Refuse to donate to China? That was Zhang Xueliang's resolute statement in the twilight of 2001. In the last moments of his life, he made an incredible choice - to give all his life's wealth to the United States.
Why did this former national hero, a general, make such a choice, and is there any other meaning behind his legacy? How should he evaluate his contribution to China? These are thought-provoking questions. "
A hundred years ago in the Northeast,"King of the Northeast"Zhang Zuolin's prestige is famous, and his son Zhang Xueliang writes a legend with his unique mischievous character. In 1928, Zhang Zuolin, as a warlord of the Feng family, encountered a bomb preset by the Japanese Kwantung Army at the moment when the special train passed through the Sankong Bridge, and was seriously injured.
Losing the leader of the Feng family, Zhang Xueliang naturally became the new helmsman. His bitter hatred of the Japanese stems from his father's sacrifice, and his revenge drives him to vow to fight back.
In terms of military talent, Zhang Xueliang was not inferior to his father, but in choosing the object of loyalty, he made a key mistake in his career - following Chiang Kai-shek. In the face of the provocation of the Japanese in Northeast China in July 1931, as the actual guardian of this land, according to common sense and emotion, Zhang Xueliang should firmly stand up against foreign aggression.
However, after careful consideration, he put forward a shocking argument: "At this moment of fighting, our army will lose, and if it loses, the territory will be lost, and the reparations will be inevitable, and there will be no peace in the northeast. ”
Zhang Xueliang once promised to protect the Northeast, but had no choice but to witness its fall. He openly advocated that in the face of provocation, we must back down, not fight. This is not only an instruction to the troops under his command, but also a silent call to the compatriots - not to provoke the Japanese army.
The 918 Incident, the Northeast was lost in an instant, and the Northeast Army of Beidaying held on to Zhang Xueliang in the face of the Japanese invasion"No need to resist"。Although the advance disarming order was explained afterwards, he was not aware of the far-reaching implications of the move until then.
Chiang Kai-shek's words seemed to strengthen him"Not resisting"of beliefs.
A few days later, Chiang Kai-shek made an appeal in the name of the people:"At present, we should endure in the face of adversity and wait for a fair verdict, and at the same time implore the soldiers of the whole country to exercise restraint in dealing with Japan and avoid conflict. "
Chiang understood that Japan's actions had violated international morality, and he turned to the League of Nations to arbitrate the matter. Unsurprisingly, the League of Nations decided that Japan had acted inappropriately and issued a resolution ordering a complete withdrawal of troops.
The Japanese soldiers were so heavily influenced by militarism that only the emperor's orders would stop them, and the condemnation of the League of Nations was useless to them. Chiang Kai-shek and Zhang Xueliang thus recognized that although the League of Nations could mediate disputes, it had no executive power, and its influence was limited to persuasion rather than coercion.
Although Zhang Xueliang held the expectation of a fair ruling of the League of Nations, he was not"Not resisting"As a result of the policy, he became the target of national condemnation, and anti-Japanese groups in various places strongly called for severe punishment.
This controversy caused Zhang Xueliang to endure endless criticism. Looking back in his later years, he once confessed: "When I was young, I was too credulous, but if I understood the consequences, I would definitely fight the Japanese army with all my might." ”
This remorseful remorse reveals his remorse, and at the same time reveals the fact that Zhang Xueliang's decision not to resist was not made alone, and Chiang Kai-shek also trusted the League of Nations and adhered to the policy of "non-resistance".
Zhang Xueliang was convinced of Chiang Kai-shek's resourcefulness and believed that he would make the best choice, but history has proved that Chiang's decision actually exposed weakness.
After that incident, Zhang Xueliang had a deep insight into the true face of Chiang Kai-shek. In the face of the Japanese threat, Chiang Kai-shek paid no attention to it and was obsessed with domestic strife, and although Zhang Xueliang advocated resistance, Chiang Kai-shek turned a deaf ear and instead transferred him away from the front and into the whirlpool of civil war.
Chiang Kai-shek was meticulous in his attempt to sit back and see what would happen by avoiding the war, and then take sides to consolidate his rule when the situation became clear. However, Chiang Kai-shek's calculations seemed shrewd, but in fact naïve, and his selfish desires transcended the general interests of the country.
Zhang Xueliang was deeply distressed by this, and constantly called for anti-Japanese resistance in an attempt to awaken Chiang Kai-shek's consciousness, but his voice was ignored. In the end, anger and a sense of responsibility drove Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng to join forces and decide to take action - "force Chiang to resist Japan", put the national danger first, and resolutely resist Japanese aggression.
December 9, 1936, commemoration"One hundred and twenty-nine"On the anniversary of the movement, patriotic fervor surged in the streets. The innocent attack on a student instantly ignited the anger of the masses, who resolutely marched to Chiang Kai-shek's official residence in Lintong in search of justice.
Faced with this situation, Chiang Kai-shek instructed Zhang Xueliang to come forward to calm down and authorize action if necessary. Zhang Shaoshuai received the order and came to the scene, however, a deafening sentence made him think deeply: "The wall of compatriots will damage themselves, unity is the key to victory, and the Northeast Army should advance into the hometown and regain the lost land!" ”
Every shout scorched Zhang Xueliang's chest, he clenched the microphone and promised the students: "I, Zhang Xueliang, promise that within a week, I will give you a satisfactory answer." ”
Three days later, Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng had a secret meeting and planned together"Forced Chiang to resist the Japanese"The big plan. On December 12, 1936, the Xi'an Incident shocked the whole country, and Zhang and Yang detained Chiang Kai-shek in the form of military advice and solemnly demanded that he be clear"Unite with the Communist Party to resist Japan"stand, otherwise no rescue can save him.
Under the mediation of many parties, Chiang Kai-shek finally compromised, and the Xi'an Incident ended peacefully, so Zhang Xueliang was praised as a man who understood the righteousness"National hero"。However, this incident disgraced Chiang Kai-shek, who had always emphasized integrity, and the Ministry of Education would rather not bend, but showed weakness in the hands of the generals under his command, how could this not make him angry with Zhang Xueliang.
Although Chiang Kai-shek devoted himself to the great cause of resisting Japan, he had a deep grudge against Zhang Xueliang, and after arriving in Nanjing, he began to plot to control Zhang Xueliang. In November 1938, Zhang Xueliang was unfortunately placed under house arrest in Guizhou by Chiang, and then moved to many prison places, even his personal life, Chiang Kai-shek refused to let go.
This imprisonment lasted for half a century, until the death of Chiang Ching-kuo in 1988, the change of power of the Kuomintang, taken over by ***, in 1990, Zhang Xueliang finally regained his freedom and ended his long prison career.
King of the Northeast"After Zhang Zuolin's death, the inheritance left to Zhang Xueliang was as high as 50 million, which was an incomparably huge amount of money in that era.
Despite having fun all his life, Zhang Xueliang's luxury did not deplete his wealth, but only tasted it. After being placed under house arrest, his wife, Yu Fengzhi, showed a flair for business and actively invested, bringing considerable returns.
Although they are nominally husband and wife, Zhang Xueliang and Yu Fengzhi's relationship is not deep. Under the guidance of the ** religion faith, he finally chose to leave Yu Fengzhi and spend the rest of his life hand in hand with Miss Zhao Si.
Although Yu Fengzhi had no resentment towards Zhang Xueliang, he generously gave a huge fortune on the occasion of parting. It wasn't until Zhang Xueliang regained his freedom that this astonishing gift of up to 600 million was revealed.
Therefore, Zhang Xueliang in his later years said with deep guilt: "The only person I owe in this life is Feng Zhi." When the legend reappeared in the public eye at the age of ninety, the years had carved deep marks on him, and he was riddled with diseases.
So, he made a surprising choice – to selflessly donate his entire legacy to Columbia University. This raises the question, why did the descendants of Yan and Huang choose to leave their wealth to American universities?
In Zhang Xueliang's twilight years, those youthful memories often surfaced, and each memory brought him deep remorse, and he said frankly: "I feel sorry for the Northeast, and I have no shame to return to China." ”
An insider revealed that he chose to give his inheritance to the United States not out of selfish interests, but because he was worried that at home, whether it was the Kuomintang or the Kuomintang itself, it might bring trouble to him in his later years.
Donating to the Kuomintang deviated from his original intention, and he was afraid that he would not be able to let go until he died. Therefore, after careful consideration, he chose to fund American scientific research and talent training. Perhaps evaluate Zhang Xueliangwei"Heroes"or"Traitor"It is not appropriate, and it should be seen as his misguided and stunned candidates all his life.