Xuanwu Lake only has seasons, no winter
For Xuanwu Lake, winter is just a season with different scenery from other seasons.
Looking east from Tailing Bridge, the water on the lake is sparkling and calm; Xiaojiuhua Mountain in the mist looks a little further than usual, and the Tripitaka Pagoda on the mountain is vaguely there; further away, There are also outlines of mountains that look like they are stained with ink. This is the last day of the "Three Nines" mentioned in the proverb "Walking on Ice for Three Nines and Four Nines". The sun has no temperature and hangs dimly in the eastern sky.
It was still early, and there were not many tourists in Xuanwu Lake. A cold wind came, and I couldn't help but pull up my collar while walking by the lake. The tour bus drove past Tailing Embankment. The bus was covered with transparent plastic windshields. Although there were only a few passengers covered tightly, they were very excited by the tour guide. Their interactions could be heard across the bridge. sound.
Wei Zhuang, a Tang Dynasty man, recited in his quatrain "Taicheng" that pays homage to the monuments of the Six Dynasties: "The river is raining and the grass is flowing, and the Six Dynasties are like a dream and the birds are singing in the sky. The most ruthless willows in Taicheng are still smoke cages ten miles away from the embankment. "Taicheng was the Houyuan City of Soochow during the Three Kingdoms period; and for more than two hundred years from the Eastern Jin Dynasty to the end of the Southern Dynasty, it was the political center and imperial harem of various dynasties. Its approximate location is around the Jiefangmen city wall south of Xuanwu Lake. . The so-called "Taicheng willow" refers to the willow trees on the embankment of Xuanwu Lake. Willow trees are a scenery by the lake. Even if all the leaves are gone and only the trunk is hanging with branches standing in the wind by the water, the trunk is calm and the branches are messy, it still has charm.
The Yingzhou Corridor is winding and hundreds of meters long. It is a building in the 1950s and was donated by Soong Ching Ling, Sun Yat-sen’s wife. When the flowers are blooming, there are often photographers with the flower gallery as the background, holding long guns and short cannons and enjoying it. It is inevitably deserted now, but while counting the pillars of the corridor, I watched the old man stretching his hands and feet under the cherry tree; the sun gradually became brighter, and I enjoyed the comfort of time gradually disappearing with the wind. The desertedness was actually a rare tranquility.
Walking along the Yingzhou promenade, you can smell the fragrance of flowers. Following the fragrance, you can see wintersweet blooming on the path down the slope. Dotted with winter plums, looking across the water from the Nona Tower standing on one side of Huanzhou, the yellow flowers and the white tower complement each other.
The Nona Pagoda was completed in 1937. It was built to commemorate the famous living Buddha Master Nona in Qamdo, Tibet. There is also a Lama Temple next to it, which was a memorial hall built at the same time. During the Republic of China, the Master lived in Nanjing for eight years and passed away in Ganzi in 1936. Nona Pagoda and the Lama Temple have left behind the "Master Puyou" who was certified as the reincarnation of the Living Buddha at the age of 3, opposed the split of the motherland, held an important position in the government of the Republic of China, agreed that the Red Army was not hostile to the Communist Party, and worked for national unity. "The legend.
Xuanwu Lake is a swamp wetland formed due to crustal faults. The lake water comes from the northern foot of Zhongshan Mountain. Xuanwu Lake was called Sangbo in ancient times and has a long cultural history. Legend has it that in AD 448 during the Six Dynasties period, "black dragons" appeared twice in the lake, hence the name Xuanwu Lake. Xuanwu is a spiritual creature that combines a turtle and a snake and is known as the "God of the North". The lake is located in the north of the capital. Therefore, Xuanwu Lake was also called North Lake in history.
There are five lake islands on Xuanwu Lake, that is, the Five Continents, namely Lingzhou, Huanzhou, Yingzhou, Liangzhou, and Cuizhou. There are embankments and bridges connecting the islands. Light, integrated.
Huanzhou and Liangzhou are connected by Fang Bridge, which is the oldest bridge on Xuanwu Lake and is more than 600 years old. Liangzhou is the earliest continent opened in Xuanwu Lake. It was named Liangzhou because Xiao Tong, the crown prince of Zhaoming in the Southern Dynasty, set up a reading desk here. Xiao Tong was the prince of Liang Dynasty in the Southern Dynasty. He died young due to illness. He loved literature and Buddhism, recruited talents as the prince, and was diligent in writing. Xiao Tong is a connecting figure in the history of Chinese literature. The "Selected Works" he presided over and compiled (historically known as "Selected Works of Zhaoming") is the earliest existing collection of poetry and prose in China. "Selected Works" compiles more than 700 literary works of various genres by more than 100 authors from the pre-Qin Dynasty to the Southern Dynasties and the Liang Dynasty. The "Selected Works" clarified the boundaries of literature for the first time and had a profound impact on later generations.
On the weekend, in addition to the old people strolling around in Xuanwu Square in Liangzhou, there were also some young people and small families with their children. The sun has risen higher than before, and the temperature is not as cold and humid as before.
Those who were tired from walking found benches to sit down and rest. There were also energetic old people wielding their fists and swords; there were even gray-haired old ladies who shouted "ho" and "ho" while doing the movements. The child who was riding a scooter heard the sound, stopped, and looked at his grandma with curiosity in his eyes.
Xuanwu Lake was called Back Lake in the Ming Dynasty. As the name suggests, if there is "back", there must be "front". Yanque Lake at that time was the front lake. Qianhu and Houhu are the two major lakes in Nanjing City. In order to build the imperial palace, most of the Qianhu (Yanque Lake) was filled in as a foundation, and the remaining part was also blocked outside the city wall, becoming today's Qianhu and Pipa Lake. The size of Qianhu (Yanque Lake) at that time can be seen through a legend. When the lake started to be filled in, it was always not full. An old man named Tian Deman from Jiangning County was captured and filled in the lake alive. He was said to be "borrowing his sound to seek good luck" and then he was named the "Lake God".
Coincidentally, the Lake Temple in Xuanwu Lake also has a similar legend, but the protagonist of the story was made a god for another reason.
In the 14th year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang conducted a nationwide population census, measured land, and stipulated that the national population should be based on households, and compiled household registration files into "li" (110 households as li), and listed them in detail. Specific information such as population, property, township, name and surname are used as the basis for collecting taxes and are managed by the central Ministry of Household Affairs. The household registration management book submitted to the Ministry of Household Affairs has a yellow cover, so it is called the "yellow book system". The island in Xuanwu Lake is surrounded by water and is convenient for closed management, so it was selected as the storage place for yellow records. For more than two hundred years from 1391 to 1642, all land and household registration records were stored here, making it the largest archives in ancient China.
During the construction of the Huangce warehouse, legend has it that an old man surnamed Mao suggested building the warehouse east-west to increase the lighting time and prevent the Huangce from mildew. Zhu Yuanzhang accepted his suggestion, but because his surname "Mao" had the same pronunciation as "cat", he buried him alive and enshrined him as a god to prevent rats.
The rumored legend cannot be taken completely seriously, but since the establishment of the Yellow Book Storehouse, Xuanwu Lake has been completely isolated from the world as a royal forbidden area. This has also become a miracle in the history of archives. By the end of the Ming Dynasty, there were about 960 yellow book warehouses on the island in the center of Xuanwu Lake, with more than 1.79 million yellow books. However, with the change of dynasties, most of the painstaking efforts of the previous rulers were reduced to ashes and disappeared in the long river of time.
The Lake Temple on Liangzhou has changed beyond recognition. The Yellow Book Exhibition Hall was built on the site of the original Lake Temple, trying to restore history through modern means and make it clear to future generations.
When it comes to plum blossoms in Nanjing, everyone knows that there is Meihua Mountain, located in the Xiaoling Mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty. In fact, the strangeness of the plum blossoms in Xuanwu Lake is even more commendable. There is still half a month until the Spring Festival, and although there are some plum blossoms blooming sporadically, it is not yet the season and most of the plum trees are in bud. But in front of the bright plum blossoms in Liangzhou, people have been coming to look for it:
"Come on, come on!"
- The old gentleman said to his companion while holding his glasses.
"It's too late before the Spring Festival!"
——A group of aunts in red were discussing.
"Mom, the tree is so old!"
The little girl wanted to touch the trunk, but her mother stopped her.
……
This long-lived plum tree is over 600 years old and can be called the "Plum King". It is the oldest ancient plum tree in Nanjing. At first glance, the tree is not that big, with sparse branches covered with buds. If you look closely, you will see that the trunk is rough and old, the skin and flesh are tangled together, and the color may be dark or light. The whole tree seems to be standing upright or crooked. Looking up, it seems to be inherently deficient; then stepping back and observing carefully, I found that the tree crown is neat and well-proportioned, obviously it has been carefully maintained. Suddenly I remembered the sentence in "The Book of Sick Plums", "Plums are beautiful when they are curved, but they are shapeless when they are straight; they are beautiful when they are straight, but they have no scenery; they are beautiful when they are sparse, but they are shapeless when they are dense." It's rare to see this plum. It has been sick for 600 years, but it still blooms every year and gets redder with age!
There is also a Plum Blossom Tunnel in Liangzhou. Although the road is not long, it is well-known and is an internet celebrity attraction. When the flowers are in bloom, it is unique and crowded with people, but now it is as quiet as a paradise.
When entering the Plum Blossom Tunnel, we passed a Republic of China building called "Friendship Hall", which is now a bookstore. I wanted to go in and read a book, but it was not open during business hours, so I had to walk around the corridor. It’s a bit of a pity, but hopefully we’ll see you later! The seemingly ordinary "Friendship Hall" is not simple. It was built in 1941 and was originally called "Han Bixuan". It was the place where the Wang puppet government and guests were received. After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, the Republic of China government changed its name to "Xuanwu Hall" as "a place to entertain people from all walks of life and foreign guests"; after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Later, it was used to receive Chinese and foreign guests, and was renamed "Friendship Hall" during the Cultural Revolution. It is said that Soong Meiling came here, and later Mao Zedong, Zhu De, Deng Xiaoping and other leaders received guests here, and Premier Zhou accompanied Sihanouk and his wife to visit here.
At the end of the Plum Blossom Tunnel is Wenji Pavilion, an antique building. I originally thought that Wen Ji Pavilion was related to Zu Ti, a famous general in the Eastern Jin Dynasty who danced after hearing the chicken dance and determined to regain his lost territory; but after reading the introduction, I realized that there is another story. In the Southern Dynasties, Emperor Wu of Qi Xiao Xi liked hunting. He often left the palace late at night and went to Langya Mountain to hunt animals, and returned only after he was exhausted. When we arrived at Xuanwu Lake, dawn had just broken, and the sound of roosters crowing just reached here. Therefore, a Wenji Pavilion was built here.
Standing at Wenji Pavilion and looking east, you can see Nanjing Railway Station across the water; and when passengers coming in and out of Nanjing Railway Station take a break by Xuanwu Lake, can they feel the flowers blooming and falling on the island in the middle of the lake? ?
The Jinling Bonsai Garden in Liangzhou was originally a greenhouse during the Republic of China. It is now a centralized display place for Jinling style bonsai. The bonsai garden has different bonsai exhibitions every season, and in the plum blossom bonsai exhibition in early spring every year, there are many plum blossoms that are more than a century old. "For plum blossoms, form is the first priority", form means form and posture, and bonsai focuses on shaping the form and posture of plants, so bonsai plum blossoms are closest to the aesthetic requirements of ancient literati for plum blossoms.
There was also a Republic of China building in Liangzhou, namely the "Monument to the Anti-Japanese Fallen Soldiers of the 17th Army", but following the road signs, I only saw the monument's "old site" monument!
During the Gubeikou Anti-Japanese War in 1933, the officers and soldiers of the 17th Army were blood-stained at the Great Wall Fortress. They were generous and tragic, and it was heartwarming to sing and cry. In May 1935, Xu Tingyao, commander of the 17th Army, initiated the construction of the "Monument to the Anti-Japanese Fallen Soldiers of the 17th Army" in Liangzhou, Xuanwu Lake. In fact, the last thing Nanjing should forget is the war!
Whenever there is a major festival, red lanterns are always hung on the banks of Xuanwu Lake. As the Spring Festival is approaching, red lanterns are hung on the tall French paulownia trees as usual, which is eye-catching and festive.
I wonder how Guo Pu, the Feng Shui master more than a thousand years ago, evaluated Xuanwu Lake. When he was walking by Xuanwu Lake, did he predict his indissoluble bond with Xuanwu Lake? The marriage corner next to Xuanwu Gate is bustling with people. Most of them are parents worrying about their children. This is how generations of Chinese people have come.
There is a small pink train in Lingzhou, Xuanwu Lake. It is a children's paradise. I wonder how many adults are like me and want to take a ride?