The Xinhai Revolution was a major historical event in the process of China's transition from a feudal autocratic society to a democratic republic. Who fired the "first shot" of the Wuchang Shouyi that unveiled the curtain of this great change has always been a topic of endless debate in the field of history, and many academic achievements have emerged. This paper intends to sort out and comment on the relevant research from both narrow and broad perspectives, and put forward prospects for future research.
I. The narrow sense of "first shot"
The narrow sense of "first shot" also refers to the first gunshot in time. Cao Zhongsheng once explained the concept of the "first shot", that is, the "first shot" of Wuchang Shouyi specifically referred to the first real gunshot in chronological order on the evening of October 10, 1911. He also particularly stressed that as long as the gun was fired under the agreed conditions of the uprising and objectively achieved the effect of the response of the crowd, then no matter what the subjective purpose of the shot was, whether it was self-propelled fire or deliberately radiated, it must be recognized as the "first shot" of the first meaning. So who fired the first shot? At present, there are mainly the following views in the academic community:

(1) Jin Zhaolong fired the "first shot" said
Mr. Wan Yaohuang mentioned in the article "Xinhai Shouyi Answering Questions" that it was Jin Zhaolong who fired the first gun. In his book "Chinese Politics Before and After the Xinhai Revolution", Li Shu said: "At seven o'clock in the evening, a platoon leader of the rear team of the 8th Engineering Battalion inspected the barracks and clashed with Cheng Zhengying, a soldier of the platoon, and Jin Zhaolong, the deputy of the platoon, and the platoon leader was violently knocked to the ground. The reminiscences of some righteous people also confirm that the evening of October 10 was the first person to directly engage in a life-and-death confrontation with the Qing soldiers, such as Xiong Bingkun's "Jin Zhaolong Chronicle" has a more detailed explanation of the uprising planning on that day: "The next day, Long Sui and Chen Zhenwu, Cheng Zhengying, and Zhong Shijie met with the three kings, each giving three bullets... Ling Zhong Shijie stabbed the captain of the team, Cheng Zhengying stabbed the second platoon leader, Chen Zhenwu stabbed the third platoon leader, and Long and Wang Zhongwei came to the aid. Hu Shi'an's "Records of the Hubei Revolution" also quotes Zhu Siwu's specific description of the uprising that night: "Tao Qisheng inspected the barracks everywhere, glimpsed that Jin Zhaolong's leather box had several rows of real bullets, and reprimanded him for whether he was ready to rebel. anti! That is, to oppose!', that is, pounced on Tao Qisheng, and the two sides began to fight. He Juefei and Feng Tianyu, based on the specific descriptions of the early documents of Xiong Bingkun and other witnesses, believe that Jin Zhaolong should be the first person to wrestle with the Qing soldiers on the evening of October 10, saying that it should be okay to say that the "first strike" should be OK, but not the person who fired the "first shot".
(2) Cheng Zhengying fired the "first shot."
Feng Tianyu collected and sorted out a lot of early documents of the first righteous witnesses in the article "Who Fired the First Shot of the First Righteousness of Xinhai", especially the early literature of Xiong Bingkun himself, explaining with detailed materials that Cheng Zhengying fired the "first shot" is the real history, and putting forward his own explanation for the reason for the popularity of the "Bear One Shot". He pointed out that Xiong Bingkun had written four manuscripts for the Hubei Revolutionary Record Museum at that time, including "The Revolutionary Record of the Eighth Battalion of the Former Qing Engineers" and "The Deacons and Members of the Revolutionary Army of the Eighth Battalion of the Former Engineers", which had a relatively vivid record of the heroes and deeds of the uprising, and these manuscripts without exception recognized as the "first shot" fired by Cheng Zhengying. It was only later because of the long-term obliteration of this batch of original documents, Cheng Zhengying was gradually forgotten because of his betrayal of the revolution, Sun Yat-sen's initiative of "bear one gun", Xiong Bingkun's own memory changes and his consideration of various famous interests, the "bear one gun" theory gradually became the mainstream view. In the article "Who Fired the First Shot of Wuchang Shouyi," Bai Yanshan particularly emphasized that in the face of the historical facts that Cheng Zhengying fired the "first shot" of Wuchang Shouyi, it is necessary to respect history, sweep away the "dust of history," and restore the original appearance of "Cheng Yiyi." Fan Ying also believes that the "first shot" of Wuchang Shouyi is an objective historical fact that will not be changed by people's loyalty, benevolence, and foolishness, and that Cheng Zhengying's late festival cannot be erased from the historical merits of his firing of the "first shot."
(3) Xiong Bingkun fired the "first shot."
Current textbooks and the mainstream media adhere to this view. The "bear shot" is said to be forcefully said by the persistence of several important historical figures such as Li Yuanhong, Yuan Shikai, Sun Yat-sen, Ju Zheng and others. In January 1913, Yuan Shikai's government awarded the then major general Xiong Bingkun five certificates based on Li Yuanhong's report, including such praise as "When the cover is heard, it is difficult to go to a husband; the situation is even a chicken, and the merit is not first". Sun Yat-sen considered that Xiong Bingkun was the official party representative of the revolutionary party in the Eighth Battalion of the New Army Project, and in order to strive for "the merits of the revolutionaries to overthrow the Manchu Qing Dynasty," he naturally pushed "Bear One Shot." In 1914, Xiong Bingkun accompanied Sun Yat-sen to Japan, and at a party, Sun Yat-sen solemnly introduced Xiong Bingkun to the guests present, saying: "This is Comrade Xiong Bingkun, who fired the first shot in Wuchang Shouyi!" On the Double Tenth Festival in 1918, Sun Yat-sen wrote an article in the Morning Post, saying: "Today is the day when our revolutionary comrade Xiong Bingkun revolted with one shot!" On the Double Tenth Festival in 1919, Sun Yat-sen mentioned again in "Eight Years toDay": "On what day today, it was the revolutionary party member Xiong Bingkun who fired the attack, and the Qing Dynasty co-ruler Li Yuanhong was forced to follow the revolutionary army in Wuchang. At the same time, when Sun Yat-sen wrote "One of the Founding Strategies", he wrote in the chapter "There is ambition to achieve success": "For self-survival, Xiong Bingkun first shot and attacked. Sun Yat-sen, as the leader of the revolution, fired the "first shot" against Xiong Bingkun, which can be said to have spared no effort to affirm and publicize, which naturally made Xiong Bingkun famous, and coupled with the fact that ju zheng, the founding father of the revolution, also advocated the "bear one shot" theory, and the "bear one shot" theory gradually became the orthodox view of historians.
(4) Luo Jinyu fired the "first shot, saying."
Zhu Baisong pointed out that on the evening of 10 October, Li Pengsheng, a heavy detachment outside the city, lit a grass to set off a warning, and Luo Jinyu fired a gun demonstration as a sign, and the first attack was made in time. Li Pengsheng, a revolutionary representative of the Heavy Brigade, described in his memoirs: "At a time of great nervousness, Luo Jinyu fired a signal gun, and the comrades of the whole battalion flocked to assemble. The "History of the Xinhai Revolution" edited by Zhang Kaiyuan and Lin Zengping also adopted this statement, "At that time, Luo Jinyu's first shot was fired, and the revolutionaries of the heavy team were about to set fire to the macaofang and raise a fire to revolt." Hu Zushun, the first righteous person, even talked about the historical contribution of Luo Jinyu's "first shot" in the "Record of the Founding of the People's Republic of Wuchang", "Li Hong (Peng), the commander-in-chief of the uprising outside the city, commanded Luo Jinyu to fire the first shot of wuchang's first righteousness, and the time was 6:05 p.m. on October 10, 'Fortunately, it was a shot, and the Republic of China fell down from then on.' The author believes that Hu Zushun's evaluation is a bit exaggerated, but the statement of Shao Baichang, another righteous person, is more in line with reality, "At about seven o'clock, Li Pengsheng and others went to the stables, burned grass and ignited fire, and comrade Luo Jinyu fired a gun to demonstrate. This gun is actually the first shot of the First Yi of Wuchang in Xinhai. Because the camp was too far away from other barracks and did not cause a big effect, it was rarely mentioned in the books. [14] Many historical sources also confirm that Luo Jinyu's "first shot" was indeed earlier than Cheng Zhengying's time, but after Luo Jinyu fired the gun, only the soldiers of the battalion entered the uniform room to grab a box of bullets, and the other two teams stationed outside the city did not respond much, and finally because of its weak strength and no follow-up major action, its actual role and impact in the Wuchang uprising were not large, resulting in this gun being neither known to the outside world nor recorded in writings.
(5) Lu Zhongqiu fired the "first shot" and said
Wu Liyang's "China 1911" mentions that Lü Zhongqiu once exploded foul-mouthed insults at the 1946 Comrades' Meeting of the First Righteousness, claiming that he fired the "first shot", but the credit was taken by others. After the publication of this book, it caused the discussion and controversy in the historical circles about Lü Zhongqiu's "first shot". At present, it is certain that Lü Zhongqiu was indeed a soldier of the engineering battalion on the night of the Wuchang Shouyi Uprising, and he did shoot and kill Huang Kunrong and Zhang Wentao, two team officers, but according to the chronological order, he did not fire the "first shot." The "Memoirs of Xinhai Shouyi" contains a "Memories of Xinhai" dictated by Lü Zhongqiu, and he himself said: "Cheng Zhengying and Jin Zhaolong shot and killed Tao Qisheng, and I also shot Huang Kunrong and Zhang Wentao. The memoirs of Shao Baichang, the chief righteous person, read: "Huang Kunyong (Rong), an officer of the right team, prevented the soldiers of the team from participating, and Lü Zhongqiu killed him, and the bullet ran through the yellow body, and the director of the team (Zhang Wentao) stood next to him and was also shot and died." Pei Gaocai carefully examined the historical facts and believed that Lü Zhongqiu should have fired the third or fourth shot after Luo Jinyu, Cheng Zhengying and others (if Xiong Bingkun had fired the gun before him). Judging from the existing historical data, the claim of the third or fourth shot is more credible, comparing the reminiscences of Xiong Bingkun, Zhou Quansheng, Jin Zhaolong, Cheng Zhengying, and others, as well as the monographs of Historians of the Xinhai Revolution, such as Hu Shengwu, Yang Yuru, and Zhang Kaiyuan, it is very likely that Cheng Zhengying, the night of Wuchang Shouyi, wounded Tao Qisheng, the platoon leader of the Qing army, "Xiong Bingkun heard the sound of the gun, the right team officer Huang Kunrong pulled the soldiers of the team to stay in the room, Lü Zhongqiu attacked, Kun Rong died, and Zhang Wentao, the chief of the ammunition department, also died." If this is the case, Lu Zhongqiu should have fired the gun after Xiong Bingkun's signal gun sounded, and he should also know that he did not fire the "first shot." Therefore, it is difficult to establish the theory that Lu Zhongqiu fired the "first shot."
Who fired the "first shot" remains a historical mystery. Yin Chengfu said in "Memories of Participating in the Wuchang Shouyi in Xinhai": "Who put the 'first shot' of wuchang shouyi? This may still be a historical mystery." Guo Guoxiang and Zhu Zhe also held the same view on this, they believed that the Wuchang Uprising was a mutiny launched by grass-roots soldiers caused by panic in a hurry, and the mutiny was not one place or two, but also a chaotic situation, so it was difficult to verify the person who fired the "first shot", the exact time and the exact location. In terms of time, at that time, only officers above the platoon commander had pocket watches, and ordinary soldiers could not say the specific time without a table, so the exact time of their respective guns was not very certain; in terms of location, some people fired guns in the engineer battalion, some people put guns in the heavy team, and some people put guns in the artillery battalion, but it is difficult to verify who came first and who came later. Therefore, who actually fired the "first shot" of the Wuchang Shouyi can only be a historical mystery today.
Second, the broad sense of "first shot"
The narrow sense of "first shot" refers specifically to the first gunshot that opened the prelude to the first uprising in Wuchang, but this "first shot" has too many limitations. First of all, firing the "first shot" has too many accidents, a panic-induced mutiny, who fired the "first shot", the parties are probably not very clear, not so important. We should consider the "first shot" in terms of the historical inevitability of launching this uprising, and it is more meaningful if it is the iconic signal gun that launched the uprising. Secondly, since it was a mutiny caused by panic, the firing of guns was certainly not one place or two, and the reasons were varied, some people in the Gongba Battalion opened fire on the Qing soldiers in response to the sudden inspection, some people fired guns to launch an uprising, and some people fought before the guns were released. Some people were lighting grass to warn the heavy brigade, some people fired gun demonstrations, and some people set off cannons in the artillery battalion. It is difficult to say clearly who these people have earlier time and who has greater credit. Third, the "first shot" cannot be stuck in the tangible first gunshot, and "the first explosion", "the first strike", "the first fire", "the first cannon", and so on are not major historical events that opened the prelude to the uprising? That being the case, the "first shot" should be generalized and the invisible "first shot" should be proposed. Finally, historical research has never been a simple historical fact, but also involves the positions, perspectives, methods and theoretical issues of the analysis of historical events by later generations, such as the "first shot" can be regarded as a group behavior. In this way, the study of the "first shot" is even more exciting and diverse. At present, the main points of view are as follows:
(I) The "first shot" of the insurrection signal and the "first shot" actually fired
Guo Guoxiang and Zhu Zhe believe that the occurrence of the Wuchang Shouyi is both accidental and inevitable. The "first shot" was fired by Cheng Zhengying dramatically and accidentally in a state of emergency, and the "first shot" fired by Xiong Bingkun in accordance with the predetermined plan to mark the signal of the uprising. The two "first shots" have their own unique historical value, and it is not easy to erase either of them, but Xiong Bingkun's "first shot" is more in line with the inevitable laws of history, more symbolic and historical significance.
He Juefei repeatedly emphasized Xiong Bingkun's three shots that marked the signal of the uprising in the "Biography of the First Righteous Character of Wuchang in Xinhai", and wrote in the "Xiong Bingkun" chapter: "Xiong Bingkun went to the team... A writhing sound was heard upstairs, i.e., live ammunition was taken. Fang planned to go upstairs, and saw the platoon leader Tao Qisheng running down in a daze, that is, shooting at Tao's lower abdomen, and Tao fled with his belly. Three shots were fired into the air, indicating that they had been attacked. In the "Jin Zhaolong" chapter, it is written: "The bear fired three guns to the sky, which is the signal of trouble." Wu Jianjie pointed out in the article "Xiong Bingkun and the First Righteousness of Wuchang in Xinhai" that in a microscopic and narrow sense, the "first shot" was indeed not fired by Xiong Bingkun, but without xiong Bingkun, the party representative of the engineering battalion, who had effectively connected, planned, mobilized, and organized before the attack, and without his "three guns fired" and the subsequent temporary command, then the Wuchang shouyi might have been extinguished, and perhaps the major historical events that we are familiar with now could not have occurred. Therefore, in a macroscopic and broad sense, Xiong Bingkun's honor as the first difficult "one shot of merit" is well-deserved. Yan Changhong agreed with this, believing that if we look at the "first shot" from the broad perspective of issuing a formal uprising order, Xiong Bingkun can be said to be a true hero who fired the "first shot" of Wuchang's first righteousness.
Chen Jiaqi believes that "bear a shot" is more in line with the revolutionary narrative and more conducive to the shaping of revolutionary myths. He believes that Sun Yat-sen's emphasis on "bear one shot" is a grand revolutionary narrative, a natural reaction of revolutionaries vying to "overthrow the first merit of the Manchu Qing Dynasty", and an inevitable move to render the revolutionary Taoist system and legal system. Scholars such as Huang Yimei, Zheng Yiqi, and Wu Yunpu have also put forward similar views. Huang Yimei believes that although Luo Jinyu fired the "first shot" outside Wuchang City, but after the fact, the human world evaporated, although Cheng Zhengying fired the "first shot" in the city, he did not know how to cherish the honor, and soon after the Wuchang Uprising, he defected to the revolution and defected to Yuan Shikai, only Xiong Bingkun continued to work hard after the Wuchang Uprising, so it is of more positive significance to admit that he fired the "first shot" of the Wuchang Uprising. Zheng Yiqi believes that Xiong Bingkun was the leader of the revolution from beginning to end in the whole process of attack, and the three shots he fired had a special significance, which was a signal of the formal uprising of the Eighth Battalion of the Engineering, plus Cheng Zhengying later degenerated into a warlord's minions, and acknowledging that the "bear one shot" was more convincing to the public, and it was also a praise for the first batch of revolutionary soldiers. Wu Yunpu also believes that Xiong Bingkun is a representative figure of the revolutionaries, and also the actual organizer and leader of the October 10 attack when the crowd is leaderless, plus the praise of Sun Yat-sen and others, and it is reasonable to regard him as the "first shot" in a broad sense.
(2) The "first shot" inside the city and the "first shot" outside the city
The units that attacked on the night of the Wuchang uprising had both the heavy units led by Li Pengsheng outside the city and the eighth battalion of the engineering led by Xiong Bingkun in the city, and the two units that attacked who were the "first shots" and how to evaluate their actions that night were also a very controversial issue in the academic circles, and the representative views are as follows:
1. The head of the heavy team outside the city said
Zhang Shaochun, based on the recollections of four types of people, including the Tangjiao Party, the Party members in the city, the Hunan Party, and the Constitutionalists, proposed that "the 11th Battalion of the Heavy Heavy Battalion set the fire first, and the Gong Eighth Battalion fired its gun later." Zhu Baisong also strongly advocated this statement, and quoted Li Pengsheng, who was leading the heavy team at that time, to report that he and other witnesses reported that it was "about an hour earlier than the Tangjiao heavy team in the city." When Hu Zushun questioned in the "Zhongxi Bao" that "Xiong Bingkun was the first to shoot and attack", he openly proposed that the reinforcement team was attacked at about 6 p.m. on October 10, while the engineering battalion was at about 8 o'clock, and set fire to the heavy team, and then through WushengMen, around the Tongxiang Gate, and finally from the Zhonghe Gate into the city to the Chuwangtai Huishi, it can be deduced that the reinforcement team was in trouble first, and Hu Zushun also cited the first draft of Li Yuanhong's tombstone by Zhang Binglin as evidence.
2. The Eighth Battalion of Engineering was the first to attack
In volume 3 of the "Draft History of the Xinhai Revolution," "The Great Uprising of 1911," several favorable conditions were enumerated in detail for the Eighth Engineering Battalion to take the lead in the task of attacking on the evening of October 10, first, the Chuwangtai Armory was defended by the Eighth Engineering Battalion; second, the Eighth Engineering Battalion was stationed in the city and guarded the Ziyang Bridge alone, facilitating its movements; third, the Eighth Engineering Battalion had a good organizational foundation, and the revolutionaries in the Eighth Engineering Battalion accounted for four-tenths of the soldiers in the battalion. Scholar Huang Yimei believes that when people talk about who fired the "first shot" of the Wuchang Shouyi, they often refer specifically to the difficulties inside Wuchang City, and rarely mention the attacks outside the city, so the "first shot" of the Wuchang Shouyi refers specifically to the "first shot" fired by the Eighth Battalion of the Project. Xiao Chengyong believed that although Cheng Zhengying's shot was accidental, his shot objectively achieved the effect of the response of the crowd, and almost all the revolutionaries in the infantry in the city heard the uprising, and then seized the Chuwangtai Armory, which played a key role in the success or failure of the uprising. Therefore, the status and role of the "first shot" fired by Cheng Zhengying in the city is incomparable to the "first shot" fired by Luo Jinyu outside the city, and the "first shot" of Wuchang Shouyi refers specifically to the "Cheng one shot" in the city.
3. It is advisable to say that both inside and outside the city are appropriate
Zhang Yutian and Chen Chongqiao held that at about 7 p.m. on October 10, 1911, the Eighth Engineering Battalion stationed in Wuchang City and the Engineering and Heavy Engineering and Heavy Teams stationed outside Wuchang City first revolted, and the standard battalions basically still acted simultaneously according to the original combat plan. Famous historians Zhang Kaiyuan and Lin Zengping believed in the "History of the Xinhai Revolution": "Wushengmenwai Tangjiao Heavy Team,...... At about the same time as the Eighth Battalion of Engineering, the righteous flag was raised. He Juefei and Feng Tianyu's "History of the First Righteousness of Wuchang in Xinhai" also believes: "As far as the time of the attack is concerned, the Twenty-first Auxiliary Heavy Brigade outside the city should be the first, but the Gongba camp is in the city, firing the first shot, the greatest impact, and the battalion is the first to seize the Chuwangtai Armory." Therefore, both the outer heavy brigade and the eighth battalion of workers in the city can be regarded as the initiators of the Wuchang Uprising. Wu Jianjie believes that it is of little practical significance to consider the difference between the two units that attacked the overall situation of the Wuchang Shouyi and the Xinhai Revolution it created, and the reason why the historical event is remembered by everyone is that the event had a major impact on other events at that time and in the future. It is also believed that the two sides inside and outside the city are suitable, and the historical merits of the two units that attacked the attack are not divided into upper and lower levels, and each has its own advantages, and the reasonable existence of the two "first shots" should be recognized.
(iii) The tangible "first shot" and the invisible "first shot"
The tangible "first shot" is the physical "first shot", the real first shot, whether it is a signal of insurrection or a random passing away. The invisible "first shot" was the first action to fight the Qing army in a broad sense. Judging from the attack on the evening of October 10 alone, Jin Zhaolong was the first person to launch a life-and-death confrontation with the Qing soldiers, and his "first strike" unveiled the storm of the revolution that night, that is, the "first shot". Guo Guoxiang and Wang Xinxin proposed in "The New Exploration of the First Shot of Wuchang Shouyi" that we should understand that the "first shot" should not be limited to the first shot actually fired, but should understand the "first shot" in a broad sense, that is, the invisible "first shot", that is, the landmark event of direct sharp confrontation with the Qing soldiers, such as "the first fire", "the first cannon" is also the "first shot", and even the "first explosion", "the first explosion", "the first shot" are also "first shot". The invisible "first shot" is more in line with the semantics of a specific state, and it is also more conducive to analyzing the pioneering role of the first righteous people who dare to be the first.
Some people are also entangled in whether the launch of the Wuchang Shouyi is the "first shot" or the "first fire" first, and whoever is first is more historically significant, so it is proposed that the Wuchang Shouyi is not the "first shot", but the "first fire" to open the curtain of the uprising. Jin Chonghe held in his article "Before and After the Xinhai Revolution" that the Wuchang uprising was based on Li Pengsheng, a heavy brigade outside the city, who first ignited the hay depot as a signal of difficulty, so wuchang shouyi should not be called the "first shot" but should be called "the first fire" to recognize the historical status of the first attack outside the city. In fact, whether it is the "first fire" or the "first shot", they all emphasize which event is the sign that opened the curtain of this uprising, that is, a symbol and symbol, which is also not impossible to call it the "first shot".
(4) Regard the attack of the Eighth Battalion of the Project as a whole as the "first shot" of the uprising
Luo Huaqing pointed out in the article "The First Shot of The First Uprising in Wuchang" that the Wuchang uprising was the first revolutionary of the Eighth Battalion of the Engineering To attack, and Xiong Bingkun, who organized and led the attack, was also the general representative of the revolutionaries of the Eighth Battalion of the Workers' Eighth Battalion. In his monographs "History of Xinhai Shouyi" and "History of Xinhai Shouyi", Mr. Feng Tianyu took the lead in firing the uprising gun on the night of October 10, 1911" and "On the night of October 10, 1911, the eighth battalion of the engineering project in the city took the lead in firing the first shot of the uprising" as the subheadings of the paragraphs, detailing the heroic deeds of the revolutionary soldiers of the eighth battalion of the engineering and the Qing soldiers fighting the Qing soldiers on the night of the Wuchang Shouyi Uprising, and concluding with "It was night, the eighth battalion of the engineering project in the city took the lead in firing the first shot". Wang Tianzhi and Liu Wangling also believed that the Eighth Engineering Battalion fired the "first shot" of the uprising, and then Xiong Bingkun "immediately ordered the whole team to pounce on the Chuwangtai Armory in order to seize the military in one fell swoop." Mao Lei, Mao Chuanqing, and others held that the statement that "the revolutionaries of the Eighth Battalion of the Project represented by Xiong Bingkun as the party fired the first shot of the Wuchang Uprising" emphasized the role of the collective and was more in line with the law of historical development. Wu Liyang also believed that Xiong Bingkun was the actual leader organizer of the Wuchang Uprising of the Xinhai Revolution, and he led the Eighth Battalion of the Project to "venture out" and fired the "first shot of the First Uprising".
(5) Regard the key actions that pushed the Wuchang Uprising toward victory as the "first shot"
The Wuchang Uprising was not only a mutiny initiated by grass-roots soldiers in panic, but also an uprising carefully prepared and carefully planned by the two major revolutionary organizations of the Communist Progressive Association and the Literary Society. Thinking from the inevitable law of history and the theory of historical synergy, we should relax the standard of the "first shot", that is, the key actions that promote the victory of the Wuchang First Righteousness can be regarded as the "first shot" in a sense, and the leaders and initiators of these key actions can enjoy this honor. Guo Guoxiang and Wang Xinxin held in "A New Exploration of the First Shot of Wuchang Shouyi" that a group of heroes appeared in Wuchang Shouyi, and they all had their indelible historical contributions at different time periods, such as Jiang Yiwu, the first planner, who was not only the direct planner of the uprising, but also the commander-in-chief of the shouyi's plan of action that night; Sun Wu, the first tester, who was not only the leader of the Communist Progressive Association, but also the pioneer who personally practiced testing bombs and igniting the raging revolutionary fire; Yang Hongsheng, the first person to throw bombs at the Qing soldiers. Jin Zhaolong, the first to fight with the Qing soldiers, Li Pengsheng, the first to ignite the trumpet, Cheng Zhengying, the first to shoot at the Qing soldiers, and Xiong Bingkun, the first to blow the righteous whistle, were all elites and pioneers of the revolutionaries, who not only participated in the preparatory work in the early stages of the uprising, but also made pioneering historical contributions in the process of the formal uprising. These revolutionary pioneers all played a special pioneering role at major historical turning points, and there is no doubt that they all implicitly agreed with the inner meaning of the broad "first shot." Moreover, the invisible "first shot" of this group is more historical than the tangible "first shot" of the individual, and it is also more able to reflect the people's nature, objectivity and inevitability of historical development [21].
In summary, the academic research on the "first shot" of Wuchang Shouyi has gradually developed from a narrow single historical research to multi-level theoretical research and systematic group research, and has made great progress in general. However, in terms of specific research, there are still many places where breakthroughs can be made, for example, how to view the "first shot" from multiple angles such as tangible and intangible, individual and group, historical inevitability and contingency, historical facts and historical evaluation, there is still a lot of work to be done. In particular, history is far away, and the various reminiscence historical materials left by the parties concerned are not perfect; some hearsay, some cramped corners and peeping at leopards, some talk to themselves and contradict themselves, and some "right and wrong are reversed, and they are greedy for heaven's work." There is still a long way to go to peel back the cocoon of such historical materials, restore the authenticity of history, and reveal the specific historical contributions of such a heroic group.