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In the turbulent 1949 years, Ma Bufang, the "Emperor of the Soil" of Qinghai, fled China with his family and the remnants of his wealth after facing the fierce offensive of the People's Liberation Army, and finally took refuge in distant Saudi Arabia. In this strange country, Ma Bufang's ambitions have not been curtailed by exile. His tentacles of power reached out to his young niece, Ma Yuelan, in an attempt to take her as his wife and continue his family's line of rule.
However, fate always comes up unexpectedly. What should have been a private family conflict unexpectedly turns into a public farce. How will Ma Yuelan's bravery change her fate?
The Northwest Rule of the Ma Jiajun and the Battle of Lanzhou
Ma Jiajun's power was once almost unrivaled in Qinghai Province, and Ma Bufang's reputation for brutality and authoritarianism as a ruler was far and wide. He held the military and political power in Qinghai Province, and often used absolute authority and forceful means to administer the localities, and his words and deeds revealed unquestionable hegemony, such as he once publicly said: "Except for those who gave birth to me and those born to me, everyone else can become my playthings." This remark directly reflects his extreme abuse of power and contempt for human rights.
With the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, all parts of the country responded to the call of the new regime, but Ma Bufang resolutely refused to give up his power and status. In the Battle of Lanzhou, the People's Liberation Army deployed a large-scale offensive, with the First Field Army of the People's Liberation Army as the main force, and launched a fierce attack on the Majia Army. Although Ma Bufang's army stubbornly resisted, due to the superiority of the PLA in numbers and strategy, coupled with the turmoil and low morale within the Ma Jiajun, it was ultimately unable to withstand the continuous offensive of the PLA.
Every day of the Battle of Lanzhou, the skyline of the city was covered in gunsmoke, and the sound of explosions and gunfire was endless. PLA tanks and artillery roared, and the troops advanced towards the center of the city in several directions. Ma Jiajun soldiers engaged in street battles with the PLA on the streets, and the fighting was extremely fierce. And the official residence where Ma Bufang is commanding has also become a key target of the PLA's attack. After several days of fierce fighting, the PLA successfully broke through the defense line of Ma Jiajun and approached Ma Bufang's base camp.
Ma Bufang's exile and Saudi power
After the defeat of Lanzhou, Ma Bufang did not choose to quietly disappear into the long river of history. He quickly organized the operation, flew on a British Royal Air plane, and left China with a large number of cronies and family members, including his wife and children, and some loyal subordinates, totaling nearly 200 people. Their first stop was Cairo, the capital of Egypt, where he had a temporary foothold in exile.
In Cairo, Ma Bufang did not stop his pace. Despite being in a foreign land, he used his resources and influence to continue his quest to rebuild his power. Ma Bufang's wealth allowed him to start planning during his short stay in Egypt, and he quickly established connections with the local Chinese community through money and networking. However, his ambitions did not stop there, and his eyes soon turned to Saudi Arabia, which was more resourceful and had more opportunities.
After arriving in Saudi Arabia, Ma Bufang quickly launched activities in the local overseas Chinese community. He used his vast wealth to buy mansions and quickly establish himself in power among the local diaspora through a variety of means, including favors and threats. Ma Bufang not only used money to buy people's hearts, but also reinstated the high-pressure policies he used during his time in Qinghai. He controlled more than 1,000 overseas Chinese and more than 40 merchants, who were forced to bow down to him and became his new point of support.
More extremely, Ma Bufang even detained the passports of these overseas Chinese, restricting their free movement. His mansion was turned into a small fortress where some Chinese women were forcibly detained and were not allowed to enter and leave freely. This practice caused great panic and discontent in the overseas Chinese community, but due to Ma Bufang's toughness and brutality, few people dared to openly resist.
Ma Bufang's days in Saudi Arabia, although they seem to be beautiful on the outside, are actually full of tension and unease. The interior of his mansion is heavily guarded, and heavy soldiers are stationed in front of the door just in case. He frequently interacted with local merchants and some influential figures, trying to strengthen his position in foreign countries through these interactions.
The tragedy of Ma Bufang and Ma Yuelan
Ma Bufang's behavior became more and more unscrupulous, he was not satisfied with the control of ordinary overseas Chinese, and even set his greedy eyes on his niece, Ma Yuelan. Ma Yuelan, the young woman, was the eldest daughter of his cousin Ma Bulong, who was only 18 years old at the time, in the prime of her life.
Ma Bufang's ambition has long exceeded the imagination of ordinary people, and he even stretched out his tentacles to his relatives. At a family gathering, he publicly made a ridiculous request to Ma Bulong - to marry Ma Yuelan to himself as the "seventh aunt". This request not only shocked the Ma Bulong family, but also caused a slight commotion among everyone present. Ma Bufang's power is terrifying, and there is an undeniable pressure in his words, which makes Ma Bulong and his wife feel an unprecedented sense of oppression.
Under Ma Bufang's direct threat, Ma Bulong and his wife felt in a dilemma. They are well aware that the consequences of rejecting Ma Bufang could be catastrophic, not only their own safety cannot be guaranteed, but the entire family may be implicated. After many days of silence and worry, Ma Bulong and his wife were finally forced to submit to Ma Bufang's authority and agreed to this unequal marriage.
In the days that followed, Ma Bufang began to prepare for this wedding. He arranged a lavish wedding in his mansion, to which many local overseas Chinese businessmen and influential figures were invited. The preparations for the wedding were complicated and lavish, and it was clear that Ma Bufang wanted to take the opportunity to show off his financial resources and status.
On the wedding day, the mansion was decorated with red lanterns and ribbons, and flowers and ribbons adorned every corner. Dressed in gorgeous costumes and holding expensive gifts, the guests entered the banquet hall one after another. Under this glamorous surface, there is hidden the helplessness and pain in the hearts of Ma Yuelan and her parents.
Ma Bufang made a lot of nonsense at the wedding, praising Ma Yuelan's beauty and gentleness, declaring that she would be an important part of his life. Ma Yuelan, on the other hand, remained silent during the ceremony, her face calm, trying not to show her emotions. After the wedding, Ma Yuelan was officially introduced to Ma Bufang's mansion, and her fate seemed to be permanently rewritten. Although this wedding is glamorous on the surface, it is based on the pain and helplessness of Ma Yuelan and her family.
Ma Yuelan's rebellion and flight
Ma Yuelan's days in Ma Bufang's mansion were full of unease and depression. In this palatial mansion, she was forced to accept the married life of Ma Bufang, who had a huge age gap. In the building, there are many servants, from different backgrounds, and some are also people who are forced to serve Ma Bufang. One of the maids is often responsible for taking care of Ma Yuelan's daily life. This maid, although she is only a small character in the mansion, she expresses deep sympathy for Ma Yuelan's plight.
The maid witnessed many unknown painful scenes when she quietly tidied up Ma Yuelan's room and delivered food countless times. Ma Yuelan's plight touched her heart, and she decided to help the young woman. Outside of Ma Bufang's gaze, the two slowly established trust. One day, the maid took the opportunity to tidy up the room and whispered to Ma Yuelan that she was willing to help her escape from this golden cage.
Ma Yuelan was shocked by this proposal, but also felt a glimmer of hope. With the help of her maid, she writes a detailed distress letter describing her predicament and the urgency of asking for help. She decided to send this letter to Song Xuanquan's wife. Song Xuanquan's wife, a lady from Europe with a broader understanding and sympathy for the local social situation, had several encounters with Ma Yuelan, which left a deep impression on her.
The maid carefully took the letter out of the mansion and, through a reliable intermediary, finally delivered it safely to Madame Song. After reading the letter, Mrs. Song was shocked by what happened to Ma Yuelan, and she decided to take action. One night, while Ma Bufang was attending a social event and was not in the building, Mrs. Song personally drove to Ma Bufang's mansion.
Mrs. Song was ostensibly a VIP who had come to visit the mansion, but she was actually here to carry out the rescue plan. At the scheduled time, Ma Yuelan, guided by the maid, quietly walked through a series of corridors, bypassing other servants and security guards, and finally reached the back door. Mrs. Song quickly took her into the car and drove away from the mansion to Song's house, where a safe hiding place had been prepared for Ma Yuelan.
After Ma Bufang returned to the mansion, he soon discovered that Ma Yuelan was missing. Enraged, he immediately mobilized his men and some local officials. They came to Song's house angrily and demanded that Ma Yuelan be handed over. In the fierce confrontation, one of Ma Bufang's entourages picked up a stone and slammed the gate of the Song family, smashing it into a large hole.
Ma Yuelan's rescue and Ma Bufang's doom
Ma Bufang stood at the smashed door of Song Xuanquan's house, and shouted loudly: "Song Xuanquan, hurry up and hand over Ma Yuelan, otherwise I will exchange your daughter!" His voice was menacing, and the air around him seemed to be filled with a foul mood. His men formed a circle around the door, some with sticks in hand, and their attitudes were fierce, as if they were ready to do so.
On the balcony of the Song Mansion opposite, Ma Yuelan heard Ma Bufang's threatening voice. She couldn't bear it anymore, rushed to the balcony, and roared at Ma Bufang below. Her voice was full of anger and unyielding, and she rebuked loudly: "You bad old man, shameless uncle, you are in your 50s, and you forced your 18-year-old niece to be your wife. In the end, I was still eating in the bowl, looking at the pot, and I asked my 15-year-old sister to make a small one for you. You still have the face to see people, and you're embarrassed to be an official, I think you're a brute, why don't you go back to your house and drill a dog hole! ”
As she spoke, the air around her seemed to be electrocuted, and the atmosphere became even more tense. Ma also used her fluent Arabic to explain her ordeal to the crowd gathered. Her words sent shockwaves through the crowd, and the crowd at the scene gradually grew, swelling from a few dozen people at the beginning to more than 800 people. The onlookers began to whisper, their expressions changing from surprise to anger, expressing strong dissatisfaction with Ma Bufang's behavior.
The situation deteriorated rapidly, and the local Saudi government had to intervene in the incident. Government officials soon arrived at the scene to try to calm the mess. Under the mediation of the government, Ma Bufang was told that he had to evacuate the scene, which was a reluctant but helpless decision for him. Ma Yuelan was arranged to leave Saudi Arabia in the presence of officials to ensure that her safety was not threatened.
As Ma Yuelan was safely escorted out of the country, Ma's image and power quickly collapsed among the Saudi diaspora community and the wider public. His brutality and injustice were widely disseminated and condemned, and even his former supporters began to distance themselves from him. Ma Bufang, the "soil emperor" who covered the sky with one hand, had to leave the scene in disgrace under the disgust of the public and the pressure of the government, ending his days in Saudi Arabia.
References:[1]Zhang Bo. Qinghai Social Sciences,1999(4):91-94