Song Ziwen had arrived in Xi'an, and Zhang Xueliang told Yang Hucheng: Chiang Kai-shek had hinted that he could agree with Zhang and Yang's idea of uniting to resist Japan, but since he was not in Nanjing, no one made the decision; Robust approach, and so on.Based on this, Zhang Xueliang hoped that Yang Hucheng would agree to release Chiang.He said: "Jiang has repeatedly stated that he guarantees with his personality, and it seems that he will not deceive us." , Song Ziwen proposed Chiang Kai-shek's request to return to Nanjing after ordering a truce and withdrawal of troops. Neither Yang Hucheng nor Zhou Enlai agreed.
Why is Yang Hucheng so persistent in releasing Jiang conditionally?
This is because Yang Hucheng felt from his many years of dealing with Chiang since he was attached to Chiang in 1929 that Chiang Kai-shek was not a man of faith at all, and it would be naive to talk to him about faith.Yang said more than once: To fight against Chiang Kai-shek, "No warlord in China, including us, can't survive' (Shaanxi dialect means "can't fight"), only the Communist Party can be enough to be Chiang's 'enemy'".Therefore, he did not believe in Chiang Kai-shek's guarantee at all. Although he had no opinion on releasing Chiang, he believed that how to release the law must be carefully considered, and he must not believe in the so-called "personality guarantee".Only by grabbing his braid can he be restrained from breaking his words or turning around to retaliate.
After detaining Jiang, Yang Hucheng and his cronies conceived a plan to deal with Jiang:
(1) "Hold the Son of Heaven to order the princes", keep Chiang in Xi'an, use the "Trinity" to guarantee Jiang's safety, and let Jiang issue orders in Xi'an; (2) Ask Jiang to sign a secret agreement to ensure that it will not be leaked; A broadcast to the whole country, or a political document expressing attitude, does not involve the specific content of the agreement.
With the progress of the negotiations, the first two items can no longer be established, but it can still be considered and can be done if Jiang publicly expresses his attitude.According to Yang Hucheng's opinion, on such a major issue as the release of Chiang Kai-shek, consensus must be reached on three sides, especially the opinions of the CCP should be respected.He has always believed that the Communist Party has many ways to deal with Chiang Kai-shek, and they are relatively clever.Before releasing Chiang, there must be a set of arrangements, and a clear explanation to the army cadres and the masses.Therefore, he did not agree to hastily release Chiang.
Yang Hucheng's thoughts represent the opinions of the vast majority of people in Xi'an. According to data, except for Zhang Xueliang himself, everyone else advocates the guaranteed release of Chiang. At midnight on the 24th, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China also expressed this attitude in its reply telegram to Zhou Enlai:
Yang Hucheng has always advocated conditional release of Chiang.After arresting Chiang, he discussed with his staff and imagined signing a secret agreement with Chiang, at least requiring Chiang to make a radio speech to the whole country to show his attitude. Yang was worried that if Chiang was released without a certain guarantee, it would be inevitable that he would not initiate the incident after returning to Beijing. to retaliate.Most of Zhang Yang's subordinates also advocated conditional release of Jiang.
Zhou Enlai also advocated the guaranteed and conditional release of Chiang.Like Yang Hucheng, he was worried about Jiang's wavering, and considered asking Jiang to make relevant guarantees. On the evening of the 24th, in a telegram reporting Chiang Kai-shek’s attitude towards negotiations to the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Zhou Enlai pointed out: “At present, Chiang has the desire to resist Japan in the Xi’an environment, but if the Nanjing environment does not change, he will return to wavering. (reform) the (government) organization, negotiate with us in secret, and seek guarantees through public propaganda.” The day before, Zhou had asked the Central Committee to instruct the conditions for Jiang’s release in a telegram reporting the negotiation with Song Ziwen to the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. . On the morning of the 24th, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China sent Bogu, then member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau, to Xi'an with instructions from the Central Committee.In the middle of the night, the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China replied to Zhou and Bo, instructing:
A. Restoring Chiang's freedom under the following prerequisites: (1) The entire Central Army retreats to Henan and Suiyuan provinces. (2) Nanjing declares domestic peace, reforms with the people, ignores all the past, and convenes an order to save the nation.Chiang also issued the same declaration.This condition is to cancel the crusade order and recognize the status of Zhang, Yang and us. (3) Partial release of state prisoners and the Communist Party.
B. According to the current situation, it would be dangerous to release Chiang without these conditions.Even if Zhang and Yang are defeated, they still have something to do with Jiang in hand.
Ding, Zhang and Yang and we should have the determination to persevere.
These conditions put forward by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China based on the domestic and foreign situation were conducive to promoting the formation of the overall situation of unity and anti-Japanese. The development also confirmed the vision of the CPC Central Committee.
According to this instruction from the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, on the morning of the 25th, Zhou Enlai called on Yang Hucheng to discuss the conditions for releasing Chiang. Yang Hucheng agreed with the CCP’s conditions for releasing Chiang. .
The attitude of Zhou Enlai and the CCP Zhang Xueliang is clear, Yang Hucheng's attitude is also clear to Zhang Xueliang, and the mainstream thinking of the generals of the Northeast Army and the 17th Route Army is even more clear to Zhang Xueliang.These forces all advocated "releasing Chiang on conditional basis." This situation put a lot of pressure on Zhang Xueliang's thinking.
The ideological reaction within the "Trinity" is only one aspect of Zhang Xueliang's pressure. The greater pressure comes from Chiang Kai-shek and the Song brothers and sisters.
The Song brothers and sisters came to Xi'an on the 22nd and discussed the release of Jiang with Zhang Xueliang before negotiating.Zhang Xueliang expressed his personal desire to restore Chiang's freedom immediately, but this issue concerned many people, and they had to ask for their consent.
Song Meiling also felt that Zhang Xueliang was in a difficult situation. It was as difficult for him to persuade his subordinates and Yang Hucheng and others as it was for her to persuade Chiang Kai-shek.So, I said: "Then you should quickly tell them what I mean. If they want to have an interview with me, you can let them come to see me; I am willing to meet with those who the chairman does not want to meet on behalf of the chairman. I'll wait for your reply here." It was almost late at night.
Zhang Xueliang came out of Gao Mansion and immediately called Yang Hucheng and others for a meeting, which lasted until after midnight.Around the issue of releasing Chiang, the debate was very intense.After the meeting, Zhang felt that it was too late, so he didn't go to Song's residence.But Song Meiling waited for Zhang Xueliang to report the results, but she stayed up all the time.At 2 o'clock in the morning, Zhang still did not come, so he called Zhang to ask him.Zhang Xueliang then rushed to Song's residence and told her: "They are unwilling to release the chairman. They think that Ziwen and I have a good friendship with you. Of course I can save my life. What should they do? They blamed me for dragging them into the whirlpool. And proposed that we were eager to release the chairman without any commitment, isn’t that pushing himself into a desperate situation?” Upon hearing this news, Soong Meiling discussed with Zhang until 3 o’clock before going to bed.
After the negotiations achieved results, the Song brothers and sisters raised the issue of releasing Chiang again.Song Ziwen first proposed at the meeting attended by Zhang, Yang, and Zhou that Chiang Kai-shek would issue an order for the "Central Army" to withdraw from Shaanxi and Gansu, and then Chiang would return to Nanjing.Only Zhang agreed to the proposal.Song Ziwen went to Yang Hucheng to discuss Jiang's issue in person, but Yang insisted that Jiang could not leave Xi'an immediately.
This news made Song Meiling worried.What she was worried about when she was in Nanjing was He Yingqin and others' crusade ideas. She was afraid that they would take the opportunity to get rid of Chiang Kai-shek.After arriving in Xi'an, this worry became even more serious.Because she thinks:
The surrounding armies are all ready to go. After the rebels, there will be the Communist army again, which is also the enemy of the chairman of the committee. ...The so-called Northeast Army has a large number of people, excellent armaments, and its battle plan, that is, the Communist Army will be the only backing in the future. In case of the day when the war starts, that is, when the Communist Party regenerates its vitality, its influence will run like an electric current. An unprecedented civil war has been brought about, and unpredictable catastrophe has been called, and the imperialists who are eyeing the tiger are looking forward to the outbreak of the Chinese civil war, so that they can use large-scale aggression as an excuse to complete their dream of organizing China. It will cause unlimited interference from the other side.
Therefore, after arriving in Xi'an, she urged Chiang Kai-shek to agree to Zhang and Yang's conditions as soon as possible, so that Chiang could leave Xi'an as soon as possible.The most difficult hurdle of "negotiation" has been passed, and the negotiated agreement has been reached. Unexpectedly, the issue of "guarantee" appeared again, which made Soong Meiling doubtful.
No matter how suspicious Soong Meiling was, she could only rely on Zhang Xueliang to solve this problem.Because Chiang Kai-shek and Yang Hucheng had always been at odds. Before that, in 1934, Chiang had suddenly dismissed Yang from the post of chairman of Shaanxi Province, and sent Shao Lizi to monitor Yang.After the incident, Yang's attitude spread to Nanjing. The Song family could understand Zhang Shi, but they were very indifferent to Yang.This emotional basis made it impossible for the Song brothers and sisters to do Yang's work, and it was also impossible for them to do Yang's work.As for the other important party of the "Trinity", the CCP and its representative Zhou Enlai, Song Meiling and Zhou have never had any contact, and Song Ziwen only knew Zhou when he came to Xi'an for this incident.Chiang Kai-shek's ten-year "suppression of the Communist Party" and the CCP's enmity, Soong Meiling did not dare to imagine what the CCP could help them.
In this way, the Song brothers and sisters could only put pressure on Zhang Xueliang.Zhang Xueliang talked about "loyalty" very much. He believed that he had made a promise before that as long as Chiang Kai-shek agreed to his conditions, he would let Chiang go.Now that an agreement has been reached, Chiang should be released as a matter of course.When most of them disagreed with his opinion, Zhang Xueliang even devised such a way to release Jiang in his eagerness: secretly sent Jiang away in disguise.
This plan was put forward after the talks between Chiang Kai-shek and Zhou Enlai.
Zhou Enlai was sent away, and there were only four people left in the house, including Chiang Kai-shek, Zhang Xueliang, and the Song brothers and sisters.Song Meiling said: Han Qing, the term of the chairman's warrant is 3 days. When I came from Nanjing, I asked General He Yingqin to extend the limit of 3 days. Tomorrow is the day for Nanjing to attack.In addition, the chairman and I both believe in Christ. Can you give us tomorrow's best Christmas gift?
Zhang Xueliang replied: Director Kong also just sent a letter, and he also had the same opinion, saying that if he could escort the chairman of the committee to leave Xi'an and return to Nanjing around Christmas, it would be the greatest gift from Santa Claus.It's just that Director Yang is still a little hesitant, and I'll try to persuade him tomorrow.His army is in the city, and the 17th Route Army is guarding the city gate. If Director Yang doesn't let go, it's hard for me.
Soong Meiling resorted to her "aggressive general method": You are a deputy commander, don't you have any other options?
Zhang Xueliang replied: It is a last resort, we can use force, but that is too dangerous for you.I can take the Chairman on a sneaky excursion, you and Donna fly to Luoyang, I will dress up the Chairman, drive him out of town in a car, take him to my army garrison, and drive from there to Luoyang to meet you.
Soong Ziwen agreed with this plan, but Soong Meiling firmly opposed it.Her reasons focused on two points: first, the physical strength of the chairman could not bear the long car journey; second, it would be too shameful to leave Xi'an in this way.
Chiang Kai-shek cried after listening to it: You just want to go back, what's the point of returning to Nanjing?Having suffered such a big setback in Xi'an, my reputation, status, and dignity were all ruined.As the commander-in-chief of a country, what weight does he still have in people's minds at this point?You can fulfill me, or get rid of me and Meiling together!
Chiang Kai-shek's words, of course, are still "provocative" to Zhang Xueliang, he definitely does not really want to die in Xi'an.However, it can be seen from the aggressive generals of Chiang Kai-shek and the Song brothers and sisters and Zhang's answer that Zhang Xueliang sincerely hoped to release Chiang to return to Nanjing as soon as possible.This also reflects that the "Trinity" and the unanimous attitude of his subordinates are important factors that cannot be ignored for Zhang Xueliang.
★ Zhang Xueliang bit the bullet and did the work of his subordinates. Zhang and Yang had disputes over this, and the two armies frequently sent out strong messages.In the end, Zhou Enlai came forward to mediate and reached a consensus on the interpretation of Chiang Kai-shek.
Facing the pressure from the Song brothers and sisters to release Jiang, Zhang Xueliang had difficulty choosing to release Jiang conditionally from the standpoint of his subordinates.In addition, Song Meiling vetoed his extreme plan, so he could only face his subordinates and the "Trinity" and reach an agreement through interpretation.
He instructed Bao Wenyue, Ma Zhanshan, Mi Chunlin, Lu Guangji, Du Bincheng and others to meet Song Ziwen. At noon on the 24th, the five people met with Song Ziwen and made further demands on guaranteeing that the agreement must be realized.After hearing this, Song Ziwen explained to the generals that the chairman of the general committee would not issue orders in person here.He patted his chest and gave a thumbs up to promise that the chairman would never blame the past when he returned to Beijing.But everyone still feels that it is just a verbal superficial promise.
In the afternoon, Zhang Xueliang entrusted Zhou Enlai to continue to contact the Song brothers and sisters, and held a meeting of the design committee in the mansion.Previously, Gao Chongmin had written to Zhang Xueliang on the evening of the 23rd regarding the two opinions formed by the design committee.Focusing on the issue of conditional release of Jiang raised by everyone, Zhang first briefly notified the agreement reached with the Song brothers and sisters, and revealed: The purpose of the military remonstrance has been achieved, and Jiang will be released from Shaanxi soon.Then he said to everyone seriously:
"I heard that you had some opinions at the meeting yesterday. You can raise these opinions to me, but I want to warn you now, you are not allowed to speak casually outside, especially you are not allowed to make any nonsense. This is a major issue that concerns the destiny of the country and the nation. We can’t afford to make a mistake. If you have any opinions, you can tell me in person now.”
After a few minutes of silence, some people began to ask: "Is there any guarantee for these conditions that Jiang and Song promised us? What will they do if they say it in the future?"
Zhang Xueliang asked sharply: "What guarantee do you want? Say it! Say it!" The person being questioned seemed very nervous, but he still stated the guarantee conditions that were decided by the design committee yesterday.
Zhang Xueliang listened to everyone's guarantee conditions, and replied sincerely and confidently:
I have considered all the suggestions you have raised, but they are all unworkable.You have to know that Jiang is locked up with us now, and He Yingqin may not be willing to listen to what he says now.We forced Jiang to give an order, and if the result was invalid, what should we do?Let's not talk about this level. Even if Jiang's order is still in effect, we forced him to do it, and he did not do it willingly.Then, his order has been issued, and it has taken effect. For example, the Central Army from the west of Tongguan has moved out of the east of Tongguan, the patriotic leader of Shanghai, the Seven Gentlemen, has been released, and the government has also been reorganized. At that time, will you let him go?If the guarantee is fulfilled, of course he must be released.But he did this because of coercion, not willingly, and he must have revenge.When he returned to Nanjing, the central army that drove out of Tongguan came back to the west of Tongguan, the released patriotic leaders were arrested again, the reorganized government was reorganized, and he was willing to declare war on Japan even if you oppressed him, but he went back Later, he made a compromise with Japan.What will you do then?What do you do?So I say that your opinions are not feasible.The conditions we put forward can only be let him go if he accepts them in principle. It doesn’t matter if he signs or not.
As for asking Yan Xishan to be the guarantor, that is even more impossible.We are "a good man who does things as a good man", and we do our own business.We don't invite guests, let alone guests like Yan Xishan.Before the Xi'an Incident, we had shared with Yan Xishan some of the circumstances and propositions of our joint anti-Japanese war, and he had also expressed his approval and support to us.After this incident happened, we telegraphed him and asked him for advice. He telegraphed back and asked us several questions, such as "promoting the anti-Japanese war, destroying the anti-Japanese war, stopping the war of resistance, and expanding the war of resistance", and finally questioned us. "Why do you care about the aftermath?" It was just full of accusations, without a word of sympathy.He sent the telegram to us and sent it to a newspaper in Nanjing for publication. I don't know what calculations he had in mind.We don't work with such a person, and we don't let him take advantage of opportunistic opportunities.
After Zhang Xueliang said this, everyone asked again: "What is the opinion of the Red Army and Director Yang?" Zhang said: "The attitude of the Red Army is softer than ours. Although Director Yang has some disagreements, he knows the general situation."
Zhang Xueliang did not convince everyone at this meeting.That night, the generals of the Northeast Army and the 17th Route Army jointly wrote a letter to Song Ziwen overnight, requesting: the agreement reached by the three parties must be signed, and only the "leader's personality" as a guarantee is not enough; the "Central Army" must immediately withdraw from Tongguan.Only by doing these two points can Chiang Kai-shek be allowed to leave. Otherwise, Zhang and Yang agreed, and we also vowed to oppose it.
Song Ziwen was shocked when he saw this letter on the morning of the 25th.He hurriedly forwarded it to Chiang Kai-shek and Song Meiling.Jiang and Song were also taken aback after seeing it, and asked Song Ziwen to find Zhang Xueliang to find a solution, and asked Song Ziwen to go to Yang Hucheng himself, and begged Yang to let Jiang go as soon as possible.Song assured Yang that after Chiang left, the "Central Army" would immediately withdraw from Tongguan.Yang still did not agree to Song's request.
At this time, Zhang Xueliang also received a letter.The letter was written by Gao Chongmin, who presided over the design committee. Gao also repeatedly stated in the letter that releasing Chiang unconditionally would be dangerous.
Reminiscent of Ying Detian's meeting with Ying Detian two nights ago, Ying also insisted that releasing Jiang without guarantees was "letting the tiger go back to the mountain", Zhang Xueliang felt that Jiang must be released as soon as possible, otherwise accidents may occur.
After learning the result of the conversation between Song Ziwen and Yang Hucheng, Zhang Xueliang immediately rushed to the Xincheng Building at 8 o'clock in the morning to do Yang Hucheng's work.I happened to meet Gao Chongmin, and Zhang said to Gao: "I have seen your letter. Let me tell you, let's ask God to send it by ourselves, and don't shoot ourselves with stones. As long as it is beneficial to the country, sacrifice myself and the Northeast community. Regardless." Gao Chongmin asked: "This is a matter of the 'Trinity', it cannot be decided by our family." Zhang patted Gao on the shoulder and said: "Mr. Zhou is more peaceful than me. Only Hucheng is hesitant. I Go and convince him."
Zhang Xueliang said twice in one day that "the attitude of the Red Army is softer than ours" and "Mr. Zhou is more peaceful than me", which is not true.Is it because he doesn't understand the CCP's attitude?Obviously not.Because when Song Ziwen proposed to release Jiang on the 24th, neither Zhou nor Yang agreed to the proposal, and Zhang Xueliang was also present. Could he not understand what Zhou meant?
Is it intentional to downplay his differences with the CCP on this issue?This is possible.Because the CCP's words in the "Trinity" are very important. As long as the CCP does not openly oppose Shi Jiang, he may succeed in doing the work of Yang Hucheng and his subordinates.Zhang Xueliang also believed that the Xi'an Incident was initiated jointly by him and Yang Hucheng. As long as Yang Hucheng agreed to release Chiang, the CCP would not oppose him.It was this kind of understanding that made him release Chiang on his own initiative without hearing about the CCP.
After Zhang Xueliang came to the Xincheng Building, he met with Yang Hucheng and his senior generals.It was here that Zhang and Yang had a fierce quarrel.
Zhang Xueliang stated that he wanted to release Chiang Kai-shek, and he said to Yang Hucheng:
Our motivation for launching the incident was to ask the chairman of the general committee to lead the whole country to resist Japan in unison, regardless of everything, rather than to consider the consequences for ourselves.Since he has agreed to submit our proposal to the central government for discussion, our goal has been achieved, and we should not be afraid of personal loss and death.
However, Yang Hucheng and others insisted that Chiang Kai-shek write a written guarantee.
The emotions of the generals of the Northeast Army and the 17th Route Army were also difficult to calm down. They insisted that Chiang Kai-shek sign the agreement.Zhang Xueliang had no choice but to patiently explain to them:
Why did I dare to risk the disapproval of the world and detain Chiang Kai-shek in Xi'an?The main purpose is to fight for the end of the civil war and unite in the resistance against Japan.If we procrastinate for a long time and don't send him back to Nanjing as soon as possible, things will develop in the opposite direction, which will go against our original intention: we launched this incident to oppose the civil war, and it may cause a bigger problem than today. We forced Chiang to resist the Japanese, and a bigger civil war was tantamount to helping Japan; we detained Chiang in Xi’an in order to force him to resist the Japanese, and he promised to resist the Japanese. It will cause the leader who promised us to resist Japan to lose his leadership position or damage his reputation.Then I, Zhang Xueliang, are truly an unforgivable sinner.If this is the case, I must commit suicide to thank the people of the country.
Although Zhang Xueliang tried his best, Yang Hucheng and many generals of the two armies did not give up their ideas. The two sides were at a stalemate, so Zhou Enlai had no choice but to "smooth the field" and suggested that Zhang Xueliang "take a little rest", while he expressed his interests to Yang Hucheng, Act as a mediator between Zhang and Yang.
Zhou Enlai originally did not advocate releasing Chiang immediately.He had just negotiated with Yang Hucheng in accordance with the instructions of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China to release Chiang under the following conditions:
First, the entire Central Army was the first to withdraw from Tongguan;
Second, Nanjing and Chiang Kai-shek announced domestic peace through public political documents, reformed with the people, let go of the past, and convened a meeting to save the country;
Third, the partial release of political prisoners has begun.
However, in the face of this sudden situation, for the overall situation of the Anti-Japanese War and the unity of the "Trinity", Zhou Enlai stood up again to do Yang Hucheng's work.
Yang Hucheng finally heeded Zhou Enlai's opinion and gave up the request for Chiang Kai-shek to sign the written document.He accepted Chiang Kai-shek's verbal promise, regardless of his personal safety, and agreed to let Chiang go.In this way, Zhou Enlai did Zhang Xueliang a big favor, and of course Chiang Kai-shek was the biggest beneficiary.
A few years later, Mr. Tuanna, who had participated in the rescue of Chiang Kai-shek, was captured by the Japanese army in the Philippines and imprisoned in a concentration camp.In order to repay the life-saving grace of Duanna in the past, Chiang Kai-shek asked General MacArthur, commander of the US Far East Allied Forces, to organize a military operation code-named "Los Barnes" to rescue Duanna.During an interview in Luzon Island, Duanna confirmed to the press that Zhou Enlai had made great contributions to Chiang Kai-shek’s escape from Xi’an. He said:
Zhou Enlai... was actually a key figure in the Xi'an Incident in 1936, and he was the one who rescued General Chiang from kidnapping.
In his "Informal Legend of Zhou Enlai, the Legendary Chinese Character", John Lutz also described that it was Zhou Enlai's help that made Chiang Kai-shek leave Xi'an smoothly.
The text reads:
On Christmas Day in 1940, Chiang Kai-shek invited Zhou Enlai to dinner in Chongqing, "Chairman... thanks to his guests for saving his life in Xi'an."
Although Yang Hucheng agreed to release Chiang, the CCP could not sacrifice the interests of Yang Hucheng and his two armies for Jiang.Under the mediation of Zhou Enlai, Chiang Kai-shek and Yang Hucheng agreed to reach a tacit agreement based on the results of the negotiations on December 23.This tacit agreement was arranged by Zhou Enlai, so that Mrs. Jiang and Song Ziwen signed such a document, and Duan Na served as a witness.This document includes the following conditions:
Chiang Kai-shek agreed:
(1) Declare and begin armed resistance to Japanese aggression.
(2) Stop attacking the Chinese Communist Party.
(3) Accommodating the Communist Party to fight against Japan together.
(4) Eliminate pro-Japanese officials from the National Government.
Japanese materials in the archives of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs "Xi'an Incident" (S161527-271-278) also recorded the conditions for the release of Chiang Kai-shek:
(1) Withdraw government troops around Xi'an.
(2) Stop the civil war and "suppress the communists".
(3) Launch a nationwide anti-Japanese movement.
(4) Distribute military pay to the Communist Party troops.
(5) Release the seven leaders of the Shanghai National Salvation Association.
(6) Reorganize the central government; replace the following local officials: Mayor of Shanghai; Chief of Shanghai Police; Chairman of Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi and Fujian provinces.
Although the contents of the documents shown in the above two documents are different, they both contain the eight policy propositions of Zhang and Yang, and their main contents are the same.Judging from Chiang Kai-shek's subsequent actions, this document undoubtedly exists.However, in the memoirs "Xi'an Half Moon" and "Xi'an Incident" that Chiang Kai-shek and Madam Chiang "processed" in the future, they tried their best to deny this point, just to save face.
★Zhang Xueliang had already made up his mind to release Chiang, but the hasty "unconditional release of Chiang" made Zhang and Yang lose their "hole card" to restrict Chiang Kai-shek
Release of Jiang was Zhang Xueliang's consideration at the beginning of the incident, but the consideration of "Release Chiang" at that time was conditional "Release Chiang".After the Song brothers and sisters came to Xi'an, following Song Meiling's peaceful offensive, Zhang Xueliang gradually backed down on the conditions for releasing Chiang. Soong Meiling asked Yang Hucheng and others to discuss the release of Jiang overnight, but it was fruitless because everyone opposed it.
After the preliminary agreement was reached, Zhang Xueliang became more determined to release Chiang.However, although Chiang Kai-shek agreed to the agreement reached, he refused to sign it, which called into question the validity of the agreement.Therefore, after the agreement was reached, other guarantees were needed to release Chiang, which became the opinion of the majority, but Zhang Xueliang did not agree to increase the guarantee clause. He believed that as long as Chiang Kai-shek agreed to resist Japan, Chiang should be released, and he should save enough face for Chiang Kai-shek.
After the agreement was reached on the morning of the 24th, Zhang Xueliang called his subordinates for a meeting in the afternoon and began to prepare for releasing Chiang.
In the evening, Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng held a (send-off) banquet at the Appeasement Office building.Attending the banquet were: Zhang Xueliang, Yang Hucheng and their generals above the division level; Chiang Kai-shek, Song Ziwen and their entourage; Zhou Enlai, Ye Jianying and their accompanying CCP personnel.
At the beginning of the banquet, Zhang Xueliang, with a serious expression, raised his glass and gave a passionate speech:
Chairman, Vice Chairman Zhou, Brothers:
You are startled.The action I took was a last resort, and I asked the chairman of the general committee to fight against Japan together.I am a person who has a national enmity and a family enmity.I hope that all of you here will contribute to the promotion of the Anti-Japanese Movement. Cheers!
After Zhang Xueliang finished speaking, he drank it in one gulp, with tears in his eyes, and then smashed the goblet to the ground.
Zhou Enlai then stood up to toast.He said:
Chairman, Generals Hanqing and Hucheng, Mr. Baili and old friends:
The actions of generals Zhang and Yang contributed the most to promoting unity. Through this incident, I hope that all parties will unite and unite.I propose, to your health and to the contribution of Generals Zhang and Yang, cheers!
At this time, Zhang Xueliang stood up and toasted everyone for the second time. He said:
A person must have the ambition to save the country and the people.If you have an ambition, you must work hard to achieve it.I have my ambitions.
现在国难当头，东北沦陷，华北危在旦夕，国家兴亡，匹夫有责。南开大学校长张伯苓说过“中国不亡有我”，我们军人更应当有“中国不亡有我”的气魄！
说到这里，张学良又是一饮而尽，第二次把酒杯摔碎在地。
当宴会进入尾声的时候，张学良走到蒋介石面前，恭敬地说：
委员长：
我这次行动的唯一目的，是拥护委员长抗日，我的国仇、家仇都没有报，我是中华民族的罪人。您如果与我有共同心愿，也许不会有此事件发生。希望委员长回到南京，说到做到。东北不收复，我死不瞑目！为委员长的健康干杯！
张学良说完，第三次一饮而尽，第三次将酒杯摔碎。
蒋介石见张学良如此激愤之情，非常尴尬，沮丧地推托说，身体不好，酒也不能喝。宋子文急忙接过酒杯代蒋而饮。
这次宴会，等于宣布：蒋介石即将获释。
宴会结束，张学良即召集东北军主要将领王以哲、何柱国、董英斌等将领来到公馆，向他们宣布了释蒋的决定。
25日上午，张学良一面做杨虎城的工作，一面秘密告诉蒋介石、宋美龄、宋子文：整理行装，并把自己的简单行李交于端纳，关照端纳不要声张。
此时，他对自己卫队二营也不放心，令谭海亲率自己的卫士队担任警戒。
是何种因素促使张学良急于放蒋，又是何种因素使张学良对蒋介石的安全越发担忧呢？
张学良发动西安事变，尽管受到来自多方面责难，但他始终没有对自己正义举动产生过动摇和怀疑。中共全权代表周恩来到西安后，在对扣蒋行动进行充分肯定和赞扬的同时，曾对这种做法提出过温和的批评，周毫无保留地指出：
这次事变从善良的愿望出发，趁着蒋介石住在这里，出其不意，乘其不备，用惊险的手段把他提起来。这种做法，在方式上多少带有军事阴谋的性质，将西安与南京置于敌对地位，有引起新的内战的危险。
周恩来的话，使张学良感到有些不安。
宋美龄来到西安后，从另一个立场上更是多次对张的此次行动进行“批评”，还说什么张“性子太急切，且易冲动”，如事变处理不好，将酿成新的内战，给日本侵略中国以借口等，殊不知，没有西安事变，日本也会制造各种各样的侵华事变的。由于宋美龄与张良好的私人关系，张学良开始对这次行动的不足之处进行一些反思，自此以后，他多次讲道“劫持蒋介石自知不大合适”，认识扣蒋“此举的不当”等。
张学良最怕的是宋美龄所讲的引发内战、给日本侵略以口实。他没有料到事变发生后，南京国民政府内部立即形成主战和主和两派，且意见尖锐对立。此刻，中央各路“讨伐”大军已经包围西安，何应钦的停战只有最后3天时间。单凭西安方面的军事力量是难以抗击南京方面的进攻的。一旦战事一开，不说保证蒋介石不被打死、炸死如何艰难，就是在东北军和17路内部也不敢保证不会出现激进行为。东北军主力放在了前线与国民党中央军对峙，西安完全在17路军的控制之下，而他对17路军的状况没有底数。二旦出了乱子，后果则不堪设想。实际上，事变中已经有了伤亡事故：国民党中央执行委员邵元冲跳窗逃跑时被打死，蒋介石的侍从室主任钱大钧被击伤右肩，蒋本人在翻墙逃往骊山时跌入深沟，断了几根肋骨和扭伤了髁骨。
如果蒋介石出现意外，南京国民政府的最高领袖地位，政治领袖则非汪精卫莫属，军事领袖则只能是何应钦，只有他才能叫得动蒋介石的那些黄埔嫡系将领。由亲日派汪、何主政南京，将肯定听命于日本，即便他们没有蒋介石那样的绝对权威。那样，将会出现另一种局面：群雄争斗，内战再起。无论是哪一种结局，都会给中国人民带来危害，可能出现一场较之国共之间十年内战更为惨烈的厮杀。
正当张学良苦思冥想如何说服杨虎城之时，他的东北军部下又给他带来了意外的打击。一是东北军、17路军的高级将领和幕僚鲍文樾、马占山、米春霖、杜斌丞等人，坚决反对张学良“无条件释蒋”的意见；二是24日个别东北军军官探听到张准备无条件放蒋的信息后，甚至产生了把张和蒋一同杀掉的念头。
这两件事，使张学良甚为震惊，促使他决定，不仅要马上放蒋，而且要秘密放蒋，他认为，即使杨虎城同意蒋介石走，也难保杨和他自己的部下不会做出什么激进的事来。
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