There is an old saying in Beijing: "There are three thousand six famous hutongs, and there are no famous hutongs." The "name" here refers to fame, not name, and every alley has a name. The fame of the hutong exists because of the residence of historical celebrities. Dongtangzi Hutong has a certain popularity and a story. I came to Dongtangzi Hutong, where Cai Yuanpei's former residence was located at No. 75 Hutong, located at the west entrance of the hutong, which Mr. Cai rented during his tenure as president of Peking University from 1917 to 1920. The former residence was originally a courtyard in the east and three courtyards in the west. The gate was originally in the middle, red, and wide, and the carriage could enter directly. The former residence now houses an exhibition of Cai Yuanpei's life.
I didn't expect Cai Yuanpei's former residence to be so simple? As a scholar, he lived frugally, did not buy a property in Beijing, but only rented here. The grade of the former residence belonged to the middle and lower classes at that time, reflecting Cai Yuanpei's simple and incorruptible spirit. At that time, he was the president of Peking University, and carried out a drastic rectification and transformation of Peking University, ushering in a new era of Chinese education and making Peking University the center of a new cultural movement that aroused the awakening of the people. In fact, he also rented two other residences in Beijing: one in Ropesmith Hutong and the other in Backyin Hutong, and the reason why No. 75 Dongtangzi Hutong was finally designated as the "Former Residence of Cai Yuanpei" is mainly because it has high commemorative value as one of the birthplaces of the May Fourth Movement.
According to historical records, in May 1919, when the news of the diplomatic failure of the Beiyang government at the Paris Peace Conference came, Cai Yuanpei, then president of Peking University, could not let go of his worries about the country, so he held a meeting of more than 100 student representatives in the dining hall of Peking University on May 2, where he exposed the situation of imperialist collusion and sacrifice of China's sovereignty at the Paris Peace Conference, pointed out that this was a crucial moment for the survival of the country, and called on everyone to rise up to save the country. The demonstration was scheduled for May 7, National Shame Day, but on May 3 it was already reported that the State Department had sent a secret telegram asking delegates to sign the Paris Peace Treaty. That evening, Cai Yuanpei summoned Peking University student representatives Luo Jialun, Fu Sinian, Duan Xipeng and others to his home to inform him of the news. The deputies discussed overnight and urgently discussed countermeasures. The next day, on May 4, thousands of students in Beijing rallied and marched in Tiananmen Square, breaking out the May Fourth Movement that shocked China and abroad, opening a new chapter in China's new democratic revolution.
Celebrity homes are the dwelling place of the souls of historical celebrities. No. 75 Dongtangzi Hutong is the source of the spark that ignited the May Fourth Movement, witnessing the years when Cai Yuanpei was directly connected with the May Fourth Movement. At the same time, the weak humiliation of China's diplomatic failure and the earth-shattering movement of patriotism ignited the glory of Hutong and left an indelible historical memory for Hutong.