In the autumn of 1937, Soong Mei-ling and Australian consultant Duan Na went to Shanghai to visit the injured, and an accident occurred. Soong Mei-ling's rib fracture left the sequelae of frequent pain.
Since then, her health has deteriorated. Not only did she suffer from long-term insomnia, but she also suffered from sinusitis, , toothache and urticaria, and her mental weakness.
1942, Soong Mei-ling, who could no longer bear the bad health, decided to return to the American continent to treat his illness and seek US military and economic assistance.
In the car heading to the hospital, Soong Mei-ling smiled and told the consultant of the then US President Roosevelt : "I have no other purpose except treatment and rest."
But in fact, shortly after she finished saying this, Soong Mei-ling was invited to live in White House and had close social interaction with the Roosevelt family.
Roosevelt's wife commented on Soong Mei-ling: "While she was living in the White House, I saw another side. While she asked the United States to give her husband support, lobbying Americans to participate in China's anti-Japanese war; while wearing gorgeous clothes and frequently changing bedding, it was really hard to understand."
Just as the American media was puzzled, "Why Soong Mei-ling has so many mink coats", Roosevelt's wife was also very curious why Soong Mei-ling brought silk bedding.
Even if you only go to bed for a few minutes, you still require you to change the pillow case, sheet and silk quilt immediately. You can change it frequently for about 5 to 8 times a day, which is really too extravagant.
In this regard, Kong Lingkan, who was Soong Mei-ling's secretary at the time, explained that the reason why Soong Mei-ling was wasted was her skin disease.
Song Mei-ling is allergic to cotton fabrics. As long as she uses it, she will be red and swollen all over and itchy, which will affect her normal life.
The doctor told Soong Mei-ling that this disease is difficult to cure. If she wants to avoid recurrence, she must change the silk sheets frequently.
But even though Kong Lingkan's words made most people who question Soong Mei-ling understand her "difficult" situation, it still couldn't hide the fact that Soong Mei-ling's luxury life was.
People often say that life is inseparable from four things: food, clothing, housing and transportation. So, what is Soong Mei-ling's "food, clothing, housing and transportation" like?
01, luxury life starts with eating: her eating habits tend to be American, health and health are her food selection standards
As we all know, Soong Mei-ling came to the United States when she was young and lived in the United States for a long time. Because of her eating habits tend to be Americans, her meals must have vegetable salads.
Perhaps this is why Soong Mei-ling has been very knowledgeable about eating vegetables.
Her personal medical officer later told others that Soong Mei-ling said that although cooked vegetables are conducive to digestion, their internal cells and tissue structure have long been damaged during the heating process, and their nutritional value cannot be compared with raw vegetables.
For example, spinach is a must-eat vegetable for Soong Mei-ling. Soong Mei-ling thinks that spinach contains a lot of protein , which is rich in a variety of vitamins and minerals, which is beneficial to health.
As she grows older, Soong Mei-ling spends more and more on diet.
In order to thoroughly understand which vegetables are good for her health, Soong Mei-ling specifically invited an internal medicine physician from the Veterans General Hospital to serve as an nutritionist . Following the advice of the nutritionist, he started to eat more celery.
The reason is that celery is the most nutritious among Chinese vegetables. It not only has iron and multivitamins that other vegetables do not have, but also can prevent blood vessel sclerosis, which is of great help to Soong Mei-ling's neurasthenia.
In addition to asking the chef to cook a dish of shredded celery every day, Soong Mei-ling also has a habit of drinking milk and ginseng soup.
In Chiang Kai-shek The memoirs of an adjutant in his early years, from the 1930s to 1940s, Soong Mei-ling's breakfast was yogurt, milk, white bread and salad, etc. Soong Mei-ling, who had not realized that "can't be able to nourish" at the moment, always felt that the more she drank milk and ginseng soup, the more she would be helpful to her health.
She rarely looks to focus on "ordinary" food.
Except for one time, Soong Mei-ling suddenly tasted pickled vegetables and fell in love with the refreshing and delicious taste.
It was the Lantern Festival in 1947. Soong Mei-ling invited her elder sister Song Ailing to visit Confucius Temple and booked a banquet at Liuhuachun Restaurant.
The chefs in the restaurant are very troubled. How to cook dishes to meet Soong Mei-ling’s “light” requirements and win the love of those ladies and ladies who have tasted all kinds of delicacies?
After some thought, several chefs finally served steam pot chicken , rock sugar tremella and other dishes, and attached a plate of sesame oil mixed with pickled vegetables with rice porridge.
Who knew that Soong Mei-ling did not like the hard dishes cooked by the chef, but instead fell in love with the plate of pickled vegetables. not only called the chef to explain the way to pickled vegetables before leaving, but also took away a small jar.
The next day, I came to buy two large tanks of pickled vegetables, which made people sigh. As expected, I am used to eating "big fish and big meat", and only "ordinary side dishes" can catch the eyes of "Naughter Lady".
Song Mei-ling, like most children of the same age, prefers chocolate and other sweets.
But when she was over fifty years old, sweets became a taboo for her to maintain her figure. In desperation, Soong Mei-ling, who was born with beauty, could only give up her preferences and "invite" sweets out of her refrigerator.
In order to please Soong Mei-ling, people around him specially asked the medical officer to come up with a temporary solution: replaces sweets with fruits to supplement the sugar that Soong Mei-ling lacks in her body.
However, Soong Mei-ling's demand for fruits is beyond the reach of ordinary people.
She will ask the servants to purchase mango, banana, star fruit and other fruits from different places, and then carefully compare which region's fruit is beneficial to her skin, so that she can eat it with confidence.
For example, some information shows that Soong Mei-ling’s favorite fruit is watermelon produced in Tainan. has a delicious taste and is rich in a lot of watermelon juice. It can help Soong Mei-ling drive away the heat when the weather is hot.
Another example, after coming to Taiwan, Soong Mei-ling often prepared kiwi , because this fruit produced in the subtropical region is rich in vitamins, which can keep Soong Mei-ling fair and wrinkle-free skin.
apples are also a must-eat fruit Soong Mei-ling every day, and the reason is also related to health preservation.
In the past, when Soong Mei-ling was in New York, she accidentally met a medical expert named Winston Lord . He told Soong Mei-ling that eating apples also has some knowledge.
First of all, apples contain "flavonoids" that prevent cardiac atherosclerosis and are the best "disinfectant" for cleaning blood vessels.
Secondly, apple can prevent cholesterol oxidation, prevent platelets from coagulating into blocks, and reduce the risk of stroke and heart disease .
Finally, Apple can balance blood pressure and relieve constipation.
Winston Lord's words made Soong Mei-ling realize that turns out that an ordinary apple will have such great health benefits and knowledge.
She immediately took the doctor's advice and became more fond of Apple.
However, the "ordinary" apple is only a rare "ordinary" in Soong Mei-ling's life. Her diet is so much "unusual" food.
is like the ginseng mentioned above, and it has become an oatmeal that replaces milk and becomes a "must-have" for Soong Mei-ling's breakfast.
The oatmeal that Soong Mei-ling eats comes from Southeast Asian countries and regions such as Singapore and Thailand. Each time she is transported to Taiwan Island , she will always spend a lot of foreign exchange fees.
But Soong Mei-ling and Chiang Kai-shek and his wife don’t care, because oatmeal is obviously beneficial to their health compared to the price.
Therefore, before Chiang Kai-shek's death, Soong Mei-ling had been eating such "expensive" oatmeal, which shows her luxury of eating.
After all, how can ordinary people just like Soong Mei-ling, choosing food only cares about the "nutritional value" and not considering the "price".
02, the pursuit of makeup and clothing: She is a well-known "cheongsam fetish". She cares about her own "outer packaging" all her life and simply talks about "eating", and then it is naturally "clothing".
Song Mei-ling is a well-known "cheongsam fetish". In the bedroom of Soong Mei-ling, the Shilin official residence in Taiwan, has two wardrobes that are specially collected with excellent quality and she prefers. One of them is the black velvet cheongsam she once wore.
There is a wardrobe that places ordinary clothes, which are of many types and large in number, but only a few pieces won the favor of Soong Mei-ling, and she has never worn more than 90% of the remaining clothes.
In Soong Mei-ling's long life, what she disliked the most was the more exposed female clothing or long-legged trousers. She believed that women should pursue different clothing characteristics from men, so she rarely seems to wear trousers.
Every major festivals, senior officials who are familiar with Soong Mei-ling always give her precious satin fabrics politely as gifts. Over time, Soong Mei-ling has accumulated a lot of high-end satin fabrics that they can't use.
She will choose the one she likes more, and then hand it over to a special tailor to make a cheongsam that suits her preferences and fits her.
She is very particular about wearing cheongsams: wear light colors in summer, suitable for slightly darker colors in autumn, and wear dark blue or dark green cheongsams in winter.
All year round, Soong Mei-ling will change different cheongsams according to the changes in the seasons.
Especially when attending a rally where foreigners attend, she will choose more suitable clothing according to the occasion, rather than just choosing in the precious direction.
A cheongsam. Generally speaking, Soong Mei-ling only wears it once or twice, especially when the weather is hot, she will change one piece a day. If the cheongsam accidentally gets sweat stains or mud stains, she will immediately take them off and replace them with a new cheongsam.
Whether it is making cheongsams, daily management and management of cheongsams, Soong Mei-ling has designated candidates to specialize in these matters.
In addition to the wardrobe where cheongsam is placed, there is also a quaint leather box that looks a bit mysterious in Soong Mei-ling's bedroom.
that is her "jewellery box", which contains some business treasures that Soong Mei-ling would store for a long time. jewelry is mostly pearl or diamond-set jewelry, and pure diamond jewelry is rarely seen.
Soong Mei-ling's personal female official said that Soong Mei-ling pays great attention to makeup etiquette, but she doesn't seem to want others to see her "true appearance". Most of her 100-year-old life uses makeup to meet people.
After washing up every morning, Soong Mei-ling will apply some LOTION oil on her face, then scrub her eyebrows, lipstick, and comb her hair.
The pigment of her thrush is very special. It is said that it was passed down from the palace and was burned into ashes with paper and used as thrush paint.
Before going to bed at night, Soong Mei-ling will use makeup remover to remove makeup on her face, then take a white towel and wipe off the makeup remover and residual powder until the white towel is covered with a layer of white powder, and then wash her face with warm water.
It can be said that Soong Mei-ling really pays great attention to her "outer packaging" and does not allow herself to have any "inappropriate" in front of others, even if it is her husband and attendants.
03, and she also has her own priorities for living and transportation: her residence prefers elegant environment, and her travel podium is getting bigger and bigger
Looking at Soong Mei-ling's life, she will find that she has changed many residences.
When she was a teenager, she lived with her parents and relatives and had no choice but to ignore it.
The first house she bought in her life was a house she bought after she married Chiang Kai-shek.
house is located on the current Dongping Road in Shanghai. It is a villa with French characteristics. It has two floors high in floors, with winding paths and secluded rooms. Chiang Kai-shek specially named it " Ailu " according to Soong Mei-ling's preferences.
But Soong Mei-ling and Chiang Kai-shek rarely come to "Ai Lu" to live. After the Xi'an Incident , Soong Mei-ling thought about it again and again, and finally endured the pain of selling "Ai Lu" and moved to Nanjing to live completely.
In Nanjing, the most in line with Soong Mei-ling's preference is "小月 ". This name was written by Soong Mei-ling, located on Huangpu Road, in the 小月 school of the Kuomintang Central Army hosted by Chiang Kai-shek.
Soong Mei-ling chose this house because of Chiang Kai-shek.
She thought that if she still lived in Tangshan, Chiang Kai-shek might encounter some accidents in daily contacts. It would be better to live in the city directly and be in the escort of soldiers.
The architectural style of "Qilu" is more Italian and has a similar pattern to Soong Mei-ling's residence in Jiaerye Ai Road, Shanghai. The interior of
is modeled as a large room with a small room in "Ailu", separates the bathroom and the kitchen, and installs a flush toilet made of porcelain jars imported from the United States.
Compared with the rest of the residences, the "Meiling Palace" located in Zijinshan is more well known.
Its construction was facilitated by Soong Mei-ling. Not only the small buildings, car garages, and the residences of the Guard Brigade designated by Soong Mei-ling, but all the designs are in European style. The toilets, makeup mirrors, combs and disinfectants for Soong Mei-ling were all airlifted from Hong Kong, and the decoration was very luxurious.
Lushan 's " Meilu " was not built by Chiang Kai-shek, but the quiet environment is more in line with Soong Mei-ling's preferences. is that every summer, she will come here to escape the summer heat, and regard this place as an absolute forbidden area closed to the outside world.
When Jiang and Song came to Taiwan, Soong Mei-ling found a comfortable residence in Yangmingshan , which is far away from the hustle and winding paths. There is a hot spring that allows Soong Mei-ling to enjoy it every day, alleviate her many diseases and take care of her body.
As for Shilin Official Residence, it is the residence where Soong Mei-ling lived in Taiwan for the longest time.
From the outside to the inside, it was designed by Jiang and Song and his wife himself. The courtyard was Song Meiling's most favored elegance, so even if professionals told Jiang and Song and his wife that the Shilin official residence was not suitable for the two to choose a residence.
They still insist on spending a lot of money to repair this house, turning it into a luxurious and luxurious "Presidential Palace".
Of course, Soong Mei-ling's travel also pays great attention to "popularity", and as Chiang Kai-shek's internal status in KMT continues to improve, her travel tools are also increasing.
From the original ordinary cars, carriages, and human sedans to ships and aircraft.
Especially after arriving in Taiwan, Soong Mei-ling's pursuit of travel comfort and pomp is getting bigger and bigger. Even if she is just an ordinary trip, she will still be "noisy and bustle". Without several vehicles accompanying her, and without the personal protection of bulletproof car , Soong Mei-ling will never go out.
Her personal bodyguard officer later revealed to outsiders: "Every time the old lady (Song Mei-ling) traveled, she would always keep the guards and the staff of the official residence's internal affairs department busy to the point of being overwhelmed... Her travels were almost comparable to the grand occasion of the Qing Dynasty Emperor Qianlong's Jiangnan ."
and later moved to the United States to live, Soong Mei-ling was still very concerned about the travel scene and was unwilling to "travel together" with ordinary people.
She seems to be always intentionally maintaining her external mystery and maintaining the nobleness of "Naughter Lady". Even if she pays more manpower, material resources and funds for it, she will do whatever she wants.
References:
"Three Sisters of Song and Chronic Skin Diseases"
"Deciphering the Code of Soong Mei-ling's Longevity"
