Instalment 55 (1913)
Scene 1: At Yuan Shikai’s office
Yuan is preparing the military to fight back Sun Yatsen’s second revolution. For this, he summons five commanders of the Beiyang Army. First, Yuan gives them some money and apologises that they have had to suffer from the financial shortages since the establishment of the Republic. Then he quotes an old proverb: the troops are kept for years in order to employ them for one hour. Now, he says, the hour has arrived in which his commanders may gain merit for their country. He wants his troops to attack Sun from five different directions. Duan Qirui’s troops are supposed to remain in Beijing. Then Duan asks for the details of Yuan’s plans; i.e. why Yuan is only sending five troops, while Sun is leading the second revolution from fifteen different provinces towards Beijing. Yuan answers relaxed that five troops should be enough since there are only three provinces – Jiangsu, Anhui and Jiangxi – which will follow Sun’s call to arms. The support of all other provinces, Yuan states, can be bought!
Scene 2: At Sun Yatsen’s residence
Sun Yatsen’s secretary informs him that only two provinces have answered his call to arms. Sun is enraged. He asks about the situation of the other provinces. Most of the provincial military governors have replied that they “are not sufficiently prepared” for a second revolution. The Military Governor of Guangdong, for example, explains that he does not have full command over his army. In Yunnan, Military Governor Cai E states that stability should be the most important aspect during the founding of a republic. As long as Yuan is not attempting to ascend the Imperial Throne, one should be patient and not act hastily. Sun is very disappointed. He is sad that the discipline of the Guomindang is so poor and that they have lost control over almost all of the important members. At this very moment, his secretary reports that the Beiyang General Zhang Xun’s troops are outside the gates of Nanjing. Sun insists on going to Nanjing to lead the second revolution in person. Huang Xing tries to calm him down and keep him from going to Nanjing because he knows that Sun is not experienced in military strategy.
Scene 3: In Nanjing
The second revolution is underway and Zhang Xun leads his troops to attack Nanjing. As a war legitimisation, Sun Yatsen’s manifest against Yuan Shikai (Tao Yuan xiwen) is read out: since the foundation of the Republic, Yuan has not kept to the stipulations of the constitution; he ordered assassinations of revolutionaries; freely took up loans from abroad; made arbitrary decisions and considered the people his servants and the democracy his enemy. He has thus proven himself unworthy of the people’s trust. Therefore, he needs to be eliminated!
While Yuan Shikai is playing chess (as a metaphor for war), Duan Qirui enters and informs him that the second revolution has already failed. A telegram sent by Zhang Xun has brought the news: Sun Yatsen has fled. Yuan now orders a search for Sun. He believes that even if he personally does not wish to kill Sun, he nevertheless must die.
Sun Yatsen and Huang Xing are hiding at a quay, waiting for help. They intend to escape to Japan and prepare a third revolution in exile. A few minutes later, a man arrives to hand them a message from the Japanese ambassador. Sun and his comrades are supposed to hide on a ship and flee to Taiwan, not to Japan directly. Since Yuan has issued a government search warrant for Sun, Japan is unable to officially grant Sun exile.
While Cai E, the Military Governor of Yunnan and former disciple of Liang Qichao, is waiting to be admitted to an audience with Yuan Shikai at the presidential residence, he is order to change his clothes and instead wear a set of clothes which Yuan has prepared for him. (Yuan seems to fear hidden weapons. This alludes to the first emperor of China, Qin Shihuangdi, who was several times attacked by visitors bearing weapons in their clothes.) During the audience, Yuan asks Cai why he remained neutral during the second revolution. Cai answers that Yuan “did not command him to participate” in the war actions. Thus, his neutrality was a false reassurance for the “enemy” and he was waiting for Yuan’s orders to attack on surprise. This answer exceeds Yuan’s expectations since he had thought Cai was one of Sun’s followers. He thus orders Cai to remain in Beijing to support Duan Qirui.
Liang Qichao and other Members of Parliament are talking about politics. Suddenly, the unexpected visitor, Yuan Shikai, enters. In a conversation with Liang, Yuan makes him believe that he is tolerant and willing to deal with Sun and the Guomindang fairly. Although Sun and his Guomindang carried out a second revolution, Yuan claims that he continues to respect Sun. Therefore, he does not intend to ban the Guomindang from the Parliament. He claims that he is very concerned about the country. What bothers him most at the moment, though, are the elections for a regular President. He asks Liang if it is possible to elect a President first, and only then draft the constitution. While Liang is considering his question, Yuan contends that this is merely a question of order. In order to pull Liang further onto his side, Yuan introduces his son Yuan Keding to Liang and tells Keding to call Liang his “Tai laoshi” (the father’s teacher). Thus, Yuan Shikai declares Liang a nominal member of his family and thinks that Liang now has to agree with him in every point. Liang, in fact, now cites the example of George Washington in the USA who was first elected President; the American Constitution, in turn, was drafted only after this. Since Yuan likes to style himself as a second George Washington, Liang’s allusion makes him feel especially proud. Finally, Liang agrees to try and convince the other representatives to accept the reversed order.
Sun Yatsen has entered Japan unofficially despite the ambassador’s cautions. He is ill, suffers from high fever and his comrades are very worried about him. When a young girl enters his lodgings, Huang Xing thinks she is the maid who takes care of Sun. The girl says that it is necessary to find a better accommodation for Sun so that he can recuperate faster.
Sun Yatsen is well again and is reading passages from the Shibao to Huang Xing. The newspaper reports that many Guomindang representatives have capitulated to Yuan. Meanwhile, the girl is hanging up clothes and Sun asks who she is for she does not look like a maid. Finally, he asks her directly. Instead of replying to his question, she shows Sun a fountain pen and tells him that she does not want to accept any presents from him since her father has told her that Sun is very poor. Suddenly, Sun realises that she is Song Qingling, his friend Charly Song’s second daughter. (Many years ago, Sun gave Song Qingling this fountain pen as a present.) She claims that after she finished her studies, her father sent her to Japan to be Sun’s secretary.
Sun Yatsen and his followers have assembled. The topic of the meeting is: The insights gained from the second revolution for the reorganisation of the Party. Sun believes that the Party has lost discipline since the foundation of the Republic. This also led to the defeat of the second revolution which ruined the harvest of the whole Republican revolution. Therefore he has written new party statutes to revive the revolution. This stirs an argument between Sun and Huang Xing who does not agree with some of the points in the new statutes. Huang Xing’s central point of criticism is that the statutes lay down that the Party members are supposed to swear an oath to Sun Yatsen as their leader. Huang believes that this is an undemocratic centralisation of power and thus autocracy. Nobody could force him to change his views regarding equality and freedom. Moreover, the new statutes regulate a hierarchy of members which leads also to differences in power and influence. This, Huang contends, is also not appropriate. Song Qing-ling takes part in the conference as Sun’s secretary and she repeatedly glances at the men who are discussing with concern. In the end they do not reach a consensus and Sun leaves the meeting upset.
One sees election campaigners supporting Yuan Shikai and Li Yuanhong as presidential candidates. While the representatives are counting the votes to determine the election results, Yuan and Li are sitting in Yuan’s residence talking. Li holds that he did not actually want to take part in the elections. But Yuan replies that without Li, only he himself would have remained as a suitable candidate, and this, Yuan believes, would not have been a good idea. Yuan claims that since Sun’s escape, there are only two able, important men left in China: he himself, and Li. When Yuan lifts his glass of wine to toast to Li, Li, who is evidently tense, drops his glass; it falls onto the ground and breaks. Yuan comments this by citing an old story from the novel Sanguo yanyi (Romance of the Three Kingdoms): Cao Cao and Liu Bei are drinking together. When Cao Cao calls Liu Bei a hero, the latter drops his cup in surprise. Yuan comments that Cao Cao esteemed only Liu Bei and asks Li, if he too is a hero then. Li, of course, quickly denies. (Historically, Liu Bei later turned into Cao Cao’s fiercest enemy and founded the rival empire of Shu. Yuan thus also alludes to the possibility that Li may one day turn his Liu Bei and is trying to intimidate Li with this story.)
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