After returning to China in 1926, Wu began a career in government service, first as a tax collector in Hankou, today part of Wuhan, for the local warlord Xia Douyin. In 1931, he married Edith Huang, daughter of Gene T. Huang. They eventually had four children: Eileen, Edith, Kuo-chen, and Sherman.[1] In 1932, he became mayor of Hankou. When the Yangtze River appeared ready to flood in 1936, Wu oversaw the construction of a huge dike system which saved the city.[2]
Wu with John M. Cabot (center), US Consul General in Shanghai in 1948
With the fall of Hankou to Japanese forces in October 1938 during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Wu and his family fled to Chongqing. In 1939, Chiang Kai-shek appointed him as mayor of Chongqing, a position he held until 1942. He served as vice minister of Foreign Affairs from 1943 to 1945, interacting with Zhou Enlai as part of the united front against the Japanese. After the end of World War II in 1945, K.C. Wu became mayor of Shanghai, serving in that role until the Chinese Communists conquered the city in 1949.[2] While mayor of Shanghai, Wu met Robert R. McCormick of the Chicago Tribune, and his wife Maryland. As the situation in Shanghai became less stable, Wu sent his two daughters to live with the McCormicks in Illinois.[3]
Activities after leaving mainland China
Following the relocation of the Nationalist government to Taipei, Wu served as Governor of Taiwan from 1949 to 1953. Wu attempted to bring a greater degree of self-governance to the Taiwanese people, allowing for the election of certain local officials by popular vote. Wu also brought critics of Chen Yi into the government, and attempted to cut back on police brutality. Wu was opposed by many conservative members of the Nationalist government, including Chiang Ching-kuo and Chen Cheng.
Wu's conflict with the younger Chiang worsened. Wu submitted his resignation to the elder Chiang but it was rejected. In April 1952, an alleged assassination targeting Wu was suspected. In April 1953, he resigned from his position as governor, and on 24 May he hastily left Taiwan on a "lecture tour". Wu's family left for the United States, except one son who was not permitted to leave by the Chiangs. In 1954, a wave of accusations appeared in Taiwan alleging Wu's corruption. At the same time, the Chiangs moved to dismiss Wu's associates from government. They also formally expelled Wu from the Kuomintang.[4] Following his son's departure from Taiwan, Wu began to speak out against what he saw were serious problems with the Kuomintang (KMT) government. That same year, Wu wrote an article in Look magazine entitled "Your Money is Building a Police State in Taiwan".[5] The war of words between Wu and Chiang's regime escalated further, including a resolution against him by the ROC's National Assembly. Later in 1954, a war of words also erupted between Wu and Hu Shih, who was also in the United States at the time.[why?]
At that time, the United States was attempting to forge an alliance with the government on Taiwan. Thus, the idea of fighting the police state was low on the United States agenda. Following a lack of American response to his writings, K.C. Wu lived in the United States where he served as professor of Chinese history at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia]]. During his time in the United States, he wrote various works, including a detailed analysis on Chinese culture in the context of mythology and early history in his book The Chinese Heritage.
Wu is remembered mainly for his vital role in the formation of a liberal modern Taiwan and his anticommunist beliefs typical of KMT members, but he is also remembered for his outspoken anti-Kuomintang rhetoric and turbulent disagreements with the more Russian-styled Chiang Ching-kuo.
