In a 1935 photograph published in the Women's Pictorial, she wore a fake high-pitched cheongsam, open-toed sandals, matching bead chains and bracelets.
In the impression of many people, the beauty of women in the Republic of China is always unfinished and has its own advantages.
There is a Hu Butterfly style of wanting to say goodbye, there is a dignified atmosphere of Song Meiling, and there is more gentle and gentle intellect of Lin Huiyin.
However, the American version of VOGUE once selected a Chinese "best dressed" woman in the 1920s and 1940s, and there was a woman who crushed these famous goddesses of business and politics, leaving them behind.
She is Huang Huilan, once known as "the most beautiful pearl in the Far East".
She is a fashionista in the Republic of China
Song Qingling also learned to wear a cheongsam with her
If the network has ever been developed, Huang Huilan is definitely a fashion blogger sought after by thousands of people, super rich second generation.
Huang Huilan was born in Indonesia in 1893, and her father was Huang Zhonghan, the richest merchant in Nanyang.
When she was 3 years old, her parents gave her an 80-carat diamond to hang on her chest. What is the concept of 80 carats? When Liang Chaowei and Liu Jialing got married in 2008, Liang Chaowei gave Liu Jialing a 12-carat wedding ring worth 22.8 million yuan, and everyone praised this De Beers "king of kings" that is unparalleled in the world.
However, this is less than one-fifth of Huang Huilan's juvenile playthings, which is enough to see the wealth of the Huang family.
That is, the girl who grew up soaking in jewelry clothes, so she quickly showed her keen and confident in fashion.
She can interpret all kinds of styles of clothing so vividly that she has collected a lot of "brain residue powder". To what extent have the Shanghai girls been superstitious about her?
Once, Huang Huilan could not wear socks because of a skin disease, so she had to wear a cheongsam and go to Shanghai barefoot in the winter. As a result, the next day, the women in Shanghai then took off their socks in the cold winter weather.
Ordinary little girls are hot-headed and chase after Love Beans, and the most amazing thing is that even Song Qingling began to wear the cheongsam because of her.
It is said that Song Qingling followed Mr. Sun north and wore two-piece robes. It wasn't until I came to Beiping, lived in Huang Huilan's house, looked at Huang Huilan's wardrobe, and asked her the secret of dressing, that I began to open the dignified and elegant style of the Chinese qipao.
At that time, In China, it was popular to make clothes based on French clothing, but in the eyes of Fashion Icon Huang Huilan, the bright color of Chinese silk was the best.
Loose H-shaped cheongsam, anthocyanin net simple
As a result, fashion blogger Huang Huilan led Shanghai women to open up a new era of qipao: the version that fits close to the line replaces the once popular loose H-shape, the antique Chinese elements begin to be vividly interpreted on the qipao, the colorful colors replace the Daogu-style purity, and the qipao slit is also boldly opened to the thigh...
This kind of unrestrained, tense cheongsam soon swept the whole Shanghai beach and became a hit for celebrities.
Just last year, at the charity ball and exhibition of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York with the theme of "China: Mirror Flowers and Water Moon", there was a delicate cheongsam in the style of Huang Huilan:
Even the expensive mink coat style that is now sought after by many stars, Huang Huilan has already played, even if she stands next to the queen of King George VI, the aura is not half a point lower.
She was born a diplomat's wife
Maintaining the external image of the motherland with itself
You must be curious, even if the fashionista is fashionable, how are they qualified to play mahjong with politicians and have tea and gossip?
Because she also has an identity, the wife of the Chinese ambassador to the United States. Her husband was Gu Weijun, who refused to sign at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, and was a former ambassador to Britain, France and the United States.
Gu Weijun and Huang Huilan
Born in Indonesia's richest family, Huang Huilan can be said to be a natural diplomat.
Proficient in English, French, Dutch and other six Chinese not to say, from childhood in foreign countries she has cultivated a free, independent soul, the rich family wealth gave her a humble confidence, coupled with a patriotic heart, this ambassador's wife is simply natural.
Her financial resources and talents made Gu Weijun's diplomacy become flexible, and in the era when diplomatic funds were tight during the war, Gu Weijun's social interactions outside the country mostly relied on Huang Huilan.
Huang Huilan has money and is willing to spend money for Gu Weijun.
The Chinese Embassy in Paris is extremely simple, and she spent thousands of dollars to recast the Chinese façade and decorate the embassy with great character.
In an era when everyone did not want to see China, it was Huang Huilan who paid for it herself and maintained China's external image.
She accompanied Gu Weijun to the first court ball at Buckingham Palace, shook hands with the King of England, attended the inauguration of President Truman... If today, properly on the rhythm of the hot headlines every day ah!
She and Gu Weijun are partners and comrades-in-arms
Not a lover
She is the best partner in Gu Weijun's political career, but her relationship with Gu Weijun is not as qinser and ming as the outside world seems.
She is rich and assertive, and does not like to be controlled, and Gu Weijun is the kind of man, "He marries his wife and treats her as an ornament in the family, and when this chair has its own thoughts and opinions, the protagonist will feel bored and angry." 」
She was bent on winning her husband's praise with strength and financial resources
Gu Weijun told her many times that without him she would not have today's life, and Huang Huilan would also be relentless, without the support of her father, there would be no Gu's later political path.
Both people only see their own sacrifices, but they can't see each other's efforts.
Maybe they have loved each other, but two people who are too strong will be the best partners on the battlefield, but they will not become a good couple in life.
In her biography, she once wrote about a very sad thing. When she was in Washington, she had a cold because of a bad mood, Gu Weijun walked to her door, she said you don't come in will be contagious, Gu said Oh, and then really walked away and never came in again.
Gu Weijun didn't love her anymore, she actually knew.
Derailed, betrayed
She still retains the Grace of Huang Huilan
At that time, Mr. Gu already had other women in his heart, that is, Yan Youyun.
Zhang Xueliang once said, "They are open secrets." ”
Where the proud Huang Huilan could bear this breath, she felt very angry, and the 36-year fate finally came to an end.
After Gu Weijun divorced Huang Huilan, in 1959, he married Yan Youyun. From the beginning of the affair, the marriage has ended, and the lover who stole the lover has finally become a family.
Gu Weijun and Yan Youyun's wedding in Mexico City
Later, Huang Huilan lived in a high-end apartment in Manhattan, New York, and the wall was plastered with photos of her and Gu Weijun visiting various countries.
For the past, it is impossible to say that she is not nostalgic and sad, but she also has Huang Huilan's dignity and dignity.
That's why in her autobiography, she never mentioned Yan Youyun's name, and also commented on Gu Weijun in an atmospheric manner: "He is a respectable person, a person that China needs very much, but not the husband I want." ”
Huang Huilan and Gu Weijun's children
In 2015, the Italian version of "Vougue" was titled "Once upon a time", recreating Huang Huilan and Song Meiling, two famous women who have been legendary for a lifetime, on the international stage, and foreigners still remember the "Oei-Hui Lan" of the moment.
However, few Chinese people know about Huang Huilan.
On May 24, 2017, Yan Youyun, who was 112 years old, passed away with a sigh. How many people have praised the love between Yan Youyun and Gu Weijun, but they have long forgotten the beautiful woman.
After all, she was a woman who regarded shells as fireworks, sent her relatives into an air raid shelter in the face of a bombing, and sat precariously on the upper floor of the embassy.
Looking at the flowers in front of the court, watching the sky roll clouds and clouds, her proud and lonely life, although it has come to an end, is still fragrant.