Ling Qihan (1906-1992), from Shanghai, whose courtesy name was Jihan, studied abroad in his youth Belgium . In 1931, he obtained a doctorate in law from Brussels University . After returning to China, he worked in the diplomatic system for a long time. From May 1944 to March 1945, he served as the Special Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the National Government in Lanzhou. In September 1944, Ling Qihan and Soviet consular officials in Lanzhou went to Xi'an to hold the "Soviet Red Army Records Photography Exhibition"; because Ling's grandfather was in charge of the late Qing Dynasty, he visited Jingchuan during his journey back from Shaanxi to Lanzhou. "Memoirs of Ling Qihan" ( China Literature and History Press 1993 first edition and reprinted in 2018) has the following records: "After the exhibition was successfully completed, I asked Qi Hewen and others to return to Lanzhou first, and I went to Bin County to visit Jingchuan. County Mayor Hu took me to visit my grandfather's disciple, a white-haired and blind old scholar. He talked about the past for me, and he was as clear as his family. My grandfather wrote a poem for the "Eight Scenery of Jingchuan" and engraved it into a poem stele. The poem mentioned his renovating historical relics in Gongyu. I wrote an article "Old Records of Jingchuan Visits" and published it in the Northwest Magazine at that time."
Ling Qihan, who was the Chinese ambassador to France at that time, was then written by Ling Qihan, who was the Chinese ambassador to France at that time. Quoted from "Ling Qihan's Memoirs"
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The author recently read an old magazine and accidentally obtained this article. The article is signed by Jihan, and is published in the 5th-6th issue of "Modern Northwest" Volume 7 (published on January 1, 1945). The main text is appended to two articles, which are commemorative short essays written by Ling's grandfather's grandfather and the Jingchuan County Zhizhu.
From Ling's "Old Notes of the Jingchuan Visit" you can give a brief glimpse of the daily work and living conditions of grassroots officials in Gansu in the late Qing Dynasty and several local past events.
Ling's grandfather Jia Xun (named Ba Yun), was an official who had rich experience in grassroots work in remote areas in the late Qing Dynasty. "Ba Yungong traveled to Long for life. From the 15th to the 27th year of the Guangxu period, he served as the Wuwei of Dunhuang and Zhangye in Datong. He was appointed as Pingliang Prefecture for one year and was the longest-time prefecture in Jingchuan. He died in the 27th year of Guangxu period." Jia Xun served as an official in six places in Gansu, and was therefore a member of the Longyuan area. It is not a false statement. The head of the Jingchuan County Chronicle Committee told Ling Qihan: "The elders from Longdong were loyal to Jia Gong, and they still missed each other." During Jia Xun's administration in Jingchuan, what stories were widely circulated?
Most feudal bureaucrats came from the imperial examinations, and most of the ancients under their protection were recorded in history as moral politics and elegant affairs, and Jia Xun was no exception. He once wrote the Eight Scenery Poetry and Magazine Monument for Jingzhou , and donated Yanglian silver to repair ancient monuments. "Yaochi Night Moon" is among the eight scenic spots in Jingzhou. "Ba Yungong once donated the treasures to replant peach wood and repaired the pond bank. The temple was called 'Jiaotai'." When Ling Qihan visited Jingchuan, he visited the Shuiquan Temple in the suburbs of the city. The pond in the temple was full of lotus flowers. There was a pavilion in the pond, which was gradually decaying and was once one of the eight scenic spots in Jingzhou. According to the accompanying staff, this pavilion was also donated to repair when Jia Xun was in charge of the administration, and he personally wrote the banner "Chengbi Pavilion" and the board couplet "Lotus World, Willow Tower". Jia Xun also donated the Xishan Bell Pavilion (Hanged in the Jin Dynasty Da'an Iron Bell, now a provincial cultural relic protection unit).
"Yao Chi Night Moon" at the first of the eight scenic spots in Jingzhou (online picture)
Disaster relief and poverty relief were the "standard action" during the term of officials in the old days. Sometimes, not only should people be managed under the rule of the people's food, but also to solve the survival problems of disaster victims in other provinces. Jia Xun faced such double pressure at the same time. According to Ling Qihan's search for the "Biographies of Famous Officials" in the Jingchuan Township Chronicle during the Republic of China, it recorded: "In the autumn of the 19th year of the Guangxu period, millet was expensive, and beggars had no way to find food. They repeatedly troubled neighbors, so they set up factories to cook porridge and eat it." On July 18, 19th year of the Guangxu period (August 29, 1893), an earthquake occurred in the Qianning area of Daofu, Sichuan, and the people were displaced, and some were willing to survive. As for Jingchuan, "Sichuan was the most hungry people... The public handled it, and all the funds were given food with their vehicles, and returned to their hometowns, and the country was posthumously posthumously."
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During the reign of Jingchuan, Jia Xun was also involved in the famous incident of the people destroying the Shaanxi-Gansu telegram line in modern history. Although his career was temporarily set, he won good people's expectations. According to the "Gansu Provincial Chronicles: Major Events", in February of the 16th year of Guangxu (1890), Lanzhou initially set up a telegraph bureau; in October, the telegraph wire from Xi'an to Suzhou was built, with a total length of more than 2,900 miles, and a labor-to-production cost of 200,000 taels of silver.At the same time, the conflict between modern technology and feudal superstition also followed. In the 18th year of Guangxu (1892), Jingzhou was drought year after year. "The people thought that the electric poles set up by the Telegraph Bureau collected electricity without rain, so they lifted up and removed them, and Gan, Liang, Su and other states continued."
The scene at that time, according to the "Old Records of Jingchuan Visits": "It was a severe drought, and the foolish people thought it was caused by electric poles and wires. They made an appointment to pull out the electric poles and remove the wires, gathered and burned them, and spread widely. From Changwu to Baishui, electric column was pulled out, and Jingchuan was the most severe. "When Ling Qihan was in Jingchuan, he visited Jingchuan when he was in Jingchuan. His grandfather's disciple, "The elders said that the matters of Yungong were very detailed, and the case of pulling out the electric pole was particularly vivid." The situation at that time was very critical, so the central shock. The Qing court sent officials from Shaanxi and Gansu provinces to Jingchuan for strict handling. Jia Xun was afraid that he had implicated the people and "can't bear the trouble of life", so he came up with a compromise plan that only asked the chief offender and did not accept the threat. He secretly asked Wang Wanqing, the person involved in the investigation of the Yaodian (now Yaodian Town, Jingchuan), to say, "You are old, and you are lucky to not deny it when you confess. If there is any accident, you should take good care of it." Wang Wanqing "pleads with mercy" and talked about the incident when he was in court. He recognized himself as the main culprit and took it with all his strength and was sentenced to beheading. Afterwards, Jia Xunte set up a temple for him to commemorate it. When Ling Qihan visited Jingchuan in 1944, the temple of the King of Yaodian still existed. In order to save the person involved in the incident, Jia Xun also did a legendary thing. He gave 500 taels of silver to the executioner, and spared no effort to save the lives of the Gao people in Jingchuan from his official career. "The people of Jingzhou are all very moved", and raised funds to present the plaque "Ten Thousand Family Born Buddhas" to Jia Xun. "So the name of 'Master Jia' and 'Jia Qingtian' spread throughout Longdong." But Jia Xun also paid the corresponding price for this virtue, and Yang Changrong, the then governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, demoted him to one level and remained with him.
Jingzhou Prefecture City Map Quoted from "Jingchuan County Chronicles"
"Jingchuan Visit to Old Records" quoted Jia Xun's deeds, which inevitably have praise or even folk legends; but from a contemporary perspective, Ling Qihan's trip to Jingchuan comprehensively uses a variety of methods of field investigation, document investigation and oral history interviews, and relatively comprehensively and objectively outlines the main historical sites of Jia Xun when he was in charge of Jingchuan, providing future generations with rare first-hand materials for future generations to understand the grassroots social and political ecology and related historical events of Gansu in the late Qing Dynasty.
In addition, "The Old Notes of the Jingchuan Visit" quoted two court training couplets written by Jia Xun in the East Flower Hall of the County Government. The first one says: "To cure one's own selfishness is to have no desires. Receive the changes first and do not deceive." The second one says: "To govern people is not just about external affairs, reason and law, and to discipline yourself, be cautious and diligent." This shows that Jia Xun's way of becoming an official is also an official like Jia Xun. Although it is difficult to have many earth-shaking actions in the great era, with several so-called moral policies, it can still protect the country and safeguard the people and educate the local area, and strive to maintain the basic operation of modern grassroots social governance in Gansu.
Benliu News Special Commitment | Shi Yong
