Qian Mu
On August 30, 1990, Mr. Qian Mulao, a master of traditional Chinese studies, died at the age of 95 in an apartment on Hangzhou South Road in Taipei.
Mr. Qian Mu devoted his life to historical research and was also an educator, and as soon as the news of his death came out, the academic circles on both sides of the strait were shocked and saddened.
As a result, interviews and invitations from the north and south of the world continued to fall on Hu Meiqi, the old man with the flower armor who had just lost his partner.
This year, Hu Meiqi was 61 years old and had gone through 34 spring and winters hand in hand with Qian Mu.
She was Qian Mu's third wife, and when 27-year-old Hu Meiqi was married to her in a crown, Qian Mu was 61 years old.
This kind of regret of "I was born and old" is lamentable, and people can't help but sigh, the two people who pulled the deer cart together have different fates, in their 61-year-old year, one ushered in Zhiyin, and the other lost his lover forever.
Qian Mu and his wife Hu Meiqi
The story of old husbands and young wives is actually not uncommon, but the combination of Money and Hu is full of fate due to the turmoil of the times.
For this marriage, Qian Mu regarded it as Hu Meiqi's "sacrifice", but Hu Meiqi himself enjoyed it.
All this needs to start from the antecedents of the two people's acquaintance.
In 1949, due to changes in the domestic situation, Qian Mu could not adapt to his teaching position at Jiangnan University, so he and his colleague Tang Junyi went to Guangzhou to temporarily avoid.
It was early April, the best time in the Jianghu area, and the willow trees near Taihu Lake had been dyed new green.
Qian Mu thought that after a few months of relaxation in the war, he could come back to be with his wife and children, so he took a few pieces of luggage and left lightly.
Qian Mu when he was young
The year she left home, Qian Mu's youngest daughter, Qian Hui, was only 9 years old.
The long-term gathering of less and more makes the relationship between father and daughter somewhat alienated. Looking at his daughter's ignorant eyes, Qian Mu made up his mind to fulfill his responsibilities as a parent after the situation changed.
However, he did not think that after this walk, he never embarked on the road back to the mainland.
Two months after coming to Guangzhou, the domestic situation deteriorated further, and Qian Mu followed a group of intellectuals to Hong Kong.
At this time, Qian Mu still did not stop the idea of returning to Jiangsu and Zhejiang to teach and reunite with his family, but the criticism of Qian Mu's position by the mainstream media in the mainland made him prohibitive.
Since there was no way to go back, Qian Mu planned to let his wife and children come to Hong Kong. However, the letter sent back by his son gave him a blow in the face.
Qian Mu handwriting
Not only did the letter not mention anything about coming to Hong Kong, but it was accompanied by a newspaper criticizing Qian Mu, which read: "Imperialism and its lackeys, the reactionary government of China can only control some of them ... For example, Hu Shi, Fu Sinian, Qian Mu and the like...".
In that era, Qian Mu saw a lot of this kind of criticism of his articles, and he gradually got used to it. Originally, it was a dispute between different academic positions.
However, seeing such comments and family letters put together, Qian Mu still felt that the words were cursed.
From this, he also clearly realized that the Taihu Lake, which was haunted by dreams, the home with a virtuous wife and 5 children, he could not go back at all.
Frustrated Qian Mu did not lose all his thoughts, the hero is the greatest, for the country and the people. Qian Noted that as more and more people like him fled to Hong Kong, many lost their educational opportunities.
On the one hand, Qian Mu, who has been engaged in education work before, can't bear to see these people have no schooling, on the other hand, Qian Mu also wants to stick to his position and open the door to inheriting traditional culture in Hong Kong.
Soon after, New Asia College was established.
Qian Mu taught at the New Asia Academy he founded for 15 years.
This school is not only an oasis for Qian Mu to settle down on his own, but also to open up a pure land for hundreds of students to devote themselves to studying and learning in the chaos of war.
During this period, there were few places for systematic teaching of Chinese studies in British-colonized Hong Kong, and once the New Asia College was established, some intellectuals heard about it, including Qian Mu's later wife, Hu Meiqi.
In 1953, New Asia College welcomed its new students
Hu Meiqi's family also fled into exile in Hong Kong to escape the chaos of the war.
Hu Meiqi's father, Hu Jiafeng, originally served as a political leader in Shanxi Province, but after the war was urgent, after thinking about it, Hu Jiafeng still decided to move his family away, so his youngest daughter Hu Meiqi, who was studying at Xiamen University, had to give up her studies and come to Hong Kong with her father.
It is precisely because of his foresight that after coming to Hong Kong, even if life began to become difficult, Hu Jiafeng still insisted that his daughter finish reading the book.
After careful consideration, he took a fancy to The New Asia Academy, and after learning that the New Asia College was founded by Qian Mu, he did not hesitate to let his daughter go there to study.
Hu Meiqi, who likes to study, took courses in Traditional Chinese Studies in her spare time, and Qian Mu, who teaches history, became one of her teachers.
Hu Meiqi, who was just in her early 20s, was attracted by Qian Mu's mellow and elegant temperament, and then impressed by his talent and insights.
Since then, Qian Mu's history class has become Hu Meiqi's favorite course, and Qian Mu herself has become her most respected and admired teacher.
After a year, the Hu family found a way out in Taiwan and moved out of Hong Kong, and Hu Meiqi's course at New Asia College ended.
However, fate is always wonderful, and although Hu Meiqi and Qian Mu's fate in Hong Kong was terminated, the two met again in Taiwan.
In order to raise enough funds to maintain the operation of New Asia College, Qian Mu often went to Taiwan to collect donations. After Lao Jiang learned about the situation, he offered Qian Mu a gift of 3,000 Hong Kong dollars per month for Qian Mu to run the school.
In order to express his gratitude, Qian Mu was invited to Taiwan to give a keynote speech on the political gains and losses of China's past dynasties.
In one of the speeches, the auditorium suddenly collapsed, many people present were killed, and although Qian Mu was very difficult not to die, he was also seriously injured and treated at the Taipei Central Clinic.
The news of the collapse of the auditorium was reported by the media, and the news of the famous scholar Qian Mu's injury did not go away. Knowing that Qian Mu was hospitalized, Hu Meiqi immediately went from Taichung to Taipei to visit her mentor.
Qian Mu sent his nephew Qian Weichang (first from the right) to study in the United States
After being discharged from the hospital, Qian Mu came to Taichung for recuperation, while Hu Meiqi would visit the nursing center every day.
Qian Mu, who is more than 50 years old, is strict and affectionate, and over time, the topics discussed by the two have gradually increased.
At first, the discussion between the two only stopped at historical facts, speeches, etc., and after familiarization, Hu Meiqi observed Qian Mu's stomach disease, and in order to avoid Qian Mu's excessive focus on academics and uneven diet, he often spent dinner with him before leaving.
On Sundays, in their spare time, the two of them also went for a walk in the park together.
Qian Mu, who had been in turmoil and displacement, felt an unprecedented silence during the period of recuperation, and Hu Meiqi, who came every day, also gave him a warm comfort to his lonely soul.
During these 4 months, Qian Mu was able to forget the difficulties of running a school, the loneliness of his wife and children, and only calm down to enjoy the unpolished natural scenery of Taiwan.
As the sea breeze blew into Qian Mu's heart, there was also Hu Meiqi's youthful and bright smile. After recovering from her injuries, Qian Mu returned to Hong Kong, while Hu Meiqi remained in Taiwan to continue her studies, but the two began to contact.
In 1954, Hu Meiqi ended her studies. Like everyone who has just graduated, she begins to fall into a confused stage, thinking about the rest of her life.
Hu Meiqi previously studied psychology at New Asia College, and later studied in Taichung as a teacher training college.
Qian Mu taught for the last time
But the study here has made an overall change in the educational psychology that she has always been obsessed with, and she does not want to start her teaching career in this way, but wants to continue to enrich herself and then think about it.
At that time, the Traditional Chinese Studies course chosen by Wu Liu made traditional culture completely rooted in Hu Meiqi's heart, and since then, she has never forgotten that learning Chinese Studies has become a hobby of hers.
Qian Mu was the one who led her into the field of traditional Chinese studies, so for Hu Meiqi, Qian Mu was as precious as the works that have survived from previous dynasties.
On the one hand, in order to study Sinology in depth, on the other hand, it is also to protect the treasure in her heart, 25-year-old Hu Meiqi came to Qian Mu's side to take care of this old man who was nearly a flower armour but was alone.
Miraculously, since Hu Meiqi came to Qian Mu's side, Qian Mu's situation has begun to slowly improve: Xinya Academy has been supported by the American Asian Etiquette Society, so that Qian Mu's helpless funding problem has been properly resolved.
In addition, New Asia College has been recognized by the Hong Kong government, its reputation has begun to spread, and its students have gradually begun to increase.
After another two years, Qian Mu almost had no other worries except for his unattainable hometown.
In the face of Hu Meiqi, who was also uprooted and inseparable, Qian Mu decided to give her an explanation and completely settle the two lonely and wandering hearts.
In January 1956, the two were married in Hong Kong, and Qian Mu also wrote a special gift of the first yang: "The strong grass does not go for the wind, and the dry tong xin has a phoenix to come to the ceremony."
It can also be seen from here that for Qian Mu, Hu Meiqi has both the ability to protect him from harm, and marry him youngly, decorating his withered life.
It turns out that not only is Qian Mu an ancient book that Hu Meiqi regards as a treasure, Hu Meiqi is also a noble and dazzling phoenix in Qian Mu's heart, and only the mutual appreciation of two people can achieve a good story.
After marriage, the two lived in a refugee area of Diamond Hill in Kowloon, although life was stretched, but the two who focused on literature were extremely romantic, Hu Meiqi was responsible for cleaning and cooking during the day, Qian Mu was immersed in the writing of works, and at night they would come to the seawall to look at the moon, walk and chat.
Later they moved to Sha Tin Hill, where the promenade overlooks the green mountains and the sea.
The so-called happiness is just that, there is a career to fight for, there is a confidant and a lover, three meals and one meal, and a place to live in a room that can be considered in the world.
The year 1967 seemed a little special to Qian Mu, when the sword and light shadow of the decade-long catastrophe in the interior swept into Hong Kong, and Qian and Hu had to give up all this and move to Taipei.
It was also this year that Qian Mu completely lost contact with his wife and children in his hometown.
At the age of 73, he suffered from glaucoma and writing began to become difficult.
At this time, Hu Meiqi became Qian Mu's ghostwriter, and many other works, such as "Zhu Zi Xinxue Case" and "History of Chinese Academic Thought", were dictated by Qian Mu and compiled by Hu Meiqi.
As Qian Mu's eye disease worsened, he was almost blind and missed the news of his hometown more and more. The kind Hu Meiqi looked in his eyes and was anxious in his heart.
It was not until 1980 that they got in touch with the children of their hometown, and the two immediately left for Hong Kong, Qian Mu said in the letter that when he asked his children to meet, he would bring some peanuts from the mainland that Hu Meiqi was willing to eat, and Hu Meiqi took Qian Hui's hand and said eagerly, Qian Mu usually thinks about you the most.
After Qian Mu's death, In order to fulfill his wish to return to his hometown, Hu Meiqi personally went to Wuxi, Suzhou and other places to choose the land for him.
Tomb of Qianmu
When she was old, she visited many places and was not satisfied, until standing on the lake of The West Mountain of Taihu Lake, Hu Meiqi seemed to see the green mountains and the sea that were no different from Hong Kong's Sha Tin Mountain.
Within three minutes, she had chosen this place.
In 2012, Hu Meiqi died, and qian's surname also came here to be buried with him.
Looking back on the time at Sha Tin Shan was the happiest day for the two of them, and i think that after a hundred years, the two of them will continue to be so happy.