Nandu Weekly Contributing Writer/Photo: Jiang Bing
A few days ago, I went to Shantou University for a meeting and arranged to go to the Light Show of Guangji Bridge in Chaozhou. Drive an hour from Shantou to the ancient city of Chaozhou for dinner. Originally thought that after many visits, the novelty disappeared and there was no inspiration for writing. Unexpectedly, the ancient wind is blowing, and the interest is still there.
During the day, I visited the last half hour to enter the Kaiyuan Temple, because my colleague Mr. Jiang Shuzhuo studied religion, and there were many introductions to the scriptures, etc., which inevitably delayed, and when I went out, I found that the gate was closed, the concierge was off work, and I was worried about being closed. Unexpectedly, the door was left, pulled open, and closed again. At this time, as the sun sets, I suddenly sigh: My Buddha is compassionate and people's hearts are friendly. Chaoshan was good, and added a few points.
Kaiyuan Temple @ Chaozhou Kaiyuan Temple public number
Archway Street has visited many times, turned into the small street, found the tide embroidery shop, very exquisite and exquisite, gold thread into the embroidery, concave and convex, strong three-dimensional sense; the next door paving is renewed, because of a change in the traditional mascot theme and very modern Chinese painting sense, Wu Guanzhong landscape sketch copy embroidery, even brought out a little fashion. Accidentally found Wu Nansheng calligraphy in the corner of the wall, a famous artist! I shouted.
Shopkeeper's Road: Famous artists? I also have Rao Zongwei calligraphy. I exclaimed: How do I get it? The shopkeeper Liang Jie smiled calmly: The master is my grandmother's cousin! It was a great surprise to hear this. Tell Guangzhou to visit and admire the master. Beautiful sister Chen Jingjing immediately enthusiastically introduced the tide embroidery, and did not disappoint because we did not buy it, only said that the fate of the fate, let people move.
Out of the alley, and then follow the celebrity former residence road sign into another alley, to Songlu, a look at the door number, it turned out to be related to Master Rao - his father Rao's former residence, and later sold to others. The Rao family was once a big man in Chaozhou City, and perhaps the ancestral house was left behind in the family road.
Chaoshan restaurant, the taste of Chaoshan in the bones. Goose eye-catching, platter flavor, goose head is the most expensive; Puning tofu, leek white vinegar, unique in the world; golden soup flower gum soup, similar to Guangfu flower glue soup; shrimp pomegranate balls, is the usual ingredients carefully cared for, fresh shrimp and mushroom diced bamboo shoots and other filling, wrapped products, and Western food, is beautiful, appetizing.
Goose
Teochew oyster sauce is the most famous, and Taiwan fried oyster sauce is the same root of the same origin, delicious oyster sauce white and tender, mixed into the egg sauce oil fried into a cake, color and flavor are complete, the taste is smooth and crispy, the quality is particularly good; as for hand-beaten beef, beef hot pot, etc. are even more wonderful, beautiful. It is a fruit platter, which is also different because it is seasoned with passion fruit juice.
It can really be said that "food is in Guangzhou, taste is in Chaozhou".
Teochew oysters
Eating dinner and stepping into archway street again, it is the moment of lights: the lights radiate, the archway and the ancient city gatehouse are bright, the sense of layering is prominent, and "the great shore and the majestic" are not enough to describe. Ancient streets and ancient buildings and ancient city walls, bustling residents, brightly lit shops, pots and pans filled with snacks, satisfied diners, the thousand-year-old city tradition continues to flow at night, like the Han River under the ancient wall, running day and night, never ending.
In Chaoshan you can feel the "farming like embroidery", feel the satisfaction of the daily life of oil, salt, sauce and vinegar tea, and make people think deeply: the GDP level and happiness are not directly proportional, and the Chaoshan people have successfully maintained their self-sufficient world. Kung Fu tea, chao cai, tide craft, tide sacrifice...
A Liu, a scholar in Guangzhou, believes that although the Chaoshan people have maintained a self-sufficient living world so far, the elites have not stayed in this self-sufficient world, but only occasionally go back to feel happiness.
It seems that the life traditions maintained by Chaoshan people cannot fully meet the life needs of modern young people, and happiness is also different views of different people, depending on what their respective life needs? This question is worth discerning.
Small cities have fewer job opportunities and fewer life options, but they are certain. Just imagine, if there were no Chaoshan people going to the South China Sea to work hard, what would be the wealth and cultural influence of the Chaoshan people?
Chenghai, formerly an independent county and city; now, a district of Shantou. The People of Chenghai said that there was Chenghai first, and then there was Shantou. Seniors and juniors, seniority is very different.
Chenghai's three major business cards: red-headed ship, Zhanglin Port and Chen Cidi's former residence. They are closely related to Shantou Port. Shantou opened its port in 1860 and became an important foreign trade port in modern China, and its previous life was Chenghai Zhanglin Port. The sequence of historical evolution is as follows: the red-headed ship departed from Zhanglin Port for a hundred years, and as the coastline retreated, Shantou Port gradually replaced the old wharf. Therefore, it is said that the past life is the present life, the camphor forest is the past life, and Shantou is the present life.
History is inherently a turn of feng shui. Chaozhou Bayi, delineated the ancient Chaoshan culture map. Chaoshan Cultural Center has different generations: Jieyang during the Han Dynasty, Chaozhou during the Tang and Song Dynasties, and Chenghai during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Because the starting point of the Hai Silk Road is in the ancient port of Zhanglin in Chenghai, the red-headed ships sail far away, and the maritime trade drives the economy.
With Zhanglin Port, there is also the Shantou Port behind. "The steamship entered the port of Shantou", and the modernization of Chaoshan began.
Chaoshan business is concentrated in Shantou Port, a large number of foreign capital entered, and shantou port opening is attributed to the century-old paving of Chenghai Zhanglin Ancient Port. From the front sea boat docked in the open sea, the small boat pulled cargo along the ancient port river into the port. Chenghai Zhanglin Ancient Wharf was once an important marine tax place in Guangdong, and the taxes collected by Guangdong from the five ports of Chenghai Zhanglin Port were very important, and the tax revenue of "multiplying by the land of bullets" accounted for 1/5 of the province.
The writer Cong Weixi once wrote an inscription: The name is in Shantou, and the soul is in Chenghai. It is also the meaning of the past life and the present life. Overseas Chinese have also played an important role in the modern development of Chenghai.
As soon as I entered the former residence of Chen Cidi, I asked Mr. Chen Yuezi, vice chairman of the Shantou Writers Association: What is the living standard of the villagers today? He replied: Medium, "Panpan Yin Tang Shan Fu", in the past, the economic foundation of overseas Chinese was well laid. I first read it in the novels of the Chaoshan writer Guo Xiaodong, and then saw the physical objects in the Jiangmen Museum, marveling at the huge number. According to statistics, the total number of existing overseas Chinese batches is about 160,000, and the number of Chaoshan overseas Chinese batches exceeds 120,000.
At the Shantou University conference, professor Gao Xiaokang, a famous scholar, mentioned again in his speech: I saw 8 pieces of 7 mao 1 denomination of overseas Chinese, imagined men working hard overseas, rushed to Qianzhuang, and poured all their mail to their hometown relatives... When it comes to emotion, I can't help but choke. My heart was also hot and my heart was pounding.
Overseas Chinese approval
A professor who has seen all the past and the present is so emotional, it can be seen that the overseas Chinese criticism not only contains gold coins, but also many elements other than money: emotions, blood, family, ethics, and so on. At the same time, it can also help us understand the inner meaning of "Guangdong is far from the Central Plains and close to the sea".
Thinking about it carefully, a batch of overseas Chinese is not only a remittance slip - life-saving money in the era of poverty, but also contains the family value of Du Fu's "family letter to ten thousand gold". The analysis of overseas Chinese from the perspectives of political economy and culture, family ethics and blood relations, etc., can be seen in its value. Mr. Chen Yuezi also specially showed me the ancestral overseas Chinese approval he had reserved, which made my understanding more specific and cordial.
When the trade of Zhanglin Wharf is in the sky, it is also the day when Zhanglin is rich, with a foundation of economic wealth, culture and education, and celebrities. Among them, the former residence of contemporary essayist Qin Mu is in the middle of a piece of residential house by the Gugang River - "Four Points of Gold".
Former residence of Qin Mu
Red-headed ships, out of the sea, down to the South Sea, thousands of tide children to go forward and follow, several generations of relay, and finally have great achievers, win thousands of wealth, so the clothes return to their hometown, return to their hometown, return to their hometown. People may not return, but they will build houses without delay. The Chenghai overseas Chinese giant rich Thai Chen Cidi family is a case in point. Huge investment, spare no effort to return to the hometown to build a large mansion - recorded in the annals of history, the miraculous Lingdong architectural courtyard.
The size of Chen Cidi's former residence has long been heard: at twelve o'clock in the day, in the early morning, it takes an hour to open all doors and windows; at dusk, it takes an hour to close all doors and windows. Even so, arriving at the manor was still a great surprise to me: the scale was huge, the houses were like a whole lot.
The manor integrates Nanyang elements, foreign cement and other materials, coupled with exquisite craftsmanship, brick by brick, column by column, all have Chaoshan characteristics and Nanyang atmosphere. The history of Chinese architecture is highly evaluated: it enjoys the same status as Suzhou Garden Humble Administrator's Garden, Canglang Garden, Hu Xueyan's Former Residence, Shanxi Qiaojia Courtyard and other Chinese residences.
Chenghai people's personality due to its proximity to the sea, relatively speaking, more cheerful and decisive, more masculine, not dragging mud and water, with the sea personality, which is what we call the "red-headed boat spirit" - dare to fight, challenge the sea, challenge the fate. The locals informed that the Chenghai people are similar to the Raoping people and are more decisive than chaozhou; but they are more cultured than Raoping; Raoping and the Chenghai people are geographically adjacent and emotionally close.
However, outsiders believe that Chenghai people are a bit "arrogant", have a sense of superiority from historical traditions, and the economic center of the past is still the "toy capital" today, and the advantages of various historical realities can also be regarded as cultural self-confidence, right? Does this fall under the "local narrative" perspective? However, their respective preferences are also taken for granted. Collect wind essays, talk about preparation.
Chenghai was the center of Chaoshan in the Ming and Qing dynasties, and one of the examples of leading fashion trends: the lyrics and dialogue of Chao opera are all Chenghai dialect, and the Chao opera actors are mostly Chenghai people; Yao Xuanqiu, the representative artist of Chao opera, is the authentic Chenghai people.
The father of the writer Chen Yuezi is a primary school principal who loves to write and has two works. His grandfather was a folk lantern entertainer in chenghai village. This craft has now become a folk craft that his family has inherited for a hundred years, and his uncle and cousin have inherited this craft.
The bamboo behind the village, the knife in the hand, the workshop of the ancestral house, the countless golden, slender and flexible strips, the skeleton of the lantern woven into the sky--it is a craft in itself: the lines are intertwined and looped, soft and elastic, with a smooth and dynamic sense of modern design; under the sun, it presents a labyrinth of dreamlike patterns that amaze me.
The skeleton is wrapped in cotton paper, painted, written in red letters, and immediately returns to the old days in the countryside, the days of the festival of the gods, reflecting the moonlight and lighting candles.
Nowadays, Huangyuan oil paper lanterns, breaking through the traditional production methods and sales models, online shopping online sales, popular market; these lanterns are not only used by local rural festivals and tourists, but also gradually open sales channels at home and abroad, a large lantern is priced at four or five hundred yuan, the other party looks at the sample order, here the carton packaging, express delivery to home. The lanterns range from small to large, with strong characteristics and festive and auspicious. In order to decorate some restaurants, they can customize a long dragon-like lantern formation, which is spectacular.
Zhanglin Town Seafood Farm, full of Chenghai cuisine folk flavor. Agave, also known as arapaima, sole fish, scientific name flounder: flat flat wide wide thin fish body, fish meat tender and abnormal; the fish head with chopsticks clamped, the whole fish into the mouth, skillfully grasp the teeth and tongue strength, gently drag, the fish meat is off, the complete fish bones are dragged out.
The flavored oyster sauce named after Chen Qi, a local writer in Zhanglin, is also a good product. Chaozhou oyster sauce is filled with tofu fish on the basis of adding tofu fish, increasing its tender taste, tofu fish is also called dragon head fish, if the tofu is melted in the mouth; dragon's whiskers fish ball soup, dragon's whiskers are specially planted as feed for farmed abalone; abalone belongs to the forefront of mountain treasures and seafood, and its feed is equally precious. Bamboo clams are seafood with a tender and tender taste and toughness.
Dragon's whiskers fish ball soup
Three kinds of kway teows are a synthetic platter: leek kway, shrimp kway, and taro duck kway, each with its own delicacies, which can be used as a staple food or as a refreshment. Chen Qi gave me a bag of rat shell koeh, the shape is like a sharp rat head, there is a printed pattern, very exquisite. Rat shell kway contains fillings, both meat and vegetarian, which can be played by each family; for example, vegetables and pork fillings with shrimp skin. Although the kway teow is small, it is also fresh and fresh, and the characteristics are rich.
Chenghai lion-headed goose, famous, even as a famous brand into Guangzhou.
This goose is the ingredient of the brine goose, deeply loved by Guangdong diners: "Halogen Goose Research Institute" is one of the most popular chain restaurants at present. The lion's head goose is the largest of the current edible geese, and its meat is rich and delicious. When I first visited Chaoshan, I saw how much the locals loved it, and I loved this goose.
Unexpectedly, I saw a group of captive lion-headed geese next to the ancient pier stone stele, and sure enough, the shore was majestic, striding with its head held high, and the cry was loud. I shouted, immediately responded enthusiastically, approaching in groups, but quite friendly, not pecking at me, dancing with excitement, as if directing a group of young and beautiful boys without cappella male chorus.
Chenghai also has a strange forest fruit worth mentioning. The year before, Wenyou sent four pieces, which was very impressive. There are two wonderful things: the shape of the fruit resembles a Shakya fruit, which echoes with the Buddha's hair bun, and I see it for the first time, and I feel buddha-like; and between the flesh and skin, a layer of sticky jam like a grease paste, sweet and soft in the mouth, refreshing.
Lin Dan Guo is a Nanyang variety landed in Chenghai, after a hundred years of cultivation into a local famous product, in 1986 won the "Guangdong Province Excellent Rare Fruit Quality Variety Award". People and property, mail, architecture, lifestyle, values and traditions are mostly related to the maritime trade of red-headed ships. The sea breeze blows, the "oceanic" mercury pours out, everywhere.
No wonder the Chaoshan people pride themselves on the spirit of "red-headed boats". "Oceanic" is definitely a key to understanding Guangdong's regional culture. Looking up at the tall red-headed boats on the ancient docks, imagine the Chaoshan predecessors setting anchor and sailing: there is no modern power of steel ships and iron armor, and there is no marine weather forecast to protect; under difficult conditions, the scene of challenging the vast sea with life and death: its ambition is also tenacious, and its momentum is also magnificent! The waves are raging, dare to break through and dare to fight the tide also.