"Indeed, it is a historic city. The pavilions and terraces are so ancient and elegant. This must be the 'Wang Xie Hall' mentioned in the phrase 'the swallows of the old Wang Xie Hall'..."
Walking to the Qin River, Zhongshi sized up the buildings by the river. Although there was no professional tour guide, Zhongshi was still very interested in the ancient buildings, which were well-preserved in this era.
Zhong Jianjun followed his son, struggling to carry a large suitcase, his eyes tightly fixed on his son who was running around everywhere, afraid that he might lose sight of Zhongshi at any moment.
The Zhong family father and son came to Nandu this time to apply for a travel visa to Hong Kong.
After the lunar New Year, Zhongshi became noticeably restless, often pacing in his room, muttering to himself, and making phone calls to Hong Kong more frequently than before.
Zhong's parents were worried, but they didn't know what their son was thinking. Since their son fell ill, they noticed he had matured, especially in the matter of selling the white porcelain bowl, where Zhongshi performed better than they did.
After a private discussion, they felt that with their level of knowledge, it was no longer possible to discipline their son. Even the big businessmen from Hong Kong appeared to be submissive in front of their son.
The only person who could discipline Zhongshi now was his cousin, Zhong Yi. Zhong Yi was a college student living in Yanjing, a big city, and his knowledge and experience far exceeded that of people from the countryside.
Zhong Jianjun and his wife Liu Lan took advantage of the winter break to tell Zhong Yi their plans, and Zhong Yi readily agreed. However, what Zhong Jianjun and Liu Lan didn't expect was that Zhong Yi had already taken Zhongshi under his wing, becoming his biggest supporter.
Zhong Yi pretended to be concerned about his younger cousin, visiting the Zhong family frequently. Whenever the two brothers met, they would retreat to a room and talk for hours. Zhong Jianjun and his wife felt relieved seeing this.
In reality, during these secret meetings, Zhongshi did most of the talking, while Zhong Yi listened intently. Who would have thought that the one leading the conversation was a nine-year-old child, and the listener was a top student from Yanjing University?
Zhongshi mainly talked about major international events and the economic structures of several major countries. To avoid shocking people too much, he didn't teach Zhong Yi complex financial knowledge or pricing formulas, but even so, it was enough to make Zhong Yi speechless and feel inferior.
Sometimes, Zhong Yi would wonder why his younger cousin knew so much. No matter how hard he thought, he couldn't come up with a reasonable explanation. However, seeing the messy room full of newspapers and a pile of materials sent from Hong Kong, Zhong Yi comforted himself by thinking that his younger cousin was a genius.
One day, Zhongshi solemnly told him that he had already made a lot of money in the Hong Kong stock market, roughly three million Hong Kong dollars. Zhong Yi quickly calculated in his mind: the exchange rate between Hong Kong dollars and RMB was 2.5 to 1, so three million Hong Kong dollars was over one million RMB.
In the mid-1980s, one million RMB was an astronomical figure. At that time, government officials earned only a few dozen RMB a month, and it would take several hundred years to save that much even if they didn't eat or drink.
After entering college, Zhong Yi's economic awareness had already awakened. He realized that without money, nothing was possible. During this semester, a girl he had long admired had decisively fallen in love with a rich boy, which was a huge blow to him. If it weren't for his younger cousin's encouragement, he might still be living a muddled life!
Now, hearing that his younger cousin was so wealthy, his thoughts became active. However, before he could speak, Zhongshi interrupted him. Zhongshi told him that the money was to be used to make more money, and there was no need to use it now that their life was comfortable. He also earnestly advised Zhong Yi to focus on his studies and try to get a scholarship to study in the United States, or at least pursue a master's degree in Hong Kong.
Zhongshi didn't explain why, but he promised Zhong Yi that if he could successfully go abroad, he would reward him with one million Hong Kong dollars.
Under this temptation, Zhong Yi naturally agreed. However, when he realized it, he felt a bit greedy. Although the number of students who could study abroad was limited, with effort, there was always hope. Even if he couldn't get a scholarship, he could still pursue a master's degree in Hong Kong.
In the 1980s, Hong Kong universities began to recruit postgraduate students from mainland China. Some of these universities were among the best in the world, like the University of Hong Kong, which was a top university in Asia and ranked highly globally.
Zhong Yi, who had benefited, naturally praised Zhongshi enthusiastically in front of his parents. His tone was so warm and his words so flattering that even he felt nauseous thinking about it later.
Zhongshi's parents, who were the only college students in the village, naturally followed their nephew's advice and stopped questioning Zhongshi's actions. So when Zhongshi mentioned going to the provincial capital, they discussed it briefly and decided to go.
In March, Nandu City was full of spring, making it a great time for tourism. Especially at the famous scenic spots, there were many visitors every day.
Unlike in the future, where people had two days off each weekend and occasional long holidays, even so, people with increasingly fuller wallets were still willing to take a trip when they had the time.
In the bustling crowd of tourists visiting the Qin River, the mischievous Zhongshi and his father, carrying a large suitcase, stood out. The younger one was bouncing around, and the older one was following, ready to serve. Tourists passing by couldn't help but smile, remembering their own childhood mischief and the care of their parents, which was even more vivid than what they saw in front of them.
The Qin River was not large, and if one just rushed through, it could be toured in half a day. If one really wanted to explore it in detail, it would take a whole day, and the cultural and historical significance would require even more time to appreciate. However, Zhongshi was just enjoying the feeling of being in a big city and only glanced at the ancient buildings briefly.
Nandu City, located by the Chang River, was the second-largest city in southern China after Lihai. Nandu has a long history and is one of the four ancient capitals of China, known as the "Capital of Six Dynasties" and an important representative of the Han Dynasty and Han culture.
China has a 5,000-year history. Throughout this long history, the Han people living on this land have repeatedly suffered invasions by foreign tribes, especially during the Jin Dynasty, when foreign tribes frequently invaded, known as the "Five Barbarians' Chaos," which was the most severe crisis in Han history, nearly leading to the extinction of the Han people. The Han people living in the Central Plains fled south, migrating in large numbers from the Ni River to the Chang River, establishing the Eastern Jin Dynasty in the lower reaches of the Chang River, continuing to resist the foreign tribes that had occupied the Central Plains.
The capital of the Eastern Jin Dynasty was set in Nandu because the Central Plains in the north had already been occupied by foreign tribes. The Eastern Jin Dynasty, centered in Nandu, as the legitimate Han dynasty, inherited the authentic Han culture. From then on, the Han regime in the south and the foreign regime in the north were in a standoff for 300 years.
Later, the Sui Dynasty unified China, and the capital returned to the north. After experiencing many ups and downs, the Mongols, who rose in the north, finally eliminated the Han regime of the Song Dynasty, and the Han people lost their regime for the first time on their own land.
The Mongols ruled for less than a century before the Han dynasty of the Ming Dynasty emerged, driving the Mongols back to the grasslands under the slogan "Expel the Tartars, Restore China." The Ming Dynasty set its capital in Nandu, rebuilding China.
At the end of the Ming Dynasty, the Manchu people from outside the Great Wall invaded China and eventually seized power. They faced the strongest resistance in the lower reaches of the Chang River and committed numerous massacres.
In modern times, the Han people rebuilt China again, setting the capital in Nandu. Therefore, it is not surprising to say that the legitimate Han regime was in Nandu according to historical development.
The Black Robe Alley that Zhongshi had passed earlier was the site of the former residences of the noble families of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Wang Xie referred to the two major aristocratic families led by Wang Dao and Xie An, who served as prime ministers of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and were prominent noble families at the time.
"Dad, you can put the luggage in the hotel. Are you afraid someone will steal it? There's nothing valuable in it!"
Standing in front of the Wang Xie Memorial Hall, Zhongshi silently recalled history, feeling a surge of heroism in his chest, making him unable to calm down for a long time. He didn't even notice that his eyes were moist.
Zhong Jianjun, who was following Zhongshi, looked at his son in surprise. Zhongshi had been standing in front of the memorial hall for half an hour without any other actions. Zhong Jianjun looked in the direction his son was looking, only to see the words "Wang Xie Memorial Hall," nothing special.
In the education he received, to accommodate the emotions of ethnic minorities and promote ethnic integration, history books only briefly described these events without going into great detail. This was good, but it also led to young people having a superficial understanding of their country's history. In the future, so-called "historians" even criticized Yue Fei, saying he was not a national hero.
After quietly wiping away the tears from his eyes, Zhongshi noticed his father still standing behind him, still carrying the heavy suitcase.
Zhong Jianjun's face turned red when he heard this, feeling a bit embarrassed that his thoughts were revealed, even though he was the elder.
"Dad, let's find a hotel first, put our things there, and then go to the National Father's Mausoleum!"
Without waiting for Zhong Jianjun to respond, Zhongshi made up his mind and pushed the still-dazed Zhong Jianjun, pointing to a nearby hotel, indicating that they should stay there.
This hotel was the closest, and Zhongshi was considerate of his father, not wanting him to be too tired. Zhong Jianjun pulled Zhongshi, who was about to walk past the hotel, intending to tell him that hotels near tourist attractions were much more expensive than regular hotels.
"Money, I have plenty!" Before Zhong Jianjun could finish his sentence, Zhongshi said disdainfully. This made Zhong Jianjun speechless for a moment. (Please click, recommend, and collect. Thank you for your support!)