A Critical Review of the Life of Bi Yongnian

Bi Yongnian was a man of letter with rebellious character in the Late Qing Dynasty.Holding the position of "Dragon Head(Longtou)" in the secret Brothers' Society(Gelaohui),he participated in the Reform Movement of 1898,then went to Japan and got into touch with Sun Yat-sen,working for the republican revolution.He kept close contact with the Gelaohui in the Yangtze River area and facilitated the alliance of the Revolutionary Party,the Royalist Party and the secret societies.He took part in the Self-reliance Society(Zilihui) of the Royalist Party,the Huizhou Uprising of the Revolutionary Party.His Gelaohui played an important role in these events.Due to various reasons,he finally left the Zilihui and the Huizhou Uprising ended in failure.Out of disappointment,he shaved off his hair and became a monk.However,he returned to revolutionary activities later.Unfortunately,he was hacked to death by the Qing soldiers in 1901.Bi Yongnian is man of great life stories some of which are not fully studied yet.It requires extensive collection of the historical materials to better understand his life.