Jinling Illusory Dream - Li Zongren in 1949

Author: Zhang Qiushi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-01-01
Features: As the million-strong People's Liberation Army crossed the Yangtze River southward, Li Zongren finally ascended the long-desired "presidential" throne. However, Chiang Kai-shek did not retreat in body but remained active in spirit, making Li Zongren's "acting president" a mere puppet. During his tenure as "acting president," the Nationalist government moved from Nanjing to Guangzhou, from Guangzhou to Chongqing, from Chongqing to Chengdu, and finally to Taipei. He was constrained by others and could achieve nothing. His attempts to negotiate with the Communist Party were only to buy time, stabilize the situation, secure American aid, and plot a "North-South Dynasty." In the end, it was a futile effort, even a brief dream could not be realized. In his conflict with Chiang Kai-shek, he sought refuge in one place, lingered in Guilin, allied with Guangdong to resist Chiang, fled to Yunnan, and eventually had to fly to the United States, adrift in a foreign land. He neither urged Chiang to step down nor relinquished his position, but ultimately found himself in a foreign country, unable to escape the fate of being "impeached." His political destiny was tied to the dying regime, and his New Guangxi clique ultimately became victims of the Jiang family dynasty.