Oil Founder Cao Hongxun (Qilu Zhuangyuan Series 24)

After reading the title of this article, some readers may have doubts. Zhuangyuan was the elite of the ancient imperial examination. Oil is the symbol of modern industry. What can be related between the two? You don't have to say, this is really there, and allow the author to say it slowly.

As the author introduced earlier, there was a Qing dynasty, and Shandong produced a total of six champions. Among them, liaocheng two, Jining two, Weifang two. The two leaders of Liaocheng and Jining have been introduced. Next, it is time to introduce the two champions of Weifang.

Just as the two Zhuangyuan families in Jining live on the same street, the two Zhuangyuan families in Weifang live in a small alley called "Southwest Guanxin Alley". As a result, this humble alley has also become a well-known "Zhuangyuan Hutong". Listening to friends in Weifang, at the moment when urban construction is changing rapidly, the "Zhuangyuan Hutong" has been demolished and rebuilt, so there is no trace. I feel very sorry for this. For public reasons and private reasons, the author has been to Weifang countless times, but when the "Zhuangyuan Hutong" still exists, he did not think to get up and see its true appearance. Some places come, if you want to see, or early. Otherwise, it may be gone one day.

A few years ago, there was a TV series called "Prime Minister Liu Luoguo" that was all the rage. In the play, the honest, talented, witty and humorous Luo Guo Chancellor Liu Yong is a member of the Zhucheng clan of Weifang. In some literary and artistic works, Liu Yong is said to be the winner of the Qing Dynasty, which is actually a kind of false rumor and misleads many viewers. Liu Yong's real ranking was the second place in the second rank of Xin Weike in the sixteenth year of Qianlong (1751), that is, the fifth overall ranking. It is rumored that when studying the candidates for undergraduate titles, some examiners did recommend Liu Yong. However, Qianlong, who was scheming, believed that Liu Yong's father, Liu Tongxun, was already a member of the Yipin Dynasty at that time and had a wide network of contacts in the DPRK, so his son could no longer be a champion, so as not to make the Liu family too powerful. In addition, in Qianlong's view, the examiners recommended Liu Yong as a champion, which may not be an act of inflammatory attachment to Liu Tongxun. Therefore, the title of that family was given to Wu Hong, a member of the Renhe (now Hangzhou) clan in Zhejiang. Wu Hong is also very interesting, and there is a folk proverb cloud, "desperately eat pufferfish". And Wu Hong was poisoned and died because of the improper method of eating puffer fish. This Wu Zhuangyuan can also be regarded as creating an alternative first plus in the history of the imperial examination.

Cao Hongxun (曹洪勋) was a member of the Second Year of the Qing Dynasty (1876) of the Enko Emperor. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the imperial examination was held every three years according to the regulations, and it was called "the main subject". In the event of events that the imperial family believes are worth commemorating and celebrating, such as the ascension of the new emperor to the throne, the emperor or the emperor, and the birthday of the empress dowager, the government will open a examination for the imperial examination, calling it "Enko". In this way, the readers of the whole world can also follow the joy and get an extra chance to compete for the top. This year's Enke was specially added to celebrate the Guangxu Emperor's succession to the throne.

According to reports, the southwest Guanxin Alley where Cao Hongxun's family lived was only a small alley that was not too long when it existed. Twenty-seven years later, Wang Shoupeng, who lived in this hutong, became the penultimate figure in the History of Chinese Imperial Examinations in the Qing Dynasty and China. Regarding the specific situation of Wang Shoupeng, I will go into detail later, and I will not press the table for the time being.

Cao Hongxun was born in the grassroots class, and his father died early, and his family was relatively poor. But people's children rarely have great ambitions, and they are particularly diligent and studious. Because he did not have the money to pay tuition, Cao Hongxun often went to the nearby private primary school (private school) hungry to read. At first, I was standing outside the classroom window eavesdropping. There was a teacher at that elementary school who was a very sympathetic person. He was distressed and very fond of Cao Hongxun, a child who loved to learn, so he deliberately tutored him, so that he received a relatively good and systematic education early. Because of the teacher's careful guidance and his own diligent efforts, Cao Hongxun showed outstanding talent in his youth and achieved very good academic results, laying a solid foundation for the future success of the imperial examination. Cao Hongxun's experience of studying and growing up once again proves that when he was young, it was a great blessing to meet a good teacher.

At the age of twenty-seven, Cao Hongxun was selected to be sent to Beijing for further study as a "tribute". The so-called "bagong" is to select outstanding students from all over the country to enter the highest national institution of learning (Guozijian) for further study. It was organized every six years in the early Qing Dynasty, and changed to every twelve years during the Qianlong period. Only one student can be selected at a time in each state and county school. It is not easy for Cao Hongxun to be listed among them, which fully demonstrates the excellence of his studies.

After the selected "tributes" have completed the prescribed coursework in the Guozijian, the relevant government departments must conduct a "dynasty examination," that is, to assess and examine the students' conduct and studies. Those who pass the "Dynasty Examination" may serve as low-level officials of central departments or local governments. In the "Dynasty Examination" at the end of the study period, that is, in the Guozijian study and completion examination, Cao Hongxun won a good result of the first class, which is equivalent to the champion among the graduates of the Guozijian. Cao Hongxun's hard work in learning and excellent grades are another proof.

After passing the "Imperial Examination", Cao Hongxun was selected to serve in the Punishment Department of the central government organ. According to the official system of the Qing Dynasty, those who act as officials in the capacity of lifting people or equivalent to lifting people will have greater room for upward mobility. Like Cao Hongxun, a guozi supervisor, his identity and education are equivalent to lifting people. Therefore, after taking up the job, Cao Hongxun did not stop at this, but continued to study hard and prepare for the exam seriously while doing his job well. Kung Fu pays off, and after three years of work, Cao Hongxun, who is in his early thirties, finally won the world in one fell swoop. The saying of thirty and standing, when applied to Cao Hongxun, is worthy of the name.

After winning the crown, Cao Hongxun was first appointed as a practitioner of the Hanlin Academy according to the custom, and after working for a period of time, he was sent to Hunan as the deputy chief examiner of the township examination. Soon, he presided over the province's education work (academic administration). Because of his experience of studying hard when he was young, Cao Hongxun paid special attention to the education of young people. During his work in Hunan, he vigorously set up schools and took multiple measures to encourage young people of the right age to enter schools and receive formal education. At the same time, the active reform has broken some stereotypes and bad habits in the education work, which has brought about a marked improvement in the local study style and examination style. After the end of his term in Hunan, Cao Hongxun was selected as a teacher of the Royal College (Upper Study) to tutor the royal children to study and study.

At the age of forty, Cao Hongxun was sent to a local post, first to Yunnan as a mayor-level cadre (prefect of Yongchang, Yunnan). After taking office, he paid attention to the sufferings of the people, listened to the voices of the people, and did a lot of good things for the people. In particular, in the investigation and handling of some major and important cases with great social impact, his deeds have been well received by the people and highly valued by his superiors, and he has gained a good reputation of "clearly enforcing the law." Because of his excellent work, Cao Hongxun was promoted. After experiencing the experience of yunnan envoys, Guizhou envoys, Hunan envoys and other positions, at the age of forty-nine, Cao Hongxun became a provincial-level feudal governor (Shaanxi inspector). At this time, there were only eighteen or nineteen years before he was in the middle of the yuan. This rate of progress is really fast enough.

Attaching importance to and practicing education work can be said to run through Cao Hongxun's political career as an official. During his tenure as Inspector of Shaanxi, Cao Hongxun personally set up the "Academic Affairs Office", an institution in charge of the province's education administration, which should be the first in the country. Cao Hongxun also presided over the repair and expansion of the Shaanxi University Hall, and established a number of professional schools such as the Patrol Police Academy and the Army Primary School. At the same time, Cao Hongxun also learned from the practices of his hometown of Shandong, organized a criminal art center, and "taught them craftsmanship and guided them to self-renewal" for lawbreakers and criminals, and their ideological consciousness was humane enough and advanced enough. Judging from Cao Hongxun's deeds, he is an official who not only has a pioneering and innovative consciousness, but also attaches great importance to practical work and is full of humanistic feelings.

In particular, it is worth mentioning that Cao Hongxun's contribution and status in the development of China's modern industry are not inferior at all to Li Hongzhang, Zhang Zhidong and others who are known for engaging in the "foreign affairs movement." Cao Hongxun can be called the founder of China's petroleum industry. At his initiative and under his auspices, the first oil well on china's land was drilled in Yanchang County, Shaanxi Province. China's oil industry began here.

Vision often determines the behavior of officials. In the Qing Dynasty, especially in the late Qing Dynasty, there were many mediocre and corrupt officials, and officials with international and modern visions were really rare. For example, when an upright and promising national hero like Lin Zexu talked to the Daoguang Emperor, some of his views on Britain and the great powers were very ironic. It is not easy for Cao Hongxun to be able to do such a thing and reach such a realm.

The abundant oil reserves have long been known to the world, but the government has been indifferent and has been delayed in doing anything. As a result, some foreigners salivated and wanted to move. A German trading house bought some local gentry, and the two sides signed a so-called "contract" for exploitation without government permission, ready to make a fortune by extracting oil. Fortunately, under the insistence of a small number of far-sighted officials, the Qing government vetoed the so-called "Sino-foreign joint venture", investigated and dealt with the relevant dereliction of duty, and approved the extension of the oil field to be "returned to Shaanxi Province to run itself."

After Cao Hongxun arrived, he believed that oil was a good thing and the government must grasp it. He pointed out that the Yanchang oilfield "cannot be used to inspire the Shaanxi people to follow the habits without immediate opening, and there is no view that outsiders covet it", showing a high sense of responsibility and extraordinary foresight. On the basis of organizing forces to seriously investigate and explore, repeatedly demonstrate, and carefully calculate cost-effectiveness, Cao Hongxun felt more and more that this was a great thing that benefited the country and the people and contributed to the long term, so he made up his mind to introduce technicians and equipment from Japan and recruit and train relevant personnel, with a view to exploiting the Yanchang oil field as soon as possible.

Under the full supervision of Cao Hongxun, the work of oil exploration progressed smoothly, and the first well was soon produced, which is the famous "Yanyi well". "Yanyi Well" is the first oil well in China's national petroleum industry. In China's oil industry, "Yanyijing" is simply a holy place, and no one does not worship it. With this alone, Cao Hongxun can be called a pioneer in China's petroleum industry. The saying that "Yanyi Well" is the first oil well on land in China is widely adopted by China's petroleum industry, including the introduction of "Yanyi Well". On this issue, the author has some small doubts, is it not possible that China's first offshore oil well was not born earlier than the first oil well on land? This is not very common sense. Therefore, it seems more accurate to remove the prefix of "onshore" and directly call "Yanyi Well" the first oil well in China.

Extending the smooth production of oil from the first oil well, Cao Hongxun, who was in a good mood, did not stop moving forward, satisfied with the achievements achieved. Just when Cao Hongxun was raising funds from many sources, preparing to open more oil wells, purchase oil production machines, build oil refining plants, shake off his arms and do a lot of work, and go all out to develop the national petroleum industry, the imperial court issued a transfer order, requiring him to immediately return to Beijing to report and assist in the preparation of the Senior Government. Two years after returning to Beijing, Cao Hongxun died of illness at the age of sixty-four.

Although Cao Hongxun, who worked hard to develop the petroleum industry, was not able to witness the development and growth of China's petroleum industry, in the Shaanxi area where he worked and drilled the "Yanyi Well" and near his hometown of Weifang, China later developed and built super-large-scale oil fields, and became an important source of power for the development of the national economy. This was enough to comfort the spirit of the oil founder in heaven.

Cao Hongxun is also an official with a strong backbone and a sense of justice. He dared to speak out, was not afraid of committing crimes, and did not care about personal gains and losses for the sake of the country and work. For example, in order to build the Summer Palace for her own enjoyment, Mrs. Cixi actually prepared to embezzle naval funds. Those officials who were good at watching the wind and steering the rudder and afraid of wearing small shoes knew that Cixi was a narrow-minded and fierce master who was determined to repay. Therefore, although most people know that she is outrageous in doing so, one by one she pretends to be deaf and dumb, and few people dare to talk about it.

For the sake of the country's interests and security, Cao Hongxun disregarded his personal honor and disgrace, resolutely wrote to Cixi and Guangxu, and resolutely opposed spending huge sums of money to build such places of eating, drinking and entertainment. Cao Hongxun's proposal is more sharp in rhetoric. It said that the state had overwhelmed its finances because of huge war reparations to the outside world and other reasons. Under such circumstances, it is all the more necessary to spend money on the blade of the knife, to develop the industrial economy, enhance national defense strength, and effectively resist foreign insults, rather than engaging in the face project of these buildings and halls.

Cao Hongxun's letter of opinion shows a strong sense of responsibility, a sense of justice, and the backbone of the Shandong Han. It is estimated that after reading this opinion, the old lady of Cixi will definitely be very unhappy. But what makes people feel a little strange is that Lafayette, who has always been careful and has a strong desire for revenge, did not adopt Cao Hongxun's advice, but did not rectify and repair him because of this.

Not only was he an official and political achievement, Cao Hongxun was also a versatile person. His calligraphy and painting achievements are quite profound, especially his calligraphy skills, and many works have been handed down, enjoying a high reputation in the industry.

In terms of official morality and conduct, Cao Hongxun's deeds are also commendable, and there are no scandals such as corruption. In such a smoky and almost rotten official field as the late Qing Dynasty, Cao Hongxun, who was honest and upright, had insight and achievement, was definitely a rare clear stream. It seems that the good teacher cao Hongxun met when he was a child not only enlightened his knowledge, but also played a very important role in teaching him to be a man. As a native of Shandong and a native of Weifang, we have reason to be sincerely proud and proud of Cao Hongxun, an outstanding ancestor of his hometown.

About author:Wang Lijing, pen name Gu Di, male, Shouguangren, Shandong, born in Beijing in 1958, graduated from qufu Normal University Chinese Department. He has worked as a young intellectual, a worker, a teacher, a cadre of the organs, and has served as the vice president of the Shandong Police College and a second-level police supervisor. A prose writer who is a member of the Chinese Writers Association, he has published more than 3 million words, won many awards and been selected for a variety of anthologies. The related works have become the bibliography of the libraries of princeton university, Stanford University, Peking University, the University of Hong Kong and other famous universities, and have twice been selected as the top ten recommended books for primary and secondary school students in Shandong Province to read a good book during winter and summer vacations.

Tani ogi

The content of this article is published by the author of One Point and does not represent the position of Qilu One Point.

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