"Old man (father), the bearded man called back!"

Zhang Xinzhi rushed into the hotel room with a telegram, and said with an ugly face: "The matter has not been done. ”

Zhang Daqian had been waiting for news in Guazhou, and at this time he hurriedly grabbed the newspaper, the content of which was only eight words: "The matter is big and not easy to handle." ”

"What the hell?" Zhang Xinzhi asked.

"Cold salad!" Zhang Daqian was extremely depressed.

Zhang Yifan said anxiously beside him: "Uncle, you have spent thousands of taels of gold in Mogao Grottoes to buy materials and hire workers, so can you just leave in disgrace?" ”

Zhang Xinzhi came up with an idea and said: "In my opinion, it is better to discuss with Zhou Hexuan, first promise him to only copy the murals of the Song and Ming dynasties, and talk about the murals of the Jin and Tang dynasties later." It's impossible for him to stay in Dunhuang and guard it all the time, and when he leaves, isn't the Mogao Grottoes up our final say? ”

Zhang Daqian nodded thoughtfully: "This is the only way." ”

The three of them found Zhou Hexuan in the next room and quickly explained their intentions.

Zhou Hexuan smiled and said, "Since Mr. Zhang promised to protect the cultural relics, then I naturally agree." Why don't we make a charter first, and then act according to the charter, what do you think? ”

"Yes." Zhang Daqian just wanted to fool around quickly.

Zhou Hexuan said: "I don't know much about archaeology, let's go back to Mogao Grottoes to discuss with Dr. Xia." ”

Zhang Daqian was very disgusted with Xia Nai, but now was not the time to make a fuss, everything had to wait until these people were fooled away.

Zhou Hexuan drove back in person, and arrived at the Mogao Grottoes in the evening, where everyone gathered around the fire to discuss how to excavate the Dunhuang murals.

Xia Nai said: "Mr. Zhang, I must first explain that you may have studied gold and stone, but gold and stone science and archaeology belong to different disciplines. Therefore, please don't take the style of gold and stone and transfer it to archaeology. You know what I mean? ”

Zhang Daqian sneered: "Understood." You're saying that epigraphy is outdated, it's the world of archaeology, and we old guys are old-fashioned. ”

"You can understand it this way," Xia Nai said without showing weakness, "Archaeology is a very rigorous new discipline, and it also contains a lot of sociological and anthropological knowledge, and it is difficult to complete archaeological tasks alone, which requires the cooperation of a professional team." Therefore, Mr. Zhang, you, and your students, are not qualified or capable of conducting archaeological excavations in the Mogao Grottoes. You can only copy and study the frescoes without damaging the artifacts, this is a rule that must be followed! ”

Zhang Daqian originally wanted to be perfunctory, but he still couldn't stand being pointed at by a junior in front of him, so he asked rhetorically: "Does China have relevant laws?" ”

Not to mention China, at this time, many European and American countries did not have archaeology-related laws, and it was all up to the ethics of archaeologists. Many Western archaeologists also have another layer of identity, that is, explorers, which are called expeditions, but are actually robbers of cultural relics.

Don't you see how badly the pyramids of Egypt were destroyed by Western archaeologists?

It cannot be blamed that Zhang Daqian does not have a basic concept of archaeology, because the Chinese archaeological community itself is a mess, not only does there be no archaeology-related regulations, but even the archaeological community itself has a vague position.

When Li Ji, the "father of Chinese archaeology", had just returned from studying abroad, he originally wanted to copy the Western archaeology to China, but when he actually operated it, he found that he could not carry it out at all. Li Ji had to combine the actual situation in China and make some localization of archaeology, the most important of which are two aspects-

First, archaeology is classified as a historical research category, so archaeology is not a separate discipline, but a sub-subject of history, and the highest responsible unit is the Central Ministry of Education.

Second, the propaganda and development of Chinese archaeology is based on nationalism. The ultimate goal of the archaeological community today is to excavate and investigate cultural relics and monuments, so as to prove the greatness of the Chinese nation and to prove that Chinese civilization is not inferior to Western civilization.

In particular, the second point has almost become the consensus of the people of the whole country, and it is also the basic impression of Chinese on archaeology at this time. While promoting the development of archaeology, this also brings a very serious consequence, that is, only the result regardless of the process - most Chinese, including Zhang Daqian, do not care about destroying cultural relics, only care about the success of research, and use this to prove the greatness of Chinese civilization.

When we criticize historical figures, we should not look at the problem purely from the perspective of later generations, but also take into account the historical environment at that time.

Let's put it this way, if Zhang Daqian's behavior is disclosed on the Internet, most netizens will scold and criticize it. However, during the Republic of China, as long as Zhang Daqian published the research results of Dunhuang murals, 99% of the Chinese people at that time would applaud, and only professionals in the archaeological field would stand up and accuse.

Zhang Daqian's move was placed in the 1940s to win glory for the country!

Zhou Hexuan asked, "Dr. Xia, what are the principles of Chinese archaeology today?" ”

Xia Nai said: "There is no universally recognized archaeological principle in the academic community, and if you really want to summarize the principle, it is 'authenticity', and archaeological research cannot be faked." ”

Yes, even professional archaeologists don't have regulations that must be strictly followed, so don't blame a layman like Zhang Daqian.

"Given the non-renewable nature of cultural relics, I think our generation has to think about future generations," Zhou said. Under the premise of not perfecting science and technology and protection measures, blind excavation of cultural relics and monuments cannot be carried out. For example, in the Dunhuang murals, if you peel off the outer layer, the inner layer will be exposed, and the inner layer will inevitably oxidize and turn black, and it will be basically destroyed after a few decades. Do you think so? ”

"Yes." Xia Nai nodded.

Zhou Hexuan said: "But there are accidents, such as a farmer digging a large ancient tomb with a hoe. Even if we don't have the technology perfected, we have to dig it out quickly to avoid even greater losses. ”

Xia Nai agreed: "It should be." ”

Zhou Hexuan said: "So I think that archaeology should set a basic principle as the main premise, that is: protection first, rescue first. ”

Xia Nai clapped his hands and praised: "This is the words of gold and jade, and it should be the consensus of the archaeological community!" ”

Zhang Daqian suddenly said: "The Dunhuang murals are almost destroyed, and I am rescuing." ”

Xia Nai hurriedly retorted: "The Dunhuang murals are only destroyed by the outer layer, as long as you don't peel it off, the inner layer will be fine for another hundred years!" What we should do now is to protect, protect the existing murals, not the so-called rescue. ”

"Anyway, the mouth grows on you, so it's up to you to decide." Zhang Daqian said depressedly.

Zhou Hexuan said: "Then let's take 'protection first, rescue first' as the premise, and set a charter for Mr. Zhang's research in Dunhuang." First of all, only those murals whose inner layers have been damaged or exposed, Mr. Zhang is qualified to peel off the outer layer. Secondly, when copying and studying frescoes, basic archaeological operations must be followed. For example, you can't write on the wall, you can't press the ladder directly on the wall, and you can't do anything that might damage the mural. ”

"No problem." Zhang Daqian agreed very quickly, anyway, as long as Zhou Hexuan was fooled away, he could do whatever he wanted to do the rest.

"Okay, let's sign a gentleman's agreement," Zhou Hexuan shouted, "Guoda, bring pen and paper!" ”

An hour later, Zhou Hexuan prepared two copies of the agreement, and said with a smile: "Mr. Zhang, please sign and seal." ”

Zhang Daqian picked up the brush and wrote down his name, and then stamped his own seal, and said angrily: "Mr. Zhou, you shouldn't stop me now, right?" ”

Zhou Hexuan smiled and said to Xia Nai: "Dr. Xia, please stay in the Mogao Grottoes for a while longer, check and archive all the conditions of the caves, and take photos to prove it." Once Mr. Zhang Daqian violates the agreement, please send a telegram to notify me. ”

"Wrap it up on me." Xia Nai said with a smile.

Zhou Hexuan said to the soldier leader who was responsible for protecting security: "Platoon Commander Ma, when Dr. Xia finishes his inspection, he will give you a list." The list indicates that the murals cannot be moved, and if Mr. Zhang Daqian has any vandalism, please send me a telegram immediately. If this is true and Mr. Zhang Daqian destroys a wall, then I will reward you with ten gold bars! ”

Platoon Commander Ma's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said happily: "I must be keeping an eye on it, please rest assured Mr. Zhou." ”

Zhou Hexuan admonished: "Don't run to destroy the mural yourself for the sake of gold bars." You must know that there is a difference between the murals you peel and the murals you peel off by Mr. Zhang, and professionals can see it at a glance. If you dare to destroy cultural relics without authorization, I will make your platoon commander unbearable! ”

"No, no." The platoon commander repeatedly assured that there were many eyes in the hearts of the people who secretly scolded the readers.

Zhou Hexuan turned back to Zhang Daqian and asked, "Mr. Zhang, do you think this arrangement is reasonable?" ”

Zhang Daqian's face darkened, and he gritted his teeth and said, "Reasonable, very reasonable!" ”

Zhou Hexuan squinted and smiled: "Mr. Zhang, don't think about repaying the debt in the future." If you break this agreement, I promise to bring your reputation to ruin in China, if you don't believe it, you can try it. ”

"You're amazing, I know." Zhang Daqian was led into the pit step by step, and now he really has no temper. If he knew this, he would not have signed that broken agreement, and now there is no way to deny it in black and white.