In April 2006, Yang Han, then a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, traveled thousands of miles to a village in Luohe City, Henan Province.
He was here to visit an old man who had a relationship with him. The old man's name was Yang Qindian, and he was already 88 years old at the time.
The old man knew in advance that Yang Han was going to visit the door, and his heart was full of mixed feelings, and there were some joys and some sadness. But he still resolutely agreed.
Yang Han entered the courtyard of the old man's home, saw that the house and the layout inside the house were relatively simple, and could see that the family's life was still very poor.
Yang Qindian hurriedly beckoned Yang Han and the reporter accompanying him to sit down. After the two sides sat down, before anyone could speak, Yang Qindian couldn't help but cry, claiming that he had waited for this day for a long time, and whether he was beating or scolding, he was willing to accept it.
Yang Han saw that the old man was so moved, and his heart was not a taste. He said that he did not come today to "take revenge", but just wanted to understand the truth of that period of history.
Yang Han had a special status: the grandson of general Yang Hucheng, a former patriotic general of the Kuomintang.
So, what kind of grudge did he have with this old Mr. Yang Qindian? What unusual identity does Yang Qindian have to grasp the unknown historical truth?
(Photo of Yang Han meeting Yang Qindian published in Huashang Daily)
To make a long story short, if you want to understand all the reasons for this, you must start with Yang Han's grandfather Yang Hucheng.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="5" > Yang Hucheng after the Xi'an Incident</h1>
After the North China Incident in 1935, the Chinese nation faced a serious crisis of life and death.
However, Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Kuomintang, was bent on fighting a civil war and continued to practice the policy of "taking out the outside world before settling in the interior." At the same time, the Chinese Communist Party has played the banner of the national united front.
At this critical juncture, the Northeast Army headed by Zhang Xueliang and the Seventeenth Route Army headed by Yang Hucheng sided with the Communist Party, which advocated anti-Japanese resistance.
After repeated bitter advice and "crying advice" failed, Zhang and Yang had no choice but to take the risk of taking military advice.
Subsequently, Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng forcibly detained Chiang Kai-shek, Chen Cheng, and other high-level Kuomintang cadres by force at Huaqingchi.
This is the "Xi'an Incident" that shocked China and foreign countries.
(Zhang Xueliang, Yang Hucheng)
The "Xi'an Incident" was finally resolved peacefully through consultation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. However, Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng, who committed the following crimes this time, committed unforgivable felonies in the eyes of Chiang Kai-shek.
Zhang Xueliang was sentenced to ten years in prison. After he escorted Chiang Kai-shek back to Chongqing, he was imprisoned.
Although Yang Hucheng temporarily escaped punishment, he was also forced to surrender his military power and take his wife and children to "go abroad to investigate."
But in this matter, Chiang Kai-shek naturally will not give up.
He has always stubbornly believed that the culprits of the "Xi'an Incident" were Yang Hucheng and the Communist Party, and That Zhang Xueliang was only "less and more troublesome, and he went astray" and would be "seduced" by them with rhetoric.
He must put Yang Hucheng to death in order to relieve his heartache.
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan, Yang Hucheng and his family flew back from Europe to China quietly. He was originally bent on throwing himself into the War of Resistance against Japan and saving the country, but as soon as he got off the plane, he was detained by agents sent by Chiang Kai-shek for no reason.
(People celebrate the arrest of Chiang Kai-shek in the Xi'an Incident)
Who would have thought that his and his family's imprisonment would be a full 12 years.
In these 12 years, Yang Hucheng, his wife Xie Baozhen and his second son Yang Zhengzhong went through several turnovers, from Guiyang to Chongqing Baigongguan, and were successively imprisoned in many places.
Xie Baozhen also gave birth to a daughter in prison, named Yang Zhenggui.
Poor thing, my daughter grew up in a dark cell as soon as she was born, and she never had the opportunity to see everyone outside the wall.
After spending several years in prison, the family was eventually taken to the slag cave in Chongqing.
Xie Baozhen has been physically and mentally exhausted over the years, and after giving birth to her daughter, she is even more weak and sickly, and finally she can't survive this physical and mental torture and dies of resentment.
In the same year, Chiang Kai-shek faced internal and external difficulties and had no choice but to step down, with Li Zongren succeeding him as acting president of the Nationalist government.
Li Zongren was bent on "crossing the river" with the Communist Party, and in order to show his sincerity in peace talks, he signed an order to release Yang Hucheng and Zhang Xueliang as soon as he came to power.
Unfortunately, although Chiang Kai-shek went to the wilderness, the Kuomintang's power of life and death was still in his hands.
(General Yang Hucheng)
When the media reporter learned the news that Yang Hucheng was about to be released, but did not see any movement for a long time, he went to the Chongqing government to inquire.
Chongqing Mayor Yang Sen pretended not to know three questions, and after being asked annoyed, he said that he was just a mayor and had no power to manage and release people, and he did not know where Yang Hucheng was.
In fact, Zhou Yanghao, the head of the secret service directly under Chiang Kai-shek, and others were delaying the release of Yang Hucheng on the grounds that the release of Yang Hucheng would make the chairman of the CPPCC committee unhappy.
It didn't take long for the Chinese People's Liberation Army to cross the Yangtze River and capture the Nationalist capital, Nanjing. Now it is close to Chongqing.
Chiang Kai-shek was well aware that the general trend was gone, but his hatred for Yang Hucheng was still difficult to eliminate, so he wanted to get rid of it quickly.
When Mao Renfeng, director of the Secrecy Bureau, came to ask for instructions on how to deal with Yang Hucheng, Chiang Kai-shek said impatiently:
"Kill! This kind of person should have been killed long ago! ”
However, at this time, General Yang Hucheng did not know that he was about to be in a great disaster, and he was still rekindling his hopes for the news that Li Zongren was going to release him.
Therefore, he thought of his secretary Song Qiyun at this time.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="10" > second, Song Qiyun, Secretary of Yang Hucheng</h1>
In addition to being Yang Hucheng's secretary, Song Qiyun also has the status of a member of the Communist Party of China. At the beginning, in order to win Yang Hucheng together to unite against Japan, Song Qiyun was arranged by the central government to do mobilization work and liaison work at Yang Hucheng's side.
(Song Qiyun)
Song Qiyun's wife, Xu Linxia, was also an excellent Communist Party member. The revolutionary couple worked together to prepare for the "Xi'an Incident" and also made great contributions to the promotion of the second cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
After Yang Hucheng was arrested by Kuomintang agents, Song Qiyun's situation was also very dangerous.
After Song Qiyun finished her studies in Yan'an, she still chose to return to Xi'an to work. Song Qiyun has been working in Xi'an for a long time, has certain connections, and can use her legal status to promote the united front work of the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
Contrary to their wishes, in 1941, Song Qiyun and Xu Linxia, as well as their eight-month-old son Song Zhenzhong, were all arrested by Kuomintang agents.
The family of three was successively imprisoned in Chongqing's White Mansion and Zha Di Dong, where they spent 8 years in prison together.
Kuomintang agents successively resorted to various means of coercing confessions against the husband and wife.
Song Qiyun and Xu Linxia have both suffered inhuman torture and various tortures, but they still support the belief in communism in their hearts and have never yielded.
Song Qiyun once said in prison: "I must not bend down, only be afraid of death to ask for forgiveness; once I die in a hundred years of life, I will be left innocent for nine days." ”
At this time, Song Qiyun and Yang Hucheng had already become "neighbors". For his identity, Yang Hucheng already knew it.
(Song Qiyun's family of three)
After Yang Hucheng knew that he had the hope of being released, he first thought of Song Qiyun.
If Song Qiyun merges with his own case, then he still has hope of survival; but if Song Qiyun is convicted of "communism" and "CCP espionage", then he will undoubtedly die.
Yang Hucheng had only recently learned of Song Qiyun's condition, and knew that he had also been arrested and imprisoned, but he had never had the opportunity to meet.
He had heard that Song Qiyun's child had been arrested, and that child had grown up in prison and was so ill-nourished that his head was too small.
In prison, the inmates affectionately called the child "Little Turnip Head." Song Zhenzhong is the "little radish head" that we once knew in textbooks.
When Yang Hucheng thought that his young daughter was also born and raised in prison, he couldn't help but feel very sad.
He then proposed to Zhou Yanghao, the head of Chongqing's secret service, that he had a lot of things to sort out here, and that Song Qiyun was his secretary and hoped to transfer him to help him.
("Little Radish Head" character painting)
Yang Hucheng did this because he wanted Song Qiyun's family to improve his food when he came to his side, and at the same time, he wanted to bind Song Qiyun to his own case as his secretary, so as to save his family's life.
Although Yang Hucheng is now a prisoner of the order, his influence is still there. Zhou Yanghao pushed the boat along the water and promised him.
After 12 years, Yang Hucheng and Song Qiyun, the former comrades-in-arms who contributed to the "Xi'an Incident", were reunited again.
However, all this hit Chiang Kai-shek's heart.
Chiang Kai-shek had long wanted to execute the Song Qiyun family, and now he used this matter to vent his hatred with them.
Mao Renfeng summoned Xu Yuanju and Zhou Yanghao, the leaders of Chongqing's secret services, and issued them President Jiang's "holy will": "Demanding that the "political prisoners" imprisoned in various parts of Chongqing be secretly executed one by one without knowing or ghosting.
The first to be killed were yang hucheng's family and Song Qiyun's family.
Xu Yuanju and Zhou Yanghao also raised questions: "What about those two children?" ”
This naturally refers to Song Zhenzhong, a "little radish head" who is less than ten years old, and Yang Zhenggui, the daughter of Yang Hucheng.
When Chiang Kai-shek heard the big slap on the table, he stood up and said to Mao Renfeng, "What are you staying for!" ”
With Chiang Kai-shek's affirmation, Xu Yuanju and Zhou Yanghao selected six able cadres from among their subordinates to complete the assassination mission in the future.
(Big Secret Agent Yang Jinxing)
The six agents with blood-stained hands were: Lu Jingqing, Yang Jinxing, Xiong Xiang, An Wenfang, Yang Qindian and Wang Shaoshan.
Yes, the old man Yang Qindian, who was visited by Yang Hucheng's grandson Yang Han at the beginning of the article, is a former Kuomintang agent and one of the murderers of General Yang Hucheng and Communist Party member Song Qiyun.
The truth has come out, Yang Han wants to know the historical truth, wants to know the history of his grandfather Yang Hucheng was killed.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="16" >3, the truth about Yang Hucheng's murder</h1>
Whenever he thought back on this past, Yang Qindian was extremely painful. It was the greatest sin he had ever committed in his life, and it haunted him like a nightmare for the rest of his life, and it made him feel guilty all his life.
Because of this, when the elderly Yang Qindian learned that General Yang's descendants had come to the door, he was not only happy to be able to confess to him in person, but also sad that he had committed a serious crime against his family.
Yang Han told him that he had not come to "avenge", but just wanted to learn the truth, Yang Qindian also got a little redemption in his heart.
Yang Qindian was originally from a poor peasant background, and in order to survive in this chaotic world, he joined the cavalry team founded by Hu Zongnan and became a cavalryman.
Because of his superior performance, he was selected by Chiang Kai-shek and became Chiang Kai-shek's bodyguard.
(Yang Qindian elderly photo)
Later, Yang Qindian engaged in Kuomintang secret service work, and by chance, he came to the Chongqing White Mansion as the head of the guard squad, responsible for guarding "political key criminals."
During this time, Yang Qindian became acquainted with Song Qiyun, who was in prison.
Song Qiyun had done "counter-revolt" work around Yang Hucheng and was a master at breaking through the enemy's psychological defense line.
Yang Qindian personally informed him that he was originally from a poor family, and that he had only served as a soldier for the sake of mixed food, and that he did not have any belief in the "Three People's Principles" in his heart.
Therefore, Song Qiyun tried to "impress" him, telling him that the Communist Party was in the revolution for the toiling masses, and that it was necessary to abandon the secret and surrender to the light as soon as possible, and not to follow Chiang Kai-shek's government anymore.
Yang Qindian was full of admiration for the comrades of the Communist Party.
He used his authority to secretly help Song Qiyun and other Communist Party members to inquire about news, pass on the style, exchange books and newspapers, and extend the time for letting go of the wind to make it easier for them to "hold meetings."
But it wasn't long before Yang Qindian was chosen to complete the assassination mission.
Yang Qindian's mentality had changed at that time, and he did not want to kill Yang Hucheng and his "old friend" Song Qiyun.
But he was only a subordinate, and finally had to take over the task.
(Song Qiyun family portrait)
Mao Renfeng personally came to the scene to give instructions, asking them not to use guns, to avoid attracting attention, and there were many rewards after the fact.
Xiong Xiang and Wang Shaoshan proposed that the mouth of the "prisoner" be covered with a white cloth and then stabbed into the chest with a dagger, which was both efficient and safe and secretive.
Yang Jinxing knew very well that Yang Hucheng and Song Qiyun were both from the military and had mastered kung fu, so he planned to assassinate them separately.
Under the arrangement of the agents, Zhou Yanghao, in the name of Chiang Kai-shek's reception, tricked Yang Hucheng and his party into three cars.
Zhou Yanghao sat in the first car, Yang Hucheng and his son Yang Zhengzhong sat in the second car, and in the third car were Song Qiyun, Xu Linxia and his wife, and Song Zhenzhong, the "little turnip head", as well as Yang Hucheng's daughter Yang Zhenggui, Yang Hucheng's lieutenants Yan Jiming and Zhang Xingmin.
While driving, the first two cars suddenly picked up speed, leaving the third car far behind.
Late at night, Yang Hucheng's car was parked on the pine forest slope of Gele Mountain.
There are already spies waiting here. They respectfully opened the door, took Yang Hucheng out of the car, and said: "Please ask the director to stay in the Dai Gong Ancestral Hall for two days, wait for the chairman of the committee to receive him, and then take a plane to Taiwan." ”
Yang Hucheng didn't say anything, and followed the agents up more than 300 steps.
(Grand Secret Agent Zhou Yanghao)
When Yang Hucheng had just walked to the door of the Dai Gong Ancestral Hall, Six killers, including Yang Jinxing, Xiong Xiang, and Wang Shaoshan, who had already been ambushed in the building, poured out.
Among them, the two covered the mouth of Yang Zhengzhong, who was following Behind Yang Hucheng, with a white cloth.
Yang Zhengzhong was not yet eighteen years old and was short, holding the urn of his mother Xie Baozhen in his hand, and without the strength to resist, he was directly dragged into the next room.
As soon as he entered the door, Wang Shaoshan's dagger mercilessly stabbed into Yang Zhengzhong's waist.
Yang Zhengzhong shouted out a "Dad" desperately, and a mouthful of blood sprayed on his mother's urn, followed by several sharp pains in his waist.
This cry alarmed Yang Hucheng. He had just turned around and looked back, but it was too late.
Xiong Xiang had already quietly walked behind him and stabbed him in the waist. and
At the same time, Yang Jinxing ran over and covered his mouth with his hand, and Xiong Xiang frantically stabbed several times.
After General Yang Hucheng struggled hard, he also fell heavily to the ground.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="32" > executioner Yang Qindian</h1>
Yang Jinxing waved his bloodied hands and said to An Wenfang and Yang Qindian, "The little cubs on the back car will be handed over to you!" ”
Yang Qindian's heart was extremely painful at this time. He is not an inhuman agent, killing two stinking children, how can he bear to do it?
At the same time, he is not a hero, he also wants to live, and it is impossible to quit after taking on the task, otherwise he will die himself.
Soon, the third car also arrived on the slope of the pine forest according to the predetermined plan. Song Qiyun's family of three took Yang Zhenggui out of the car.
(Statue of the "little radish head" erected by the descendants in the slag cave)
Song Qiyun once "lived" here for two years and is very familiar with this place.
The guards guarding here still knew him and took the initiative to greet him: "You are coming, General Yang is waiting for you, come and sit in the house." ”
His wife Xu Linxia walked in front with Yang Zhengui, and Song Qiyun followed behind with a "small turnip head". The two lieutenants had been taken away by the car and were nowhere to be found.
When Song Qiyun noticed that things seemed to have changed, it was already too late.
Once again, the tragedy was played out. As soon as Xu Linxia stepped into the door, Wang Shaoshan skillfully killed her with the method just now.
At the same time, Yang Jinxing and Xiong Xiang also killed Song Qiyun "cleanly" and did not give him a chance to resist.
Yang Qindian rushed up and went crazy and pressed the "little radish head" to the ground and squeezed his neck with his hand.
Perhaps it was Yang Qindian's momentary compassion, the "little radish head" actually struggled desperately with strength and strength, and his small feet kept pedaling.
Hearing the cry of "little radish head", Yang Qindian fiercely covered his mouth with his hand and wanted to suffocate him. Half a day of busyness, the "little turnip head" was still moaning.
It took so long to even solve a small child, which really doesn't look like an "experienced" agent.
Yang Jinxing was also speechless, scolding Yang Qindian as a waste. Wielding a dagger, he fiercely stabbed the fatal knife into the body of the "little radish head".
Yang Zhenggui, the daughter of Yang Hucheng, had long been easily "solved" by An Wenfang.
In this way, Yang Hucheng's father and son, Song Qiyun and his wife, and their two children, who were less than 10 years old, were all killed by the butcher's knife of the Kuomintang agents within an hour.
This day is September 6, 1949, and there is less than a month left before the founding of New China. The patriotic general Yang Hucheng and the communist Song Qiyun both fell on the eve of the victory of the revolution.
Two of Yang Hucheng's lieutenants, Yan Jiming and Zhang Xingmin, who accompanied Song Qiyun, were also killed in the Chongqing massacre more than two months later.
After completing the assassination mission, the first thing is to destroy the corpse.
The agents buried the bodies of Yang and Song in a flower platform. In order to prevent their identities from being discovered, they also deliberately used water to pour water on their faces.
(The remains of Yang Hucheng and others were excavated many years later)
A few days later, Mao Renfeng "rewarded Him for meritorious deeds" and rewarded Zhou Yanghao, Xiong Xiang, and Yang Jinxing with 200 yuan each, and Yang Qindian and others 50 yuan.
This 50 yuan yinyang was enough to feed the family for a while, but how could Yang Qindian be at ease in his hand.
Where is this heavy silver ocean, where is the reward, it is clear that he cannot wash away the sins of his life.
As soon as he talked about this, the old man Yang Qindian covered his face and wept bitterly.
He regretted that, for whatever reason and purpose, he had participated in the killing of General Yang Hucheng, especially since he had become an executioner who personally killed an 8-year-old child.
Why did Yang Qindian, who had committed such a heinous crime, stay on the mainland and not be tried by the People's Liberation Army? This is also thanks to his own timely awakening.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="24" > the ending of Yang Qindian</h1>
When New China was founded, the whole country had not yet been liberated. At that time, Chongqing was still the Kuomintang's sphere of influence.
Yang Qindian remained in the White Mansion as usual, guarding a large number of "political dignitaries."
A month later, the Kuomintang army was gradually defeated, and the large army of the People's Liberation Army was already on the verge of chongqing.
Before the Kuomintang reactionaries retreated to Chongqing, they issued an order to secretly execute all the revolutionary volunteers imprisoned in the White Mansion and the Slag Cave.
Yang Jinxing and other agents worked extremely hard, and Yang Jinxing alone slaughtered 27 revolutionary comrades, which was a heinous crime.
This is the inhumane "11.27" massacre.
(Yang Jinxing Trial Conference)
When the massacre proceeded to midnight, 19 comrades, including Luo Guangbin, were still left in the White Mansion.
Yang Qindian also received orders from his superiors to take the remaining "political prisoners" to the slag cave and execute them together.
Lei Tianyuan, the great secret agent of the White Mansion, was in the slag cave, and he did not see the arrival of Yang Qindian for a long time, so he returned to the White Mansion to check.
When he arrived, the entire White Mansion was empty. His face was as frightened as earth, what was going on? How to explain to the superiors!?
It turned out that Yang Qindian had always felt guilty about assassinating his "old friend" Song Qiyun.
During this period, Luo Guangbin and other comrades continued to do ideological work for him. Luo Guangbin told him the news of the founding of New China, asked him to leave a way out for himself, and was willing to vouch for him.
Because the Kuomintang deliberately blocked the news, Yang Qindian was not aware of the situation outside.
He wanted to go to Yang Jinxing and others to inquire, but found that these people had already left him and run away. He has become an "outcast".
After receiving Lei Tianyuan's order, Yang Qindian did not want the tragedy to be repeated that night, so he accepted the rebellion of Luo Guangbin and others.
Taking advantage of Lei Tianyuan's absence, he opened the cell door and escaped with Luo Guangbin and 19 other people.
(Luo Guangbin when he was young)
Two days later, the People's Liberation Army entered the gates of Chongqing, and Chongqing was liberated.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="30" Yang Qindian, accompanied by everyone >, turned himself in to the Chongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau. Luo Guangbin and others testified on his behalf, thanks to the fact that he saved the lives of 19 of them at a critical moment. </h1>
After investigating based on the testimony of the public, the government believed that Yang Qindian had "made up for his mistakes", so it gave him leniency and did not pursue him.
The Public Security Bureau intends to arrange for him to work as an anti-secret agent. But after thanking the government, Mr. Yang said he missed home and wanted to go back to being an ordinary farmer.
The government respected his wishes, paid him for the road, and escorted him out of Chongqing safely.
Later, Luo Guangbin wrote a book about his revolutionary experience in prison, which was later the famous long red novel , "Red Rock".
In his memoirs, he said:
"Without Yang Qindian's repentance, all 19 people left in the White Mansion would have been killed, and the instructions of the party organization in prison for blood and tears would not have been preserved--therefore, Yang Qindian's final righteous deeds should be said to have objectively played an important role in preserving these historical materials and understanding the truth of the massacre."
After That, Yang Qindian was diligent and earnest, and became an ordinary working person in a down-to-earth manner.
Fifty years have passed, "Red Rock" is about to be remade into a TV series, the crew started in the White Mansion, and specially invited Yang Qindian to tell the past and picket historical information.
(Luo Guangbin created "Red Rock")
After the TV series was launched, the deeds of Yang Qindian YiShi Luo Guangbin and other comrades were also widely known.
November 27, 2004, is the Martyrs' Day of the "11.27" Massacre in Chongqing. The 86-year-old Yang Qindian walked with his elderly body to the scene of the memorial service held in the White Mansion and the Slag Cave.
Yang Qindian squatted in front of the martyrs' monument and burned coins for the martyrs. He did not ask for forgiveness from the souls of the martyrs he had killed, but only wanted to atone for their sins.
This is the story of the old man Yang Qindian.
After listening to the old man tell about the past, Yang Han's heart was very heavy.
He learned the last part of his grandparents' lives. He didn't complain about anything, just thanked the old man for being willing to tell him about these old things.
Before leaving, Yang Han turned around and sent blessings to the elderly Yang Qindian, wishing him to live to the age of 110.
(Mass commemoration of the martyrs of "11.27")
Perhaps the shackles in his heart for most of his life were opened, and the old man Yang Qindian was so relieved that he died in the second year of his farewell to Yang Han.
He did not live to be 110 years old, at the age of 89.
【Summary】
In the final analysis, Yang Qindian was just a helpless little person in that turbulent era.
He himself has no political consciousness and is not a "cold-blooded" killer. He is not a hero, but an "egoist", who has done a lot of "counter-revolutionary" wrong things for survival and has embarked on the right path in order to survive.
After all, not everyone can become a hero, and being an ordinary farmer is the most correct choice for the rest of his life.
The fate of General Yang Hucheng and Song Qiyun was sad, but the government still handled it impartially and gave Yang Qindian the opportunity to "become a man again". Yang Han can also be magnanimous and treat him with virtue, which is not easy.
It is precisely this kind of general pattern that allows the CPC to win the hearts and minds of the people and unite from top to bottom to victory.
Edit: Thomas
Editor-in-Charge: Thalia