On August 15, 1945, as Emperor Hirohito announced through the radio the news of Japan’s unconditional surrender, World War II, which had been fought for many years, finally officially came to an end. After the war, those wartime Japanese spies and pro-Japanese people became the targets of purges by the Nationalist government at that time. In this wave of purge lists, a well-known artist appeared, that is, Li Xianglan, who became famous with the song "Tuberculosis". She was only 25 years old at the time.
Coincidentally, the news published in the newspapers at that time also included a well-known figure, that person was Yoshiko Kawashima, known as the "Griddle Spy", and her name happened to be on the Next to Li Xianglan's name, the two were listed as "cultural traitors." However, the difference is that although both were regarded as cultural traitors, Kawashima Yoshiko and Li Xianglan ended up with completely different fates because of their household registration.
Li Xianglan’s real name is Yoshiko Yamaguchi, and both of her parents are Japanese. Her father Fumio Yamaguchi is from Saga Prefecture in Kyushu, and her mother is from Fukuoka Prefecture. Her ancestral home is in the northern village of Kishima County, Saga Prefecture, so Li Xianglan is actually a Japanese with pure blood. However, her parents are both Japanese. Logically speaking, Yamaguchi Yoshiko should have been born and raised in Japan. Why was she born and raised in China, and even had a Chinese name like "Li Xianglan"?
Many people may have initially known the name Li Xianglan from the comedy movie "Domestic Lingling Paint" starring Stephen Chow and the song sung by Jacky Cheung.
It turned out to be related to the historical background at that time. After the Russo-Japanese War in 1905, Japan gained control of the Liaodong Peninsula and the South Manchuria Railway in South Manchuria. Shuko's father, Yamaguchi Fumio, also accompanied the Japanese government. Soon after, he worked in the Fushun Coal Mine owned by Mantetsu Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Mantetsu). For this reason, Yamaguchi Fumio had to move his family to Fushun. It was also because of this that Yamaguchi Yoshiko, who was born in 1920, was born in China.
At that time, Japanese people who did not speak Chinese well could not work in Manchuria Railway, and even if they learned Chinese, their salary would be affected if they could not speak Chinese well. The Yamaguchi family loved Chinese culture. Therefore, Yamaguchi Fumio, who had good Chinese skills at that time, in order to help other Japanese people find jobs, he held Chinese lectures every night, which was similar to the current Chinese cram school to help those Japanese who were not good at Chinese to improve their Chinese. . Yamaguchi Yoshiko, who was still young at that time, would often listen at the back of the classroom. In this way, growing up in a Sino-Japanese dual-telephone environment, Yamaguchi Shuko has spoken standard Beijing dialect since she was a child, with clear and fluent pronunciation. It was so standard that if she didn't say that she was Japanese, others might always think that she was. Chinese, and this was one of the reasons why she was considered a traitor after the war.
The September 18th Incident broke out in 1931, and the war between the Japanese army and the Chinese National Revolutionary Army intensified. Because he liked Chinese culture, Yamaguchi Fumio interacted with Chinese people on a daily basis, but this also caused Yamaguchi Fumio to be rumored to have revealed secrets to the Chinese during that time. Although the incident was quickly cleared up, it made it difficult for the Yamaguchi family to continue living in Fushun. In order to survive, Yamaguchi Fumio had to ask his Chinese friend and sworn brother General Li Jichun, who was also the manager of Shenyang Bank, to help his family live in Fengtian (now Shenyang). It was also from this time that Yamaguchi Shuko's ordinary life changed.
At that time, it was also popular in China to worship each other as sworn brothers with friends, and it was also customary to adopt the children of sworn brothers as adopted children. Although it is impossible to verify who first proposed it, it can be said that What is certain is that Shuzi eventually became Li Jichun's adopted daughter (and also became the adopted daughter of Tianjin Mayor Pan Yugui). Li is Li Jichun's surname; orchid is the royal flower of the Emperor of Manchukuo, so the name "Li Xianglan" became Shuzi's new name and her later stage name.
At that time, Fengtian was a metropolis that combined politics, economy, culture, and entertainment. Foreigners such as Chinese, Japanese, and Russians gathered here, and people from many countries gathered here, creating an environment full of different cultures. Influenced Yoshiko Yamaguchi, in addition to Chinese and Japanese, she also learned English.
During those days, Li Xianglan also made a Belarusian friend of the same age, Liuba Morozova-Grinetz. Later, because of Liuba’s introduction, Li Xianglan met a friend who also lived in exile in Fengtian. Mrs. Podresov, an Italian opera singer, Li Xianglan learned vocal music from her, which became the key to Li Xianglan's future in the singing world.
In 1933, the radio station in Fengtian was looking for singers who met the following conditions in order to produce a new program - New Manchurian Songs. 1. Chinese girl. 2. Can read music scores. 3. Able to speak standard Beijing dialect. 4. In order to deal with Japanese people, you must know Japanese. However, there were too few Chinese singers who could meet the above conditions, which made the then radio station planning section chief Higashi Keizo anxious until he met Li Xianglan.
Under the tutelage of Mrs. Podresov, Li Xianglan has already become a sweet girl. She can also speak Chinese and Japanese fluently. Not long after participating in the selection, she won the title of Manchukuo. After winning the first prize in the Pop Song Awards, Keizo Higashi immediately hired her. Although Li Xianglan went to study in Beijing at that time, she would record music every time she returned to her hometown. Gradually, radio stations began to play Li Xianglan's songs. From then on, the world only knew Li Xianglan as a singer, but not Yamaguchi Shuko. At that time, Li Xianglan was 20 years old. Only 13 years old. The old name Yamaguchi Yoshiko was not used again until after World War II by Li Xianglan.
Since then, Li Xianglan has become a billboard actress on the radio station. At the age of 18, she also became an actor under the "Manzhou Film Association" (referred to as "Manying"), often playing the role of advocating the Japanese Imperial Army. The role of Li Xianglan, and later her singing in a movie episode, made Li Xianglan, who had both beauty and singing voice, instantly become a Li Xianglan whirlwind in "Manchuria" and Japan, where Japan occupied the three eastern provinces at that time. As for how crazy it is, it is said that when Li Xianglan performed at the "Japanese Theater" in Yurakucho, Tokyo, Japan, there were so many people queuing up to buy tickets that they circled the Japanese Theater 7 and a half times. It is known in history as the "Japanese Drama 7 and a Half Circles Incident" .
In 1944, Li Xianglan, who moved to Shanghai to develop her career, even sang the famous song "Tuberose", making her one of the "Seven Great Singing Queens" in Shanghai.
However, because Li Xianglan always plays the role of a Chinese girl who admires Japanese officers and soldiers, such as in "The Song of White Orchid", she always has a charming image on the screen. For this reason, she decided to apologize and resign in 1945 and left Manying. In the same year, World War II ended, Japan surrendered, and the puppet regime of Manchukuo also fell.
With Japan's defeat, Li Xianglan, who had a "Japanese-loving" image, was immediately arrested by the government of the Republic of China and charged with traitor. Among the celebrities arrested with her were "Gege spies" "Yoshiko Kawashima.
Li Xianglan and Kawashima Yoshiko knew each other. Their acquaintance began when Li Xianglan went to Beijing to study. At that time, Li Xianglan's other adoptive father, Pan Yugui, became the mayor of Tianjin, so during summer vacation, Li Xianglan would go to Tianjin to visit her adoptive father and visit Tianjin at the same time. At that time, her father Fumio Yamaguchi often took Li Xianglan to eat at Dongxinglou, a Chinese restaurant run by Yoshiko Kawashima. Under the introduction of her father, Li Xianglan met Yoshiko Kawashima.
Coincidentally, the pronunciation of their Japanese names is the same, and the two quickly became close friends. Kawashima Yoshiko and Li Xianglan often refer to each other as "brother and sister", and it is not difficult to see the good friendship between the two. .
However, at that time, Yoshiko Kawashima had actually been abandoned by the Japanese Kwantung Army, and she lived a decadent and self-destructive life. Kawashima Yoshiko's bad comments reached the ears of her adoptive father Pan Yugui. After learning that the two girls had a relationship, Pan Yugui was extremely angry and ordered Li Xianglan to return to Beijing immediately and not allow the two to meet again. Yoshiko Kawashima and Li Xianglan had to exchange letters instead.
Time passed, and unexpectedly when they met again, they were both arrested for being traitors. If Li Xianglan wanted to escape the death penalty, she could only rely on proving that she was Japanese. However, because Li Xianglan’s image of being Chinese was too strong, if she wanted to prove that she was Japanese, she would have to use an official household registration transcript. Shake up that image. However, at that time, Li Xianglan had been unable to contact anyone who could prove her ancestry. Seeing that she would be shot in a few days, Li Xianglan quickly contacted her mother in Beijing through her childhood friend Liuba, a Belarusian. A copy of the household registration can be sent.
Finally, with the help of Liuba, Li Xianglan proved the fact that she was Japanese, and finally ushered in the ending of acquittal.
After her release, Li Xianglan returned to Japan in February 1946. In the second year, Li Xianglan resumed her Japanese name, Yoshiko Yamaguchi, and began to be active in the entertainment industry. She had two marriages after the war, and was even elected to the Japanese Parliament for two terms. It was not until 2014 that her movie-like life ended at the age of 94.
As for Li Xianglan's "brother" Kawashima Yoshiko, she was not so lucky. During the public trial, like Li Xianglan, nationality was extremely important to Kawashima Yoshiko. If she could prove her Japanese nationality, then The opportunity was the same as that of Li Xianglan. Finally, on March 25, 1948, Yoshiko Kawashima was shot at the execution ground of Beijing No. 1 Prison, ending her life like a movie, but it was different from Li Xianglan.
Li Xianglan and Kawashima Yoshiko have many similarities in their life experiences. They often switch between Chinese and Japanese characters, although the name "Kawashima Yoshiko" looks like a Japanese character. Although she is actually the most beloved daughter of Prince Su of the Qing Dynasty, the name "Li Xianglan" looks Chinese, but in fact she is an out-and-out Japanese.