Chen Bui's fate with Chiang Kai-shek can be traced back to the Northern Expeditionary Army Commander's Office in 1927. That year, Chen Bui, a giant in Shanghai's literary circle, was recommended by his cousin to go to Nanchang at the invitation of Chiang Kai-shek. During the meeting, Chiang Kai-shek threw out a test question to Chen Bui in public: "How to deal with the workers' movement in Shanghai?"
1. Antecedents: The indissoluble bond between Jiang and Chen
Chiang Kai-shek was displeased with Pan Gongzhan's style of flattering and flattering, but Chen Bui's brilliant answer aroused Chiang Kai-shek's appreciation. Chen Bui was well aware of the situation in Shanghai and suggested that a preemptive and violent approach should be taken to suppress the workers' movement. This was exactly what Chiang Kai-shek wanted, and it made him look at Chen Bui with admiration.
In order to further test Chen Bui's literary brilliance, Chiang Kai-shek once again gave him an important task - drafting a speech for the students of the Whampoa Military Academy. Chen Bui did his best and soon wrote the article "Letter to Huangpu Classmates", which was full of passionate and generous patriotism. Chiang Kai-shek was impressed by Chen Bui's great talent and gladly recruited him.
In this way, a post-Zhejiang student who was born in a scholarly family formed an indissoluble bond with a battle-hardened Hunan warlord. Chen Bui respected Chiang Kai-shek and regarded him as a division commander; Chiang Kai-shek also regarded Chen Bui as a cadre and expected him to serve his life. The relationship between the two has been maintained for more than 20 years since the day of the meeting.
Jiang Chen's friendship has been around for a long time, but the dark tide is turbulent. From Nanchang to the commander of the Northern Expeditionary Army, from the Dharma Protection Movement to the Gui scuffle, and then to the garrison in Wuhan, Chen Bui followed Chiang Kai-shek all the way to the east and west, and after several overturns, it can be said that he has experienced hardships. However, whenever Chiang Kai-shek encountered a crisis, Chen Bui always saddled his horse and never gave up, using his pen to protect the lord and make achievements.
In the past 20 years, the relationship between Jiang and Chen has changed from shallow to deep, from private to public. Chen Bui was not only Chiang Kai-shek's chief staff, but also the minister of Wenzong of the Chiang dynasty. In the war-torn era, Chen Bui used his thunderous words to inspire the Chinese people to resist Japan, praise the national revolution, and strategize for Chiang Kai-shek's political ideas. It was not until November 1948 that the teacher-student friendship came to a dramatic end.
Second, the following: Chen Bui served Chiang Kai-shek with all his might
In 1927, Chen Bui was officially extended to Chiang Kai-shek. The following year, he crossed east with Chiang Kai-shek and served as the secretary general of the General Headquarters of the National Revolutionary Army, and began a career as an attendant for more than 20 years. In 1933, Chen Bui was entrusted with an important task and appointed as the director of the second office of Chiang Kai-shek's chamberlain, in charge of the party, government and military, and became the most important civilian staff member around Chiang Kai-shek.
Under Chiang Kai-shek, Chen Bui often had to draft important documents and speeches. He had good intentions, carefully considered every word, and did his best to implement Chiang Kai-shek's political ideas. In 1935, Chiang Kai-shek delivered his famous policy speech toward Japan: "Peace will never be abandoned until it has reached a period of complete despair; Sacrifice is not at the last moment, never say sacrifice lightly", is from Chen Bui's handwriting.
After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Chen Bui as the Minister of Wenzong and asked him to write various televised speeches and review speeches. In July 1937, Chen Bui's famous work "Lushan Speech" came out, which inspired the determination of the military and people across the country to resist the war. The speech begins with the words: "If the war begins, then there will be no distinction between north and south, no matter how old or young, no matter who they are, they will all have the responsibility to defend the land and resist the war." The impassioned rhetoric made Chen Bui become the leader of the Anti-Japanese War literary circle.
During the Anti-Japanese War, Chen Bui almost became Chiang Kai-shek's mouthpiece, and a large number of editorials and proclamations reflecting military conditions and public opinion were also personally handled by him. Zhou Enlai once spoke highly of Chen Bui's moral essays, hoping that he would "not serve one person, but serve the 40,000,000 people of China." However, Chen Bui has long shared the fate of the Jiang dynasty.
Even though his heart was extremely painful, he still forced himself to write a "crooked" document for Chiang Kai-shek to beautify the corrupt rule of the Chiang dynasty. After the Xi'an Incident in 1936, Chen Bui was ordered to write "Xi'an Half Moon Chronicle", which misinterpreted the righteous behavior of Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng of "forcing Jiang to resist Japan" as a rebellious crime of "committing the following crimes". Chen Bui wrote in his diary: "Yu today's speech and thoughts, can not make their own opinions. The body and soul have become one with the other. "
But no matter how painful it was, Chen Bui always did his duty faithfully and regarded Chiang Kai-shek as the commander of the division. After repeated wars and the increasingly serious decay of the Kuomintang, he repeatedly admonished Chiang Kai-shek, demanding severe punishment for corruption. However, he didn't agree with a word, but was asked by Chiang Kai-shek whether his daughter had joined the Communist Party, and since then Chen Bui's rumors have been suppressed.
Third, contradictions have intensified
When the time came to 1947, Chen Bui's disappointment with Chiang Kai-shek had reached its peak. In that year, the Kuomintang army suffered a serious setback in North China, but Chiang Kai-shek did nothing about it, only concerned with the construction of luxury villas in Chongqing. Chen Bui saw it in his eyes and felt pain in his heart, and finally made a deafening decision - to openly oppose Chiang Kai-shek.
In July, Chen Bui published three long articles in Wen Wei Po, slamming the KMT's "internal and external troubles, incompetence and mediocrity" in power. He called on Chiang Kai-shek to go into the wilderness and form a cabinet to make the virtuous, so as to prevent the country from falling into a state of no return. This was the first time in 20 years that Chen Bui openly rebelled against the Chiang dynasty, and completely turned his face and "fired" at Chiang Kai-shek.
Chiang Kai-shek was furious and immediately ordered Chen Bui to be placed under house arrest at home. Soon after, Chiang Kai-shek personally went to meet Chen Bui, and the two sides had a big quarrel. Chiang Kai-shek asked Chen Bui whether he "had joined the Communist Party", and Chen Bui pointed out that Chiang Kai-shek was "stupid, incompetent, and self-respecting." Since then, the two have turned against each other and broken up their relationship.
After openly opposing Chiang, Chen Bui was subjected to unprecedented blows and suspicions. Chiang Kai-shek first dismissed him from all positions in the party, government, and military and stripped him of all power. Subsequently, he ordered that newspapers and periodicals should be prohibited from publishing Chen Bui's writings, cutting off his professional career.
What's even more cruel is that Chiang Kai-shek arrested Chen Bui's daughter and imprisoned him, intending to blackmail Chen Bui into submission. Chen Bui felt extremely painful in his heart when his daughter suffered this catastrophe, but he still insisted on his position, saying that he would rather have his family ruined than bow down to Chiang Kai-shek.
After being so unreasonably suppressed by Chiang Kai-shek, Chen Bui was almost desperate. He tried to leave the country many times, but his relatives and friends dissuaded him from acting rashly, lest he cause even greater disaster. In this way, Chen Bui suffered both mental and physical torture, and over time, he was physically and mentally exhausted.
Chiang Kai-shek's destruction of Chen Bui made him completely fall into a state of mental breakdown. The two who were once as close as master and apprentice are now enemies and incompatible. Once in the clutches of Chiang Kai-shek, Chen Bui will suffer even more vicious revenge.
Chen Bui, who was in a desperate situation, began to repeatedly chew on the twists and turns of following Chiang Kai-shek. From Nanchang to Xi'an Incident, from the "Dharma Protection Movement" to the "Forced War of Resistance", one difficult choice after another led to such a reversal of fate. Chen Bui probably never imagined that he would be treated so cruelly by Chiang Kai-shek in the end.
Thinking day and night, Chen Bui had only one thought: instead of being retaliated against endlessly by Chiang Kai-shek, it was better to die. He began to draw up a suicide note, venting out the pain in his heart and his dissatisfaction with Chiang Kai-shek. In the suicide note, Chen Bui accused Chiang Kai-shek of being "mediocre" and "persecuting Zhongliang", and he was wronged and aggrieved for more than 20 years, and finally had to die to thank heaven and earth.
Fourth, Chen Bui's suicide note
In the early morning of November 13, 1948, Chen Bui left behind a posthumous pen. A suicide note of more than 3,000 words vividly describes his rugged experience of following Chiang Kai-shek for more than 20 years, as well as his accusations and dissatisfaction with the Chiang dynasty.
At the beginning of the suicide note, Chen Bui explained the reason for his suicide: "My generation is loyal, exhausted, and has served the public for more than 20 years, and it is really in step with the national fortunes. At that time, the school vowed to be the vanguard of the national revolution and struggled to support national independence and freedom, but it ended in embarrassment. He angrily pointed out that Chiang Kai-shek's "arrogance, lasciviousness, and ignorance" had pushed the Kuomintang to the end of its rope.
Chen Bui then accused Chiang Kai-shek of "cruel persecution of Zhongliang", he had served the country for more than 20 years, but he was retaliated against so harshly, and he was wronged for many years. He wrote that "the family is surrounded by walls, and the wife is separated", fearing greater humiliation, he would rather die to thank heaven and earth. Chen Bui also appealed to Chiang Kai-shek: "We should cheer ourselves up for the survival of China, and work with all capable ministers with one heart and sincerity to abide by the party's righteousness and national policy and strive for a glimmer of vitality for the country."
There are several passages in the suicide note, which even express Chen Bui's anger and disappointment with Chiang Kai-shek. He wrote: "The public is still like the villain of the past, so he is anxious to speak out, disobey the will of the superiors, sweep away the ground, and have no knowledge of the encounter...... The pain of Mo Dake's fan, the shame of Sven, and the humiliation of eternity, how can there be words. These magnificent and straightforward words can be described as Chen Bui's final accusation and rebuke of Chiang Kai-shek.
In addition to accusing Chiang Kai-shek of insolence and brutal revenge, the suicide note also lashed out at the corrupt rule of the Kuomintang. Chen Bui wrote: "This is a solid disaster, and it is a matter of time, and the situation in China is unpredictable. He had completely lost faith in the Chiang dynasty and believed that the fall of the Kuomintang was only a matter of time.
After leaving this angry suicide note, Chen Bui immediately took a large amount of sleeping pills and committed suicide. When Chiang Kai-shek's confidant Jiang Junzhang found out that Chen Bui had died, he saw that the suicide note had been soaked in tears, which was intriguing. A literati who was once regarded by Chiang Kai-shek as a "man of knowledge" ran counter to the Chiang dynasty, and finally ended the rest of his life in a tragic way.
5. Commentary and reflection
Chen Bui's suicide drew an embarrassing end to the teacher-student-like relationship between him and Chiang Kai-shek. The trajectory of the fate of the two shows an extremely dramatic contrast.
One is from a down-and-out scholar to a prime minister of the Jiang dynasty, and finally his net worth was defeated and his family was full of ashes; The other is from a reckless hero to become the "head of the warlord", and finally dominates the world and is in power for a while. Chen Bui followed Chiang Kai-shek in the Eastern Expedition and Western War like a loyal dog for more than 20 years, but in the end he suffered severe retaliation from Chiang Kai-shek. Chiang Kai-shek, by contrast, was the winner, fighting his way through years of political struggle and finally securing the throne of power.
The contrast between the fates of Jiang and Chen reflects the fragility of the status of "cronies" in the power game. In order to consolidate his family dominance, Chiang Kai-shek did not hesitate to kill his cronies. Chen Bui was once a confidant of the Chiang dynasty, and was expected to have high hopes, but eventually became a victim. This also reveals that at the hands of dictators, loyal people are often betrayed.
Why did Chen Bui follow Chiang Kai-shek so loyally for many years, until he was severely attacked by the Chiang dynasty, and then chose to commit suicide in despair? This is indeed food for thought.
First, Chen Bui, who was born in a scholarly family, has always had the great ambition of saving the country and the people. In turbulent times, he saw Chiang Kai-shek as a hero who saved the nation from peril, and as a hope for the realization of his ambitions.
Second, Chen Bui has always admired and respected Chiang Kai-shek, and regarded him as both a teacher and a friend. He often said that Chiang Kai-shek "sent one and followed one, and gave up one and gave up one", and loyalty also came from personal feelings.
Third, Chiang Kai-shek repeatedly used Chen Bui to take important positions, which gave him unprecedented opportunities and status, and deepened Chen Bui's dependence on and loyalty to the Chiang dynasty.
Fourth, as the revolutionary line became more conservative, Chen Bui was gradually assimilated by the system of the Chiang dynasty. He wanted to glorify the autocratic tyranny for Chiang Kai-shek, even if he was unwilling, but he couldn't help himself.
In the end, Chen Bui went to a road of no return for Chiang Kai-shek's martyrdom. He spent his entire youth following the Jiang dynasty, and now he is in a desperate situation from which he will never recover, and he can only die to end this teacher-student relationship. I have to say that this is a life experience that makes people sigh.