1935: Crisis Reappears

Author: Li Jifeng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-04-01
Features: This book is one of the "Picture Chronicle of 20th Century China" series. On New Year's Day in 1935, Peking University professor Hu Shih arrived in Lingnan, visiting Guangdong and Guangxi. Like many other travelers, his impressions of these two provinces were vastly different. To oppose Chiang Kai-shek in Nanjing, the authorities in Guangdong and Guangxi had remained united as brothers. When the Red Army passed through, their fear was not the Red Army charging ahead but the Nanjing troops following behind.
Two months after retreating from the Central Soviet Region, the Central Red Army suffered an unprecedented defeat. At the Battle of Xiangjiang, even those who witnessed the tragic scene of the Red Army's blood staining the Xiangjiang River still felt the pain deeply. In January 1935, in Zunyi, Guizhou, the Red Army commanders could no longer tolerate such heavy casualties and supported Mao Zedong's return to power. Mao's return was later recognized as a major turning point for the Red Army, the Communist Party, and even the fate of China. But at the time, no miracle occurred. To escape the pursuit, the poorly clothed and malnourished Red Army had to seek survival in the increasingly desolate southwestern and northwestern directions. In that region, their enemies were more like the harsh tests of nature—hunger, cold, grasslands, and other factors all threatened the ever-decreasing ranks of the army.
In 1935, the Nanjing government's pro-Japanese policy was unforgettable, but Japan showed no mercy in cutting off Nanjing's lifeline. On May 17, Japan first decided to elevate the diplomatic relations between the two countries from the level of chargé d'affaires to ambassadorial level, followed by Britain, the United States, Germany, and others. However, as the Chinese people were just beginning to smile, the crisis in North China arrived, followed by the silver crisis, and everyone was immediately torn between laughter and sorrow, sensing impending disaster.
The Nanjing government's pro-Japanese policy in 1935 was unforgettable, but Japan showed no mercy in cutting off Nanjing's lifeline.