Zhang Zhongxing, together with Ji Xianlin and Jin Kemu, is known as the "Three Elders of Yanyuan".
Zhang Zhongxing once said:
"Prose, the best is the Zhou brothers, one is strong, the other is diluted, and the world is equally divided. ”
The "Zhou brothers" in Zhang Zhongxing's mouth refer to Zhou Shuren (Lu Xun) and Zhou Zuoren.
Regarding Lu Xun, Chairman Mao's evaluation is "Lu Xun's direction is the direction of the new culture of the Chinese nation", and about Zhou Zuoren, Chairman Mao said: "Cultural traitors, and there is no murder and arson." Now there are not many people who know Greek, so raise them, do translation work, and publish them later. ”
Obviously, the chairman's evaluation of the Zhou brothers is very different, why?
Today, let's walk into the world of Zhou Zuoren.
On January 16, 1885, Zhou Zuoren was born in Zhou's family in Changfangkou, Shaoxing, Zhejiang, formerly known as Zhou Kuishou, in the early years, Zhou Zuoren received traditional Chinese education in his hometown, in 1901, Zhou Zuoren was admitted to the Jiangnan Sailor School, in order to meet the needs of the development of the times, according to the allusion of "Zhou Wang Shou Kao, not to be a person", renamed "Zhou Zuoren" by "Zhou Kuishou".
In 1906, Zhou Zuoren and his elder brother Lu Xun were admitted to the official scholarship and went to Japan to study for further study.
In 1911, when the famous Xinhai Revolution broke out in China, the Qing Dynasty came to an end in the storm of revolution, and in this year, Zhou Zuoren returned to China and worked as an inspector in the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Education, somewhat similar to the current teaching and research staff in the education department, and then transferred to the Zhejiang Provincial Fifth Senior High School to teach English.
In 1918, Zhou Zuoren became a professor of liberal arts at Peking University, founded the Department of Oriental Languages and Literatures of Peking University, and became the first director of the department.
Chairman Mao believed in the new village doctrine when he was studying in the first division of Hunan in his early years, and after entering Peking University, he specially visited Zhou Zuoren, the most active advocate of the new village doctrine in China, and on April 7, 1920, Zhou Zuoren wrote in his diary on that day:
"Mao Zedong Jun is visiting. ”
After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, the Japanese army occupied Beiping, Zhou Zuoren became a cultural traitor, and even held a position in the Wang puppet regime, because of this, after the end of the Anti-Japanese War, Zhou Zuoren was arrested by the Nationalist Government ruled by Chiang Kai-shek, and was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 1946.
However, Zhou Zuoren also did some good things, for example, he once protected Comrade Li Dazhao's children as much as possible, and when escorting them out of Beiping to Yan'an, Zhou Zuoren said:
"I don't know anyone in Yan'an, I only know one Mao Runzhi, please bring him well. ”
In January 1949, with Li Zongren taking over as president of The President of China, Zhou Zuoren was released from prison on bail and came to live in Shanghai, when Beiping had ushered in liberation, Zhou Zuoren very much hoped to be able to return to live in Beiping after many years of absence, for which he wrote a long letter to Zhou Enlai, made some reviews, and also explained his past, Zhou Enlai forwarded this letter to Chairman Mao, Chairman Mao said:
"Cultural traitors, and they didn't kill people and set fires. Now there are not many people who know Greek, so raise them, do translation work, and publish them later. ”
In August 1949, Zhou Zuoren returned to Beiping, and then moved to live in an old house in Badaowan, Beijing, where he concentrated on translation and writing, and made a living on manuscript fees.
In 1951, Zhou Zuoren wrote a letter to Chairman Mao, "asking not to confiscate his house, not to be a traitor", Hu Qiaomu gave his opinion:
"Zhou Zuoren should completely admit his mistakes and repent in the newspaper like Li Ji. His house can be settled separately. He is now translating European classics for a living, and he can still do some work in this area in the future. Zhou Yang agrees. When you don't, ask for instructions. ”
In this regard, Chairman Mao gave instructions to "do it", and then Zhou Zuoren was arranged to work as a non-editor translator at the Beijing People's Literature Publishing House, with an advance payment of 200 yuan per month.
After the start of the ten-year movement in 1966, Zhou Zuoren was shocked, first stopped by the People's Literature Publishing House, and then was raided by the Red Guards, and was beaten and humiliated.
At noon on May 6, 1967, Zhou Zuoren, who had eaten porridge, lay down on the pavement to rest, and at more than two o'clock in the afternoon, the nanny found an abnormality and immediately notified Zhou Zuoren's daughter-in-law Zhang Huafang, Zhang Caofang returned home only to find that Zhou Zuoren was no longer breathing, and it seemed that Zhou Zuoren should have been about to go down to the ground to relieve his hands when he suddenly fell ill and died.