What was Lu Xun’s attitude during the January 28 Incident?

Critics question Lu Xun’s attitude towards the Japanese invasion of China during the “December 28th Incident”. There are two main bases: first, Lu Xun’s diary during the “December 28th Incident”, which lasted for five consecutive days. The "missing memory" makes people confused; secondly, Lu Xun still had the intention to "invite prostitutes" during the incident.

Lu Xun took refuge in Neishan Bookstore for five days, and "missing notes" appeared in his diary for five consecutive days

After the "128th Incident" broke out, Lu Xun took refuge in Neishan Bookstore. However, in Lu Xun's diary, from February 1 to February 5, 1932, five consecutive days were "missed". The excerpt is as follows:

January 28: Tan. In the morning, I went to Shinozaki Hospital with Guangping. It was quite noisy in the afternoon. 29th: Sunny. In case of war, you are surrounded by gunfire all day long. Night fog. 30th: Sunny. In the afternoon, everyone in the apartment moved to Neishan Bookstore, carrying only their clothes and quilts to do a few things.

February 1: Lost memory. Day 2: Lost memory. Three days: lost memory. Fourth day: Lost memory. 5th day: lost memory. Sixth day: New Year's Day in the lunar calendar. Tan. In the afternoon, all the people in the apartment moved to the branch office of Neishan Bookstore in the British Concession, where ten people slept on the floor in a room. Day 7: Rain, thunder, severe cold. I will send a letter to my mother in the afternoon. ...(Editor's note: These diaries are all supplementary notes in the future. According to Lu Xun's diary record on March 19, 1932, Lu Xun's family ended their sojourn and returned to their apartment on that day, "Writing diaries at night from January 30 to today")

For five days from February 1 to February 5, ten members of Lu Xun’s family crowded into a room above the Neishan Bookstore. According to Xu Guangping’s later recollection, these days were spent in darkness: “On the afternoon of the 30th, with only simple clothes and a few quilts, we went to work with Zhou Jian’s boy and female worker together with ten of us. People are crowded together in an upstairs room of the bookstore. Female workers, children and adults live a life of being crowded together and sleeping under the same quilt. The windows are covered with thick quilts, and they spend their days in the dark and dull days. A whole week passed, until February 6th, the Lunar New Year's Day, and I had to move to the Neishan Bookstore branch on Sanma Road. "...[Details]

Critics questioned: "With Lu Xun's memory, how can I do it? I will forget it, not to mention those days were so critical to Sino-Japanese relations."

According to Xu Guangping's recollection, the reason for going to Uchiyama Bookstore was related to the dangerous situation at the time and the invitation from the bookstore owner Uchiyama Zenzo: " We lived in an apartment at the bottom of North Sichuan Road, facing the headquarters of the Japanese Marine Corps. On the evening of the 28th, when Lu Xun was writing, the desk was facing the headquarters, and suddenly the lights went out. , only the large courtyard of the headquarters was crowded, as if something was going to happen. When we were confused, we suddenly saw a number of motorbikes coming out of the courtyard and heading south, as if they were running in a hurry. Not long after, we heard gunshots faintly, getting closer and closer. We ran to the terrace and saw red lines of fire passing overhead, and then we realized that the bullets were ruthless and the battle was already happening. We hurriedly retreated downstairs, facing the street. In the hall, next to the desk where Lu Xun usually wrote and slept, a bullet had penetrated the hall. At this time, the danger reached its peak. By daybreak on the 30th, a large group of Japanese troops were banging on the door in a hurry. After opening the door, I realized that we were here for inspection. Except for Lu Xun, one of us was an elderly man, and the rest were women and children. They left immediately. However, the Japanese clerk who followed Uchiyama Bookstore also came to convey Mr. Uchiyama’s intention. Someone fired a gun at the Japanese headquarters in this apartment. We were the only Chinese family living here, and the others were all foreigners. There were windows on every staircase, so it was inevitable that someone would shoot out from these windows. At that time, our The suspicion cannot be completely eliminated, so why not move the whole bank to his bookstore for a while?”

At such a sensitive moment, we are in such a special place (Uchiyama Bookstore is just across the road from the Japanese Navy and Army). "Team Headquarters Building"), Lu Xun "lost notes" for five consecutive days when he was making up for the diary, which is indeed puzzling, so much so that critics questioned: "It turns out that Lu Xun's family was 'treated' like this in the Neishan Bookstore. It turns out that Lu Xun The husband was so calm under this 'treatment'." "In the diary that is now in front of us, Lu Xun used the word 'lost memory' during the few days he hid in the small building. How could it be possible with Lu Xun's memory. I have forgotten, not to mention that those days were so crucial to Sino-Japanese relations. Could it be that you couldn’t see anything in the darkness? Could it be that there was nothing strange about adults and children in the darkness? Could it be that your own psychological activities were also obscured by the darkness? ”

What is even more difficult for critics to accept is that on February 16, Lu Xun also recorded in his diary that he went to "invite prostitutes"

What is even more difficult for critics to accept is that later on In his diary on February 16, Lu Xun added that he went to "invite prostitutes." According to diary records:

February 16th: Sunny. In the afternoon, I went to Han Wenyuan with my third brother to buy a copy of Wang's "Collection of Ruan Sizong" for one yuan and six cents. There are six rubbings of six kinds in "Mianzhou Imagery Record", six yuan. He also went to Yunyinlu to buy a piece of "Poyang King's Stone Carving", an "Inscription on Tianjian Jinglan", a "Xiangzhong Poetry", and a gold spring with two yuan and eight anise. At night, all ten people in the house went to drink with Baotai and became quite drunk. I went back to Qinglian Pavilion to drink tea, and invited a prostitute to sit down and give her one yuan. 17th: Sunny. In the afternoon, go to Beixin Bookstore. Stomach pain at night.

Lu Xun’s diary not only said nothing about the “128th Incident”, but also “invited prostitutes” during the incident. Critics expressed their incomprehension and questioned: “Mr. Lu Xun at this time, It should be in his later years. At this time, Mr. Lu Xun has become the standard bearer of left-wing culture. The society at this time is the moment of national survival-but it is at this moment that Mr. Lu Xun is in the mood to 'invite prostitutes.'" "This. At that time, artillery fire was raging outside the concession. In Mr. Lu Xun's own words, it was a "bloody blockage." The 19th Route Army was struggling hard, and the citizens of Shanghai were actively supporting the Anti-Japanese War. In terms of culture alone, the Japanese army bombed the city the next day. The Commercial Press was destroyed, and the Oriental Library, the largest library in East Asia, was reduced to ashes. However, apart from the sentence in the letter to Xu Shoushang, there was no trace of anything related to the Japanese army in Lu Xun's diary or even in his articles. The sentence of the war of aggression cannot but be said to be a puzzling mystery."

Lu Xun's "loss of memory" was indeed intentional. It was because he was unwilling to remember rather than because he had nothing to remember.

Lu Xun kept a diary as a habit for many years. According to Lu Xun's own words, "I originally wrote a diary every day for myself to read. What I wrote was the exchange of letters and the receipt and payment of money. It didn't matter what I looked like, let alone what I wrote. True or false." According to Xu Guangping's understanding, "His diary was indeed written for himself, so there is no embellishment in it... His diary probably writes about things that are not big or small. They are too big and too relevant. I don’t want to write it out; it’s too young, it doesn’t matter anymore, and I don’t want to write it out.” Xu Guangping also praised Lu Xun’s memory for rewriting the diary:

“According to the inspection of the preserved data, Mr. Lu Xun’s The diary was written from the beginning of May to Peking in the first year of the Republic of China. Occasionally, due to special incidents, such as the "128" war, I ran away alone. After more than a month, I waited until the market calmed down a little. After returning to his old apartment, he could take a pen to make up the notes. Although the notes were simple, it was strange that he had the ability to recall them day by day. Some of them were good, and it was really amazing to see them."

Indeed, as Xu Guangping said, after the "128th Incident", Lu Xun wrote a supplementary "Diary from January 30 to Today" on March 19. In the past 50 days, not a single day was missed. Except for the "lost records" of the five days at Neishan Bookstore from February 1st to February 5th, the rest of the days are recorded every day. Even if there is nothing to record on that day, Lu Xun will write down the weather of that day in his diary entry, such as 2 Under the entry on March 27, although there is no content, there is the word "Qing"; under the entry on March 5, there is only one word "昙"; under the entry on March 6, there is "week. Tan". Perhaps considering that in the supplementary diary, things that should be recorded would inevitably be omitted, these diaries that only recorded weather conditions did not indicate the word "nothing". But when he had the conditions to write a diary on time but had nothing to record, Lu Xun always directly marked the word "nothing". For example, in the entry for January 7 before the incident, he recorded "Tan, Leng. Nothing", On March 23 and March 25 after returning to the apartment, the record was "clear, no incident", and April 2 was "sunny, no incident. Light rain at night". In this way, it is not difficult to understand that the five "missing memories" from February 1st to February 5th are indeed an anomaly in Lu Xun's diary. They are a very special situation. It is not that there was nothing to remember on that day, but that there was nothing to remember. Just remember it.

This "unwillingness" is also reflected in Lu Xun's letters to some friends that day. On February 22, Lu Xun wrote to Xu Shouchang, thanking him for his concern for him during the incident. He wrote: "This incident was so unexpected that he suddenly fell into the line of fire, blocked the road with bloody blades, and flew into the house with flying pills. On February 6, Mr. Uchiyama managed to bring his wife and children into the British Concession. Although they had no books or belongings, they were all fine, so they stayed at his branch for comfort. It’s not a long-term plan, but we haven’t decided where to move yet.” On February 29, Lu Xun wrote another letter to Li Bingzhong, mentioning his situation: “What happened on the 28th of last month was an accident. Before the story. Unprepared, China was suddenly caught in the line of fire. There had been many wars in China, but nothing close to this. On February 6, with the help of many friends, I escaped to the British Concession with nothing. Only he and his wife had erect penises. Fortunately, they were both stubborn and healthy, so they were temporarily living upstairs in a bookstore. After that, they still lived in Shanghai and returned to Peiping. They still have no clue. It depends on the situation in the future."

In these two letters, Lu Xun never mentioned his experience of taking refuge in Neishan Bookstore from February 1st to 5th, and only talked about it from February 6th. This corresponds to the five "lost memories" in the diary. Obviously, there were some reasons why Lu Xun was unwilling to mention what he had seen and heard in the past few days.

The reason why Lu Xun was unwilling to remember it was not because he was "calm" in the face of the Japanese invasion, as critics said, but quite the opposite

Lu Xun did not remember these five days. The following is a record of a few words. But Xu Guangping left behind a rare memory. According to "Lu Xun's Memoirs (Manuscript)", Xu Guangping recalled:

"At this time we saw people in Uchiyama Bookstore were very busy: Japanese clerks joined the rural army corps to do security work, and food was constantly being cooked in the store. Rice balls were made to feed the soldiers guarding the door. (Note: In "Memoirs", the words "Japanese clerks joined the local military regiment and cooked meals for the soldiers" were deleted.) We squatted in the small room upstairs and took care of them. The children lived in silence, without crying or fussing.

And the sound of gunfire in the ears, the pacing of sandbag guards on the streets, and the possibility of street fighting at any time, nervous, silent, but understanding of each other's feelings, but it is inconvenient to ask deeply entangled emotions. The indescribable taste together is really unpleasant. ”

Uchiyama Bookstore was not only the refuge of Lu Xun’s family on that day, but also the stronghold of the Japanese army’s attack on China. This embarrassing dislocation may be due to Lu Xun’s unwillingness to mention the period from February 1 to February 5. The reason for his whereabouts. The diary left for him to read was excused as "lost memory". Perhaps the "unspeakable smell" similar to Xu Guangping was the main reason; but in the letters to his friends, he never mentioned his whereabouts during these five days. , perhaps there are considerations to avoid misunderstandings and protect personal reputation. As for the scholars’ doubts: “It turns out that Lu Xun’s family was treated like this at Neishan Bookstore, and it turns out that Mr. Lu Xun was so calm under this kind of ‘treatment’”—— But it makes no sense. On February 6, Lu Xun's family moved from Uchiyama Bookstore, which served as a Japanese military stronghold, to Uchiyama Bookstore branch in the British Concession. Their "treatment" was still "ten people in a room, sleeping on the floor", but Lu Xun had It is no longer taboo to talk about it in diaries and letters. It can be seen that "treatment" is not the reason why Lu Xun did not mention this incident. The embarrassment of the identity of the refuge is the main reason. The Uchiyama Bookstore branch in the British Concession no longer has this embarrassment. Naturally, Lu Xun no longer tabooed mentioning it.

How did Lu Xun feel during the five days he spent at Uchiyama Bookstore? A memory that seems to reveal Lu Xun’s grudges at that time: “One day, I bought a bamboo toy water gun and a toy locomotive at the grocery store in the same concession. I want to give them to Lu Xun's son as a gift. On this day Lu Xun was sitting on a chair in Neishan Bookstore. I said: 'This is a small gift for your sick young master. ’ After Lu Xun took it, he joked to me: ‘Even though you are wearing a monk’s uniform, you are still Japanese! You still came with a gun! ’” Sugimoto Yujo’s memory can be corroborated by Lu Xun’s diary on December 30, 1932. Lu Xun recorded: “Master Yongcheng presented Haiying with a toy tram and an air gun. "Lu Xun later admitted that he was "somewhat disrespectful to Sugimoto." From this kind of resentment, it is not difficult to see that although critics thought that Lu Xun witnessed the Japanese invasion "so calmly", the fact was exactly the opposite. Because Lu Xun "I couldn't calm down", so I "lost my memory" for five consecutive days, and moved to the British Concession five days later.

The so-called "inviting a prostitute" was just a matter of paying a dollar to talk to a prostitute. 20 Minutes

As for the "inviting a prostitute" incident on February 16, Lu Xun's diary described it quite briefly: "All ten people in the house came to drink with Baotai that night, and they were quite drunk. I went back to Qinglian Pavilion to drink tea, and invited a prostitute to sit down and give her one yuan. Critics said: "There is a period between this sentence in Lu Xun's diary and the previous sentence 'quite drunk', so it is possible that Lu Xun was the only one who went to 'invite prostitutes' this time. If he had brought a whole family, especially his wife, it would be Inviting prostitutes is not only inappropriate for children, but it may also be harmful to your wife. "This kind of speculation is actually due to the lack of understanding that the original manuscript of Lu Xun's diary has no punctuation. The so-called "there is a period between this sentence and the previous sentence 'quite drunk'" is just a punctuation added by later generations when proofreading and publishing. As for It is unclear whether Lu Xun went to Qinglian Pavilion alone or with multiple people.

Lu Xun’s purpose of going to Qinglian Pavilion may just be to drink tea. The famous time-honored teahouse. The branch of Neishan Bookstore where Lu Xun took refuge at that time is located on Sichuan Road, close to Sanma Road, and very close to Qinglian Pavilion on Sima Road. After many days of "ten people in a room, sleeping on the floor" life. Lu Xun, who went to bookstores for several days to recover some of his royalties, took his family to Tongbaotai for two consecutive days on the 15th and 16th to improve their lives. It is human nature. After dinner, he went to this famous tea house to drink tea. It’s not surprising. Besides, Lu Xun did have the habit of drinking tea. There are many such records in his diary. For example, on January 20, 1927, “We had Spring Eve dinner in Tongfu Garden and Guangping, and went to Lu Garden to drink. Ming"; April 5, 1929, "In the afternoon, I went to Guanglu Film Park to watch "The Three Musketeers" with He Changqun, Rou Shi, Zhenwu, Xianzhen, Sandi and Guangping. After viewing, we went to a small tea shop to drink tea. "Qinglian Pavilion itself does not operate prostitutes. The second floor is a teahouse, and the downstairs is a small playground that integrates entertainment, juggling, singing and vendors. It also sells pastries, flowers, insects and birds. But there are indeed many prostitutes there. Qinglian Pavilion attracts customers. According to Feng Zikai, “It is safe to go to Qinglian Pavilion on Sima Road to have tea and see prostitutes. They were all accompanied by the madam. When they walked upstairs, they saw a female guest having tea with her, and they gave her a jealous look. When they saw a single man sitting and having tea, they went to accompany him and chatted with him, with the purpose of promoting business. "Perhaps this is how Lu Xun met a prostitute soliciting customers while drinking tea. The so-called "come and sit for a while, and pay for one yuan" in the diary is also completely consistent with the market situation at that time. According to Ai Wu, "We people in Shanghai have long been You know, go to a prostitute, have a cup of tea, talk for twenty minutes, pay one dollar and leave. This custom is called tea gathering. "During the "128" period in Aiwu, I was once pestered by a prostitute near Sima Road and had to spend one yuan for a tea party. The price he provided should be true." Talk for twenty minutes , give one yuan and leave" is completely consistent with Lu Xun's diary "come and sit for a while, give one yuan".

But there may be other possibilities.

At the end of 1931, Yu Hai, a veteran cadre of the Chinese Left-wing Artists Alliance, completed the party joining ceremony through a secret meeting at "a teahouse on Sima Road (probably Qinglian Pavilion)"; in 1933, Lu Xun and Cheng Fangwu from the Soviet area met at the agreed place Also a coffee shop. But specifically regarding the "prostitute invitation" incident on February 16, 1932, this possibility is probably unlikely. After all, if it is a secret work, it is not appropriate for a prostitute to watch from the sidelines.