At the end of 1936, a local English-language newspaper in Shanghai, the Miller’s Review, published an explosive news:
"It is reported that the well-known female pilot who recently returned from the United States to Shanghai, Ms. Li Xiaqing, wanted to join China Aviation has unconditionally divorced her husband Zheng Baifeng for the development of her career.”
There was a lot of discussion in the public for a while. Some people said that Li Xiaqing fisted with his heart, and some people said that Li Xiaqing did not obey women, and did not want her husband not to have children. The development of China Airlines and the development of the aviation industry is a matter of the Nationalist Government. It is necessary for her to be a divorced woman. Some people take the opportunity to gossip that there is another person between the husband and wife, and the relationship has long been broken.
As soon as the news of the divorce was announced, the former matchmaker, the aunt and barrister of the ex-husband, Zheng Yuxiu felt sad. She once contributed to their marriage and talked about it, but now she has to sign the divorce papers of her nephew as a lawyer.
The most annoyed is ex-husband Zheng Baifeng. A public divorce made him not only lose a wife who already looked like a divorce, but also may affect his official career. As a diplomat, he may become the focus of discussion in the social circle for a long time, causing him to lose face. This anger made him say "she is dead" whenever he hears someone mention his ex-wife.
What does Li Xiaqing intend?
01
Li Xiaqing’s genes destined that she will not be a woman in her room.
In 1912, the first year of the Republic of China, Li Xiaqing was born. Her nickname "Dandan" is a homonym of "bomb". It is said that her parents used her baby carriage to transport bombs for the revolution. This seems to imply that one day, her blood will boil, and then all the old will be blown up and down.
Li Xiaqing's grandfather is the son of a rich man in Guangzhou, Liangguang Western Affairs Commissioner Li Qingchun. Grandmother Xu Mulan was born in a wealthy comprador and tea merchant family, and his younger sister Xu Zonghan (revolutionary, veteran of the Republic of China, Mrs. Huang Xing) are members of Union League, and also served as the captain of the Guangdong Women’s Northern Expedition in the Northern Expedition. , The current Zhuhai Museum still displays their wax figures for future generations to admire.
The middle seater is Xu Mulan
Li Yingsheng and uncle Li Peiji of Li Xiaqing, led by his grandmother, took charge of all explosives and transportation before the Huanghuagang Uprising, and participated in the preservation and transportation of all explosives and weapons after the uprising. Set fire to disturb the eyes and ears of the Qing army.
Li Peiji was also famous for his successful assassination of the Guangzhou General Fengshan sent by the Qing court.
Li Xiaqing is a famous lady and the descendant of a revolutionary pioneer. Full of pride, bravery and fearlessness for the country and the nation is the strongest background of Li Xiaqing's character.
14-year-old Li Xiaqing is a rising movie star.
His father Li Yingsheng and his uncle were sent abroad to study abroad for their contributions to the Republic of China, and then went into business. In 1925, they co-founded Shanghai Mingxin Film Company with the future "Father of Hong Kong Film" Li Mingwei.
was originally Li Xiaqing who went to the set to watch the excitement, but was arrested by the director to play a small role in the movie "Yu Jie Bing Qing". The first female of this movie is the superstar Li Mingwei's wife Lin Chuchu , and the second female is the "movie queen" Zhang Zhiyun , with a strong lineup.
Mulan styling
Li Xiaqing, who was on the screen for the first time, did not show any timidity, and her performances with flowing water won a lot of praise. Even Hu Die praised her as the sister Lin who fell from the sky, which is a feast for the eyes. And predicted that she will replace Lin Chuchu as a superstar.
So, Li Xiaqing, a student of Noble Girls' School, turned to be a movie star. Perhaps, this bizarre and unpredictable world is more interesting than being a well-mannered lady in the school, and it can place her lonely, jumping soul.
In "The West Chamber", she is a pretty little matchmaker who witnessed and participated in a love that broke through the feudal marriage system and bravely pursued my love;
She is the oppressed female artist Li Lingxiao, who is not succumbing to lewdness. Like her name, she is not a climbing flower, but for a free and independent soul;
In Mulan's ArmyShe was a female soldier who served her father in the army and killed the enemy bravely.
In an instant, she must have forgotten the difference between film and life. She regarded herself as the omnipotent female general, so that during the filming, the criminals robbed the safe and kidnapped the accountant. Ma Yangwhip, a man fought two gangsters, and then cooperated with the accountant to seize the car and ran to the police station.
The 17-year-old Li Xiaqing is a wealthy lady.
16-year-old Li Xiaqing went abroad with her father. She had read books and thought about making movies. In the end, she became a wife and mother.
Zheng Yuxiu, a well-known activist and barrister of the Republic of China, was Li Xiaqing's father's comrade-in-arms during the Revolution of 1911 and a fellow in Guangdong. The two knew their roots, so she introduced Li Xiaqing to her nephew Zheng Baifeng.
Zheng Baifeng is currently serving as the secretary of the International Court of the League of Nations. The young diplomat has a promising future. He is handsome, manly and patriotic. He is a good match no matter what.
In 1929, 17-year-old Li Xiaqing and 28-year-old Zheng Baifeng were married, and there was another dazzling couple in Geneva's diplomatic circle. The day and night banquets and social activities in the diplomatic circle made Li Xiaqing overwhelmed, but she quickly became handy.
She has given birth to a son and a daughter. The child has a nanny, the housework is done by someone, and the husband has a busy job. Li Xiaqing, who can only spend time chatting with her neighbors, suddenly cannot find the meaning of her existence.
At the same time, the situation changed suddenly. In 1931, when the September 18th Incident broke out, the Japanese army brazenly occupied and launched a war of aggression against China. Li Xiaqing, who was far abroad, was worried about the development of the domestic situation.In the current national crisis, what can she do? !
02
In 1933, Li Xiaqing, who was about to dry up in her marriage, accidentally watched an air show. When the plane roared up into the sky, she was throbbing and her blood was stretched.
She immediately signed up for the test flight at Geneva Cointrin International Airport. When she got into the shaky biplane , soaring into the blue sky and overlooking the earth, Li Xiaqing suddenly had an epiphany:
strong She wants to be a pilot! Not only is flying fresh and exciting, but more importantly, if the country has a strong air force and control of the air, it can effectively prevent and resist foreign aggression. She must do something that is beneficial to the country and the country, just like her grandparents and parents. People's affairs.
It seems that the dying little fish has been put into the sea. Li Xiaqing is like a new life. She has found the career she wants to pursue all her life and has been struggling for it all her life.
Li Xiaqing began to learn to fly systematically.
In October 1933, she was admitted to the Cointrin Flying School.
When applying for the test, the examiner asked her why she wanted to be a pilot. She said that because in the eyes of most people, flying has nothing to do with women, and I just want to do things that women don't do much. Did the examiner say that women in your country have deformed feet? Li Xiaqing said firmly: "I came here to let the world know that Chinese women can not only walk on the ground, but also fly in the sky."
August 1934,Li Xiaqing passed the flight and theory exams with excellent results, obtained the flight license issued by the Swiss Aviation Club, and became the first woman to obtain the flight license in Geneva;
1935, I feel deeply about myself Lack of knowledge in the aviation field, Li Xiaqing came to the world's first-class aviation school-Boeing Aviation School of the United States to study. This school is known for having a team of instructors composed of a number of ace pilots who participated in World War I.
This school does not admit female students, but Li Xiaqing's excellent grades and her sincerity touched the school and they admitted her exceptionally.
The cruelty and harshness of learning and flight training made Li Xiaqing, who was mentally prepared to come, unexpectedly. She finally cried out, but when the instructor asked, do you hope that because you are a female, we will lower your demands on you? Li Xiaqing shook her head resolutely.
Because Li Xiaqing is determined to use flight performances to arouse people's attention to aviation after returning from school, mastering flying skills is particularly important. To this end, she specifically proposed to the school to increase flying stunt courses, although she knew it was dangerous.
On May 15, 1935, during a flight training session, Li Xiaqing's seat belt broke and she fell out of the flight cabin. After the initial panic, she quickly calmed down, opened the parachute, and made an emergency landing on the sea. When she floated in the icy sea and became numb with her limbs and was about to lose consciousness, she was finally saved.
Afterwards, when the reporter asked her if she was scared, she said, “No, I was not scared at all, but it was exciting.”
The next day, Li Xiaqing boarded the plane again to continue aerobatic training.
November 1935,Li Xiaqing graduated with honors from the Boeing Aviation School and became the first female graduate of the school. At the same time, she obtained a U.S. flight license.
Li Xiaqing, who has studied, can't wait to return to China to show off her skills. But what awaited her was unexpected indifference.
03
During the Spring Festival of 1936, Li Xiaqing returned to Shanghai.
She joined the Chinese Aviation Association for the first time. Unexpectedly, her application for a domestic flight license was rejected because she was called "China's first female pilot" because she was a woman.
At the insistence of Li Xiaqing, the Nanjing government sent an air force pilot to evaluate her flight test. She passed the test with excellent results and obtained the first flight license issued by the National Government for women.
Li Xiaqing can finally soar under the blue sky of the motherland. She was also assigned a task to check the installation of civilian and military airports across the country. She is not tired of it.
October 24, 1936, was the most important day since Li Xiaqing became a flying professional. She flew alone in the air and was carried as the first female pilot in Chinese history to perform a flight show. Into the annals of history.
She is like a flying swallow in the blue sky, swooping and leaping from time to time, showing the charm of flying to the fullest. She hopes to ignite the people’s enthusiasm for aviation and attract more people to this seemingly dangerous but charming. Career.
At this point,A girl in the auditorium was impressed by her superb flying skills and unrestrained demeanor. Her name is Yan Yaqing and she works in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She finds Li Xiaqing and the two hit it off.
After that, Li Xiaqing did volunteer transportation flights for Southwest Airlines, and at the same time wrote a 200,000-word "Proposal for Reforming China's Aviation", hoping to promote the development of aviation with her own efforts.
She also assisted the China Aviation Association to create the China Flight Agency and became the only female instructor. In the spring of 1937, the first batch of students graduated, including 30 boys and 1 girl.
The career is in full swing, but Li Xiaqing's marriage has come to an end.
When she was still studying in the United States, her husband had already returned to China with her children. After Li Xiaqing returned to China, she was obsessed with aviation, but didn't care about being a steward. The differences between the two people grew, and the quarrels grew. When she was breathless, only flying made her feel free and unrestrained.
is simply a statement, one with two widths.
In July 1937, the beacon fire broke out in Lugou and quickly spread to Shanghai and Nanjing.
Before this, China and Japan had already started a contest in the sky.
At that time, the air force of the Japanese invaders was ten times that of China. Due to the late start of the Chinese Air Force, the number of pilots was extremely limited, and one less than one was sacrificed. In the first five months of the full outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, the Chinese Air Force had already sacrificed 103 pilots.
In fierce battle conditions, pilots generally only live for a few months. Among the four famous kings of the Air Force, three died within six months after the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War. Liu Cuigang died within three months, and the longest survived Li Guidan lived only 10 months.
Give me someone! Li Xiaqing's blood boiled.
She immediately found the Aviation Committee and asked to be incorporated into the Air Force squadron to participate in the battle. If you say that doing aeronautical stunts and training pilots was only indirect to serve the country, then becoming a fighter pilot is to directly kill the enemy for the country!
Li Xiaqing believes that with her excellent flying ability, she will definitely become a good combat pilot. Like her grandparents and fathers, she will go forward bravely for the country and the nation!
But unexpectedly, she was rejected again. Although the enemy is currently, although the pilot is urgently needed, she is still not allowed to board because she is a woman. Even if she retreated and asked to be a transport plane pilot, she was flatly refused.
And she learned that after the Lugou Bridge Incident, the flight club was taken over by the government, and boys were sent to aviation schools to continue learning military flying skills. Although Yang Jinxun, the only female student, had excellent grades, she could only send and receive at the Aviation Committee. .
At that moment, Li Xiaqing felt very weak and enthusiastic, but there was no way to serve the country. She turned to first aid to help the injured. But she thought, there must be something she can do as a pilot.
She thought of going overseas to collect donations for flying shows.
On the day she set off, she saw the wreckage of the first civil aircraft shot down by the Japanese since the start of the war — China Airlines "Guilin". Five Japanese fighter jets attacked it and shot and killed the survivors. Three people survived.
Seeing this unrecognizable plane with many bullet holes, Li Xiaqing's blood rushed.
The delicate and weak woman, the seemingly impossible expedition, is enough to arouse the hatred of war provokers around the world, arouse the attention and support of China's arduous resistance, and strive for more international social relief for refugees and injured compatriots And help.
I heard that Yan Yaqing, who had ignited her dreams when she saw her flying show, was about to end her flight study, and Li Xiaqing decided to invite her to fly together.
On March 23, 1939, after careful preparation, Shuangshu's flight around the United States began.
"New China Spirit" is the name of the mount borrowed by Li Xiaqing, and they plan to fly to 35 cities for fundraising speeches.
Every time they fly to a city, they give a fundraising speech. Yan Yaqing is a diplomat, and the speech is very contagious. The local people are all caught by these two petite oriental figures who walked out of the big plane. Fascinated.
Li Xiaqing has to say it several times a day, because there is only one thought in her mind: "China will definitely win.
On May 1, Yan Yaqing was in distress and crashed. Fortunately, she had to end the flight early. Although Li Xiaqing also encountered heavy fog and lost her way, she almost crashed because of exhausted fuel. But in the end she persisted with her excellent driving skills and good mental qualities.
On June 15th, it took three months and flew nearly 10,000 miles safely. They raised a total of 10,000 US dollars in donations, China Fiat currency is 20,000 yuan.
Of course, compared to the monetary gains, the greater gains of their flying is to show the Chinese people's style, promote justice, show the Chinese people's invincible determination, and at the same time, prove A woman can be a great pilot.
In March 1940, she started flying around South America to fundraise...
Someone asked her why she took the risk of doing these things At the time, she said:
"In the face of aggression, in order to save China from water and fire, we must endure even more suffering. And this is an adventure in itself. "
It’s just that Li Xiaqing didn’t know that when she was raising funds for refugees, her ex-husband had moved to Chongqing as the head of the European Department of the National Government. A pair of sons and daughters stayed in Shanghai. Japanese invaders would kill the children of high-ranking Chinese officials. The two children had to hide with the nanny.
Maybe, this is the suffering she must endure.
In the years to come,Li Xiaqing has been committed to flying, charity, and fundraising, using her own strength to raise the flag for the domestic war of resistance, propagandizing aviation to save the country, and arousing compatriots' attention to aviation.
Hong Kong returned in 1997. The 85-year-old Li Xiaqing attended as a VIP. When the five-star red flag fluttered, she had mixed feelings.
In 1998, 86-year-old Li Xiaqing passed away from acute pneumonia .
Concluding remarks
If someone asks Li Xiaqing any regrets in her life, I think it might be.
First, her desire to return to the embrace of the motherland, flying fighters or transport planes for the war of resistance has never been fulfilled.
Second, because of the resentment of her husband during the divorce, he has been reluctant to give Li Xiaqing the opportunity to get close to her children. The ignorance with the child is an unspeakable pain for the mother anyway.
In that era, society preferred women to be vases, good wives and mothers, and was not happy to give women opportunities to be heroes.
But not all women can be good wives, good mothers, but not everyone can be a good pilot, not all people can stand on the world stage, for the country and the nation Vocalize.
Let’s look at the responsibilities given to us by the times!
Reference: "Flying Ladies"
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