Chapter 987 986 [Put the Blame]

Zhang Daqian left Mogao Grottoes that day, taking only his son and nephew with him and being escorted by several soldiers to Guazhou. He planned to send a telegram to his old friend Yu Youren, asking Yu Youren to go to the Ministry of Education to get the approval document, and then send someone to Dunhuang, which would save half the time.

Zhou Hexuan only took Sun Yongzhen to Guazhou, and even drove the car himself - Zhang Daqian sat in the passenger seat, and Sun Yongzhen and several soldiers sat in the car.

Zhang Daqian was reluctant to speak at first, but later he became so frustrated that he took the initiative and said, "The approval document from the Ministry of Education will be sent soon. Don't stop me then."

Zhou Hexuan said: "Mr. Zhang, I saw those Ming Dynasty murals in the cave. The skin of the characters has turned black. If you expose the Jin and Tang murals, in a few decades, those brightly colored Tang paintings will also turn black." . What do you think future tourists will think? They will definitely think that the Dunhuang murals are that color, and that Chinese murals have no sense of color at all."

Zhang Daqian sneered: "How many decades later, who can think of such a far-reaching thing? Look at how the Dunhuang murals have been destroyed in the Qing Dynasty only 30 years ago! If I don't copy them quickly, the Dunhuang murals will be destroyed in a few decades." Whether the mural still exists or not is a question.”

Zhou Hexuan said: "Archaeological excavation requires state support. Now is the time when the nation is in danger. It is impossible to invest a lot of manpower and material resources in it..."

Zhang Daqian rushed to say: "That's why I paid for the excavation and protection myself! Do you think I spent so much money on paint and hiring people because I was full and exhausted?"

Zhou Hexuan sighed with emotion: "Mr. Zhang, it is unfortunate for our generation to live in troubled times. For ancient cultural relics and art, it is best to preserve them from destruction. As for further excavation and research, it should be left to the future. Future generations. I really like what Mr. Lin Huiyin said to Shen Congwen about archeology. She said: "Our cause in the Taipei era can't talk about anything else now. We must maintain it with extremely frugal methods and wait for the war." Restoration is the most appropriate method.' As for the Dunhuang murals, we should protect them from death instead of using extreme means to study them."

"It's not enough to say anything." Zhang Daqian closed his eyes and stopped talking.

The two came to the Guazhou Telegraph Office. Zhou Hexuan smiled and said: "Mr. Zhang, please!"

Zhang Daqian was not polite and said to the dispatcher: "Call Yu Youren of the Chongqing Supreme National Defense Commission: Beard Weng Taijian. Now the mural research is on the right track. Due to the obstruction by Zhou Mingcheng and the China Museum of Education, an approval document from the Ministry of Education is required. Be sure to ask someone to send it to Dunhuang as soon as possible. My best regards, my brother Daqian."

When the operator heard that he was calling the Supreme Defense Council, he quickly made a call.

Zhang Daqian gave up his seat and sneered: "Mr. Zhou, please."

Zhou Hexuan said to the reporter: "When calling Chongqing's Ta Kung Pao, just send a capital letter A and sign it as Zhou Hexuan."

…

Yu Youren had just returned to Chongqing after traveling around the northwest. When he visited the Mausoleum of Genghis Khan, he improvised a patriotic sanqu "Tianjingsha·Visiting the Mausoleum": "Singing by the Xinglong Mountain, I once looked at the invincible gold. Ge. After reading the imperial edict and burning incense, the king asked me: When will the mountains and rivers be recovered?"

It has to be said that Yu Youren's Sanqu is so amazing that it puts Feng Yuxiang's poems out of the galaxy.

Zhang Daqian sent the telegram directly to the Supreme National Defense Council. In ancient times, it was eight hundred miles away, and the contents of the telegram were sent to Yu Youren's home in less than an hour. But Zhou Hexuan's speed is not slow, because "Ta Kung Pao" has its own telecommunications room, and the telegrams sent by the boss are sent to Zhou's residence in minutes.

Yu Youren was drinking tea and chatting with his old friends, and delayed for several hours before looking for Chen Lifu. He was so proud that he went straight to Chen Lifu himself without informing him all the way.

Chen Lifu quickly stood up to greet him and asked with a warm smile: "What brought the bearded man here?"

"Northwest wind," Yu Youren said, "Zhang Bearded is inspecting murals in Dunhuang and needs to issue an archaeological approval. I would like the Ministry of Education to be accommodating."

The smile on Chen Lifu's face suddenly froze. He took out a letter from the drawer, handed it to Yu Youren and said, "My bearded man, it's not that I don't want to help. Please read this first."

Before Zhou Hexuan left Chongqing, he wrote three letters and asked Cui Huifu to hand them over to different people according to different situations. The worst plan was to complain directly to Chiang Kai-shek.

The letter to Chen Lifu was very simple. He first emphasized the value of Dunhuang murals and then accused Zhang Daqian of wantonly destroying cultural relics. At the end of the letter, Zhou Hexuan threatened Chen Lifu, saying that once the Ministry of Education approved Zhang Daqian's excavation of Dunhuang murals, he would write a book to record the matter, and all negative consequences would be borne by the Ministry of Education. To put it bluntly, Chen Lifu would be blamed.

Who is Zhou Hexuan?

He is an internationally renowned scholar, and he is also a serious historian.

If Zhou Hexuan had written a book specifically criticizing the destruction of Dunhuang cultural relics, the subsequent impact would be unimaginable. Maybe someone would poke Chen Lifu’s back a hundred years later.

Yu Youren finished reading the letter and said with a gloomy face: "That's a bunch of nonsense!"

Chen Lifu advised: "My bearded man, you'd better not get involved. Otherwise, Zhou Hexuan will write you in the book in a rage, and your reputation will be ruined throughout his life."

Yu Youren frowned and muttered: "What exactly does Mingcheng want to do? It's simply inexplicable."

Needless to say, Yu Youren and Zhang Daqian have exactly the same thinking mode. They both look at issues from the perspective of artists.

Chen Lifu and Xini said: "You are both right, but your positions are different. I think the Dunhuang murals are too important. It is better for the China Museum of Science and Technology to organize a professional inspection team to investigate and comprehensively analyze the opinions of all parties before making a conclusion."

Yu Youren didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "You are trying to be biased. The China Museum of Art is clearly opposed to the excavation of Dunhuang murals. How can they agree?"

Anyway, Chen Lifu was absolutely unwilling to take the blame. Even without Zhou Hexuan, historically he had asked the China Institute of Science and Technology to organize a northwest expedition. It's just that the members of the inspection team of the Institute of Science and Technology of China were not tough, and they didn't dare to use force to kidnap people like Zhou Hexuan did. As a result, the matter went unresolved, and Zhang Daqian also stayed in Mogao Grottoes for life and death.

Let the Ministry of Education issue a formal approval document?

Haha, Chen Lifu is not that stupid. He has no benefits but still makes himself look coquettish.

Yu Youren had no choice but to say shamelessly: "You can write a note first, and we'll talk about organizing the inspection team later."

Chen Lifu's posture became lower and lower, and he pulled Yu Youren and said: "My bearded man, you are the elder in terms of age, and you are the senior in terms of qualifications. I should not refuse your request based on emotion or reason. But this matter is more complicated. It’s complicated. I represent the Ministry of Education and cannot make decisions based on personal preferences. If you ask me for help with personal matters, I will definitely not refuse, so please bear with me!”

After a set of Tai Chi, Yu Youren was speechless. He shook his head and said: "That's all, I won't embarrass you. Farewell!"

Seeing Yu Youren leaving the room, Chen Lifu muttered and sneered: "What a mess, a waste of my time."