Study On The Relationship Between Yan Xi-shan With Wan Warlord And Zhi Warlord(1916-1924)

When Li Yuanhong took over as President after Yuan Shikai’s death in 1916,he was incapable of posing a threat to the armour-wielding warlords since he has no force of his own,and Beijing was actually ruled by prime minister Duan Qirui.At the same time,the Northern Warlords was on the verge of splitting up due to the lack to person who has capability and prestige to unify the whole,thus forming the Wan Warlord headed by Duan Qirui,the Zhi Warlord headed by Feng Guozhang,Cao Kun and Wu Peifu consecutively,and the Feng Warlord headed by Zhang Zuolin.The three major warlords took charge of the central government successively,while other local warlords marked off spheres of influence and struggled for survival.Yan Xishan,head of the Jin Warlord,was included in the Northern Warlords during Yuan Dhikai’s reign.After Yuan’s death,Yan Xishan got rid of his dictatorship and the central government’s control over Shanxi weakened to some extent.Although Yan Xishan controlled Shanxi,as a local warlord,his own strength was weak after all.It was difficult for him to contend with the central power,and he also needed to seek a backer to maintain and consolidate his position and power.In the face of complex and turbulent political situation,Yan Xishan,by virtue of his flexibility,canny political strain capacity and cautiousness,made contacts with the powerful political factions contending for power and profit,and chose his backer according to the transfer of the central power.He was quite good at considering the situation,based on which he made timely adjustment for more profits.During the period when the Wan Warlord was in power,Yan Xishan got along well with the Warlord and actively responded to the deployment of Duan Qirui.While as soon as it was defeated and had to give place to the Zhi Warlord,Yan Xishan turned to express his loyality to Cao Kun.Although he was on the fence with various factions,he insisted on not breaking with them and dealt with them flexibly.Yan Xishan wagered between the Wan Warlord and the Zhi Warlord.Although his relationship with them vary from close to far,he tended to be more intimate with the former in terms of behaviors.No matter how he chose,the political orientation and choicewere oriented by the times and their own interests,which was not only the nature of seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages,but also inseparable from the social background,their own character and the influence of others at that time.While Yan’s attitude and behaviors were criticized and he was evaluated as typical swingers and opportunistic,from the perspective of survival,it made Yan preserve the political power and capital and protected Shanxi to some extent,from war,so as to keep Shanxi in relative stability,slow down the war and maintain peace.By studying the relationship between Yan Xishan and the two major lineal Northern warlords,we can also reflect the expression and realization of the armymen’s self-interests,who was disregard of the modern state concept when the traditional value system tended to collapse,so as to reveal to some extent the historical logic of why the chaotic Republic of China failed to get out of the control of the Powers.