One day in August 1937, Chiang Kai-shek presided over a national defense party and government conference in Nanjing, which was also attended by senior Kuomintang cadres and representative figures from yan xishan, Bai Chongxi, Yu Hanmou and other regions, and the theme of this meeting was whether to go to war or peace talks with Japan.
At the meeting, Chiang Kai-shek mentioned that some people in society advocated peace talks and put forward Hu Shi's proposal for peace. After hearing this, Chief of Staff Cheng Qian was very angry and reprimanded in front of everyone: "Hu Shi's traitor to the country and seeking glory is really absurd!" "Finally, the meeting unanimously decided to prepare for the anti-Japanese work.
The meeting was recorded by Education Minister Wang Shijie throughout the process.
Cheng Qian, a native of Hunan, has a fiery personality, but he is an experienced political elder who does not lose his temper easily. What exactly does Hu Shi's peace proposal say? Angered at Cheng's meeting, Wang Shijie did not record it in his diary, but it was recorded in other archives.
Hu Shi once made many suggestions on the Japanese issue, which were an expression of patriotic sentiment and the responsibility of intellectuals. However, looking at Hu Shi's propositions, they are constantly changing, which makes people a little confused.
In the seven years from the September 18 Incident to his departure to the United States as foreign minister, his views underwent eight shifts. The reasons for the formation of different claims stem from a hypothesis, which is that China cannot defeat Japan.
What made Cheng Qian angry was Hu Shi's proposal to use the momentary determination to recognize the puppet state of Manchukuo for a time of peaceful development, of course, this was not a brilliant idea, he mentioned in 1935, but the plan was not completed at that time. No matter how his ideas are changed, the ultimate goal is peace, which shows that Hu Shi is an uncompromising lord and faction.
The reason for Hu Shi's proposal for peace was that China's strength was insufficient at the beginning, the new-style central army was still in training, the national defense preparation was not sufficient, the gap between china and Japan was too large, and the two sides would lose the war. It will not only deal a serious blow to the country, but also lose its combat effectiveness and force China's five-thousand-year culture to be destroyed.
At the beginning, Hu Shi's proposal received the support of many people, and there were many masters and factions in the domestic government. Zhou Fohai has a bungalow in Nanjing, which has a huge basement. After the outbreak of the Songhu War, the Japanese army often bombed Nanjing, and Hu Shi and other pacifist personnel often hid in the basement, gathered together to discuss the changes in the situation, and gradually formed fixed assemblies.
Many of the people who proposed the War of Resistance were called "high-profile factions" by the outside world, so Hu Shi named the rally "Low-key Comrades' Association", which was later changed to a low-key club. Members include Wang Jingwei, Zhou Fohai, Hu Shi and others. Hu Shi had proposed to Chiang Kai-shek that Gao Zongwu be appointed ambassador to Japan to communicate with the Japanese side, but this was refused. Eventually, Gao Zongwu became the main liaison between Wang Jingwei and the Japanese side.
After the outbreak of the Lugou Bridge Incident, the situation in North China gradually eased due to the lack of unity of opinion within Japan. However, at the end of July, the Japanese army suddenly attacked the Nanyuan Incident, and the 29th Army stationed in the Nanyuan area was caught off guard, causing a large number of casualties among officers and soldiers. Zhao Dengyu and Tong Linge were killed in the battle, the main force of the 29th Army withdrew from Beijing, and the war was still expanding.
Hu Shi was very nervous when he learned the news, and immediately went to gao Zongwu and Wang Shijie's home to discuss countermeasures. Wang Shijie recorded in his diary in early August: "When I talked to Mr. Hu Shi today, both sides were extremely frightened, and proposed that Wang Jingwei and Chiang Kai-shek finally propose peace talks to the Japanese government and recognize the agreements and conditions signed by the puppet state of Manchukuo. ”
The next day, Hu Shi accompanied Tao Xisheng to meet with Chen Bray. Chen Bray was the director of Chiang Kai-shek's attendant office and was deeply trusted by Chiang Kai-shek. Hu Shi and others wanted Chen Bray's help in proposing his peace plan to Chiang Kai-shek. Later, he wrote a letter to Chiang Kai-shek again explaining why he proposed this plan, and stressing: "Completely change Sino-Japanese relations and strive for the opportunity for the country's peaceful development for 50 years." ”
This plan was finally sent to Chiang Kai-shek, and after reading it, the old Chiang kai-shek wrote the words "Hu" and "Cun" on the envelope. The scheme remains in the Taiwan Archives today.
From the superficial analysis of the plan, we got a lot of things that could not be won at that time, and China won. But please do not forget that these rights and interests were plundered from China by the Japanese government, and no matter how the exchange is, they still belong to China, and no matter how they are negotiated, China will suffer losses.
If we want to talk about whether this option is feasible, we must look at the problem from both The Chinese and Japanese sides.
From the Japanese side: without consulting any historical information, we can know that this plan is too "strict" for the Japanese side, but the three eastern provinces have been occupied by them, and whether it is recognized or not is only a matter of name. At this moment, the Japanese army is also controlling the puppet government in eastern Hebei, and occupying most of the provinces such as Rehe and Chahar, enjoying concessions and privileges in Hankou, Shanghai, Shandong and other areas, and it is obvious that they will not give up many interests for a false name.
After World War I, the Japanese army believed that future wars would be fought with resources and strength, but Japan lacked resources at home and had to expand abroad. The three eastern provinces are the best choice for the Japanese government, the region is rich in resources and fertile land. The most important thing for Japan was to achieve the three strategic goals of controlling Manchuria and Mongolia and other regions, attacking Soviet Russia, and invading China.
Since the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, Japan has looked at China with disdain and imagined Russia as an imaginary enemy. Of course, it is not because China is backward and does not attack, it is only a matter of time before Japan first relieves the pressure from Russia. Adopting the strategy of aggressive economy and then gradually devouring China will never allow China to have room for development.
Overall, Japan intended to support Zhang Zuolin in controlling the northeast regime, but he did not agree before being assassinated. Subsequently, Japan launched the Fengtian Incident and conquered the northeast region, but its ambitions were even greater. Later, it invaded Shanhaiguan, and after the failure of the Great Wall War of Resistance, it forced the Nationalist government to sign relevant agreements and implement demilitarized management of North China. Soon he supported Yin Rugeng in establishing a puppet government in eastern Hebei, and wanted to enlist Song Zheyuan, Han Fuyu and others to implement autonomy in the five provinces of North China.
In 1936, Japan formulated a plan for North China, which was mainly an anti-communist and pro-Manchu region; first of all, it was necessary to obtain national defense resources, expand transportation equipment, and achieve the goal of prompting all of China to oppose the Soviet Union in all aspects and turn to Japan.
It can be seen that Japan's ultimate goal is not just to eat the three eastern provinces, but to devour all of China. When Hu Shi proposed this plan, he did not know the truth. According to post-war Japanese historical data, Japan planned to send a large number of soldiers to attack China.
In fact, before the "Lugou Bridge Incident", Japan did not implement a plan to attack from north to south, and the ultimate goal was to gradually swallow China. Japan is a small island with convenient sea transportation. Fighting in coastal areas or in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, which is convenient for material supply, and they can also use ships for combat, which is what they dream of. The so-called change of offensive target is actually just what is agreeable.
From the topographical observation, the south of Inner Mongolia is the Loess Plateau, and the terrain is crisscrossed. Japanese tanks and artillery were unable to walk, thus losing combat effectiveness. The only way to do this was to move south from Taiyuan to Xi'an and then attack Hanzhong to enter the Sichuan region. Why did the Japanese stop attacking after they reached Tongguan? First, there was the natural danger of the Yellow River, and Chiang Kai-shek sent heavy troops to garrison Xi'an. The second is that the Japanese army's material delivery is not in place. Even if the Japanese army attacked Sichuan, it must first ensure the smooth delivery of supplies, otherwise, it would be besieged by Chinese troops.
In fact, the excuse for the Japanese army to change the target of attack is just a lie by the Taiwan authorities to cover up the defeat. The Battle of Songhu only caused the great powers to intervene in Japan, and the best way was to drive the Japanese army to the sea to solve the trouble caused by the belly and back attack. But in the end, it was defeated.
Judging from the Nationalist government, Chiang Kai-shek did not agree to this plan at all. At the time of the outbreak of the "Xi'an Incident", he had already expressed to the whole country a joint resistance to Japan. After the "Lu Communication Bridge Incident", he gave a speech in Lushan and shouted the slogan: "If a war is launched, it is regardless of region, men, women, and children have the responsibility to fight the war together, and they are determined to sacrifice everything." "But as ruler, he broke his promises, was capricious, and dealt a severe blow to his prestige."
From a realistic point of view, when the "918 Incident" broke out, Zhang Xueliang retreated without a fight, causing a storm of domestic public opinion. Chiang Kai-shek was under heavy pressure and was forced to ask Zhang Xueliang to go abroad for inspection.
Although Chiang Kai-shek was ignorant, his self-esteem was extremely strong, and he often put the dignity of the country on his lips. He was well aware that he could be passive or defeated without a fight, but he would never recognize the puppet Manchukuo government. Otherwise, he will be blamed by public opinion, and even his position will not be guaranteed, and history will remember his crime of betraying the country.
At that time, China was only superficially peaceful, and various local forces were dissatisfied with Chiang Kai-shek. The Dian and Sichuan armies were relatively peaceful and defensive, but the Gui and Jin clans never gave up their ambitions to replace Chiang Kai-shek.com. They were not serious about resisting Japan, but they would not give up the opportunity to force Chiang Kai-shek to step down in the name of resisting Japan.
Hu Shi's proposal to recognize the puppet state of Manchukuo was actually difficult for Chiang Kai-shek to decide. In this regard, Chiang Kai-shek has a clear understanding.
Hu Shi's proposal to recognize the puppet state of Manchukuo in exchange for China's 50 years of peaceful development proved to be unworkable. The most important thing is, how to ensure that China will surpass Japan in 50 years? If China still does not meet the standards at that time, leading to war between the two sides, whether to sacrifice North China for another 50 years of development time.
As an intellectual, Hu Shi has many doctoral titles and should be brilliant. But why did he come up with such a ridiculous plan? This is difficult to guess, and it is no wonder that Cheng Will be in a big mood at the meeting.
In fact, Hu Shi had long predicted China's defeated stance and insisted on taking the path of peace. And when the path to peace does not work, more radical remedies are proposed.
Judging from Hu Shi's various performances at that time, he did not have a deep understanding of the Sino-Japanese situation and could not guess the thoughts of senior leaders. The participation of intellectuals in politics is only on paper, and the whimsical methods only want to drag down the country, which should be the main reason why Chiang Kai-shek does not reuse him. It was not until Chiang Kai-shek defected to the United States that Hu Shi played a key role in Sino-US communication.