At the time of the eight-power alliance invading China, Russia also took the opportunity to send troops to prepare for the invasion of the northeast, and the prime minister of the Heilongjiang Camp Office at that time was named Cheng Dequan, who was ordered to negotiate with the Russians. But the Russians did not pay attention to the Qing government at all, and directly prepared to drive a train into China.
After Cheng Dequan learned of this, he was furious and directly lay down on the railroad tracks. The Russians thought that Cheng Dequan was just bluffing, so they tried to scare Cheng Dequan away. But Cheng Dequan was motionless, and finally the Russian train stopped two meters in front of him.
The Russian representative sat at the negotiating table and finally assured the Russians that after entering Qiqihar, they would not kill the people or plunder their property. So Cheng Dequan returned to Qiqihar and withdrew all his troops. As a result, rumors came from nowhere that the Qing army was preparing for a secret resistance. The Russians were immediately ashamed and angry, and directly brought in cannons to prepare to shell the city of Qiqihar.
Cheng Dequan immediately came outside the city to explain to the Russians that it was a rumor. But the Russians did not believe it at all, and in a hurry, he lay directly on the barrel of the cannon and did not let the Russians say anything. In the end, the Russians were impressed by his righteousness and finally agreed not to shell Qiqihar again, but Cheng Dequan wanted to stay as a hostage.
Cheng Dequan was once taken to Chita by the Russians, but because of his serious illness, he was sent back to China. After returning to China, Cheng Dequan was reused by the Qing government because of his previous heroic behavior, and the official Zhi Yipin was promoted.
At the time of the outbreak of the Xinhai Revolution, Cheng Dequan was serving as the governor of Jiangsu, and he had been persuading the Qing court to conform to the will of the people and establish a constitution as soon as possible. However, the Qing government was very stubborn, and Cheng Dequan had to change his attitude, and the first goal was to protect the people's livelihood and stability. Cheng Dequan had been mediating between the revolutionary army and the Qing army, hoping to ensure that Jiangsu would not be invaded by war.
However, the gentry of Jiangsu had already seen the situation clearly and came to persuade Cheng Dequan to revolt. Finally, on September 4, 1911, Cheng Dequan wore the uniform of the revolutionary army and dropped the plaque on the yamen, and after delivering a speech, he hung a big sign with everyone that read, "The Governor's Mansion of Jiangsu, the Government of the Republic of China.".
The revolutionary army had great respect for Cheng Dequan and continued to make him the governor of Jiangsu. After the establishment of the Republic of China, Sun Yat-sen also attached great importance to him and made him the chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. After Yuan Shikai came to power, Cheng Dequan still stood firm and served as the governor of Jiangsu.
Cheng Dequan was bent on reconciling the contradictions between the revolutionary party and Yuan Shikai, but in the end all his measures were fruitless. Disheartened, Cheng Dequan eventually chose to resign as the governor of Jiangsu and then converted to Buddhism.