After the Opium War, Chinese society changed dramatically. The feudal education system of the Qing Dynasty became increasingly decadent with the decline of politics and economy. The spread of various new trends of thought and science and art in the West has refreshed the intellectual world. Advanced thinkers such as Gong Zizhen, Lin Zexu, and Wei Yuan advocated learning from Western education, hoping to gradually implement it. Educational content gradually changes. Books are valued.
In the last year of Daoguang (1850 AD), Yang Xiquan, the prefect of Huizhou, vigorously built the Imperial Palace, the school grounds, the West Lake scenic spots and the Dongpo ruins. He also organized manpower, allocated special funds to revise the county annals (i.e. the existing Guangxu edition of "Huizhou Prefectural Annals"), and hired celebrities from all over the country, such as Gu Chun of Guilin, Lin Zhaolong of Jiaying, and Wang Xianfang of Luling, etc. to give lectures at Fenghu Academy. He also donated 600 books to Fenghu Academy, becoming the "forerunner of the academy's book collection".
In the twelfth year of Guangxu (1886 AD), Liang Dingfen gave a lecture on Fenghu Academy, pushing the academy to a new stage.
Liang Dingfen, named Jie'an, was born in Panyu. He was a famous Confucian scholar in Lingnan. He was erudite and good at calligraphy. His works include collections of essays and poems.
Liang Dingfen’s political education thought is to “advocate progress through moral integrity in articles.” He built the "Su Gong (Dongpo) Temple" on the west side of the courtyard. The Fengyu Pavilion was rebuilt and renamed "Liver Washing Pavilion". Take the meaning of Dongpo's poem "The moon on the river shines on my heart, and the water on the river washes my liver." On the east side of the courtyard, "Fan Mengbo Temple" was built to "embody the ambition of clarifying the world." He also wrote a couplet for Fan Mengbo Temple: "The integrity of the Eastern Han Dynasty is important, and the heroic spirit is in the West Lake." He wrote many words on the screen on the upper floor of the "Book Collection": "Today, it is our duty to save this people from ashes and create peace for all generations." "The relocation of mausoleums and valleys must be done with high integrity, and one should not act like a doctor to the human world." "Self-motivation is like jade snow, which will not stain the autumn hairs." He wrote a couplet about his book collection:
"I have gained a high position and am considered a first-class person;
If I have books to read, I can think of thousands of talents."
< p>Liang Dingfen is rigorous in his studies, has strict requirements on students, is persuasive and tireless in teaching, and has trained many talents. For example, Jiang Fengchen, Li Qiqing, Yang Shouchang, Ye Ronghuang, Zhang Weizeng, etc. are all his favorite disciples and top students of Fenghu Academy. At that time, many famous Confucian scholars in China came to Fenghu Academy to give lectures. Huizhou's famous mountains and beautiful waters were full of strong academic atmosphere. At that time, Liang Dingfen wrote a proud woodcut couplet that was hung at the outer gate of the academy:“The water is beautiful and the mountains are shining, and the flat lake is full of beauty;
Spring flowers and autumn are abundant, and Langyuan is full of talents.”
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Another contribution of Liang Dingfen is the creation of a “book collection” (library). He sent letters donating books to virtuous officials and celebrities inside and outside the province, collected more than 56,000 volumes of books and classics, "signed them with his own hands, assembled the catalog himself", and compiled eight volumes of the "Bibliography of Fenghu Collection". On the west side of the courtyard, "a building with three couplets was built for the purpose of collecting books." It's called "Book Collection". He also personally "made an agreement to borrow books and set up a servant to sweep away beetles." Since then, the number of books has been continuously expanded, reaching up to 100,000 volumes.
The creation of the "book collection" has effectively promoted academic research in the academy and the reading culture in society. Li Qiqing described the study situation in the courtyard at that time: "Whenever the spring is warm on the Liudi, the day is long in the Sophora Courtyard, wild sailing is at the door, and the room is full of students. Some students are studying cases to prove the similarities and differences of various theories; some are chanting guests and spreading their beds with their hands. "The chapter is chanted with Oh" ("The Story of Duke Liang Wenzhong of Panyu Enjoying Fenghu Su Temple"). Jiang Fengchen’s poems reflect another aspect of society:
“Mr. Fenghu collects books,
A small and poor family knows how to buy books;
But he has five Searching for old beetles,
There was no food or fish for three months. "
In 1921 AD, due to the war, most of the books were moved to the city. One year later, "Fenghu Library" (the predecessor of today's Huizhou City Library) was established.
In the 14th year of Guangxu (1888 AD), Zhang Zhidong, the governor of Guangdong and Guangdong in the Qing Dynasty, founded Guangya Academy in Guangzhou and hired Liang Dingfen as its dean.
In the last years of Guangxu, when Shi Defen was giving lectures at Fenghu Academy, he carved the statues of Yi Bingshou and Song Xiang on the stone and enshrined them in Fengyu Pavilion. When Liang Dingfen died in Beijing in 1919, the people of Huizhou offered sacrifices in Fenghu Academy and worshiped him in the Su Gong Temple in the academy.
In 1901, Fenghu Academy was reorganized into "Huizhou Middle School". After the Revolution of 1911, it was reorganized into "Huizhou Middle School". In 1946, it was changed to "Huizhou Normal School".
Due to age and dynasty changes, the original buildings of Fenghu Academy have disappeared. But its role in Huizhou culture will always be recorded in history.