Chapter 3 young widowed mother

Hu Shi's mother, Feng Shundi (1873-1918), was from Zhongtun, Jixi County. Go out of Shangzhuang, cross Yanglin Bridge, and go northeast for about ten miles, you will arrive at Zhongtun.Shundi's father was a farmer in the village. His name was Feng Zhenshuang, and his nickname was Jinzao.He joined the Taiping Army when he was young, and learned tailoring skills from the tailors in the army. He worked hard on weekdays, and made clothes and other things for others during the slack season. He was diligent, thrifty and upright, and he was known as Jinzaoguan. Jinzao's wife gave birth to a daughter for the first time.In the old society, boys were preferred to girls, and girls were not welcome, and farmers especially hoped for labor.Therefore, Jinzao named his daughter "Shundi", which means that it is auspicious to give birth to a younger brother.Sure enough, a son was born in the second child, and two daughters were born in succession.As a family of six, although life is difficult, they are harmonious and loving, and they have a natural and simple happiness.

But Feng Jinzao always has a stone in his heart.The old house passed down from the ancestors was destroyed in the wars of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in those years.He vowed to revive the family business and build a new, larger and more elegant house on the foundations of the old one.However, it is easier said than done! The Jinzao couple worked hard and saved food, but they still had no money for wood, bricks and tiles! Brother Shun is getting older and more sensible than other children.she looks like- Round face, a little freckles, long hair... not beautiful, but very stable, not like a child from a peasant family②.

At home, she serves her parents and helps her younger siblings. She is diligent and virtuous.Shundi is also very considerate of his parents.Looking at her father's sad face dreaming of a new house, she often hated that she was not a man and could not help her father work, earn money, and build a new house. In the spring when Shundi was 16 years old, Mrs. Xingwu from Shangzhuang came to Jinzao's house in Zhongtun to match Shundi. The person she talked about was her nephew, Hu Chuan, known as "Mr. San". This year, Hu Chuan was 48 years old.His ex-wife Cao died more than ten years ago, and his children have grown up.He is an official outside, and it is inconvenient not to have a family member, so he plans to continue marrying to fill the house.

Jin Zao and his wife heard about Mrs. Xing Wu's intention to come, and they were in a dilemma.Firstly, I am afraid that I will not be able to become an official family, and I will make others laugh in the future; secondly, Mr. San is 32 years older than Shundi, and he is filling the house, and he is afraid that his daughter will not be willing; thirdly, Mr. San already has a lot of children The eldest daughter and the eldest son are several years older than Shundi, so it is not easy to be a late wife, and I am afraid that it will harm the daughter for the rest of her life.Therefore, Jinzao told Mrs. Xingwu that this matter should be discussed with her daughter, and sent the matchmaker away.

After dinner, Jinzao and his wife told their daughter that Mr. Zhuangsan was going to marry to fill in the house, and Mrs. Xingwu's sister-in-law came to make a matchmaker.He also said that the parents were also in a dilemma and asked their daughters to make up their own minds.After hearing this, Brother Shun lowered his head and refused to speak for a while, but his heart was tense.She has met Mr. San, and they say he is a good man.She thought that if she was filling the house, she could ask for more dowry; the ex-wife has many children and is an official family, so the dowry gift should be more attractive.This is her chance to thank her parents by helping her father build the new home he has dreamed of all his life.So, Brother Shun secretly made up his mind and agreed.

The horoscope has passed, and it has been matched with Hu Chuan's horoscope; the gift list has been delivered; in February, we are engaged, and in March, we are married, and Feng Shundi, a peasant girl, has become the official wife of Hu Chuan's family in Shangzhuang.The Feng family in Zhongtun also built a new house③. In the second year after marriage, Hu Chuan took Feng Shundi to live with him in Shanghai.In the winter of the third year, a boy was born. This is little Hu Shi;He is the youngest son of Hu Chuan, the only blood of Shun's younger brother. Just 90 days after the baby was born, Hu Chuan was transferred to Taiwan to work.In the spring of 1893, Feng Shundi took his whole family, including the child, to visit relatives in Taiwan, and spent nearly two years living happily together in Tainan and Taitung, where Hu Chuan was an official.At that time, Hu Chuan was over 52 years old.In my spare time, I cut some red paper squares and wrote regular characters with a brush to teach Feng Shundi, who is only 20 years old, how to read.The two of them taught the children just over two years old to babble and read. The father was a teacher, and the mother was both a student and a teaching assistant.This old man, young wife, and childish family of three enjoyed the most sacred family happiness in the world.By the time they left Taiwan, the mother had recognized nearly a thousand characters, and the child had recognized more than 700 characters.

Happiness is so short and fleeting, but grief comes so suddenly and heavy.In the second year after the Sino-Japanese War broke out, Hu Shi's mother and son had just left Taiwan, and not long after returning to their hometown of Jixi, the sad news came that his father Hu Chuan died of illness in Xiamen.The great changes and misfortunes of this family left the first memory in Hu Shi's young heart: At this time I was only three years and eight months old.I seem to remember that when my father's death letter arrived home, my mother was sitting in the front hall of the old house at home, and she was sitting on a chair by the door.She heard the letter reader read my father's dead letter, and she fell back, even the chair fell on the threshold of the room.Aunt Zhen sitting at the door of the east room also burst into tears.At that moment, the room was full of crying, and I felt that the world was turned upside down! I only seem to remember this miserable situation, and I don’t remember the rest⑤.

Hu Shi's mother suffered such a heavy blow. At that time, she was only 22 years old, 2 months and 17 days old, and her virtual age was only 23 years old! She had just taken a few steps on the road of life, and had just tasted a little bit of life. Sweet, losing her husband at a young age and becoming a widow is the greatest misfortune for a Chinese woman! And she "uses her youth as a stepmother to deal with all the sons and wives", coupled with the decline of her family business and financial difficulties, As her son said, "there are hardships and hardships beyond what outsiders can describe"⑥.

She was a widow at the age of 23, and she has been on guard for 23 years, suffering all the pain and torture of her life.And the greatest pain is the death of many relatives.In the past 23 years, seven relatives have died in the husband’s family and mother’s family alone: In 1904, the third son Hu Hong died. In 1905, his father Feng Zhenshuang died. In 1909, my younger sister Feng Yuying died. His younger brother Feng Chenghou died. In 1915, the eldest daughter Hu Daju died. The eldest son Hu Hongjun died. In 1917, the eldest grandson Hu Siming died. ⑦ Young brothers, sisters and grandchildren died one after another like this, constantly tormenting Feng Shundi's spirit and body.Among them, her younger brother's illness and death were the most tragic.Central epidemic schistosomiasis.Her younger brother, Cheng Hou, who studied medicine at a young age, went home to farm during the busy season and contracted schistosomiasis.Not long after Yuyingmei's death, Chenghou's condition worsened and her abdominal distension persisted. She couldn't bear to let her elderly mother know about it, so she went to her sister's home in Shangzhuang for treatment.Hu Shi's mother served the decoction and did not undress at night.Cheng Hou's condition did not improve.She was afraid that something happened to her younger brother, and the old mother's old age would be even more embarrassing.She heard the folklore that cutting her buttocks could heal illnesses. One night, she burned incense and prayed to heaven and earth. She cut off a piece of meat from her left arm with a sharp knife and fried it in the medicine.The younger brother couldn't eat it, so she burned the meat again, sandwiched it in the rice crust, and let him eat it.My sister is so sincere, but combined with ignorance, it is naturally impossible to bring her back to life.Cheng Hou finally left behind his old mother, young wife, and young children, and passed away, only adding another widow and three orphans to the world.How could Brother Shun not be very sad!

23 years of widowhood were long and painful, but she survived! What kind of strength supported her? It was because of her own flesh and blood—her only son, Hu Shi.Just because of this bit of flesh and blood, she endured hardships and pinned all her hopes on her son's uncertain future.For the future of this bit of flesh and blood, she is willing to endure everything, give her everything, and struggle for 23 years! What should her son's future be like? She doesn't know in detail, but she just hopes that her son will follow his father's path and follow his father's path.She often told her son about his father's various benefits, exhorting:

"You have to follow in the footsteps of your old man. I only know this perfect person all my life. You have to learn from him and don't fall into his stocks." She shed tears... ⑧Although she and her husband have only been together for 6 years, 3 months and 21 days, and she doesn't really understand Hu Chuan's ideological career, she worships, respects and loves her husband devoutly, It can be said to be a husband supremacist.She also kept the square characters on red paper written by Hu Chuan herself all her life, and regarded them as "the most sacred commemoration of living together" with her husband and son.In her heart, her husband, Hu Chuan, has simply become a lofty, sacred and inviolable idol.Moreover, she gradually established this idol in her son's heart with pious and nagging narration and exhortations⑨. For the sake of her son's future, she disciplined her very strictly.She had never read a book, but she did everything possible to fulfill Hu Chuan's will⑩ and sent her son to study.In the Shangzhuang area of ​​Jixi, the tuition fee of the Mongolian Museum is very low, and each student generally only sends two silver dollars a year.Naturally, the teacher is unwilling to devote himself to teaching. He only teaches students to read and memorize rote books, and often imposes corporal punishment. In this way, students are not interested in learning and often play truant.Hu Shi's mother was different, she was willing to spend money on scholarship.According to Hu Shi's recollection: I alone do not belong to this "two yuan" class. My mother is eager for me to study, so the scholarship is very generous. I was given 6 yuan in the first year, and it increased every year after that, and it was added to 12 yuan in the last year.This kind of scholarship is considered "breaking the record" in my hometown. Therefore, as soon as he read it, Mr. Hu Shi looked at him differently and gave him special treatment. He carefully explained the book to him, and explained the meaning of every word and sentence clearly.This benefited Hu Shi greatly.He later recalled that "the most powerful thing in his life is lecturing", which was the great favor his mother received from increasing the scholarship. During the years when Hu Shi studied in the United States, his family was extremely financially struggling.The brothers broke up and separated.Hu Shi's mother independently supported the family, and all relatives celebrated and communicated with each other.At this time, Hu Shouhuan, a member of the family, was willing to sell a large book "Book Collection" at a reduced price because of his family's decline.Hu Shi's mother knew that her son wanted the book, so she borrowed money to buy it.She would rather suffer embarrassment herself, but still think about her son everywhere. She can really be regarded as an enlightened mother who pays attention to intellectual investment. However, she was not open-minded about her son's marriage.She arranged for her son a lifelong event very early on, maybe she was looking forward to having a grandson as soon as possible. By November 1918, she had experienced the hardships of being a widow, and when she passed away, although she only lived to be 46 years old, she should feel relieved and satisfied in her heart.Her son has returned from his studies, has become a professor at Peking University, and has become a well-known figure advocating the literary revolution.What she regrets may be that she didn't have time to hold her grandson in the end. ①According to Jixi Hu Mingjin's "Hu Shi Biography", Shun's younger brother gave birth to his younger sister, Gui Fen, and the third child was Chenghou.Presumably there is evidence, so the previous text should be changed to "the third child gave birth to a son, and two daughters were born before and after" to be accurate; and the meaning of "successfully gave birth to a younger brother" is probably not bad. (Third Edition Note) ②See "Prologue of My Mother's Engagement" in "Forty Self-Reports", Shanghai Yadong Library Edition, p. 12. ③According to Hu Chuan's diary: "On the 16th (February 15th year of Guangxu), traveled 50 miles and arrived home. On the 21st, a matchmaker was sent to make an appointment with the surname Feng, and the wedding was set on March 12th. On March 11th, I sent my wife to Zhongtun, the capital of Qidu, to marry Mrs. Feng. On the twelfth, Feng's arrival.Perform the wedding ceremony.Visit the temple. On the sixth day of April, I went to Zhongtun to kowtow to my father-in-law and mother-in-law. " (See the quotes on pages 13-14 of "Forty Self-Reports") It took only 20 days from signing a contract to getting married, and the marriage went very fast.According to the section "Hu Shi's Mother" in Shi Yuangao's "Gossip about Hu Shi", "In Zhongtun Village, the old house in Feng Zhiyuan's family was built by Tiehuagong for his parents-in-law." (Contained in "Yi Tan" Quarterly Issue No. 1, 1981) The "hiring money" is quite heavy, and Feng Shundi can be said to repay his parents with his body. ④ Hu Shi's childhood name was "Si", and his pet name was "Er", which can be found in his "Forty Self-Reports", Shanghai Yadong Edition, page 17, and the word "" is noted.His older brothers were named Sijia, Si, and Si, and his cousins ​​were named Siji, Siji, Siyu, Sidao, etc., all from "He".Shouldn't be easy to get wrong.However, in the "First Draft of Mr. Hu Shizhi's Chronicle" published in Taipei in recent years (edited by Mr. Hu Songping, published by Taipei Lianjing Publishing Company in 1984), "Si" was mistakenly replaced with "Simi" when "Puqian" was opened. Mi", the pronunciation is wrong. It may be a mistake of the hands, but all the characters for "" are mistaken for "mi", which is difficult to understand. ⑤ See "Nine Years of Hometown Education" in "Forty Self-Reports", Yadong Edition, p. 16. ⑥See "Xin Mu Xing Shu", "Hu Shi Wen Cun" Volume 4, p. 238. ⑦ according to "Xianmu Xingshu" listed.In Mr. Li Ao's "Hu Shi's Commentary Biography", when describing the pain experienced by Feng Shundi as a widow, he said that she "experienced orphans, endured humiliation, endured poverty, debts, separation, serious illness, dead father, dead mother...", and noted According to the "Xianmu Xingshu" in Volume 4 of "Hu Shi Wencun" published by Yadong Edition. (Taipei Vision Edition, page 37) This makes people feel a little strange. "The History of the First Mother" does not mention that Shundi's mother died.Moreover, in the article "My Reform of Funeral Ceremony" in the same volume, Hu Shi narrated his mother's funeral and said: "At first I wanted to abolish all sacrificial ceremonies and change them to 'liberation'. My grandmother is over 70 years old, and she Seeing that a son and two daughters died before her, she felt very sad, so when she heard that I was going to abolish all sacrifices, she asked people to say, "Everything depends on you, two or three sacrifices are indispensable." I thought about it carefully, and I had no choice but to follow her, but the sacrificial ceremony must be changed.” (Yadong 9th Edition, Volume 4, Page 132) This proves that not only did Shundi’s mother not die when Shundi was widowed, but also when Shundi died. , this old man is still alive and well, in his 70s. ⑧ See "Nine Years of Hometown Education" in "Forty Self-Reports", Yadong Edition, p. 28. ⑨Hu Shi revered his father all his life, and his thoughts were also influenced by his father.For example, the "Poetry of Learning to Be a Human" that he read when he was a child was edited and handwritten by his father. Hu Shi's mother kept it for more than 20 years, and Hu Shi mounted it into a book and treasured it with tears.He also asked Luo Ergang to help the school edit and publish his father Hu Chuan's book "Two Records of Taiwan".After he became famous, he donated a scholarship of 7,000 yuan to Taitung County, Taiwan Province, where his father was a magistrate, and went to Taitung and Tainan in person to pay his respects; soon Taitung County also built the "State Official Hu Gong Tiehua Monument". ⑩Hu Shi said in "Forty Self-Reports": "My father wrote several wills more than two months before his death. My mother and four sons each have one, each with only a few sentences. Give me My mother’s will said that my son (my name is Si, word Yinmen) is very talented and should be allowed to study. The will also taught me to study hard and make progress. These few words have a great impact on my life .” See “Nine Years of Hometown Education”. See "Nine Years of Hometown Education" in "Forty Self-Reports", Yadong Edition, pp. 22-23. "The Love of Two Mothers" (March 12, 1914) in the fourth volume of "Zanghui Room Notes" says: "When I got a family letter and described poverty, my mother even used jewelry to pay for the New Year. Not only this, Brother Shouhuan's family has " A Collection of Books. Now that my family is poor, I would like to sell it at a reduced price, until the price is reduced to 80 yuan. My mother knew that I wanted to get this book, so she borrowed a loan to buy it for her son. My mother is still imagining for her son in this embarrassment. So." (Shanghai Yadong 1936 edition, p. 226)