However, the fact that a man in his forties was calling a young man in his twenties "teacher" made the others look at each other awkwardly.
"Museum Administration Bureau, Director of the Administrative Affairs Department..."
Let alone someone in their forties calling themselves "teacher," even someone in their sixties has called Zhuang Rui "teacher." Zhuang Rui didn't dwell on the form of address. Instead, emboldened by the alcohol, he read out the title on the business card, muttering to himself, "Museum Department, I feel like I've heard that before?"
"Hehe, I was also there when your museum opened..."
Director Xie reminded Zhuang Rui from the side.
"Oh, Director Xie, you're such a respected official! Don't forget our museum if you ever get any benefits in the future..."
Upon hearing Director Xie's words, Zhuang Rui sobered up a bit. However, although he addressed the official as "parent official," his tone lacked respect. In Zhuang Rui's mind, these officials were good at taking bribes and demanding favors, but not so good at handling serious matters.
The conversation between Zhuang Rui and Director Xie left the onlookers completely bewildered. Although the PhDs were highly intelligent, they couldn't make sense of the relationship between the two.
From what Director Xie said, it was clear that Zhuang Rui owned a museum, and Director Xie had even gone to congratulate him on its opening. However, this was precisely what puzzled the group.
Logically speaking, Zhuang Rui's museum should only be a private museum, which falls under the jurisdiction of Director Xie. If Zhuang Rui is the owner, how could he possibly know Director Xie, who approves museums?
Furthermore, even if Zhuang Rui didn't know Director Xie and it was his subordinate who handled the procedures, now that they've met, it should be Zhuang Rui who's trying to curry favor with Director Xie, not Director Xie who's eagerly offering Zhuang Rui a drink.
The local official is more powerful than the county magistrate. Isn't Zhuang Rui afraid that Director Xie will make things difficult for him in his future work?
Director Xie hadn't really taken the other PhDs seriously, but upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, he quickly replied, "Professor Zhuang, don't worry. If needed, I can arrange some exchanges of collections, temporarily lending some of the museum's finest pieces to your museum for display..."
The exchange of collections between museums is a normal thing, but those are all official exchanges. The operational methods that Director Xie mentioned still require people with certain influence to make it happen.
"That would be great, but Director Xie, I won't get involved in this matter. I'll have Director Huangfu talk to you when you're free..."
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui began to take the chubby Director Xie more seriously. He put the business card into his handbag. Someone was eager to help him solve a problem; he couldn't very well turn them away, could he?
Zhuang Rui's museum has plenty of space and money, but it lacks some collections. If some of these collections could be transferred from other museums, the other exhibition halls could be opened sooner.
"Alright, I have some social engagements to attend to, so I won't bother you any longer, Professor Zhuang. I'll visit you again another time to seek your guidance..."
Director Xie was such a perceptive person; upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, he immediately stood up to take his leave. As soon as he stood up, Dr. Ren and the others also stood up to see him off. ...
"Professor Zhuang... what exactly do you do?"
After Director Xie left, Wu Zhao finally couldn't hold back any longer and, emboldened by alcohol, asked Zhuang Rui a question. However, he had originally called Zhuang "Brother Zhuang," but now he addressed him as "Teacher Zhuang."
After Wu Zhao spoke, the table fell silent. Dr. Ren and the others pricked up their ears, wanting to hear Zhuang Rui's explanation. Even Kan Yuhan blinked her big eyes, curiously observing Zhuang Rui.
Jiang Yi's expression was the most complex at this moment. Regardless of Zhuang Rui's background, one thing was certain: he was someone Jiang Yi absolutely could not afford to offend. Thinking about the sarcastic words he had just used against Zhuang Rui, Jiang Yi wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground.
Moreover, judging from how Director Xie fawned over Zhuang Rui, if Zhuang Rui could say a word for him, getting a job at the Palace Museum wouldn't be a problem. Jiang Yi lowered his head, regretting his actions and secretly trying to figure out how to make amends.
However, being a cultured person, Jiang Yi was too proud to speak to Zhuang Rui right away, so he could only listen carefully to find out who Zhuang Rui was.
"Wu Zhao, don't get me into trouble! Please don't call me that. I'm a few years older than you. Just call me Brother Zhuang..."
Zhuang Rui gave a wry smile. He was going to Peking University to study, not to become a teacher. If Professor Meng heard this, he would definitely make fun of him.
"Okay, Brother Zhuang, why is Director Xie so respectful to you? What kind of business are you in?"
Wu Zhao blurted out all his questions at once.
"Hey, didn't I just say that I have a shop in Panjiayuan and a private museum near the Third Ring Road..."
Zhuang Rui originally returned to school to make friends with some classmates like Wei Ge from his university days. He didn't want to talk about his grades or wealth. But today, by chance, he ran into someone who knew him. Zhuang Rui didn't want to lie to them, so he just told them directly.
As for why Director Xie was so respectful to him, Zhuang Rui didn't explain, but he knew in his heart that it must be because of his uncle. Even outsiders knew that his museum's approval procedures were not in accordance with regulations, let alone Director Xie and his staff.
Actually, Director Xie's attempt to curry favor with Zhuang Rui wasn't about getting Zhuang Rui to do him any favors. He just wanted Zhuang Rui to occasionally remember his name when talking about work at the museum. If Zhuang Rui could casually mention it in front of certain people, Director Xie would be incredibly grateful.
In the officialdom, to get promoted, you don't actually need to have great abilities. The first thing is to choose the right side, and the second is to make the leader remember you and have an impression of you. If there is an opportunity for promotion in the future, the leader will usually promote the person he has an impression of from among the candidates. Of course, that impression must be a good one.
"A private museum, near the Third Ring Road?"
Dr. Ren thought for a moment and said, "I remember now, a few months ago, you attended the opening ceremony of a museum. Could it be yours, Xiao Zhuang?"
To be fair, Ren Chunqiang had a pretty good mindset. He was content with what he had and didn't ask anything of Zhuang Rui, so he addressed him as before, which made Zhuang Rui feel comfortable.
Zhuang Rui originally returned to school with the intention of rekindling his past campus memories. He really couldn't stand it if his classmates addressed him with such formal language.
"Yes, that's the museum. It's only been open a few months, and the collection is still small. Brother Ren, you can go and give us some pointers sometime. Come on, let's not talk about work today, let's have a drink..."
Zhuang Rui picked up his wine glass. This time, not only Jiang Yi raised his glass to clink glasses with Zhuang Rui, but Kan Yuhan, who had only drunk one glass of wine that night, also poured herself a glass of baijiu and clinked glasses with Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui's attitude remained unchanged; he didn't do anything to Jiang Yi. Given his current status, he wouldn't bother with Jiang Yi; doing so would be beneath him.
With Kan Yuhan joining them, the atmosphere became even more lively during the drinking session. However, Zhuang Rui couldn't find the feeling he had when chatting with Ren Chunqiang and Wu Zhao at the beginning. Dr. Ren was fine, but Wu Zhao's flattery of Zhuang Rui was quite obvious.
Jiang Yi knew he had gone a bit too far earlier, so he didn't try to curry favor with Zhuang Rui. In addition, Zhuang Rui was still lukewarm towards him. Dr. Jiang felt depressed, so he just lowered his head and drank. Before long, he was so drunk that he slumped on the table, which saved him from embarrassment.
The two bottles of Moutai were quickly finished, and Zhuang Rui lost interest in drinking any more. He waved to the waiter to pay the bill.
"Sir, someone has already paid for your table's bill..."
Zhuang Rui was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, but he immediately thought of Director Xie and couldn't help but shake his head with a wry smile. "I've never experienced the legendary spending of public funds before."
The group had all drunk quite a bit today and were all too drunk to drive. Dr. Ren took the already intoxicated Jiang Yi back to school, while Wu Zhao was responsible for taking Kan Yuhan. Zhuang Rui hailed a taxi, told the driver the destination, and then left alone.
"Huh? Who's calling now?"
After getting off the bus at the entrance of the alleyway leading to the courtyard house, Zhuang Rui paid the fare, and his phone rang immediately after he stepped out of the car.
"Hello, is this Mr. Zhuang? This is Lao Li..."
A vaguely familiar voice came through the phone, but Zhuang Rui, having drunk some alcohol, was a bit confused and couldn't help but ask, "Old Li? Which Old Li?"
"President Zhuang, I'm Lao Li from Hebei. We met just yesterday..."
Li Dali was a little annoyed. He had rushed to tell Zhuang Rui about the good deed he had done, but he hadn't expected that Zhuang Rui had already forgotten about him.
Lecture Chapter 781
"Oh, is this Mr. Li? I'm sorry, the sound from this phone is a bit distorted, I didn't recognize you just now..."
Zhuang Rui's alcohol tolerance is quite good. He drank about 1.5 jin of 53-proof Moutai today. After hearing Li Dali's second sentence, he immediately realized what was going on.
They had just arrived at their doorstep. Zhuang Rui looked at the two stone lions in front of the main gate, which appeared even more majestic and ferocious in the night.
The front door of Zhuang Rui's house is located in an alley running east to west. It was windy at night, and Zhuang Rui was feeling a bit hot after drinking, so he simply sat down on the steps and started talking on the phone.
"Mr. Zhuang, I've taken care of that matter for you. We've scheduled it for this Saturday. Are you free then?"
Li Dali was a little uneasy. He had originally wanted that person to come to Beijing to meet Zhuang Rui, but the small boss of the ceramics factory had recently encountered some business difficulties and couldn't leave at all, which made Li Dali feel that he had lost face in handling the matter.
Zhuang Rui rubbed his aching temples with his right hand and asked, "Which city in Hebei is that Mr. Xu from?"
"Mr. Zhuang, that person is from Shijiazhuang. I'll be staying in Beijing until Saturday. Let's go together then..."
Mr. Li had a very enlightening experience at that club yesterday. Compared to the clubs in his own city, it was like heaven and earth. Moreover, Mr. Li also met a rising star in the film industry and is now preparing to develop a romantic relationship with her.
Of course, Xiao Li was sent home. Mr. Li couldn't bring himself to do something like his father and son being associated with the same celebrity.
"Okay, Saturday then. We'll get back to you then..."
Zhuang Rui nodded in agreement. It only takes two or three hours to travel from Beijing to Shijiazhuang via the highway, and he can make a round trip in a day without missing his school time.
"Hey boss, what are you doing sitting here?"
Zhuang Rui had just hung up the phone when the door creaked open!
A sound rang out, and Hao Long couldn't help but laugh when he saw Zhuang Rui's appearance. Zhuang Rui had always acted quite composed in front of them, so this drunken state was quite unusual.
Zhuang Rui peeked furtively into the room and whispered, "It's cool in here. Are my mom and the others asleep yet?"
"They're all enjoying the cool air in the yard. What time is it now?"
In the summer, people go to bed late, usually after 11 pm. In addition, there are many people living in courtyard houses now, and they chat until very late every day before going to sleep.
"Alright, I'll just go around to the backyard from the garage..."
Zhuang Rui knew his mother didn't like him drinking, and that he would definitely get scolded if he went to the Intermediate People's Court like this.
But just as he was about to run away, the chirping of the golden feather and the low growl of the white lion rang out at the same time. He was the only one in Zhuang Rui's courtyard who could enjoy this treatment.
"Hey, you brat, you left your wife at home and went off to party all night. You have no conscience, you don't even know to call your brother when you're drinking..."
As soon as Zhuang Rui entered the central courtyard, before he even reached the group of people chatting, Ouyang Jun smelled the strong odor of alcohol on him. However, this guy wasn't a good person either, and he let slip the last sentence.
"Get out of my way, or I'll kiss your son right now..."
Zhuang Rui threatened Ouyang Jun, then looked at Ouyang Wan and said, "Mom, a few of my senior brothers insisted on taking me out to dinner, and we drank a little tonight..."
"Alright, Xuanbing told me. Hurry up and go back to your room to wash up. Change your clothes and bring them over. Xuanbing is pregnant and can't stand this smell..."
Now that her son was older, she could no longer discipline him in front of everyone like she did when he was a child. Ouyang Wan gave Zhuang Rui face, and Zhuang Rui agreed and slunk back to his room.
However, Zhuang Rui still slept on the sofa in the living room tonight. Although there are many rooms in the courtyard house, his wife said she was scared, so Zhuang Rui slept in the living room to coax her and became a sofa man all night.
The advantage of pursuing a master's degree is that you don't have to undergo military training like undergraduates upon enrollment. Master's students also have more freedom; they can report anything to their supervisor. As for general courses, no one will take attendance if they don't attend.
Over the next three years, as long as Zhuang Rui earns enough credits, he will naturally be able to graduate. English, which many people find daunting, is not an obstacle for Zhuang Rui.
The next day, after getting up, Zhuang Rui figured the students had just started school and there shouldn't be any classes yet, so he didn't go to school. He spent the morning at home with Qin Xuanbing, and in the afternoon he went to the museum to see Huangfu Yun. Since Director Xie had expressed his willingness to lend the museum artifacts for exhibition, Zhuang Rui naturally wouldn't refuse such a kind offer. ...
"Damn, I definitely need to get an electronic map of Peking University on my phone next time..."
Zhuang Rui got lost again while walking on the Peking University campus. There was a public lecture this morning called "General Introduction to Chinese Archaeology". Although it was a course for second-year undergraduate students, Zhuang Rui had no background in archaeology, so he wanted to come and listen.
The main courses in archaeology include General History of China, Ancient History of the World, History of Chinese Archaeology, Introduction to Archaeology, Paleolithic Archaeology, Neolithic Archaeology, Xia, Shang and Zhou Archaeology, Warring States, Qin and Han Archaeology, Three Kingdoms, Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties Archaeology, Sui and Tang Archaeology, Song, Yuan and Ming Archaeology, and Field Archaeology.
What Zhuang Rui learned in school was mostly basic theory, which is something he lacked. If he could learn all of these courses, it would be extremely beneficial for him to appraise and date antiques.
However, archaeological projects are enormous, and the archaeological research of each era can consume a person's entire life's energy.
Many archaeology students, including professors, have a special focus. Among the many archaeological eras, they choose one that they like and dedicate their lives to its study in order to achieve significant progress and breakthroughs.
Professor Meng holds an unshakeable position in the domestic archaeological community because his basic knowledge and theories are extremely solid, and he has a thorough understanding of various dynasties and periods.
Even when he goes to an unfamiliar excavation site, Professor Meng doesn't need to look through books or examine the unearthed artifacts. He can tell you the characteristics of a certain era just from the shape of the tomb. In the archaeological community, Professor Meng is known as a living encyclopedia of archaeological excavation.
After reviewing the major courses for archaeology, Zhuang Rui focused on the following disciplines: Xia, Shang and Zhou archaeology, Warring States, Qin and Han archaeology, Three Kingdoms, Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties archaeology, Sui and Tang archaeology, Song, Yuan and Ming archaeology, and field archaeology.
The reason is simple: although artifacts unearthed before the Neolithic period have extremely high research value, their market value is generally low. Zhuang Rui studied archaeology only to better appraise antiques, not to actually become an expert or scholar.
Because he didn't have a vehicle access pass, Zhuang Rui had to park his car, which he had driven back from Zuixianlou, in a free parking lot at Carrefour in Zhongguancun. It took him more than 20 minutes to walk into Peking University. But to his dismay, after entering Peking University through another gate, Zhuang Rui ended up in the teaching building area of the medical university.
In 2000, Kyoto University merged with Kyoto Medical University and moved to a new campus, which was much larger than the original one. Zhuang Rui wandered around and somehow ended up at the Basic Medical Sciences College of the Medical School.
Zhuang Rui felt too embarrassed to call Professor Meng again. He had gotten lost twice in the two times he had come in. Although Professor Meng wouldn't say anything, Zhuang Rui still felt a little ashamed.