The expeditionary force began to dominate Southeast Asia by recruiting defeated soldiers

Chapter 347 What is an ordinary chapter?

After following Zhang Chi on a tour around, Dai Chunfeng already knew that Zhang Chi's ambition went far beyond immediate stability, but to shape the future through education.

If Zhang Chi is given ten years, then this new generation who have received a complete education and grew up in Nanyang will have only one common identity - Nanyang Chinese.

This also made Dai Chunfeng more convinced that Zhang Chi's focus was limited to Southeast Asia and he had no intention of interfering in domestic affairs.

In other words, Zhang Chi's focus was not on the mountain city or Nanjing, but on the land of Nanyang.

Dai Chunfeng believed that this information, or Zhang Chi’s silent statement, was enough to make the man in Shancheng put his heart back into his stomach and sleep peacefully.

So, very quickly, Dai Chunfeng took a plane back.

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On the other side, Zhang Chi, who had seen Dai Chunfeng off, met a heavyweight scholar, Zhao Xuanzhong.

Zhang Guangsong, the chief secretary who now actually exercises the authority of the office director, personally introduced:

"Dr. Zhao has taught at world-renowned universities such as Shuimu University, Harvard University, the University of California, Berkeley, and Yale University. He is well-versed in both Chinese and Western learning and is one of the important founders of modern linguistics in China during the Republic of China."

After listening to this, Zhang Chi's eyes flashed with interest.

He naturally knew that this linguist was different from those so-called "masters of the Republic of China" who were only famous in name only.

Zhao Xuanzhong had solid academic attainments and was good at studying folk dialects, especially southern dialects such as Wu, Cantonese, and Huizhou, all of which he had a deep understanding of.

At the same time, he was also one of the first scholars to try to study Chinese grammar in a systematic way. He introduced concepts such as nouns, pronouns, locators, and auxiliary words similar to English grammar into Chinese research, which had a profound impact in the academic community.

However, such a great man who was well-versed in both Chinese and Western culture, due to his disappointment with the political situation in the Republic of China, eventually chose to go to the White Eagle Country to settle down.

Now, his sudden appearance in Pegu really surprised Zhang Chi.

Zhao Xuanzhong did not exchange pleasantries, but went straight to the point and asked:

"Commander Zhang is clearly from Cantonese, so why is the Mandarin language being promoted now primarily based on Northern Mandarin?"

The question was asked directly, even with a hint of doubt.

Zhang Chi was stunned for a moment, then looked at the scholar in front of him.

Zhao Xuanzhong was wearing a well-ironed suit, his hair was combed meticulously, and under his shiny slicked-back hair, he wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his nose. His eyes were sharp, and his words revealed the stubbornness and arrogance unique to scholars.

It is said that the literati of the Republic of China were proud and unyielding. Seeing them today, I can see that their reputation is indeed well-deserved.

Just at this time Zhang Guangsong whispered a few words in Zhang Chi's ear, and he knew why Zhao Xuanzhong asked this.

In fact, as early as the Republican era, this linguist had advocated for a unified Chinese pronunciation and proposed using the nine tones and six tones of Cantonese as the basis for Mandarin. However, this proposal was incompatible with the Mandarin policy centered on the four-tone system of Beijing Mandarin, and he was ultimately marginalized.

Zhang Chi had probably heard about this incident before he traveled through time, but he was not clear about the details.

He remembered that there was actually huge controversy in the linguistics community in the Republic of China at that time. Some radical scholars even advocated abolishing Chinese characters and using the Angsa alphabet instead.

But for him, the Mandarin system of later generations has been proven successful in practice. What's more, he now has his own more realistic considerations.

Facing Zhao Xuanzhong's question, Zhang Chi smiled slightly and spoke in a calm tone:

"Why is Dr. Zhao so impatient? My choice of Northern Mandarin as the promotional language was not arbitrary, but based on practical considerations."

Zhao Xuanzhong pushed his glasses and became curious about the answer from the uncrowned king of Nanyang.

Zhang Chi said calmly:

"Dr. Zhao knows that I started my career with the People's Security Army. The first priority of the military is clear orders and accurate execution. Commands must be brief, precise, and unified. If officers gave orders in different dialects, what chaos would the battlefield become?"

"Imagine an officer shouting 'charge' in Cantonese, but the soldiers don't understand and mistakenly think it means 'retreat'; or a division commander orders 'open fire' in Wu dialect, but another commander says 'cease fire, maintain silence' in Minnan dialect. How can we fight this war?"

Zhao Xuanzhong nodded slightly. Although his face did not show his approval, he did not refute it.

Zhang Chi continued, "In fact, ever since the training at Beiyang Xiaozhan, our army has been using Northern Mandarin as the common language for command. The Northern Expedition Army, the Central Army, and even the local troops of the Yunnan and Shanxi factions, all followed the Beiyang conventions without exception."

"So, when Northern Mandarin was fully popularized within the Anmin Army, the first to adopt the language were the military, and then it gradually permeated military-related industries such as railways, postal services, telecommunications, and administrative agencies, and finally the entire civilian population."

At this point, he smiled and added in a relaxed tone: "Since the military and administrative system are already using Northern Mandarin, why should I bother with a new set of Mandarin?"

Zhao Xuanzhong was silent for a moment, then showed a thoughtful look.

It's not that he doesn't understand Zhang Chi's considerations - from a pragmatic point of view, Zhang Chi's choice does meet actual needs.

But as a linguist, he still felt a little unwilling:

"Commander Zhang, I understand your considerations, but from a linguistic perspective, the four-tone system of Northern Mandarin may not be the best choice. Southern dialects have more tones, which are more conducive to accurate expression of information, and the rhymes are richer and more beautiful, more in line with ancient Chinese..."

Zhang Chi smiled and waved his hand:

"I understand what you're saying, but to put it bluntly, the Anmin Army now governs not only immigrants from all corners of the country, but also a large number of locally born Chinese or mixed-race people, some of whom don't even speak any Chinese."

Zhang Chi slowly explained that he always has great patience towards people who are capable and competent.

"The most urgent task is to choose a unified language to facilitate daily communication among all citizens. Otherwise, there will always be language barriers, which will lead to various conflicts soon."

Zhao Xuanzhong naturally understood the deeper meaning of Zhang Chi's words. The only consideration in choosing a dialect as Mandarin is whether it can be quickly promoted and whether it is simple and easy to learn.

"Of course, my preference for Northern Mandarin is also based on the consideration of facilitating communication with the Republic of China."

When Zhao Xuanzhong heard this, his expression darkened.

There was no way. Even the Republic of China, with its capital in Nanjing, chose Northern Mandarin. The southern dialect he advocated had no chance after all.

"Of course, these are wartime times, and everything must yield to simplicity, speed, and efficiency," Zhang Chi said comfortingly. "But the traditions of Chinese culture cannot be easily abandoned. If Dr. Zhao is willing to stay and conduct research, I would welcome it."

Zhao Xuanzhong hesitated, "I heard Mr. Zhang is considering promoting simplified Chinese characters. But wouldn't simplified Chinese characters lose a lot of the aesthetic appeal of the characters themselves?"

Zhang Chi tapped the table lightly. "I've made up my mind about promoting simplified Chinese characters. The future world is an industrialized one, and simplified Chinese characters and Mandarin, which are simple, convenient, and easy to spread, are the way to go."

"If we want to obtain a large number of reliable industrial workers, we must eliminate illiteracy and ensure that everyone is literate. Only in a backward agricultural society can we limit literacy to the literati, spending our days studying how to write the character 'hui' in fennel beans."

"But, but..." For Zhao Xuanzhong, Zhang Chi's idea was undoubtedly a little too advanced.

"Without a sufficient industrial population, no matter how glorious our civilization and culture are, won't we still be bullied by the Western powers and the Japanese devils?" Zhang Chi began to present facts and reason.

"Studying ancient characters and the rhythm of music are things we can only consider after our country and nation are strong and prosperous. My mission is to make the Chinese in Southeast Asia strong and prosperous, so I must promote simplified Chinese characters and Mandarin. As for prosperity, there's still time to pick these things up later!"

Zhao Xuanzhong felt the long-lost sense of vigor and ambition to change the world from the young man in front of him.

If you don't help me, I will do it. If you help me, I welcome it.

Finally, Zhao Xuanzhong nodded and said, "Commander Zhang, it seems you have thought it through carefully."

"Anyway, since Dr. Zhao is here, you can take a look around and walk around the territory of our Anmin Army. I welcome all forces that want to invest in construction and contribute to a better future." Finally, Zhang Chi still extended an invitation to Zhao Xuanzhong.

"If Dr. Zhao is willing to stay, we can continue our discussion. I believe you still have great opportunities to contribute to the promotion of Chinese."

Although they had different ideas, he was reluctant to let such a talented person go.

Zhao Xuanzhong glanced at him and finally smiled:

"In that case, I'd like to see what you will turn Nanyang into."

Afterwards, Zhao Xuanzhong visited many public schools and gave several lectures at the newly established University of South China.

After thinking for a long time, he finally decided to stay and try teaching at the University of South China for a few semesters to see if he could spread what he had learned throughout his life.

Of course, he also joined the Mandarin standard-setting group and tried to use his knowledge to help Zhang Chi develop new standards.