Scholars in Taiwan Province have long believed that Zhang Xueliang betrayed, secretly communicated with the Communist Red Army, and secretly attacked and captured Chiang Kai-shek. Chiang Kai-shek was released after negotiations, otherwise with the joint efforts of Chiang Kai-shek and Zhang Xueliang, the Kuomintang army would not have been defeated so quickly. Moreover, with the sophistication and large number of the Kuomintang army, it could not be defeated.
In fact, scholars in Taiwan Province do not pay attention to actual objective facts at all, and even without the Zhang Xueliang incident, Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang would not have been able to defeat the Communist Red Army. Whether it was the mass foundation or the tempering of the Red Army by the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Red Army was already in an invincible state at that time. The Zhang Xueliang incident is just the icing on the cake.
The September 18 Incident began the contradiction between Zhang Xueliang and Chiang Kai-shek
At the beginning of the 918 incident, the situation in the entire northeast began to become tense. The Japanese invasion of the northeast of the mainland was speeding up day by day, and after the Japanese occupation of various places, the villagers were burned, looted, and even slaughtered. Chiang Kai-shek of the Nanking government was still thinking about the ideological principle that the outside world must be at ease, and selfishly thought that he would take advantage of this opportunity to eradicate the Communist Red Army.
To maximize his own interests, Zhang Xueliang has always strongly supported Chiang Kai-shek's plan to "suppress the Communists" and thoroughly implemented Chiang Kai-shek's plan. After contributing people, the results were unsatisfactory, and he was pushed to the stage by Chiang Kai-shek and infamy. When Zhang Xueliang's interests were damaged, he began to question Chiang Kai-shek's policies and officially began to have cracks with Chiang Kai-shek, and no longer trusted Chiang Kai-shek.
Zhang Xueliang's cooperation with Chiang Kai-shek through the Northeast Change of Banner and Northeast Political Honeymoon was very smooth, so Zhang Xueliang trusted Chiang Kai-shek very much, because it was equivalent to Chiang Kai-shek helping Zhang Xueliang gain a firm foothold in the Northeast. At this time, the interests of the two were unified, so the relationship was very good, and at this time Chiang Kai-shek put forward a policy of suppressing the Communists.
The meaning of the high-sounding table is to destroy the internal enemy first and then deal with the Japanese army. Zhang Xueliang became the new commander-in-chief of the three provinces at that time, and got rid of his father's old cadres, felt that he was very majestic, and despised the Red Army, which was still fighting guerrillas. I felt that the Red Army was at the end of the crossbow, so I just sent troops to encircle and suppress it.
Zhang Xueliang commanded the Northeast Army to encircle and suppress the Red Army near Shaanxi everywhere, but the Red Army successfully annihilated the 110th Division of the Northeast Army and almost wiped out the 107th Division at Laoshan. At this time, the number and combat effectiveness of the Northeast Army dropped sharply, and Zhang Xueliang's confidence was successfully lost, and Zhang Xueliang began to doubt whether the strength of the Red Army was as weak as Chiang Kai-shek had promised.
Moreover, many of the troops sent by the Communists were warlords and Kuomintang troops of various departments, and although the Kuomintang troops at that time also participated, there were not many troops. When the 109th Division of the Northeast Army was also annihilated by the Red Army, Zhang Xueliang's heart immediately collapsed and wavered. Because his own military talent is not high, but his heart is very arrogant, after being defeated three times, he felt that he could not defeat the Red Army, and his status in the army was despised even more.
The generals and senior generals below the incompetence of the generals will begin to feel uncomfortable, and his position will be challenged. What to do if you can't beat Zhang Xueliang began to undergo a major change in his attitude towards the Communist Red Army, and began to think that if he couldn't fight, he would communicate with the Red Army, first look at the attitude of the Red Army, and finally let his army get a respite and protect his own interests through peace talks.
He first arranged to contact the Communist Party through various channels, and of course he also wrote letters to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, asking for conspiration to contact the Chinese Red Army. But at that time, the CPSU was not only connected with the Red Army, but also with Chiang Kai-shek. Because the CPSU thought that Chiang Kai-shek had the backstage support of United States, and also hoped that Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang army would drag Japan's aggression in China.
The CPSU did not want to support another general leader, and at that time, it was also during the outbreak of World War II, and the CPSU was too busy to take care of China's affairs. So when Zhang Xueliang's letter arrived, the CPSU handed the letter to Chiang Kai-shek to settle the letter. Chiang Kai-shek was already suspicious of Zhang Xueliang at this time, but because he wanted to jointly suppress the Communist Party, he still coaxed Zhang Xueliang on the surface.
In 1936, even if the CPSU blocked Zhang Xueliang, he still connected with the Communist Red Army through the locality. By secretly communicating and alleviating the contradictions with the Communist Red Army, Zhang Xueliang released great goodwill, and asserted that he also had great hatred for the reunification of the country and the aggression of the Japanese army, and this position was also recognized by the Communist Red Army.
When the Red Army broke through the encirclement and crossed Chishui to the east, Chiang Kai-shek repeatedly called the Northeast Army to intercept and encircle, but Zhang Xueliang repeatedly echoed Chiang Kai-shek's orders, and his army opened an opening for the Red Army to leave without moving. For the sake of this incident, Chiang Kai-shek and Zhang Xueliang argued on the phone many times and began to officially break up.
Zhang Xueliang held secret talks with the Red Army in Luochuan, and the main topic was how to cooperate with the anti-Japanese resistance. Zhang Xueliang's idea was to keep the country from inside and outside, and the policy did not change, and he felt that he should unite with Chiang Kai-shek in the matter of resisting Japan. And the Red Army demanded that the front of the day better send Chiang Kai-shek outside, because the biggest enemy at this time was Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang,
He had just experienced the encirclement and suppression, and the whole team was hostile to the Kuomintang army, and now he rashly stood on the united front with Chiang Kai-shek to resist Japan, which could easily cause the morale of the army to waver. Zhang Xueliang's point of view is that Chiang Kai-shek has the identity and ability to promote the anti-Japanese resistance of warlords in various places, and the Kuomintang army has United States military funding and weapons assistance, which is the main force of resistance against Japan.
Zhang Xueliang still firmly believed that Chiang Kai-shek would resist Japan, but because of Zhang Xueliang's disobedience and after receiving the letter from the CPSU, Chiang Kai-shek did not take any action against Zhang Xueliang, but he was on guard and continued to operate his own plan to suppress the Communist Party, ignoring Zhang Xueliang at all, and even some important plans began to deliberately avoid Zhang Xueliang.
The rupture deepened the fuse between Zhang and Chiang
After the Communist Red Army and Zhang Xueliang reached an agreement, the Communist Party lobbied Yang Hucheng to make Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng's army passive standby in Chiang Kai-shek's plan to suppress the Communists. Chiang Kai-shek was also more and more suspicious of Zhang Xueliang, Zhang Xueliang still firmly believed that Chiang Kai-shek's would resist Japan, and constantly sent letters to Chiang Kai-shek to persuade him to resist the benefits of anti-Japan. Chiang Kai-shek was only bent on suppressing the Communists,
He even deliberately planned again not to give the Red Army a chance to breathe, and since the encirclement and suppression were escaped by the Red Army, they pursued it again. Even because of the passivity of Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng, Chiang Kai-shek used the power in his hands to transfer Jiang Dingwen to replace the position of commander-in-chief of the Northwest Suppression, which was equivalent to removing Zhang Xueliang's position in military status, so that he did not have the title of commander-in-chief.
It is even more intended to deprive them of their rights and prestige, and even more to slowly deprive them of their military rights. Because for Chiang Kai-shek, the Northeast is a piece of fat that cannot be lost, and materials and manpower are the wealth of the Northeast. Chiang Kai-shek even said at a lecture meeting for senior officers that the communist army was traitors and traitors who endangered national unity, and even said: "The Japan army is still far away, and it will be a long time before it becomes a danger.
First distinguish the situation and alleviate it, and first eliminate the Communist Party. This speech instantly made Zhang Xueliang's mentality like falling into an ice cave. Zhang Xueliang was already disappointed in Chiang Kai-shek's obstinate behavior, and people are often extreme when they are disappointed, and Zhang Xueliang began to do something that no one could think of. And because he was pushed to the front of the stage by Chiang Kai-shek, he has a bad reputation in all walks of life.
The struggle between Zhang and Chiang began, but public opinion was one-sided
After the outbreak of the Xi'an Incident, Zhang Xueliang began to call the whole country, informing everyone of his purpose in detaining Chiang Kai-shek, and repeatedly stated that he was for the sake of the country and the desire to resist Japan, and he was convinced that his actions would be strongly admired and supported by the masses and the Communist Red Army and the Kuomintang localities.
But once again, when he was full of confidence because of what he thought, he forgot that his trust in the masses and the Kuomintang faction was not high, and he was even more infamous. It did not receive a good response and enthusiastic support, because many of the masses at that time were concealed, they did not know or even cared about the struggle between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, they just wanted to resist Japan and resist foreign aggression.
And Zhang Xueliang is used to being cross-fertangle in the Kuomintang, everyone knows that he is the second son of the Northeast Army, but he does not have an outstanding record and other generals are not of the same faction, so there are not many people who support him. At this time, the policy of the Communist Red Army was also a blow to him, because the Communist Party supported Zhang Xueliang but did not provoke a positive response from the masses.
The foundation of the Communist Party was also based on the masses, and it was at that time that the Kuomintang army's vigorous and malicious propaganda in support of Chiang Kai-shek's reports brainwashed the people. It's like cotton thrown into the sea without a splash remembered. And at this time, the CPSU learned about the seizure of Chiang Kai-shek. It was even more urgent to call the Communist Red Army to help find a way, because the CPSU still had certain materials to support the Communist Red Army.
Moreover, the two sides have a certain common root and origin in the Marxist-Leninist ideology of the Communist Party, so the Communist Red Army must also handle this incident peacefully for the sake of this relationship. It means that you can sit down and talk, and you can't directly detain and kill Chiang Kai-shek. Under the tolerance and oppression of all forces, Zhang Xueliang himself was shaken again and promised that all forces could sit down for peace talks.
In Xi'an, the Communist Red Army was represented by Zhou Enlai, Zhang Xueliang presided over the meeting, Yang Hucheng participated in the peace talks on Zhang Xueliang's side, and the Song brothers and sisters participated in the peace talks on behalf of the Kuomintang. Zhang Xueliang's proposition is still the same: "unanimously resist Japan", and the three parties stand on a unified standpoint and first resolve the issue of aggression.
After the two sides discussed clearly, Zhang Xueliang asked for a written signature, but Chiang Kai-shek's cunning and deception resolutely refused to guarantee the personality of the leader for the written signature. In this way, Chiang Kai-shek got rid of the evidence behind the black cauldron, and it was also a foreshadowing for him to turn his face immediately after returning to the Nanjing government. After receiving the guarantee, Zhang Xueliang also promised to let Chiang Kai-shek return to the Nanjing government.
Because of the problem of face, Zhang Xueliang also wanted to get some recognition in the Kuomintang, and insisted on sending Chiang Kai-shek back to Nanjing by plane. And Chiang Kai-shek had already informed the Kuomintang army through the Song brothers and sisters that as soon as they got off the plane, they would immediately control Zhang Xueliang. Because of schedule problems, Zhang Xueliang personally sent Chiang Kai-shek on the plane a few days later, and the two had nothing to say all the way on the plane.
Before Zhang Xueliang went, Zhou Enlai communicated with Zhang Xueliang in private, since Chiang Kai-shek had been detained, he should not send it himself this time, and if he really wanted to send it, he would just take a picture of the officer. But Zhang Xueliang did not agree for the sake of face, and Yang Hucheng persuaded him that this time he must be a Hongmen banquet, and the Kuomintang must be ready to attack Zhang Xueliang.
Zhang Xueliang stubbornly said no, yes, he still has the Northeast Army in his hands, and the Kuomintang does not dare to embarrass himself, but he can't control Chiang Kai-shek again at that time. He explained his own actions in his conceit, and he also bore the consequences of his own actions. As soon as he got off the plane, he was immediately surrounded by many Kuomintang soldiers, immediately disarmed, and detained in Nanjing.
As soon as Chiang Kai-shek returned to the Nanjing government office, he immediately issued an order to deprive Zhang Xueliang of the command of the Northeast Army, and immediately asked Jiang Dingwen to take over the whole army, and even ordered any soldiers and troops to resist and annihilate the company. After many generals heard that Zhang Xueliang had fallen and was detained, they were already dissatisfied and disappointed with Zhang Xueliang, and immediately threw themselves into the Kuomintang army, and at this time the Northeast Army was officially accepted by Chiang Kai-shek.
Zhang Xueliang's single-mindedness and self-aggrandizement did not have an impact on the Chiang family, or even Chiang Kai-shek, and even made Chiang Kai-shek gain greater prestige among the Kuomintang after his detention. By reversing black and white through the power of propaganda, Chiang Kai-shek was bent on exterminating the Communist Red Army, and for his personal interests and status, he did not allow multiple parties and the Kuomintang
The court was confrontational, but he hypocritically found that when the prestige of the anti-Japanese resistance was getting higher and higher, he packaged himself as an anti-Japanese leader, and he was supported by the European countries led by United States. threw Zhang Xueliang's reckless behavior out and smeared him as a traitor and traitor.
Bibliography:
Zhang Xueliang: Rethinking the Policy of Non-Resistance, Theoretical Observation, 2018
The game between Zhang Xueliang and Chiang Kai-shek before and after the Xi'an Incident, Historical Research, 2017