Chapter 251: Explanation 5

Video opening

(Scene: Ink‑wash animation. An ocean‑going steamship sails into Shanghai's Bund, its whistle blowing long. Time stamp: Autumn 1914. The camera focuses on the disembarking youth Li Yuxuan, dressed in a Western suit, a leather suitcase in his left hand, a child embraced in his right. His gaze calmly watches this familiar land. Background music is a soothing yet slightly melancholy piano piece.)

Narrator (Chronicle): Dear friends, I am Chronicle. In the previous episode we talked about Li Yuxuan's interpersonal aura nicknamed "Demoness". Today we return to the main historical line, pushing the timeline forward. In 1914, as the European war flames ignited, Li Yuxuan concluded his studies in Germany and the United States and returned to a China buffeted by wind and rain. Awaiting him was not a smooth road, but a more complex chessboard. And in this game he began to truly reveal the edge of the two characters "Jingxing".

(Scene: This episode's title appears: "Jingxing First Emerges, European Breeze Tempering the Sword — Li Yuxuan from Return to Germany to Huangpu Establishment")

Narrator: Recently a young friend asked me an interesting question: What is a network of contacts? How can one still live well, even find a new world, when life seems "failed" or faces setbacks? This question perhaps can find some historical footnotes in Li Yuxuan's early post‑return experiences.

Act One: Return to the country and enlist, Duan family bestows a character name

(Scene: Switch to Yanjing, architecture from the Beiyang Government era. Portrait or photo of Duan Qirui appears, his demeanor majestic.)

Narrator: Li Yuxuan, after returning home, faced a choice. His "Young Master" was still in Modu, while domestic politics were dominated by the Beiyang warlords. Relying on his dazzling credentials from Study Abroad in Germany and America, he quickly attracted the attention of the powerful Beiyang figure and Anhui Clique leader Duan Qirui.

Narrator (details): Duan Qirui, commonly called "Duan He Fei", though a military man, placed great value on talents who had received new‑style education, especially those with a German background (German military had been the model for the late‑Qing Beiyang New Army). He summoned Li Yuxuan; after a conversation he deeply appreciated him. Records show Duan Qirui especially admired Li Yuxuan's clear analysis of the European military‑political landscape and the quality of being versed in Western learning yet retaining the composed demeanor of a Chinese scholar.

(Scene: Animation shows Duan Qirui writing the two characters "Jingxing" and presenting them to Li Yuxuan.)

Narrator: Impressed, Duan Qirui did something rather classical—he gave Li Yuxuan the style name "Jingxing". "High mountains are to be looked up to, Jingxing proceeds," a line from the Book of Songs, meaning lofty virtue and bright conduct. By gifting this name, Duan Qirui both set an expectation and offered a high endorsement. From then on, the courtesy name "Li Jingxing" accompanied him for life, and even later senior figures of the KMT and CCP (such as Qiu Tian calling him "Brother Jingxing") often referred to him thus; its origin lies here. This was the first important "endorsement" Li Yuxuan earned after his return, opening a brief intersection with the Beiyang system.

Act Two: Xiang River lies in wait, the normal school slips through.

(Scene: Switch to Changsha, Yuelu Mountain, Xiang River, the old campus of the First Normal School.)

Narrator: However, the Beiyang political scene was turbulent and factionally strained. Duan Qirui's favor was not necessarily a lasting guarantee. Soon, Li Yuxuan was appointed a section chief of the Sanxiang Province Education Department. This seemed a sinecure or exile, but might actually be an arrangement or transition.

Narrator (analysis): Sanxiang at the time was a north‑south flashpoint, with lively thought currents. Serving there allowed one to avoid the complex political whirlpool of Yanjing while accessing local realities and building contacts. Yet quickly, due to personnel changes and policy shifts within the Sanxiang military‑civil authorities, Li Yuxuan's position as an "outside" section chief became unstable, and he was "forced" to transfer to the Sanxiang First Normal School, serving as a part‑time teacher or nominal administrator.

(Scene: First Normal School classroom, the image of a youth appears, intersecting with Li Yuxuan.)

Narrator: Indeed, that school—Hunan First Normal School. Historical coincidence flashes here. It was precisely there that Li Yuxuan briefly but perhaps memorably intersected with a student who would later change Huaxia's destiny. Official histories record very little of this period; most appears in memoirs and anecdotes.

Narrator (speculative, objective): One can imagine that a young official or teacher who had studied in Germany and America, possessed broad knowledge, and had been given the style name "Jingxing" by Duan Qirui, would be striking in a new‑style school like a First Normal. He may have taught geography, history, or current affairs, and perhaps shared European observations in lectures. That student was then at an age eager for knowledge, his thoughts ablaze. According to some later fragmentary records (whose reliability requires verification), Li Yuxuan once taught him, and after class they discussed and even argued. Li Yuxuan's analysis of world affairs and his grasp of German Military Philosophy may have left the young man a deep impression unlike that of traditional teachers. This perhaps explains why, many years later, despite opposite political stances, that man still respectfully called him "Old Li". This has nothing to do with later politics, but is a memory and courtesy toward a certain "teacher" from his early enlightenment.

Act Three: Trans‑ocean mission, chance encounter with a "Noble Person"

(Scene: On a map, an arrow points from China to the United States. Background shifts to urban scenery of New York or Washington. Time stamp: circa 1914.)

Narrator: Li Yuxuan's lay‑low in Sanxiang did not last long. The European war (World War I) was in full swing, and Far‑East interests were shifting accordingly. The Beiyang Government, especially Duan Qirui's faction, intended to strengthen ties with the United States, seeking diplomatic support or supplies. Fluent in English, familiar with America, and trustworthy, Li Yuxuan was again mobilized, tasked with traveling to the United States to handle affairs, one core being to negotiate possible arms purchases or loans.

(Scene: Depicts Li Yuxuan hustling among government offices, chambers of commerce, and banks in the United States.)

Narrator: It was during this U. S. trip that a segment occurred which proved extremely important for Li Yuxuan's future network of contacts. At a gathering or hearing with American political and business figures, he chanced upon Roosevelt.