Chapter 20 Chapter 19

one The wall clock on the wall swung its pendulum monotonously and dullly.Zhang Gan sat blankly behind his desk, his whole body was like a sculpture. "Principal Zhang, Principal Zhang." Outside the headmaster, Fang Weixia knocked on the door.In the principal's room, Zhang Gan turned a deaf ear and was dumbfounded. Fang Weixia knocked a few more times, but there was still no response. He looked at Xu Teli beside him, and both of them sighed. Zhang Qian's posture didn't move, only the wall clock was still ticking monotonously, it was so dull that it made people upset.

Fang Weixia knocked a few more times, but stopped helplessly.Yang Changji looked at the closed door of the principal's office and said, "Wei Xia, you are the supervisor, you should have a spare key, right?" Fang Weixia: "Yes, but this is the principal's office..." Yang Changji said unquestionably, "Open it!" The door opened, and Yang Changji appeared at the door. "Principal Zhang." Zhang Qian's back was motionless. Yang Changji stepped in front of him, and his voice changed: "Mr. Zhang Qian!" As if awakened by a sudden shock, Zhang Qian's body moved slightly.

"When is it now? All the students in the school are gathered in the auditorium. They have emotions! Now is not the time for you to shut yourself up and think about your mistakes. Your silence will only make things worse. Do you know that?" Yang Changji took two steps in excitement. , and turned back again: "Since you entered the school, teachers, students, everyone didn't understand, and everyone was waiting for an explanation from you, the principal, but you never explained it to everyone even once! A normal school is not a machine, and the teachers and students here are not puppets, they need to understand the principal’s educational philosophy, they can’t be at the mercy of others, do you understand? Speak up!”

Slowly, Zhang Gan turned around——Yang Changji couldn't help being taken aback: There were actually two lines of tears flowing on Zhang Gan's face! "Principal," Fang Weixia stepped forward, "The whole school is preparing for the memorial service for Yi Yongqi. As the principal, you should go to attend. Going there can be regarded as an explanation and a comfort to the students, so that they can understand that you They care about the students, don't you think?" Yang Changji: "We are all waiting for you, Principal Zhang!" Slowly, Zhang Gan finally nodded.

Just as a group of teachers were rushing to the auditorium, the excitement of the students had reached its peak.Amid the rage, Xiao San, Luo Xuezan, Li Weihan and other people surrounded Mao Zedong and asked him what to do next?Mao Zedong said: "I only know that Yongqi can't just die in vain. No matter what everyone does, I support it!" "Just say what you say!" Brother Zhang Kun turned around and rushed to the stage, "Everyone listen to me, students, everyone is watching how our No. 1 Normal School used to be and how it is now." He held up the blood-stained textbook, "Everyone, who made this book sprayed with Yi Yongqi's blood? Who caused all this?"

The students in the audience answered in unison: "It's Zhang Gan!" On the stage, Zhang Kundi continued to ask emotionally: "Do we want a principal like Zhang Gan?" The audience responded like thunder: "No!" "So tell me, what should I do?" "Kick him out... drive Zhang Gan away..." "Okay! If you don't want a principal like Zhang Gan, follow me!" Brother Zhang Kun jumped off the podium in one step, and the students rushed up one after another, following him and rushing out. The flow of people stopped abruptly at the entrance of the auditorium, because standing at the entrance of the auditorium was Zhang Gan with a livid face.

A headmaster and hundreds of students confronted each other quietly.In an instant, there was no sound in the auditorium with hundreds of people.Suddenly, Brother Zhang Kun raised his arms and called out: "Zhang Gan get out of the division!" Hundreds of voices were like thunder: "Zhang Gan get out of the division!" With his lips trembling violently, Zhang Gan suddenly turned around and left.In the principal's room, Zhang Gan wrote "Expulsion Notice" furiously, and Mao Zedong's name topped the list of expelled students! In the mourning hall, Mao Zedong was also writing vigorously, and the "Book to Drive Zhang Gan" on the white paper was particularly eye-catching.In the classroom, Zhang Kundi and many other students either wrote slogans or copied the "Book to Drive Zhang Gan".Not long after, slogans such as "Zhang Gan get out of the First Division" and "Book to Drive Zhang Gan" were posted everywhere in the classroom doors and corridors of the First Division.After doing this, the students gathered in the playground and started to strike!No matter what the teachers tried to persuade, the students who went on strike remained indifferent. Yang Changji looked at the students in front of him, and found that Mao Zedong and Cai Hesen were not among them, so he said to the other teachers: "You first take good care of the students, and leave this matter to me." Let's deal with it."

In the empty auditorium, only Mao Zedong and Cai Hesen sat quietly in front of Yi Yongqi's portrait, creaking, and behind him came the sound of the door being pushed open.Cai Hesen was taken aback for a moment, and Mao Zedong, who was immersed in grief, was also awakened. When he looked back and saw Yang Changji, he couldn't help standing up.Gently closing the door, step by step, Yang Changji walked to the portrait.Picking up a white flower on the table, he put it on carefully, and then solemnly bowed deeply to the portrait. "Runzhi, Hesen, I understand how you are feeling now. Yongqi was your good classmate and my good student. My teacher, I am as sad as you are, and I cannot accept that he is gone. This reality." Yang Changji stroked the bloody textbook, tears welled up in his eyes, "Our teacher, such a tragedy shouldn't have happened! However, the tragedy that shouldn't have happened has already happened. We should start from Should we learn lessons from the tragedy, or let grief and emotion control our reason and make the tragedy intensify? I know that you are dissatisfied with some of Principal Zhang's actions, and Yongqi's misfortune has affected everyone's emotions. How much is debatable about the school? As a student, you can't take such extreme measures. You shouldn't use the normal order of the entire school as a price to compete with the principal! Runzhi, Hesen, what's going on outside now , I think you all know that a school doesn’t even have classes, what are you doing? This is destroying the most basic order of a school! The students outside listen to you two, I hope you go out , go out now, stop everyone, and let the first division restore normal order."

Mao Zedong and Cai Hesen glanced at each other, and it was obviously difficult for the two of them to accept this request. Mao Zedong asked: "But, did Yongqi die in vain?" Yang Changji said: "But Yongqi's death, should it really be attributed to Principal Zhang? Where did Yongqi's injuries come from? It was beaten by Tang Xiangming's soldiers! Yongqi's health has always been bad. In addition to such a serious injury, can you blame Principal Zhang? Of course, Principal Zhang came to school for a short time and failed to understand Yongqi's physical condition in time. He was negligent, but it does not mean that he caused Yongqi's accident. Tragedy! Yongqi is gone, everyone is very sad, but if Yongqi is still there, he would like to see everyone not even attending class or reading books for him, and would like to see the first division become what it is now Is it like this? If the students are allowed to go on like this, Yongqi will be under the Nine Springs, and he will not be able to feel at ease!"

These words made both Mao Zedong and Cai Hesen lower their heads. "Teacher, I'm sorry, it's our fault. Let's go out now and tell everyone..." Before Cai Hesen finished speaking, there was a bang, and the half-hidden door opened suddenly, and Fang Weixia rushed in: " Mr. Yang! Something has happened, so hurry up and take a look!" two Yang Changji came to the bulletin board of the first division, and saw a piece of "Expulsion Notice" posted on the bulletin board, with Mao Zedong as the leader, listed the names of 17 students who were expelled for taking the lead in expelling Zhang, and Zhang Qian's below Signed and the bright red principal seal!

"Fired?" Surprised, Yang Changji turned his head, the teachers all looked at each other, and then hurried to the principal's office together.Mao Zedong rushed back to the dormitory, took out the "Application for Dropping Out of School", and shouted: "I, Mao Zedong, don't need Zhang Gan to catch up. No one is left here, the world is huge!" Cai Hesen rushed out. In the principal's office, all the teachers in the room were looking at Zhang Gan, but Zhang Gan avoided everyone's gaze. Xu Teli said: "Principal Zhang, the students' actions may have been too impulsive, but no matter what, there is a reason for it. The first division has already had a tragedy like Yi Yongqi. Do you want to expel 17 students all at once? , let this tragedy continue, or even intensify?" Zhang Gan lowered his head and said nothing. Fang Weixia said: "Even if the students violated the school rules, the school rules and discipline are dead, but people are alive. Principal Kong used to say that what the school does is to educate people. If students have problems, we should educate them. , instead of driving them out the door." "So, don't you all agree?" Zhang Gan asked. "I don't agree...I don't agree." Several teachers including Wang Li'an, Chen Zhangfu, and Rao Bosi shook their heads. Fairian even said, "I don't think the students are entirely responsible for this matter. Principal Zhang, your actions are more impulsive than the students'." With a long sigh, Zhang Qian closed his eyes: "Okay, maybe I was too impulsive, I can withdraw this expulsion notice. However, I can let go of the other 16 people, Mao Zedong, must be expelled!" In the corridor outside the principal, Mao Zedong took the "Application for Exiting School", stepped up the stairs in two steps, and hurried to the principal's office.In the principal's office, Zhang Gan's excited voice was heard: "Why, as the principal, don't I even have the right to expel a student like Mao Zedong?" Yang Changji's voice: "This is not a matter of power!" Mao Zedong couldn't help but stopped, and heard Yang Changji continue to say: "Young people, impulsiveness is inevitable, and I don't object to criticism, education, or even punishment if they make mistakes. What are you doing?" Fang Weixia's voice: "Principal Zhang, there are so many teachers, and none of them agree to expel Mao Zedong. Don't you think about everyone's opinions?" Zhang Qian's voice: "I don't believe it, gentlemen will stand by a lawless student like Mao Zedong? Everyone here, don't you think that Mao Zedong's behavior is enough to expel him?" Fairian said: "Mao Zedong's behavior may be enough to expel him, but it is wrong to expel him." "It's enough to expel and not expel, what's the point?" "I can't explain the truth to Principal Zhang. All I know is that he can't be expelled." Listening to the disputes among the teachers inside, looking at the "Application for Dropping Out of School" in his hand, Mao Zedong really didn't know what it was like in his heart.A figure suddenly appeared behind him. When Mao Zedong turned his head, it was Yuan Jiliu who was walking with a straight face and a hookah. "Teacher Yuan." Without even looking at him, Yuan Jiliu said calmly, "You wrote the call to dismiss the principal outside?" Mao Zedong nodded. "You bastard!" Yuan Jiliu raised his eyebrows and yelled violently, making Mao Zedong tremble in fright!His roar spread from the corridor, "I knew it was you at first glance! As a student, you are so brave to drive the principal away!" The teachers were stunned, the door of the principal's office opened, and Zhang Gan, Yang Changji and others poked their heads out. In the corridor, Yuan Jiliu was aggressive, covering his head and face, and reprimanded Mao Zedong: "Heaven, earth, monarch, parent, teacher, the five ethics of human beings, and the dignity of teachers dare to be forgotten. Do you still have human ethics and principles in your eyes? I have taught you those stinky words. Is this what the article is for?” Mao Zedong was so trained that he dared not speak a word. Yang Changji called out: "Mr. Yuan!" Yuan Jiliu glared at Mao Zedong again, and sternly said: "It's against you!" Then he walked towards the principal's room carelessly. The door closed with a bang, and Mao Zedong stood alone in the corridor. Yuan Jiliu walked to Zhang Gan's table and sat down.The teachers looked at each other, and Yuan Jiliu's attitude obviously affected the one-sided atmosphere just now.In the silence, Zhang Qian seemed to have made up his mind: "Mr. Yuan, you came at a good time. I have something to do. I just want to hear your opinion." Yuan Jiliu asked: "Is it about expulsion of students?" "That's right, Zhang Qian did not think carefully about the expulsion of the students this time. After being reminded by the gentlemen, it has been decided to withdraw the decision to expel 16 of them. But the leader Mao Zedong, who has no teacher, has disturbed the school discipline. Such a level, plus appeasement, what kind of school is the school? Mr. Yuan, you are the oldest senior among the teachers who teach in the first division. Since the gentlemen do not agree with my ideas, I cannot accept the connivance of the gentlemen, and you will be expelled. It is up to you to decide how to decide about Mao Zedong." All eyes immediately focused on Yuan Jiliu. "Principal Zhang really wants this old man to decide?" "But it depends on what you say, sir." In the eyes of everyone, Yuan Jiliu slowly took two puffs of cigarettes, exhaled the smoke, put down the hookah, and then said, "Don't make up your mind, Yuan's opinion is just one sentence; if President Zhang fires Mao Zedong, Yuan will resign now. " After speaking, he got up and left. Zhang Qian couldn't help being stunned. Mao Zedong outside the principal's room was also so surprised that he couldn't believe his ears. Suddenly seeing Yuan Jiliu walk out, he almost subconsciously said, "Teacher Yuan..." Yuan Jiliu still didn't look at him, he was still so cold, "Don't get in the way!" He walked carelessly and disappeared at the end of the corridor. Mao Zedong touched it with his hand, only to find that tears had slipped out of his eyes.The "Withdrawal Application" was slowly torn in half... three A removal order for Zhang Gan with the seal of the Provincial Department of Education was posted on the bulletin board of the First Division.The students cheered, as if they had ushered in a big victory. Amidst the faint cheers, in the principal's office, the principal's seal, a principal's work log and the First Normal School's school journal were carefully pushed in front of Yang Changji, Fang Weixia and Xu Teli. "Principal Zhang..." "I'm not the principal anymore." Zhang Qian raised his hand lightly, and silently cleaned up other things on the table. Yang Changji pressed his hand and asked: "Brother Cilun, even if it's an explanation before leaving, why can't you tell us all this?" With a bit of bitterness, Zhang Qian smiled, but the smile turned into a silent sigh: "Actually, I don't know, the students don't like me, because I am bossy, I suppress. I don't allow this or that, I put the students Shut them up so that they don’t hear what’s going on outside the window, wishing they could become reading machines one by one. But is this what I want? This is forced by the world!” Zhang Gan pushed open the window: "Mr. Yang, Mr. Xu, Mr. Fang, open your eyes and see what morality is in front of you? Civil rights are written in the law, and the law is hung high on the temple, but the empty paper on the temple, Has anyone ever been serious about it? It is the last word to speak with a gun. The person in power is a butcher who kills people like Tang Xiangming! Take Principal Kong as an example. The students miss him, miss him for being enlightened and courageous, Concerned about state affairs, I regard the rise and fall of the world as the responsibility of my teachers and students. But what happened? Not only was he himself wanted, but he almost brought disaster to the first division! And Mr. Xu, why did you resign as the deputy speaker of the provincial council? Don’t you just want to be in the same position? But you can resign by yourself, but what I have to face is the No. 1 Normal School with hundreds of students. In the eyes of Tang Butcher, it’s not as good as A grasshopper that can be easily crushed to death, what else can I do? In this chaotic world, I can only suppress the students to be honest, and suppress them to avoid trouble. I am the head of a school, and I want to take care of the overall situation. Let them hit the muzzle again!" The official document for tuition and miscellaneous fees was placed on the table. "Mr. Fang, you have repeatedly asked me where the school's funds went. Now you should understand that it was Tang Xiangming who cut off the funds of the First Division and forced the school to collect students' money. But can I tell everyone the truth? I can't Because that is tantamount to provoking dissatisfaction among the students against the government. If the students cause trouble impulsively, they will be the ones to suffer! So I can only let everyone scold me and take all their anger out on me. , After they get angry, they won't go out to make trouble! Taking ten thousand steps back, students are learning-oriented, strict school discipline, and study hard. This is also my job as the principal. Let everyone study hard. Wrong? But now I understand that I was still wrong. Mr. Yang is right. The First Normal School is not a machine, and the students are not puppets. A realistic principal. A principal who cannot keep up with the demands of the students can only be a failed principal, and the education he promotes can only be a failed education. And I am this loser.” Mumbling, Zhang Qian seemed to be explaining to the three colleagues, more like self-reflection.Calmly, carefully, and carefully as usual, Zhang Gan packed up his lesson preparation materials, pens and ink, and umbrella... Zhang Gan silently put the paperweight with the word "cheng" on the table into his bag.Fang Kong Zhaoshou's "Shame" paperweight was put back in its original place.In the neatly tidied office, everything was restored to the way it was before Zhang Qian came. Only on the desk was the "First Normal Teaching Improvement Plan", which had been drafted but had not yet been implemented. Zhang Gan walked through the corridor, down the stairs, across the front of the teaching building, and passed places he was familiar with.His footsteps stopped in front of the bulletin board at the school gate, on which his dismissal order was posted.Looking back at the school card of the first division for the last time, Zhang Gan also showed a reluctant sadness in his eyes.The rickshaw started, the wheels turned, and pieces of bluestone streets were left behind. At this time, in the corridor of the dormitory, the students celebrating the victory came bouncing, and the backbone of Zhang Zhang happily surrounded Mao Zedong, laughing and laughing all the way.The voices of the students stopped suddenly - in front of them, Yang Changji, Fang Weixia and Xu Teli were standing quietly in front of them. Mao Zedong: "Teacher..." Looking at these students who made me deeply love and have a headache, several gentlemen exchanged glances with each other, and seemed to have no idea what mood they were in for a while. "The principal failed to expel the students, but the students drove the principal away. This is indeed an anecdote, and it is indeed worthy of everyone's celebration. But when everyone celebrated the victory, did you seriously think that the one you drove away What kind of person is he? How much do you know about him?" Many students gathered in a circle and listened quietly to Yang Changji's story: "Principal Zhang's educational philosophy and school management methods may not be very familiar to all of us. Agree, but when everyone complained that the homework pressure was too heavy, who noticed the lights in Principal Zhang’s office that were lit until late at night every day? When the students had different opinions on urging tuition and miscellaneous fees, who would have thought that Principal Zhang was in The Department of Education, the pain of fighting for reason in the General's Mansion but with no results? When one new school regulation after another is overwhelming everyone, who understands the painstaking efforts of Principal Zhang to do everything possible to protect the students? When students When complaining about the bad food in the cafeteria and not being able to eat enough, who would have known that Principal Zhang even sold his pocket watch in order to make everyone half full..." More and more students gathered around, and the corridors and the grass beside the corridors were gradually full. Yang Changji spoke calmly, but Mao Zedong and others became more and more disturbed the more they listened. The words the teacher said were obviously something that everyone had never thought of before... "There is an old saying: compare your heart with your heart. However, if you really want to do this, you really need to consider the problem from the perspective of others, but it is not an easy task. Through this time, I only hope that when you encounter other things in the future, you will not Just rely on personal likes and dislikes, don't act on impulse, and don't just look at a thing or a person from your own perspective, because such judgments are often unfair and often hurt others. In the end, I regretted it too much. This is not only the hope of us teachers, I think, when Principal Zhang walked out of the school gate of the first division, this must also be the last hope he reserved for everyone..." There were footsteps, and students poured out of the teaching building.At the school gate, the chasing students looked around: the shadow of the rickshaw had long since disappeared on the crowded street.On the faces of Mao Zedong, Cai Hesen, Zhang Kundi, Luo Xuezan, Xiao San and other students, there were guilt, disappointment, remorse and melancholy. The sky was high and the clouds were clear, and the school flag of the First Normal University fluttered in the wind, as if they were also regretting this parting that should not have happened. After leaving the First Normal University, Zhang Qian stuck to poverty for a long time and taught in various middle schools in Changsha.After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Mao Zedong specially brought Zhang Qian, who was old and unemployed, to Beijing, and formally apologized to the old principal for his deportation.Since then, he has been responsible for Zhang Gan's living and medical expenses for a long time, until Zhang Gan died of illness in 1967.The student used his own actions to restore the damaged teacher-student relationship with the principal who was driven away by him.