In the long course of history, there have been many exchanges and mutual learning between Chinese and European civilizations: the four great inventions of ancient China promoted the European Renaissance, the beauty of Chinese porcelain influenced the evolution of European art styles, and the Italian missionary Matteo Ricci and the French missionary Bai Jin brought European knowledge of astronomy, mathematics and geography to China......
Today, with the deepening of economic and trade cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, China and the EU continue to write a good story of friendly exchanges. "Learning Every Day" takes you to learn about the Sino-European friendship story behind three precious objects.
A precious national gift
In the National Library of China, there is such a book - it has a cowhide cover, floating mouth bronzing, dyed paper ring lining, and red book edge, which represents the typical characteristics of book binding in the French Enlightenment period, but the content recorded is the cultural thought of Chinese sages more than 2,000 years ago.
This book is a national gift that President Xi Jinping received during his visit to France in March 2019 - "Introduction to the Analects".
This is the National Library of China (top left) and the Analects (bottom left) in its collection, and the Analects (bottom right) in the Library of the Arsenale (top right) and the collection of the National Library of France.
When French President Emmanuel Macron presented the book to President Xi, he gently opened the brown cover and introduced: "This book was published in 1688 and is the first original French version of the Analects. ”
President Xi said to President Macron: "This gift is very precious, and I will take it back to the National Library of China for collection." ”
The Analects, a classic work of traditional Chinese culture, was introduced to Europe as early as the 17th century. In 1687, the first Latin translation of the Analects in the West, Confucius, the Chinese philosopher, was published in Paris, France. Subsequently, the French orientalist Bernier compiled the French translation on the basis of the Latin translation and completed the book "Introduction to the Analects".
"The ideas of Confucius profoundly influenced Voltaire and others, and provided valuable ideological inspiration for the French Enlightenment. President Macron commented on the influence of Chinese culture in France.
From the rise of the "China fever" in France in the 18th century, to the fact that a group of aspiring Chinese young people went to France more than 100 years ago to seek the truth and good prescription to save the country and the people, to the mutual understanding and cooperation between China and France in the 60 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations...... Although China and France are thousands of miles apart, they have always appreciated and borrowed from each other's cultures.
This precious national gift is a powerful testimony to the cultural exchanges between China and France and China and Europe, and also provides valuable experience for how countries treat different civilizations in the era of globalization.
A special commemorative plaque
In the northeastern part of Serbia, there is a small town called Smederevo. The small city is linked to distant China by a century-old steel mill.
The Smederevo Steel Mill was once the only state-owned steel mill in Serbia, and at its peak contributed 40% of the city's revenue, and was known as the "Pride of Serbia".
After entering the new century, due to intensified competition and poor management, this steel mill lost money year after year and was on the verge of bankruptcy. Dejan Doncic, a veteran employee of the factory, once recalled in an interview that the first thing he and his workers did when they got up every morning was to look at the chimney in the factory to see if there was smoke, and if it did, it would mean that the work would start that day, so that their livelihood would be settled.
In 2015, China and Serbia signed a memorandum of understanding between governments to jointly promote the Belt and Road Initiative. The following year, the Smederevo steel mill ushered in a turning point when a Chinese company took over the Smederevo steel mill and officially established HBIS Serbia.
In June 2016, during his visit to Serbia, President Xi Jinping paid a special visit to the Smederevo Steel Mill. The workers used their own steel to "customize" a special gift for President Xi - a commemorative plaque of the silhouette of the Smederevo steel mill. The commemorative plaque is engraved with silhouettes of steelmaking blast furnaces, exhaust chimneys, processing workshops, etc.
At the Smederevo steel plant, President Xi Jinping said sincerely: "We must do what we have promised, including introducing advanced technology, opening up a broader market, ensuring local employment, and benefiting people's livelihood." ”
Technical backbones were selected from China to rush to Smederevo to carry out equipment maintenance and system transformation of the steel plant, and the management team and production technology backbone of the Cypriot side were invited to China for exchange and training...... Just a few months after the Chinese company took over the Smederevo steel mill, the monthly output of the steel mill increased from 60,000 tons to 129,000 tons, and the steel mill has turned losses into profits and has always maintained high production.
This is a photo taken on August 16, 2021 at HBIS Group's Smederevo Steel Mill in Serbia.
Today, the population of Smederevo has grown from 100,000 to 120,000, and the lives of one-third of the city's citizens, including the employees of the factory and their families, as well as the employees of the enterprises that provide supporting services to HBIS Saigang.
Hope from China has been transformed into a tangible driving force for development. "A steel mill makes a city happy. The local people commented.
A letter full of hope
On the desk of the principal of the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School, Erdej Gurrao, there is a precious photograph.
In October 2009, during his official visit to Hungary, then Vice President Xi Jinping made a special trip to visit the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School, presented teaching materials and teaching equipment to the school, and took photos with the school's teachers and students.
"As soon as President Xi Jinping arrived at the school and saw the children who greeted him, he cared about whether they were cold or not, and asked the teachers and children to hurry indoors. Eldey remembers that visit fondly.
More than ten years later, a correspondence across the mountains and seas once again attracted much attention from the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School.
On the eve of the Spring Festival in 2023, with the encouragement of the teachers of the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School, Valaga and Imori sent a letter to President Xi Jinping and his wife Professor Peng Liyuan on behalf of all the students, describing their feelings of studying Chinese in school for 12 years, and expressing their desire to come to China to study at universities and contribute to Hungarian-Chinese friendship.
On February 24, 2023, at the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School in Budapest, the capital of Hungary, Chinese teachers instruct students to learn calligraphy.
Soon, they received a reply from President Xi. In his reply, President Xi recalled the exchange with teachers and students at the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School in 2009, and encouraged Hungarian youths to learn more about China and become ambassadors for the cause of inheriting and developing China-Hungary friendship.
Today, both Valaga and Imori are students at Capital Normal University. Over the past 20 years since its establishment, the Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School has cultivated batches of outstanding students such as Valaga and Imoriet, and has become a platform for friendship between young people from the two countries.
Chinese education and people-to-people exchanges have become an important part of Sino-Hungarian relations. The more the Chinese and Hungarian people understand each other and move around more frequently, the more solid the foundation of friendship between the two countries will be, and the space for cooperation will be broader.
Director丨Luo Hongbing, Wei Qihu
Producer丨Wang Jingdong
Editor-in-Chief丨Li Xuan
Editor丨Meng Lizheng
Vision丨Zhang Zixi
Proofreading丨Sun Xiaoyuan, Wang Zhuojie, Song Chunyan, Liang Yaqin, Yan Tiantian
Produced by丨CCTV Network
Source: CCTV