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During World War II, in order to strengthen cooperation in the Pacific region, the United States sent General Stilwell to serve as commander of the U.S. Army and chief of staff of the China Theater in the China, Burma, and India theaters, making great contributions to the Sino-US cooperation in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.
However, Stilwell and Chiang Kai-shek were very uncompatible, and the two were not used to each other, and in the end they both alarmed Roosevelt and had to transfer Stilwell back.
What is little known is that the relationship between Stilwell and Mr. Zhu is very good.
One was sent by the United States to help Chiang Kai-shek, and the other was the commander-in-chief of the Eighth Route Army, who did not deal with Chiang Kai-shek.
Originally, Stilwell's task was to cooperate with the Kuomintang army, but the corruption and incompetence of the Kuomintang army made Stilwell deeply hateful, and he reported to Chiang Kai-shek several times, but Chiang Kai-shek ignored it, and in turn thought that Stilwell was deliberately making things difficult for him.
Later, because of the issue of command, Chiang Kai-shek and Stilwell completely fell out, and wrote angrily in his diary:This is the greatest shame I have ever received in my life! ”Refused to work with Stilwell again.
It was in this context that Stilwell was very disappointed in Chiang Kai-shek, and when he heard that the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army led by the Communist Party were very clean and had strong combat effectiveness, he began to contact the Communist Party instead, and specially sent a US military observation team to Yan'an for field investigations.
After the U.S. military observation team arrived in Yan'an, it was warmly welcomed, especially Mr. Zhu, who had many exchanges with the leader of the observation group, Bao Ruide, who admired the old general very much, and after he returned, he strongly recommended the Eighth Route Army and Mr. Zhu to Stilwell, believing that China's future lies in Yan'an.
Therefore, Stilwell also had a great impression of Mr. Zhu and wanted to meet him in person, but unfortunately, because of Chiang Kai-shek's obstruction, Stilwell was transferred out of China and missed the meeting with Mr. Zhu.
Before leaving China, Stilwell also wrote a letter to Mr. Zhu, which wrote:"Since I have been relieved of my duties in the Chinese theater, I would like to express to you, the head of the Communist forces, that we will not be able to cooperate with you in the war against Japan in the future. You have developed remarkable forces in the fight against our common enemy, and I had expected to fight with you in conjunction with you, but now it has come to naught. I wish you the best of luck in your battle and victory. ”
Moreover, Stilwell also gave Mr. Zhu a leather jacket, which was a very precious gift at that time.
On October 12, 1946, Stilwell died in the United States, at that time, Chiang Kai-shek had already started a civil war, and Stilwell said to his family before he died:"I really want to throw away the shovel in my hand, go over there to find the **, and carry the gun to fight side by side with him. ”
When the news of Stilwell's death reached Yan'an, Mr. Zhu was also very sad and sent a telegram to Stilwell's family, saying:"The death of General Stilwell has deprived the United States not only of a great general, but also of a great friend of China. The Chinese people will always remember his contribution to China's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and his struggle to establish a just U.S. policy toward China, and believe that his wish will eventually come true. ”
General Stilwell's affection for Mr. Zhu did not disappear because of his death, and in 1987, his daughter came to China with a total of 15 family members to ask to meet Mr. Zhu's wife, Kang Keqing.
Kang Keqing also knew this past very well, so he readily agreed, met with them, and thanked General Stilwell for his friendliness back then. The passage that Stilwell said before he died was what his daughter told Kang Keqing this time.
In 2015, when commemorating the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, China ** also sent a commemorative medal to Stilwell's descendants in recognition of his great contribution to the cause of China's Anti-Japanese War during World War II.
It is also worth mentioning that when Stilwell left China, Chiang Kai-shek decided to award him the "Order of the Blue Sky and White Sun", but Stilwell did not accept it, because he looked down on Chiang Kai-shek from the bottom of his heart, so he naturally would not accept it.
However, the medal for the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War issued to him by New China, if there is a spirit in heaven, Stilwell will definitely accept it!
(References: "Motherland", "* True Feelings", "Stilwell's Anti-Japanese War Diary").