Kuomintang Government
By the middle of 1928 the Northern Expedition had reached Beijing and Zhang Xueliang, the chief general of the northeastern local army, expressed his attitude of subordination to it. Soon a national government was established, with Chiang holding both military and political leadership. Nevertheless, only about half of the country was under the direct control of the Kuomintang; the rest was ruled by local warlords.
China's social problems were legion: children were used as slave labor in factories; domestic slavery and prostitution were rife; the destitute and starving died on the streets; and strikes were ruthlessly suppressed by foreign and Chinese factory owners. In the face of such endemic social malaise, Chiang became obsessed with countering the influence of the Communists.