Chapter 43: The Idea of Running a University

  Collect and recommend

  Inside Windsor Castle, a spacious room with a ceiling covered in magnificent frescoes, on a sofa carved with intricate patterns sat a couple. The man was extremely handsome and wore a bright red military uniform with white trousers, none other than Prince Albert. The woman was plump and pregnant, quite short with a big round belly that looked like it was seven or eight months along, of course, it was Her Majesty the Queen of the British Empire. At this moment, the royal couple were gazing at Zuo Zisheng who sat opposite them with curiosity, as if they were observing some rare species in the London Zoo.

  "Mr. Zhu, you said that you received a Western-style education in your father's clinic under his guidance and also self-studied university-level medical and chemical courses?"

  When Albert, Prince Consort, asked the question in German, Zhu Zhi's heart was really bitter. Today it was said that the prince would meet him, but who knew that as soon as he walked into this magnificent hall, he saw Queen Victoria sitting beside the prince. Well, kneel then, who made you Her Majesty the Queen?

  However, Her Majesty the Queen is still a curious baby who likes to pry into others' privacy. From the beginning of the meeting, it was one question after another, all of which were probing Zhu Jishi's old bottom line.

  And what could Zhu Jishi say in response? Should he tell Queen Victoria that he was a time traveler from the 21st century? That was definitely not an option, so he had to lie! Fortunately, Zhu Jishi was well-prepared and had fabricated a foolproof alibi.

  He claimed that his family had fled China during the Ming-Qing transition to escape persecution by the Qing dynasty and its collaborators, and had been wandering in Southeast Asia ever since, constantly changing their names to avoid pursuit. At the time of his birth, his family was already very small, with only his father, mother, and a few loyal servants remaining. His father had received a complete Western-style education and was a renowned doctor in Southeast Asia, well-versed in both Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine. Many of his own inventions and discoveries were built on the foundation of his father's years of research. He himself had learned English and German under his father's tutelage, and had also studied chemistry, medicine, and microbiology on his own. However, this erudite and talented doctor, Zhu Xiansheng (a name given to him by Zhu Jishi, meaning "ancestors" and "sages", which later brought him some unexpected troubles), and his wife, unfortunately died in a shipwreck. After his parents' death, Zhu Jishi sold the family property and went to Europe to make a name for himself and study...

  "Your Highness, actually I have always hoped to receive a formal Western-style education, unfortunately such conditions do not exist in the East."

  Although there are not a few Western-style schools in Singapore, Borneo and Java, the level is generally low, with only simple science courses and too much theological content. Because these schools were founded by churches, their main purpose was to cultivate pastors, and it was almost impossible to learn the essence of Western science and humanities politics there. This is also one of the important reasons why I left Nanyang to travel in Europe. After understanding and learning European-style education, I hope to introduce it to the East and set up some schools that can truly impart scientific knowledge in Nanyang and Hong Kong. If possible, I would like to open a university.

  "You want to establish a university in the East? That's quite an ambitious ideal, but it won't be easy to achieve." Prince Albert showed a very interested expression.

  But Queen Victoria yawned, she herself had not received school education, but was educated by a family teacher, with very limited knowledge, far less than Prince Albert, who had received higher education at the University of Bonn, and did not know that universities were to some extent like churches, both could be tools for invading a backward country.

  "Yes, I do intend to establish a university in Hong Kong." Chu looked at Prince Albert with a serious face and thought: "This seems like a good idea! Probably there isn't a single real university in the whole of Asia now? And it wasn't until more than 50 years later that China's first modern university appeared. If I can set up a university in Hong Kong in a few years, its significance for China's progress is probably beyond exaggeration!"

  At least it is more meaningful than simply overthrowing the Qing dynasty, after all, without a large number of elites who understand Western science and have new thinking to lead the entire Chinese nation, even if they overthrew the Qing and sat on the dragon chair in the Forbidden City, how much effect can they really have on the progress of the country and the nation?

  To put it bluntly, the way of thinking and perspective of our own are completely different from those of this era's Chinese people, to the extent that it's not an exaggeration to describe them as being worlds apart. If we don't cultivate a batch of young Chinese with new ways of thinking, I'm afraid there will be no way to communicate with the current Confucian elite in China."

  "Mr. Zhu, it's not easy to run a university, it's not just a matter of having money... I think you understand this principle, don't you?" Prince Albert asked Zhu Jishi with a smile.

  Zhu Jishi smiled bitterly. He had attended university, so he knew how difficult it was to establish one, especially in the East in the 1840s. It wasn't something that could be accomplished just by having money. He nodded and said: "Your Highness, I am aware of the difficulties in establishing a university, but I will still strive to make this ideal a reality."

  Prince Albert looked at Zhu Zhiyi, and suddenly felt that the other's image had become more majestic. This person's contribution to human medical progress was already enough to make him famous in history, but compared with opening a university that could transform a nation's thinking, introducing European knowledge and ideas into the number one empire of the Eastern world, his contributions in medicine seemed so insignificant.

  This prince suddenly had the idea in his mind: "One hundred years or two hundred years later, the most powerful monarchs and ministers in Europe today will surely be submerged in the vast river of history and unknown to people. But the name of Zhu Ziyi will be remembered forever because of 'blood transfusion method', because of 'bacteriology', because of various new medicines he invented, and more because of a first-class university in the East! And Zhu Ziyi should soon be discovered and reused by the emperor of Qing through this university. If the emperor of Qing has one-third of Peter the Great's wisdom..."

  Albert, Prince Consort nodded slightly and smiled at Jizhi: "Jason, may I call you that?"

  Zhu Jishi and Queen Elizabeth II as well as Lord Reed were all taken aback. Did this form of address mean that the prince was ready to treat Zhu Jishi as a friend?

  "Your Highness, you may call me whatever you like..."

  "Still, call me Albert." Prince Albert looked at Dr. Snow, "Jason, don't be modest, originally I wanted to ask you to be the royal court doctor, because of your expertise in obstetrics, you can ensure Victoria's smooth delivery. However, now I know you are working on something that will have a positive impact on the whole world, your time is extremely valuable and should not be delayed."

  "Albert, the matter of establishing a university is merely an idea at present, and I do not have the financial resources for it. My pharmaceutical factory and rubber products company are already being managed by others," he said with a smile, waving his hand. He stood up, his expression turning serious: "I think I can spend a month setting up a small but specialized obstetrics hospital within Windsor Castle, and impart all my knowledge of obstetrics to the Queen's physicians."

  Although he knew little about European history, he did know some things about Queen Victoria because the queen and her descendants were a famous case study in later medical research on haemophilia. So Zhu Zhiyu knew that the queen was quite long-lived and all nine of her children grew up to adulthood. Therefore this brief service for the British court could be said to be risk-free, and would also please Prince Albert to some extent, really not a bad deal.