Fenghuang
The phoenix is a legendary king of birds, symbolizing auspiciousness and beauty. In China, many mountains are named after the phoenix—Phoenix Mountain in Shaanxi, Phoenix Terrace in Nanjing, and so on—but only one county bears this name: Fenghuang County in western Hunan. According to the "Fenghuang County Gazetteer," in 686, the second year of Empress Wu Zetian's Chuigong reign, Weiyang County was first established, and the city...
This article is compiled from the original travel notes on the "Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network" (33519.com); it is a record of trips from earlier years. Time-sensitive information such as ticket prices, schedules, and accommodation prices is subject to the latest announcements from scenic areas and transportation authorities; the itinerary ideas and attraction introductions still have reference value.
The phoenix is a kind of bird king in ancient legend, and its symbolic meaning refers to auspiciousness and beauty. In our country, there are many mountains named after the phoenix, such as Phoenix Mountain in Shaanxi and Phoenix Terrace in Nanjing, but only one place uses this name as a county place name: Fenghuang County in Xiangxi.
According to the Fenghuang County Gazetteer, in the second year of Chuigong of Empress Wu of the Tang Dynasty (686), Weiyang County was first established, with the city site at Fenghuangying, 25 kilometers from today's county seat. There is a mountain there shaped like a phoenix, which people called Phoenix Mountain, and later Fenghuang County was also named because of this.
The present seat of Fenghuang County, Tuojiang Town, was originally called Zhendan. During the Yuan and Ming periods it was the seat of the Wuzhai Zhangguan Office. In the thirty-ninth year of Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, Fenghuang Ting was established. In the second year of Jiaqing it was upgraded to a directly administered ting, and in the second year of the Republic of China it was changed to Fenghuang County.
Fenghuang's natural beauty has many characteristics. For example, Qinglong Mountain encircling the east of the county town, Nanhua Mountain south of the town, Fenghuang Mountain west of the town, and Leicao Slope north of the town are mostly not high or steep, but the mountains are densely covered with vegetation and lush trees. What they present is a beauty of tranquility.
Beyond the mountains, the Tuojiang River flowing past the town is a first-level tributary of the Wushui river system in the upper reaches of the Yuanjiang River. Its sources, the Wuchao River and Longtang River, are both within Fenghuang's territory. Where the Tuojiang River flows through the county town area, the water flow is already relatively gentle, and small boats can travel on it. The water surface is clear to the bottom, shimmering with reflections of the mountains, presenting a beauty of elegance and grace.
In addition, ancient buildings are spread throughout Fenghuang, such as the two well-preserved ancient gate towers, the city wall outside the north gate, the stilted houses along the river, the streets and alleys within the ancient city, and the Rainbow Bridge spanning the Tuojiang, etc. These ancient buildings are important components of Fenghuang's famous scenery and may be called a beauty of antique charm.
"In letters there is Xiong Xiling, in arms there is Tian Xingxu." This is a saying circulated among the people of Fenghuang very early on. In fact, Fenghuang was historically most famous for producing numerous military officers. Some statistics show that in the late Qing Dynasty, this place produced 4 provincial military commanders, 21 brigade generals, and 47 deputy generals. During the Republic of China period, it produced 7 lieutenant generals and 27 major generals. Among modern and contemporary people, it became famous for producing famous literary figures. For example, Xiong Xiling, Shen Congwen, and Huang Yongyu are outstanding representatives.
From the north gate tower of Fenghuang, walk to the left, turn into a small alley and go forward a few dozen meters, and you will see a pitch-black, brightly polished empty courtyard facing you. This is the former residence of Xiong Xiling in Fenghuang. Xiong Xiling was the first cabinet premier after the founding of the Republic of China, and also the first highly renowned outstanding scholar to come out of Fenghuang. It is said that Xiong Xiling was known as a "Hunan child prodigy" from a young age. Several stories of couplets he made as a child are still widely told and passed down without end. One says that once the teacher gave a line for the students to match, and the line was: "Plant several pots of flowers, to probe spring and autumn's tidings." Many students could not match it, but Xiong Xiling, without taking time to think much, immediately matched: "Dig a pool of water, to glimpse heaven and earth's fullness and emptiness." This won the teacher's praise. Another says that a provincial graduate surnamed Chen, at Prefect Zhu's home, gave an upper line making fun of Xiong Xiling's surname, and the line was: "Four legs walk, what can you do?" Xiong Xiling's matching line was: "One ear listens, what thing is that?" As soon as this couplet came out, it astonished everyone present, and from then on his reputation as a child prodigy spread quickly. In the end, as a statesman, philanthropist, and educator, he completed his 65-year life.
After Xiong Xiling, another world-famous literary figure from Fenghuang was Shen Congwen. He never attended university, yet he taught at universities; he was extremely good at writing fiction, yet in the prime of his creative years he had to bid farewell to fiction; still less did he study in any school specializing in clothing, yet through textual research he wrote the monumental scholarly work A Study of Ancient Chinese Clothing and Adornment, which was presented to foreign guests as a national treasure. Shen Congwen's life was this unusual, and even the way he was buried after death was different from others. According to his last wishes, no grand farewell ceremony was held, and after cremation his ashes were quietly placed beneath a stone in Listening to the Waves Mountain in his hometown; no coffin or tomb was needed. Shen Congwen's life and death undoubtedly both offer people much useful inspiration.
Fenghuang now also has a famous painter, Huang Yongyu, who is very well known. By the Tuo River, Huang Yongyu has a private residence of distinctive structure named "Laoziju," which in the Xiangxi local dialect carries the sense of sitting big, and this also reveals a glimpse of Old Huang's self-satisfied and self-important character. Next to the private residence is an inn called "Shen Congwen Inn," where outside visitors often love to stay, because in this inn one can face-to-face enjoy the picturesque beauty of Fenghuang's Tuo River and Rainbow Bridge, or may be fortunate enough to meet the resident master Huang Yongyu and ask him about his painting experiences and his friendly interactions with Mr. Shen Congwen, and from this further understand the deeper cultural connotations of all Fenghuang. Fenghuang also has many primitive and ancient folk customs, such as the Spring Festival fair, the Third of the Third Month, the Eighth of the Fourth Month, the Qingming Song Festival, watching the Dragon Fair, the Sixth of the Sixth Month, the Seventh of the Seventh Month, the Autumn Fair, and so on. Their rich folk customs fill this small town with boundless vitality and charm.