The famous calligrapher and painter Qi Gong, in his "My Mentor Mr. Chen Yuan", fought for his mentor Chen Yuan, a famous historian:
Here I would also like to say a few fair words for the old principal, or to fight unevenly. Modern and contemporary historians have the reputation of "the two Chens of the North and the South". I also have great respect and admiration for that old Mr. Chen. But now when some people evaluate him, they deliberately exaggerate how he insists on not asking about politics, not participating in political studies, not intervening in parties, etc., as if his greatness is not in his learning, but in maverick and detached from politics. For Old President Chen, he joined the Communist Party after the founding of New China. As everyone knows, President Chen joined the Communist Party entirely to better devote himself to the cause of education, and as the president of Beijing Normal University, which was formed by the merger of Fu Jen University and Normal University, only within the Party could he more directly implement the party's education policy and be effectively responsible for Beijing Normal University.
Historian Yan Gengwang proposed in the Three Books of Zhishi that there were four great figures in the field of Chinese historiography: Chen Yinke, Chen Yuan, Lü Simian and Qian Mu, and Chen Yinke and Chen Yuan were jointly called "Er Chen".
Chen Yinke, except for his return to Tsinghua Garden between October 1946 and December 1948, avoided the south for a long time; Chen Yuan always lived in the north, so he was also known as Southern Chen and Northern Chen.
Erchen in the field of historiography is a Gemini constellation, which has enjoyed a lofty status and reputation in the field of historiography in the past hundred years. Chen Yinke's reputation is the greatest, and in 1937 Hu Shi said: "Yin Kezhi historiography is of course the most knowledgeable, insightful, and most able to use materials today." Fu Sinian even said, "Mr. Chen's knowledge has only been one person in the past three hundred years!" ”
In 1933, the sinologist Bo Xihe said: "The only world scholars in modern China are Wang Guowei and Mr. Chen. In November 1951, Chairman Mao introduced Chen Yuan to others and said: "This is Chen Yuan, who reads a lot and is a national treasure of our country." ”
Chen Yinke was very important to Chen Yuan, and repeatedly promoted Chen Yuan to write a preface to Chen Yuan's works, including Yun: "Since Qian Xiaozheng, there has not been a single one." (Chinese prologue to the Yuanxi Regions Huahua Kao)
The evaluation of Chen Yinke and Chen Yuan is most representative of Yan Gengwang's point of view, "deeply love Mr. Yinke's pure academic style, and strong and independent, not for the fame and position, not for the mighty and powerful", Chen Yuan is "since his youth, he is enthusiastic about world affairs, and then he has been the head of the cultural and educational organs, and the old man is Mao as a teacher, and often says that he heard the Tao too late." (Yan Gengwang, "Historiography er Chen—Commenting on Chen Yinke and Mr. Chen Yuan'er")
Chen Yinke's "free thinking and independent spirit" have become a spiritual height and benchmark for intellectuals. "The Thought of Freedom, the Spirit of Independence" was written by Chen Yinke in honor of the master Wang Guowei, and it turned out that everyone thought that this was Chen Yinke's own character. Chen Yinke's popularity greatly exceeded that of Wang Guowei, so much so that Yi Zhongtian had to say that he would advise Jun not to talk about Chen Yinke.
Qi Gong was upset with his mentor Chen Yuan, Chen Yinke was far away from politics and was respected, and Chen Yuan was accused of joining the party, so why can't he see the teacher's good intentions?
Chen Yinke and Chen Yuan are different types of scholars. Chen Yinke is a bureaucratic family of scholars, studying abroad and having a free mind. Chen Yuan was a self-taught drug dealer, anti-imperialist and anti-Qing when he was young, and served as a parliamentarian and government official. Chen Yinke was a purely scholarly intellectual, but Chen Yuan had a variety of roles as a politician educator and historian.
Chen Yinke's experience of ups and downs, the ups and downs of the war, the hardships, and the blindness are even worse, so there is always a sense of loneliness and resentment in his works, and at the same time he is a complete pessimist.
Chen Yinke, who lacked confidence in the War of Resistance Against Japan, said in a letter to his friends: It can be said that the country has a period of death and the sweat is not a day. The big picture is like this, and the grief is so great. Chen Yinke felt that he would never see the victory of the War of Resistance in this life, "Nandu Bai should think about the past, and the northern return is afraid of the next life?" Wu Mi recorded in his diary on July 21, 1937: Wei Yinke still holds the previous theory and advocates peace. The war is the destruction of the country, and can be partial to peace, Xu Tu restored. It can be seen from this that Chen Yinke is still very naïve politically.
Contrary to Chen Yinke's pessimism, Chen Yuan has always believed that China is a big country with such a long history that it will never die, but will definitely recover.
Inspired by the spirit of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Chen Yuan began to explore "meaningful historiography," carry forward the great righteousness of the nation, commend patriotic righteousness, and achieve anti-Japanese historiography. Chen Yuan said to himself, "After the fall of Beijing, the morale of the north was weakened, but it was to talk about the study of Xie Shan to invigorate it. Xie Shan rejected the surrender of people and stimulated the thinking of the homeland. All the "Compilation", "Buddhist Examination", "Slander", "Dao Examination", "Table Micro", etc., are all works at this time, thinking that the way to serve the country stops here. The hundreds of thousands of words that have been published, the words of the monks, the history of speech, and the evidence of speech, are all words, but in fact, they rebuke traitors, rebuke Japanese traitors, and blame the government for being the ear. ”
The academic peak of Chen Yuan's life was completed during the anti-Japanese period, which was completely the inevitable result of the patriotic spirit and the idea of applying the world to the world. During the period of Chen Yinke's resistance to Japan, he wrote the "Brief Treatise on the Origins of the Sui and Tang Dynasties System" and the "Treatise on the Political History of the Tang Dynasty", which were simple academic works.
On January 31, 1949, peiping was peacefully liberated, and Chen Yuan walked more than ten miles at the age of 70 to welcome the People's Liberation Army into the city on Xizhimen Avenue.
Before the peaceful liberation of Peiping, Chen Yuan refused to go south, waiting to embrace the new China. Chen Yuan sighed, "I used to be reluctant to ask about politics, why?" It is because of all the politics I have seen, not once has it been satisfactory to me, not a government that is not dark or discouraging. Since liberation, I have quietly observed all the measures of the government, all the decrees, which are basically different from before. ("Impressions on the Representative Meeting of All Walks of Life in Beiping")
Chen Yuan issued an open letter to Hu Shi, in which he said: "Although you and Mr. Yin Ke have left, the young students have told me with their actions that they are waiting for the light. ”
Chen Yuan's performance makes many people feel incomprehensible, in fact, this is Chen Yuan's belief, but also Chen Yuan's choice, sincere expectations for new China. We cannot laugh at the sincerity of an intellectual, sincerely transforming ourselves to adapt to the new society.
Chen Yinke rejects politics, rejects partisanship, and only wants to be an independent intellectual. Chen Yuan joined the party and believed in Marxism-Leninism, and out of lofty ideals, he served the country and the people. People always like to praise Chen Yin for his heavy aspirations and criticize Chen Yuan's knowledge of current affairs, which is the reason why Qi Gong is indignant. In fact, each has a different choice.
If Chen Yuan only knows about current affairs, then why did Chen abandon politics to focus on education and scholarship during the Republic of China? Why was it that during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, we resolutely did not commit traitors? Chen Yuan represented the enthusiasm and expectation of many intellectuals for new China at that time, and Hu Feng sang: Time has begun. While someone paid the price in blood, we should respect that choice rather than sneer.
It was impossible for Chen Yinke to completely stay out of the matter, because of his huge reputation, he was treated favorably by the government, so that he was jealous and red-eyed. After the movement came, the treatment was canceled, and it is said that he was scared to death.
Chen Yuan was fortunate not directly affected by various sports, but he was confused by the madness of reality, and the result was depressed.
In the tide of history, who can control their own destiny?