Hanlin commented on the ** great man, Mao is the best.
Grandpa Mao respects Zhang Yuanji, but in most people's cognition, Zhang Yuanji is not widely known. If you hadn't deliberately researched it, you might not have known that there was such a legendary story hidden in him.
In terms of achievements, Zhang Yuanji once served as the Hanlin of the Qing Dynasty, and was later known as"The father of Chinese publishing"；In terms of experience, he has had the experience of having long talks with historical giants such as Guangxu, Yuan Shikai, Sun Yat-sen, Chiang Kai-shek, and **.
It can be said that he is an extremely rare person in modern history who has truly experienced the changes of the times.
In his later years, Zhang Yuanji was asked by a reporter which of the three people, "Yuan, Sun, and Jiang", was the best before coming to New China, and he replied without hesitation: "* The best!" Only when I saw *** did I see the hope of China! ”
Zhang Yuanji is a unique figure in Chinese history, and he has many stories to tell. He once served as an official in the Qing Dynasty, served as the head of the Criminal Department, and was fully responsible for undertaking general affairs, and one of his greatest achievements was to participate in the "Wuxu Reform".
Zhang Yuanji was very much in favor of Kang Youwei's changes, and although he was deeply influenced by traditional culture, he did not resist Western learning. He was even summoned by Emperor Guangxu himself, which is enough to show his talent and influence.
Let's unravel the story of Zhang Yuanji and learn about his relationship with China's rulers and leaders.
Zhang Yuanji taught himself English and established a Tongyi school to train talents with new Western knowledge for the country. During the Wuxu Reform, he was recommended to the Guangxu Emperor by Xu Zhijing, a scholar at the Hanlin Academy.
Zhang Yuanji recalled that that morning, he and several law changers were waiting in the courtroom, and in addition to them, there were also Rong Lu and the two new prefects. Rong Lu's attitude is arrogant, but Kang Youwei can still talk to him about changing the law.
Zhang Yuanji, the fourth person to meet the emperor, talked with Guangxu for about a quarter of an hour in the hut next to the Qinzheng Palace. Guangxu asked Zhang Yuanji about the situation of the school, and after listening to his answer, Guangxu showed a rare smile on his face.
He encouraged Zhang Yuanji to make students useful contributors to the country.
When Emperor Guangxu talked about the recent affairs of the Prime Minister's Yamen, his tone was gentle, but his face lacked fortitude. Zhang Yuanji was full of confidence in the Wuxu Reform after being summoned, but this reform was eventually stifled by the conservatives led by the Empress Dowager Cixi, Guangxu was imprisoned, and Kang and Liang went into exile.
This was the end of the reform, which lasted only 103 days. Zhang Yuanji reflected that in the social environment at that time, the Wuxu Reform Law was doomed to failure, and although they were full of fighting spirit and wanted to use reform to save the country, it was only an unrealizable dream.
After the Wuxu coup, although he had no friendship with Kang, Liang and others, because Zhang Yuanji was implicated in the reform camp, he was sentenced by the imperial court to "be dismissed and never used".
Subsequently, the Tongyi School was forced to close, and Zhang Yuanji left the capital in disheart and went to Shanghai to make a living.
1.At the invitation of Sheng Xuanhuai, Zhang Yuanji took over as the dean of Nanyang College. Although he had rejected Li Hongzhang's request at a low point in his life, Li Hongzhang still helped him and provided him with the opportunity to translate books from various countries.
After that, Zhang Yuanji began his publishing career. 2.Zhang Yuanji has not forgotten his original intention, that is, to establish the Tongyi School. During his tenure as the premier of ** Public School, he promoted the establishment of the "Special Class", whose members included Li Shutong, Shao Lizi, Huang Yanpei and other famous figures, whose influence was enough to shake China's literary and educational circles.
Zhang Yuanji, a former Qing dynasty Hanlin, made a decision that surprised his friends: he joined the Commercial Press. He believes that while teaching can cultivate talents, publishing can influence more people and make education accessible to more people.
Therefore, he immediately organized personnel to compile new textbooks, and invited a few knowledgeable friends to launch new textbooks such as self-cultivation and history. These teaching materials have not only been widely used in schools around the world, but also made great contributions to the development of China's education.
Therefore, Zhang Yuanji is known as "the first person in Chinese publishing", and his educational philosophy and publishing career have had a profound impact on later generations.
This set of new-style textbooks, edited by Zhang Yuanji and others, subverted the old feudal ethics and incorporated Zhang Yuanji's years of in-depth thinking on Western studies. This innovative move was undoubtedly a major impact and enlightenment for China at that time, opening a new era of education.
Zhang Yuanji not only paid attention to the publication of textbooks, but also actively promoted the introduction of Western books and magazines, so that more people could be exposed to different ideas and concepts. He believes that books play an irreplaceable role in disseminating knowledge and inspiring thinking, which is also the philosophy he has always adhered to.
In addition, Zhang Yuanji also published a series of books with far-reaching influence, such as Ciyuan, Twenty-four Histories of the Hundred Books, Four Serials, and Yan Fu's Theory of Heavenly Evolution, all of which had a strong shock and enlightenment in the hearts of the Chinese people.
Despite all kinds of pressures and challenges, Zhang Yuanji always adhered to his beliefs and strived to spread advanced ideas and knowledge to more people. His efforts and contributions have opened up a new path for China's modernization process and made significant contributions to the development of China's education and culture.
Surprisingly, Zhang Yuanji's efforts and contributions were also appreciated and supported by Yuan Shikai, the ruler in power, and Sun Yat-sen, the leader of the Xinhai Revolution. This shows that no matter what the circumstances and conditions we are in, as long as we have determination and courage, we will be able to change our own destiny and even affect the destiny of the entire country.
The meeting of Zhang Yuanji and Sun Yat-sen. Yuan Shikai once asked Zhang Yuanji to help restore his career, but was politely refused. Later, after the Xinhai Revolution, Yuan Shikai again invited him to be the chief of education, but he still declined.
However, Sun Yat-sen came to Zhang Yuanji to publish his new book, The Theory of Sun Wenxue. This book is a concentrated fusion of Sun Yat-sen's philosophical thoughts, mainly expounding the truth that "it is easy to do and difficult to know".
Although Zhang Yuanji declined Yuan Shikai's invitation, he still expressed support for Sun Yat-sen's new book and helped publish it.
There was an interesting story between Zhang Yuanji and Sun Yat-sen. Sun Yat-sen's painstaking work, The Theory of Sun Wen, was rejected by him because Gao Mengdan, the publisher at the time, thought it would put the Commercial Press in trouble.
Although Zhang Yuanji had a friendship with Sun Yat-sen, and he had sponsored Sun Yat-sen, he still decided to refuse Sun Yat-sen's request. This sparked the wrath of Sun Yat-sen, who later rebuked the Commercial Press in a later letter.
However, Zhang Yuanji did not deliberately make excuses, and he hoped that the Commercial Press would remain "pure" and avoid getting involved in politics. In this context, the publication of Sun Yat-sen's doctrine may offend both the warlords of the North and the South by the Commercial Press.
Finally, let's take a look at the story of Zhang Yuanji and Chiang Kai-shek, this relationship is full of fun.
FigOn the second day of the Songhu Anti-Japanese War, the Commercial Press, the "aircraft carrier" of the publishing industry, was in ruins under the fire of the Japanese. The Japanese actually said, "There is no point in bombing a few neighborhoods, and the most important thing is to eliminate a cultural center like the Commercial Press." ”
Unbelievable. After all, in the minds of many Chinese people, there is no difference between Japanese and wild beasts, so why are they now paying attention to culture? Despite the surprise, the loss of the Commercial Press was indeed enormous.
The bombing cost the Commercial Press 16.3 million, an astronomical figure at the time. Therefore, Zhang Yuanji hated the Japanese so much that when Chiang Kai-shek was passive in resisting Japan, he personally went to Lushan to see Chiang Kai-shek.
Although Chiang Kai-shek made an impassioned statement, Zhang Yuanji did not get the answer he wanted, and it was at that time that Zhang Yuanji began to resist the people.
After that, Zhang Yuanji's relationship with Chiang Kai-shek became very delicate. According to historical records, he once wrote a letter to Hu Shi, saying that Jiang and other emerging magnates were "a group of slaughtering dogs and selling reels", under the banner of revolution, but wanted to play the trick of **.
The most famous is Zhang Yuanji's letter of surrender to Chiang Kai-shek, who was hiding in Taiwan, in 1956. Zhang Yuanji told him not to fall into the past, look forward to the future, should observe the current situation silently, and it is best to give up independence and return to obedience as soon as possible.
In September 1949, New China was about to be founded. **Zhang Yuanji is specially invited to Beijing to attend the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Fig**This outstanding publisher and educator in modern times, Zhang Yuanji, not only experienced the change of Chinese regime, but also made outstanding contributions to the collation of outstanding national cultural heritage.
Therefore, ** has been looking forward to meeting him, and the opportunity for this meeting has finally come after the war is decided. When Zhang Yuanji arrived in Beijing, he first invited him to visit the Temple of Heaven once, accompanied by **, Marshals and so on.
They talked happily all the way until they rested, and ** asked Zhang Yuanji if he had been here when he was an official in the Qing Dynasty. Zhang Yuanji looked at the majestic Temple of Heaven and seemed to fall into memory, but he quickly replied with a hearty laugh: "This is the place where the emperor respects the sky, and I, a petty official, can't come!" ”
Listening to his words, he smiled and said, "It's good now, we can all come and see!" Then, ** mentioned the Wuxu Reform Law and his meeting with Guangxu, and Zhang Yuanji answered them one by one, and added some little-known details.
**After listening, nodding frequently in agreement. Finally, they talked about the Commercial Press, the "bull's-ear" existence in the publishing industry.
FigThe Commercial Press*** spoke highly of the books of the Commercial Press, and he believed that these books were extremely beneficial to the people. He had benefited greatly from the purchase of the Outline of Science, a commercial publication.
In addition, he often reads the "Etymology" of commercial publications. Listening to ***'s words, Zhang Yuanji felt very excited and emotional. On the afternoon of October 1, Zhang Yuanji participated in the founding ceremony under the arrangement of ***, and he was deeply shocked by the crowds of people below and the cheers that shook the sky.
That night, Zhang Yuanji got up in his clothes and wrote a letter to ***, expressing his respect and expectations for *** as the new head of state. He said that he hoped that he could lead the country to eradicate opium poison and rejuvenate China like Lin Zexu.
In an interview, the reporter asked Zhang Yuanji what he thought of "Yuan, Sun, and Jiang", and he did not give a clear answer, but expressed the hope that the new ** could lead the country to prosperity and strength.
Fig**Talk to Zhang Yuanji Zhang Yuanji replied without hesitation: "I think *** is the best leader." I have met several important figures in Chinese history, including Guangxu, Yuan Shikai, Sun Yat-sen, and Chiang Kai-shek.
Guangxu is too weak, although Sun Yat-sen has ideals, but he is not firm enough, Yuan Shikai can only be regarded as a powerful ......However, ** is both learned and courageous, and seeing him, I see the future of China. ”