But in May 1928, as Chiang’s armies headed north from the Yangtze Delta to extend Nationalist rule, they clashed with Japanese troops in Jinan, the capital of Shandong province. On May 3, Japanese forces slaughtered thousands of Chinese civilians and executed a team of Chinese negotiators. Chiang wrote in his diary that Japan would soon become China’s chief enemy. This realization compelled China’s leader to follow in the footsteps of his predecessors and resume the search for a special relationship with America.
