Yangcheng Evening News "Huizhou Wenmei" October 13 layout
During the "Double Festival" holiday, Huizhou Boluo ushered in a boom in rural tourism. In particular, Xutian Ancient Village, located in the southern foothills of Luofu, attracts tens of thousands of tourists to swim in the green mountains and rivers and feel the rich historical and cultural heritage. According to preliminary statistics, the total comprehensive tourism income of the local area during the holiday exceeded 10 million yuan.
What is the charm of this ancient village that attracts tourists? In fact, Xu Tian Village is a well-known "martial arts village", which has cultivated 17 military attachés in more than 300 years, and many of Xu's children have been selected. Cultural sites such as Wujingkui, Shide Hall and Duweidi are scattered and have been well preserved and have great historical value. The local customs and folklore are rich and colorful, and in 2013, it was selected as an ancient village in Guangdong Province, which can be described as "the benchmark of Boluo rural culture".
Xutian Village is full of scenery Photo by Wang Xiaohu
Brave and fierce martial generals are frequent, and the literary style is prosperous
As soon as you enter Xutian Village, you can see that the environment in the village is clean and tidy, with antique buildings one after another, dotted with green mountains. Three or two tourists walk along the green path, leisurely and comfortable. In the distance, there are heavy mountains, dense forests, and noisy birds and streams, as the couplet says: "The door welcomes the island with three thousand waves, and the household provides four hundred peaks for Luomen." ”
The history of Xutian Village can be traced back to the last year of the Kangxi Dynasty of the Qing Dynasty, when the ancestor of Xutian Village, Lai Fenggong, moved from Wuhua Changle to Boluo Chen Wutian, where he flourished and lived in peace. As the Xu family grew and had a significant impact on the local area, "Chen Wutian" was renamed "Xu Tian Village".
For a long time, the Xu family was a well-known wealthy family in the Dongjiang River Valley, with a wealth of talents and many officials serving in the imperial court. According to village history, Xu Tian Jiancun has produced 17 military attachés so far. Among them, Xu Qiurong was named "Wuluo Cavalry Lieutenant"; Xu Ji won the Jingkui in the Daoguang period Enke Juxiang; Xu Biguang was appointed to the Qing Dynasty "according to the capital division zhaomo"; Xu Shengguang served as the "Thousand Chiefs" of the Qing Dynasty; Wu Xisheng Xu Shaofang served as the commander of the Right Battalion (a certain barracks in the Qing Dynasty)...
The most famous is Wu Xieyuan Xu Zhaolin. He has been studying martial arts since childhood, diligent and studious, and was an official to the capital (zhengsanpin), and was the highest official in the family. The "Boluo County Chronicle" recorded: "Xu Zhaolin, Zimingge. Fukuda people. Daoguang Jia Wu Xie Yuan. to put the total. In the early days of Xianfeng, there was a commotion in the four directions, and Zhaolin attacked Luoding Jiangzhong on the orders of the governor (Liangguang) Ye Mingchen. He was also served by the governor (Liangguang) Xu Guangjin, who fought between Jiangsu (Jiangsu) and Lake (Hubei and Hunan), all of which were meritorious. Admire the blue ling... and through the journey, the official to the capital..."
Although Xu Zhaolin was a horse all his life and an official to the third grade, he was never proud of his achievements, but was cautious and generous, and was respectful and humble like a scholar. According to the "History of Xu Tian Village", when he was a teenager, he served his parents and elders at home with courtesy; When he lived in Beijing for an official, he feasted and drank with celebrities, but he did not look like a person who practiced martial arts in his correspondence. When returning to his hometown and province, when he arrives in the township, he dismounts and walks, and he will be humble when he meets his elders; When encountering the villagers, they will ask about suffering, so they are deeply praised by the villagers. To this day, Xu Zhaolin's heroic deeds are still talked about by future generations, and villagers repaired his former residence and built statues for him.
The capital that the emperor ordered to be built for Xu Zhaolin is still intact to this day
Xu Zhaolin's noble virtues are the epitome of the Xu family's emphasis on culture and education. Xu Zhaolin's grandfather Xu Yingzhi is a well-known local "great benevolent person", who works hard all year round, is willing to give charity, and is willing to do everything such as disaster relief and warmth to the neighbors. Under the guidance of their ancestors, the children of the Xu family paid attention to cultural inheritance, and the rites and religions were passed down from generation to generation, and the three brothers Xu Yingzhi, Xu Yingyang and Xu Yingzuo were among the best.
The three Xu brothers took "Four Books and Five Classics" as their motto in life, were humble and kind, attached importance to righteousness, and became famous. After the discovery, there were study rooms for children and grandchildren to read. With the growth of the Xu family, more and more people of the Xu family study, they do good deeds and accumulate virtue, and jointly build a library... The literary style is very popular.
The Samsung Library is a testimony to this humanistic tale. In other villages, it is rare to have a separate library like this. "Three stars" refers to the three Xu brothers, the owners of the library. During the Qianlong period, the clansmen specially named the study room "Three Star Library" to show their gratitude. Since then, it has become a blessed place for Xu Tian Village, giving birth to generations of Xu clan literary and martial arts talents, and now the library has been turned into a cultural square, which continues to benefit the villagers.
Ancient buildings are dotted with new life
Xu Tian Village's literary style is prosperous and timeless. Walking around the village, cultural sites can be seen everywhere. In addition to the Sanxing Library, monuments such as Wujingkui, Side Hall and Duwei Di are well preserved and have considerable historical and cultural value. In recent years, the local area has been restored to the old ones, which has brought the ancient buildings back to life.
When it comes to the ancient village context, the ancestral hall is the focus that cannot be avoided. As a symbol of cultural inheritance, the Xu Ancestral Hall sits west to east, with two gatehouses on both sides, north and south. It was built in the early leaves of Qianlong and covers an area of 1500 square meters. The architectural layout is three into two horizontal houses, with patios and corridors.
It is worth mentioning that there are also 3 pairs of 6 mast clamps standing in front of the door of the Xu Ancestral Hall. There are stone carvings in each pair of masts, recording the meritorious names obtained by the Xu family's children, which are "Daoguang Jia Wunian Enke Xieyuan Xu Zhaolin Li", "Daoguang Gengzi Nian Enke Jingkui Xu Jieli", "Guangxu Ding Younian Xu Bo Anli", although it has gone through storms, the handwriting is still clearly visible.
Not far from the ancestral hall is Xu Zhaolin's former residence, Du Weidi, which was built by the emperor's order. From a distance, the surrounding trees of the capital are shady, and the environment is quiet and peaceful. The building was built in the Xianfeng period of the Qing Dynasty, covering an area of more than 330 square meters, is a two-entry small courtyard building, which has been well preserved. There are two murals at the top of the main wall, namely "Immortal Game Map" and "Jiang Gong Fishing Map". There are also murals on the walls on both sides of the apse, which are mandarin duck matching drawings, water chicken wearing reeds, etc., which are exquisite and the color has not faded. After more than 100 years of vicissitudes, Xiaodu Weidi has witnessed historical changes and recorded the glory of the Xu family.
Located next to the Duwei, the Five Classics are even more spectacular. This is an ancient building in the Hakka walled house style, built by Xu Yingzhi, one of the three brothers of the Xu family, and was built during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. Wujingkui covers an area of 5,070 square meters, and the building pattern is three into two horizontal houses, with nine halls and eighteen wells and more than 30 rooms. On each side of the rear wing, there is a watchtower, more than 3 feet high, the wall is about two feet thick, and the carved wall is covered with artillery emplacements and gun holes, which are said to be left over from the Anti-Japanese War, and this carved wall once protected the villagers.
The many links of the Five Jingkui can confirm Xu's good family style and family discipline. Above the main entrance of the Five Jing Kui, there is a stone plaque of "Five Jing Kui", and a pair of yang lian: "Three stars in the household; Master of the Five Classics. The "Five Classics" refer to Yi, Shu, Poem, Rite, Spring and Autumn. The joint meaning is that when the Xu brothers were alive, they took "Five Classics and Four Books" as their motto in life, and they were humble and generous, attached importance to righteousness and fame. There is a small gatehouse on the left and right sides of the Five Jingkui. The gate gate on the left still retains a stone relief carving: "Civilization is advancing day by day; Lin Maochun Chang. "Horizontal criticism: "Wenlindi".
In recent years, Wujingkui has been renovated and become a rural cultural "museum", and two hand-copied pen and ink house deeds on rice paper are displayed on site. According to the staff, it was found between the green bricks on the roof during repairs, and it is well preserved and has become a rural cultural relic. After renovation and renovation, the Wujingkui is now clean and tidy, and the house also has added exhibition panels such as the development history of Xu Tian Village, the story of Xu Zhaolin's conquest of the battlefield, and the evolution of the imperial examination system. Tourists go deep into it, as if visiting a "museum", fully appreciate the rich characteristic history and culture of Xutian Village.
Wujingkui turned into a rural cultural "museum" Photo by Nie Yue
Adjacent to the Five Classics, Shide Hall is an ancient building in the style of a traditional Hakka walled house, built by Xu Yingyang and built in the late Daoguang period. Side Hall covers an area of 1,500 square meters, and the architectural layout is three into two horizontal houses, with gatehouses on both sides. A wooden plaque of "Four Virtues Hall" (relief) hangs on the bucket beam of the main hall. The walls of the gate are paved with stones, and there are two bluestone seats in the door, which are turquoise in color and uniform in texture, and it is said that the stone seats are taken from the depths of Luofu Mountain.
Throughout the ancient buildings of Xutian Village, almost all of them are equipped with halls, rooms, patios, corridors, etc. The layout is all connected according to the households, the corridors are connected, the houses are neatly arranged, symmetrical left and right, staggered; The murals, woodcuts, window carvings, stone stones, etc. on the building are well preserved, and their exquisite patterns and exquisite craftsmanship fully reflect the architectural style characteristics of Lingnan ancient houses in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and also represent the high level of folk architecture and the profound cultural heritage of that time.
Some experts believe that the orientation of the architectural pattern here contains the mysterious concept of feng shui: each ancient building is built against the mountain, surrounded by bamboo forests, and the environment is elegant. The village is run by rivers, full of natural stones, clear water, and surrounded by green mountain paths, fully demonstrating the ideal home of Lingnan villages in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The ancient buildings of Xutian Village are well preserved and have high historical and cultural value Photo by Wang Xiaohu
The folk customs are rich and charming
Xutian Village has a variety of folk activities and is a typical example of Hakka culture. For example, marrying "invite three dynasties", "pass three dynasties", celebrate the New Year "seal the New Year", and "bless the moonlight" in the Mid-Autumn Festival, etc., showing the depth of cultural heritage. Among them, "upper lantern" refers to hanging the lantern, which has the meaning of "adding lantern" and "adding ding", which is highly valued by local villagers.
The lighting ceremony is solemn and rigorous. The fourth day of the first lunar month of each year is the time set by Xu Tian Village. Before turning on the lamp, you need to clean up in the ancestral hall and paste the new couplet and the portrait of the door god; Go to a folk craftsman and buy a beautiful lantern and hang it in the upper hall of the ancestral hall with a red-dyed rope. The lantern is about one meter long, the frame is made of bamboo, and then pasted with colored paper, with clear layers, like a small circular building, depicting many dolls, exquisite.
In addition to the lanterns, there are also lanterns, which are similar in size to the drums, except that the lanterns are round, while the drums are square and have a skirt under the lanterns. Four verses are written around the dress, mostly blessings or riddles. At this time, the villagers gather to watch and discuss to see who guessed the most, which is interesting.
The lanterns are also very lively, with gongs and drums along the way, and lion dances and cannons. For a week before and after the lantern was hung, the ancestral hall was lit with candles. On the day of the lantern, the lanterns in the ancestral hall were hung high. The scene was crowded, gongs and drums were noisy, gunshots were heard one after another, gunsmoke filled the sky, and red confetti on the ground rendered a festive atmosphere. The "knotting lantern" is generally held on the 16th day of the first month after the Lantern Festival, and the lantern family takes rich offerings to the ancestral ancestral hall to worship and lower the lamp, and the lantern ceremony is successfully completed.
Xutian Village is not only rich in folk activities, but also rich in products. Shagar is famous and is an important source of income for local villagers. According to Feng Yanqing, women's director of Xutian Village, this is due to the fact that the village is mainly sandy, the soil weathering degree is high, the air permeability is good, the soil layer is deep and loose, and there is well-drained yellow or sandy loam, which is most suitable for the growth of sand kudzu. Xu Tian Shage is large, thin and white skin; It tastes smooth, watery, sweet and delicious. Xutian Shage has always been in short supply, with a total output value of 8 million yuan in 2022 alone.
With the development of beautiful rural construction, the "treasure" village of Xutian Village has been awakened and has become more and more familiar to the outside world. In recent years, the local government has invested funds to carry out renovation and repair, and has successively created benchmark projects such as the Rule of Law Small Park and Lanmen Village under Luofu Mountain, which not only retain the characteristics of ancient architecture, but also deeply excavate Hakka folk culture, military attaché culture and other resources, injecting cultural and creative soul into the ancient village, and is a good place for leisure and vacation for surrounding citizens and tourists.
Xutian Village is clean and tidy, and it is a good place for surrounding citizens and tourists to relax Photo by Wang Xiaohu
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The economic development of Xutian Village is bursting with vitality
A few days ago, the reporter learned from Boluo Futian Town that during the "double festival" of National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival, Futian Town received more than 70,000 tourists, with a total comprehensive tourism income of 12.6 million yuan. As a key tourist place in Futian Town, Xutian Village is even more lively. This is the epitome of the development of Xu Tian Village. It is reported that in 2021, the collective income of Xutian Village was only 130,000 yuan, and by the end of 2022, it will increase to 680,000 yuan, achieving a wonderful transformation.
The popularity of rural tourism in Xutian Village is unabated Photo by Luo Shumeng
The change in Xutian Village began with the start of construction of the Rural Revitalization Demonstration Zone around Luofu Mountain. Since 2021, Boluo County has promoted the construction of five rural revitalization demonstration belts, including "Huanluofu Mountain", helping to build a model of Guangdong's rural revitalization demonstration belt that can be seen, learned and promoted in the province.
As an important node of the rural revitalization demonstration belt around Luofu Mountain, Xutian Village revitalizes resources, integrates fields, and attracts investment. According to Xu Guangquan, secretary of the general branch of the party in Xutian Village, Xutian Village has the advantages of historical and cultural resources and original ecological environment resources, and has innovated cultural and agricultural tourism integration tourism routes and theme activities according to local conditions, and the tourism effect of ancient village is obvious.
The camp economy is also an important driving force for Xutian's development. Once a deserted wasteland, now a starry sky camp that combines camping, sightseeing and amusement experiences has been built, bringing vitality and vitality to the quiet village and attracting a large number of tourists. "Camping is also connected with fruits such as sand kudzu and lotus fog to further promote the sales of agricultural products!" Xu Guangquan said.
In the Lanmen Group of Xutian Village, strolling along the village road, the neat farm courtyard comes into view, and the wall paintings of the courtyard are dotted among them, and the idyllic scenery is unforgettable. Who would have thought that the "net red village" in front of him was built from a hollow village. At the end of 2022, the local area actively introduced social capital, on the basis of retaining the original taste of farmhouses, combined with the tourism and cultural characteristics of Luofu Mountain, to create a high-end residential pastoral health project integrating tourism, health preservation, leisure and culture. At the same time, villagers are provided with the opportunity to find employment at their doorstep.
Nowadays, on weekends and holidays, attractions such as Wujingkui, Lanmen B&B, and Tian Xiaoye Campground are full of popularity, and tourists listen to the history and culture, taste local food, and enjoy the natural scenery. "The air is fresh, the environment is nice, visiting ancient buildings, fruit picking, camping campfires, and the atmosphere of rural tours!" Qiu Ming's family, who just visited the ancient village on National Day, planned to stay two more days next time.
Coordination, planning | Chen Xiaopengwen | Reporter Li Haichan Correspondent Chen Xiaodong
Source | Yangcheng Evening News
Responsible Editor | Huang Lei