In 1948, the Kuomintang was elected vice president, and Li Zongren was elected vice president. Later, Chiang Kai-shek stepped down, and Li Zongren once became the "acting president" of the Kuomintang. At that time, in the late stages of the Liberation War, Li Zongren wanted to settle the civil war by means of peace talks, but the negotiations failed.
After the Defeat of the Kuomintang in Taiwan, Li Zongren's good brother Bai Chongxi, who had been good for many years, came to find Li Zongren and tried to persuade him to go to Taiwan. In the course of many years of confrontation with Chiang Kai-shek, Li Zongren was well aware of Chiang Kai-shek's temperament, and if he really went to Taiwan, there would be absolutely no good fruit to eat. Therefore, when Bai Chongxi came to persuade him, Li Zongren angrily scolded: "The bastard only went to Taiwan." Later, when the Kuomintang defeated and retreated to Taiwan, Bai Chongxi followed Chiang Kai-shek to Taiwan, while Li Zongren, the "acting president" of the Kuomintang, went to the United States.
On the other hand, Chiang Kai-shek, who had just arrived in Taiwan, tried to take back the title of president from Li Zongren, but Li Zongren was unwilling to let go. Chiang Kai-shek was already somewhat dissatisfied with Li Zongren, and once he came out, he was even more disgusted with Li Zongren, and he also wrote in his diary: "When German neighbors go abroad, they neither resign nor express their intention to retreat, they stay abroad and do not return, and they ignore the survival of the party and the state regardless of what they have done, which is really despicable and shameless!"
In this issue, the author introduces the life of the Guizhou warlord Li Zongren, and see where his enmity with chiang kai-shek, the "brother of the Worshiping Shogun", originated?
Li Zongren was born in Guangxi, at the end of the Qing Dynasty, as the origin of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement, the local people in Guangxi had a strong national ideology. Guangxi people were deeply disdainful of the corruption of the Qing government, and Li Zongren's family was originally an ordinary family of cultivation and reading, but Li Zongren's grandfather and father belonged to the open-minded category of people who liked to make friends everywhere. Father Li even went abroad to work when he was young, and later father Li was elected as a representative of Chinese workers to talk with British capitalist businessmen.
Compared with other celebrities in the Republic of China, Li Zongren's environment of childhood growth can also be regarded as rich. At least he didn't have to worry about eating and dressing.
Li Zongren first entered a private school, then entered the county second-class primary school, and Li Zongren entered the Guangxi Army Primary School at the age of 17. When he graduated from army elementary school, Li Zongren's greatest wish for himself was to become a captain of the captain class. When it comes to those who have great ambitions in their youth, Li Zongren believes that the stories of these young people's great ambitions are fabricated by the author. At that time, he did not expect that he would be able to achieve a career in the future.
After the Sino-Japanese War, the Qing Dynasty was crumbling, and revolutionaries everywhere were secretly preparing for an uprising.
In 1910, Li Zongren joined the League, and since then his fate has changed dramatically. The young man with no ambition became one of the three major warlords of the Gui clan in the torrent of history, and was once pushed to the position of "acting president" of the Kuomintang.
In 1920, at the age of 29, Li Zongren served as a warrant officer (assistant teacher) in the Guangxi General Training Institute, and Li Zongren's excellent military talent gradually appeared, and finally stood out in the situation of warlord chaos, successfully became the commander of the Guangdong-Guichuan Border Defense Army, and gradually unified Guangxi.
Li Zongren's army was extremely severe, and the garrison of the troops he led had strict regulations: "Do not live in civilian houses, do not pay taxes, and buy and sell fairly." Once, the troops led by Li Zongren were cut off from the source of salaries, and in desperation, Li Zongren resolutely decided to sell guns to the militia for food.
Another time, after Li Zongren's troops entered Hubei, the living standards of the soldiers were still the same as before. One day a company commander reported to the battalion commander that he was going home, and when asked why, the company commander said, "Two men in the unit use a quilt. Later, the matter was reported to Li Zongren, but Li Zongren felt that it was nothing.
Li Zongren was a professional soldier with new ideas, and after the unification of Guangxi, he did not become the "king of the mountains" behind closed doors, but instead automatically brought the troops under the leadership of the Kuomintang government and firmly promoted the Northern Expedition.
In the era of warlord division, the Gui clan was almost the only local force that voluntarily joined the process of national reunification, of course, Li Zongren also had selfish intentions, his desire for power was increasing, and he wanted to take the lead and spy on the artifact.
In July 1926, the Northern Expeditionary Army went out, and in the process of the Northern Expedition, the Seventh Army composed of the Gui clan was the most prominent and had the strongest combat effectiveness. At that time, Ye Ting's unit was called the "Iron Army", while the Seventh Army was called the "Steel Army".
Chiang Kai-shek also saw the ability of the Gui clan in the course of the Northern Expedition, and while he was soft and hard to fight with Li Zongren, he also handed over the main battle to the Gui Clan Military Region to fight, so as to preserve his own lineage.
During the Northern Expedition, Li Zongren found that Chiang Kai-shek was not firm in his northern expedition plan, but was busy fighting for power and profit. After that, various things made Li Zongren even more certain that Chiang Kai-shek was "not enough to set an example for the masses, but he was too virtuous to convince people's hearts."
After the Kuomintang's three-year Battle of the Central Plains, Chiang Kai-shek won the victory, while Li Zongren was defeated and retreated to Guangxi. Since then, the Gui family, represented by Li Zongren, has proposed to "build Guangxi and revitalize China." Under this purpose, Guangxi has made many achievements in self-defense, autonomy, self-sufficiency, transportation, education, and militia building.
Even Chairman Mao once praised Li Zongren as a "capable man" who "built Guangxi into a model province without the financial support of the Nanjing government."
China's anti-Japanese situation, on the other hand, was a mess. When he saw that the country was devastated and Chiang Kai-shek and others did nothing, Li Zongren was indignant, published the "Theory of Scorched Earth Resistance" and openly explained his anti-Japanese proposition: "Launch guerrilla warfare in the area behind enemy lines." ”
After Li Zongren made these remarks, Chiang Kai-shek issued two consecutive orders in an attempt to transfer Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren out of Guangxi. Of course, Chiang Kai-shek's move also angered the two men, and they openly disobeyed, but Chiang Kai-shek used this as an excuse to mobilize various armies to besiege Guangxi. The external enemies have not been eliminated, and the internal worries are constant. China at that time was so dark that people could not see tomorrow.
However, the Gui clan always occupied a just position in public opinion, and the forces of all sides expressed their support for Li Zongren and others, and finally Li Zongren and Chiang Kai-shek each took a step back, Chiang Kai-shek made a commitment to resist Japan, and Li Zongren announced his obedience to the command of the Kuomintang to jointly resist Japan.
As Chinese, Li Zongren and others were by no means sloppy in the matter of resisting Japan. The Gui warlords represented by Li Zongren have always been one of the most resolute forces in the anti-Japanese resistance. Immediately after the "Xi'an Incident," Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi, and others publicly stated that they "advocated the peaceful settlement of military advice and the establishment of an anti-Japanese government." ”
The brilliant culmination of Li Zongren's life is the famous "Taierzhuang Victory". During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Li Zongren served as the commander of the Fifth Theater and was stationed in Xuzhou. The Battle of Taierzhuang was the greatest victory won by the Chinese nation since the all-out War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and was also the largest major victory won by the Chinese Revolutionary Army.
Sacrificing thirty thousand men to annihilate the enemy army and 10,000 men, some people may think that this battle is not tactically worthy of boasting. However, the army commanded by Li Zongren was extremely poorly armed and equipped, and it could even be said that he commanded a "miscellaneous army." In the absence of superiority in weapons, Li Zongren was able to command the generals to fight for victory with flesh and blood, and it is not difficult to see that Li Zongren did have outstanding military ability, and even Chiang Kai-shek was very surprised to hear about the great victory of Taierzhuang: "(Li Zongren) can still command miscellaneous troops?" ”
After this battle, Li Zongren's name was all over the country. This year, Li Zongren was 46 years old.
In 1948, the Kuomintang held an election for "vice president", and Chiang Kai-shek, who had always been obsessed with power, could allow others to contaminate his own rights, but Li Zongren did not believe in this evil, and he not only participated in the election, but also defeated Sun Yat-sen's son Sun Ke by an overwhelming margin in the election.
In the later stages of the Liberation War, the defeat of the Kuomintang was already decided, and in the battle against the People's Liberation Army, it was also defeated and retreated. Chiang Kai-shek also lost the trust of the Americans. At a time when the Kuomintang was worried about internal and external troubles, Chiang Kai-shek was forced to abdicate, and in early 1949, Chiang Kai-shek had no choice but to electrify him and go to the wilderness. As vice president of the Kuomintang, Li Zongren naturally became the "acting president" of the Kuomintang. Before Li Zongren took over the presidency, Chiang Kai-shek repeatedly stressed to Li Zongren that he would "not interfere in politics within five years." Chiang Kai-shek's actions, however, ran counter to his words.
Although Li Zongren's "acting president" sounds good and is a leader of the Kuomintang, there is also a "generation" word before the "president," and Li Zongren is not the president of the Kuomintang after all. Even if Chiang Kai-shek went into the wilderness, most of the army was still in his hands. Even though Li Zongren was the "acting president," he could not hold real power, and the only thing he could mobilize was his own Gui army. Moreover, at this time, the Kuomintang was crumbling, and Li Zongren had the heart to save but could not do anything.
After taking over the presidency, Li Zongren immediately drew up "three major tasks": first, to negotiate peace with the Chinese Communists and end the civil war; second, to seek internal unity and gather the hearts and minds of the people; third, to seek US aid to curb greater inflation. Li Zongren's idea is good, these three priorities are all good things for the benefit of the country and the people, but the power in his hands is limited, and it is very difficult for him to do these three things no matter which one thing he does. At that time, Li Zongren also thought very simply, wanting to negotiate with the Communist Party to rule the river.
However, in the end, he still did not know enough about the Kuomintang, the last time the Kuomintang was corrupt, the army collapsed, and the political system was eroded, how could such a political party have the strength to negotiate with the Communist Party? The completely inferior Kuomintang could not succeed in the negotiations. Moreover, Li Zongren, the "acting president," does not have much real power in his hands, so what can he promise?
In order to show his sincerity in negotiations, Li Zongren released more than 10,000 Communists and patriots who were imprisoned by the Kuomintang.
When releasing more than 10,000 people, Li Zongren also named the release of Yang Hucheng and Zhang Xueliang, two patriotic generals, who had been imprisoned by Chiang Kai-shek since the Xi'an Incident, and Chiang Kai-shek was also deeply disgusted by them. Li Zongren's desire to release the two was dismissed because of Chiang Kai-shek's obstruction, and no one knew where they were being held, except for Chiang Kai-shek and his henchmen. In the matter of releasing the two patriotic generals Yang Hucheng and Zhang Xueliang, Li Zongren was also powerless.
Later, because the top Kuomintang leaders headed by Chiang Kai-shek refused to sign the peace talks, the negotiations eventually failed. In the face of all this, Li Zongren could not do anything. At this time, Bai Chongxi, who had been Li Zongren's comrade-in-arms for many years, did not support him. Bai Chongxi believed that he still had hundreds of thousands of troops in his hands, and the United States had promised to help, so Bai Chongxi believed that he had the strength to compete with the Communist Party.
At this moment, Li Zongren seemed to be standing on the opposite side of the world, and everyone abandoned him, he just wanted national peace and peace for the people. But no one was willing to stand behind him and support him. Seeing the failure of the peace talks, Li Zongren could do nothing but sigh.
What Li Zongren needs is full authority, not a glossy title. Without rights, his "acting president" is nothing, but Chiang Kai-shek has made up his mind not to relinquish power, and even several cabinets organized by Li Zongren have fallen under Chiang Kai-shek's black-box operation. The United States also saw Li Zongren's "name for itself" and was unwilling to rescue him. At this time, the Kuomintang also fell apart, and many famous Kuomintang generals defected one after another.
The total defeat had already been revealed, and no one was able to return to heaven, and Li Zongren began to hate Chiang Kai-shek, blaming him for secretly restraining him, and Chiang Kai-shek also gritted his teeth in hatred for Li Zongren, writing in his diary: "Revolutionary discipline and party morality have all been swept away by Li Zongren and others, and the crime of white rebellion is even greater." ”
At the same time, Chiang Kai-shek and others had already prepared the equipment to retreat to Taiwan, and a large amount of gold was quietly transported to Taiwan.
On April 22, 1949, gunshots rang out in the city of Nanjing, and people packed up their packages and fled. Li Zongren also left Nanjing by plane the next morning. Originally, Li Zongren was going to Go to Guangzhou, but after the plane took off, Li Zongren thought about it for a long time on the plane, and finally he ordered the pilot to turn to Guilin.
Under the overwhelming offensive of the People's Liberation Army, Guilin, Chongqing and other places have been lost. Li Zongren felt that the Kuomintang was gone, so he left the mainland for Hong Kong. Since then, he has also been said to have gone to the United States because of illness and never returned.
After Chiang Kai-shek arrived in Taiwan, he always wanted to sit on the presidential throne again, but there was still a "acting president" who existed in name only, and Li Zongren refused to resign, and Chiang Kai-shek's presidency was not justified. As a result, Taiwan's "procuratorate" repeatedly called Li Zongren and asked him to return to Taiwan.
Li Zongren is not a fool, returning to Taiwan is tantamount to "a sheep into the mouth of a tiger", and now he can only stay abroad to ensure his own safety. Therefore, Li Zongren, in the name of the "acting president" of the Kuomintang, called back to Taiwan's "procuratorate, saying that his illness still needs to be recuperated, and he cannot return to Taiwan immediately; he has not delayed political affairs in seeking medical treatment in the United States, and he can also negotiate assistance.
In his memoirs, Li Zongren also said the reason why he was reluctant to return to Taiwan: "Taiwan is Chiang Kai-shek's world, and he has the absolute power to kill and seize, and if I rush back to Taiwan, it is tantamount to throwing myself into the net." ”
If Li Zongren does not return to Taiwan for a single day and does not announce his resignation as "acting president" for a single day, then Chiang Kai-shek will not be able to become president in name only. Under these circumstances, Chiang Kai-shek decided to make a snap decision, declaring: "If I had not gone into the wilderness last year, I would not have imagined that the provinces on the mainland would have been wiped out within a year." The consequences of my going to the wilderness are particularly sad, and now the national situation is very critical, and if I do not shoulder the political and military responsibilities again, within 3 months, Taiwan will definitely be finished. After I come out, Taiwan can hope to ensure. ”
After that, Chiang Kai-shek single-handedly manipulated the Sixth Session of the "Second National Congress" and stripped Li Zongren of his powers through the hands of the deputies to the "National Congress." Since then, the farce of this presidential dispute has finally come to an end.
On March 1, 1950, Chiang Kai-shek announced his "reinstatement" in Taiwan, and on the same day, Li Zongren held a press conference in the United States declaring that Chiang Kai-shek was "unconstitutional."
Li Zongren's life in the United States was not good, but he had to stay in the United States because he had no place to go. He also once laughed at himself: "If you want Zhang Hanqing to be second, you can't get it." ”
During his days in the United States, Li Zongren often paid attention to the news of the country. After learning that China's first atomic bomb exploded, the seventy-year-old man was so excited that he immediately sighed and said: "With the atomic bomb, what a big change!" For many years in our country, we could not even build a decent bicycle. ”
Seeing such a great development of the country, Li Zongren's homesickness in a foreign country has become more and more intense, and Mr. Li Lao, who has reached the age of ancient rarity, also wants to return to his roots. And the news that he wanted to return to China also reached the ears of the central authorities. To this end, Premier Zhou also specially entrusted Cheng Siyuan to bring a message to Li Zongren and put forward the "four possibilities": "You can come back to settle down; you can come back, you can also go to the United States again; you can live in Europe temporarily now, and then you can stop; you can go out again after you come back." In short, come and go freely. ”
A week later, Cheng Siyuan flew to Zurich to meet with Li Zongren and conveyed to him premier Zhou's greetings and the "four kes" proposed by the central authorities. After listening to this, Li Zongren said: "These 'four cans', I only need 'one can' to return to the motherland and settle in my old age." ”
On July 12, 1965, Mr. and Mrs. Lee boarded a plane to Fly to Hong Kong, which then flew to the mainland. At the Shanghai airport, Zhou Enlai greeted Li Zongren here with 111 people, including democratic parties, non-party democrats, and former Kuomintang uprising generals.
At the welcoming ceremony in the airport lobby, 75-year-old Li Zongren solemnly announced: "Dear compatriots, in a good situation inside and outside, I have returned from overseas to the embrace of the people's motherland. In the evening, Premier Zhou set up a banquet to welcome Li Zongren's family, and the premier said happily at the banquet: "Just come back, patriotic family, patriotism is not in any order." ”
The old man, who had been wandering in a foreign country for sixteen years, finally returned to his hometown.
In the early days of liberation, several of Li Zongren's sisters and brothers-in-law were shot by the People's Liberation Army because they were large landowners, and many years later, some people brought up the matter. Li Zongren replied calmly: "I have killed the Communist Party in the past, and after so many years, I should not take revenge." ”
Enemies who were once intolerable to fire and water can now sit together and talk about wine, laugh and hate each other.
Half a year later, Li Zongren and his wife returned to their hometown to visit, and in Nanning, Liuzhou, Guilin and other places, Li Zongren visited the local factories, schools, hospitals and other infrastructure. Looking at all this, Li Zongren said with emotion: "I am a Guangxi native, I am well aware of Guangxi's past poverty, and before returning to my hometown, my friends told me that Guangxi has been building well in recent years. Now it seems that it is really good. ”
In 1969, Mr. Li Zongren was devastated by illness, and on his deathbed, he left a letter to Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou, in which he said: "The road I resolutely took when I returned to my motherland from overseas in 1965 was right. ”
On January 30 of this year, at 12:00 midnight, 78-year-old Mr. Li Zongren passed away.
Li Zongren's life was magnificent. When Li Zongren was young, his mother asked him about his ambitions when he grew up, and he said that he wanted to be a "duck keeper", because in his opinion, "ducks raise eggs, eggs become ducks, very enviable." In the torrent of history, this young man with no ambition eventually became the "acting president" of the world. Although he has had mistakes in his life, his patriotism has always been the same.