<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="1" > Chapter 22 Cross-Straits and Three Places, Dilemmas</h1>
The big man went to Xiangjiang
When Du Weiping's case was closed, Du Weifan also hurried back to Shanghai from Beiping, and the first bad news he brought back was that in the Liaoshen Campaign, the Kuomintang army was gradually defeated and retreated, and Peiping was in danger.
Du Yuesheng was not particularly worried after listening to it, but Meng Xiaodong, who had always been in love, made him very worried. So he asked Yao Yulan to write a letter to Meng Xiaodong with sisterhood, advising her to take refuge in Shanghai, and hoping that she would continue to perform in Shanghai and contribute to the inheritance of Yu Pai's art.
When Meng Xiaodong received the letter, the Chinese communist army won a complete victory in the Liaoshen Campaign and marched toward Pingjin with the momentum of breaking bamboo, and the people of Beiping were panicked and rumors were spreading. Meng Xiaodong was alone, lonely and alone, and was suddenly receiving a handwritten letter from Yao Yulan when he suddenly received a handwritten letter from Yao Yulan, and his gratitude was spontaneous, so he hurriedly packed his bags and left Beiping, and came to Shanghai after several twists and turns.
After Meng Xiaodong arrived in Shanghai, he moved into Du Yuesheng's eighteenth-floor apartment. Du Yuesheng's kind reception and comfort made Meng Xiaodong both grateful and guilty. She was deeply impressed by the tycoon's generous affection and magnanimity, and Yao Yulan was also extremely kind and caring for her, all of which made Meng Xiaodong feel warmer than ever. Soon, she became a member of the Du family and took on the responsibility of serving and caring for Du Yuesheng. Although Du Yuesheng is over the age of flower armor, he can be accompanied by a beauty like Meng Xiaodong, and he has fulfilled a dream for many years.
In November 1948, the Battle of Huaihai began, and the People's Liberation Army swung southward, which lasted two months of fighting, and Chiang Kai-shek's combat strength on the southern front collapsed. The embattled Chiang Kai-shek realized that the total victory of the Chinese Communist forces was a foregone conclusion, so in January 1949, Chiang Kai-shek announced that he would step down, with Li Zongren acting as president, and he himself returned to his hometown of Fenghua, Zhejiang Province, to remotely control the command behind the scenes.
The presidential palace in Nanjing is crumbling, and the situation in Shanghai is precarious. Du Yuesheng saw that the situation was getting worse and worse, and in order to leave a way back for himself, he secretly sold the mansion at No. 26 Du Mei Road to the US consulate in Shanghai for 450,000 US dollars.
At this time, Chiang Kai-shek secretly flew from Fenghua, Zhejiang to Shanghai to arrange defenses. Tang Enbo, commander of the Kuomintang Beijing-Shanghai Garrison, and Wu Guozhen, mayor of Shanghai, jointly came to Du Mansion and asked Du Yuesheng to organize the "Shanghai Municipal Urban Defense Fortifications and Construction Committee" and serve as chairman.
Du Yuesheng knew very well in his heart that this was Chiang Kai-shek dragging himself into the water. Over the years, Chiang Kai-shek has always used himself as a night pot, pushing himself to the front when needed, and kicking away when he does not need it. Now that the communist army is about to enter the city, old Chiang kai-shek has to drag himself along.
Privately, Du Yuesheng revealed to his confidants many times that he was not in favor of doing city defense fortifications, and now the people of Shanghai are panicked, each looking for a way out, fleeing, walking, how easy is it to do city defense? Nanjing is surrounded by the Yangtze River, the tiger is in the dragon pan, it is still impossible to defend, Shanghai is just a piece of Pingyang, how can it withstand the siege of hundreds of thousands of communist troops?
However, there were many rumors outside, and rumors of unfavorable to Du Yuesheng were gradually formed. In order to protect himself and stop slander and avoid suspicion, Du Yuesheng had to drag his haggard body, reluctantly accepted this task, and served as the chairman of the "Shanghai Municipal Urban Defense and Construction Committee" with a strong spirit, but secretly he also had to contact all sides and consider the problem of a way out and where to stay.
Just as Du Yuesheng was running back and forth for the city's fortifications, the People's Liberation Army broke through the bamboo and crossed the river, and the Nanjing government collapsed. The Kuomintang troops stationed in Shanghai panicked and stepped up their defenses as they began to transfer their property and prepare to evacuate Shanghai at any time.
Just at the moment of this thousand guns, Du Yuesheng suddenly received a notice from the security headquarters that Chiang Kai-shek was going to summon himself on Fuxing Island and must leave immediately.
Du Yuesheng had already anticipated Chiang Kai-shek's motives for this summons, so he did not panic and drove to Fuxing Island. At this time, Chiang Kai-shek actually changed his serious and indifferent attitude last time, first praising him for coming forward to lay out the city fortifications, and then turning his words sharply: "This time the communist army is going south, Shanghai is very likely to lose, we are ready for the worst, that is, to move to Taiwan, the government very much hopes that you can go together." ”
Du Yuesheng knew Chiang Kai-shek very well, and he would never allow his cronies to defect to the enemy, but he did not want to follow such a desperate and unsympathetic deposed president, so he said vaguely: "I am ready." ”
Chiang Kai-shek continued to exhort: "Mr. Du, don't forget that they know very well how many Communists you killed during the 16th year of the Qing Dynasty movement of the Republic of China. You must know that the Communist Party has always had sinister intentions, and if it has a vendetta, it will repay it, and they will not only kill a person, but also make that person suffer enough before he dies! ”
Du Yuesheng had long expected that the other party would use this incident to warn and threaten himself, which was also his own unquestionable heart and unshirkable guilt, so he simply said: "Rest assured! I will never stay in Shanghai and let the Communist Party take my head and heart and liver to sacrifice their martyrs! ”
Hearing Du Yuesheng say this, Chiang Kai-shek seemed to put his mind at ease and after some praise, Du Yuesheng left Fuxing Island on the grounds that the city defense fortifications were busy.
Back at home, Yao Yulan, Meng Xiaodong and others could not wait to ask long and short questions, and Du Yuesheng had to make a slight statement of the original commission. When Yao Yulan heard that he was leaving Shanghai, she asked anxiously, "What are your plans?" ”
Up to now, Du Yuesheng is much more calm, no longer as anxious and uncertain as in the past few days, he said confidently and affirmatively: "Old Chiang Kai-shek will let him go when he goes to Taiwan. Taiwan is not Shanghai, if you go to Taiwan, everything will be subject to his control, useless and you will be kicked away. ”
"What then?" Yao Yulan asked anxiously.
Du Yuesheng paused and admonished: "You just need to remember, don't miss the sound of the wind, I will naturally arrange the itinerary." ”
The next day, Du Yuesheng went to the Huang Family Garden in Jun Peili and met jin Rong, who was still in the wind and candles. Du Yuesheng did not tell Jin Rong what he planned, but only told him about his meeting with Chiang Kai-shek on Fuxing Island, and finally asked Jin Rong what his plan was.
At this time, Jin Rong was paralyzed sitting on the Taishi chair, and the tycoon style of the early years of unlimited scenery no longer existed, he raised his bloated eyelids and looked at Du Yuesheng, lamenting: "I am already eighty years old this year, the strength to go up the stairs is gone, can I still cross the ocean to Taiwan?" ”
Du Yuesheng nodded sympathetically and advised again: "However, if we stay, I don't know if the Communist Party will let us go?" ”
Jin Rong closed his eyes and said slowly, "When the Japanese fought shanghai, I didn't leave. Eight years on, I'm not safe and sound. This time I thought about it, anyway, the old life, no more days to live, let them do whatever they want. Instead of dying in a foreign country, it is better to die in your hometown. ”
Du Yuesheng silently stared at the dying Jin Rongge, and inexplicably felt a pang of sadness in his heart, affectionately called out to Jin Rongge, and said: "If you stay, you will definitely encounter trouble, and I may not be better off when I leave Shanghai. Now that I'm leaving Shanghai Beach, I'm afraid it will be difficult to come back, and you have to take good care of yourself! ”
Jin Rong sighed and thanked him emotionally: "You must also take care of yourself!" ”
Du Yuesheng's nose was sour, and he swallowed for a while, and he slowed down for half a day before sighing: "Brother Jin Rong takes care..."
Leaving the Huang Family Garden, Du Yuesheng kept dealing with the affairs at hand. One of the most important things is to mobilize cash as much as possible as possible as a preparation for a long-term escape. In addition, Zhonghui Bank is the industry he founded single-handedly, and he hopes to close the accounts as soon as possible, and then close the door, so as not to leave a pretext and a handle because Zhonghui's business has not been completed. He had already handed over this matter to Du Weifan, the eldest son of the then general manager of Zhonghui, because he felt that Weifan had no grievances against the Communist Party, believed that he had no reason to be attacked and persecuted, and when everything was dealt with, he would then randomly take the road and leave the mainland.
Then, he informed Jin Tingsun, Gu Jiatang, Wan Molin, and others, telling them that those who were willing to leave should make plans early, and those who did not want to leave could stay. As a result, everyone expressed their willingness to follow only Du Yuesheng's lead.
After everything was arranged properly, Du Yuesheng secretly sent someone to buy a ferry ticket to Hong Kong, and it was not until this time that Yao Yulan and Meng Xiaodong knew that the purpose of their trip was not Taiwan, but Hong Kong.
In the face of the family's doubts, Du Yuesheng explained his thoughts very seriously and helplessly. He said: "Chiang Kai-shek talked to me, and if he wanted me to leave, I couldn't help but leave, so I thought about it again and again, or I should first go to Hong Kong to live for a while, see the signs, and then make a decision." ”
After speaking, he called Mr. Huang Guodong, the accountant, to his side and ordered: "I will live in Hong Kong for a while, and maybe I will return to Shanghai soon. The Communist Party has talked to me about wanting me to join the New CPPCC after liberation, so you should have no problem in Shanghai. I have three letters here, in case of trouble, one to Pan Hannian, one to Liao Chengzhi, one to Sheng Pihua, they will save you. ”
Hearing him say this, the family was shocked, when did Du Yuesheng have contacts with the Communist Party? Still doing it so secretly?
It turned out that Du Yuesheng had many contacts with Pan Hannian, the leader of the UNDERground organization of the Cpc, as early as the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. In order to support the anti-Japanese resistance, Du Yuesheng deliberately donated a thousand sets of gas masks to the Eighth Route Army through Pan Hannian, which also allowed the Communist Party to see Du Yuesheng's patriotic side. Later, Liao Chengzhi, Sheng Pihua, Huang Yanpei, and other patriotic democrats also did a lot of work to win over Du Yuesheng.
Looking at the surprise and uneasiness on everyone's faces, Du Yuesheng comforted: "You don't have to worry, I have already made arrangements in Hong Kong." ”
After saying this, he inexplicably became sad and muttered, "Maybe... We will be back in Shanghai again soon. ”
This unclear meaning of the words made everyone more confused, and all the people looked suspicious and waited for Du Yuesheng to explain the following. However, after Du Yuesheng finished saying these half a sentence, he suddenly closed his mouth, closed his eyes and pretended to rest.
On May 1, 1949, Du Yuesheng ordered his entourage to send their luggage to the Bund first, and then told his sons and daughters to leave separately, while he secretly took two cars with Yao Yulan and Meng Xiaodong and finally arrived at the dock. In this way, Du Yuesheng, with his relatives, friends, and bodyguard disciples, hurriedly boarded the "Baoshuyun" passenger ship of the Dutch Zahua Company, entered the booked room, and no longer showed his face.
When the whistle roared and the ship anchored, he slowly boarded the deck alone, looking at the majestic Shanghai in front of him, the gushing Huangpu River at his feet, and could not help but sigh with emotion. He left Gaoqiao Town to Shanghai at the age of fifteen, mixed with du sheds, wandering fireworks, robbing smoke, opening companies, getting acquainted with countless warlords and politicians, step by step to make a name for himself, and now all this has dissipated, Du Yuesheng understands that this time leaving Shanghai Beach, I am afraid that there will be no return.
Watching the gushing river, the steamship had inadvertently sailed past the town of Takahashi, the place of his birth, and he couldn't help but look up and gaze at it, with unspeakable desolation and sadness in his heart, just silently reading: Farewell, go to the beach.
Living in Hong Kong is not easy
After the "Baoshuyun" passenger ship sailed out of Shanghai, Du Yuesheng was sad in his heart, until Yao Yulan and Meng Xiaodong came forward to comfort him, and he reluctantly returned to the cabin to rest. Two days and two nights of life at sea, so that the original skinny Du Yuesheng more and more haggard, lying in bed all day and night, rarely eating, fortunately, Yao Yulan and Meng Xiaodong accompanied day and night, taking turns to take care of, let him feel some comfort.
On May 3, Du Yuesheng and others finally arrived in Hong Kong in a state of exhaustion. According to the prior arrangement, he bought a house for 60,000 Hong Kong dollars through a friend at No. 18 Kennedy Terrace as a residence in Hong Kong for a long time, which is the new Du Mansion.
Before coming to Hong Kong, Du Yuesheng had not seen this house, only heard that the size of the insurance was enough to live, the price was reasonable, and he couldn't wait to buy it. When he went to No. 18 Kennedy Terrace, he was disappointed. Compared with the Du Mansion on Shanghai's Hua Ge Zhen Road, the bungalows on Du Mei Road, and even the eighteenth floor apartment, it is much worse here.
There is only one living room, only three main rooms, and the rest of the small rooms are separated by corridor gaps. Du Yuesheng came to Hong Kong this time, since he was the third wife, Sun Peihao, the fourth wife Yao Yulan, the son and daughter-in-law, grandchildren, servant bodyguards, relatives and friends totaled more than 30 people. These people were reluctantly allocated rooms, and there was no space for any more people to live, and even some servants had to live outside, leaving early and returning late every day.
In the period of time just arrived in Hong Kong, due to the relationship between mental and physical strength and the limitations of the environment, Du Yuesheng's mood was extremely depressed, and the pride of the past was much less. The biggest problem he faced when he had spent a lot of money was the livelihood problem of his family and the nearly 20,000 yuan of medical expenses that were in front of him every month.
Leaving Shanghai, the only property that Du Yuesheng can bring out is hundreds of thousands of dollars from the sale of the mansion on Du Mei Road, which has also become the last capital for a family to save their lives.
When he first arrived in Hong Kong, a deceased man who had not met for a long time, Li Jiefa, was very enthusiastic, and he not only personally boarded the wheel to greet him, but also set up a banquet to wash the dust for Du Yuesheng, which also made Du Yuesheng, who was originally desolate, feel some comfort.
Li Zhifa was originally a disciple of Rui Qingrong, who belonged to the small characters of the Qinggang. But he was shrewd and capable, came from Shanghai to the racecourse in Hong Kong to make a living, and soon organized a group of grooms with him as the core, and strengthened his own power. At the beginning of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Du Yuesheng took refuge in Hong Kong, and Li Jiefa had become Du Yuesheng's guest.
Today's Li tailoring hair is more unknown than in the past, how many times its status has been. His tentacles extended to the black and white worlds, and his business reached both sides of the Xiangjiang River, and his prestige was so high that no one looked up to him for a while, and he was known as "The Emperor of nightclubs" and "Du Yuesheng of Hong Kong".
Lee runs a Retiro Garden playground with a luxurious boom that is the largest in the Far East. Since Du Yuesheng came to Hong Kong, he often went to the Retiro Garden at the invitation of Li Tailor, and later, many Shanghai industrial and commercial tycoons and gang members have also arrived in Hong Kong, and the Retiro Garden has become a place for Shanghai high-rollers to hang out day and night.
Seeing that there were more and more mainland gentry flocking to Hong Kong, one day, Li Jiefa suddenly visited Du Yuesheng and said: "I have a concept, I want to open a most advanced hotel in Kowloon Castle Peak, the scale does not have to be too large, but the decoration must be gorgeous and luxurious, making it the most luxurious outing place in Hong Kong." Exclusively for those who are high-ranking and noble, millionaires for leisure and recreation, this is definitely a good deal to make a steady profit. ”
Du Yuesheng was very interested in Li's idea, and asked at the time: "How much capital is needed for such a plan?" ”
"About 300,000 Hong Kong dollars." Li Cutfa paused and said: "However, when Mr. Du first arrived in Hong Kong, he did not buy a property for a while, so I wanted to admit that I had half of it, and the other half would like to ask Mr. Du to invite shares on my behalf." First, to buy an industry for you; second, I especially hope that you can become the chairman of the board and lead the group. ”
Du Yuesheng listened, smiled, and said, "Haircut, I understand your intentions." You take this stable and profitable business to invite shares to me, nothing more than to let me praise your field, since it is a matter of praise, why not win or lose. After all, this is Hong Kong, not Shanghai, simply you come to be the chairman, I am only a director. ”
A few days later, Du Yuesheng did invite several prominent shareholder bosses to Qingshan Hotel Co., Ltd., which was founded by Li Jiefa. Li Zhifa personally served as the chairman of the board, and Du Yuesheng and others were included in the list of directors.
Although Du Yuesheng took a stake in Li's Qingshan Hotel, it did not change his increasingly stretched dilemma overnight. Just when Du Yuesheng was anxious to change this unfavorable economic situation, one day, a Sichuan friend came to the Du Mansion at No. 18 Kennedy Terrace.
This Sichuan friend often travels between Sichuan and Hong Kong, engaged in business operations. As far as he knows, sichuan's silk production this year is abundant, but due to the relationship between the times, the price has fallen again and again, almost the cost price. This Sichuan friend discussed with Du Yuesheng: it is better to spend a huge amount of money to buy, and then contact the aircraft of AVIC Company to transport it to Hong Kong, and once this batch of silk lands, the profit will not only be ten times eight times!
After Du Yuesheng listened, he felt that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to turn around, and this friend's reputation has always been good, the only thing that worries him is that now that the Communist army has swept through the entire southwest, in case this batch of goods is obtained by the communist army, will it not erode the old money?
The friend said confidently: "Although the Communist Party has a fierce momentum, it has only captured Padang, and Chengdu and Chongqing are still as stable as mountains, even if the communist army runs fast, it is impossible to threaten Chengdu at once, so it can be assured." ”
Listening to him say this, Du Yuesheng put his mind at ease and immediately decided to put forward 100,000 US dollars as a shareholding, and all affairs were directly handled by this friend. Soon, friends in Sichuan brought news that most of the silk had been purchased, just waiting for the aircraft of AVIC to come to Sichuan and transport them to the port one by one.
Just when Du Yuesheng was waiting with expectations to sit on the ground and get rich, a surprising news suddenly came. This morning, he had just had morning tea, and the secretary gave him a newspaper to read, and a very shocking news was published on the front page: the responsible persons of the Chinese Airlines and the Central Airlines flew to Beiping with 12 planes, surrendered to the Communist Party, and all the airlifts on all lines of the country were interrupted.
The blow of this news to Du Yuesheng was really too great. The route was interrupted, and for a while there was no other means of transportation to use, which meant that a large amount of silk that had been acquired could not be transported from Chengdu. Not only did he not make any money, but the huge amount of money of 100,000 US dollars was wasted.
This news is nothing less than a thunderbolt, how important is 100,000 US dollars for Du Yuesheng today! When he left Shanghai, only four or five hundred thousand of his belongings were left, and now he has folded another hundred thousand, which is really a leak in the house and even rain.
Du Yuesheng, who was already weak and sick, had an acute asthma attack and a long cough. As a result, Yao Yulan and Meng Xiaodong took turns to take care of it, and they did not sleep. Relatives and friends come to visit in an endless stream. In order to treat asthma, it is still used both Chinese and Western, today came the master of Traditional Chinese medicine, looking forward to hearing and asking; tomorrow came the authority of Western medicine, auscultation measurement.
Before and after no less than a dozen doctors, because of the number of doctors, opinions are inevitably divided, in the end whose medical methods should be used, which medicine should be taken, everyone is inconsistent, making Du Yuesheng's medication more and more complicated, the result of a few months, he once said self-deprecatingly: "Now I am taking medicine as rice, taking rice as medicine to eat!" ”
After a while, Du Yuesheng's asthma finally calmed down. After the blow of this investment failure, he was at first melancholy, sighing, but asthma did not occur, after the spirit was good, he gradually opened up, occasionally invited a few friends, touched a few pai nine, the scale is very small, only do pleasant pastime.
Secondly, Du Yuesheng also especially likes to listen to books. At that time in Hong Kong, it was quite difficult to find a storyteller, but fortunately, at that time, some storytellers also fled from Shanghai to Hong Kong, so Du Yuesheng invited them to No. 18 Kennedy Terrace to talk about "Water Margin" and "Legend of Heroic Martyrs" for him. Listening to books became part of his daily lessons, and he used listening to books to kill time, at least when listening attentively to books, which allowed him to temporarily forget his illness and mental pain.
The Communist Party actively united front
In May 1949, the People's Liberation Army marched south and took Shanghai directly. Tang Enbo, commander-in-chief of the Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou garrison, led 200,000 people to defend Shanghai, but the People's Liberation Army was in a state of disarray, the Kuomintang army had no intention of fighting, most of them were surrounded and annihilated, the remnants collapsed, and Shanghai was immediately liberated. The first thing Mayor Chen Yi has to do is to make every effort to ensure the stability of the current situation in Shanghai and restore the order of production and life in all walks of life.
In Shanghai at the beginning of liberation, the people's livelihood was in ruins, and there were many industries waiting to be revitalized, so in order to restore the development and production of Shanghai's finance, industry and commerce as soon as possible, it became a top priority to unite and win the return of the national capitalists.
One day shortly after Du Yuesheng arrived in Hong Kong, an uninvited guest suddenly arrived at the Du Mansion at No. 18 Kennedy Terrace. This person is no one else, it is Chen Guangfu, a well-known financial giant in Shanghai.
The Shanghai Commercial savings Bank, founded by Chen Guangfu, was once known as China's largest private commercial bank, and he himself served as a suffragette of the National SuffrageTte, chairman of the National Revival Trading Company, and chairman of the China, the United States, and the United Kingdom Equalization Fund Committee.
After chen guangfu saw Du Yuesheng, he couldn't wait to tell Du Yuesheng: "Yesterday I received a telegram from Beijing that the Bank of China has sent someone to Hong Kong and wants to invite Mr. Du and me, as well as Qian Xinzhi, Zhang Gongquan, Song Hanzhang, and others to meet and talk. ”
"Is it about the bank of China shares?" Although Du Yuesheng was old and weak, his mind was still very clear, and he guessed it.
It turned out that Du Yuesheng, Chen Guangfu and others were all commercial directors of the Bank of China and the major shareholders of the Bank of China, and until the eve of liberation, each of them still had a varying number of shares in the bank. As they fled Shanghai, they had no time to dispose of the shares. In view of the special status of these people and the needs of united front work, the CPC has specially sent people to Hong Kong to invite them back to Beijing to attend the reorganization meeting.
After receiving the news, Chen Guangfu couldn't make up his mind, so he had to come to the Kennedy Terrace to ask Du Yuesheng.
"The CPC deputies came to Hong Kong this time, hoping that we would go back to the meeting, how to deal with it, please Mr. Du to be the master, it is best for everyone to maintain a consistent position." Chen Guangfu said.
Du Yuesheng was very calm about the cpc's sending of representatives to Hong Kong for negotiations, but said: "I asked Merlin to inform you that everyone would go to the Qingshan Hotel in the evening to gather and discuss it." ”
That evening, except for Qian Xinzhi, who had not yet arrived due to illness, everyone gathered at the Qingshan Hotel to discuss the matter of returning to Beijing to participate in the reorganization of the Bank of China, but it was impossible to make a decision. Some people say they can't go, and some people say why not. Du Yuesheng still looked like a big guy, did not express his position, did not interject, and when everyone was almost talking, he slowly stood up and said: "Everyone is an old friend, and we must never engage in infighting, go out of the way, and ask outsiders to see jokes." ”
When the crowd heard him say this, they naturally nodded their heads and said yes.
Du Yuesheng pondered a little, and then said: "Nowadays, we can all be regarded as homeless people, and it is difficult to predict whether we will go to Taiwan or return to the mainland in the future." Since someone from Beijing told us to go back to the meeting, this is to give us face, Shunshui people can't help but do it, etiquette is still coming! ”
When everyone heard him say this, they were a little unsure for a while, and asked busily: "Do you mean to go back?" ”
"No! It's not time to go back yet. Du Yuesheng waved his hand: "I mean, you can issue a power of attorney and send a representative to Beijing for a meeting, how?" ”
Du Yuesheng's brilliant plan of having the best of both worlds is indeed superior. First, by sending representatives back to the mainland for a meeting, they have shown their sincere side, and by the way, they can also explore the wind and whether it is possible to get back their shares; second, if the talks are not close, they can turn around and go to Taiwan. Therefore, everyone unanimously agreed to adopt it.
Then the world was unpredictable, just when the designated deputies were preparing to go to Beijing for a meeting, they almost gave up because of Qian Xinzhi's hesitation!
One day, Du Yuesheng visited Qian Xinzhi, and after lunch, Du Yuesheng talked about the reorganization of the Bank of China. Qian Xinyi's face was hesitant, and from the bottom of his heart, he did not want to participate in this matter. He knew the seriousness of the matter, and if Chiang Kai-shek knew about it, he was afraid that he would not be able to let himself go, so he said: "If I sign it, I will be finished, so I have to raise flowers at home and chat with Mr. Du." ”
The rest of the people also retreated because of various concerns. Du Yuesheng couldn't help but be a little anxious, so he had to send someone to persuade Qian Xinzhi again, but the result was that he was still not moved. Du Yuesheng did not want to see the things that had happened to him halfway through, so he asked Wan Molin to call everyone and go to his home to raise business decisions.
Lying on the bed, Du Yuesheng looked haggard and described as emaciated, he barely supported himself and said to everyone: "We are all over the age of flower armor, even if we die today, it is not a short life, everyone is a friendship of decades, can't the current action be consistent?" Righteousness is the most important thing to be a man, and I advocate that everyone sign together, and any danger is shared. ”
Du Yuesheng's words were extremely deep and earnest, and they were unheard of here. Qian Xinzhi was silent for a while, then suddenly stood up and said, "I'm out of the way, so let's listen to Mr. Du's words." ”
In order to ensure the safety of everyone, everyone agreed to keep it secret, so as not to arouse Chiang Kai-shek's suspicions. But there was no impermeable wall in the world, and after a few days, I didn't know who had leaked this secret, so I made a lot of noise, and then it reached Chiang Kai-shek's ears.
Chiang Kai-shek was furious, and he was extremely dissatisfied with the "conspiratorial apostasy" of Du Yuesheng and others, and immediately let out a rumor that he wanted to send the killers to Hong Kong and take decisive action. Hearing this news, Du Yuesheng was terrified and stayed at home for several days without leaving home. Eating this fright made Du Yuesheng's mental condition, which was already neurasthenic, worse, and he tossed and turned on his bed every night, unable to sleep.
It was during this period that two other financial tycoons, Zhang Gongquan and Song Hanzhang, flew to Australia and the other to Brazil. The five backbones of the original "bank reorganization" went to the second, and Du Yuesheng was bedridden, so he planned to declare bankruptcy, which also made Du Yuesheng completely lose the opportunity to get back his equity.
For a long time after that, Du Yuesheng was in a state of extreme annoyance and uneasiness. On the one hand, he was too old to be a flower armour, seriously ill, and his former fame and prestige gradually faded, making him feel lost; on the other hand, Chiang Kai-shek crossed the river and demolished the bridge, and constantly intimidated and dealt him with no use value, which made him feel very cold. More importantly, he lacked trust in the Communist Party and was in a dilemma in his twilight years in Hong Kong, where he was in the land of bullets.
Just when Du Yuesheng was depressed and lonely and could not be solved, another unfortunate news reached Hong Kong: Jin Rong's original wife, Lin Guisheng, who had been cultivated and promoted by Du Yuesheng, died of illness in Shanghai.
Du Yuesheng was shocked to hear the bad news, felt sad, and couldn't help but cry. The death of Gui Shengjie reminded Du Yuesheng of Gui Shengjie's promotion of him in those years, so he immediately sent a telegram to Du Weifan, the eldest son in Shanghai, asking him to go to take care of the funeral and mourn as much as possible. Du Weifan obeyed his father's orders, went to the Lin Mansion to mourn filial piety and mourn, and in accordance with his father's entrustment, he undertook all the funeral expenses.
After taking care of Lin Guisheng's affairs, Du Weifan prepared to rush to Hong Kong to see his father. Before leaving, Pan Hannian, executive vice mayor of Shanghai, summoned Du Weifan, hoping that he would bring a message to Du Yuesheng and mobilize him to return to Shanghai.
After Du Weifan arrived in Hong Kong, in addition to reporting on Lin Guisheng's aftermath, he also mentioned the situation on the mainland by the way, especially the matter entrusted by Pan Hannian, and in the face of Du Yuesheng on the sickbed, Du Weifan said: "Father, Mr. Pan Hannian wants me to come and invite you back." ”
At that time, Du Yuesheng's asthma attack was very severe, and he coughed while saying: "When I go back, can the Communist Party let me go?" ”
"Mr. Pan said that the Communist Party has always been upright and upright, treating diseases and saving people, as long as you no longer oppose the Communist Party, stop selling your life for Chiang Kai-shek, and do things that are beneficial to the people, the people will forgive you." Du Weifan said.
Du Yuesheng has always been extremely cautious in doing things, and it is difficult for him to believe that there is some truth in such a statement. He raised his hands and said helplessly: "When Chiang Kai-shek found out the party in Shanghai, how many Communists were killed by the Qinggang brothers, and Wang Shouhua, the president of the Shanghai trade union, died at the hands of Rui Qingrong. ”
Du Weifan did not speak, and he did not know much about some of his father's early history.
"You went back and told Mr. Pan that I am very ill and cannot return to Shanghai for the time being, but in Hong Kong, I will resolutely refrain from carrying out any activities against the Communist Party and will never go to Taiwan. At the same time, I will also take care of those disciples in Shanghai, and I will let them keep to themselves in peace and never cause them trouble! Du Yuesheng said firmly.
At this time, Du Yuesheng seemed to have made up his mind, got rid of the political whirlpool, and did not return to Shanghai nor Taiwan, but only wanted to be a "Yugong" in Hong Kong and try to relax in his old age. However, soon, another old friend suddenly arrived in Hong Kong, which was Du Yuesheng's former guest Secretary Zhang Shizhao.
Zhang Shizhao is a famous barrister in Shanghai, talented, lingering poetry and wine, Du Yuesheng has always respected him as a guest. At the beginning of liberation, Zhang Shizhao, Li Jishen, and other democrats responded to the call of the Communist Party and threw themselves into the preparatory work for the establishment of a new government. This time, he came to Hong Kong at the behest of Mao Zedong precisely to win over shanghai businessmen to return to the mainland and return to their old business.
On the cusp of the storm, Du Yuesheng was extremely cautious about Zhang Shizhao's arrival. Although Zhang Shizhao was bitter and followed the good temptations, Du Yuesheng never took a stand. In particular, the Kuomintang dignitaries who came in and out of du mansions, such as Wu Kaixian and Wang Xinheng, were urging him to fly to Taiwan, and now Zhang Shizhao had come to win him back to Shanghai, and the two sides were fighting for no results.
Chiang Kai-shek was both soft and hard
Just when Du Yuesheng was in a dilemma and was bedridden for a long time, the news of his secret "pro-communist" went away. In particular, Du Weifan has lived in Shanghai for half a year, and there is a lot of discussion in the street, he must be asking for directions for Du Yuesheng to return to Shanghai. This time when he came to Hong Kong, it was most likely the order of the Communist Party of China to invite Du Yuesheng back to Shanghai to cooperate.
For a time, Du Yuesheng's theory of throwing a common body was very loud, and Du Yuesheng was unable to argue about this and was distressed. He understood Chiang Kai-shek's heart and temperament, and any trace of his own wind and grass would make the other side of the strait sensitive.
During this period, under the constant persuasion of the Beijing side, Shanghai business leaders living in Hong Kong began to turn to the left, saying that they wanted to return to Shanghai and regain their old industries. Among them, Du Yuesheng's close friends Wang Xiaoli, Liu Hongsheng, and Wu Yunchu responded to Beijing's call and prepared to leave for Shanghai.
Although Chiang Kai-shek's troops were gradually defeated and distraught, he had already smelled the wind in Hong Kong. He was in a hurry, and even if he wanted to evacuate Taiwan, he would never be able to get Shanghai's industrial and commercial tycoons to return to the mainland with huge sums of money for the Communist Party to use. Therefore, Chiang Kai-shek hurriedly ordered Hong Lanyou to go to Hong Kong to appease Du Yuesheng.
However, what is inconceivable is that at this moment, the "Central Daily", which has long been moved to Taipei, suddenly published an editorial entitled "A New Page in the History of the Party," pointing out that Du Yuesheng was a "comprador hooligan and the scum of the times."
The editorial began with a clear and clear sense, and criticized Du Yuesheng in a strong voice: "The comprador hooligans and local tycoons and inferior gentry are the scum of the times and should be eliminated, but because some people are afraid of difficulties and do not purge them, as a result, their forces have grown stronger and become the actual rulers of various localities." If nothing else: Why has Shanghai become the most inflamed blind spot? Isn't it because it has long been the world of 'smellers'? This smeller is also a synonym for the rogue leader. Those rogue leaders were plucked by the comrades of our party, but after their wings were full, they almost became the emperor of Shanghai. As long as we look at the position of the chairman of the Shanghai Senate that du Yuesheng resigned, and how Shanghai's price limit policy suddenly collapsed last year due to the counterattack of the hearers, we can imagine that those 'smellers' have gained the actual right to rule Shanghai, and the unwiseness of a small number of our comrades in raising tigers. ”
The editorial directly classified Du Yuesheng as a "comprador hooligan" and a "scum of the times", and blamed Chiang Ching-kuo for the failure of currency reform in Shanghai on Du Yuesheng's "counterattack" and collapse.
Finally, the article adds: "The compradors, the hooligans, the local tycoons, and the inferior gentry are both the remnants of the warlords and the obstacles to the future of the Three People's Principles, and without removing these obstacles, we will never have a way to carry out the economic measures of politics aimed at the realization of the Three People's Principles." ”
What is quite interesting is that the words of the editorial are full of praise for Chiang Ching-kuo, who regards himself as a "young mentor", which invisibly leaks the bottom card of the person who wrote this editorial.
The matter soon spread to Hong Kong, and Wang Xiaoli and Liu Hongsheng were struggling to persuade Du Yuesheng to return to Shanghai without strong wording, so they immediately took the newspaper to the Du Mansion in Kennedy Terrace and advised Du Yuesheng: "Chiang Ching-kuo manipulated the Taiwan newspaper and openly slandered Mr. Du as a scum of the times and a rogue gentleman, which is an obvious communiqué personal vendetta. Now that he is based in Taiwan and holds great power, if he is in charge of the government in the future, I am afraid that there will be no place for us to stand, in this case, will you Du Yuesheng still have the possibility of going to Taiwan? ”
Hearing them say this, Du Yuesheng could not help but be greatly stimulated; he had praised Chiang Kai-shek all his life, and he had done his best to resist the war and suppress chaos, and now he had abandoned his family and business and resolutely gone to Hong Kong, in exchange for only ridicule and sarcasm that left no room, which was really sad.
After this incident, Chiang Kai-shek was furious. He knew very well that more than half of Shanghai's financial, industrial and commercial tycoons who had evacuated the mainland had concentrated in Hong Kong. Most of the assets of these people are still on the mainland, which is also a bait that the Communist Party can use, and if du Yuesheng is offended during this critical period, if he ascends to a high position and gathers these financial and industrial circles to return to the mainland, will it not be cheap for the Communist Party in vain!
In view of the seriousness of the problem, Chiang Kai-shek successively sent Kuomintang Finance Minister Yu Hongjun and Interior Minister Hong Lanyou to Hong Kong to appease Du Yuesheng, and at the same time summoned Tao Xisheng, deputy director of the Propaganda Department, to immediately thoroughly investigate the Central Daily and severely punish the commentators who wrote the articles.
Hong Lanyou hurried from Guangzhou to the Kennedy Taidu Mansion in Hong Kong. When the two of them met, Du Yuesheng's emotions seemed quite excited, he took out the newspaper clippings, handed it to Hong Lanyou's hand, and said with a bitter smile: "I Du Yuesheng is a white man from a good background, and I don't know what the Three People's Principles and the Five Powers Constitution are, but since the sixteenth year of the Republic of China, I have been following the Kuomintang, from the Qing Party to fight chaos and collect donations from the Anti-Japanese Resistance. ”
Hong Lanyou took the newspaper, and before he even read it, he already knew that it was the disaster caused by the editorial of the "JoongAng Ilbo" that caused an uproar, so he said kindly and comfortingly: "President Jiang has learned of this matter, and he is also very uneasy in his heart, and it is precisely at the behest of the authorities that I have come to explain this matter to you." ”
Du Yuesheng especially calmed the anger in his heart, only waiting for Hong Lanyou to come up with a reasonable explanation.
Hong Lanyou continued: "This incident is completely a biased work of a few people in the newspaper library who do not know the details, only to seek new differences, self-defeating, and act recklessly, which is definitely not the intention of the authorities. Mr. Du is loyal to the party and patriotic, and the consensus of the people has been handed over by Mr. Jiang, severely punishing the writers and starting to rectify the newspaper library. ”
After all, Du Yuesheng was not a three-foot boy, who would credulously believe this kind of unconvincing response, if it were not for someone behind the scenes, who would dare to easily throw dirty water on him? In the face of his old friend, Du Yuesheng was not easy to say anything, but the protégés in a room felt very unfair, and they were embarrassed, one sentence in the east and one sentence in the west, and Hong Lanyou defended in every way, completely overwhelmed.
Leaving No. 18 Kennedy Terrace, Hong Lanyou quickly sent a secret telegram to Chiang Kai-shek to report on his situation in Hong Kong. After receiving the telegram, Chiang Kai-shek also realized the seriousness of the situation and quickly ordered Tao Xisheng to go to Hong Kong as soon as possible and personally go to the Du Mansion to apologize.
Subsequently, Chiang Kai-shek arranged for Huang Shaogu, director of the secretary office of the "President's Office," to send two telegrams to Hong Lanyou in his capacity as the Kuomintang Central Committee, entrusting him with all his strength to appease Du Yuesheng. Brother Huang Shaogu. ”
After receiving the telegram, Hong Lanyou scratched his head, the last time he went to the Du Mansion to touch a nose of ash, and now he still has to go, but he is afraid that there will be no progress. Thinking about it, he suddenly had a clever move, Wang Xiaoli is Du Yuesheng's best friend, and now he is also living in Hong Kong, he may wish to do some articles on him, maybe he can help a lot.
Therefore, Hong Lanyou went to visit Wang Xiaolai with HK$10,000. After listening to Hong Lanyou's explanation of his intentions, Wang Xiaoli calculated that it would not be too difficult for him to coordinate in the middle and calm down this misunderstanding. But he really did not want to come out of this face, because he had already made up his mind to return to Shanghai, but Chiang Kai-shek could not sell this face, and he wanted to come and go, but he could not refute this face, so he simply promised to take it down first and act at the opportunity.
Wang Xiaolai received 10,000 Hong Kong dollars from Hong Lanyou, and Hong Lanyou was so happy that he hit the iron while it was hot, and on behalf of Chiang Kai-shek, he visited Du Yuesheng's old friend Qian Xinzhi, and under the pretext of Chiang Kai-shek's dictation, hoped that he would persuade Du Yuesheng and others to go to Taiwan, set up an industry, and jointly participate in the grand event. In this way, under the personal offensive of Hong Lanyou, Qian Xinzhi, Wang Xiaoli and others, Du Yuesheng was no longer able to openly complain about the Jiang father and son, and a storm finally subsided.
Shortly after Hong Lanyou left, Du Yuesheng suddenly received a letter from Mao Zedong. Obviously, Zhang Shizhao's order to come to Hong Kong failed to persuade Du Yuesheng to return to the mainland, and the top level of the CPC did not give up hope and was still fighting for it.
The letter was to the effect that the Communist Party was broad-minded and did not care about the past, hoping that Mr. Du could lay down his burdens and return to Shanghai to settle down and discuss the state of the country. In particular, it is mentioned that although Du Yuesheng's brother Yang Hu once participated in the "April 12" coup d'état and brutally killed the Communist Party, he has now repented of his self-rehabilitation, abandoned the dark and surrendered to the light, and held an important position in the new government.
Mao Zedong was a high-level leader of the CPC, and his ability to personally write a letter to Du Yuesheng showed that his sincerity could not be described as untrue, and Du Yuesheng was very moved. Although it is still uncertain whether he really wants to return to the mainland, treating sincerity with sincerity is the standard that Du Yuesheng has always been a person. The day after receiving the letter, Du Yuesheng quickly took Qian Xinzhi to the palace, set up a table of delicious food, and asked him to write a reply letter to Mao Zedong.
Qian Xinzhi is the editor-in-chief of the "News Daily", outstanding literary style, fast writing, according to Du Yuesheng's idea, quickly wrote a reply letter, to the effect that: recently ill health, to be cured of the day to return to Shanghai ... Greetings to Pan Hannian and Li Jishen.
Unexpectedly, Qian Xinzhi was too greedy, and after returning to his apartment drunk, he mistakenly misprinted the letter to Mao Zedong into an envelope to Chiang Kai-shek, and a great misunderstanding occurred.
After reading Du Yuesheng's letter to Mao Zedong, Chiang Kai-shek was furious when he boarded, slapped the table and kicked the stool, the Ningbo accent, and scolded: Niang Xipi! He Du Yuesheng dared to vote for the Communists and tear down my platform! I immediately ordered Mao Renfeng to send someone to Hong Kong to assassinate Du Yuesheng, and to cut the grass and remove the roots, leaving no trouble behind! ”
After scolding and calming down, Chiang Kai-shek felt that assassinating Du Yuesheng was absolutely impossible, and that this would only make the problem bigger and bigger, and it would be difficult for the people in Hong Kong to return to the mainland, and the best way was to use both soft and hard measures to force Du Yuesheng to obey.
Chiang Kai-shek did not dare to take it lightly, and he first instructed the Central Daily to forward the Hong Kong telegram from the China News Agency: "Qian Yongming, Zhang Gongquan, Du Yuesheng, and others are ready to apply for taiwan. "Don't you Du Yuesheng want to go back to Shanghai?" I poked out your defection to Taiwan, does the Communist Party still believe you? Your defection to the Communist Party is false, and loyalty to the party-state is true, making it difficult for you to argue!
Immediately afterward, Chiang Kai-shek sent Kuomintang agents to spread rumors in Hong Kong to Du Yuesheng: The Chinese Communists are trying to negotiate with the British authorities in Hong Kong to extradite you back to Shanghai and criticize the struggle at the "April 12" coup conference to liquidate. At the same time, the mainland has sent people to infiltrate Hong Kong, and if the negotiations for extradition fail, they will shoot you on the spot!
Listening to this rumor, Du Yuesheng believed it to be true and broke out in a cold sweat. From then on, he began to worry, and sighed at No. 18 Kennedy Platform, his nerves were weakened to the extreme, and his asthma became more serious.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="3" > Chapter 23 A Generation of Legendary Souls Breaks the River</h1>
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