The Clear Tuo River
When traveling to Fenghuang Ancient Town in Xiangxi, you will see a river winding around the town. This river is beautiful and elegant, and its name is the Tuo River. According to the "Fenghuang County Annals," the Tuo River originates from two upstream tributaries. One is the Niaochao River, which originates from the Nanshan Canyon in Dusha, Heku; the other is the Longtang River, which originates from Duoxi. Both rivers first flow through neighboring Guizhou, then turn back to Fenghuang and converge at Manjiang. These two tributaries flow through an area over 90 kilometers long...
When traveling to Fenghuang Ancient Town in Xiangxi, you will see a river winding around the town. This river is beautiful and elegant, and its name is the Tuo River.
According to the "Fenghuang County Annals," the Tuo River originates from two upstream tributaries. One is the Niaochao River, which originates from the Nanshan Canyon in Dusha, Heku; the other is the Longtang River, which originates from Duoxi. Both rivers first flow through neighboring Guizhou, then turn back to Fenghuang and converge at Manjiang. These two tributaries flow through an area over 90 kilometers long, with a drainage area of over 270 square kilometers, passing through nine townships including La'ershan, Machong, Luochaowen, Duli, Nanhuashan, Tuojiang Town, Guanzhuang, Qiaoxikou, and Mujiangping. Finally, they flow through Luxi to Jishou, where they merge with the Dong River and empty into the Wushui, an upstream tributary of the Yuan River.
Within Fenghuang, the Tuo River is not only the largest river in the county but also the one most closely related to the production and life of the Fenghuang people.
For thousands of years, the Fenghuang people living on both banks of the Tuo River have had many unforgettable feelings about this river. For example, the famous writer Shen Congwen, who grew up by the Tuo River, wrote in his autobiography: "My emotions flow but do not solidify; a clear wave has had no small influence on me. The more beautiful parts of my childhood life were mostly inseparable from water... I learned to think, to recognize beauty, to understand life; water has a great relationship with me."
Shen Congwen also gave examples: in the past few decades, the places where he lived and stayed were all by water, such as the various docks along the upper and lower reaches of the Yuan River, the mouth of the Wusong River in Shanghai, the banks of the Yangtze River in Wuhan, the seaside in Qingdao, the banks of Dianchi Lake in Kunming, and so on. The water in these places gave him various inspirations; water was his good teacher and pure friend. He especially believed: "The virtue of water is inclusiveness; it never rejects or refuses any strange and unusual thing that enters life in different ways, yet it is never tainted or influenced by them." ("The Story of a Legend") Throughout his life, Shen Congwen was open-minded and tolerant, humble and gentle. He never competed with others for anything. Even when treated unfairly, he could silently endure. How similar his temperament is to the character of water. Shen Congwen also analyzed: "The character of water seems particularly fragile and easily subdued. In fact, within its weakness there is toughness. If concentrated at one point, even a trickle can wear through stone, yet it is indestructible. Water taught me to blend the ordinary sorrows and joys of a humble life, and to dream of sailing across the sea, stimulating my eternal desire for work and my enthusiasm for pursuing ideals beyond ordinary personal gains and losses." ("The Story of a Legend") These words are actually a true portrayal of Shen Congwen's own character.
Shen Congwen was inseparable from water throughout his life. Even after his death, his family, according to his wish, brought his ashes back to his hometown. Part was scattered in the Tuo River, and part was buried at the foot of Tingtao Mountain by the Tuo River, so that his soul could continuously listen to the endless surging of the Tuo River day and night.
Today, when people visit Shen Congwen's grave to pay their respects, thinking of the various hardships this literary master suffered during his lifetime and the achievements he made through perseverance, who can help but sigh at the greatness and nobility of his water-like virtue?
The man has passed but his exemplary conduct remains; his pure heart is passed down through all ages. The surging Tuo River will forever accept and soothe the immortal soul of this returning wanderer with its joyful song.