Four big families of the Republic of China

[2] Chen alleged that the four families amassed approximately 20 billion US dollars during the Second Sino-Japanese War, a claim that gained traction in Chinese society, particularly during major political and economic crises.

In 1923, Qu Qiubai, a Communist leader, wrote in the party's journal that several political families controlled bureaucratic capital in China.

In 1946, Communist journalist Chen Boda published a book titled The Four Big Families of China, accusing the Chiang, Soong, Kung, and Chen families of exploiting over 20 billion US dollars from the Chinese people during the Second Sino-Japanese War.

[4][2] The Kuomintang's defeat in the Chinese Civil War intensified political pressure on U.S. President Harry S. Truman’s China policy.

To deflect responsibility, the Truman administration attributed the loss of China to widespread corruption within the Kuomintang.

[5] Yet, the narrative of the immense wealth of the "Four Big Families" persisted in the United States, inspiring Sterling Seagrave's publication of the Soong Dynasty in the 1980s.

According to a document owned by Chang Kia-ngau, Japanese intelligence investigated the deposits of major Chinese government officials in Shanghai.