Chapter 19 Mr. Gu Benjiang

one Half a century ago, a mysterious foreign old man lived in an old hotel in Lisbon.He lives in reclusive life, refuses to take pictures, does not accept interviews, and only lives the life of a pure and lonely old man. The old man has traveled many places and occasionally stops here.He observes the street behind thick curtains, he observes the market with few friends, and he prepares to make a decision all the way.No one knows the content of this decision, and he does not know where he will announce this decision. Portugal, Lisbon, and the old hotel, for this old man, they have no roots or love.He was supposed to pass by without a trace, but he finally stayed and was reluctant to leave.

He knew that he was slowly approaching that decision. Even he himself was surprised, how could it be here. It was not until his death that people knew that a world-class cultural foundation named after him would be established here, with net assets of 1.8 billion US dollars.His name is Gu Benjiang. From then on, on the cultural map, Portugal will no longer be the original Portugal, and Lisbon will no longer be the original Lisbon. two Where did Mr. Gu Benjiang get so much money? It turned out that he was an early promoter of oil exploration in the Persian Gulf.He found out that the Persian Gulf is rich in oil reserves, and he also knew the significance of oil in the 20th century, so he traveled around the world and mobilized them to mine.If the mobilization is effective, he will help design the mining scale and connect with the international market.As a reward for his active promotion, he was given a five percent stake in each mining plan.Later, it simply became a rule, and everyone called him Mr. Five Percent.

Five percent may not seem like much at first glance, but just imagine how much oil there is in the Persian Gulf and how much demand there is for oil in the twentieth century. In such a huge torrent of wealth, how amazing is five percent to belong to one person? . Mr. Gu Benjiang wants to do several things in the face of his huge assets, one is to promote education, the other is to promote art, the third is to promote science, and the fourth is to promote charity.It turned out that his promotion of oil exploration was only a superficial purpose, and these four undertakings were hidden behind it.These four careers are enough to prove what kind of person he is.

To carry out these four undertakings, a foundation must be established. In terms of convenience and influence, Lisbon, Portugal is not qualified to establish one, but Mr. Gu Benjiang took a fancy to the simplicity, tranquility and hospitality here. With the Gubenjiang Foundation, Portugal, which has always been impoverished, can not only continuously obtain a large amount of cultural and educational funds, but also become the focus of international cultural exchanges and cultural funding.In many cities around the world, there are offices, scientific research institutes, cultural centers, and libraries of the Kubenjiang Foundation, even Paris and London are no exception, but the headquarters is in Lisbon.This is a great cultural momentum.

I hope this incident can inspire all the mayors in the world who are interested in cultural construction. There may not necessarily be a gathering of masters, but a cluster of schools.For cities that do not have such conditions for a while, they must not encourage growth in this area, and only need to take good care of the environment.An environment that is suitable for cultural people to live in and for cultural circulation is actually a healthy and peaceful human environment; before the real big culture takes root, bluffing and exaggerating some cultural themes in your own city will only affect the wandering people. Cultural power creates exclusion.Therefore, when mayors introduce their city's cultural advantages to potential cultural forces, they are actually rejecting them.This is not to say that literati are inferior to each other and peers repel each other, but that any cultural force that has become a climate has its own independence, and it is unwilling to become a vassal of existing themes.At least half of Mr. Gu Benjiang’s choice of Lisbon is due to the cultural etherealness of this city; as far as a city is concerned, the best cultural construction is the mechanism, the atmosphere, the relationship between inhalation and inhalation, and the ability to plan and transcend space. Invest in capabilities, not works.Mr. Gu Benjiang left all these to Lisbon, instead of leaving a bunch of treatises and a few poems.

three The Gubenjiang Foundation Building stands in the Gubengjiang Park. It occupies a large area and has advanced equipment. It was under renovation when we went.In the flower bed on the right side of the main entrance of the building, there is a statue of Mr. Gu Benjiang.The statue is facing the street, and there is a guardrail in front of it, so you can't get close to it. I stood on the street looking at his statue, and my mind immediately flew to the Persian Gulf that I visited a few years ago.It used to be the breeding ground of ancient civilizations, but now it has long been dilapidated, and the latest disaster is related to the competition for oil.I have seen remnants of asphalt roads laid thousands of years ago in the ruins of Babylon. It can be seen that the creators of ancient civilizations also discovered oil, but they could not predict that this underground liquid fuel would ignite endless wars. As a result, it was ridiculed by the world together with the ancient civilization.

Only today did I realize that through just one person, that ancient and desolate land had contributed 5% of its power to nourish modern civilization. He remembered his loneliness again.In an old hotel in Lisbon, old foreigners who closed their doors to thank guests don't know where they came from or where they are going.Even if it is a major event that spans thousands of years, even if it is a feat that connects thousands of miles, if it belongs to culture, it is often borne by a pair of old shoulders. Like a smuggler, like a fugitive, dodging all the way, making unannounced visits all the way, looking for a place of entrustment.The decision to entrust is always written in the will, so it is doomed to be impossible to live to clarify the cultural meaning of one's own life.

Once gone, it illuminates, incidentally, the cultural meanings that may be unearthed in the Persian Gulf and Lisbon.