Li Shangyin once had a famous poem: The merchant girl does not know the hatred of the country, and sings the backyard flowers across the river. Ironically, at a time when the country is in danger, singers and officials still know only about the social phenomenon of drinking and having fun.
Because of China during the Republic of China period, internal divisions and foreign invasions, the country is facing the dilemma of peril. Therefore, most people also regard the stars of the Republican period as "slaves" who only know luxury enjoyment. In fact, this is actually a one-sided view of people.
The stars of the Republic of China period also had some heroes who made dedication to resisting the Japanese invasion. Female star Xu Lai is one of them.
The birth of a female star
Because of the influence of film and television dramas, people now talk about the stars of the Republic of China period, and they always think of unique words such as "Night Shanghai", "Big World", "City That Never Sleeps". Indeed, most of the stars of the Republic of China period were active in the Shanghai area.
At the age of eighteen, she applied to the Song and Dance School to study song and dance performance, and after entering the school, she began to use the stage name Xu Lai. Because of her beautiful appearance and excellent cabaret performance ability, in her second year of entering the school, she was given the opportunity to follow the cabaret troupe on a domestic and foreign tour.
However, what makes Xu Lai a star with many followers is not her performance in the song and dance troupe, but a film she starred in. In 1933, at the age of 24, Xu Lai starred in his first film, "Residual Spring".
In the film, a shot of Xu Lai exposing himself to the bath caused a huge sensation. It is also this shot that makes her a hit and gain many fans and admirers. Subsequently, she starred in many movies such as "Taishan Hongmao" and became a famous female star in the Republic of China period.
Ruan Lingyu, a famous female star during the Republic of China period, ended her life by taking poison because she could not stand the slander of public opinion. In an environment where foreign enemies invade and the people are not happy, the extravagant life enjoyed by celebrities is very easy to cause people's public indignation. Xu Lai could not avoid it.
In 1935, Xu Lai's admirers spent a lot of money renting a dance hall and held a grand "standard beauty" laurel coronation ceremony for her. At that time, Japan was aggressively invading China's northeast region. Because of this extravagant coronation ceremony, Xu Lai received a lot of criticism.
After experiencing this public opinion storm, Xu Lai rethinked what kind of responsibilities the "star" group should bear. After thinking, Xu Lai decided to quit the entertainment industry.
After Xu Lai stopped film and television activities, he married Tang Shengming, a senior Kuomintang official at the time. It was this marriage that brought great changes to Xu Lai's life.
Undercover "Adulterous Couple"
In 1940, the domestic War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression reached a very important stage. At the same time, the Wang puppet regime, composed of traitors and traitors, was also becoming increasingly rampant, seriously threatening the Kuomintang-Communist anti-Japanese united front.
Therefore, Chiang Kai-shek arranged a secret mission for Tang Shengming: he asked Tang Shengming to infiltrate the Wang puppet regime as an undercover agent and obtain intelligence.
In order to allow Tang Shengming to smoothly gain the trust of high-ranking officials in the Wang puppet regime, Chiang Kai-shek asked the Chongqing government to include Tang Shengming in the list of traitors and issued an arrest warrant for Tang.
In this way, Xu Lai "defected" to the Wang puppet regime with her husband. Xu Lai also became the "traitor lady" who was scolded by people.
Her husband, Tang Shengming, gradually gained the trust of Wang Jingwei and others. Xu Lai also used her long-sleeved dancing social skills to make friends with the wives of important officials in the Wang puppet regime. She repeatedly gathered information at gatherings with Zhou Fohai's wife, Wang Jingwei's wife, and others.
In 1941, six underground leaders of the Chongqing government in the occupied areas of Jiangsu, including Zhang Beisheng and Ma Yuanfang, were arrested by agents of the Wang puppet government during a meeting. After being arrested, some of the six defected and made a statement of self-surrender in the newspaper. This statement was very destructive to the struggle against the Japanese army.
What is more serious is that this rebel is very likely to sell more of the deployment of anti-Japanese activities to the Wang puppet government. The Chongqing government ordered that it was necessary to find out who the defector was.
When the military commander found nothing, at a gathering with the wives of officials and others in the Wang puppet government, Xu Lai drew the truth from the mouth of Zhou Fohai's wife, Yang Shuhui: the rebel was Zhang Beisheng.
Xu Lai told her husband Tang Shengming the news, and Tang spread the news to the Chongqing government. This allowed the Chongqing government time to redeploy the anti-Japanese activities in the occupied areas of Jiangsu and prevent the greater damage caused by Zhang Beisheng's rebellion in time.
Using his status as a star and an official's wife, Xu Lai repeatedly obtained intelligence from the Wang puppet government, providing great help to the Chongqing government's anti-Japanese activities. Gradually, Xu Lai was also suspected by the spies in the Wang puppet government.
Relief of the widows of martyrs
In 1943, Huang Yiguang, Shao Mingxian and other patriots were executed for assassinating the traitor Wang Jingwei. The widows of Huang Yiguang and others were also implicated and arrested and imprisoned. After Huang Yiguang's widow Wang Zhixiang was released from prison, she was seriously ill and lived a miserable life.
After learning of Wang Zhixiang's condition, Xu Lai visited Wang Zhixiang many times and brought her food, clothes and other daily necessities. Following her husband lurking in the Wang puppet government, Xu Lai took the widows and children of many anti-Japanese heroes to help them tide over the difficulties.
Because the information obtained from the Wang puppet government was transmitted back to the Chongqing government, Xu Lai was suspected by the secret agents. She was often spied on by agents. Because she repeatedly received the widows and children of the anti-Japanese martyrs, the secret agents increased their suspicions and surveillance of her.
For years, Xu Lai and his wife have been lurking in the Wang puppet government with nervous nerves. In August 1945, japan announced its unconditional surrender, and they finally saw the dawn of victory. Xu Lai and his wife also finally got rid of the identity of traitors.
Because Chiang Kai-shek launched a civil war, Tang Shengming was extremely disappointed in the Nanjing government. He greatly recognized the policies and leadership of the party organization and actively plotted against the officials of the Nanjing government. Contributed to the victory of the War of Liberation.
For the sake of the future of the country and the nation, Xu Lai and her husband Tang Shengming, regardless of their lives, were willing to bear the name of "traitor" and went undercover in the Wang puppet government, making great contributions to resisting the Japanese army and the real traitors.
As a star with many followers, Xu Lai did not indulge in the pursuit and praise of others. Instead, he disregarded his personal safety and reputation and was willing to bear the insult of "Lady Traitor" for the rejuvenation of the nation, which deserves our admiration.