The reason why a university is great is all because of whether there are good professors. Mencius said: The so-called home country is not called a tree, but a minister in the world. I can also imitate it now: the so-called great people do not mean having buildings, but having masters.
—— Mei Yiqi
Mei Yiqi: A lifetime Tsinghua , a lifetime of innocent
Mei Yiqi was born in a family of poets and books that fell into the late Qing Dynasty. He has been familiar with the classics and history since he was a child and is good at reciting. In 1904, he entered the Nankai school. Because of his excellent character and academic performance, he was highly appreciated by Zhang Boling . In 1908, he was admitted to the Baoding Higher School. The following year, he was admitted to the first batch of public-funded students studying in the United States with the excellent score of sixth place, and went to Wu Shituo University of Technology to study for the electrical major.
△Mei Yiqi (the middle-sitting person) In the United States,
1914, Mei Yiqi graduated and returned to China. In 1929, she was invited to teach at her alma mater. When he went to Tsinghua University to teach, the school was not prosperous and there were not many applicants. For example, 150 students were admitted, but only about 400 people were registered. He has served in various positions such as Provost.
In 1931, Mei Yiqi officially became the president of Tsinghua University, which can be said to have taken office in times of crisis. At that time, the domestic situation was in turmoil and the student trend was turbulent. It was common for Tsinghua teachers and students to rush the principal and chase the professors. The principal did not serve for a long time, but Principal Mei was deeply loved by students. At any time, the slogan of Tsinghua students is "oppose ××× and support Principal Mei." Someone asked Mei Yiqi what secrets he had, and he said humorously: "Everyone will overturn this and that, no one will be willing to overturn Mei (unfortunate)!"
Less than ten years after that, Tsinghua University became famous.
△Mei Yiqi (second from left)
The experience of studying in Europe and the United States influenced Mei Yiqi, and he accepted the Greek spirit of advocating sports. Luo Jialun served as the principal of Tsinghua University and looked down on sports. He once cut off half of the physical education class hours and teachers, and downgraded the reputable , Professor Ma John to "director trainer". After Mei Yiqi took office, he was given the same professional title and treatment as teachers in other departments. Soon Tsinghua University won the reputation of "sports university".
During Mei Yiqi's school management, the school affairs adopted a hierarchical responsibility system, which was democratic and strict in laws. While he advocates academic independence and free education in , he also judges the situation and vigorously promotes general education. He believes that under the special background of Anti-Japanese War , the focus of universities "should be on communication but not on specialization" and aims to meet the needs of society and the country.
At the same time, courtesy of teachers is also an important factor in the prosperity of Tsinghua University. Mei Yiqi once went to the train station to pick up , Zhao Yuanren, and Mr. . He and the four major tutors of the Chinese Academy of Sciences "have always maintained a sincere friendship."
The most influential example is the "three exceptions" of Hua Luogeng : Hua Luogeng only has a junior high school education, first as a primary school teacher, and then a clerk, and was entered into Tsinghua University by Mei Yiqi; he was transferred from a department data clerk to an assistant teacher, allowed to study university courses, and sent to Cambridge University in the UK for further studies; finally he was hired as a professor without going through the lecturer and associate professor stage.
△From left: Cha Liangzhao, Hu Shi, Mei Yiqi, Huang Yusheng
Mei Yiqi is a person who values hard work, is usually serious, rarely speaks in meetings, and is known as a "talented gentleman". Some students write oil poems to tease him for being humble and implicit:
Probably maybe,
But we dare not say it,
But the school always believes that
is probably not necessarily true.
was once rumored to be a joke. In fact, if he had to report or discuss, his words were always organized and grasped the key points. When many people argued endlessly, he was often able to resolve disputes in one word. Friends who are familiar with him know that although he talks little, he is full of humor and human touch. Sometimes, if an occasional word is long and profound, it is memorable. Chen Yinke once sighed: "If a government's laws can speak so strictly and less with Mr. Mei, this government is the most ideal."
Mei Yiqi has two sentences that are often quoted.One sentence is "School is like water, teachers and students are like fish, and their actions are like swimming. The big fish leads the way and the small fish follow, which is swimming." Another sentence is "The so-called great people do not mean having a building, but having a master." It is the concept contained in the comparison between the metaphor of "fish and water" and the "building master" that has made Tsinghua University glory.
△Mei Yiqi was in the War of Resistance against Japan
1937, when the national crisis was in the forefront. When Tsinghua University, Peking University and Nankai University were ordered to move to Kunming to establish Southwest Associated University , the taciturn Mei Yiqi said such a "high-profile" sentence:
In this stormy autumn, Tsinghua is like a boat, drifting in the stormy waves, and someone is catching up with the responsibility to drive it. This person should not retreat, nor should he shrink, but he should only muster up the courage and move forward stoically. Although this time makes people feel like the long night is long, we believe that the sky will soon be clear and the wind will be calm. At that time, we will drive the boat back to Tsinghua University , and then he will dare to say "result not guilty" to Tsinghua's fan alumni.
△From left: Jiang Menglin, Mei Yiqi, Zhang Boling
In the early days of the establishment of the school, three people (including Zhang Boling from Nankai and Jiang Menglin from Peking University) co-organized the school affairs. The main school affairs work of Southwest Associated University for the next eight years was led by Mei Yiqi. During this period, he paid attention to democracy in everything, handled problems fairly, and was as poor as many professors.
Once, the guest came from home. His wife Han Yonghua had to go out to set up a street stall to sell the clothes her children wore when they were young, and received 10 yuan to serve the guests. There is also a popular saying among the people: Southwest Associated University has opened a high-quality affiliated high school with high teaching quality. Kunming citizens want to send their children to this school to study. Yunnan Provincial Chairman Long Yun's daughter and Mei Yiqi's youngest daughter have applied for this school. Long Yun's daughter failed the exam. Long Yun, who had given a lot of support to the UN General Assembly, thought Mei Yiqi was too disrespectful, so he sent his secretary-general to clear the situation. But the Secretary-General did not move and said, "I have inquired, and Principal Mei's daughter has not been admitted." Long Yun suddenly became angry.
In the environment of frequent wars, heavy school affairs and difficult life, Mei Yiqi worked hard and managed in an orderly manner, creating a situation where the UN General Assembly "hard work and constant songs" was "stopped". His noble character is widely praised and is known as the "captain" of Southwest Associated University.
In September 1946, Mei Yiqi bid farewell to Chuncheng and returned to Beijing to continue as the president of Tsinghua University.
△From left: Shi Jiayang, Pan Guangdan, Chen Daisun, Mei Yiqi, Wu Youxun, Feng Youlan, Ye Qisun
At the end of 1948, General Fu Zuoyi stopped his troops, and Communist military and political personnel began to settle in Pei . Like many great intellectuals at that time, Mei Yiqi faced the choice of leaving or staying. Zhou Enlai and Wu Han both expressed their hope that he would stay, but Mei Yiqi still chose to "leave". He told Professor Wu Zelin, who was also teaching at Tsinghua University: "I will definitely leave. My departure is to protect Tsinghua's fund. If I don't leave, I will not be able to protect this fund." Later, the Kuomintang government repeatedly invited Mei Yiqi to the cabinet. He maintained his consistent middle-level position. He told the reporter: "If you don't come out, you won't be sorry for your friends in the south. If you come, you will become an official and you can't explain to your friends in the north." In the end, he declined politely.
△In his later years, Mei Yiqi
1955, Mei Yiqi began to use the interest of the Tsinghua Foundation to prepare for the "Tsinghua Institute of Atomic Science", which is the predecessor of Tsinghua University in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Li Yuanzhe, winner of Nobel Prize , once studied here. Mei Yiqi is known as the "Tsinghua President of Cross-Straits" because she laid the foundation for Taiwan's Tsinghua University.
On May 19, 1962, Mei Yiqi died of illness at National Taiwan University Hospital. Two weeks after his death, people opened the handbag he carried with him during his lifetime. It was not gold, silver and jewelry, but Tsinghua Fund accounts, and they were very clear.
Mei Yiqi was buried on the Hsinchu Tsinghua University campus, named "Plum Garden". There are flowers and trees planted by alumni in China that raise funds, called "Plum Forest". Mei Yiqi Memorial Medal is regarded as the highest honor by graduates from Tsinghua University in Hsinchu, Taiwan.
△The last image of Mei Yiqi during his lifetime
"I love my hut", Mei Yiqi used these eight words to summarize his indissoluble bond with Tsinghua University. From birth to death, Mei Yiqi only did this thing well in his life:
laid the foundation for Tsinghua school format and enhanced Tsinghua's reputation.
Source: "Being a Human and Dealing with the World" 2011 Issue 13
Author: Mei Yurong
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