Yang Hailiang
Luo Ergang has two labels on his body, one is "Hu Men disciple who is pro-Hu Shi" and the other is "expert in the history of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom". The two labels cannot be said to be causal, but the correlation is obvious. Because of these two labels, Hu Shi and Luo Ergang left "a picture of teachers and friends having fun" for future generations. This picture is called "The Five Years of the Division".
Rohr
The origin of writing
In May 1930, Luo Ergang graduated from the Chinese Public School in Shanghai. At that time, there were two ways that made Luo Ergang hesitate: one was to study creation, and the other was to study history. After much deliberation, Rohr decided to study history. Therefore, he told Hu Shi of his volunteerism in the form of a letter and asked Hu Shi to help him", "so that he could 'work and read half work' in the domestic historical research institute or the big library." Hu Shi replied, "There is no Historical Research Institute here, and the Institute of History and Linguistics of the Academia Sinica is far away in Beijing. There are very few large libraries here." Hu Shi is happy with the beauty of adulthood, but according to reality, Luo Ergang's wish is not easy to achieve for a while. Subsequently, Luo Ergang said that Beijing and Shanghai can do it, as long as it is not disconnected from learning.
Soon, Hu Shi met with Luo Ergang. Hu Shi told Luo Ergang: "I know you, you got a school scholarship last year, and your cultural history essay is very good. I read your letter and understand your situation very well. After you graduate, if you are willing to come to my house, I am very welcome to you. In this regard, Luo Ergang was overjoyed and deeply grateful: "The students were able to go to the principal's home and work and study under the shadow and guidance of a great soul, but they never dreamed of it... The student is an aspirant person, to go to the principal's house, is to do their best, cautiously follow the principal, if the principal thinks that the student is a lesson that can be cultivated, the student is willing to serve the principal all his life, even to the end of the world. Between the lines, there seems to be exaggeration and exaggeration. However, from the perspective of Luo Ergang, he was from a humble origin and limited education in the "North Drift", and it is not a pretense to be grateful to Huaide to have a highly respected figure like Hu Shi to open up a new road for himself.
On June 23, 1930, the "ecstatic" Luo Ergang moved into the Hu family at No. 49 Sifel Road, Huxi. At that time, Luo Ergang mainly had two tasks, one was to tutor Hu Zuwang and Hu Sidu to read, and the other was to copy the remains of Hu Shi's father, Hu Chuan. The two main tasks are the latter. Five months later, Hu Shi's family moved from Shanghai to Beijing, accompanied by Luo Ergang. Arriving in Beijing, Luo Ergang continued to transcribe Hu Chuan's remains. After that, he assisted Hu Shi in proofreading various versions of the Liaozhai Complete Works.
On November 10, 1931, Luo Ergang returned to his hometown and relatives. Originally planned to return to Beijing as soon as possible, but due to the impact of war and family affairs, it was repeatedly delayed. It was not until March 25, 1934, that Luo Ergang rejoined the Hu family for more than two years. This time, Hu Shi did not arrange Luo Ergang's fixed work, but only let him read and study. It was also from this period that Luo Ergang embarked on the academic path of studying the history of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
On July 7, 1937, the Invading Japanese Army launched the Lugou Bridge Incident. After the fall of Peiping, Luo Ergang moved south. In September of the same year, Hu Shi was ordered to go to the United States to conduct diplomacy as the dean of the Faculty of Letters of Peking University. At this point, the two went their separate ways, and the friendship between the teachers came to an end. From entering the Hu family in June 1930 to july 1937 when they were separated by teachers and friends, excluding Guangxi for more than two years, Luo Ergang kissed Hu Shi for almost five years.
In February 1943, Qian Shifu, editor-in-chief of the Guangxi Guilin Cultural Supply Society, visited Luo Ergang in Guilin. At that time, Qian Shifu was asking Ma Junwu, Liang Shuming and other Guangxi celebrities to write autobiographies as academic records. At this time, Luo Ergang had been specializing in the study of the military system of the Qing Dynasty and the history of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in the Institute of Social Sciences of the Academia Sinica for several years, and the results were fruitful. However, Luo Ergang was very modest, believing that he was a "late-life student" and could not be mentioned together with Ma and Liang, so he repeatedly refused. Qian Shifu repeatedly invited, Luo Ergang remembered that Hu Shi taught himself with the three words of "scrupulous and", and felt that this story "may enable young people to understand the lesson of a contemporary master who teaches people to be scrupulous and do self-taught work", and finally promised.
From the end of February 1943 to the beginning of March 1943, it took Luo Ergang less than half a month to complete the manuscript. This small book was called "The Record of The Humiliation of The Teacher", which was later the "Five Years of the Division".
Teachers and friends are in a good position
The "Record of the Humiliation of the Teacher' Gate" has only more than 40,000 words, and the six sections are "The First Entry into the Division", "The Revelation of Pu Songling's Birth Year Examination" and "The Examination of the Awakening Marriage Lineage", "Returning to the Province to Embark on the Road of Studying the History of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom", "Re-entering the Division", "The Historical Research Society and the Archaeology Office of Peking University", and "The Teacher Teaching of Xu Xu Chunyang". The content of the whole book is roughly divided into two aspects, on the one hand, Luo Ergang followed Hu Shi to study and ask, on the other hand, Hu Shi asked Luo Ergang a warm greeting.
As for why it was named "The Book of The Insulting Teachings of the Teacher", Luo Ergang's explanation is that he feels that there is a negative teacher and that there is a negative Hu Shi's hope for him. However, through the contents of the book and the results obtained by Luo Ergang in the future, we can say that Luo Ergang did not live up to the teacher's teaching, nor did he live up to Hu Shi's hopes for him. It can even be said that Luo Ergang was a practitioner and demonstrator of Hu Shi's "diligent and gentle" "four-character technique" in his study. Li Xianfu pointed out in "On the Influence of Hu Shi on the Study of Luo Ergang's Historiography" that "although there is no record in the literature that Hu Shi educated Luo Ergang with this 'four-character recipe', his education, demands, and criticism of Luo'ergang are the concrete embodiment of this 'four-character recipe'."
"The Insults of the Teacher"
One of the "four-word tips" is "diligence". Diligence, that is, "eye diligence and hand diligence". Hu Shi believes that diligence is the first moment of self-study success or failure, "all those who can be diligent, no matter how big or small, can achieve something." We usually say that "there is nothing difficult in the world, but I am afraid of people with hearts" and "as long as the kung fu is deep, the iron pestle is sharpened into a needle", etc., which is the truth. One of the manifestations of Luo Ergang's "diligence" is the transcription of Hu Chuan's remains. The entire collection of Hu Chuan's remains is divided into six categories: annals, anthologies, poetry collections, Shen Yu, letters, and diaries, with about 800,000 words. Be careful, methodical and patient in this job. Of the three, patience is the most important. Because Hu Chuan's posthumous manuscript of "changing from the east to the west, adding left to right" is very difficult to identify, and it is also a huge work, and it cannot be completed without perseverance. Finishing the Yifengtang Jinshi rubbings is another manifestation of Luo Ergang's "diligence". Luo Ergang spent three years from Zhou and Qin to the Song Dynasty. Although because of the chaos of the war, this long-distance hard work was not completed, but Luo Ergang enjoyed it and benefited a lot. He said: "What I have trained in this work has enabled me to develop a greater patience, a spirit of perseverance, to do whatever work I will do thereafter." The ancients said, "The bench would rather sit cold for ten years, and the article does not write half a sentence." It is impossible to endure loneliness, not to endure hardships, not to bury one's head in hard work and perseverance, not to abandon impetuosity and impatience for quick success, and to make a difference and achieve something. Diligence, in the final analysis, is a kind of mental strength, tenacity, and stamina, which is accumulated over time and grinded out, and it is boiled out in cold and summer.
The second of the "four-word recipe" is "sincere". The so-called "caution" means "not scrupulously", "not letting go of a single stroke, scribbling at all, giving an example, making a proof, and drawing a conclusion, not being scrupulous, that is, being cautious, that is, being cautious." Hu Shi believes that Luo Ergang has a kind of character of a fox, and this kind of fox is to be reckless in behavior. Hu Shi said: "I am convinced that anyone who can 'not take anything and not be meticulous in his behavior' will certainly be able to develop the habit of working without sloppiness and scrupulousness in learning. Therefore, Hu Shi stressed to Luo Ergang very early on that his habit of refusing to give up and letting go of every stroke was his greatest work capital, which was not something that others could give him, this was the capital he brought himself, "With this spirit of perseverance, no matter where he is, he can make great progress." Hu Shi also repeatedly warned Luo Ergang, "Occasionally if you don't pay attention to it, if you slack off a little, you will have loopholes and jokes." Luo Ergang accepted Hu Shi's teachings and applied "jing" consciously to his own reading and learning. For example, regarding Li Qingzhao's "Later Preface to the Golden Stone Record", Zhang Guan, Li Dai's record of Wang Ya as Wang Bo, and Yuan Ming's "Sacrifice of Sisters" in which the word "Nuoji" is read separately, and the difference is a thousand miles, Luo Ergang wrote two notes. Hu Shi's evaluation was: "Your two notes are very good. Reading and writing is so cautious that it can be the most progressive. Hu Shi also gave the ancients' "son to seek, there is a surplus master" to Luo Ergang as a sign of encouragement. For another example, after Hu Shi's writing of "Pu Songling's Birth Year Examination" and "Examination of the Awakening Marriage Lineage", Luo Ergang felt "very honored" and said that his attitude and method of doing learning were obtained by personally accepting the teacher's teaching and reading two examinations. The main attitude and method here is caution, that is, "not to be scrupulous".
The third of the "four-word recipe" is "and". The so-called "harmony" refers to peace of mind, that is, "humbly observing and calmly examining all claims that are not in my favor, all facts and evidence that oppose or are unfavorable to me." If you can abandon stereotypes, obey the evidence, and sacrifice yourself to others, then "harmony is also the same." One aspect of Luo Ergang that Hu Shi greatly admired was his humility. Hu Shi said: "Er gang not only does not blame me for my criticism of him, but also especially thanks me. My criticisms, whether oral or written, are recorded. Some of the words were quite harsh, and he also accepted them humbly. "In terms of humbly listening to opinions and suggestions, Luo Ergang has really done a good job. For example, in the process of Luo Ergang's writing of the "Spring and Autumn Warring States National History", the historical materials based on it were mainly "Zuo Zhuan", and referred to the "Shiben" and "Bamboo Book Chronicles" books. After Hu Shi learned about Luo Ergang's research, he made a sharp criticism of Luo Ergang on the issue of historical materials: "The historical materials you are basing on are still problematic, and it is most dangerous to use problematic historical materials to write history, even your teacher cannot help you." In view of the scarcity of ancient Chinese historical materials, Hu Shi suggested that Rohr study modern Chinese history, "because the historical materials of modern history are relatively rich, and it is easier to distinguish the true from the false." For another example, regarding Luo Ergang's "Outline of the History of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom", Hu Shi criticized Luo Ergang: "You wrote this book specifically to praise the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and the chaos of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in modern China has not recovered for decades, but you have not written it. To be a historian should not be subjective, it is necessary to give out the truth of the facts in its entirety, and if one side is ignored, it is a one-sided record. This is not true. Hu Shi's words made Luo Ergang "creepy", but these words really aroused people's thoughts and taught people to be energetic. Sometimes, on some issues, Hu Shi, as a "layman," put forward opinions and suggestions, and Luo Ergang also listened respectfully. For example, Luo Ergang studied the military system of the Qing Dynasty and sent his plan to Hu Shi. Hu Shi said that he was "afraid that he was not worthy of criticism", but he still talked about the family's words, "Disdain the research system should exclude subjective opinions, and try to search for materials to reconstruct the system, which is the same as archaeologists constructing a primitive person from a tooth, which can be called reconstructing The reconstruction of The Trust work." In addition, Hu Shi also mentioned the methods, steps and places that need attention, which made Luo Ergang quite inspired. It can be seen that even the words of "laymen" are not necessarily all unreasonable and useless.
The fourth of the "four-word recipe" is "slow". Hu Shi believes that the word "slow" is very important in the method of governance, "its meaning is only to study calmly, and Mo hastily draw conclusions." When the evidence is insufficient, let's leave it 'hanging on'." When he was young, Rohr gang also learned a good lesson in this regard. For example, Luo Ergang wrote a book review, "The Manuscript of the Liaozhai Anthology and Its Value", which is a first aid chapter. After Reading it, Hu Shi criticized Luo Ergang's sloppiness and arbitrariness, pointing out that "it is not easy to judge, just as it is not easy to draw conclusions through examination", and if you make an article, you must stand up and "don't have a gap to overthrow others." Similarly, with regard to Luo Ergang's "The Origin of the Good And Profit Atmosphere of the Qing Dynasty Scholars", Hu Shi warned in the form of letters that "such an article cannot be done" because "this topic is not valid at all." Hu Shi believes that those who do new-style historiography must not arbitrarily make generalizations, "It is good training to write often, but words should not be made lightly, and when they are easy, they will flow into 'slippery' and 'gou and'." For another example, after three drafts of "The Huang Qi Kao of the Book of the Taiping Army", Hu Shicai believed that the evidence was sufficient and the conclusion was reliable, so he helped Luo Ergang to publish it in the "Quarterly Journal of Chinese Studies" of Peking University, becoming luo Ergang's first research article published in a well-known academic journal in China. This writing experience made Luo Ergang deeply understand that making an article cannot be rushed, "it should be changed once, then, and three times, so as to avoid mistakes." Wang Guowei said in "Words and Sayings on Earth": "Those who become great undertakings and university inquirers in ancient and modern times must pass through three realms: 'Last night the west wind withered the green trees.' Go up to the tall building alone and look at the end of the world. 'This first realm also. The belt gradually widened and finally did not regret it, and was haggard for the people of Ishwa. 'This second realm also. The multitude looked for him a thousand times, and suddenly looked back, and the man was in the middle of the night, and the lights were dimmed. 'This third realm also. No matter what the original intention of the kingdom was, and no matter how the people of the world interpreted it, it is undeniable that there can be no rush to do learning, nor can it be rushed. This is also the "slowness" advocated by Hu Shi.
Of course, the "four-character recipe" mentioned by Hu Shi is not clearly distinguished and independent between diligence, moderation, harmony, and relaxation, but are interrelated and integrated. Hu Shi said that Luo Ergang "has his spirit of not daring to be scrupulous at all, coupled with his humility, coupled with his incomparable diligence, no matter where he is, he will have good academic results." Hu Shi made this "prophecy" in August 1948, and although Heaven did not give him time to see if this "prophecy" could be fulfilled, Luo Ergang's subsequent nearly half a century of diligence, caution, harmony, and slowness, as well as his academic achievements, really proved that Hu Shi's words were extremely true.
In the "Record of The Humiliation of The Teacher", although the space occupied by Luo Ergang in the daily life of Hu Shi's family is very small, it is very brilliant, and it is touching to read carefully. In other words, Hu Shi is a strict teacher of ear and face in academics, and a sincere friend in life.
In the 1930s, China was troubled at home and abroad, and it was poor and weak. Luo Ergang, whose family is in Shanghai, is home in Guangxi, and how fortunate and rare it is to be able to go to Hu Shi's home to do tutoring and learning! Among Hu Shi's many disciples, only Luo Ergang had this blessing. Moreover, Luo Ergang was in Hu Shi's home, and he was basically not wronged by food, clothing, shelter and transportation. Luo Ergang himself confessed: "I have never seen such a virtuous gentleman's style, with enthusiasm to inspire people, with humility to treat people, with compassion to sympathize with people; so that I can feel a kind of vigorous, pure and pure comfort like a melting spring day." ”
In his youth, Rohr was frail and sickly, often harboring a "horror of death". Hu Shi took Zhang Yuanji as an example and enlightened him: "A person must have the confidence of life, and must not have the idea of being afraid of death." People who are afraid of death often have short lives, and those who have self-confidence in life will be mentally healthy." Luo Ergang listened to this exhortation and gradually learned to encourage himself. Hu Shi himself also coped with the possibility of "returning" with the mentality of "living in my own way, and dying in peace". Hu Shi said: "I don't see illness as a disease. When a person is about to die, let him die, that is, I don't think of it as a disease, so I can recover quickly. It can be said that in this regard, Hu Shi himself is also a good example for Luo Ergang.
Hu Shi's concern for Luo Ergang is most visible in the details. For example, when Luo Ergang returned to the Hu family, Hu Shi personally went to the station to pick him up. Due to the war in Yanzhou, the train was delayed. After Hu Shi returned home, he called the station again and asked for news. For another example, when he received Luo Ergang's Qing Dynasty military research plan, Hu Shi was examining his body at the Union Hospital. But he ignored his illness and braved the sweltering heat to reply to Luo Ergang, and one time it was two letters, both lessons and encouragement, bitter mouths, and short and long paper.
Hu shi
There is also a period of exchange between Hu Shi and Luo Ergang that cannot be mentioned: in the spring of 1936, Luo Ergang had been an assistant in the Archaeology Department of Peking University for two years, but his position and treatment had not risen. Because Jiang Tingdi was appointed ambassador to the Soviet Union, Luo Ergang's friends Wu Han and Gu Jiguang recommended him to take over at Tsinghua University, and Feng Youlan, dean of the Tsinghua College of Letters, also accepted him. But Hu Shi gave his thanks. Hu Shi meant that modern Chinese history included a wide range of parts, and Luo Ergang was only studying part of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom at that time; plus Jiang Tingdi was a famous professor, and not everyone could easily replace him. Hu Shi said to Luo Ergang: "If you can't stand in Tsinghua, will you still be able to return to Peking University?" When Hu Shi said this, he must have considered it. At the beginning, he was able to gain a firm foothold at Peking University in his twenties, although it was related to his own academic qualifications, but "facing students with mature general thinking" did not cause a storm, and it was also thanks to the "protection" of Fu Sinian and others. Now, Luo Ergang hastily entered Tsinghua, can he have his own general luck? After listening to Hu Shi's explanation, Luo Ergang suddenly woke up and understood Hu Shi's love for himself. As the saying goes, no diamonds are not porcelain. Instead of being overwhelmed and fleeing in the future, it is better to keep to yourself and be ready to go now. I have to say that Hu Shi is wise and thoughtful. Soon, in view of the reality of Luo Ergang's life, Hu Shi won him the improvement of status and treatment, and equipped him with assistants, making him more attentive to study and study.
In general, Luo Ergang followed Hu Shi for five years, and Hu Shi obviously gave him not a job opportunity, but a learning opportunity. Although this is only a special case of Hu Shi's interaction with young people, for the education of young talents, Hu Shi always explores, promotes, helps, guides or advises in his own way. It can be said that "although education is only part of Mr. Hu Shi's rich life experience, it has been internalized into a conscious life responsibility and instinct of Mr. Hu Shi." (Wang Heyuan)
Publication storm
After the completion of the "Record of The Humiliation of the Teacher", Luo Ergang did not immediately send the manuscript to Qian Shifu, but left the manuscript in his hand, mainly because he was worried that there were "inappropriate words" in it. The caution of the Rohr class can also be seen from this. Luo Ergang's wife, Chen Wanfen, also suggested that Hu Shi should look at it and make arrangements. However, at this time, Hu Shi "held the festival overseas and declared worries for the country", and it was inconvenient to contact him for a while. In November 1943, Qian Shifu sent a telegram to urge the manuscript, and Luo Ergang felt the hope of the other party and sent the manuscript out. In June 1944, the manuscript was printed by the Guilin Construction Bookstore. Unfortunately, the war was constant, and as soon as the "Record of the Humiliation of the Teachers" came out, it became out of print.
At the beginning of 1945, Luo Ergang made changes to the "Record of the Humiliation of the Teacher" and asked Lu Jichen to reprint it. Lu Jichen was the general manager of Chongqing Independent Publishing House at the time, and was the secretary of the College of Liberal Arts and the secretary of the Institute of Liberal Arts of Peking University, and had a friendship with Luo Ergang. At the same time, Lu Jichen and Hu Shi also had contacts, and wanted to ask Hu Shi to write a preface to the manuscript. Unfortunately, the Hu Shi people in the United States, entangled in mundane affairs, could not make the preface in time, resulting in the manuscript stranded in the company.
On November 15, 1946, Luo Ergang wrote in a letter to Hu Shi: "The students sent two letters last year, one to Mr. Zhao Yuanren, one to the New York Wushi Residence, and later to the "Record of The Humiliation of the Teacher" written by him. At the end of July this autumn, Li Zhuang Airlines registered and sent the three books he wrote, "Examination of the History of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom", "Chronicles of the Green Battalion Soldiers", and "Records of the Humiliation of the Teachers" to Peking University. From this, it can be seen that Luo Ergang has twice sent the "Record of The Humiliation of the Teacher" to Hu Shi. However, Hu Shi returned to China in July of that year and officially took over as the president of Peking University in September, and it is not surprising that he was overwhelmed and anxious, and the manuscript was not received or had no time to take care of it. Luo Ergang's concern for the manuscript is also completely understandable.
On May 30, 1948, Luo Ergang wrote to Hu Shi about several recent ideas, the third of which was to print the History of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Records of the Humiliation of the Teachers. In the letter, Luo Ergang wanted Hu Shi to write a letter of introduction to Zhu Jingnong, the general manager of the Commercial Press, so that the manuscript could be printed. Luo Ergang also briefly explained to Hu Shi what happened to the manuscript- "The Record of The Humiliation of the Teachers" was published in Guilin in the autumn of thirty-three years, and when it was evacuated urgently, the construction bookstore sent ten samples to the students, everyone left, and there was no circulation outside. After the war, the bookstore was closed. The student did not make any contract with the bookstore that day, nor did he receive a payment for the excess paper, so it can be reprinted today. At the same time, Luo Ergang curve "pleased" Hu Shi, saying that "colleagues and friends in this pamphlet have said yes", and quoted Zong Jingtao, director of the library of the Institute of Society, "I once read a biography of Hu Shizhi, read several articles about Hu Shizhi, and today I read your pamphlet to see the greatness of Hu Shizhi!" Luo Ergang also told Hu Shi that he had sent the "Collection of The History of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom" together with the "Record of the Humiliation of the Teacher", but the business accepted the former and rejected the latter.
A week later, on June 6, 1948, Luo Ergang wrote to Hu Shi again: "The revised manuscript of the "Record of the Humiliation of the Teacher" was given to the master to read it again. When he obeyed the order to change to "Mr. Hu Shi's Teaching Method" and sent it to the air double register yesterday (all manuscripts without letters in it can be printed), thinking that they had received it, the beggar master axe corrected the error, and begged the master to give a preface to the end of the volume (there were eight pages of blank Daolin paper at the end of the volume, and the beggar gave the order on it). It can be seen that Hu Shi has released relevant signals to Luo Ergang, and Luo Ergang has also made careful preparations. And Luo Ergang, who has always been cautious and timid, dared to take the initiative to ask Hu Shi for order this time, the reason is that "the first ten days of Wang Zhiping (Chongwu) brother proposed to ask the student to ask the teacher to give the order, the student wanted to do it in his heart, but did not dare to beg." Now I know that my teacher loves so much that the students dare to beg the master to give the order. The student thinks that all the other works have been obliterated, and if this little book is fortunate enough to receive the preface from the teacher, the student's micro-name will also be immortalized by the name of the master." Today, a few years later, when we read Luo Ergang's words, we can still feel his joy and feel the weight of "The Book of The Humiliation of the Teacher" in his heart. It is conceivable that with Hu Shi's preface, With Hu Shi's recommendation, and hu Shi's friendship with Zhu Jingnong, "it is not to be said that business is willing to accept printing." Prior to this, Luo Ergang had asked Gu Jiegang to introduce the printing line, and Gu Jiegang introduced the Wentong Bookstore. Compared with the two, Rohr is more interested in business.
Who knows, it wasn't long before Luo Er's plan to teach in Lingnan died, and he was very tight on hand. It just so happened that a fellow villager, Li Jun, was working as an editor in Xueyuan, and wanted to list "The Book of Humiliation and Teaching of Shimen" as one of their series, and it was also printed in a brand bookstore like Business or Zhonghua, and promised to pay 20 million yuan in advance. Rohr thought left and right, and finally agreed. Naturally, he wanted to explain to Hu Shi, "The purpose of this manuscript is to be printed in a business or Zhonghua Bookstore, and now some people can send the manuscript fee to help the urgent needs, and they can also print it in business or China, so they will no longer bother my teacher and trouble Mr. Zhu Jingnong."
The remuneration has been received, but Hu Shi's preface has not yet been shadowed, and Luo Ergang cannot help but be anxious. On June 28, 1948, Luo Ergang wrote to Hu Shi: "The draft of Mr. Hu Shi's Teaching Methods, after the beggar has time to change and give a short order, the beggar air double registration gift sent back, you have to hand over the draft to Li Jun (this matter has been submitted by the student in the letter on the 14th), because the student has already received the fee. However, when my master has no time and no work, he must not take the time to change it, and then ask for advice when he is idle. The students, fearing that they had not received the letter on the 14th, were only here to offer their offerings. "Akari is considerate, but in fact, he is heartfelt. Hu Shi probably also realized that Luo Ergang was not easy, so no matter how busy he was, he also had to pay attention to this "unscrupulous" disciple.
Soon, Hu Shi was able to fulfill Luo Ergang's dream wish--axe zheng 'Sergeant's Insulting Teachings'. This made Rohr class grateful. On July 20, 1948, in a letter to Hu Shi, Luo Ergang wrote: "Mr. Fan Kuiyu brought the manuscript from the previous day to be presented, and the Mongolian master carefully changed it to the students during his busy schedule, especially the section of Pu Songling's student examination, which seems to be the new work of the teacher, not the original text of the old day, especially the treasure." In this manuscript, the students want to keep the manuscript of our teacher, and intend to copy another copy to send to the original society. ”
After reviewing the Book of The Humiliation of the Teacher, Hu Shi quickly wrote a preface to the manuscript. On August 3, 1948, Hu Shi completed the preface and sent it to Luo Ergang in time. In the preface, Hu Shi said that Luo Ergang's autobiography was read in one sitting, "which makes me miss the fun of friends in those years." Hu Shi always advocated biographical literature and often exhorted people to write autobiographies. He argues that Rohr's autobiography "seems to be a creation not seen in an autobiography." Hu Shi finally pointed out that "no one has ever described his experience of doing learning in such frank detail, and no one has ever left such a kind picture of the pleasure of teachers and friends." According to Luo Ergang's recollection, Hu Shi's letter to Luo Ergang said that the book "gave him more glory than he received 35 honorary doctorates." After receiving Hu Shi's preface, Luo Ergang was overjoyed, "In the midst of his busy schedule, he gave the students this order of love that was overflowing with the teacher's kindness, and weiming listed the order of the book as a disciple of a generation of masters, which is the greatest glory of a lifetime, a glory that cannot be dreamed of."
Unfortunately, the situation was turbulent, the old and the new alternated, even if the "Record of The Humiliation of the Teacher" had been reviewed by Hu Shi, and even if the "Record of the Humiliation of the Teacher" added a preface by Hu Shi, it could not be published in time. Subsequently, Hu Shi fell from the "altar" into "hell", and Luo Ergang's "Record of The Humiliation of the Teacher" still made him think about it. The difference is that I used to hope that this little book would be widely circulated and widely known, but now I hope that this little book will not be known and will not see the light of day.
"Five Years of Shimen"
At the end of 1948, Hu Shi had no choice but to go to China and leave his hometown. In 1952, Hu Shi, who was in Taipei, obtained a revised version of the "Record of the Humiliation of the Teacher" from Lu Jichen. In 1953, Hu Shi took the manuscript with him when he went to the United States, and later brought it back to Taiwan. On December 17, 1958, Hu Shi changed the "Record of The Humiliation of Shimen" to "The Five Years of Shimen", inscribed the title of the book, and made an afterword, and printed it at his own expense, in order to use it as a gift for his 68th birthday and the 60th anniversary of the founding of Peking University. Hu Shi wrote in the "Afterword": "I now print this pamphlet at my own expense, not for sale, but only for gifts to friends." About a month later, Hu Shi reprinted the manuscript, and the "Five Years of Shimen" began to be widely circulated in the circle.
February 24, 1962, the last day of Hu Shi's life. At noon that day, Hu Shi talked with Wu Jianxiong and others about the "Five Years of Shimen". After returning home, Hu Shi instructed his secretary Hu Songping to send a copy of the "Five Years of Shimen" to Wu Jianxiong, Wu Dayu, Yuan Jialuo, and Liu Dazhong. That night, when the banquet to welcome the new academicians of the "Academia Sinica" was dispersed, Hu Shi died of a sudden heart attack. It is said that in Taiwan in the 1980s, the Five Years of Shimen was sold like a textbook.
Social impact
When the "Five Years of Shimen" was not widely circulated, it has been well received by many people. In his letter to Hu Shi, Luo Ergang successively mentioned the praise given by Zong Jingtao, Gu Jiegang and others. After the "Five Years of Shimen" was printed, it received more repercussions. For example, After reading the Five Years of Shimen, Jin Chengyi said: "I have to admit that this little book has touched me. If this book were only a report on Luo Ergang's own five-year relationship with Mr. Hu Shizhi's teachers and students, and his praise for Shi En, then I think it would not be very moving. I was moved by this book because in this little book there was 'no one who has ever described his experience of learning in such frank detail' (Mr. Hu's words in the preface). It not only introduces a gentleman whose attitude towards students is like a warm spring sun, but also requires a meticulous and not sloppy gentleman whose attitude towards students' learning is required, and describes a rare student who is humble, honest, and willing to accept lessons. Doing scholarship, and being meticulous and always telling the truth, is probably something that can be encountered and unattainable in any era. But in this book, there is a student who is not scrupulous and tells the truth, which really can't help but make people move. For another example, the famous historian Yan Gengwang wrote to Hu Shi after reading the "Five Years of Shimen": "The day before yesterday, I saw Mr. Luo Ergang's "Five Years of Shimen" written by a friend, and when I finished reading it in one breath, I deeply felt that Mr. Luo was really simple and good, and mr. Luo's encounter with young students was kind, considerate, and Yin Yin supervised, and everything was extremely fascinating, and it was fascinating to read, and deeply felt that this book not only shows people how to learn, but also shows people how to be a teacher, which is actually one of the strange books in recent decades..." For example, Hong Kong's "Ming Pao" published Jiang Di's "Two Historians." The article mentions Luo Ergang's "Five Years of Shimen", arguing that "Hu Shi not only cares about the perfection of his descendants, but also emphasizes 'self-teaching', and is also meticulous to his students, and everywhere he envisions Roche... Reading this book, we deeply lament how there is a lack of good teachers like Mr. Suitable in the educational circles today, and even fewer students like Rohr Gang who are eager to learn and respect teachers."
In July 1994, Luo Ergang changed the name of "The Book of Humiliation of Shimen" from Hu Shi to "The Five Years of Shimen", plus "Hu Shizhuo" was published and distributed by Sanlian Bookstore Hong Kong Co., Ltd. In May 1995, Beijing Sanlian Bookstore also printed a simplified chinese version of the name "Five Years of Shimen AndHu Shizhuo", and later a variety of versions came out. After reading "The Tale of the Humiliation of the Teacher", domestic readers have the same feelings and comments. For example, Wen Zhe pointed out in "Model Teacher-Friend Relationship- Reading Luo Ergang's Five-Year Record of Shimen", "Judging from the deeds of these teachers and students, the core of 'Shi Dao' is actually the influence of personality and the guidance of attitudes and methods." Wan Bo in "Take Yahweh? With Yay? Don't hesitate! ——From the "Five Years of Shimen" to see the modern teacher-student relationship, it is pointed out that "at present, under the arrogance of modernity, the teacher-student relationship has been strongly impacted, and a certain degree of 'alienation' has occurred. The book "Five Years of Shimen" not only shows how to learn, but also shows how people are teachers, and the spirit and attitude of being meticulous in academics and in terms of human beings embodied in teachers and students still have very great practical enlightenment significance today." Xu Guorui said in "The Five Years of Shimen : Hu Shi Trivia" that the story of Hu Shi and Luo Ergang's master-apprentice is a model of the dignity of the teacher, "there are such teachers to have such students, and such students can write such touching words."
It should be said that the "Five Years of Shimen" really gave Hu Shi, who had always been honored as a "suitable teacher" by Luo Ergang, "even more glorious than he received 35 honorary doctorates"; Luo Ergang, who was intimately called "my friend" by Hu Shi, really enjoyed the "greatest glory, unimaginable glory" in his life as a "disciple of a generation of masters".
Unfortunately, although the "picture of the fun of the teacher and the friend" is beautiful, it is a pity that this picture is not invincible. Luo Ergang, who wrote "The Book of The Humiliation of the Teacher" in black and white, also came to the fore from behind the scenes in the era of overthrowing Hu Shi and opened a "fire" on the shadow of his mentor Hu Shi, to be precise. Of course, this is another topic.
Key references
1. Rohr. Five Years of Shimen, Hu Shizhuo[M].Beijing: Life, Reading, and Xinzhi Triptych Bookstore, 2014.
2. Written by Guo Cunxiao. Hu Shi and Luo Ergang[M].Hefei:Anhui Education Press,2015.]
3. Li Youning, editor-in-chief. Hu Shi and his students[M].Nanjing: Nanjing University Press, 2016.
4. Institute of Modern History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, History of the Republic of China. Selected Letters of Hu Shi[M].Beijing: Zhonghua Bookstore, 1979
5. Wang Heyuan. Hu Shi on the cultivation of top-notch academic talents for young people[J].Journal of Ningbo University (Educational Science Edition),2014,36(06):19-24.
6. Wanbo. Take yay? With Yay? Without hesitation, !—— the modern teacher-student relationship from the "Five Years of The Teacher"[J].Contemporary Youth Studies, 2010(02):77-80.
7. Li Xianfu. On the Influence of Hu Shi on the Study of Rohr's Class Historiography[J].Jianghai Academic Journal,1999(06):142-147.
8. Wen Zhe. Exemplary Teacher-Student Relationship: Reading Luo Ergang's Five Years of Shimen[J].Chinese Moral Education,2010,5(04):64-65.
9. Xu Guorui. "The Five Years of Shimen, Hu Shizhuo", After Reading[J].Popular Literature and Art (Theory), 2008(08):25.
Editor-in-Charge: Zhong Yuan
Proofreader: Yan Zhang