Republic of China: Guandong Ginseng King

Chapter 480 Encouragement to Learn
"Dad, Mom, you've never been to school, so you don't know what's going on.

Since last year, this school feels different. I don't know why this trend has emerged, but once you enter the school, you feel like you are superior to others.

The clothes they wore had to be silk and satin, and in winter they had to have fur coats. They also had to buy boots, glasses, cigarettes, and carry Western learning supplies.

Some students, who are obviously from ordinary families, dress like the young masters of wealthy families and openly or covertly look down on those students who dress poorly.

Zhentang angrily told everyone the whole cause and effect of the incident.

Zhentang and his friends have been in school for a long time, and others know a little about their identities.

Although they were dressed in ordinary clothes, no one dared to provoke them in person.

Zhendong had been here for a short time and no one was familiar with him. Some people saw him wearing a cotton coat and cotton shoes, and dressed in ordinary clothes, and couldn't help but laugh at him, saying that he was a bumpkin from the country.

This afternoon, someone deliberately played a prank on Zhendong by throwing his textbook into the mud and trampling on it. Zhendong was so angry that he started fighting with those people.

He happened to be met by Zhentang, Zhenzong and others, and started fighting with them.

Although I won in the end, my clothes were also soiled.

After listening to his son's narration, Qu Shaoyang frowned slightly.

In order to develop education, Jilin Province provides many preferential and convenient conditions for these children who come to study.

Tuition and book fees are free, only room and board are charged, and the prices are very low.

Appropriate subsidies will also be given to children from poor families with excellent academic performance.

It can be said that everyone has put a lot of thought into the education cause of Jilin Province.

"Shaoyang, you have to take care of this matter. If they are still in primary school and are already comparing food and clothing, what will happen when they grow up?
The provincial government has invested a lot of effort in education in order to nurture them into useful people, not to let them go to school to be playboys.

This kind of atmosphere must not be tolerated, otherwise, how can these children have the mind to study hard in the future? Their minds are used for improper things.

I remember last year there was a middle school where students went on strike and caused trouble just because the food in the cafeteria was not to their taste. It had a very bad impact.”

After listening to her son's narration, Chen Xiuyun couldn't help but become worried.

"Yes, this trend is not good and we need to stop it." Qu Shaoyang nodded.

By the end of last year, there were more than 40 second-class primary schools in the jurisdiction of Jilin Prefecture alone, plus training schools, half-day industrial and commercial primary schools, etc., with a total of more than 2,000 students.

There are about 1,700 to 1,800 students in Changchun Prefecture, and there are also many students in other provincial capitals. All in all, there are at least tens of thousands of elementary school students in Jilin Province.

Just as Chen Xiuyun said, the provincial government spends so much money on education in order to cultivate talents, not to cultivate a group of parasites who are greedy for enjoyment and extravagant and wasteful.

"Okay, I'll make a note of this. Zhendong, come here and let your uncle take a look. Is there anything broken?"

Qu Shaoyang waved at Zhendong, motioning him to come forward.

"Uncle, it's okay. I didn't suffer any loss. Those idiots just relied on their numbers."

Zhendong scratched his head, looking embarrassed. He had just arrived in the provincial capital and had already caused trouble for his uncle and aunt.

"Okay, I'm glad you didn't suffer any loss. Remember this next time, if you can't defeat the opponent who has more people, just run away.

There is no shame in running away, but if you are defeated and get hurt, you will be the one who suffers."

Qu Shaoyang called his nephew over and checked him carefully. He was relieved to find that there was indeed nothing wrong.

Because of this episode, Qu Shaoyang convened a meeting of education-related departments the next day and announced that he would personally visit and give speeches at various primary schools.

Then, Qu Shaoyang did not give the various schools a chance to react, and directly took his people to the school where Zhenzong and his classmates were studying.

The governor went to the school to inspect in person, which frightened the school supervisor, principal and others so much that their legs were shaking.

Qu Shaoyang didn't say anything else, just called a meeting of students and asked all the children to gather on the playground.

It was late February and it wasn't too cold outside during the day, so the children gathered quickly.

“Recently, I heard that primary school students no longer wear their old clothes and cannot eat home-cooked meals once they enter school.

They also had to buy boots, glasses, cigarettes, and carry Western items.

For these unimportant things, we have to prepare everything at home, which is really a waste of time."

Qu Shaoyang stood on the stage, facing the group of students, and patiently spoke to them in plain language.

“You should know that the provincial government did not establish the school to teach you Western ways.

You have to be better than others in knowledge, how can you be so ignorant and only know superficial things?"

“Students have a high reputation. Your parents sent you to school in the hope that you would achieve academic success, not to compare food and clothing.

You just need to concentrate on your studies. There is no need to pursue luxurious clothes, food, stationery, etc.

As long as it is clean, tidy, and suitable for your own use, you should never learn extravagant and wasteful habits. "

"From now on, you must learn to be frugal and put away all luxurious clothing, cigarettes, glasses, etc.

Only by concentrating on learning and developing noble thoughts can one be a good student. "

Qu Shaoyang's words were sincere and easy to understand.

The students below were no more than teenagers. After hearing what Qu Shaoyang said, they all lowered their heads, feeling extremely ashamed.

Afterwards, Qu Shaoyang asked school teachers to admonish students at any time, correct bad behavior, work hard, be thrifty, and strive to become useful talents.

For several consecutive days, Qu Shaoyang visited various schools and gave speeches.

Afterwards, the people accompanying him transcribed the content of Qu Shaoyang's speech and published it in plain language in relevant newspapers such as "Jilin Education Official Gazette", "Jilin Daily", and "Jilin Vernacular Daily".

It caused a lot of discussion at the time and had a strong social response.

Xu Shichang also saw related content in Fengtian and thought it was good.

So he ordered people to publish it in Fengtian newspapers and issue a notice, and every teacher and student in every school was given a copy.

Especially those students, let them read carefully, write down their thoughts, etc.

As a result, the extravagant and competitive atmosphere among students gradually faded away.

In March, Xu Shichang ordered the reduction of eight battalions out of the forty battalions of the original ten armies of Jilin's bandit-catching team.

The remaining battalions reduced two sentries each and were reorganized into five patrol teams: center, front, rear, left, and right. There were a total of thirty-three battalions, which were stationed in various cities for patrol. The original battalion office was changed to a patrol battalion office.

Most of the patrol camps in various parts of Jilin were militias and volunteers who had followed Qu Shaoyang in the uprising.

Because the Dingbian Army had a limit on the number of troops, they were assigned to the bandit-catching teams in various places. Now that many people have been laid off, there must be a place to put them.

Therefore, Qu Shaoyang discussed the establishment of the General Administration of Official Transport, Changchun General Warehouse, Jilin Province Warehouse, Anti-Smuggling Bureau, Procurement and Transportation Bureau, etc., to implement the civilian salt monopoly.

In the following year, more than 68 million kilograms of tax salt were transported and sold, with a surplus of more than 500,000 taels of silver.

After the beginning of spring, Qu Shaoyang proposed to expand and renovate the agricultural experimental field in Jiangnan, the provincial capital. The new experimental field covers more than 60 mu in Jiangnan and Jiangbei, and Hu Zongying was appointed as the supervisor, under the jurisdiction of Jilin Province's Industrial Promotion Department.

The experimental field has a training center and a farm attached to it. With the aim of "enlightening knowledge, improving methods, and increasing products", it conducts experiments on soil, fertilizer, farm tools, seed selection, and pest and disease control to promote advanced agricultural technology.

In addition to technical exchanges with agricultural experimental institutions in Sichuan, Hubei, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Fengtian, Heilongjiang and other provinces, the farm also introduced advanced agricultural tools and crop varieties from Japan, the United States, Tsarist Russia and other countries.

At the same time, it conducts research and experiments on mechanized agricultural tools and is the earliest institution in Jilin Province to experiment and promote advanced agricultural technologies.

At the beginning of April, Zhao Yinglan, He Zewen, Qu Zhenye and others had almost completed the relevant procedures for studying abroad.

Zhao Yinglan and He Zewen went to Germany. Zhao Yinglan planned to study architectural design, while He Zewen wanted to study biology.

Qu Zhenye and his brothers went to study at several famous universities in the United States. Zhenye wanted to study business management and finance, Zhenwen wanted to study law, Zhenquan wanted to study transportation, and Zhenqing wanted to study medicine.

Qu Shaoyang does not interfere with what they learn. As long as the children study hard and can achieve success, it is enough.

At the end of the month, more than 20 outstanding students selected by Jilin Province this year packed their bags and left home, taking a train from Jilin City together.

Now there are direct ships from Anton to Europe and the United States, so there is no need to go to Tianjin to take a ship as before.

At Jilin Railway Station, relatives who came to see their children off were crying together.

Zhao Yinglan's parents, Lin Ruolan, Zhang, and Qu Shaoyang and his wife each pulled their own children and gave them earnest instructions.

"When you get there, remember to send a telegram back to let mother know you are safe.

Don't worry at home, Song Cheng is under my care and I will definitely make him fat and healthy."

Lin Ruolan pulled her daughter-in-law's hand and repeated the words she had said many times.

"Mom, when I leave, I'll leave the house to you. Song Cheng is still young and naughty, so I'm sorry to trouble you."

In the two years since Zhao Yinglan married into the Liu family, she has gotten along very well with Lin Ruolan, and the two have never had a quarrel.

Now that Zhao Yinglan is going abroad to study, she is naturally very reluctant to leave her child to her mother-in-law.

"That's right, he's my grandson, isn't it my duty as a grandma to take care of my grandson?

As long as you and Xinyuan are doing well outside, I will be satisfied."

Lin Ruolan was reluctant to leave her daughter-in-law, but for the sake of her son and daughter-in-law's future, she had to let her daughter-in-law go.

"Don't worry, my girl, we have the child.

The opportunity to study abroad is so rare, you must cherish it, learn more skills when you go abroad, and don't let your mother-in-law down."

Zhao Yinglan's mother held her daughter's hand and gave her repeated instructions.

On the other side, Chen Xiuyun and Zhang kept holding on to He Zewen and were reluctant to let her go.

Sixteen-year-old He Zewen is the youngest among this group of children going abroad.

Originally, Chen Xiuyun wanted to let her go abroad to study with Jialing in two years, but He Zewen refused.

She had completed her high school homework long ago and wanted to go abroad to learn more profound knowledge.

"Zewen, when you're out, it's different than when you're at home, girls need to be more careful.

The two girls, Zisu and Ziyuan, were personally trained by your aunt Meng. They have been practicing martial arts since they were young and can use all kinds of weapons. Three or five ordinary people cannot get close to them.

No matter where you go, remember to take them with you.

Besides, I also brought some gold for them. They should not take it out unless it is absolutely necessary."

As a mother-in-law, Chen Xiuyun was very thoughtful and directly brought two female bodyguards for her future daughter-in-law.

Zi Su and Zi Yuan were both selected to enter the Qu Mansion when they were five or six years old. They followed Meng Lanxin to learn boxing, shooting, etc., which was prepared for the girls in the family.

He Zewen is Zhenbang's fiancée, and is as precious as Qu's daughter.

Chen Xiuyun was worried about the journey to Germany this time, so she specially picked two of the most capable girls to accompany her.

Everything that should be said has been said several times in advance.

Seeing that it was time for the train to depart, the other end called for ticket checking, and everyone hurriedly picked up their luggage and sent the children to check their tickets and get on the train.

When the train blew its whistle and puffed out black smoke, the people on the platform waved their hands and watched their children leave.

On the train, the children either leaned against the windows or stretched their hands out of the windows to say goodbye to their loved ones.

In the blink of an eye, the train moved away, getting farther and farther away, until its shadow could no longer be seen.

"Alas, now that the children are gone, we don't know when they will be able to come back." Chen Xiuyun sighed as she watched the train go away.

"No matter how long it takes, they will come back because their roots are here and their home is here." Qu Shaoyang patted his wife's shoulder and comforted her.

After the children left, the house seemed to become a lot quieter.

The younger ones stopped fooling around. Zhenjie, Zhensheng, Zhenmin and others studied harder. Even Zhenzong and Zhentang became more serious.

The children all have a dream, to study abroad, and when they return, to serve the motherland with what they have learned.

Qu Shaoyang and others were very pleased about this.

It’s good for children to think like this. No matter whether they can study abroad or not, as long as they have the determination, their future will not be bad.

In early May, the Imperial Commissioner and Governor-General of the Three Northeastern Provinces Xu Shichang appointed boundary survey committee member Li Tingyu, deputy committee members and alternate county magistrates Liu Jianfeng and Xu Zhongshu, and surveying student Kang Ruilin to survey the boundaries between Fengtian and Jilin provinces, as well as the main branches of Changbai Mountain, and the source of the Songhua River, Tumen River, and Yalu River.

Liu Jianfeng and others traveled through mountains and rivers to conduct surveys, climbed the Tianchi Lake in Changbai Mountain many times, named the peaks of Changbai Mountain personally, and took photos of the "Mukden Stone Inscription" on site.

After returning from the boundary survey, Liu Jianfeng compiled the book "A Brief History of Jianggang in Changbai Mountain" based on field investigations. This is the first chronicle about Changbai Mountain and preserves a lot of precious information.

Immediately afterwards, Xu Shichang approved that Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces still use the Songhua River as the natural boundary.

The Jiangbei areas of Tangyuan and Datong counties, which originally belonged to Jilin, and Yilan Prefecture were inserted into Heilongjiang Province and came under the jurisdiction of Heilongjiang Province.

At the same time, Xu Shichang also announced the establishment of the Three Northeastern Provinces Gendarmerie School and the Three Northeastern Provinces Military Academy.

After hearing the news, Zhenwu lost his patience and went straight to Qu Shaoyang, saying that he wanted to go to the Military Academy.

Zhenwu was born with great strength like Qu Shaoyang, and he loved wielding swords and guns since he was young.

Ever since he could walk, he followed Meng Lanxin in practicing horse stance. When he was a little older, he followed Liu Dongshan in practicing boxing, horse riding and shooting, etc.

Even though Zhenwu is only sixteen years old, he is already taller than Qu Shaoyang and has a strong and sturdy build, most people are no match for him.

"You don't want to study, you want to go to the Military Academy? Do you think the Military Academy is just for training martial arts and fighting? They also learn cultural subjects, and they learn a lot.

You should finish high school well, and I will arrange for you to go to the Military Academy later."

(End of this chapter)