Lesson 2: The Lang Vi family, once ruled over Tuong Duong prefecture
In Con Cuong, since the end of the 19th century, there was a Lang Vi family, belonging to the old Lich Coc commune (now Don Phuc commune). Three generations successively held the position of Tri Phu of Tuong Duong, including the three districts of Con Cuong, Tuong Duong, and Ky Son today. When the government fell into the hands of the Revolution, this family also made certain contributions, including Mr. Lang Vi Tao, who held the position of Chairman of the Resistance Committee of Con Cuong district, from 1947 to 1953.
The descendants of the Lang Vi family in Phuc village, Don Phuc commune still preserve many royal decrees of the Hue court, the reigns of King Thanh Thai, King Khai Dinh, King Bao Dai, bestowing praise and titles to the district governor of Tuong Duong Lang Van Bang (in the family he is called Lang Vi Bang) and the people who gave birth to him. Notably, there are decrees in the 19th year of Thanh Thai (1907), bestowing on Mr. Lang Van Bang - district governor of Tuong Duong because of his talent and virtue, he was promoted to the position of "Thua vu lang, Dong tri phu, lanh Cai phu tho tri phu". The decree in the 5th year of Khai Dinh (1920) bestowed on Mr. Lang Van Bang, who was currently "Hong lo tu thieu khanh, tho tri phu phu Tuong Duong" because of his talent and virtue, he was promoted to the position of "Trieu liet dai phu, Quang loc tu thieu khanh" and still held the position of district governor of Tuong Duong. According to the decree of the 15th year of Bao Dai (1941), Lang Vi Nang was awarded the title of third-class local prefect of Tuong Duong prefecture. Because of his talent, integrity, and virtue, he was promoted to the position of "Phung Thanh Dai Phu, An Lam Vien Thi Giang, second-class".
Also in 1941, the district governor of Tuong Duong, Lang Vi Nang, was recognized by the King of Luang Prabang for his contributions to the country. In recognition of his contributions, the King granted Lang Vi Nang the white-class Million Elephant certificate.
After the success of the August Revolution (1945), this family participated in serving the revolutionary government. Mr. Lang Vi Tao (nephew of Lang Vi Nang) served as district chief of Tuong Duong until 1945, then was appointed to hold the position of provisional Chairman of the Tuong Duong District Resistance Committee. On July 14, 1948, the leaders of the Con Cuong District Party Committee directed the merger of the Administrative Committee and the Resistance Committee into the Administrative Resistance Committee, Lang Vi Tao was appointed to hold the position of Chairman until his death in 1953.
According to the 7th son of the district chief Lang Vi Nang, Mr. Lang Vi Nguyet, originally from Quy Hop, 7 generations ago, there was a local mandarin called Quan Kem by the people, who fled to Muong Hoc (in Binh Chuan commune - Con Cuong today) and was killed. His relatives fled to Muong Hech, which at that time was Lich Coc commune, in Don Phuc commune now, to make a living. In the 3rd generation, there was Mr. Lang Vi Bang, a mandarin who led troops to defeat the Pho Kham rebels and returned victorious. With that achievement, he was appointed by the royal court as district chief. The colonial government gave him an official position.
When he was an official, Lang Vi Bang was a man who won the people's hearts. He organized land reclamation and helped people during famine. He helped people by "lending", but in fact, when the harvest came, he did not receive anything back. He did not say that he gave for free, because according to the concept at that time, saying "give for free" would make the recipient feel hesitant. In addition, he also taught people how to grow rice and built roads to agricultural production areas. People were less hungry because of this virtuous act, he was awarded many times by the dynasties of Thanh Thai and Khai Dinh.
Two sons of Lang Vi Nang district governor with family treasure.
After Lang Vi Bang retired, he passed the position to his cousin Lang Vi Tai. His descendants in Phuc village (Don Phuc commune) still preserve the decree recording the event when Lang Vi Bang retired because of his talent and integrity, he was awarded the title "Trung Thuan Dai Phu, Hong Lo Tu Khanh" by the royal court. Later, the French appointed Mr. Lang Vi Nang (son of Lang Vi Bang) to succeed Mr. Tai. Mr. Lang Vi Nang held the position of district chief of Tuong Duong district until they seized power (1945). After the successful August Revolution, Mr. Lang Vi Tao held the position of provisional Chairman of the Resistance Committee of Tuong Duong district, then transferred to hold the position of Chairman of the Resistance - Administrative Committee of Con Cuong district, until 1953. In the book History of the Party Committee, Con Cuong district, volume 1 (1931 - 2003), Mr. Lang Vi Tao was recorded as Chairman of the District People's Committee, period 1947 - 1953.
Through the ups and downs of history, there are now only a few artifacts of this family with a long tradition in Western Nghe An. The family's ancestral temple was destroyed in the 1960s. During a field trip to learn about the family in Phuc village (Don Phuc commune - Con Cuong), we found 7 royal decrees of the reigns of King Thanh Thai, Khai Dinh, and Bao Dai. A few documents in Thai script of the Xu Thanh system, and a Certificate of Merit from the King of Luang Prabang in 1941 to Mr. Lang Vi Nang. These are truly valuable documents about a highland ethnic minority family.
Nowadays, the majority of the Lang Vi family resides in Don Phuc commune, partly in Con Cuong town. In recent years, the heads of the family are planning to rebuild the family temple. Since 2010, the Lang Vi family has established operating regulations to strengthen family solidarity, especially focusing on promoting education. Every year, children in the family who pass exams or have high academic achievements are promptly encouraged and rewarded. The head of the Lang Vi Nguyet family said that currently, the entire Lang Vi family has 17 people studying at university, 25 children studying at colleges...
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