On December 1, 1966, Bai Chongxi died in Taipei at the age of 73. When he died, his whole body turned green, his mouth foamed, and there were torn marks on the sheets. According to the forensic identification, Bai Chongxi died of coronary artery infarction.
The next day, Taiwan's "JoongAng Daily" published a newsletter informing the entire Taiwanese of Bai Chongxi's death and the cause of his death. However, this newsletter has aroused public doubts about the cause of Bai Chongxi's death, and various speculations have come to the fore.
Some people even suggested that Bai Chongxi was poisoned by Chiang Kai-shek.
(Bai Chongxi old photo)
So, what was the real cause of Bai Chongxi's death?
Bai Chongxi was born in 1893 to a Hui family in Guilin, Guangxi. At the age of 23, Bai Chongxi graduated from the Baoding Army Officer School and began his military career.
Bai Chongxi started as a small company commander, and through cooperation with Li Zongren, defeated the old Gui warlords who occupied Guangxi, became a core member of the new Gui clan, and was collectively known as "Li Bai" with Li Zongren, a classmate and fellow villager.
The two feel sorry for each other and cooperate seamlessly. Li Zongren was known for his bravery, while Bai Chongxi was known for his good strategy and was given the title of "Little Zhuge Ge".
In 1926, Bai Chongxi was awarded the title of Deputy Chief Of Staff of the National Revolutionary Army by the Nationalist Government, and defeated Sun Chuanfang's troops in the Northern Expedition and made great contributions.
In 1929, the "Jiang-Gui War" broke out, and the Gui clan was defeated. Chiang Kai-shek designated "Li Bai" as "rebel generals", and Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren were forced to flee to Vietnam. A few months later, Bai Chongxi sneaked back to Guangxi, gathered his old forces, and continued to confront Chiang Kai-shek.
In 1930, the "Central Plains War" broke out, and the Gui clan was once again defeated at the hands of Chiang Kai-shek, and the "Li Bai" two had to return to Guangxi.
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan, "Li Bai" cooperated with Chiang Kai-shek again and jointly raised the banner of anti-Japanese resistance. In the Battle of Taierzhuang, the two led the Gui army, together with other Kuomintang troops, to fight a bloody battle against the Japanese army, severely damaged two elite divisions of the Japanese army, and achieved the "Great Victory of Taierzhuang".
After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Bai Chongxi was appointed by Chiang Kai-shek as defense minister of the Nationalist government. Before the Battle of Huaihai, Bai Chongxi was dismissed from the post of Minister of National Defense and replaced by the "Commander-in-Chief of suppression". After the Battle of Huaihai began, Bai Chongxi, in order to preserve his strength, did not listen to Chiang Kai-shek's dispatches and refused to send troops to rescue him. Chiang Kai-shek's concubine troops were almost completely annihilated by our army in this campaign.
(Old photo of Li Zongren)
Bai Chongxi and Li Zongren forced Chiang Kai-shek to "go down" three times.
The first occurred in 1927, when Chiang Kai-shek was setting up a separate Nationalist government in Nanjing to confront Wang Zhaoming in Wuhan. Chiang Kai-shek hoped to get the support of the Gui clan, and did not want "Li Bai" and the two to use this to force the palace and advocate that he "go to the wilderness". Chiang Kai-shek was helpless, so he had no choice but to issue a statement and electrify "going down to the field."
The second occurred after the Central Plains War, chiang kai-shek was preparing to convene a "national conference," which drew a lot of opposition. Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi once again joined forces with Sun Ke and others to demand that Chiang Kai-shek "go down to the wilderness." Chiang Kai-shek was forced to "go into the wilderness" for the second time.
The third time occurred in 1948, when the defeat of the Nationalist army was already decided, Bai Chongxi sent two telegrams in succession, "Hai Jing" and "Hai Quan", demanding that Chiang Kai-shek truce and negotiate peace and electrify "going down to the field". Chiang Kai-shek had to "go down the field" for the third time. Subsequently, Li Zongren served as acting "president".
In December 1949, Bai Chongxi's hundreds of thousands of troops were defeated by our army, and Bai Chongxi boarded a plane to Taiwan. Li Zongren flew to the United States in the name of medical treatment.
After going to Taiwan, what kind of situation will Bai Chongxi face?
In October 1952, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Bai Chongxi as deputy director of the Strategic Advisory Committee and chairman of the Islamic Association, completely kicking him out of the core power department of the Kuomintang. At the same time, the Secrecy Bureau set up a secret surveillance station opposite Bai Chongxi's residence to monitor Bai Chongxi's every move. He was on the surveillance list of the Secret Service and was called "Old Girl".
Since then, whether Bai Chongxi is going out to hunt and visit friends, or travel to meetings, or go shopping for dinner, he is always followed by people from the Secret Service bureau.
Once, when Bai Chongxi finished eating at the restaurant and checked out, he took the money for the meal of another table of people by the way, and jokingly said: "Brothers eat slowly, it is very hard to track people." "The agents of the Secret Service have no place to be self-contained.
(Bai Xianyong old photo)
Another time, Bai Chongxi's family went to the theater to watch a play, and the Secrecy Bureau sent 3 people to follow them all the way. But the cold weather made the 3 people shiver in the car and complain incessantly. Suddenly, Bai Chongxi's son knocked on their car window and gave them 3 tickets. In this way, the 3 agents and Bai Chongxi's family actually sat together and watched this wonderful play.
The reason why Chiang Kai-shek did not immediately attack Bai Chongxi was because he wanted to use him to contain Li Zongren. However, when Mr. Lee returned to the mainland from the United States in 1965, Mr. Bai seemed to have no effect in Chiang Kai-shek's eyes.
Since then, Bai Chongxi has suffered two consecutive accidents. When he was riding a trolley, the vehicle was accidentally derailed; when he went up the mountain to hunt, the train he was riding on actually bumped into the car. Fortunately, Bai Chongxi's entourage sacrificed his life to save him, and it was difficult for him not to die.
So, is Bai Chongxi's final death the work of Chiang Kai-shek?
It should be said that the possibility is very small.
First, even though Bai Chongxi had the title of "Little Zhuge Ge," he was already far away from the Kuomintang political arena and was already a dying man, unable to make any big waves, and posing no threat to Chiang Kai-shek. Chiang Kai-shek could not have committed the crime of killing this dispensable person in vain.
Second, the two thrilling accidents that Bai Chongxi encountered were later confirmed to be accidental accidents, but they were over-interpreted by the public and the media.
Third, after Bai Chongxi's death, Chiang Kai-shek's father and son personally came to the scene to mourn, and Chiang Kai-shek also issued a "Certificate of Loyalty" to Bai Chongxi.
Fourth, Bai Chongxi's son Bai Xianyong confirmed that the Bai family had a family genetic disease of heart disease, and Bai Chongxi did die of coronary artery infarction.
In short, although Bai Chongxi has been under surveillance in his later years, his life should not be in danger.
(Reference: "Little Zhuge Ge" Bai Chongxi)