Xiao Qian

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Xiao Qian : biography

27 January 1910 – 11 February 1999

Life in England

In 1939, at the age of 28, Xiao Qian returned to England to work as an instructor in modern Chinese language for the School of Oriential and African Studies (SOAS) in London. SOAS was moved to Cambridge when Germany began the devastating bombing campaign Blitz.

Xiao Qian was politically active and made regular speeches for the China Campaign Committee, a left-wing group which campaigned against the Japanese occupation in China.

Marriage and family

He married four times. In 1936 he met his first wife Wang Shucang while working on the Shanghai edition of the Takung Pao. The couple only stayed together for two years before he fell in love with another woman during his stay in Hong Kong. They had an extramarital son born in 1948. Xiao tried to get a divorce, but Wang opposed it and as a result Xiao Qian left China for England.

In 1954, Xiao married his fourth wife, Wen Jieruo (文洁若[文潔若], Wén Jiéruò) . They had two sons and a daughter. On 30 January 1955 the daughter Xiao Lizi (萧荔子[蕭荔子], Xiāo Lìzi) was born.

Xiao’s older sister and a good friend Bing Xin mentioned that a lack of love in his childhood made him an amorous man.

Later years

During the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) Xiao Qian was regarded by the Communist Party of China as a member of the Right Wing (右派, Yòupài) and was banished to the countryside. In 1968 he tried to commit suicide. In 1978 he received a redress as one of the mishandled cases.

In 1999 Xiao Qian died at the age of 90 of myocardial infarction and renal failure in Beijing.

Beliefs

As an author

Xiao views were shaped by the poverty and hardships of his childhood. He witnessed the suffering of the lower classes at first hand. His reports attempted to address the injustices and disparity in Chinese society.

Xiao strongly believed that the truth is what moves people, and his writings often encouraged his readers to come to their own conclusions. His writings Lu Xi Liu Ming Tu (《鲁西流民图》[《魯西流民圖》],Lǔxī liú mín tú) and Lin Yan Fa Ru Yu (《林炎发入狱》[《林炎發入獄》],Lín yánfā rù yù) best illustrate his beliefs.

As a journalist

Xiao entered the field of journalism in April 1935. He first worked for Tianjin’s Takung Pao (《大公报》[《大公報》], Dà gōng bào), where he published his early writings including his first novel, as an editor for "Literary arts" (《文艺》版[《文藝》版], wén yì bǎn). In 1936, he moved to Shanghai to prepare for the publication of Shanghai’s Takung Pao. Then in 1938, when full-scale war against the Japanese broke out in China, Xiao was offered a job by the Takung Pao in Hong Kong to work as an editor and journalist.

Later in 1939, he traveled to London, United Kingdom, and continued his job as a journalist for Takung Pao until 1946. While the British took part in the Second World War, he gave up his place at the University of Cambridge in 1944, and became the only Chinese war correspondent in Western Europe.

As WWII came to an end, he produced a number of reportages such as "Symphony of Contradictions," "Bloody September" and "London under Silver Kites", which all reflected the (often harsh) reality during wartime. Thereafter, he worked for several newspaper companies such as the English version of People’s China (《人民中国》[《人民中國》], Rénmín Zhōngguó).

While being a journalist in the WWII, Xiao entered Rhine with the 7th troop of the Allied Forces. When the Allied Forces entered Berlin, Xiao was one of the very first journalists who entered the city. He attended and collected news from the Potsdam Conference in July 1945, which was one of the most significant conferences marking the end of the WWII.

In May 1945, Xiao gained fame after writing a piece of exclusive news about Molotov (莫托洛夫) inviting Song Ziwen (宋子文, Sòng Zǐwén) to sign the "Sino-Soviet treaty of mutual non-aggression" (中苏互不侵犯条约[中蘇互不侵犯條約],Zhōng Sū hù bù qīnfàn tiáoyuē) during his trip to San Francisco while doing reports on the United Nations Conference. He was also involved in the reporting of the trials of Nazis in Nuremberg, Germany.