In 1984, on the outskirts of Taipei, Wu Chien-shiung in his later years joined hands with her husband Yuan Jialiu and slowly walked into a quiet cemetery. Their steps were light but heavy, because this trip was to pay tribute to an old man - Mr. Hu Shizhi. With the soft sound of the camera shutter, an old photograph that spans time and has deep emotions is frozen.
In the picture, Wu Chien-shiung and Yuan Jialiu stand side by side, dressed in simple but difficult to hide their scholarly demeanor, they bow deeply to Hu Shi's tombstone, at that moment, time seems to freeze, and all respect and nostalgia are condensed in this silent bow. In Wu Chien-shiung's eyes, there is not only a deep nostalgia for his teacher, but also endless emotion for the past years.
When it comes to the teacher-student friendship between Wu Chien-shiung and Hu Shih, although it spans the two fields of literature and physics, it is like a bright star. The origin of everything can be traced back to Wu Chien-shiung's youth. On the campus of Suzhou Women's Normal School, by chance, she listened to Mr. Hu Shi's speech. Hu Shih's profound thoughts and unique insights illuminated Wu Chien-shiung's path of knowledge like a rising star.
Wu Chien-shiung was deeply attracted by Hu Shih's erudition and talent, and was even more inspired by his spirit of encouraging women to pursue knowledge and have the courage to explore. Subsequently, Wu Chien-shiung entered the Chinese public school for further study, and Hu Shi was the soul of this institution. Under Hu Shih's discernment, Wu's outstanding talents were revealed, not only in the liberal arts, but also in science and engineering. In the end, under the careful guidance of Hu Shih, Wu Chien-shiung chose physics as the direction of his lifelong struggle and embarked on a journey to the "Central University" in Nanjing. This choice not only started her scientific journey, but also made her a world-renowned physicist in the future.
The relationship between Hu Shi and Wu Chien-shiung is not only a simple teacher-student relationship, but also a gentleman's friendship of mutual respect and mutual achievement. Their interactions transcend the boundaries of the academic field and have a deep emotional bond. The friendship between Hu Shi and Yuan Jialiu adds a warm color to this relationship. During their time in the United States, the two families often got together, and even after Hu Shih returned to settle in Taipei, they maintained a close correspondence, a friendship that spanned thousands of mountains and rivers.
At the beginning of 1962, Wu Chien-shiung and her husband were invited to return to China to participate in academic activities, at the welcome banquet, Hu Shi saw Wu Chien-shiung and his wife were very happy, he delivered a speech, welcome Wu Chien-shiung and his wife, but no one thought that at the end of the banquet, Hu Shi suddenly had a heart disease, fell to the ground, Wu Chien-shiung witnessed the scene of Hu Shi falling to the ground, and then Hu Shi fell into a coma, and when the ambulance arrived, the doctor found that Hu Shi had no signs of life, Hu Shi's sudden death, Wu Chien-shiung felt very heavy, she attended Hu Shi's funeral and silently sent the last ride for this teacher.
In 1984, Wu Chien-shiung returned to Taipei again to pay respects at Hu Shih's tomb. Thirteen years later, when Wu Chien-shiung himself died in the United States, her life came to a successful end. However, the teacher-student friendship between her and Hu Shi is like that precious old photo, forever engraved in the long river of history and has become a good story for future generations.