With characteristic tact, his warlord friends decided to surround the parliament with an armed mob of their retainers. Outraged by this blatant act of intimidation, the Guomindang majority agreed that a declaration of war was essential on patriotic grounds, yet declared that China could go to war to defend its honour, only once Duan and his pro-Japanese clique had resigned. When Duan refused, President Li dismissed him. Duan’s military cronies left Beijing announcing that they would raise a rebellion. But Li was in no mood to compromise. The warlords’ challenge to the parliament was
...more
