In the early hours of October 24, 2003, outside a private apartment in a wealthy neighborhood of Manhattan, a group of reporters were staring at the villa in front of them, with cameras in hand, stalking and ready to press the shutter.
They had only one purpose — to take pictures of the deceased ladies in the apartment and get first-hand information. And this noblewoman was Chiang Kai-shek's wife, Soong Mei Ling.
Political marriage with Chiang Kai-shek
Chiang Kai-shek's ability to win the storm in modern history is inseparable from the great help of Soong Mei-ling and his family. In the Republic of China era, the "Song Jiashu family" was known as the "first family of the Republic of China", and the three daughters were also well-known talented women. Song Meiling has been studying abroad since she was a child, young and beautiful, and there is no shortage of suitors around her.
So when Chiang Kai-shek told Sun Yat-sen that he wanted to marry Soong Mei-ling, Sun Yat-sen euphemistically said that "the possibility is very small." At that time, Chiang Kai-shek was nearly 12 years older than Soong Mei-ling, and he was still in the marriage, with a wife and two concubines. Most importantly, Chiang Kai-shek was just a disgraced officer with little prospects.
But Chiang Kai-shek had a strong spirit in his bones that he did not accept defeat and attacked in his heart.
In 1922, Sun Yat-sen held a meeting to discuss how to deal with Chen Yuejun, who did not agree with the Northern Expedition to unify the whole country, and when everyone was hesitant, Chiang Kai-shek openly proposed to "quickly cut the mess with a knife".
Later, Chen Yuejun struck first, and Sun Yat-sen, who was in danger, twice telegraphed Chiang Kai-shek, and Chiang Kai-shek, who had a city government, ignored the first letter, and after receiving the second telegram, he "sent charcoal in the snow", which made Sun Yat-sen sigh:
"Jiang Jun came here, enough to reach 20,000 reinforcements."
These two events are enough to see the depth of Chiang Kai-shek's city government, after the success of the escort, Chiang Kai-shek became an important hero of the Northern Expedition, and on July 9, 1926, he was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Chinese National Revolutionary Army, which gradually attracted the attention of Soong Mei-ling, so the 11-year-old age difference was not a problem.
As for one wife and two concubines, Chiang Kai-shek also decided to make a decision.
In order to show his sincerity, Chiang Kai-shek stated in the "Declaration" for three consecutive days that he would be disassociated from the original match Mao Fumei, concubine Yao Yecheng and Chen Jieru.
Soong Mei-ling's father went to the United States to study in the early years and was baptized by Christ, and her mother Ni Guizhen was also a devout Christian, and in order to cater to the beliefs of the Soong family, Chiang Kai-shek also began to believe in Christianity.
Of course, the two can get married, and the eldest sister Song Xiaoling is indispensable.
Song's husband is Kong Xiangxi, chief executive and minister of finance of the National Government. Song Yiling, who mastered the Soong family consortium, had earlier served as The secretary of Dr. Sun Yat-sen and had a very keen sense of politics. She took a fancy to Chiang Kai-shek's "military talent" and intended to win Chiang Kai-shek over, paving the way for her husband Kong Xiangxi to enter the cabinet and her younger brother Song Ziwen as finance minister.
In the end, under the fierce pursuit of Chiang Kai-shek and the efforts of the eldest sister Song Xialing, Song Meiling agreed to Chiang Kai-shek's marriage proposal.
The anger of the Americans
Song Meiling, who was married to Chiang Kai-shek, did not choose to be a military wife with a rich life, but relied on the prestige of the family and her own efforts to help her husband's career. Song Meiling left her homeland at the age of 10 to study in the United States for 10 years, and can speak an authentic Southern American dialect.
Thanks to the support of his family and the Western powers, Chiang Kai-shek swept through all the warlords except our party before the War of Resistance, and eventually established the National Government in Nanjing, which once reached its peak of power.
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese airstrike On Pearl Harbor, China and the United States had a common enemy. In November 1943, as Chiang Kai-shek's special envoy to the United States, Soong Mei-ling stood in the UNITED States congress for the first time to give a speech, successfully won the support of the United States for her husband, and the U.S. government was willing to provide sufficient loans and military equipment for the Kuomintang.
"Powerful enough to 60 divisions"
However, not all Americans are full of praise for the "first lady of the Republic of China". When Song Meiling helped her husband become bigger and stronger, she did not forget to make profits for herself and her family. The 33rd U.S. President Harry S. Truman unceremoniously revealed:
"The four families took $750 million from the $3.8 billion they funded to invest in real estate in São Paulo and New York!"
It is worth mentioning that on the way back to Chongqing at the end of Song Meiling's visit to the United States, the special plane he took needed to refuel, the suitcase was unintentionally dropped in the process of loading and unloading, and the expensive cosmetics and coats scattered out made the American soldiers angry, and they kept kicking with their feet in the process of handling.
Relying on Chiang Kai-shek's connivance and prestige, Song Meiling's sister Song Xialing and brother-in-law Kong Xiangxi did not forget to take advantage of the situation to amass wealth. Mr. and Mrs. Song Yiling own a large number of real estate around the world, and their assets far exceed those of international financial giants.
The fall of the Chiang dynasty
The four families' war fortunes caused president Truman's displeasure.
At the end of 1948, the Battle of Huaihai came to an end, the Kuomintang was at a disadvantage and was gradually defeated, and the loans and military equipment promised by the United States were not heard.
At this time, Song Meiling, who had eaten the sweetness of the first congressional speech, was ready to repeat the same technique and go to the United States to give a passionate speech. By this time, however, Truman had seen the essence of the Kuomintang leader.
In 1948, Song Meiling's second visit to the United States was quite coldly received, secretary of state George Carter Marshall avoided seeing, and Truman only coldly gave Song Meiling half an hour to make a statement.
On April 21, 1949, the Chinese People's Liberation Army launched the Campaign to Cross the River, and Chiang Kai-shek, who had already lost his way, hastily resigned his presidency and fled to Treasure Island, and the Chiang family dynasty collapsed.
For Chiang Kai-shek, his success was inseparable from the Kong and Song families, and his failure was inseparable from the Kong and Song families.
Song Meiling's ambitions were destroyed
However, the former "first lady of the Republic of China" did not put away her ambitions. After fleeing to Taiwan Province, Soong Mei-ling repeatedly formed "foreign aid groups" to oppose our party and tried twice to prevent New China from restoring its legitimate seat in the United Nations.
In addition, with the support of the Kong and Song families, she also tried in vain to shake the status of her stepson Chiang Ching-kuo. Unfortunately, Chiang Kai-shek had already paved the way for her own son before his death, and none of what Soong Mei-ling did succeeded, and she hurriedly left the motherland and went to the United States to start the second half of her life.
Song Meiling's American life
With the help of the Kong family, Song Meiling's life is also luxurious. The Long Island Locust Valley Estate where she lived earlier contained a total of 12.8 acres of buildings, which is the asset of her eldest sister Song Xialing.
However, the luxurious life could not make up for the lack of family affection, and with the passage of time, the people of the same generation of the Kong Song family passed away one by one, and fewer and fewer people accompanied her to witness history, and finally, even her stepson Chiang Ching-kuo left first.
Song Meiling passed away
On the evening of October 23, 2003, Song Meiling died of pneumonia. The inside of the house is quiet, but the outside is crowded with reporters who want to get first-hand news, as well as bodyguards invited by niece Kong Lingyi.
The next morning, Song Meiling was sent to Fincliff Cemetery, the whole process was very urgent, escorted by bodyguards, the reporters could not photograph the remains of this late-aged and depressed figure, only to see his body wrapped in a wool blanket and hurried to the destination.......