Zhou Enlai's heart was so emotional that he could no longer calm down. Over the years, he has been concerned about state affairs and has developed the habit of reading newspapers. He subscribed to the Shengjing Times published in Fengtian at that time and read it every day. One day I read in the newspaper that the colonialists were selling black slaves. He said loudly, "the slaves will be liberated one day!" " "On one occasion, the teacher asked the students: What is reading for? Some of my classmates say that they help their parents keep accounts, while others say that they seek personal future. Zhou Enlai resolutely replied: "For the rise of China! " 〔2〕
How to save the motherland and people from suffering and humiliation? How to revitalize the Chinese nation and stand on its own feet among the nations of the world? This series of questions has been burning in Zhou Enlai's heart like a fire since this time, and it has become a lasting driving force to push him forward.
Looking back on his youth, Zhou Enlai once said: Like others, I received an old-fashioned education. Later, because I saw the nation in danger and the mountains and rivers were broken, I woke up and took part in the revolution. From patriotism to revolution, this is almost the path that all advanced intellectuals in modern China have taken. It was also from here that Zhou Enlai embarked on the revolutionary road.
The revolution at that time was still the bourgeois-democratic revolution led by Sun Yat-sen. There were two teachers in the sixth and second grade primary schools: one was a history teacher named Gao, who had a sense of justice and cut off his pigtails during the year. He often advocated the anti-Qing revolution to students, showed them Zhang Taiyan's articles and publications of the League, and lent Zou Rong's pamphlet Revolutionary Army to enthusiastically advocate the revolution; Another geography teacher, surnamed Mao, tends to be a reformist and introduces the articles of Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao to students. Under the influence of Mr. Gao, he was very sympathetic to the revolution. When the news of the Revolution of 1911 came, he cut his hair and said that he broke with the Qing government.
The No.62 Primary School (renamed Fengtian Dongguan Model School after the Revolution of 1911) is a relatively new school and has just started school. Courses include self-cultivation, Chinese, arithmetic, history, geography, ambition, English, painting, singing and gymnastics. Of course, its "newness" is limited, but compared with the old private schools and colleges, these courses have opened up a new world before Zhou Enlai. He studies hard, is polite and disciplined at school, and gets good grades in all subjects, especially Chinese. After school, I often like to read historical records, Han Shu, Li Sao and other books. His composition is often marked with the word "biography" by the teacher and posted on the school achievement exhibition for students to watch. When correcting Zhou Enlai's composition, Zhao Chun, a Chinese teacher, said with emotion to his colleagues around him: "I have been teaching for decades and have never seen such a good student!" 〔3〕
19 12 10, Zhou Enlai wrote an article: Speech at the Second Anniversary of Dongguan Model School. At that time, he thought that if China wanted to be rich and strong, it was necessary to start from the root and do a good job in education. He wrote:
"All the students in my school. Who are we, or who will be responsible for the future country? Where, here, is it a school that makes me a full citizen? Sage books, all kinds of sciences, what shall I discuss? A teacher talks about painting, and a friend looks at the evening on his face. What has nothing to do with me? Do you want me to be fully educated, become a great man, and take on the arduous responsibility of the country in the future? In the future, the burden is so heavy. Based on the three or four years of primary school, how can students, students, work hard and be worthy? "
For the headmaster and teachers, he also put forward ardent requirements:
"My school teacher public education. A gentleman should be smart and try his best to create talents for the country. In order to correct this situation, we should pay attention to reality and look at the content first. Don't check yourself, the loser is effective; Don't exaggerate to enrich my reputation; Don't even join a political party and seek personal gain, so as to disturb their minds and perfunctory their daily affairs. The headmaster chooses good teaching materials for students, and the teaching practice seeks students' further study. Abide by the purpose of respecting teachers and respecting morality, and guard against arrogance and rashness. Paying attention to moral education, supplemented by practical beauty, will further arouse the hearts of the military and civilians. If the education is perfect and the school spirit is pure, then this anniversary can be permanent. " 〔4〕
This is the earliest extant article by Zhou Enlai.
At that time, he was still a child of 14 years old, but he has shown lofty aspirations and extraordinary talents. With a strong sense of social mission, he attached great importance to moral cultivation, and expounded the purpose of education and the responsibilities of teachers and students. The Chinese teacher was very happy to read this composition, and approved a few words at the end of the volume: "Teaching is not enough to teach, learning is not enough to learn, schools are not enough to discuss schools, and articles are not enough to write papers." "The heart is long and the words are heavy, and the machine is smooth and flowing." [4] In the second year, this article was exhibited as a first-class composition in the exhibition of educational achievements held in Fengtian, and was included in the book "Chinese Achievements of Fengtian Educational Products Exhibition". 19 15 "School Chinese Achievements" published by Shanghai Progressive Publishing House and "Essentials of Middle School Students' Chinese Achievements" published by Shanghai Dadong Publishing House later also included this composition.
Another advantage of Zhou Enlai's trip to Northeast China is that he learned to make friends. He has a gentle personality, but he will never bow down to unreasonable violence. When he first went to the northeast, he was a thin child and spoke with a strong southern accent. Some Datong scholars call him "little barbarian" and often beat him and bully him. After two months, he tried to make friends and walked in and out with a group of children as thin as him. In this way, if Datong University bullies again, it will resist and fight, and those Datong universities will not dare to bully him again.
There is an old janitor named Wu in the school who works very hard. Zhou Enlai often comes to school early to help the old janitor sweep the floor and boil water. Once, the old janitor was ill. Zhou Enlai went to see him and gave him only eight coppers to help him heal.
After arriving in the northeast, it also brought an important change to Zhou Enlai: his body got a good exercise. In childhood, Zhou Enlai's physique was relatively weak. The northeast is cold, windy and dusty. In this new environment, he has always insisted on running, playing football and doing exercises in the cold wind. His life is more frugal. A few years later, his physique improved. Later, he said to the students of Liaoning University: "I am in such good health, thank you for your sorghum rice, strong wind and loess in the northeast, which gave me great exercise." He added: "Eating sorghum rice has changed my living habits, grown bones and exercised my stomach, so that my body can adapt to the hard war years and busy work in the future."
At this time, compared with childhood in northern Jiangsu, Zhou Enlai has undergone significant changes. But the bigger change happened after he entered Tianjin Nankai School.