Phu Yen Online - Bachelor Phan Que

Among the Confucian scholars in Phu Yen before 1945, Phan Que was the one who left an example of studiousness, simple lifestyle, and diligent working spirit. When he was an official of the French colonial government, until he became a cadre and party member serving in the revolutionary government, he was always an honest person, working wholeheartedly for the people and the country.

Phan Que, whose real name was Loan Dong, was born in 1896 in Quan Cau hamlet, Phong Phu village, Tuy An prefecture (now Phong Phu hamlet, An Hiep commune, Tuy An district) into a wealthy family. He was the son of Chief Phan Huu Thanh and Mrs. Nguyen Thi Tien.

Honest official

When he was young, Phan Que was sent by his father to study with Dr. Phan Quang, who was a professor at Tuy An district. Dr. Phan Quang was from Que Son district, Quang Nam province. Later, when Phan Quang was promoted to the position of judge in Binh Dinh province, Phan Que also packed his bags to continue his studies and stayed at his teacher's house. In 1918, Phan Que passed the Baccalaureate exam at Hue examination school, then studied the national language and French. While waiting for his appointment, he went to Saigon to work as a reporter for the newspaper Tieng Chuong. In 1923, he was appointed by the Hue court as a deputy in Son Hoa district and then transferred to Tuy Hoa district (1931) to work as a de lai, also known as lai muc.

Phan Que was a Confucian scholar with a modest and simple lifestyle. When going to work, he wore a long dress and turban and only walked or rode a horse-drawn carriage, he did not ride a rickshaw. When coming home, he wore shorts and a blouse like a farmer. He did not like complicated rituals, did not show any bureaucratic mannerisms...

He was an honest official who did not like flattery, so he was not much cared for by his superiors. His 20 years as an assistant to the District Chief of Son Hoa and the District Chief of Tuy Hoa was only enough to pay for his children's education and to live frugally in a thatched house in Tuy Hoa. Phan Que was a Confucian scholar with a modest and simple lifestyle. When going to work, he wore a long dress and turban and only walked or rode a horse-drawn carriage, he did not ride a rickshaw. When returning home, he wore shorts and a shirt like a farmer. He did not like complicated rituals and did not show any bureaucratic mannerisms. He had a simple and friendly style when communicating with people, especially when he went on business trips to the villages, so most of the local people and the local people loved him.

In 1945, after the end of World War II, he was transferred to work in Son Hoa district with the position of Thong Nhat, replacing Tran Ky Quy. At the same time, the August Revolution in 1945 broke out, the Viet Minh took power, he evacuated his family to his hometown in Quan Cau village, Tuy An district. In 1946, he joined the resistance, held the position of Chairman of the Lien Viet Association of Tuy An district and was assigned to be a judge of Tuy An district People's Court. He was an honest cadre and very enthusiastic in his assigned work, so a year later, he was admitted to the Communist Party of Vietnam .

In 1947, after the establishment, the number of Tuy An district cadres was reduced, the number of cadres retained had to work at double the intensity, in addition to having to operate in a complex area with many hills, rivers, and streams, life was difficult, so after 6 years of work, he became seriously ill and died in 1952. He was buried in Phu Tan village, An Cu commune, Tuy An district, personally directed by the Chairman of the Phu Yen Provincial Administrative Resistance Committee Nguyen Sung.

A person of gentle and progressive views.

During his lifetime, Phan Que was a person who loved literature and art, often organizing amateur singing sessions with friends at home. He knew how to play many traditional musical instruments such as the two-stringed fiddle, monochord, moon-shaped lute, pipa, and zither, and was fluent in Hue melodies such as nam ai, nam bang, co ban, and tu dai canh. He also composed a collection of poems that were collected into the Loan Dong poetry collection, but unfortunately they were lost. The poems he wrote exuded a rustic quality similar to folklore, with the purpose of expressing his feelings about current events or the scenery of his homeland. Once, hearing that he was about to be promoted by a superior to work at the Thach Ban office, but because of his unflattering nature, he was changed by the superior to stay in his old place, he wrote a poem about this:

The position of Tuy Hoa Bishop

The position of Bang Ta official in Thach Ban office

Which position is convenient, which position is luxurious?

The same goes for teachers and officials.

However, when he encountered extreme sadness, he also wrote emotional poems to describe his state of mind. That was when he evacuated to Quan Cau, his youngest daughter, Phan Hong Hanh, who was loved by the whole family, died of dengue fever. He wrote these heartbreaking verses:

Hong Hanh, do you know?

How can I express my love for children?

You go, leaving behind the sky's memories.

When his children accidentally saw this poem in Loan Dong poetry collection , they discussed not letting his wife know because they were afraid she would be shocked by being too emotional.

According to Nguyen Chuyen, Phan Que's son-in-law, when he first visited his house, he was a refined man, loved music and had progressive views: "The first time (in 1937), I had the opportunity to visit the house and received a warm welcome from the family. I was able to observe the interior with my own eyes: the guitars hanging on the wall, the mother-of-pearl inlaid parallel sentences, the rosewood sofa set, and especially the family bookshelf. I was very surprised that Mr. Lai Que's family bookshelf, in addition to the usual books and newspapers such as Nam Phong, Ngay Nay, Tieu Thuyet Thu Bay, Pho Thong Ban Thon San, also had books from the Han Thuyen publishing house, the Tieng Dan newspapers and other progressive books such as Tin Tuc, Le Travail, Notre Voix, Rassemblement and even banned books such as Buoc Duong Cong by Nguyen Cong Hoan, Lam Than by Lan Khai...".

Phan Que also had a deep understanding of classical Chinese literature, especially Tang poetry. In his memoirs, Nguyen Chuyen wrote: “It was thanks to teacher Que that I found my way into the fragrant flower garden of classical Chinese and Vietnamese literature. Because the Tang poems of Li Bai and Du Fu were still very strange to our class, who studied in high schools following the French curriculum.”

In his private life, Phan Que's wife was Mrs. Phan Thi Bich Lieu, daughter of Dr. Phan Quang. Because he admired his simple and intelligent student, teacher Phan Quang married his first daughter to Phan Que. Phan Que gave birth to 9 children and all of them were well educated, some of them became ministers like Phan Ba (aka Vo Dong Giang).

At that time, in Phu Yen, many Confucian scholars and former intellectuals were very enthusiastic in participating in revolutionary work and resistance work under the leadership of the Party, such as Mr. Tran Chuong and Mr. Pham Dam. Because they realized the Party's ideal goal was to liberate the nation from misery and slavery.

TS DA O NHAT KIM

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