In 1942, the pressure of Japan's invasion brought to China had reached a critical point. In order to obtain international assistance, Chiang Kai-shek, at the behest of the British, prepared to visit India in an attempt to bring India together against Japan in order to alleviate the pressure on China.
On February 5, after Chiang Kai-shek entered India as the supreme commander of the Chinese theater of operations, in just 13 days, he suffered two setbacks in succession, even ugly, which was extremely rare in Chiang Kai-shek's life.
Even after Chiang Kai-shek returned to China, he no longer mentioned the trip to India, and regarded it as a lifelong shame.
So, what happened during Chiang Kai-shek's time in India that made this high-ranking politician who claimed to be the commander in chief of the Chinese theater of operations so embarrassed.
In 1941, after Pearl Harbor, the United States also joined the anti-fascist movement.
On January 1, 1942, after consultations between several major powers, the pattern of anti-war in the world changed, and China had been fighting against Japan alone for many years, and Chiang Kai-shek naturally became the supreme leader of the Chinese theater.
Although only a name was added, it also made Chiang Kai-shek very happy and encouraged.
Of course, Japan's aggression against China has also entered a critical moment, and Japan's powerful land, sea and air forces have cut off all international support in eastern China.
The only thing that can be relied on is the southwest passage.
At this time, India in the southwest was not at peace, facing Japanese aggression on the one hand and seeking its own independence on the other. Britain, as the suzerain, was overwhelmed.
In particular, the non-violent non-cooperation of Gandhi and Nehru led to India's delay in rallying China's strength to resist Japanese aggression, and Japan's successes in South Asia were frequently reported.
Britain also tried to do the work of Gandhi, but Gandhi's argument was that India would only be able to fight against Japan after Britain was the first to recognize India's independence.
The British did not buy it, arguing that India must take the lead in the war of resistance in order to qualify for independence, and when the two sides were deadlocked, they pinned their hopes on Chiang Kai-shek in the east.
At this time, Chiang Kai-shek, although facing the dilemma of the War of Resistance Against Japan, was still full of self-confidence, able to mediate the differences between Britain and India, and influenced Gandhi by virtue of his status as the commander of the Chinese theater of operations.
Against this background, on February 4, 1942, Chiang Kai-shek was lightly armed. only brought his wife Song Meiling and a few other officials. He flew from Chongqing to Kolkata.
After a long journey by train, we finally arrived in New Delhi on February 9. Here, as he wished, he met with Gandhi, the British governor in India and the leader of India's independence.
However, it was these two meetings that embarrassed Chiang Kai-shek, and even considered it a shame for his life.
First of all, meeting with Chiang Kai-shek was the Viceroy of India, Rinrizig.
The conversation between Linlitzge and Chiang Kai-shek at the banquet went very smoothly at first, and after the two sides exchanged warm questions, they got to the point. Linritzger proposed that Chiang Kai-shek could do without meeting Gandhi and Nehru, and only have peace talks with the British.
After this proposition was spoken, Chiang Kai-shek was surprised, after all, he came to persuade India to resist the Japanese, and how to persuade if they did not meet.
At the same time, Chiang Kai-shek was also very displeased with Linlizige's fingers.
Seeing that Chiang Kai-shek was unmoved, Lin Lizge brushed his sleeves and left.
The British were also very worried, they knew that Chiang Kai-shek and Gandhi had had dealings, and they were afraid that Chiang Kai-shek would help Gandhi in India's independence, so they tried their best to prevent the two from meeting.
This kind of underestimation was unacceptable to Chiang Kai-shek, the commander-in-chief, and the two sides broke up even more unhappily after a few rounds of talks.
Nehru saw the right time and went to the foreign guest hotel where Chiang Kai-shek was staying to ask for a meeting, but Chiang Kai-shek, under pressure from the British, did not come forward in person, but let his wife Soong Meiling meet Nehru on his behalf.
When Soong Meiling conveyed Nehru's greetings to Chiang Kai-shek, Chiang Kai-shek was deeply moved and felt that he should not be subject to a governor as the leader of a country, so he decided to meet Gandhi in person.
Gandhi did not disappoint Chiang Kai-shek either, and on 18 February, he took a train to New Delhi. Talks with Chiang Kai-shek at his residence for five hours.
But it was precisely these five hours that once again embarrassed Chiang Kai-shek.
On the one hand, Chiang Kai-shek told Gandhi to suspend non-violent non-cooperation and quickly join the anti-fascist camp, and, of course, to express his support for Indian independence
Obviously, this statement was not approved by Gandhi, who told Chiang Kai-shek bluntly that his own position would not be easily changed.
Chiang Kai-shek still did not give up and still mobilized Gandhi to join the resistance alliance, but Gandhi also pointed out sharply: Although the allies proposed joint resistance, there was not a single Chinese in the staff, is this really fair?
Chiang Kai-shek was exposed and looked very angry, and the talks between the two ended in vain.
The 17-day visit, which ended in a hurry after Chiang Kai-shek's two encounters. After returning to China, Chiang Kai-shek did not mention the results of his trip to India to anyone, and even tried his best to avoid this history.
The political conceit exposed Chiang Kai-shek's shortcomings, which also laid the groundwork for him to retreat to the treasure island in the future.