Huang Huilan, it may be strange to mention this name alone, but if you talk about her title, you must know that the wife of Gu Weijun, the favorite of the Nanyang "Sugar King", "the first diplomat of the Republic of China", "the most dressed woman in all of China"....... What kind of moving soul is wrapped under this glamorous title?
Born with a golden key, she was born in 1893 in the country of Guawa (now Indonesia, then under Dutch colonial rule). In the early years, her grandfather smuggled to Nanyang, with a breath and extraordinary courage, starting from the bottom, gradually accumulating wealth, leaving a $7 million inheritance to his descendants.
Huang Huilan's father: "Sugar King" Huang Zhonghan to his father Huang Zhonghan's generation, but also money to make money. With his business talent, he single-handedly built a sugar empire and became the richest Chinese in the early 20th century. Her birth mother, Wei Mingniang, was the number one beauty in Chinatown, Java. She grew up living a life of fine clothes and food, living off a little princess in a fairy tale.
The Huang family mansion covers an area of more than 200 acres, only 40 people maintain the house, and the whole house is repaired like a royal palace, and even has a private horse farm and a lake. She didn't have to go to school at all, and all the classes were taught. At a young age, she has followed her mother around the world, and as an adult, she can speak 6 foreign languages, sing, dance, paint, socialize, and socialize.
When she was 3 years old, her father gave her a diamond pendant necklace weighing 80 carats, because it was too big and too heavy to scratch her skin, and her mother asked the nanny to put it away and wear it when she was older. Huang Huilan said: "However, when I grew up, I didn't often wear it when I was hungry, because I always had something new on hand. ”
Huang Huilan and her mother Wei Mingniang
The marriage that was immediately closed but fragmented did not last long, and the father married several aunts one after another. The mother, as the wife of the main house, only gave birth to two daughters. With this, she could not stop her husband's betrayal again and again. Until later, she was tired of this life of the rich deep sea. Decided to travel to London with his two daughters.
Her mother's expectations for Huang Huilan are very clear: she will become a famous woman in the future. Her mother took her to and from various high-end places, not only focusing on broadening her horizons, but also requiring her to read and accept artistic influence. Such favorable conditions have cultivated her unique life confidence, seven points of beauty, three points of loneliness. When she appeared in social circles, celebrities fell under her skirt, scholars, rich people, warlords, all longing for a kiss. In the face of the sweet words of the suitors, she maintained a sober attitude until she met Gu Weijun, the first diplomat of the Republic of China.
Gu Weijun, a handsome man with a brilliant eloquent face, is one of the most outstanding diplomats in modern China. In 1919, at the Paris Peace Conference, he refused to sign and argued on the sovereignty of Shandong, creating a history of "weak countries also have diplomacy".
Gu Weijun and Huang Huilan have a young and beautiful appearance, and Huang Huilan, who is extremely communicative, attracts Gu Weijun, and the aura of Gu Weijun's special identity also allows Huang Huilan to be satisfied to some extent. The two fell in love and married. After marriage, she followed Gu Weijun in and out of many diplomatic occasions. With his excellent language skills, unique jewelry accessories, generous and appropriate dress, he has won praise from all walks of life. However, her sharp edge was too dazzling, and it had faintly made her husband feel uncomfortable. But she didn't think so, and continued to live the life she wanted. Huang Huilan, Gu Weijun, and Yan Youyun did not know what seemed like a natural marriage, and a rift slowly appeared. The husband Gu Weijun was hindered by his wife's status and did not dare to mention divorce. At a party, he met Yan Youyun, the "mahjong partner". The same young and beautiful, but less sharp than his wife Huang Huilan, more gentle. In comparison, he would not have so much pressure in front of Yan Youyun. Long-term exchanges have made them secretly affectionate, and even when playing mahjong, they have no scruples about eyebrow affection. This made Huang Huilan furious and rushed to Xingshi to ask for guilt, but Gu Weijun refused to get off the mahjong table. She knew that she could not save the relationship no matter what, and after struggling for a long time, she decided to let them go free. In 1956, she filed for divorce from Gu Weijun, ending the marriage.
Huang Huilan and Gu Weijun's children
Bringing Jade to the International Stage Huang Huilan advocates freedom, does not love conformism, loves fashion, and she became one of the most sought after and worshipped celebrities between the two world wars. Artists and photographers on both sides of the Atlantic often painted and photographed her. "A worldwide Chinese woman, an international beauty." This is a 1943 commentary by VOGUE magazine on a photograph taken for her by photographer Horst P. Horst. Although she has lived in the West for a long time, Huang Huilan is extremely fond of Chinese elements, and often makes some ingenious collocations at Western court balls, not only showing her own differences, but also showing her Chinese charm. Jadeite has become her killing weapon, and the high-end luxury jadeite is compatible with her temperament, and it is no different for a time.
Huang Huilan often uses Chinese jadeite and silk and embroidery as a combination, not only does not look tacky, but also always leads a trend. At that time, even Song Meiling was jealous of her, and when she stayed at her house, she peeked into her wardrobe, because it must be the latest fashion! Huang Huilan is a popular directional sign.
Huang Huilan's photos often see the appearance of jade necklaces or bracelets, which is not rustic, but natural and has a different style. She was a fan of the jadeite collection with Sir Victor Sassoon, the wealthy Sassoon family in Shanghai at the time, but most of her jadeite jewelry came from the inner court of the former Qing Dynasty. It is said that the two also competed against Bao, and in the end Sassoon lost to her. Settled in Manhattan in her later years, she lived on the $500,000 interest her father left her, but she was used to squandering, how could this interest be enough. So she sold most of her jewelry, except jadeite. These four emerald bracelets have always been with her wrists, accompanying her through the ups and downs and witnessing the ups and downs of her life.