Orchids and Zhang Xueliang: A Life of Expressing Emotion Through Orchids

    Zhang Xueliang, "Ode to the Orchid" A fragrant name known throughout the four seas, Settling in ten thousand homes. Leaves stand holding upright spirit, Flowers beautiful yet not ostentatious. Evergreen, defying bitter cold, Smiling through the height of summer. A true gentleman among flowers, Grace and elegance in its bearing.

    After General Zhang Xueliang arrived in Taiwan, his first public appearance was at a flower show at the Taipei Children's Recreation Center in the 1960s. Thereafter, whenever the season of blooming orchids came around at year's end and the beginning of the year, orchid nurseries in Taipei would often receive a phone call: "An elderly Mr. Zhao is coming to admire the flowers." About half an hour later, a sedan would pull up, and out would step an elder with graying hair and an extraordinary bearing. This "elderly Mr. Zhao" was General Zhang Xueliang. He had visited nearly every orchid garden of any repute in Taipei's urban districts and suburbs. If there was an orchid show, he would attend every single one.

    Zhang Xueliang looked at orchids extremely carefully, critiquing them and judging their merits and flaws with great expertise. Once, at an orchid garden, he saw a pot of a rare flower and asked the price. The owner, seeing a gentle and kindly elder, offhandedly quoted the price as two thousand yuan instead of eight thousand yuan. Unexpectedly, Zhang Xueliang agreed on the spot to buy it. The seller had swallowed a silent loss and could say nothing. Later, when the seller learned that the buyer was Zhang Xueliang, he felt that the famous flower had found its rightful owner, was overjoyed, and exclaimed: "Worth it, worth it!"

    In the early 1980s, when Zhang Xueliang was interviewed by Yu Heng, a reporter for Taipei's United Daily News, he revealed his heartfelt love for orchids: "My home has more than 200 pots of orchids. Growing orchids is a kind of enjoyment. For example, watering, fertilizing, moving the flowers' positions, moderate shade and moderate sunlight... Because I grow orchids, I bought books and magazines about orchids, and I consulted experts in this field." He also said: "The orchid is the gentleman among flowers; its fragrance is subtle, its bearing elegant. Precisely because of this, I feel the orchid's realm is profound and distant. Not only do I like it, my wife likes it too." From this, one can see General Zhang Xueliang's sentiments.

Zhang Xueliang and Huang Xiuqiu, president of the Taiwan Orchid Association, admiring orchids

    In April 1993, Beijing held the Third Flower Expo, and General Zhang specially entrusted Mr. Huang Xiuqiu, president of the World Orchid Exchange Association, to carry a pot of Chinese orchid as a gift to Chairman ***. Chairman *** expressed his heartfelt thanks to him.

    Zhang Xueliang, known as the "Young Marshal," is not only associated with war and patriotism; in his treatment of people and things he was extremely gentlemanly. If viewed only through the "Xi'an Incident," he was undoubtedly a great man. In fact, he was not only that kind of person, but also full of human warmth, one might call him supremely affectionate and supremely good. However, ordinary people probably would not imagine that he also had deep feelings for orchids. The famous celebrated orchid variety "Patriot Orchid" was cultivated by him. That is a long story.

    In November 1946, on a day of bleak autumn wind, Zhang Xueliang, who had shocked China and the world by launching the "Xi'an Incident" and whom Premier Zhou Enlai called a "hero of the ages," was secretly sent to Taiwan. During his house arrest in Taiwan, the orchid-growing craze had not yet arisen there, and Zhang Xueliang did his lessons every day, as it were - reading history books, for as the saying goes, "reading history reveals rise and decline." After 1970, in confinement he often compared himself to an orchid in a secluded place, always keeping orchids as companions, devoting himself passionately to growing orchids.

    When he had nothing to do, Zhang Xueliang read a great many orchid books and periodicals and chanted poems in praise of orchids. This was not for show, nor a pursuit of refinement, for to a celebrity like him these were not what mattered. What mattered more was that in the process of growing orchids he tasted the joy of life and cultivated his character. On September 18, 1981, the 81-year-old Zhang Xueliang, after the "Xi'an Incident," gave his first interview to a professional journalist. Yu Heng, a reporter for the United Daily News, talked with him about past events. Zhang Xueliang was taciturn; presumably he felt those matters had nothing worth saying, and history would give him its verdict. But once the conversation turned to orchid growing and appreciation, he became full of interest in talking. Speaking of reading books and newspapers, he said he read only two newspapers and one periodical, and one of those periodicals was Orchid World magazine. He said: "Writing poetry can express one's aspirations; growing orchids is like drinking fine wine - it best conveys feeling and resolves the mind, reaching a state where ten thousand cares dissolve."

    Once, when speaking with others about orchids, Zhang Xueliang said frankly: "I love my wife first, and orchids second." This remark seems somewhat exaggerated. As I see it, it shows how deep his feelings for orchids were.

    In 1990, after the lifting of restrictions, Zhang Xueliang gained greater freedom. Orchid shows were held in Taiwan throughout the four seasons, and there were many household orchid growers and professional orchid gardens, so like today's star-chasers he attended every show and visited all the major orchid gardens. Orchid gardens and orchid show organizing committees in Taipei often received calls like this: an "elderly Mr. Zhao" was coming to admire the orchids. Needless to say, this "elderly Mr. Zhao" was General Zhang Xueliang. Half an hour later, a white sedan would drive into the orchid garden, and an elderly couple would step out. The man was tall, with graying hair, a ruddy complexion, a loud voice, and sunglasses, with an extraordinary bearing. Over time, when people in orchid circles received a call from "elderly Mr. Zhao," they knew that the once all-powerful "Young Marshal Zhang" was about to arrive, and all were moved, filled with admiration, and sighed with regret.

    Zhang Xueliang not only devoted himself to orchids for more than 30 years; when he left Taiwan to move to Hawaii in the United States, although advanced in years and physically strained, he still asked others to bring along quite a few of his fine orchids. In addition, he spared no effort in telling others his insights into orchids, advocating and calling for the promotion of the profound and extensive orchid culture.

    In Zhang Xueliang's history of growing orchids, there is also a much-told tale of a potted orchid named "Patriot" presented to Chairman ***. 

    On April 21, 1993, the Third China Flower Expo opened in Beijing. At this expo, the Taiwan World Exchange Association specially set up an exhibition hall titled "General Zhang Xueliang and Orchids." At 8 p.m. on April 25, Chairman *** came to the front of the "General Zhang Xueliang and Orchids" exhibition hall. On the wall facing the display stand hung three large color photographs of General Zhang Xueliang growing orchids. Chairman Jiang looked at them carefully for a while and said: "It looks like Mr. Zhang is in very good spirits!" At this point, Huang Xiuqiu, president of the Orchid Association, who had been entrusted by Zhang Xueliang to deliver the orchid, came forward holding a pot of orchid and said to Chairman Jiang: "This pot of orchid is called Patriot Orchid. General Zhang cultivated it for more than 20 years and personally named it 'Patriot.' Now I present it to you." Chairman Jiang took the flower and said: "Thank you, I wish Mr. Zhang good health!" For a time, the presentation of the potted orchid "Patriot" to Chairman Jiang became a hot topic reported by media on both sides of the strait. The news media said: this act "carries General Zhang's deep affection for his compatriots on the mainland and will become a much-told tale in our country's history of orchid growing."

    When the 7th China (Guangxi) Orchid Expo was held in 1997, Zhang Xueliang, far away in Hawaii, instructed Mr. Huang Xiuqiu to submit five pots of orchids he had planted himself for exhibition. The 96-year-old Zhang Xueliang spent money to produce 30 certificates mounted with pure gold medals to reward the gold award winners at the exhibition.

    That General Zhang Xueliang loved orchids so much was of course not a passing whim, but had deep historical roots. The story of Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si became widely known through the TV drama "Miss Zhao Si." Many people may not know that their love was connected with orchids. They both believed in Christianity, and according to Christian doctrine, a believer cannot have two wives at the same time at baptism. Zhang Xueliang had to choose one between Yu Fengzhi and Miss Zhao Si. Zhang Xueliang wrote to Yu Fengzhi across the ocean. Yu Fengzhi wrote in her reply: "Hanqing, as long as you are happy, I am willing to do anything! Zhao Yidi is a very rare woman..." Human feelings are like orchids. Afterward, when speaking of Yu Fengzhi, Zhao Yidi still greatly admired her magnanimity.

    July 4, 1964, was an extremely extraordinary day for General Zhang Xueliang. On this very day, he was to marry Miss Zhao Si, with whom he had loved each other for 30 years and who had accompanied him through 27 years of strict "control," as his lifelong partner. 

    On this day, the already sexagenarian Zhang Xueliang put on a dark navy long gown and a pair of red soft-soled flat cloth shoes. His bright eyes and extraordinary bearing still revealed a dashing heroic air. Miss Zhao Si also excitedly kept looking at herself in the mirror, as thrilled as when she first met the Young Marshal all those years ago - how many years ago that was, and in a flash it had passed. At this moment, they still wanted to hold a special wedding - an orchid wedding, using orchids to adorn themselves and decorate the wedding venue. 

    Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si both especially loved orchids. For decades, they often frequented orchid circles, and apart from appreciating and evaluating orchids, they would not speak of any other topic at all; often they would leave as soon as they finished talking about orchids. Every morning and dusk, Mr. and Mrs. Zhang Xueliang watered, fertilized, and earthed up in the garden, and orchids accompanied them in greeting one sunrise and sunset after another. The two regarded growing orchids as a kind of life enjoyment. In order to grow orchids well, Zhang Xueliang also bought quite a few magazines and books about orchids and consulted some master orchid growers. In their orchid garden they kept more than 200 pots of various rare and precious orchid varieties, personally planting and managing them for more than fifty years. They not only grew a large number of famous traditional Chinese spring orchid varieties, such as Green Cloud, Song Mei, and Great Wealth, but also cultivated many types of orchids such as Guangdong Baosui, Fujian Jianlan, and Sichuan Chuanjian. On each flowerpot, they carefully marked the name of the orchid, and they felt proud of possessing these rare varieties. Zhang Xueliang said: "The orchid is the gentleman among flowers; its fragrance is subtle, its bearing elegant. Precisely because of this, I feel the orchid's realm is profound and distant. Not only do I like it, my wife likes it very much too." 

    Speaking of Green Cloud, there is a story here: Green Cloud, hailed as an orchid of a generation, was not easily obtained and cost Zhang Xueliang a great deal of effort; he regarded it as a treasure. It was at an orchid appreciation gathering held in Taiwan in the 1970s that a pot of Baosui orchid bearing bright emerald flowers left orchid enthusiasts marveling and full of praise. Beyond their admiration, the enthusiasts all felt satisfied if they could obtain this rare variety, and Zhang Xueliang was no exception. When he first saw this orchid at the show, he was greatly captivated, and from then on could not forget it. After more than a year of open and secret inquiries, he finally found the owner. He then visited the owner several times, and his love for the orchid finally moved the owner. The owner, also admiring Zhang Xueliang's high prestige and virtue, agreed to part with it. Zhang Xueliang bought it at a high price, and afterward carefully cultivated and protected it and promoted it to the world, making it an orchid of a generation - Green Cloud. Thereafter, Green Cloud appeared frequently at orchid shows large and small, winning unanimous praise from orchid enthusiasts.

    Now, on the day of their wedding, the orchids in the garden were blooming luxuriantly, with emerald green leaves, some ovate, some lanceolate; the flower heads were in shades of pale yellow, peach red, and snow white. A gentle breeze passed, flowers and leaves swayed, and a delicate fragrance filled the nose, refreshing the heart. 

    Zhang Xueliang could not help bending down, picked a snow-white flower, brought it close to his nostrils and sniffed, feeling a strange fragrance penetrate to his very core. He gently tucked the orchid into Miss Zhao Si's hair, then stepped back a few paces, examined it carefully for a moment, clapped his hands and laughed: "Very good, absolutely beautiful! With this flower on, you seem to have suddenly become 20 years younger!" Then he laughed heartily. After that, they also used orchids as corsages, pinning them on each other's chests. 

    At this moment, Miss Zhao Si, although past the age of "knowing heaven's mandate," still shone with radiance through her plain and elegant attire and gentle countenance. 

    The wedding was held in a Christian church near the Beitou hot springs in Taiwan. This church was not large in scale and was quite ordinary. Inside the church there were no electric lights; instead, countless huge candles were lit, and around them were placed more than a hundred pots of rare orchids either in bud or in incomparably vivid bloom, adorning the entire church with solemn beauty. 

Surrounded by relatives and friends, Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si solemnly stepped into the church. Candlelight shone on the face of every guest, reddened the orchids on the chests of Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si, and also reddened their excited faces. Amid solemn music, Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si, side by side and hand in hand, came slowly from the main door of the church, nodding frequently to the guests in greeting. 

The wedding proceeded solemnly amid beautiful music and the faint delicate fragrance of orchids. When the pastor said "exchange tokens," the tears Miss Zhao Si had been forcing back could no longer be controlled and fell "drip-drop" onto Zhang Xueliang's arm. Zhang Xueliang's hand holding the orchid ring trembled, and for a long time he could not slip it onto Miss Zhao Si's finger. 

After the wedding ended, Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si walked slowly out of the church and rode back to their residence in a silver-white wedding car decorated with orchids. 

The orchid wedding of Zhang and Zhao can be called an unparalleled masterpiece through the ages. Half a month later, Taipei's United Daily News published a report on the front page of page three, topped with several lines of large headline type, extremely eye-catching: 

Thirty years of cold and warm seasons, a contemporary love of ice and frost 

Young Marshal and Zhao Si formally marry 

A confidante of rosy beauty, a union of white-haired vows 

The article wrote: "Zhang Xueliang, who has been isolated from the world for 27 years, recently formally married Zhao Si..." 

After marriage, Zhang Xueliang and Miss Zhao Si settled in Beitou on the outskirts of Taipei, living in a Western-style villa. The orchids they grew were as fragrant as their love. They traveled over the mountains and rivers of Taiwan's orchid-producing areas and visited many famous orchid growers. After twenty years of variety selection and careful cultivation, they finally cultivated a famous orchid and named it "Patriot Orchid."

In his later years, General Zhang Xueliang entrusted all the "Patriot Orchids" he had grown to the Xiuxiang Garden of Huang Xiuqiu, president of the Taiwan Orchid Association. Before his death, Zhang Xueliang thought fondly of the more than 20 pots of orchids he had entrusted to Huang Xiuqiu, and made a final wish: take the "Patriot Orchids" back to the mainland of the motherland, and let them send forth their fragrance there!

Today, these entrusted orchids have been sent by Huang Xiuqiu to many places in the mainland of the motherland!