Chapter 332 Inauguration Ceremony
Sun Yat-sen held Zhang Xingjiu's hand and said loudly, "Mr. Zhang is not only a world-renowned scientist and scholar, but also a strong supporter of the revolutionary cause. He has made great contributions to the revolutionary cause over the years, and I cannot repay him enough. If I can be successfully elected as the president and establish a new government in the future, I plan to invite Mr. Zhang to serve as the Minister of Education. Please do not refuse, Mr. Zhang."
There was an uproar at the scene, especially those wealthy merchants, gentry, landlords and old bureaucrats. Why did they take the trouble to come here early to wait? Wasn't it just to show up in front of Sun Yat-sen, leave a little impression on him, and hope to get a good position in the new government?
Unexpectedly, Zhang Xingjiu was favored without saying anything. Sun Yat-sen asked for the position of Minister of Education. If it were put in the past, it would be equivalent to the Minister of Rites, right? The next one would be the Vice Minister of Rites. Many people were jealous and their eyes were red.
What was even more unexpected was Zhang Xingjiu's reaction. He politely but firmly rejected Sun Yat-sen's invitation. "Mr. Sun has worked for the revolution for many years. You are the greatest contributor to the success of the revolution. I have only contributed a little. I really don't deserve such praise! I have always only taught and done research. I know little about politics. I really don't deserve the position of Minister of Education. So I can only decline Mr. Sun's kindness. You should find someone else!"
"Mr. Zhang, you are too modest. You are a doctor from a famous French university and a winner of the Nobel Prize, the highest award in the scientific community. Moreover, Aurora University's current achievements are inseparable from your hard work. Since you have been able to build a nationally renowned university from scratch with Mr. Ma, Mr. Zhang, Mr. Yan and others, you must have a deep understanding of education. Who else but you can be the Minister of Education?" Sun Yat-sen invited again.
Zhang Xingjiu understood that it was not important whether he became the Minister of Education or not. Sun Yat-sen was using him to win people's hearts. First, Zhang Xingjiu had invested in the revolution, and there were many people like him. Since Zhang Xingjiu could become the Minister of Education, others would surely get rich returns. Once they knew what happened today, they would definitely try their best to send Sun Yat-sen to the presidency. Second, Zhang Xingjiu's own influence should not be underestimated. Over the years, he has trained a large number of new scholars. These people are talented and knowledgeable, and many of them have become the backbone of the revolutionary party. Winning over Zhang Xingjiu is equivalent to winning over these people.
Sun Yat-sen also knew his shortcomings. He had been overseas for many years and lacked loyal support at home. If he could take this opportunity to win the favor of these backbone forces, things would be much easier in the future.
Third, revitalizing new learning and learning from foreign countries is also the current trend. Zhang Xingjiu is the biggest representative of learning new learning. Appointing him as Minister of Education can also show the determination to support new learning and learn from developed countries in Europe and the United States.
Taking these into consideration, Zhang Xingjiu cooperated extremely well with Sun Yat-sen in performing a good show of three refusals and three declines at the dock, allowing Sun Yat-sen to clearly convey his intentions.
This cooperation made Sun Yixian feel very comfortable. In the end, seeing Zhang Xingjiu's firm attitude, he stopped insisting, "Mr. Zhang is right. Your wisdom is a precious treasure for all mankind. You really shouldn't let these mundane things disturb your research."
The people around him wanted to rush over to replace Zhang Xingjiu. I don't mind the trivialities of mundane affairs. I can also support the revolution and I can also talk about it! I don't ask to be the Minister of Education. I will be satisfied with a small official like a county magistrate.
After all, Zhang Xingjiu had contributed so much money to the revolution and had such a high reputation, so it would be inappropriate to give him nothing, so Sun Yat-sen invited him again, "Mr. Zhang can be a consultant in the future. If you have time, please provide some suggestions for the education cause of the Republic of China. Sun will definitely listen attentively."
This time Zhang Xingjiu did not refuse. "It is really touching that Mr. Yixian attaches so much importance to education. I am also willing to do my best to contribute to the development of education and science in the Republic of China."
Then Sun Yat-sen turned to Ma Xiangbo, held his hand and started chatting. Logically, Ma Xiangbo was Zhang Xingjiu's father-in-law and the president of Aurora University. He should have been the one to talk to, but Zhang Xingjiu gave him too much. And there was also an advantage to doing this. This small detail showed that he wanted to abandon the bad habit of ranking people by seniority, and it could also win the favor of young people, who were the future of the revolutionary cause.
Sun Yat-sen had too many things to do, so he left in a hurry after saying a few words. The next day, he convened a cadre meeting of the Tongmenghui to discuss the plan of organizing a provisional government. It was decided to first notify the representatives of each province to elect a provisional president and establish the Provisional Government of the Republic of China, which was agreed by the representatives of each province.
On the third day, he again expressed his opinion when meeting with representatives from various provinces, "The thirteenth day of this month (the eleventh month of the lunar calendar) is January 1st of the solar calendar. If you elect me as the president, I intend to take office on that day and announce that China will adopt the solar calendar, and that day will be the New Year's Day of the Republic of China."
He decided to learn from the West, adopt the Gregorian calendar, and change to the Republic of China calendar, with November 13, 4609 in the Yellow Emperor's calendar (that is, November 13 in the lunar year of Xinhai) as the New Year's Day of the first year of the Republic of China.
On the fifth day, representatives from 17 provinces across the country held an election. Sun Yat-sen received 16 votes and was elected as the provisional president without any suspense. He immediately set out for Nanjing to hold his inauguration ceremony.
Zhang Xingjiu, Ma Xiangbo and others were also invited, and the first thing they had to solve was how to arrive in Jinling before January 1st. There were only two days left before the inauguration ceremony, and they were still 300 kilometers away from Jinling.
In the future, high-speed rail will only take an hour and a half to get there, but now it still takes some effort.
Moreover, they could not set off now. It was not until 11 o'clock in the morning on January 1 that the special train started for Jinling. After several hours' journey, they arrived at Nanjing Xiaguan Railway Station, made a brief stop, and then took the Ning Province Railway train in the city directly to the Dongjiandao Station of the Liangjiang Governor's Office.
After getting off at the Dongjiandao station, Sun Yat-sen changed to a blue silk embroidered carriage and went directly to the Liangjiang Governor-General's Office. It was already past 10 o'clock in the evening when he arrived, and the inauguration ceremony did not begin until 11 o'clock in the evening.
Zhang Xingjiu and others also arrived on a special train and witnessed the ceremony in person.
The ceremony proceeded according to the procedure: military music played → representatives reported on the election → the President gave a speech → representatives delivered a welcome speech and presented the seal → the President stamped the seal and took the oath → representatives of the navy and army delivered a eulogy → the President delivered a reply speech.
Ma Xiangbo and others were very excited, but Zhang Xingjiu remained calm. What emerged in his mind was the scene of another ceremony.
(End of this chapter)
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