On this day, 163 years ago, on January 2, 1862 (December 3, 1861, the first Prime Minister of the Republic of China, Tang Shaoyi, was born. Tang Shaoyi Tang Shaoyi, also known as Tang Shaoyi, also known as Shaochuan, was born on January 2, 1862 in Tangjia Village, Tangjia Town, Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province. He was a famous political activist and diplomat in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. Tang Shaoyi went to Shanghai to study as a child. In 1874, he was sent by officials to study in the United States. After middle school, he was promoted to the liberal arts at Colombia University. After Tang Shaoyi returned to China in 1881, he was sent to study at the Westernization School in Tianjin. In October 1896, he served as Consul General of the Qing Dynasty government in Korea. In 1904, the Qing government appointed Tang Shaoyi as the Plenipotentiary Minister to go to India to negotiate with British representatives on Xizang issues. Tang Shaoyi adhered to his national stance and used flexible diplomatic means to advocate for the overthrow of the so-called "Lhasa Treaty" signed between Britain and the local government of Xizang, defeating Britain's plot to separate Xizang from China territory. In April 1906, China and Britain signed the "Renewed Indo-Tibet Treaty." Although Britain obtained the privilege of erecting electric wires from India to an existing commercial port in Xizang, it had to recognize China's territorial sovereignty over Xizang. After the Wuchang Uprising broke out, the Qing court appointed Yuan Shikai as prime minister. Tang Shaoyi appointed a plenipotentiary from Yuan's cabinet and went to Shanghai to negotiate peace with Wu Tingfang, the general representative of the Southern People's Army. In the early years of the Republic of China, he was introduced by Huang Xing and Cai Yuanpei, and supervised by Sun Yat-sen, and joined the Alliance. When candidates for the new government were being formulated, Tang was selected and appointed by the revolutionaries and Yuan Shikai, becoming the first cabinet prime minister of the Republic of China. Tang Shaoyi joined the Nanjing Cabinet on March 25, 1912 and moved to Beijing in April. When Tang became prime minister, he had great political ambitions. He selected key members of the Alliance such as Song Jiaoren, Cai Yuanpei, and Chen Qimei to join the cabinet and serve as directors of agriculture, forestry, education, and industry and commerce, so that the members of the Alliance accounted for the majority in the government and was called the "Central Cabinet of the Alliance." Tang Shaoyi was diligent in official duties and focused on efficiency, which gave the government a new atmosphere. Yuan Shikai was accustomed to monopolizing power and implemented a responsible cabinet system for Tang Shaoyi, deepening the rift between the two. So he angrily tendered his resignation on June 15, 1912, less than three months after he was prime minister. During the May 4th Movement, Tang Shaoyi showed patriotic enthusiasm and sent a telegram to the Beiyang warlord government to express support for patriotic students. He called Paris and asked his son-in-law Gu Weijun, a China representative attending the Paris Peace Conference, to refuse to sign the peace treaty. On March 16, 1931, Tang concurrently served as the county magistrate of Zhongshan County and concentrated on implementing the plan to build a model county. The plan includes infrastructure construction, industrial development, strengthening agriculture, fishery and rural construction, introducing foreign investment and developing education, with a focus on opening the Tangjia tax-free commercial port. In office, they pay more attention to being honest in government, eliminate the bad habits of officials and yamen, and conduct in-depth inspections to solve some practical problems in a timely manner. They are known as the "civilian county magistrate". However, Tang Shaoyi was ostracized by Guangdong warlord Chen Jitang. In October 1934, Chen Jitang instigated county soldiers in Zhongshan through his cronies to launch a mutiny in the name of demanding wages, surrounded Tang Shaoyi's apartment and forced him to resign. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, Tang Shaoyi made remarks in support of the Anti-Japanese War. Japanese spy chief Toihara organized a special committee on China to be responsible for the work of Tang Shaoyi and Wu Peifu. On the morning of September 28, 1938, Tu Feiyuan, led by Tang Shaoyi's son-in-law Cen Deguang, went to the Tang residence for a long talk. After the Kuomintang military intelligence agents lurking in Shanghai discovered the matter, they were ordered to assassinate Tang on September 30. "The Biography of Tang Shaoyi" written by the National History Museum stated that Tang was wooed by the Japanese in his later years and wanted him to serve as a puppet, but "refused to come out." Tang Shaoyi's former residence at No. 99 Shanfang Road, Tangjiawan Town, Zhuhai. Liang Shiyi (left) accompanied Tang Shaoyi (center) on an envoy to India in 1905. In 1912, Sun Yat-sen (right) took a group photo with Tang Shaoyi's cabinet. Tang Shaoyi was represented in the front row on the right. Tang Shaoyi's family photo