Sun Dianying, the warlord of the Republic of China, was a notorious "Great Thief of Tanglin" in history, a traitorous traitor that everyone shouted and beat. Although his ending was very gratifying, and he eventually died of illness in the people's liberation army war criminals shelter, in the previous 20 years, he was quite at ease, and his life was called a comfortable life.
So the question is, why did Sun Dianying commit such a crime as "stealing the Tanglin Tomb" without any punishment? The legend on the Internet is that Sun Dianying bribed the magnates at that time with the stolen treasures in exchange for a small life of his own. But in fact, this is the result of the game of the four major military groups.
First, the Tanglin treasure theft became famous in one fell swoop
Sun Dianying was born in a poor rural family at the end of the Qing Dynasty, and was beaten to death in prison because of the struggle between his father and the Qiren in his early years. Until now, he is a typical "social person".
Although he was not born well, Sun Dianying, with a natural cleverness, also accumulated a lot of family property by reselling goods. Later, he joined the army with funds, relying on the skills of the left and right Fengyuan, and gradually mixed up the famous halls.
Before 1928, Sun Dianying was still a small military commander with no fame, and it was not until the Tanglin treasure was known. In the spring of that year, he was sent by Chiang Kai-shek to the eastern Hebei region to suppress bandits, and he happened to see someone stealing a tomb, and he also developed an unjust heart.
The Qing Tombs, which were looted and looted by bandits, cover an area of 80 square kilometers and contain a total of 5 emperors and 4 empresses. Among them, the Yuling Tomb of the Qianlong Emperor and the Dingdong Tomb of Empress Dowager Cixi became the primary goal of Sun Dianying because of its brilliant construction and rich burial.
Although the anti-theft measures of the Qing Tombs were excellent, under the attack of powerful explosives, all the obstructions were useless, and the tomb robbers could only do whatever they wanted. When the closed stone door is broken, it is also the beginning of the tragedy.
According to relevant historical records, the funerary items in the tomb of Empress Dowager Cixi are not only of great value, but also a large number. There are tens of thousands of pearls laid on the bottom of the coffin alone, and there are more than 2,000 pieces of various gemstones, which is really luxurious.
In addition, there are a variety of valuable gold and silver jade objects, such as 10 gold statues, jade Buddha, 8 jade carved horses, 1 white jade pagoda, 2 jade cabbage and so on. All the funerary items were valued at more than 100 million silver taels and were looted by Sun Dianying and others.
2. Sentenced to death in a military court
Don't look at Sun Dianying bold enough to dare to rob the tomb, but when he really acts, he can only do it secretly, for fear of being known. However, the paper could not contain the fire after all, and after the theft of the treasure in Tanglin was exposed, it caused an uproar in the country, and everyone demanded that Sun Dianying be severely punished and resolutely not tolerate such evildoers.
Indignant at the civilian population, the Nationalist government finally decided to temporarily organize a military tribunal to try Sun Dianying for his crimes. Interestingly, at that time, Yan Xishan also took the opportunity to make a trip for Chiang Kai-shek, and almost pit him a big heel. What's going on?
It turned out that Sun Dian was still a man of Chiang Kai-shek at that time, and belonged to the First Army under his name. In order to stir up relations between the two and create trouble for Chiang Kai-shek, Yan Xishan deliberately arranged all the judges in the military court to be members of the First Army.
In this way, if the court pronounces Sun Dianying guilty, then he and Lao Jiang are bound to part ways, and it is even possible to defect to Yan Xishan. If the court acquitted Sun Dianying, then the pressure of public opinion will all fall on Chiang Kai-shek, and he is bound to give an explanation.
Unfortunately, Chiang Kai-shek, who was an old and cunning man, was not deceived, and immediately demanded that the selection of judges be adjusted in the name of the central government. After some consultation and mediation, in the end, the four group armies of Jiang, Feng, Yan, and Gui each sent a judge to show justice.
In June 1929, after a trial by a military tribunal, Sun Dianying was sentenced to death as the main offender. However, this judgment did not really take effect in the end, because the executor Sun Dianying had long since left the ranks of the First Army and went it alone.
Third, the Central Plains War became a fragrant feast
Isn't there anyone to pursue this? Not really. For the National Government, killing Sun Dianying is a thankless task, which can not be gained, but also causes a bunch of trouble, it is better to let him fend for himself.
More importantly, at that time, the four major military groups of Jiang, Yan, Feng, and Gui were in a tense situation, and the Central Plains War was about to break out, and no one wanted to provoke trouble at this juncture and increase their burden.
As for Sun Dianying, all parties not only did not want to pursue his tomb robbery, but also wanted to win him over. Good villains are also small warlords with some people, who have the ability to take over under their command, who can have one more help, one more chance of winning.
Therefore, in the era of warlord chaos, there is no law and morality to speak of, as long as you hold the military power, the crime will be excused for you, and the death row prisoner can also become a fragrant feast.