1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 4000

One of the official tasks Li Yuande carried out on his trip to Hangzhou was to take Qian Tiandun's handwritten letter of introduction to Ning Qi to request a school name.

Ning Qi was a high-ranking official in charge of education and culture on the executive committee, in charge of the nation's cultural development. His inscription naturally carried extraordinary weight. Qian Tiandun sought his help hoping to bring good fortune to the newly established school in his jurisdiction, and at least have something to offer when recruiting teachers from across the country in the future.

Ning Qi had actually received such a request before, and upon learning of it, he readily agreed and quickly inscribed the school's name. Li Yuande found a craftsman to carve the plaque, and then packed it up and shipped it back to Fubo Port under the guise of military supplies.

Although Qian Shaobao knew about this, he hadn't had a chance to see the actual item yet, while Su Zhixing got there first.

Although the school at Fubo Port has already started classes, it has not yet been officially established; the previous period was essentially a trial operation. However, Li Yuande has already completed the necessary registration procedures at the Ministry of Education, and now all that's needed is a plaque-unveiling and ribbon-cutting ceremony.

And this plaque bearing the school's name, brought back from afar, will naturally be unveiled at the ceremony.

Su Zhixing's emotional outburst wasn't solely due to the fact that the plaque was inscribed by Ning Qi. While Ning Qi was a prominent figure in the Han Dynasty, Su Zhixing had met him in person several times in Hangzhou. He held him in awe, but not to the point of worshipping him. Furthermore, given Qian Tiandun's reputation, it seemed unsurprising that he could obtain a plaque personally inscribed by Ning Qi.

What truly surprised Su Zhixing was the word "Academy" in the school's name, which far exceeded the school's educational level.

According to the educational institution classification rules formulated by the Ministry of Education and Culture of Haihan, schools across the country are divided into three levels: primary, secondary and higher. Above these, there are research institutes established for specific academic fields.

Elementary institutions consist of public primary schools and private schools, while secondary institutions include public secondary schools and privately run vocational training schools. Higher institutions include public colleges and a few long-established private academies.

Therefore, the title "Academy" is not something any school can just accept. The accreditation of a higher education institution requires approval from the Ministry of Education; simply hanging a sign on the gate is not enough.

The Wansong Academy, where Su Zhixing studied, also participated in the evaluation and assessment of educational institutions hosted by the Ministry of Education two years ago. Because of the poor performance of its students in the Haihan Imperial Examination, the Wansong Academy, which has an 800-year history, almost lost its qualification to be included in the Haihan Higher Education Institutions.

For a newly established school to use the word "academy" in its name is far more difficult than building the school and recruiting teachers. As someone working in education, Su Zhixing was well aware of this.

Although schools were established in Phuket and Hambantota, which I visited before, they were much smaller than those in Fubo Port. Once the academy sign is put up, this place will become the cultural and educational center of Haihan in the entire Indian Ocean region.

When Li Yuande met with Su Zhixing in Hangzhou, he informed him of the Fubo Port School, describing it merely as a "military children's school" or a "regional central school." This plaque was clearly not specifically prepared for Su Zhixing, yet Qian Shaobao intended to entrust the school to Su Zhixing's management—a gesture of gratitude that could be considered an act of patronage. In terms of both facilities and curriculum, it was far from meeting the requirements of a higher education institution, and it likely wouldn't reach those standards even in ten or eight years. However, the fact that they were able to obtain the "academy" designation from Ning Qi so early clearly indicated that the higher-ups recognized the special contributions of the Special Forces Division.

After all, the "Western Development" national policy advocated by the Executive Committee is basically based on the special operations division's combat achievements in the Indian Ocean region. Awarding this academy a plaque is tantamount to indirectly supporting the special operations division's development plan.

Putting everything else aside, having this brand makes recruiting local foreign students a natural progression.

As for enjoying the same benefits as higher education institutions, applying to the Ministry of Education for funding, textbooks, teaching aids, and even teacher support, those are all things to be discussed later.

Although Su Zhixing comes from Wansong Academy, and his father, Su Sixiao, is the academy's dean, it's hard to say whether he will be able to inherit the position. Wansong Academy is not the private property of the Su family, and the deans have not been hereditary. Before Su Zhixing's reputation in the education field reaches a certain level, even with his father's support, it will be difficult for him to rightfully take that position.

If Su Zhixing had stayed at Wansong Academy to continue his studies, perhaps after his father's tenure and several more terms, he would have had the opportunity to succeed as dean based on his seniority when he was in his fifties or sixties. Of course, by then the academy would have been completely different, and Su Zhixing might have been relegated to the margins.

But unexpectedly, this trip overseas led to taking over a newly established, yet-to-be-opened academy. What might have been a goal that would have taken another twenty or thirty years to achieve has now become readily available.

Su Zhixing tried his best to suppress his excitement and asked Chang Mingxuan, "Lord Chang, if I may be so bold as to ask, if I hadn't come to Fubo Port with Manager Li, would the Fubo Academy sign still have been displayed as planned?"

Chang Mingxuan smiled and said, "Mr. Su, that's a good question! To be honest, we actually have two plans. If Manager Li runs into trouble in Hangzhou and fails to obtain the academy's qualification, then we're prepared to operate according to normal school standards. Since we've managed to get it, of course we should put up the academy's sign. Mr. Su's arrival is just icing on the cake. Even if Mr. Su hadn't come, the sign would still have to be put up. At worst, we can have Commander Qian serve as the dean, then no one would dare to gossip."

Su Zhixing said, "It's a great idea for Commander Qian to concurrently serve as the dean. It's much more suitable than for an outsider like me!"

Chang Mingxuan waved his hand and said, "That was just a last resort. Now that we have the good fortune to invite Mr. Su, General Qian will definitely not take on this job anymore. As long as Mr. Su nods in approval, General Qian will immediately sign the letter of appointment."

Su Zhixing said, "I heard that Commander Qian is away on official business. If he disagrees with this arrangement when he returns, I will be in a difficult position."

Chang Mingxuan said, "Mr. Su, rest assured, this is not General Qian's arbitrary decision. The matter of your coming here to teach has already been reported to the Marshal by telegram. Although General Qian has been the one receiving you these past two days, this is actually the Marshal's intention."

This undoubtedly reassured Su Zhixing, who realized that his decision to go overseas was actually a shortcut that would save him twenty years of hard work.