Start from 1980

Chapter 849 You Are Great Too

Su Chen opened the door and asked, "Can't you sleep?"

"It's true that I can't sleep, can I come in?" Xue Fang asked.

Su Chen nodded: "Come in."

When Xue Fang came in, he closed the door. This room is the presidential suite. Ian has put a lot of thought into it. At least it is convenient for guests. It would be embarrassing to open the door to a cheap hotel like a bed.

And with Su Chen's status, he didn't need to be so frugal, because it would be very inconvenient, and he didn't know how to arrange it when receiving guests.

"Please sit down." Su Chen said, "Do you want tea or coffee?"

"Just drink water. I'm afraid I won't be able to sleep if I drink that." Xue Fang sat on the sofa in the living room.

Su Chen fetched her a glass of water, and sat opposite her, "Is it because I was a little excited to come to the United States for the first time, so I couldn't sleep?"

"There should be a reason for this." Xue Fang took the water glass and said, "I heard that you also have property in San Francisco?"

"There are two, one is the Letterman Digital Art Center for film and television special effects, and the other is Cisco for software." Su Chen said, "I only have these two industries in San Francisco."

Then he asked, "What's wrong?"

"Before I came to the United States, I heard that there were many bones or remains of Chinese railroad workers in San Francisco that were placed in the Oak Hills Cemetery in San Jose, so I wanted to see it."

Xue Fang said, "The history of the Chinese workers needs a recorder, the stories about the Chinese workers need a narrator, and history needs to justify the names of these unknown Chinese workers."

Su Chen pondered for a moment, then nodded, "I'll go with you when I'm done with the signing, or I won't worry if you go alone."

"Will it delay your business?" Xue Fang thought for a while, and said: "My English is not bad, you just need to arrange a bodyguard for me. Oh, yes, I still need some money."

Su Chen shook his head: "It's not suitable for you to go alone, because you are just an unknown Chinese girl, and your influence is not big enough. It is more appropriate for me to come forward, and I know that a person is also doing this. It is more convenient for us to go to her later. convenient."

Su Chen must support my sister-in-law's idea.

The Chinese laborers contributed a lot to the economic construction of the United States. At that time, the Chinese laborers sat in the unventilated cargo holds of foreign ships, where they ate, drank, pooped, sprinkled, and slept for dozens of days.

Ship it to the United States like a piglet, go to the riverside in the canyon area of ​​California, pan for gold with a sieve, make a living, or build a railroad.

90% of the railroad workers in the United States are Chinese, so how many lives were lost in the flames of the explosion, buried in the endless snow, and how many lonely souls are still wandering in the mountains day and night, unable to find way home.

从1864年到1869年，大约有1200名中国工人在从沙加缅度到普洛蒙特里山顶的690英里铁路路基建设中死亡，相当于每3英里死5个人。

In fact, no one knows the exact number of deaths, some estimates as high as 2000 people.

Causes of death include explosions, avalanches, mudslides, pneumonia, and freezing to death.

Later, explosives replaced the original black powder for blasting operations, but due to the high power and increased casualties of workers, the construction party had to stop using them.

The avalanche left many workers dead, and most of the workers from the tropical regions of China died of freezing and pneumonia because they were not used to the severe winter in the central United States.

Moreover, the railway does not need so many road construction workers, so thousands of Chinese railway workers actually have no jobs on the railway.

As a result, these surplus railway laborers flowed into the local labor market, some went to work as construction workers on construction sites, and some went to open laundry shops.

The most common is laundry.

Because laundry is free of cost, and because California is in the development era, there are more men than women, so this industry is very much needed; at the same time, white people are unwilling to do this kind of hard work and low profit.

But how many people remember these Chinese workers?
"Okay." Xue Fang was a little embarrassed, "I wanted to go by myself, but I still have to trouble you."

To be honest, Su Chen couldn't understand her sister-in-law's thoughts. When she was in the magazine, she could work with peace of mind, and at the same time, she could go to the frontier to interview border guards.

When I arrived in the United States, I didn't have the mind to play, but thought about doing such a thing that was inexplicable to some people.

"Do you still know people who do this in the United States? Are they Chinese?" Xue Fang was a little curious.

Su Chen said: "It's a Chinese American, a lady, but we haven't met, let's visit her later.

I also know a Chinese laborer named Ma Jinlong, whose English name is Dean Lung, donated all his savings of 1.2 US dollars to Columbia University.

His employer, Mr. Carpentier, was deeply moved and donated money to the university to establish a Sinology Department for Dean Lung and set up a "Dean Lung Lectureship".

Specializing in Sinology, let Americans understand Dean Lung's ancient oriental motherland and her profound culture. "

Xue Fang was very interested: "Can you tell me the story of this man? I think this man is great."

"Okay." Su Chen nodded, recalling for a while seriously, "Around the 19s, Dean Lung came to California with a large number of Chinese to work as laborers, and was hired by Mr. Carpentier...

Later, Carpentier wrote to the then president of Columbia University, saying: For more than 50 years, I have saved money little by little from the bills of drinking whiskey and smoking, and the money will be enshrined with it.

It is with great pleasure that I dedicate this to you for the establishment of a Department of Chinese Language, Literature, Religion and Law; and may you name it after the Dean Lung Chair Professor of Sinology.

This donation is unconditional, the only condition is that my name does not have to be mentioned, but I also want to reserve the right to make additional grants in the future..."

"This general is also a good man, at least he didn't treat the Chinese workers like others." Xue Fang hurriedly asked again, "Then what happened next?"

Su Chen said, "However, Columbia University disagreed at that time. It wanted to name it after Li Hongzhang, Premier of the Qing Dynasty, Wu Tingfang, the ambassador to the United States, or the Chinese royal family, but the general refused."

"In order to donate money, the general even donated his house in New York for this purpose; and when the Department of Sinology at Columbia University was built, it was dragged down to the verge of bankruptcy, and he had to move back to his rural hometown in Cowan Township, Upstate New York, to spend the rest of his life."

Anyway, there are various versions of this story, but the Dean Lung donation is true.

"It's so great." Xue Fang was also infected by the characters in the story, and said, "When I get to Columbia University, I must go and see it."

"When we arrive in New York, let's go over and have a look. I'm also going to donate some money to this department." Su Chen said, "I hope to establish a form of scholarship, and hope that the gap between us Chinese and these European and American countries will not be so big .”

Xue Fang was silent for a while, and said: "Actually, you are also very great."

she stood up...

(End of this chapter)