In 1937, in the Nanjing National Government office, Chiang Kai-shek threw an Air Force fighter statistics report directly on the face of the Kuomintang Air Force Director Zhou Zhirou, and then angrily cursed: "Mother Xipi, you are the Air Force Director How did you do it? Where did all the 80 million military dollars go?"
Faced with Chairman Jiang's scolding, Zhou Zhirou responded submissively: "He is incompetent in his position, please punish him."
Chiang Kai-shek knew Zhou Zhirou, director of the Air Force, very well. He knew that the other person was not a money-grubbing person. This time, the Air Force's military expenditures were short of money, and it must be someone else.
Chiang Kai-shek
Thinking of this, Chiang Kai-shek shouted: "Call Dai Li to me. I want to investigate this matter strictly and find out who embezzled the party-state's military expenditures."
Faced with Chiang Kai-shek's attitude of getting to the bottom of it , instead of being happy at all, Zhou Zhirou quickly stopped and said: "Principal, no, no, it's better not to investigate this matter."
So, how did this deficit case happen? Why did Zhou Zhirou prevent Chiang Kai-shek from conducting a strict investigation?
Zhou Zhirou
National military expenditure, shortfall in corruption
As early as the Republic of China, China had its own air force. However, due to the backward domestic industrial level and serious lack of economic development, our country can only rely on foreign imports of aircraft.
In modern warfare, the importance of aircraft is self-evident. Chiang Kai-shek attached great importance to the development of the Chinese Air Force and invested a large amount of military expenditures to help expand the number of the Chinese Air Force.
After the September 18th Incident, the Nationalist Government realized that there would be a war between China and Japan. Therefore, under the advice of some knowledgeable people, the Nationalist Government began to set up German mechanics and purchase a large number of advanced weapons.
Aircraft
After the Xi'an Incident , Chiang Kai-shek changed his previous policy of "Anti-Japanese National United Front " and accepted the Chinese Communist Party's Anti-Japanese National United Front . In order to defeat the invasion of Japanese fascist forces, Chiang Kai-shek allocated huge military expenditures. , asked Air Force Director Zhou Zhirou to expand the number of air force to about 1,000 aircraft.
But in 1937, Chiang Kai-shek saw the Air Force establishment report submitted by Zhou Zhirou and found that the total number of aircraft in our country was only 305, and the international price of purchasing a new aircraft was about US$120,000, which meant that the original At least more than 80 million U.S. dollars in military expenditures were lost.
Seeing that the country was facing life and death, and the Sino-Japanese war could break out at any time, at this moment, there were still people who dared to hold back the government, and Chiang Kai-shek instantly became furious.
Zhou Zhirou
Air Force accountability, real power figure
Although Zhou Zhirou was submissive in front of Chiang Kai-shek, he also had real talent and learning, and had very deep personal qualifications. Zhou Zhirou graduated from Baoding Military Academy of China. She was one of the first teachers (instructors) of Huangpu Military Academy. She participated in two Northern Expeditions and experienced the Central Plains War. During this period, she also made great contributions and gained deep recognition. Gained Chiang Kai-shek's trust.
In 1931, Zhou Zhirou led his army to participate in the encirclement and suppression campaign against the Red Army . However, he suffered several defeats in succession. From then on, he was ashamed and never dared to go to the battlefield easily again.
Two years later, Zhou Zhirou took the initiative to apply to Chiang Kai-shek to conduct military inspections abroad and learn foreign air force technology, hoping to take revenge. After more than a year of inspection, Zhou Zhirou returned to the Nanjing area and proposed a plan to build an air force to Chiang Kai-shek.
The advanced concepts brought back from abroad by Zhou Zhirou and Chiang Kai-shek
Zhou Zhirou did play a certain positive role and formulated an excellent program for the construction of the Chinese Air Force.
In 1934, Chiang Kai-shek established the National Aviation Construction Association, with himself serving as president and chairman of the committee, and appointed Zhou Zhirou as director of the Air Force.
In the subsequent changes in the Chinese Air Force, Zhou Zhirou's position was very solid and he always firmly held the position of Air Force Director. But the scenery on the surface may not be true, and Chiang Kai-shek's suspicion was quite serious.
Song Meiling
No matter how much he values Zhou Zhirou, she is still an outsider after all.Chiang Kai-shek's rise to power was not smooth sailing. He experienced numerous intrigues and intrigues, and he did not dare to trust others easily.
In order to firmly control the Air Force in his own hands, Chiang Kai-shek appointed his wife, Soong Meiling, as the Secretary-General of the Aviation Committee. The meaning was to monitor Zhou Zhirou's movements and prevent the other party from controlling the power of the Air Force.
In fact, Chiang Kai-shek could not achieve his current status without the help of the Kong and Song families. Before marrying Soong Meiling, Chiang Kai-shek had already been married twice, and his first wife gave birth to his eldest son Chiang Ching-kuo .
Song Meiling and Chiang Kai-shek
The combination of Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling is more like a political marriage, and Soong Meiling herself has first-rate appearance and emotional intelligence.
The three Song sisters were influential figures during the Republic of China. Their father Song Jiashu was a businessman with outstanding vision. He did not have the slightest thought of favoring boys over girls. Instead, he sent his daughters to new schools to receive Western education and treated them well. High hopes.
Soong Meiling's eldest sister Soong Ailing was proficient in five languages. She served as Mr. Sun Yat-sen's secretary and was very good at making money. This image was once ridiculed by the " New York Times". It was also because of her habit of loving money as much as her life that Soong Ailing married a businessman. Kongxiangxi .
Soong Ching Ling and Sun Yat-sen
Soong Meiling's second sister Soong Ching Ling loved revolution and married Sun Yat-sen, the founding father of the Republic of China. She made important contributions to China's revolutionary cause. She was a revolutionary pioneer who was dedicated to the public and one of the greatest women in modern history. one.
Unlike her two sisters, Soong Meiling prefers power. It is said that the first meeting between Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling was not a good one. Soong Ailing knew about her younger sister’s ambition, so she directly told her sister that Chiang Kai-shek’s future was limitless, which ultimately led to the marriage between the two. marriage.
Song Meiling once envied her sister Song Qingling very much. The honor of first lady was what she dreamed of. After reaching this goal, Song Meiling gradually no longer wanted to be a vase. She began to experience the taste of power, and she wanted more and more things.
Song Meiling
She was happy for a long time when Chiang Kai-shek put her in the position of Secretary General of the Aviation Commission. The Air Force is a brand-new branch of the military and is an important weapon of the country. The title of First Lady and the support of her family make Soong Meiling qualified to control the entire Air Force.
The reason why Chiang Kai-shek gave Soong Meiling so much power had a lot to do with Soong Meiling's own abilities. Song Meiling visited the United States many times, established good diplomatic relations with the National Government, and helped Chiang Kai-shek attract a large amount of economic assistance.
During the Xi'an Incident, Soong Meiling was also running around, inviting diplomatic pressure from Western countries, warning individual ambitious people not to use force, and trying her best to protect Chiang Kai-shek's personal safety.
Soong Meiling
Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling have experienced many important events together, and the trust between the two parties has reached its peak. But those who are close to Zhu are red, and those who are close to Mo are black. Chiang Kai-shek is accustomed to dictatorial rule, and under his influence, Soong Meiling also gradually took control of the power of the Air Force.
So, as the actual controller of the Nationalist Government’s Air Force, what important measures did Soong Meiling take?
Soong Meiling
The Air Force built aircraft and suffered a large deficit
In the early days of Soong Meiling taking office, she repeatedly called on the Chinese people to donate money and materials to build the latest aircraft manufacturing plants to help China strengthen its air force. On the surface, this is a good thing. .
It was precisely because of Song Meiling's actions that Zhou Zhirou confidently promised Chiang Kai-shek that he would use huge military expenditures to help the Chinese Air Force expand the number of fighter planes to about 1,000 in the shortest possible time.
However, after waiting for a while, Zhou Zhirou discovered something was wrong. He only saw a large amount of money being invested in the factory, but did not see the plane coming out. Zhou Zhirou is a veteran in the officialdom, and he still doesn't understand the twists and turns involved.
Chiang Kai-shek. Soong Meiling.Zhou Zhirou
But Soong Meiling is the first lady after all, and she is also Chiang Kai-shek's pillow. If he offends her, his career will come to an end, so he will continue to turn a blind eye and protect Soong Meiling on the surface. Interests.
After Chiang Kai-shek realized these things, he also understood Zhou Zhirou's helplessness. It was not that his subordinates were not doing enough, but that the person next to him was eating empty wages. Chiang Kai-shek angrily approached Soong Meiling and asked her where the money for the aircraft was spent.
Faced with this problem, Soong Meiling was not nervous at all, but poured "bitter water" on Chiang Kai-shek. According to her, instead of buying parts to assemble the aircraft yourself, it is better to buy finished fighter jets directly from foreign countries. Otherwise, by the time our country's aircraft leave the factory, foreign countries have already produced new fighter jets, and we will still be lagging behind.
Soong Meiling
As for the money to buy the airplane, all the money was kept privately by Soong Meiling. When the latest fighter jets appear in the United States, she will use the money to purchase them.
After hearing this lie with huge loopholes, Chiang Kai-shek, who was known for his shrewdness, did not know what to say. He knew very well that once the money fell into Soong Meiling's pocket, there would be no chance to take it out again.
In fact, when he learned that the matter involved Soong Meiling, Chiang Kai-shek was already riding a tiger and was unable to get off. No matter what excuse Soong Meiling gave, he would choose to use the slope to get off the donkey. Chiang Kai-shek needs the support of the Song family , and it is impossible for him to fall out with Soong Meiling.
Chiang Ching-kuo’s anti-corruption campaign
This was once again reflected in the Kuomintang’s internal anti-corruption campaign in 1948.
At that time, the Kuomintang issued legal currency gold yuan coupons, which caused price inflation and the currency became like waste paper. Businessmen hoarded goods and deliberately disrupted the market. In order to change this situation, Chiang Kai-shek's son Chiang Ching-kuo personally took action and went to Shanghai to fight against the "big tiger".
Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling
Chiang Kai-shek originally supported his son, but a phone call from Soong Meiling caused Chiang Kai-shek to suspend his son's actions. The reason is that the "big tigers" are all his own. Chiang Kai-shek needs the support of families like the Song family and the Kong family. Chiang Ching-kuo's actions can only end in vain.
In fact, the Air Force's deficit has been traced for a long time. In October 1936, in order to celebrate Chiang Kai-shek's 50th birthday, Zhou Zhirou specially painted a batch of old aircraft and handed them over to Air Force pilots as new aircraft for demonstrations. , but at that time, no one realized that the war was coming back so quickly.
Air force pilots
Air force fought to the death, and soldiers shed blood
A year later, the Anti-Japanese War broke out in full force. The Chinese people chanted the slogan "One inch of mountains and rivers, one inch of blood, one hundred thousand young people and one hundred thousand soldiers" and resisted desperately. It is difficult to cultivate talents in the Air Force. It can even be said that an excellent pilot is more valuable than an airplane. In that special era, those who could become Air Force pilots were all highly educated and wealthy children.
They could have had superior living conditions and even used money to avoid this cruel war, but they did not do so. All 305 Chinese fighter planes took off. They were on the Songhu battlefield, North China Plain, , Xuzhou battlefield. , swaying their whole body's blood wantonly, they practiced the words they learned in school.
"Our bodies, aircraft and bombs will perish together with the enemy's warship positions."
Chinese Air Force
In just one year, all Chinese Air Force pilots were killed or injured. At the end of 1937, when the Japanese army bombed the urban area of Chengdu, a Chinese instructor took the initiative to take off to meet the enemy. The reason was: All my students died in the battle, and now it is my turn as a teacher.
Although time will pass, history has recorded it all. We will always remember the great contribution those air force pilots made to the Anti-Japanese War.
We affirmed the determination of Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling to persist in the war of resistance, but if there had not been that huge air force deficit case, perhaps the war of resistance against Japan would have presented a completely different picture?
Air Force pilot
As the actual person in charge of the Air Force of the Republic of China, Soong Meiling had an unshirkable responsibility in the Anti-Japanese War. If she had not embezzled the money and honestly expanded the Air Force to 1,000 fighter planes, maybe the Anti-Japanese War would not have happened. So many innocent people died.
However, there are not so many possibilities in the world. Soong Meiling embezzled the money after all, and all the Chinese Air Force pilots died in battle.
A few years later, the four major families of the Kuomintang headed by Chiang Kai-shek remained stubborn. During the Liberation War, they committed a lot of corruption and eventually lost the support of the people. They were driven out of the mainland by the Chinese People's Liberation Army and went to Taiwan to continue to survive.
