Scenes 101 to 120

Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng are relieved to hear that Jiang Jieshi has been found. They have wine brought in and toast to each other. Tian Wenhao comes in to inform them that the draft with their eight demands is prepared already. Now they have to decide what to do next. Yang suggests that they should ask the CCP to send a delegation to Xi’an; thus Ding Li sends a telegram to the Communists.

Jiang Jieshi’s wife Song Meiling is dancing with Mr. Donald, the foreign advisor of Jiang, at a party when her brother Song Ziwen comes in and wants to talk to her. He shows her a piece of paper, and then asks her what to do. She says they should go back to Nanjing immediately

In the streets the paperboys sell the evening papers reporting the news about the events in Xi’an.

Late in the evening the Japanese ambassador has come to the ministry to meet the Minister of War He Yingqin. Their conversation is translated by an interpreter. The ambassador says that if the Nanjing Government should cooperate with Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng, his country will intervene, but He assures that they will do everything they can to punish Zhang and Yang. In that case the ambassador promises that his government will try to stop the ongoing military operations in Suiyuan (which is under the control of the Japanese and their Chinese puppets).

Jiang Jieshi is lying in bed. Two soldiers come in to bring him some clothes, because he is still in his dressing gown, but he sends them away angrily and demands to send them back to Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng. Only when the soldiers, after having discussed the issue among themselves, tell him it was them who send him the clothes, not Zhang and Yang, he finally puts them on. When he wants to write down their names for a later reward, they quickly retreat.

Zhang Xueliang arrives and tells the guard to go in and inform Jiang Jieshi that he wants to meet him.

Zhang Xueliang greets Jiang Jieshi respectfully, addressing him with “Chairman” (委员长) and explaining that they do not have any evil intentions towards him; he was only brought there so that they can talk. But Jiang shouts at him that if he still was his chairman he would order him to let him go immediately or to kill him. He does not want to listen to what Zhang has to say. Zhang thus leaves, saying he will come back later after Jiang has had a rest.

Zhang Xueliang holds a speech in front of students and soldiers of the Northwestern and the Northeastern Army in which he explains that Jiang Jieshi had turned a deaf ear to all pleas and that kidnapping Jiang was the only measure they could take in order to make him change his policy. He says that with their guns they do not want to fight their Chinese compatriots, but the Japanese imperialists. When he calls on the people to unite in the resistance against Japan, the audience cheers.

Yang Hucheng wakes up Jiang Jieshi who has fallen asleep on a chair. He treats him very respectfully. Jiang asks him if he knew about this operation beforehand. When Yang says that he was personally involved in the planning, Jiang is shocked. Yang says that the only thing they want is to persuade him to change his policy and fight against Japan. Jiang suspects that this was instigated by the CCP, but Yang says that they did not have any contact to the Communists before! Only after the event they informed them so that they can send a delegation and talk things over together. Jiang gets upset upon hearing this, but Yang stresses that it was his behaviour that rendered this necessary.

Tian Wenhao, Adjutant Zhao and others are in the office. The atmosphere is very busy, telegrams and phone calls arrive, informing them who is supporting their operation and who not. Up to the present only Guangxi declared support openly and Nanjing is already preparing a punitive expedition. There is still no news from the CCP, though.

Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De and other leaders of the Communist Party are discussing the international impact of the incident. They appreciate what Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng did but consider also the fact that hardly anyone supports them, be it in- or outside of China. The Japanese want to bolster Nanjing against Zhang and Yang, the Germans have met with Jiang Jieshi’s long-time rival Wang Jingwei who is now called back by He Yingqin from Germany [to obviously replace Jiang Jieshi], England and the US are afraid that the Japanese might use this incident to further their advances in China, etc. Mao Zedong however reminds the others that the incident was above all a patriotic act to resist Japan and save the nation. He says that it can have two possible outcomes…

He Yingqin reads out the order to start a punitive expedition against Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng. Someone comes in to inform him that Jiang Jieshi’s wife wants to meet him, but he declines.

When the meeting of the CCP leaders to decide upon their stance toward the incident draws to a close, a cadre says that he has some doubts about whether a peaceful resolution of the incident may possibly ensure that Jiang Jieshi will fight against Japan, but the others remind him that killing Jiang would be even worse for the people. [Thus, obviously, the decision was to reach a peaceful solution].

He Yingqin goes on with his speech, but again someone comes in and tells him that Jiang Jieshi’s wife Song Meiling insists on meeting him. Before he can answer, Song Meiling has already entered the room. She asks him whether her husband has died already or why he dares to shut her out. He replys that some say Jiang is already dead, others say he has been taken by the Communists. In any case he is already moving troops and air planes to Xi’an to come to Jiang’s rescue, but she sees her husband’s life endangered by that and tells him to call back the army and send an official delegation instead. He Yingqin, though, argues that this would not be in line with Jiang’s own policies and refuses to do so, accusing her of only thinking from the perspective of a wife. Song Meiling, greatly angered, asks him back whether he in fact wants to see Jiang dead.

A group of foreign journalists is waiting for the Foreign Minister Zhang Qun (张群). He gets out of his car and they all question him about the events in Xi’an and Jiang Jieshi’s situation, but he tells them that he cannot answer their questions at the moment.

When Jiang Jieshi turns around and sees the head of the guards standing in his room, he is frightened and asks him what he wants. The head of the guards tells him that he wants to bring him to a different, safer place, but Jiang refuses to go with him. He says that if he has to die, he wants to die here and hides in his bed.

Song Meiling and her brother Song Ziwen discuss what to do. Song Meiling says that He Yingqin wants to harm Jiang by sending his troops, thus Song Ziwen suggests that they should send someone to Xi’an immediately on their own to talk to Yang Hucheng and Zhang Xueliang. They decide to send Mr. Donald because he used to be Zhang’s advisor before he served Jiang. For the air plane, they will arrange with troops loyal to them.

A plane is circling in the air. The guard at the Xi’an airport calls Zhang Xueliang to report that the plane dropped a letter stating that Mr. Donald has been sent to Xi’an by Song Meiling and asks for the permission to land. After Zhang and Yang Hucheng have given their approval, three fires are lit as a sign that the plane has the permission to land and Zhang receives Mr. Donald on the ground.

Mr. Donald tells Zhang Xueliang that the National Government has blocked all broadcasting from Xi’an and that in Nanjing no one knows where Jiang Jieshi is and whether he is still alive. Zhang responds that it is good that Mr. Donald came to Xi’an and that he will see Jiang with his own eyes in a moment. He hands him a piece of paper with their eight demands on it.

Jiang Jieshi is surprised to see Mr. Donald. He asks him when he arrived and why he came to Xi’an. As Mr. Donald does not speak Chinese, Zhang Xueliang translates for them during their conversation! Mr. Donald tells Jiang that he does not have to fear anything from Zhang and Yang Hucheng – the only thing they want him to do is to agree to fight the Japanese. When Jiang remains stubborn and shouts that they will have to wait for him to die to fight the Japanese, Mr. Donald says that the Westerners agree with these demands and that if he will accept their demands, he will go down in history as a great man, if not he will be just another trivial figure. Then he gives Jiang a personal letter from his wife. In the letter she writes that she sent Mr. Donald to see him, but she is willing to come to Xi’an personally if this should be necessary and suggests he should accept the patriotic demands. When he reads the letter, Jiang is visibly moved. Song Meiling suggests that the moves of the Nanjing government are actually directed against him. Mr. Donald then tells Jiang that Zhang only means his best in asking him to move to the newly build Gao Guizi Residence (高贵滋宫馆) for his own safety. Thus Jiang agrees to move there.

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