Foreword
On October 14, 2001, 101-year-old Zhang Xueliang died of illness at Straubie Hospital in Honolulu, the capital of Hawaii. Zhang Xueliang, as the eldest son of Zhang Zuolin, was in infinite glory in the first half of his life, but after the Xi'an Incident, he was placed under house arrest by Chiang Kai-shek for 54 years.
After Chiang Kai-shek released him, Zhang Xueliang was already an 89-year-old man. However, instead of staying in China, he traveled to the United States, where he remained until the end of his life. Before his death, the centenarian wrote his will: he donated all his property to Columbia University in the United States.
After this news came out, it immediately caused an uproar. You must know that Zhang Xueliang's property can be described as countless, including various treasures, historical collections, famous paintings, famous books, etc. After Zhang Xueliang died of illness, his son complied with his father's wishes.
Zhang Xueliang's son did not expect that his father, who had been under house arrest for more than 50 years, had hundreds of millions of yuan in his account. Regarding Zhang Xueliang's will, many people are puzzled by this. Why on earth didn't he donate this property to China?
He has a huge collection of historical artifacts, which should at least be donated to China. What kind of considerations did Zhang Xueliang have to make such a decision? However, now that I think about it, Mr. Zhang Xueliang's decision is indeed thoughtful.
After the Xi'an Incident, Zhang Xueliang was placed under house arrest for 54 years, but his property was endless
Zhang Xueliang said in an interview with reporters: The conflict with Chiang Kai-shek has nothing to do with the two sentences of conflict: he wants to "secure the inside and the outside", and I want to "keep the outside and the inside". He recalled: "At that time, I scolded Chiang Kai-shek very badly. At that time, Chiang Kai-shek's secretary, Wang Rizhang, also said, "I have never heard anyone dare to quarrel with him like this." ”
In fact, what angered Zhang Xueliang was that Chiang Kai-shek planned to use a machine gun to hit him at the time of ***. Zhang Xueliang was very annoyed by this and said: "If the machine gun doesn't hit the Japanese, how can it hit the students?" He said that it was because of this sentence that there would be the Xi'an Incident later.
After the Xi'an Incident, Zhang Xueliang has been under house arrest by Chiang Kai-shek. However, his life did not become impoverished because of this. In other words, Chiang Kai-shek has never treated Zhang Xueliang badly in terms of food and clothing. Take his smoking as an example, Chiang Kai-shek will give him 10,000 yuan a month for smoking.
Zhang Xueliang once said: "From the age of 21 to 36, this is my life." Regarding Zhang Xueliang's life, many people expressed doubts, and his huge inheritance was even more curious. In fact, many people wonder how Zhang Xueliang left his property after being under house arrest for 54 years?
First of all, Zhang Xueliang, as the second-generation king of the Northeast, has hundreds of thousands of elite soldiers in the Northeast. At that time, he accumulated a lot of wealth. It is worth mentioning that in 1926, Chengdu's "Mintv**" published the "Greater China Rich List" at that time. Among them, Zhang Zuolin topped the list with a wealth of 50 million.
According to reports, the data published in the newspaper at that time was made public by Zhang Zuolin, and the actual wealth was of course more. To be honest, the property of 50 million is not an exaggeration for Zhang Xueliang. You know, in his later years, he also said that their family's collection of land, factories and antiques, calligraphy and paintings, add up to 2That's as much as $500 million.
After the Japanese invaded the three northeastern provinces of China, a lot of wealth was pocketed by the Japanese. But despite this, Zhang Xueliang still slipped a train of real gold**. But in fact, most of Zhang Xueliang's wealth is related to a woman named Yu Fengzhi, who was the daughter of Yu Wendou, a wealthy businessman at the time.
At that time, many people's marriages were influenced by their parents. Zhang Xueliang, as the son of a warlord, is not only an arranged marriage, but also has a political purpose behind it. Therefore, when he was only eight years old, his father Zhang Zuolin took matters into his own hands and became engaged to Yu Fengzhi, the eldest daughter of the wealthy businessman Yu Wendou.
In 1912, Zhang Xueliang followed his father to the provincial capital of the economic, political and cultural center, Fengtian (now Shenyang City). From this time on, he saw another vast world. Of course, this will also be the place where he will start to show his strengths.
After Zhang Xueliang was admitted to the military academy, he voluntarily entered the lecture martial arts hall and had excellent grades, and his test scores were all first. In the autumn of 1916, Zhang Xueliang complied with his father's order to marry Yu Fengzhi. It is said that Yu Fengzhi's mother was worried that her daughter would be underestimated in the Zhang family, so she gave two banks as dowries.
On the day of Zhang Xueliang and Yu Fengzhi's wedding, firecrackers rang out in unison, gongs and drums shook the sky, and the wedding scene was very spectacular. But Zhang Xueliang has received Western education since he was a child and very much does not accept this kind of arranged marriage. Therefore, at the beginning, he was more resistant and resistant to Feng Zhi.
However, Yu Fengzhi is very sensible, and she also has very good financial management skills, which makes Zhang Xueliang respect her. Although there is no love between them, they get along with each other with respect. Although Zhang Xueliang was placed under house arrest by Chiang Kai-shek in 1936, Yu Fengzhi continued to be silently by his side.
In the oppressive environment of long-term house arrest, Yu Fengzhi's body deteriorated day by day, until he suffered from breast cancer. So, Zhang Xueliang specially asked Chiang Kai-shek, hoping that he would allow Yu Fengzhi to go to the United States for recuperation. In 1940, Yu Fengzhi was sent to the United States**, and when she left, she said: "When I recover, I will come back to accompany you immediately." ”
However, after Yu Fengzhi came back, she couldn't be happy. At this time, Zhang Xueliang already had Miss Zhao Si by his side. Zhang Xueliang's words suddenly came to her mind: "After arriving in the United States, first take care of your body, and then settle your three children." ”
In fact, Zhang Xueliang just hoped that Yu Fengzhi would stay in the United States for a long time. Subsequently, Yu Fengzhi took the children to the United States, but the daily living expenses were very large. Yu Fengzhi, who was in a foreign country, began to find ways to make money.
By chance, she entered the United States and began to learn some knowledge and skills. Soon, Yu Fengzhi earned the first pot of gold through **. Slowly, she amassed more wealth on her own. Yu Fengzhi remitted some of the money to Zhang Xueliang.
The other part stayed in Hong Kong to start a real estate business, and soon, Yu Fengzhi made a lot of money. Many people didn't understand why she fought so hard, Yu Fengzhi said with a firm look in his eyes: "I hope that after Zhang Xueliang is released, he can have no worries about food and clothing, and live a prosperous life." ”
Yu Fengzhi was very popular in the United States, and soon attracted the attention of Chiang Kai-shek, in order to cut off the relationship between Zhang Xueliang and Yu Fengzhi, Chiang Kai-shek forced her to sign the divorce agreement with Zhang Xueliang. In Yu Fengzhi's view, the divorce agreement was not Zhang Xueliang's original intention, and it may be related to the situation at the time, so he signed the divorce agreement.
In March 1964, the divorce agreement was sent back to Zhang Xueliang. Miss Zhao Si has been by Zhang Xueliang's side for more than 30 years, but she has never won a name. It wasn't until she was 53 years old that she married Zhang Xueliang, who was already 64 years old, after Yu Fengzhi agreed.
Although the two are already white-haired old men, being able to marry Zhang Xueliang is Zhao Si's greatest wish in his life. In 1990, Yu Fengzhi died in the United States, and although she had divorced Zhang Xueliang, she still insisted on transferring all her inheritance to Zhang Xueliang.
When Yu Fengzhi made that decision, she and Zhang Xueliang hadn't seen each other for fifty years. However, the money she gave also became a huge amount of Zhang Xueliang's inheritance. As for how much money she gave Zhang Xueliang, the outside world has no way of knowing.
However, Yu Fengzhi left several properties in the United States, and it can be inferred that the money left by Feng Zhi must be a huge amount of money. Before he died, Yu Fengzhi also specially instructed his daughter: "After I die, bury me on the highest mountain outside Los Angeles, next to my grave, dig a hole for me and leave it to Zhang Xueliang." ”
It can be seen from this that Yu Fengzhi's true feelings for Zhang Xueliang are still thinking about Zhang Xueliang until the end of his life. After Zhang Xueliang came to the United States, he finally met his children and grandchildren. But unfortunately, his ex-wife Yu Fengzhi has passed away.
When Zhang Xueliang came to Yu Fengzhi's cemetery, he couldn't help but burst into tears. The words on the tombstone made him not know what to say for a while. To be honest, Zhang Xueliang's life is extremely unfair and cruel to Feng Zhi. Even he himself said that he owed Feng Zhi all his life.
However, regarding the high inheritance left to him by his ex-wife Yu Fengzhi, he did not refuse. In fact, in addition to the huge amount of money left by Yu Fengzhi, in Zhang Xueliang's estate, there is also the property left to him by Zhang Xueliang's father Zhang Zuolin. You must know that Zhang Zuolin was known as the "King of the Northeast" at that time.
At that time, Zhang Zuolin had an unusual business acumen, and he invested everywhere, whether it was in the banking industry, or the textile industry, or the steamship industry, or the coal mining industry, he was more or less involved. It is worth mentioning that he is a lover of antique collecting.
He often collects cultural relics, jewelry, antiques, etc., and his family background can be described as very solid. After the outbreak of the 918 Incident, the Japanese searched for 80,000 ** in Zhang Zuolin's home, adding up to millions of taels. In addition to this, there are countless treasures and antiques.
According to relevant records, as early as 1925, Zhang Zuolin put more than 4 million yuan in deposits into the Bank of North Korea. Deposits in Zhengjin Bank, Bank of Tianjin, and Shanghai HSBC Bank are all millions or even tens of millions of yuan. Together, Zhang Zuolin's property is almost 28.5 million yuan.
These huge deposits were also left to Zhang Xueliang after Zhang Zuolin's death. During Zhang Xueliang's house arrest in Taiwan, Chiang Kai-shek also helped him transfer the money from the mainland to Zhang Xueliang's account in Taiwan. Therefore, it is not surprising that Zhang Xueliang has been under house arrest for more than 50 years, but his wealth has been endless.
Zhang Xueliang donated his estate to Columbia University
But what no one expected was that Zhang Xueliang would leave his last words before his death, wanting to donate his estate to Columbia University. It is also because of this that it has attracted widespread attention from the society. Zhang Xueliang is a native of Chinese and a native of Northeast China, why not leave his wealth to Taiwan and the mainland, but choose to donate it to Columbia University in the United States?
Many people are curious about what he thinks and has towards the mainland. In his later years, someone asked him if he wanted to go back to his hometown in the Northeast, Zhang Xueliang's eyes revealed longing, and he said very firmly: "Of course, I especially want to go back to my hometown to see, see the people in my hometown, and then see the scenery of my hometown." ”
In addition, after a pause, he also said that his biggest dream is to return to his roots. In fact, the mainland also attaches great importance to Zhang Xueliang, after all, he is a generation of talented people and a patriotic general who saved China from fire and water. The mainland has invited him to return to the mainland on many occasions to attend important meetings.
He even sent his adjutant General Lu Zhengcao to the United States to greet him, and the president of Northeastern University wrote a letter inviting him to return to China, but he never wanted to come back, and refused every time. However, when asked why he did not return to the mainland, Zhang Xueliang remained silent.
Even though he wanted to return to northeast China, he did not return to Chinese mainland until Zhang Xueliang's death, and he had not even donated his huge inheritance to the mainland. He looked at the map of China and said to his family: "It's not that I don't want to return to China, it's that I don't want to face my fellow villagers in the Northeast, and I hurt them!" ”
A simple sentence can completely reveal the important reason why he was reluctant to return to China until his death. You must know that when Japan invaded Northeast China, it was he who gave up Northeast China to others. Since then, he has always felt guilty and shameless to face his fellow villagers in the Northeast.
Regarding Zhang Xueliang's reluctance to donate his inheritance to China, it may also be his deliberate decision. There are related ** reports that after Zhang Xueliang's death, a large number of historical materials were found from his donation. Among them, the communications materials of the Northeast Army and Chiang Kai-shek were included.
Most of the content involves some high-ranking generals and important secrets between the two parties, and if he had donated these materials to the mainland or Taiwan at that time, it would have very likely affected cross-strait relations. However, this is not the situation he wants to see.
As we all know, Columbia University has a strong ability to preserve Sinology research materials and Sinology documents, and Zhang Xueliang donated his legacy to Columbia University. For his historical materials, it can be regarded as another destination.
According to reports, Zhang Xueliang's friend Tang Degang also taught at Columbia University. Li Hongzhang, Wu Tingfang, Empress Dowager Cixi and others have all donated assets to Columbia. It is worth mentioning that the most valuable, even priceless, of Zhang Xueliang's possessions are all kinds of collectibles.
He, like his father, had a habit of collecting antiques. According to reports, he has collected more than 600 pieces of calligraphy, paintings, and treasured antiques of various historical celebrities. From the Wei, Jin, Tang and Song dynasties, to the Ming and Qing dynasties, there is everything. For example: Wang Xianzhi's "Twenty-Nine Day Post", "Shenei Post", and Song Huizong's "Edict" and so on.
It has to be said that every piece of the collection, both in the past and in the present, is of the antique level. Some experts have made a stock price for this, and the total value of the collection exceeds 10 billion. However, much of his collection went to the Japanese. Even today, there is a collection of him in Japanese museums.
For example, Wang Xianzhi's book "Shenei Ti", Dong Yuan's "Landscape Scroll", Guo Xi's "Cold Forest Map", Song Huizong's "Edict" and other works are still in the Japanese collection. The so-called "emaciated camel is bigger than a horse" is probably this truth, and it is not surprising that he has hundreds of millions of family properties.
That year, after Zhang Xueliang regained his freedom and left Taiwan for the United States, Zhang Xueliang also auctioned off all his collections. Among these collections are Zhang Daqian's famous paintings, Zheng Banqiao, Ren Bonian's authentic works. According to relevant records, he auctioned a total of 207 cultural relics at that time, equivalent to about 30 million yuan.
Donating your inheritance to Columbia University in the United States is a kind of shelter for your children
Regarding Zhang Xueliang's handling of his inheritance, many people expressed great incomprehension, why didn't Zhang Xueliang leave the inheritance to his children? In fact, it is because he wants his children to have nothing to do with him and spend their lives peacefully.
Moreover, Zhang Xueliang's attitude towards his children has always been that he is safe and happy. After all, he has experienced too many twists and turns in his life, and Zhang Xueliang also understands that as long as he takes a wrong step, it is very likely to cause a catastrophe. Therefore, he does not want his children to be like him in the future.
Therefore, he did not leave a single cent of his property to his children. It has to be said that at this point, he is indeed a very competent father. Regarding Zhang Xueliang's life, the first half of his life can be said to be infinitely beautiful and promising. But since he made a mistake, he began to repent, and he is still repenting until he is old, ashamed of his father, ashamed of his ex-wife, and even more ashamed of the motherland.
Although Zhang Xueliang's father, Zhang Zuolin, once cooperated with Japan, he never backed down when it came to the issue of national righteousness. Therefore, it was later targeted by Japan and launched the Huanggutun Incident, and the trains were blown up by the Japanese, and none of the passengers survived.
However, at that time, Zhang Xueliang not only did not avenge his father, but opened the door and gave up the Northeast that his father swore to protect to the Japanese. Perhaps, for him, this is also one of the reasons why he does not dare to return to his hometown in northeastern China.
No matter how many wrong decisions and wrong things Zhang Xueliang has made, he is always above board, dares to admit it, and dares to correct it. In the face of the unscrupulous aggression of the Japanese army, he resolutely decided to launch the Xi'an Incident. No matter how many wrong things or decisions he makes, he is always above board and daring.
However, when it comes to inheritance-related issues, it is someone else's freedom to choose who to donate to. We, as bystanders, don't have much right to point fingers. Before his death, Mr. Zhang Xueliang chose to donate his estate to the United States, which must have been his deliberate decision at that time. In this regard, we can only respect his choice.
Today, our country is safe and sound, the country is safe, and the people are living and working in peace and contentment. As far as this world is concerned, we live in a peaceful country, and we must express our gratitude to our ancestors who worked hard for peace, and we must always remember them in our hearts.