Chapter 292 Returning to China
At the farewell dinner, all of Zhang Xingjiu’s friends came. Lippmann held his hand reluctantly, “Time flies by so fast. When I think back to when you first came to the Sorbonne, it seems like it happened just yesterday.”
Zhang Xingjiu gave him part of the disposal rights of the wireless telegraph patent. Professor Lippmann's character was trustworthy, so he could make decisions on small matters by himself, but major matters required communication by telegram.
The principal came very respectfully. He knew very well that Zhang Xingjiu's achievements had definitely reached the standard of the Nobel Prize. Such a student, even if he was Chinese, was a valuable asset to the Sorbonne University. So on behalf of the Sorbonne University, he awarded Zhang Xingjiu the position of visiting professor.
Even so, he still felt it was a pity to let him go back to China. "The door of the Sorbonne University is always open to you. If you are willing to come back, the position of professor in the Department of Physics will belong to you. When Professor Lippmann retires in the future, you can take over his position as the head of the Department of Physics."
"Thank you for your kindness." Zhang Xingjiu thanked him politely, but he didn't take it seriously in his heart. Marie Curie also won the Nobel Prize in the future, and more than once, when she was promoted to a higher position, she still encountered many obstacles due to her identity issues.
She is a white person and this is the case, let alone herself, a yellow person. If she really believed it, the Sorbonne University might not keep its promise.
"I just came back and you are leaving. What a pity." Lang Zhiwan's face was full of reluctance. He had recently completed his studies at the Cavendish Laboratory and now returned to Paris to pursue a doctorate degree under Pierre Curie.
"I will definitely come back, and there will be plenty of opportunities to meet us in the future. You are also welcome to visit China when you have time." Holding his hand, Zhang Xingjiu suddenly thought of something interesting.
Lang Zhiwan was a member of the French Communist Party. After World War I, if those Chinese students living in his apartment met Lang Zhiwan, I wonder what kind of sparks would be created?
So he handed over the keys and management rights of the apartment to him and said, "I'll give my house to you. You can still hold salons here and communicate with other scientists. Please help rent out the remaining houses. The cafe and restaurant on the first floor will remain, and the houses on the second and third floors will be given to the Chinese who come to Paris to study. If they are financially tight, their rent can be reduced or exempted depending on the situation."
"If they can't afford the tuition and other expenses, they can use the proceeds from Pirates of the Caribbean to pay for it. I will sign an agreement later to grant you the authority to handle these royalties."
Zhang Xingjiu has previously established a foundation to manage his income in Europe. Most of these income will be used to support international students in Europe so that they can focus more on their studies without having to worry about money.
"You are a true patriot." Lang Zhiwan was in awe.
"I have a vague judgment that those radioactive elements may be harmful to the human body, so you and Mary must pay attention to protection when doing experiments in the future." Facing Pierre, Zhang Xingjiu could only remind him implicitly.
On the other side of the banquet, Ma Zongwen was also saying goodbye to her classmates. Everyone's face was filled with reluctance, because they all knew that with the current transportation conditions and international environment, after this farewell, they didn't know how long it would take for them to meet again.
The next day, Zhang Xingjiu and his wife, with the farewell of everyone, boarded a train to Marseille Port, and then changed to a passenger ferry. His status as a visiting professor at the Sorbonne University enabled him to easily get a first-class cabin.
Now that Ma Zongwen has obtained his degree and has grown up, Zhang Xingjiu can finally abandon those simple contraceptive methods and start having children. When he thinks about the major events that will happen in the future, Zhang Xingjiu hopes to have more children so that he can assign them to do different jobs.
When the passenger ship arrived in Hong Kong, Zhang Xingjiu got off the ship directly and stayed there for two days. Because Yixian also heard the news and came to Hong Kong, the two of them took this opportunity to have a good talk.
Before parting, Zhang Xingjiu gave him another sum of money and asked him to use it to engage in revolutionary work.
Then they changed another ship, continued northward and finally arrived in Shanghai. Ma Zongwen also returned to her long-lost home. The brothers Ma Xiangbo and Ma Jianzhong were very happy to see her.
After dinner, Ma Xiangbo asked about Zhang Xingjiu's plans, "Zhou Ping has now returned from his studies, I wonder what plans he has for the future? If you want to teach at a university, I have some friends in the Imperial University of Peking and the Beiyang University, you can write a letter to recommend me!"
Zhang Xingjiu shook his head. He was somewhat interested in going to the Imperial University of Peking, but not now. "I just want to teach and educate people quietly and continue to do research. The situation in the north is turbulent now. I'm afraid it's not a good time to do these things."
Thinking about the recent situation, with the political reform and the Boxer Rebellion going on in the capital, it was indeed not a good time. Ma Xiangbo temporarily put aside his thoughts in this regard and turned to talk about his own recent plans.
"The way to strengthen oneself is to cultivate talents, and the way to save talents is to establish schools first. Now I have resigned and returned to my hometown. I plan to donate all my property - 3,000 acres of land in Songjiang, Qingpu and other places, to the Catholic Jiangnan Bishop for management as the foundation for the establishment of a Chinese and Western school. If Zhouping doesn't mind, why not come with me to run this school?"
This is really ruining the family to run a school. Zhang Xingjiu admired it very much and immediately expressed his opinion, "It is also my wish to establish a university. Since my father-in-law has this plan, I will definitely do my best to help! It’s just that I have some other ideas about the concept of running a school."
"Father-in-law, you come from a church background, so it's understandable that you want to ask the church for help in running the school. However, in this way, the church will also have a certain influence on the school, which deviates from the spirit of university independence. So I think it's better for us to run the school ourselves."
"My son-in-law has made some money in Europe over the years, which can be used to buy land, build school buildings, and purchase teaching and experimental equipment. If there are talented students among these students, I can help them lay a good foundation before sending them to study in Europe and the United States."
"These students are like sparks. After a few years, they may become a prairie fire."
Ma Xiangbo felt that what Zhang Xingjiu said made some sense, but he had grown up in the church, and he could not make up his mind to get him to break away from the church and start a school. He decided to discuss it with his friends first.
Zhang Xingjiu was not in a hurry. He visited acquaintances such as Fu Lan-ya and Jiang Yixu one after another, presented their gifts of thanks, and then took Ma Zongwen back home.
As the ship approached Shaoxing, he couldn't help but become excited. What were Ah Zhang, Xu Xilin, Wang Ziyu and the others doing these days?
(End of this chapter)
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