Yu Zeming

Yu Zeming (Baiyu: 于泽冥; 31 August 1901 – 4 June 1989) was a Bai military leader and statesman who ruled Bai as its Crown Regent from 1962 to 1989. Presiding over Bai's redevelopment, he oversaw its transformation into a developed country and regional power in Northern Archanta. His rule was commonly known as the Regency Era, which has been criticised as authoritarian, with mass persecution of political critics, purging of other warlords and imposition of martial law over certain areas of the country.

Born in Huoyuan, Neilu Province, Yu was initially a member of his father's Bai Fascist Solidatory Party (BFSP). Following political differences with his father, he and his wife Chang Meisheng defected from the regime and remained in Izaland for the remainder of the fascist era. Returning to Bai in the 1950s, he established a new government and organised a coalition of forces (including warlords of Fascist remnants) known as the New Alliance for the Reunification of the Bai People. As commander-in-chief, he led the Eastern Expedition, defeated the various factions and reunified Bai in 1962. Through a referendum, he restored the Bai monarchy but installed his son as the de jure head of state while he continued to rule as the country's de facto leader.

During his rule, he implemented the Weixin Programme that restored and modernised the national road and rail systems, alongside a series of economic reforms. The re-establishment of ties with foreign powers and foreign-direct investments of the 60s and 70s led to the recovery of the Empire's economy, which became industrialized and technology-oriented. In the 80s, he began to delegate more authority to his son, and successfully bided and hosted the Xiongjing Pax Nova Games in 1988. Shortly after, on 4 June 1989, he died of a fatal stroke and was given a royal funeral. He was buried along with the other former Middle Bai Emperors.

Early life
Yu Zeming was born on 31 August 1901. His father, Yu Shanliu, was still serving in the Bai military and hence Yu had a closer relationship with his mother and grandmother who raised him. In his memoirs, Yu stated that he had a 'strict and rocky' relationship with his father, pressuring him to work hard. Yu Shanliu appeared to his son as an authoritarian figure, sometimes indifferent to his problems. Yu recalled that his father 'never batted an eye' once when he fell severely sick with a fever when he was five or six, never bothering to check on him. When he was ten, as his father became Chancellor, he and his family moved to Xiongjing, where he continued his early studies.

Many classmates and teachers noted that he was a 'very sociable and mischievous boy' who liked to pull pranks. Zhao Xilang, a childhood friend of Yu who would serve as Chancellor under him, remembered that Yu liked to play Bai chess (Xiangqi) and puzzles like Tangram. Many teachers remarked that Yu was a very diligent boy 'willing to work hard'.

Yu Shanliu had wanted his son to join politics, although the young Yu expressed disinterest and wished to become an engineer. After some arguments over his ambitions, Yu Shanliu agreed that his son study law, although he also has to join the military as well. In 1919, Yu entered the Imperial College for Civil Service. Yu claimed he had no knowledge of his father's plans to coup the Emperor, although he noted his father became more distant in the days leading up to the coup.

Involvement in Qiongzhu Massacre
In 1927, Yu Zeming was transferred to Qiongzhu as a military police officer. By then, unrest and ethnic conflict were brewing in the province, particularly anti-Bai sentiments, ever since the 1922 coup. Following early demonstrations in 1922 and 1923 resisting the fascist regime, security on the Qiongzhu islets had only intensified, with martial law declared in 1924. Nevertheless, minor clashes continued, which culminated in the 1927 Qiong'ao Riots. The State Security Bureau brutally clamped down on the Riots, and a mass purge of civilians followed which would be known as the Qiongzhu Massacre.

Yu's role in the suppression of demonstrations and the Massacre was never made clear. Yu himself, in his autobiography, denied personal involvement, claiming to be only a clerk "vetting identity papers" during his brief deployment on Qiongzhu. Nevertheless, he had expressed regret for "failing to voice his opposition" against his superior's atrocities. In July 1987, during his visit to Qiongzhu, he made a speech offering an apology for his father's actions in the Massacre, although he did not directly admit any personal guilt.

However, some survivors of the Massacre said that Yu was "closely involved" in the interrogation process, and had "invalidated" much evidence that would have proved their innocence. Instead, he crafted "false papers" implicating various civilians for treason, which were signed by Qiongzhu's governor Wei Gongqia authorising their imprisonment and execution. Wei Gongqia's son, Wei Chentui, revealed in 1997 that Yu "was a close friend" to him and the governor and remembered him often coming for late family dinners after work. Often also they would discuss "security matters" in Wei's personal study, which Wei Junior was forbidden to access. He believed then that Yu "was actively involved" in the arrests.

Shortly after the Massacre, Yu was said to be 'homesick' and returned to Xiongjing in March 1929. Some commentators saw his return to Xiongjing as a pretext to return to the centre of his father's politics, which led to some doubts as to whether or not he was as ill as he had claimed. Investigation into Yu's personal involvement in the Fascist regime and the Massacre continued to be suppressed in the Empire, due to his legacy as the founder of the New Bai Dynasty. Nevertheless, independent historians claimed that Yu's possible involvement could have provided "inspiration" and "experience" for his subsequent implementation of martial law when he reunified Qiongzhu under his control during the Regency Era.

Ambassador to Izaland
Upon returning to Xiongjing, Yu was appointed to the BFSP Central Committee in July 1929, which made key decisions regarding the party's activities and policies. This allowed Yu to be more closely involved in party politics, which some biographers noted could be his father preparing for his son to succeed him "at some point". Already since his appointment to the Central Committee, some party documents published mentioned his name and importance in the BFSP's "continued future and legacy".

It was then unclear why, two years soon after, Yu was suddenly deployed to Izaland as ambassador. Yu himself said he was "very surprised" with the appointment, but has "no choice" but to follow through with his father's wishes. He was forced to leave behind his girlfriend Jia Huining, a fellow party comrade, before leaving for Izaland. He never saw Jia again, for she was accused of treason shortly after his departure and "quietly purged" soon after. Some historians speculated Yu might have had a disagreement with his father over the upcoming war preparations, or that the senior Yu did not want his son involved in battle.