#1955年 the "Kashmir Princess" political conspiracy: Premier Zhou's life and death line#
In the long course of history, on April 11, 1955, a political conspiracy was quietly brewing at Hong Kong's Kai Tak Airport, and its target was Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. The masterminds behind this conspiracy were the agents of the "Taiwan authorities" at that time, and for political purposes, they coldly planned a very dangerous operation, let us uncover this historical chapter worthy of a thriller novel.
Premier Zhou originally planned to travel to Jakarta, Indonesia, to attend the Bandung Conference on the Lockheed Constellation 749A of Air India's Lockheed Constellation aircraft, the Kashmir Princess. However, agents of the Kuomintang Secrecy Bureau learned of this and succeeded in planting a time bomb in the shape of toothpaste on the right wing of the plane by bribing the cleaners at the Hong Kong airport.
Fortunately, Premier Zhou had just undergone appendix surgery and was feeling unwell, so he temporarily changed his itinerary and made a detour to Jakarta via Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, and successfully escaped the fatal blow of this political conspiracy.
However, the Kashmir Princess suffered an explosion five hours after takeoff, damaged its right wing, and was forced to make an emergency landing on the sea. In addition to the crew, 11 passengers were unfortunately killed.
Declassified information shows that the political conspiracy was planned by Taiwan's Kuomintang Secrecy Bureau, with the assistance of the CIA. Among them, Gu Zhengwen, as one of the main masterminds, can be called the "demon" of the spy world.
Gu Zhengwen's betrayal began as early as the Anti-Japanese War, when he joined the Kuomintang military command and became an agent when he was at Peking University. His speculation and betrayal resulted in the sacrifice of countless Communists.
After the victory of the Liberation War, Gu Zhengwen became a celebrity in the Secret Bureau, and his activity authority gradually increased. He used unscrupulous means in various actions and offered many plans to the Kuomintang to sabotage the construction of New China.
In his later years, Gu Zhengwen still monitored the movements of the mainland and was always active in the front line of planning espionage activities. He even instigated Chiang Ching-kuo to plot to manufacture counterfeit banknotes in an attempt to disrupt the mainland's economy.
The Kashmir Princess incident in 1955 became a microcosm of his crimes, and although he lived a long life, he was not accompanied by a family member he could trust. In his later years, he showed his brutal nature even more after he discovered that his goddaughter's husband was having an affair.
On January 25, 2007, Gu Zhengwen passed away in Taipei Hospital, ending his life of crime. However, this traitor and vicious agent was not able to stand the judgment of the people in the end.
This history reveals the dark side of political intrigues, and it also makes us more vigilant and cherish the hard-won achievements of the era of peace. Perhaps, through the lens of history, we can see and understand the complexities and twists and turns of that era more clearly.