Chapter 41 Section 2 An Ambitious and Interesting Man

At the end of 1948, Zeng Zhaolun, who was transferred from the United States to Europe for inspection and lectures, and had always dreamed of building an atomic bomb, saw that things could not be done, and heard that the domestic war was raging, so he decided to return to China with his wife Yu Dazhen.In 1946, Yu Dazhen went to Harvard University for advanced studies from the Central University where he taught, and then visited Europe with Zeng Zhaolun.Since the domestic and international situation is the same, it is inconvenient to stay abroad for a long time, so he arrived in Hong Kong on January 23, 1948.

After arriving in Hong Kong, Zeng Zhaolun sent a letter to his student Wang Ruiyun, who was still studying in the United States, saying, "I originally planned to return to Peiping. Now that the situation in Northeast China and North China is extremely tense, my friends insisted not to do so, so I stayed temporarily. Make plans for the second step."At the same time, he told Wang: "For my younger brother's future, it is advisable to try to continue to study or work in the United States after graduation, and return to China after four or five years. Only in this way can the situation be stabilized." Zhaolun arranged a position as a manager of a "feed company" (actually a nuclear research institution), and urged him to go to Taipei to take up the post as soon as possible so that he could continue the research on the "seed project".The CCP obtained this information, which intensified its "political and ideological work" against Zeng. After some persuasive guidance from the CCP's underground personnel and the Democratic League personnel in Hong Kong, Zeng Zhaolun decided to abandon his relatives and friends in Taiwan, resolutely return to the mainland, and throw himself into the embrace of the Communist Party. .With the turnaround of the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, the situation changed, and Zeng's long-awaited disciple Wang Ruikai did not follow in his footsteps to return to the mainland, but stayed on the land of the United States forever.

On March 19, 1949, the overall domestic situation had been decided. Under the secret support of Zhou Enlai, the leader of the Communist Party of China, Zeng Zhaolun returned to Tianjin by boat alone. Arrived in Peking on the 27th and returned to Peking University.Due to Zeng's own special weight and prestige, according to the CCP's previous promise, Zeng Zhaolun had just stepped into the gate of Peking University, and was appointed as the dean of the Department of Chemistry, the dean of Peking University, and the standing member of the school committee. His status is comparable to that of Wu Han who previously controlled Tsinghua University.

In 1951, according to the distribution plan for the victory promised by the CCP, a group of bigwigs from the Democratic League, such as Zhang Bojun, Luo Longji, Shi Liang, etc., all served as ministers or senior government officials at the ministerial level.As one of the main members of the Democratic League, Zeng Zhaolun was appointed by the authorities as the vice minister of the Ministry of Education and the director of the Department of Higher Education. This official title is at the same level as that of Wu Han, another important member of the Democratic League, as the deputy mayor of Beijing.Since the fruits of victory are achieved by everyone fighting or fighting together, on the table of entrustment and rewards, we must do our best to be as fair and just as possible, so as to show the virtue and good deeds of those in power, and everyone is happy. On November 15, 1952, according to the education model of the Soviet Union’s Big Brother, the Education Department of the Government Administration Council established the Ministry of Higher Education, and Zeng Zhaolun was appointed as the Deputy Minister of Higher Education. In 1955, the preparatory work for the Institute of Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was completed, and Zeng served as the director of the institute concurrently.At this time, Zeng Zhaolun reached the peak of his life in politics, and it was also the most proud period in his life.

When Zeng Zhaolun actually took control of Peking University in 1950, his wife Yu Dazhen had returned to Peiping from Hong Kong and became a professor of Western Languages ​​at Yenching University. In 1952, the departments were adjusted, and she was transferred to the Department of Western Languages ​​of Peking University to teach English literature, and she taught on the same stage as her sister, Yu Dazhen, a professor of the Department of Western Languages ​​of Peking University. At the end of 1948, when the Kuomintang government organized the "Rescue Scholars Project" in the bitter rain, Yu Dawei paid special attention to Yu Dazhen, who taught in the Department of Western Languages ​​of Peking University.Fu Sinian made a special call to Zheng Tianting, the Secretary-General of Peking University and his old colleague who was in charge of the emergency transportation. He specifically mentioned that Yu Dawei, who was in charge of the plane dispatch, was very worried about his younger sister Yu Dazhen who was still in Peiping. She has a chance", let it fly south randomly.After Zheng Tianting conveyed the telegram, Yu Dazhen declined his brother's kindness and refused to fly to the south, expressing that he would stay in Beiping and wait for the arrival of a new era of changing the world. ——She got her wish. After the founding of New China, she and her younger sister Yu Dazhen were able to give lectures on English literature at Peking University.What made the sisters of the Yu family even more happy and warm was that with Zeng Zhaolun wearing the official hat of the deputy minister of the Ministry of Higher Education, according to the characteristics of China's rewards for officials, Zeng Zhaolun and Yu Dayi moved into Yandong Garden of Peking University and lived there. a separate yard.Because Zeng and Yu were married by aunt's cousins, they were afraid that they would have hereditary disabilities after giving birth, so they never had children, and they were always a family of two.Because the house of the Zengs and his wife is spacious and bright, the divorced Yu Dazhen became a frequent visitor of the Zengs' house, and once lived with the Zengs as his own home.In this passionate and romantic environment, every night in the summer of August, the sky is shining with Milky Way and stars, and a large number of relatives and friends, teachers, students and friends as well as Soviet experts come to visit on the grass in the courtyard full of youthful life. They were warmly received, and Zeng and Yu spent a warm and unforgettable time here.During this period, like Zeng Zhaoyu of the Nanjing Museum, the Yu sisters were also ordered to speak to Taiwan through the radio station, and to do "united front work" to their elder brother, Yu Dawei, then the "Minister of National Defense" of the Kuomintang in Taiwan.Zeng Zhaolun was also ordered to meet with Yu Dazhen, Yu Dazhen, Yu Dawei's younger brother, Ph. The family members, on the lawn of their small courtyard in Yandongyuan, took a group photo that looked very happy and handed it over to the authorities, saying that it was passed to Taiwan Yu Dawei through some channel to fight for his "awakening" and "anyway", Abandon Chiang Kai-shek and join the Communist Party, and return to the embrace of the people.It's just that such a good time didn't last long, and within a few years, Zeng and Yu's couple stepped into the gate of hell in a daze.

In July 1957, Zeng Zhaolun was labeled as a rightist due to the "six professors incident" of "anti-Party and anti-socialist scientific program".Different from ordinary politicians and official gangsters, for Zeng, the dismissal of his post is not a heavy blow to him. What he values ​​most in his life is academic life.In some reminiscences and commemorative articles after Zeng Zhaolun's death, most people described Zeng as a taciturn person who seldom communicated with others and just concentrated on his studies, sometimes to the point of being obsessed with bookworms. Often absent-minded.For example, Pan Guangdan told Fei Xiaotong about the incident of Zeng Zhaoluan: "Once the sky was overcast and cloudy, he went out with an umbrella. After walking for a while, it really started to rain, and it became heavier and heavier, and his clothes were soaked. He walked forward with the unopened umbrella, and did not open it until he was reminded. Another time when he was having dinner at home, he somehow didn’t care about it, so he shoveled coal into the pot to add food until he was eating dinner. It was only when his lover found out that there was coal in his rice bowl that he suddenly realized it. As for sleeping in bed wearing clothes and shoes and socks at night, it is common for him to sleep.” Fei Xiaotong further added: Zeng Zhao started his career and didn’t even want a home. Once “ When he returned home, the nanny at home did not know that he was the host, and treated him as a guest. Seeing that Mr. Zeng did not leave until evening, the nanny was very surprised, and did not understand what was going on with this guest."According to Yu Dazhen's recollection in his later years: "During my nearly 80 years of career, I have never seen anyone who was so dedicated to his studies. He worked so hard that he was so concentrated that sometimes he looked like a 'fool'. I remember one day when I came home from Peking University and passed by the beach, I saw Zhaolun standing in front of the red building, facing a telegraph pole, nodding, talking and laughing, and the passers-by were amazed. I approached him, He ignored me, and listened carefully to what he said. It turned out that he was talking about chemistry with the electric pole... An old gentleman in my neighbor in the same courtyard used to be a staff member at Peking University. He said to me: "Your relative Zeng Zhao He is insane, I saw him talking to the wooden pillar in front of the red building with my own eyes.'”

"Poetry Wang Feng" has a saying: "Those who know me say that I am worried, and those who don't know me say what I want." If it is said that Zeng Zhaolun has a neuropathy, it is obviously because of "not knowing".Fei Xiaotong, one of the "six professors incidents" with Zeng, can be regarded as one who sympathizes with and understands Zeng's thoughts, words and deeds.Fei believes that Zeng Zhaolun has something in his life, and this thing can be expressed by "will", that is, the "will" that no one can take away from his will.This "aspiration" is very clear in the minds of Zeng Zhaolun, including intellectuals of the same generation as Chen Yinke and others. He wants to pursue one thing, one goal in life.And "intellectuals must always have a place in their hearts and a sustenance. They must know and understand what they want to do in their lives. Many people nowadays don't know what they want to do in their lives... There is no unmovable goal in their lives. ".

What Fei said should be fair to Zeng Zhaolun, but it seems to be biased towards the "present-day people".Since the history of mankind, there are not many people who have the kind of ambition, perseverance and perseverance that Fei refers to, and there are even fewer people with ambition, perseverance and great achievements. The generation of heroes such as Zeng Zhaolun and Chen Yinke, It is a rare anomaly, it can be called Ganoderma lucidum in high mountains and Orchid in empty valleys.The production of Ganoderma lucidum and Orchid is naturally closely related to its growth environment, climate and many other conditions. Zeng Zhaolun's "aspiration" and his career achievements are also naturally closely related to his family background. Very important.Anyone who knows a little about the history of the Zeng family in Xiangxiang, or who has further read Zeng Wenzheng's official family letters, will know that what he said is true.On November 11th, the twenty-fourth year of Daoguang in the Qing Dynasty, Zeng Guofan, who was 34 years old at the time and served as a scholar in the Imperial Academy in the capital, clearly mentioned in a letter to his brothers in his hometown: "In the past years, I often showed my brothers Recently, the courses only teach the word "permanence." He also said: "The way of learning is infinite, but persistence is always the main thing. In the past, there was no permanence, but in recent years, it is slightly better, but it is still not proficient. Since the beginning of July until now, then There is no day-to-day break. Every day, I copy a hundred words of calligraphy and copy a hundred words. It doesn’t matter if I read at least 20 pages. Forty volumes of "The Book of Songs", 20 volumes of "The Book of Songs", and 100 volumes of "Book of the Later Han Dynasty", all of which are marked with ink brushes. Although I am very busy, I still have to do today's homework. I don't want to delay yesterday and make up for it today, and I don't think I have something to do tomorrow. Preliminary work today. If you can continue to do this, even though the fourth younger brother has middle-level talents, you should still achieve something, how about the sixth and ninth brothers with top-notch talents?" On the night of December 14th in the seventh year of Xianfeng, Zeng Guofan was in Zhijiu Brother Zeng Guoquan’s letter particularly emphasized: “Everyone must devote all their energy to this matter when they do something. They must be unremitting from the beginning to the end, and they must not change their minds. Do this and think that, sit on this mountain and look at that mountain. People are immutable, and they have nothing in their lives. Success. I have been guilty of impermanence all my life, and I have really suffered a lot." He also said: "To bring courage now, that is, to bury your head and try your best to find the way to bring courage. It is fruitful day and night, thinking day by day, dreaming at night, giving up courage I don’t care about anything else. Don’t want to study, want to win the exam, and want to be a prefecture or county. There are so many disturbances and thousands of thoughts. In the future, I will repeat the same mistakes as me. There is no success, and it is too late to regret.  … Sitting without constant flow is very harmful, and now I am old, I have to teach my brother and my son."

At the time of writing this letter, Zeng Guofan had already organized regiment training in his hometown and led Xiangyong to fight the Taiping Army for many years, and Xiangyong was trapped in Nanchang, unable to advance or retreat.Due to the death of his father, Zeng Guofan and his younger brother Zeng Guohua returned home from Jiangxi to attend the funeral.While staying at home, the ninth younger brother Zeng Guoquan formed a Jizi camp to aid Jiangxi, and the internal strife between Hong and Yang became more and more intense.At this critical moment, Lao Jiu was discouraged and lazy, and wanted to change his mind.Zeng Guofan thought it was "too bad" for the ninth younger brother to "write a letter saying that the interest is not here, and the interest will be dull", and he gave some earnest teachings about "will" and "persistence".Some words in the letter should be Zeng Guofan's self-effacing, but his understanding of "will" and "permanence" should not be bad. Zeng gave young students the topic of "scholars should be ambitious, knowledgeable and persistent" many times throughout his life. It shows his deep understanding and attention to this matter.

Looking at Zeng Guofan's family letters, it can be seen that Zeng's words and deeds in his life basically followed his promise.Zeng Guofan's diary, which has been handed down to later generations, is an excellent example.Zeng started keeping a diary in the 19th year of Daoguang's reign until the 25th year of Daoguang's reign, and did not keep it consistent for more than ten years.In the eighth year of Xianfeng, Zeng's father Ding returned to worry and decided to resume the habit of keeping a diary.Since then, despite continuous wars and complicated affairs as the mainstay of Xiangyong, Zeng still adhered to the law and wrote it every day without interruption until the day before his death when he could not hold the pen.The "will" and "permanence" embodied in this point are very comparable to others.

What needs to be added and specifically mentioned is that when Zeng Guofan first entered the capital and had not made a fortune, he had paid homage to two teachers who determined his life. It was Tang Jian who recommended Yucheng to Emperor Xianfeng for the purpose of organizing group training in his hometown.The other was Woren, a famous master of Neo Confucianism and later an official to a bachelor.He taught Zeng a key to self-cultivation: study a few.A few, is the meaning of a few micro.Study a few, that is, take the momentary thoughts and small things seriously, and then think about them, and connect them with the big things of self-cultivation, family governance, state governance and world peace.To achieve a higher level of "research", the best way is to keep a diary. In the diary, you will leave the thoughts and thought sparks that you grasped instantly, dissect yourself ruthlessly, and criticize yourself, in order to purify your soul and move towards a higher level. The purpose of advancing the realm.Historians of later generations have many explanations for this "Yanji". For example, Tang Haoming, an expert on Zeng family research, said that this "Yanji" is like "remembering the private words in a flash" in the 1960s. It is actually wrong, and it should be a poet. What writers usually call "inspiration" seems more reasonable. The precepts and deeds of family members and close relatives have an irreplaceable and subtle effect on others.When Zeng Zhaolun was studying in Xiangxiang and Changsha Yali Middle School, he was still interested in Zeng Guofan’s family letters and diaries and had his own insights. As mentioned above, the precious cultural heritage Zeng Zhaolun left to his ancestors is a real In fact, I have spent a lot of time studying, studying and researching underground.For example, regarding Zeng Guofan's proposition that "scholars must first have ambition, secondly, knowledge, and thirdly perseverance" put forward by Zeng Guofan, Zeng Zhaolun further elaborated: "'Aspiration' is the determination to work hard, and reading must have the will to work hard." Spirit; 'knowledge' is a far-sighted vision. To read a good book, a person must have knowledge; 'perseverance' is strong perseverance. Whether there is persistence is the key to determining whether one can truly acquire knowledge." Zeng Zhaolun understood this way when he was young, and he also did this in his life. As for the habit of keeping a diary, Zeng Zhaolun and Zeng Zhaoyu brothers and sisters can be said to be the most heavily influenced by family traditions, and the most obvious manifestations.Zeng Zhaolun returned from studying abroad, and insisted on keeping a diary all his life.The publication of the diary from the period when the Temporary University was moved from Changsha to Kunming is particularly eye-catching. In 1939, Zeng Zhaolun led his teachers and students from Kunming to Xikang for inspection, and wrote many diaries.This habit can be found in Zeng's diary. For example, on October 24, 1940, Zeng's diary wrote: "Today I woke up at five o'clock and got up at six o'clock. From seven to eight o'clock I went to 'Organic Industrial Chemistry'. From eight to nine From 9 to 11:30, write "Xikang Diary". After lunch, from 1:30 to 4:15, continue to write a section of "Xikang Diary". ...... From 5 to 6:00 on "National Defense Chemistry" One lesson. I had a cold for several days, and it was cold yesterday and today. During this class, I was unable to make a sound." In such an environment and physical condition, he actually kept a diary for five hours, which shows that his "diary complex" has become a problem in his life. Indispensable and important component. In 1945, Zeng Zhaolun took a long-distance bus from Chongqing to Lanzhou to attend the annual meeting of the Chinese Chemical Society, and walked for two weeks on the road.He sat in the car, kept a diary and wrote articles while walking, which greatly moved and admired his colleagues.According to the statistics of Guo Jianrong, an expert who studied Zeng Zhaolun, Zeng Zhaolun edited and translated 13 works, and 11 diaries and investigation notes in the 41 years from his return to China with a doctorate in 1926 to his death in 1967.There are 164 academic papers and translations, 87 essays on military theory and current situation, etc., totaling about 300 articles (parts), millions of words, and these diaries and works are far from all of them.For Zeng’s diary, in addition to “Diary of a Journey to the East” (1939.11-1941.2) published by Tianjin Ta Kung Pao in 1936, “Xikang Diary” published in Hong Kong “Ta Kung Pao” and “Guilin Cultural Publishing House” published in 1941 The whereabouts of the other diaries are unknown except for Diary on the Border of Burma and the Kunming diary written in 1940.Zeng Zhaoluan, who was at the Southwest Associated University, once said in a speech: "I often think that when you live in the world and become a member of society, you should have two wishes. One is to produce achievements, and the other It is to make yourself an interesting person. If you want to achieve these two wishes, you can only start with the hands of scholars." And "besides engaging in work, if you want to make yourself an interesting person, a friend that others want to be close to, then it is even more You have to read a lot.” f281Because of Zeng Zhaolun's extensive research and some "weird" actions in his daily life, some people say that Zeng Zhaolun, a chemist who is proficient in English, German, Italian, and Russian, belongs to the category of typical nerds.There is some truth in this statement, but it is by no means a nerd like the mathematician Chen Jingrun who appeared later.Once Chen Jingrun went shopping on the street and found that the salesperson lacked change, so he boarded the bus and went back to ask for the money. The salesperson only owed him five cents, but it cost ten cents to take the bus, but he actually went.However, Chen Jingrun's fortunes turned around later, and his reportage "Goldbach's Conjecture" became famous all over the world, and he became a "national treasure" celebrity.With political studies and constant speeches, Mr. Chen gradually opened his mind. He is no longer a nerd in people's minds, but a very flexible social activist and politician.Not only did he know "following high and high", but he also applied it flexibly. When Marshal Ye Jianying, who actually controlled the political situation in China, sang the song "mobilizing the whole party, the whole army, and the people of all ethnic groups in the country to march towards science and technology" After the world-famous poem "Tackling Key Points" that "siege a city is not afraid of fortification, and reading is not afraid of difficulty. Science has dangers and obstacles, and hard work can overcome it" was published. What's the use of dying if there is no revolution." From the height and realm of the poem, it can be seen that Chen has been trained from a famous mathematician to a great statesman and poet with Chinese characteristics.Zeng Zhaolun never practiced this skill in his whole life. According to Hu Yadong, Zeng Zhaolun's assistant at the Institute of Chemistry, in his later years, Zeng did have the temperament of a scholar, and he even felt that he seemed to be naive in life and dealing with the world when he was with him. This is the same as when he founded the Chinese Chemical Society, He presides over the Department of Chemistry of Peking University, is active in the scientific and political circles, and has an all-powerful style. Even in his later years, he lived in seclusion in Wuhan University, studied elemental organic chemistry in a small room, and wrote several great books. It seems that it is not the same.Therefore, Hu Yadong thought: "Perhaps all great figures are like this. Many figures with this temperament can be found in modern history, such as Chen Duxiu, Shen Congwen, Chen Yinke, etc., but Mr. Zeng Zhaolun is unique among natural scientists." What Hu said may not be entirely correct, but it does have some truth. When Chen Yinke was studying in Switzerland in his early years, he read the original text of "Das Kapital" and had deep insights into domestic and foreign politics and social customs. Only Chen and Zeng Zhao Compared with others, it seems that the long-term enthusiasm for politics is lacking, and the difference in ideological consciousness is also increasing.During the period of the Southwest United University, Zeng Zhaolun read some professional and military books while keeping pace with the times. He also read some books that were banned in the Kuomintang-controlled area at that time. I got Mao Zedong's "On New Democracy" and other works to study and study, and quoted the views in the book in my speech.The "Biography of Stalin" edited by the Marxist Academy and Gorky's "Life with Lenin" are the objects of his collection and reading.For the convenience of reading and research, Zeng was still teaching. By auditing the courses of the Foreign Languages ​​Department of Southwest Associated University, he managed to master Russian and read Russian books and materials proficiently. In 1944, Zeng Zhaolun joined the Democratic League in Kunming and was considered one of the early members of the Democratic League.This change of thought and action paved the way for him to become the deputy minister of the Ministry of Higher Education in the future, and of course it also paved the way for his unlucky life until his death.