-Shaanxi Qingmuchuan tourism notes.
When I arrived in Qingmuchuan, I didn't have much interest in the antique streets here. My interest is in the school of Qingmuchuan-Fu Jen Middle School.
We walked along the stone steps and soon came to the gate of Fu Jen Middle School. The school gate has a special shape and a pen shape, which means versatility. The school gate was inscribed by Qingmuchuan celebrity Xu Zhongde. Anyone who has read Ye Guangqin's novel Qingmuchuan is familiar with Xu Zhongde.
Stepping into Fu Jen Middle School, an old man looked at us in the guard room. Colleagues carefully asked the old man, "Is this school still in use?" The old man smiled: "There are many children going to school."
The gate is facing the auditorium, which is in European style. It is said that all the craftsmen built were invited from Shanghai. During the construction period, the bandit Wei came to supervise the construction every day. Although he has little culture, he is full of religious belief in education and culture. He stubbornly believes that building schools and running education will benefit one party, and the money earned from selling opium should be used on the right path.
1945, Hu Zongnan, then president of Northwest Aviation Institute, came to Qingmuchuan. In this auditorium, Hu Zongnan, who had drunk foreign ink, was stunned by the children's English recitation. He can't believe that these ragged and barefoot Shanliwa can speak pure English! Surprised, he sent someone to give each child a pen. If you are in Qingmuchuan, don't be surprised to meet an 80-year-old man who speaks a word or two of English to you.
Fu Jen Middle School is not a big school. It is said that the slogans on the doorframes are all old things, such as "popularizing culture" and "developing education". These slogans are not out of date now, and Wei, a bandit at that time, was also vigorously popularizing education. The school implements free education and distributes textbooks free of charge. But at that time, some farmers didn't understand and didn't support it, saying that children could still herd sheep at home, so the school lost a helper and resolutely refused to let children go to school. Without saying anything, Wei sent troops to tie up the child's father and put him in a dungeon for three days. Since then, the enrollment rate of children in Fu Jen Middle School has reached 100%.
The buildings on campus are simple and beautiful. On the huge screen are four Chinese characters, 1945, which were mentioned by Hanzhong Commissioner in January. Opposite is the flag platform of Fu Jen Middle School, which reads the words "Xiapi Zeying". I stood on the flag-raising platform and took a photo, which felt sacred and solemn. I can't help but think of the motto of Fu Jen Middle School: "Be spontaneous and become a teacher". As a school motto, its connotation is extremely profound.
The courses offered in this middle school before liberation are all fashionable today. Wei's attitude of respecting teachers and attaching importance to education is sincere. Teachers earn seven to fifteen silver dollars a month, which exceeds the salary of professors in Chengdu University. He also stipulated that the local leather shoes factory should make a pair of leather shoes for teachers every year, kill a pig in Qingmuchuan and give the school three pounds of meat to improve the lives of teachers and students. This middle school accepts not only local students, but also foreign students. Education is free. Students who pass the college examination are funded by Wei for all the expenses of their college. It is a pity that such a legendary figure was executed on the playground of Fu Jen Middle School in April 1952. I don't know whether he is sorry or angry at Fu Jen Middle School, which he founded.